Gold

Thirteenth-century Persian mystic poet Rumi has long been a favorite among readers for his memorable, aphoristic verses on love and spirituality. Gafori's energetic translation highlights the timelessness of Rumi's work, the untitled poems delivering unforgettable phrases such as "Every religion has Love/ but Love has no religion," and "Look at the earth and sky,/ pawned to existence,/ one blind, one blue." Rumi's introspective nature is revealed throughout: "Put mystery in the middle.// Where is the middle in the middle I am?// And this silver-tongued stream in me--/ when will it grow still enough to know/ the streaming stillness I am?" Elsewhere, his vision is cosmic, as when he asks, "Am I a star in the zodiac,/ cycling through houses of fortune and disaster,/ laughing in one, weeping in another?" Many of these entries offer advice to the reader ("Open your eyes to the four streams/ flowing through you--/ water, milk, honey, wine"). Rumi's deeply contemplative yet accessible poems star in this worthy translation. (Mar.)

In this eloquent, faithful translation of the popular 13th-century poet and mystic Rumi, Persian American poet and musician Gafori opens a fresh window on Rumi's spiritual quest and his urgent invitation to readers to embrace a more enlightened existence. Ecstatic, spinning lines wind through mystical paradoxes--wordless speaker, footless runner, placeless place--toward a sense of wonder and oceanic love. With bracing stoic vigor ("Whatever the ways of the world, what fruits do you bring?") listeners are urged to break free from the fetters of greed, pride, desire, status, reason, duality, and selfhood, and surrender to an ultimate Truth that cannot be fathomed but is delineated through vivid elemental metaphors--earth, thorns, flowers, seas, flames, wine, and yes, gold. VERDICT Both the authority and musicality of Gafori's translation, and her artful selection of excerpts from Rumi's vast and intensely personal Divan-e Shams-e Tabrizi amply justify this book's place in any Rumi collection, where it is sure to provide seeds for contemplation and kindling for spiritual fire.