Rumi

The name Mevlana Celaleddin-i Rumi stands for Love and ecstatic flight into the infinite. Rumi is one of the great spiritual masters and poetical geniuses of mankind and was the founder of the Mevlevi Sufi order, a leading mystical brotherhood of Islam.

Rumi was born on 30 September 1207 in Balkh in present day Afghanistan to a family of learned theologians. Escaping the Mongol invasion and destruction, Rumi and his family traveled extensively in the Muslim lands, performed pilgrimage to Mecca and finally settled in Konya, Anatolia, then part of Seljuk Empire. When his father Bahaduddin Valad passed away, Rumi succeeded his father in 1231 as professor in religious sciences. Rumi 24 years old, was an already accomplished scholar in religious and positive sciences.The mevlevi brotherhood is founded completely on love and tolerance. He died on 17 December 1273 in Konya in present day Turkey. He was laid to rest beside his father and over his remains a splendid shrine was erected. The 13th century Mevlana Mausoleum with its mosque, dance hall, dervish living quarters, school and tombs of some leaders of the Mevlevi Order continues to this day to draw pilgrims from all parts of the Muslim and non-Muslim world.

The Exalted Mevlana is saint of love : gave his heart to the creator and he taught us to speak always of love and to love all creation as being from the Creator. He asks,

"If you fill a jug from the ocean , how much can it hold ? One day’s supply."

Thus. Just as the ocean can only fill the jug to its capacity , so mevlana can only fit into words and our perception in proportion to our capacity . In any case , Mevlana is beyond the highest and finest conception. He said,  

"Be a lover , a lover. Choose love that you might be a chosen one."

To give up one’s own existence and become non-existent in God , that is , to bind ones’s heart completely to God , is shortest way to God . Whoever has given his heart to the Divine Truth has no “self ” left . It is god who moves every particle of him. In this way that person no longer  acts in accordance with his ego , doing the bad things that would cause harm to others. He has become enfolded in the moral principles of God . Exalted Mohammed and the Exalted Mevlana  are examples of these qualities for us.

Mevlana is limitless being , unable to be contained by this world. He is the Divine Voice giving the good news to those seeking beauty , truth , goodness , light and Divine Truth. He is the voice of mercy offering consolation to those under tyranny. He is the breath of  healing , bestowing health  on those crying out in separation. He is the teacher of humanness to humans. He teaches that every thing is within the human being and that the whole universe is under man’s command.

Mevlana is a great lover of the Divine Truth. He is the master of love . He himself is love . To those who asked what love was he answered thus

"Be like me and know ; whether in light or darkness , until you have been like this you can ’t completely know love."

Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi is an illustrious being , Divine Light , a spritual sun who brought a brand new message to human thinking ; who offered the ideas and system of Islamic thought and articles of faith within the triangle of spirit , mind and love ; who opened new horizon to man by adding excitement to the way of morals , religion , wisdom , and knowledge . The greatest message  he brought to human thinking is Love , Divine Love and Unity.

 Rumi brought enthusiasm to hearts with his saintly characteristics ; he was a saint , spritual master , whose human mind had been bathed in light ; he cleanses hearts and minds of impurities and rescues them from duality.

He rejects nothing but rather unites , perfects and causes love. He is prejudiced toward none  because he knows that everything is the manifestation and actualization of God and he reflects this as a spritual state to the mind and heart of man Mevlana is asuperior and saintly master . He is a system in himself  , a life  an order. He is a monument to spritually who , through his sublimity , displayed his moral values , his knowledge , wisdom love , intelligence , perception of God , behaviour , everything . His is the true representative of the prophets  , the highest element and realization of love and intelligence.

"Man is the nost honorable of all creation."

is one of his maxims.

The Exalted Mevlana embraced those of every language , creed  and race or color ; he is the symbol of love peace , brotherhood, and tolerance.
 
The night of 17 December is the holiest in the Mevlevî calendar, a night of union, a wedding night (Şeb-i Arus), when Mevlana departed the mortal world to become one with He who loves and is loved. It is not a time to mourn but to rejoice: At my death do not lament our separation...As the sun and moon but seem to set,In reality this is a rebirth. Each year thousands of people from the far corners of the world, travel to Konya in response to Mevlana’s call of 735 years ago:

"Come, come again, whoever you are, come!
Heathen, fire worshipper or idolatrous, come!
Come even if you broke your penitence a hundred times,
Ours is the portal of hope, come as you are."

To understand Mevlana one should read his works. It is suggested to start with his major work, The Masnavi .

Mevlana's books are translated to many languages and are among the best selling books of their sort all over the world. At present, Mevlana, better known there as Rumi, is the "best selling poet" in United States of America. The Essential Rumi by Coleman Barks has sold more than a quarter of a million copies and is one of the top 1000 best selling books at Amazon. It is by far the largest selling poem book ever!

UNESCO decided to be associated with the celebration of 800th anniversary of the birth of Mevlana Celaleddin-i Rumi during the year 2007.