The Rumi Collection

Amazon.com Review\nAmerica's bestselling poet, 13th-century Sufi bard Rumi, would feel as overwhelmed as the rest of us when trying to pick out just the right collection of his translated masterpieces. To the rescue comes Kabir Helminski, a modern-day Sufi who has wrapped up a sampler of Rumi's inspirational poems. Let's not object that about half of the translations are from Kabir's own hand (in cooperation with his wife, Camille) since they are excellent in their own respect and are accompanied by pieces from the likes of Robert Bly, Coleman Barks, and Andrew Harvey. As editor, Helminski spans the range of Rumi's oeuvre, from the contemplative "Stay Close, My Heart" to the ecstatic "Drowned in God" to the whimsical "Animal Cookies." The magic of Rumi is his imagery. The journey to God comes cloaked in such guises as a tailor, bread, buttermilk, a surgeon, chickpeas, the edge of a roof, a beggar, a jar, and an elephant's dream. Two of the tastiest treats are "Eating Poetry" and "Love Is Like a Lawsuit." --Brian Bruya\nIn recent decades the words of the twelfth-century mystic Rumi have been read in North America perhaps more than any other poet. This anthology brings together the different voices of the leading translators of Rumi— Coleman Barks, Robert Bly, Andrew Harvey, Kabir and Camille Helminski, and others—allowing us to gain a better sense of the master's voice behind them all. The eighteen chapters are arranged so as to provide a sourcebook for the central themes of Rumi's work, including Inner Work, The Ego Animal, Passion for God, Yearning, Praise, Glory, Surrender, Mercy, and Purity.