WEEK 2: Rumi

This week's wisdom comes to you from:

RUMI
September 30th, 1207 - December 17th, 1273

Rumi, who's birth name was Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi, was born in Persia (now Tajikistan). His father - a scholar, theologian, jurist and mystic, also had a connection to spiritual lineage - all of which obviously had an immense impact on Rumi.

From Wikipedia:

When the Mongols invaded Central Asia sometime between 1215 and 1220, Baha ud-Din Walad, with his whole family and a group of disciples, set out westwards. according to hagiographical account, which is not agreed upon by all Rumi scholars, Rumi encountered one of the most mystic Persian poets - 'Attar'.  Attar immediately recognized Rumi's spiritual eminence. 

He saw the father walking ahead of the son and said, "Here comes a sea followed by an ocean."  He gave te boy is Asramama, a book about the entanglement of the soul in the material world. The meeting had a deep impact on the 18 year old Rumi and later on became the inspiration for his works.

He said: "When we are dead, seek not our tomb in the earth but find it in the hearts of men."  Certainly, almost 740 years later, Rumi's words and wisdom, do indeed rest in many hearts.