Masnavi

The Masnavi-ye Ma'navi is the poem Rumi recited in Konya in the last years of his life and his disciple Husam al-Din Chelebi wrote down. It is in Persian and runs to about 25,000 couplets.

It opens with the lines "Listen to the reed, how it complains": the reed torn from its bed tells of the soul's grief at separation from its origin. Hundreds of stories, parables and commentaries interweave, speaking of love, patience, the training of the self and the human journey to God.

In Ottoman times many commentaries were written on it and special Masnavi lessons were taught in Mevlevi lodges. It has been translated into dozens of languages and remains one of the most-read classical poems.