“Colorfully woven and beguilingly intelligent.” Infused with Sufi mysticism and Rumi’s incomparable lyrics, and sweetly human in its embrace of our flaws and feelings, Shafak’s shrewd, seductive, and affecting novel brilliantly revives the traditions of Shams and Rumi, and daringly illuminates the differences between religion and spirituality, censure and compassion, fear and love of life in our own violent world.” “As in her previous book, The Bastard of Istanbul, Shafak, a courageous, best-selling Turkish writer, boldly links East and West in converging narratives. “A gorgeous, jeweled, luxurious book.
In an age of deeply-embedded bigotries and clashes, he stood for a universal spirituality, opening his doors to people of all backgrounds.
By meeting this exceptional companion, Rumi was transformed from a mainstream cleric to a committed mystic, passionate poet, advocate of love and originator of the ecstatic dance of the whirling dervishes, daring to break free of all conventional rules. At the same time it marked the beginning of a solid, unique friendship that Sufis in the centuries to follow likened to the meeting of two oceans. Their encounter altered both their lives.
In 1244, Rumi met Shams - a wandering dervish with unconventional ways and heretical proclamations. Nicknamed Mawlana -Our Master- by many, he had thousands of disciples and admirers from all over the region and beyond, and was regarded as a beacon to all Muslims. In the midst of this chaos lived a distinguished Islamic scholar, known as Jalal Al-Din Rumi. Everywhere one turned, there was hostility and anguish, and an intense fear of what might happen next. It was a time of unprecedented chaos when Christians fought Christians, Christians fought Muslims, and Muslims fought Muslims. In between, different Turkish tribes fought among themselves while the Byzantines tried to recover their lost land, wealth and power. In the East, highly disciplined Mongol armies swiftly expanded under the military genius of Genghis Khan.
In the West, the Crusaders, on their way to Jerusalem, occupied and sacked Constantinople, leading to the partition of the Byzantine Empire. The 13th century was a turbulent period in Anatolia, rife with religious clashes, political disputes and endless power struggles.