The Friendship Poems of Rumi: Translated by Nader Khalili

Translated by renowned Rumi expert Nader Khalili, over 120 poems on friendship from the Persian mystic poet and Sufi master have been carefully collected and curated in this beautifully illustrated edition.

For more than eight centuries, Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi Rumi—commonly referred to simply as Rumi—has enchanted and enthralled readers from every faith and background with his universal themes of love, friendship, and spirituality, which he seamlessly wove into resplendent poetry.

The verses perfectly express the universal importance of friendship in its many forms. A perfect gift to celebrate a special friendship, allow Rumi to exquisitely express the deeper meanings of being, and having, a friend in your life. 

With intricately designed and richly colored covers that mirror the beauty of the words within, the Timeless Rumi series presents themed collections of poems from the great Sufi mystic Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi Rumi that serve as cherished tools for self-reflection.
 

Find Yourself a Friend

find yourself a friend
who is willing to
tolerated you with patience
put to the test the essence
of the best incense
by putting it in fire
drink a cup of poison
if handed to you by a friend
when filled with love and grace
step into the fire
like the chosen prophet
the secret love will change
hot flames to a garden
covered with blossoms
roses and hyacinths and willow
spinning and throwing you
a true friend can hold you
like God and his universe

Jalal ad-Din Rumi, commonly known just as Rumi, was a Persian Sunni Muslim poet, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic whose works, written in the thirteenth century, are popular throughout the world today.

Translator Nader Khalili (1936­­–2008) was a world-renowned Iranian-American architect, author, humanitarian, and teacher. Khalili was also the founder and director of the California Institute of Earth Art and Architecture (Cal-Earth). Khalili was raised by the poetry of Rumi. As a child, his grandmother would recite Rumi’s poetry to lull him to sleep. He later developed a passion for studying and translating Rumi’s works. Rumi’s poetry also became an intrinsic part of Khalili’s architectural career. Inspired by the mystical poetry of Rumi, his architecture was distilled from the timeless principles of this universe and its timeless materials—the elements of earth, air, water, and fire.