Persian Poetics

Rumi's Masnawi - Commentaries, Translations

High-quality scans of the best commentaries on Rumi's magnum opus

Rumi's Masnawi - Translations

Translations of Rumi's magnum opus

Books: Rumi's Diwan-i Shams & Translations

The best translations of Rumi's odes (ghazals)

Books: Rumi's Other Works & Translations

Saʿdi - Translations, Editions, Commentaries

Persian Poetics Talks

Recordings of Persian Poetics lectures delivered at various venues across the world.

Dars-i Hafiz - English

Ḥāfiẓ is widely considered the greatest Persian poet. His poetry is ever-present in the hearts and minds of Persianate peoples and it would not be hyperbole to count his work a pillar of modern Iranian identity and culture.

Saʿdī’s Pandnama

Saʿdī Shīrāzī’s ‘Pand-nāma’ or ‘Book of Wisdom,’ also known as ‘Karīmā’ (literally ‘O Kind one’ from the famous opening line above: ‘karīmā bibakhshāy bar ḥāl-i mā’) is a classic text written in the rhyming couplet (masnawī) style, like the Būstān.

Rumi Reading Circle: The Masnawi

Read Rumi every Sunday at 10:30 AM EST.

Saʿdī’s Gulistan - English (2021)

Saʿdī’s Gulistān (Flower Garden) is perhaps the most influential work of Persian prose. The collection of anecdotes helped earn him the nickname ‘afṣaḥ al-mutikallimūn’ (The Most Eloquent Speaker).

Poetess - English (2022)

What was life like for a Mughal princess? Or a women’s rights activist who died for her cause? Or a street musician working the bāzārs of Samarqand? Unheard for centuries, the voices of these remarkable women are now available to us to uncover.

Pearls of the Masnavi - English

Called ‘The Qur'ān in Persian’ by Sufis, the Masnavi is Rumi’s magnum opus. It is among the most important works in the Muslim world, once read from the Balkans to the Bengal.

Saʿdī’s Bustan - English

Considered one of the greatest books of all time, Saʿdī Shīrāzī’s ‘Būstān’ (Orchard) is a compilation of worldly wisdom and Saʿdī’s life experiences. Completed in 1257, the work is four thousand couplets of poetry divided into ten chapters.