Rumi is the greatest mystic poet to have written in Persian, and the Masnavi, written in six books, is his masterpiece. It conveys a message of divine love in entertaining stories and homilies. The focus of Book Three is on epistemology; this is the first ever verse translation, and the first translation of any kind for over 80 years. Rumi is the greatest mystic poet to have written in Persian, and the Masnavi is his masterpiece. Divided into six books and consisting of some 26,000 verses, the poem was designed to convey a message of divine love and unity to the disciples of Rumi's Sufi order, known today as the Whirling Dervishes. Like the earlier books, Book Three interweaves amusing stories with homilies to instruct pupils in the understanding of God's meaning. It has a special focus on epistemology, illustrated with narratives that involve the consumption of food. The first ever verse translation of Book Three of the Masnavi, It follows the original by presenting Rumi's most mature mystical teachings in simple and attractive rhyming couplets. 'Our soul each moment struggles hard with death - Think of your faith as though it's your last breath. Your life is like a purse, and night and day Are counters of gold coins you've put away' 'Your soul each moment struggles hard with death - Think of your faith as though it's your last breath. Your life is like a purse, and night and day Are counters of gold coins you've put away'Rumi is the greatest mystic poet to have written in Persian, and the Masnavi is his masterpiece. Divided into six books and consisting of some 26,000 verses, the poem was designed to convey a message of divine love and unity to the disciples of Rumi's Sufi order, known today as the Whirling Dervishes. Like the earlier books, Book Three interweaves amusing stories with homilies to instruct pupils in mystical knowledge. It has a special focus on epistemology, illustrated with narratives that involve the consumption of food. This is the first ever verse translation of Book Three of the Masnavi. It follows the original by presenting Rumi's most mature mystical teachings in simple and attractive rhyming couplets. "Rumi, known in Iran and Central Asia as Mowlana Jalaloddin Balkhi, was born in 1207 in the province of Balkh, now the border region between Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Rumi expressed a new vision of reality in volumes of mystical poetry. His enormous collection of lyrical poetry is considered one of the best that has ever been produced, while his poem in rhyming couplets, the Masnavi, is so reversed as the most consummate expression of Sufi mysticism that it is commonly referred to as 'the Koran in Persian'."--Jacket Jalāl Al-dīn Rūmī ; Translated By Jawid Mojaddedi. Translated From The Persian. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.