Recognized as perhaps the greatest mystical poet of Islam, Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi (1207-1273) communicated something through his writing that has attracted spiritual seekers from almost every religion in the world, for hundreds of years. Primarily famous for his poetry, the Masnavi is his greatest work, six volumes long and often referred to as "the Qur'an in Persian."

The Masnavi has been completely translated into English; however, the translation offered here is an abridgement of the work prepared by E.H. Winfield. Rumi has also left another manuscript that is not so well known - the collection of discourses given at the gatherings with his students. It Is What It Is (Fihi ma Fihi) is considered by some scholars to be an abbreviated prose companion to the Masnavi. “It is,” meaning his collected discourses, “what it is,” meaning, evidently, the Masnavi.

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