Iran consul general highlights Shams-Rumi Persian legacy

The 13th-century meeting between Shams and Rumi transformed Persian literary history.

Hyderabad: Iran’s Consul General in Hyderabad, Hamid Ahmadiyeh, on Thursday, October 1, highlighted the literary legacy of Shams-i Tabrizi and Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi, and the influence of their relationship on Persian literature.

In a commemorative note, Ahmadiyeh described the meeting between Shams and Rumi in the mid-13th century as a significant encounter in Persian literary and spiritual history. He said their relationship had a profound influence on Rumi’s spiritual journey and subsequent poetic works.

Shams al-Din Muhammad of Tabriz, believed to have lived from around 1185 to 1248, was a wandering dervish and mystic. Rumi was an established Islamic scholar when the two met. Their spiritual companionship lasted around two years, with interruptions, and influenced Rumi’s approach to spiritual knowledge and religious thought.

After Shams disappeared in 1247–1248, Rumi produced a substantial body of poetry. His Divan-e Shams-e Tabrizi contains thousands of ghazals and quatrains, while the Masnavi-ye Ma’navi, composed later with the encouragement of his disciple Husam al-Din Chalabi, comprises about 25,000 verses dealing with spiritual and moral themes.

Ahmadiyeh said Rumi holds a prominent position in the Persian literary tradition alongside poets such as Ferdowsi, Rudaki, Attar, Saadi and Hafez. The Masnavi has also been regarded for centuries as a major work of Persian mystical literature.

Shams left a smaller written legacy, with his recorded discourses preserved in the Maqalat-e Shams. His influence on Rumi, however, became closely associated with the development of the poet’s later work and its themes of divine love, spiritual longing and transcendence.

The consul general also referred to the spread of Rumi’s works beyond the Persian-speaking world through translations and scholarship, particularly in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries. Scholars and translators including William Jones, Reynold A. Nicholson and A J Arberry helped introduce his writings to wider audiences.

Rumi’s popularity in the West increased further in the late 20th century through English-language adaptations, including those associated with American poet Coleman Barks. Ahmadiyeh also acknowledged debates over modern adaptations that emphasise universal themes of love and spirituality while giving less attention to the Islamic and Sufi context of the original Persian works.

UNESCO designated 2007 as the International Year of Rumi to mark the 800th anniversary of his birth. Shams and Rumi continue to be commemorated through literary and cultural events, particularly in Iranian cities associated with Shams, including Tabriz and Khoy.

Their works have also influenced literary studies, artistic works and cultural discussions outside the Persian-speaking world, with their relationship remaining an important subject in the study of Persian literature and Sufi thought.