Analyze one of the poems from Rumi’s The Divan of Shams of Tabriz, quoting lines from the poem to explain the precise ways in which the poet communicates his ideas concerning love, and comparing and/or contrasting his efforts to a contemporary love

Question

song with which you are familiar.

Please provide the best answer for the statement.

Answer 1

1. Rumi’s poetry stresses human potential for mystical union with God, a potential hinted at in physical union with a lover. This hinted potential is the subject of Rumi’s collection of about 30,000 verses entitled The Divan of Shams of Tabriz. Rumi thought of Shams (meaning “Sun”) of Tabriz as the “Divine Beloved,” the physical incarnation of spiritual love. Rumi met him in 1244, and when Shams disappeared 15 months later, Rumi wrote poems describing his loss in terms of abandonment by God. Poems like “Love’s Body,” “Caring for My Lover,” and “The Clear Bead at the Center” are at once carnal and spiritual, erotic and mystical, and they speak of the rebirth of the human spirit through love.
2. Students’ analysis of their choice of poem will vary, as will the comparisons they draw between their chosen poem and a contemporary love song.