The Sufi Poets of the Ninth Century

THE SUFI POETS OF THE NINTH CENTURY Selected Poems Translation & Introduction Paul Smith Prophet Mohammed's nephew and son-in-law Hazrat 'Ali (598-661) was the first Imam of the Shi'ites and the fourth of the true caliphs of the Sunnis. Sufi Masters believe in 'Ali as one of the 'Seven Great Ones' in the first generation of teachers and many in orders of Dervishes trace their spiritual ancestry back to him. His ghazal that follows contains the essence of all the Sufi poetry in this book that came after him. You do not know it, but in you is the remedy;you cause the sickness, but this you don't see. You are but a small form... this, you assume: but you're larger than any universe, in reality. You are the book that of any fallacies is clear, in you are all letters spelling out, the mystery. You are the Being, you're the very Being... It: you contain That, which contained cannot be!CONTENTS: Sufis & Dervishes: Their Art and Use of Poetry 7, God-Realization & God-Intoxication 26, The Main Forms in Sufi & Dervish Poetry 35. THE POETS: Rabi'a of Basra 47, Dhu'l-Nun 65, Bayazid Bistami 75, Al-Nuri 78, Junaid 88, Sumnun 76, Mansur al-Hallaj 99, Ibn 'Ata 166, Rudaki 171, Shibli 216, Baba Tahir 225. The correct form has been attained in all of these beautiful, inspiring, powerful poems. Each poet has a biography, bibliography. Large Paperback 7"x 10" Pages 279. COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFIZ'S 'DIVAN'."It is not a joke... the English version of ALL the ghazals of Hafiz is a great feat and of paramount importance." Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran."Superb translations. 99% Hafiz 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator of many mystical works in English into Persian and knower of Hafiz's Divan off by heart."Smith has probably put together the greatest collection of literary facts and history concerning Hafiz." Daniel Ladinsky (Penguin Books author). Paul Smith (b.1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Iqbal, Rudaki, Yunus Emre, Ghalib, Iqbal, Ghani Kashmiri, Lalla Ded, Rahman Baba and many others, as well as his own poetry, fiction, plays, biographies and a dozen screenplays. amazon.com/author/smithpa