The verses herein perfectly express and are centered on the theme of love, along with the quest, desire, and deeper meanings of love for not only ourselves, but also of our fellow humankind.

The Sweetheart
the sweetheart
who is blocking my sleep
demands tears on my knees
throwing me silently
into the waves
changing the water
to liquid sweet

With intricately designed and richly colored covers that mirror the beauty of the words within, the Timeless Rumi series presents themed collections of poems from the great Sufi mystic Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi Rumi that serve as cherished tools for self-reflection.

Jalal ad-Din Rumi, commonly known just as Rumi, was a Persian Sunni Muslim poet, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic whose works, written in the thirteenth century, are popular throughout the world today.

Translator Nader Khalili (1936­­–2008) was a world-renowned Iranian-American architect, author, humanitarian, and teacher. Khalili was also the founder and director of the California Institute of Earth Art and Architecture (Cal-Earth). Khalili was raised by the poetry of Rumi. As a child, his grandmother would recite Rumi’s poetry to lull him to sleep. He later developed a passion for studying and translating Rumi’s works. Rumi’s poetry also became an intrinsic part of Khalili’s architectural career. Inspired by the mystical poetry of Rumi, his architecture was distilled from the timeless principles of this universe and its timeless materials—the elements of earth, air, water, and fire.