Me and Rumi: The Autobiography of Shams-I Tabrizi Paperback – September 1, 2004

It's hard to overstate the importance of this beautiful book to anyone who has been touched by the Sufi path, and especially Rumi. Chittick has provided us with a portrait of Rumi's master, Shams of Tabriz--and he's not what one might expect.Rumi has become famous in the contemporary West for his divine poetry--and rightly so: he is one of humanity's greatest lovers and poets, and this comes across in every line. But as others have asked: Do we honestly know what this "love" Rumi talks about really is?Here we have Shams of Tabriz, master to Rumi, the man Rumi loved most in the world, in Rumi's eyes a spiritual being of the first order. And he can be cruel, insensitive, and harsh. Lots of people around him hate him. If I remember correctly, he even makes a fart joke at one point.He's seen as almost an embarrassment in a company of dervishes and scholars. And yet one suspects that this has more than a little to do with his ruthless and relentless practice of exposing imposture and hypocrisy--reminiscent of the work of Jesus, with the same sad, predictable result.The connection between Rumi's love and this wild man's character is the absolute, uncompromising love of God. For this, really, is the love of Rumi: it brooks no insincerity or reservation. It is the essence of Islam: utter submission to the divine. Shams reminds us, as he reminded those around him, that this has nothing at all to do with sweet words and noble sentiments, with putting on spiritual airs and gaining the admiration of the faithful.This can be a painful reminder. It threatens what the ego craves. And the love of God threatens the self as well--as Rumi and Shams both show us, when we truly love God, there is only love and God: we disappear. Shams' job was to show Rumi what this really meant. Rumi's job was to show us--despite the fearful protestations of the ego--what it really is: beautiful and joyful.God bless William Chittick for this wonderful gift.

Rumi was one of the greatest of the Sufi teachers. But until he met his teacher,Shamis-i-Tabrizi, he was only a Sufi scholar who was spiritually asleep. After teaching Rumi for three years Shamis left his student, and Rumi became one of the world's greatest poets whose spiritually inspired writings inspire millions of people from all the world. We know a good bit about Rumi's life, but very little about Shams, his teacher. Through the work of a diligent Iranian scholar who collected manuscripts which were accounts of Shams oral discourses both before and after he met Rumi we get to know Shams in ways not available to us before. Me & Rumi: The Authobiography of Shams-i Trabrizi is a translation of those manuscripts which allows to get to know Shams a little better. These short discourses are not easy reading, but by reading and reflecting on each passage, we can acquire seeds for our meditations. I don't recommend this book unless you are willing to work hard for the precious spiritual insights available through study and meditation. If you are mentally and spiritually lazy, don't waste your time or money. If you curious and want to broaden your spiritual perspectives, this book is well worth your money and study.

These discourses of Shamus-i-Tabrizi are an excellent source of spiritual wisdom, this being the first English translation of them. Previously only the works of Jallal ad Din'l Rumi were available to tell the story of Shams, some doubted that he even really existed, but these discourses were available to the Muslim world in the Middle East for quite some time. It is excellent that someone has finally provided an English translation of these sources of Divine Wisdom, directly from a true spiritual Master! I highly recommend this book for Muslims, Jews, Christians, and those of any other path to God!

Anytime Bill Chittick writes something or translates something, serious readers need to pay attention. Chittick has been at it for more than I can remember but his treatment of this present subject is astonishingly marvelous.P.S. atash-ast een bang-i Nay o neest baadhar-keh een aatash na-darad, neest baad.

I bought this book out of curiosity, because Shams-i-Tabriz was a Master in my spiritual path (Eckankar). The book is interesting, but mostly served as a reminder that there is always, and I have, a living Master who gives spiritual instruction tuned to the needs of the present.

This was an interesting book but I learned more about Sufism from a book entitled "Embattled Saints" than any other book I've read on the subject.

In a world that is all too explicable, I like how it is a fact that Shamzi Tabriz is mysterious.

When it's spring and I'm far from the face of the Friend,What good is the garden, what use are the herbs?