Rumi's "Spiritual Verses" is the greatest mystical poem in Islamic culture and of all time. Rumi tells of our human separation from reality, love and truth. He shows how love - neither erotic nor sentimental but divine, by which the universe is held together - enlightens ignorance and dissolves suffering. The first book of the "Masnavi" is the key to the whole work: it takes off from simple, amusing tales into realms unimaginable, but wholly familiar to the human heart.

Translated by: Alan Williams
Read by: Anton Lesser