Birdsong: Fifty-Three Short Poems

Rumi (1207-1273) was a Sufi mystic whose mastery of the poetic form known in Persia as the rubai, or quatrain, enabled him to create some of the most lyrical verses ever written. The Sufis say that meditation is a step up from prayer, and that sohbet (mystical conversation) is a step up from meditation. Each of these poems may be heard as bursts of melody from within this ongoing conversation.