The Essential Rumi

( 19 )
Pick Up In Store

Pick Up in Store

Reserve and pick up in 60 minutes at your local store

Paperback (Reprint)
$11.98
BN.com price
$15.99 List Price (Save 25%)
Marketplace (New and Used)
from
$5.14
$15.99 List Price (Save 68%)
Usually ships in 1-2 business days
All (52)  
Used (26)  
New (26)  
Close
Sort by
Page 1 of 6
Showing 1 – 10 of 52 (6 pages)
$5.14
(Save 68%)
-SuperBookDeals
Seller since 2012

Feedback rating:

(759)

Condition:

New — never opened or used in original packaging.

Like New — packaging may have been opened. A "Like New" item is suitable to give as a gift.

Very Good — may have minor signs of wear on packaging but item works perfectly and has no damage.

Good — item is in good condition but packaging may have signs of shelf wear/aging or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Acceptable — item is in working order but may show signs of wear such as scratches or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Used — An item that has been opened and may show signs of wear. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Refurbished — A used item that has been renewed or updated and verified to be in proper working condition. Not necessarily completed by the original manufacturer.

Good
Usually ships within 1-2 business days. All USA orders shipped via USPS with delivery confirmation, please allow 4-14 business days for delivery. USPS does not provide delivery ... confirmation for APO/FPO addresses or addresses outside of the 50 US states. No guarantee on products that contain supplements and some products may include highlighting and writing. We are dedicated to 100% customer satisfaction. Read more Show Less

Ships from: Shepherdsville, KY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
$5.15
(Save 68%)
Goodwill Industries of SF
Seller since 2012

Feedback rating:

(116)

Condition: Good
1997 Paperback The cover may contain minor wear, and the corners may have some light degree of damage. If there are any notes present, they would only be penciled and only ... visible on a few pages. There are no ink markings of any kind, but there may be a remainder-mark on the outside edge of the pages. Proceeds benefit non-profit Goodwill Industries of San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin Counties. We create solutions to poverty through the businesses we operate. Your purchase creates jobs and transforms liv. Read more Show Less

Ships from: San Francisco, CA

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$5.49
(Save 66%)
Jonathan Friedman Fl
Seller since 2005

Feedback rating:

(446)

Condition: Very Good
Paperback Very good Excellent, clean copy with light shelf-wear only.

Ships from: Longwood, FL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$5.61
(Save 65%)
Blue Cloud Books
Seller since 2010

Feedback rating:

(2520)

Condition: Good
This book has a light amount of wear to the pages, cover and binding. Blue Cloud Books ??? Hot deals from the land of the sun.

Ships from: Phoenix, AZ

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$5.89
(Save 63%)
Book Castle MO
Seller since 2005

Feedback rating:

(1001)

Condition: Good
New York, New York, U.S.A. 1997 Trade Paperback Good 0062509594 Good.

Ships from: Springfield, MO

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$7.50
(Save 53%)
Adsrus Media IA
Seller since 2007

Feedback rating:

(1252)

Condition: Very Good
2004-05-28 Paperback Book Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Trade Paperback. Normal shelf and display wear. Minor cover wear...

Ships from: Des Moines, IA

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$8.17
(Save 49%)
a Book company
Seller since 2012

Feedback rating:

(1)

Condition: Good
May contain some highlighting. We select best copy available. - Reprint Edition - Paperback - ISBN 9780062509598

Ships from: Lexington, KY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
$8.99
(Save 44%)
CPK Sales HI
Seller since 2005

Feedback rating:

(79)

Condition: Very Good
Paperback Very good 1999 HarperCollins Softcover(Trade PB) Edition. Some wear to cover, tanning to page edges due to age, text clean with strong binding.

Ships from: Honolulu, HI

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Canadian
  • •International
  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
$9.08
(Save 43%)
Great Book Deals
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(12283)

Condition: New
Absolutely Brand New & In Stock. 100% 30-Day Money Back. Direct from our warehouse. Over 5+ Million Customers served. In business since 1997. Happy Customers is Our #1 Goal. ... Customer Service toll free upport Monday-Friday EST Hrs. 4 to 14 business day Delivery Time by US Post Office. Read more Show Less

Ships from: Oldsmar, FL

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
$9.24
(Save 42%)
Bear Lake
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(1386)

Condition: Very Good
0062509594 There is some minor wear to the cover.

Ships from: Grove City, PA

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • •Standard, 48 States
  • •Standard (AK, HI)
  • •Express, 48 States
  • •Express (AK, HI)
Page 1 of 6
Showing 1 – 10 of 52 (6 pages)
Close
Sort by
NOOK Book (eBook)
$10.99
BN.com price

Available on NOOK devices and apps

  • Nook Devices
  • NOOK
  • NOOK Color
  • NOOK Tablet
  • Tablet/Phone
  • NOOK for iPad
  • NOOK for iPhone
  • NOOK for Android
  • NOOK for Android (Tablet)
  • NOOK Kids for iPad
  • PC/Mac
  • NOOK Study
  • NOOK for PC
  • NOOK for Mac

Want a NOOK? Explore Now

More About This Book

Overview

The best-selling Rumi book ever is now better than ever! This revised and expanded edition of the comprehensive one-volume edition of America′s most popular poet includes a new introduction by Coleman Barks, and 57 new poems never published before.

The ecstatic, spiritual poetry of Rumi is more popular than ever, and The Essential Rumi continues to be far and away the top-selling title of all Rumi books. With the addition of many new poems and a new introduction, The Essential Rumi is now clearly the definitive, and most delightful selection of Rumi′s poetry.

"If Rumi is the most-read poet in Americay today, Coleman Barks is in good part responsible. His ear for the truly divine madness in Rumi's poetry is truly remarkable."

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780062509598
  • Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
  • Publication date: 5/28/2004
  • Edition description: Reprint
  • Pages: 416
  • Sales rank: 50,625
  • Product dimensions: 5.31 (w) x 8.00 (h) x 0.93 (d)

Meet the Author

Coleman Barks is a renowned poet and the bestselling author of The Essential Rumi, The Soul of Rumi, Rumi: The Book of Love, and The Drowned Book. He was prominently featured in both of Bill Moyers's PBS television series on poetry, The Language of Life and Fooling with Words. He taught English and poetry at the University of Georgia for thirty years, and he now focuses on writing, readings, and performances. This book is the culmination of over thirty years of Barks's work on Rumi's seminal classic.

Read an Excerpt

The Tavern:

Whoever Brought Me Here Will Have to Take Me Home

On the Tavern

In the tavern are many wines-the wine of delight in color and form and taste, the wine of the intellect's agility, the fine port of stories, and the cabernet of soul singing. Being human means entering this place where entrancing varieties of desire are served. The grapeskin of ego breaks and a pouring begins. Fermentation is one of the oldest symbols for human transformation. When grapes combine their juice and are closed up together for a time in a dark place, the results are spectacular. This is what lets two drunks meet so that they don't know who is who. Pronouns no longer apply in the tavern's mud-world of excited confusion and half-articulated wantings.

But after some time in the tavern, a point comes, a memory of elsewhere, a longing for the source, and the drunks must set off from the tavern and begin the return. The Qur'an says, -We are all returning. " The tavern is a kind of glorious hell that human beings enjoy and suffer and then push off from in their search for truth. The tavern is a dangerous region where sometimes disguises are necessary, but never bide your heart, Rumi urges. Keep open there. A breaking apart, a crying out into the street, begins in the tavern, and the human soul turns to find its way home.

It's 4 a.m. Nasruddin leaves the tavern and walks the town aimlessly. A policeman stops him. "Why are you out wandering the streets in the middle of the night?" "Sir," replies Nasruddin, "if I knew the answer to that question, I would have been home hours ago!"

Who Says Words with my Mouth?

All day I thinkabout it, then at night I say it.
Where did I come from, and what am I supposed to be doing?
I have no idea.
My soul is from elsewhere, I'm sure of that,
and I intend to end up there.


This drunkenness began in some other tavern.
When I get back around to that place,
I'll be completely sober. Meanwhile,
I'm like a bird from another continent, sitting in this aviary.
The day is coming when I fly off,
but who is it now in my ear who hears my voice?
Who says words with my mouth?


Who looks out with my eyes? What is the soul?
I cannot stop asking.
If I could taste one sip of an answer,
I could break out of this prison for drunks.
I didn't come here of my own accord, and I can't leave that way.
Whoever brought me here will have to take me home.


This poetry. I never know what I'm going to say.
I don't plan it.
When I'm outside the saying of it,
I get very quiet and rarely speak at all.




We have a huge barrel of wine, but no cups.
That's fine with us. Every morning
we glow and in the evening we glow again.


They say there's no future for us. They're right.
Which is fine with us.

A Community of the Spirit

There is a community of the spirit.
Join it, and feel the delight
of walking in the noisy street,
and being the noise.

Drink all your passion,
and be a disgrace.

Close both eyes
to see with the other eye.

Open your hands,
if you want to be held.

Sit down in this circle.
Quit acting like a wolf, and feel
the shepherd's love filling you.

At night, your beloved wanders.
Don't accept consolations.

Close your mouth against food.
Taste the lover's mouth in yours.

You moan, "She left me.""He left me."
Twenty more will come.

Be empty of worrying.
Think of who created thought!

Why do you stay in prison
when the door is so wide open?

Move outside the tangle of fear-thinking.
Live in silence.

Flow down and down in always
widening rings of being.



There's a strange frenzy in my head,
of birds flying,
each particle circulating on its own.
Is the one I love everywhere?



Drunks fear the police,
but the police are drunk too.

People in this town love them both
like different chess pieces.



A Children's Game

Listen to the poet Sanai,
who lived secluded: "Don't wander out on the road
in your ecstasy. Sleep in the tavern."

When a drunk strays out to the street,
children make fun of him.

He falls down in the mud.
He takes any and every road.

The children follow,
not knowing the taste of wine,
or how his drunkenness feels. All people on the planet
are children, except for a very few.
No one is grown up except those free of desire.

God said,
"The world is a play, a children's game,
and you are the children."

God speaks the truth.
If you haven't left the child's play,
how can you be an adult?

Without purity of spirit,
if you're still in the middle of lust and greed
and other wantings, you're like children
playing at sexual intercourse.

They wrestle
and rub together, but it's not sex!

The same with the fightings of mankind.
It's a squabble with play-swords.
No purpose, totally futile.

Like kids on hobby horses, soldiers claim to be riding
Boraq, Muhammad's night-horse, or Duldul, his mule.

Your actions mean nothing, the sex and war that you do.
You're holding part of your pants and prancing around,
Dun-da-dun, dun-da-dun.

Don't wait till you die to see this.
Recognize that your imagination and your thinking
and your sense perception are reed canes
that children cut and pretend are horsies.

The knowing of mystic lovers is different.
The empirical, sensory, sciences
are like a donkey loaded with books,
or like the makeup woman's makeup.
The Essential Rumi copyright © by Coleman Barks. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All Rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 19 )

Rating Distribution

5 Star

(13)

4 Star

(5)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(1)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or Leave Anonymously

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identiy on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

We're sorry, but penname is already taken.

Please select one of the following:
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

penname is available!

By visiting the BN.com website or marking a purchase on BN.com, a User is deemed to have accepted the Terms of Use.

Continue Anonymously

Welcome, penname

You have successfully created your Pen Name. Start enjoying the benefits of the BN.com Community today.

See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 26 Customer Reviews

  • Posted March 30, 2009

    more from this reviewer

    I Also Recommend:

    9781881090168 9780979963452

    Calm Down, Trust the Best in Yourself

    Accessible poems from the Sufi master. Slow down...add abundance in your life by seeing yourself as you truly are and letting things come to you. A humane look at those (unnamed) issues inside ourselves. Something to read over and over.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted March 23, 2009

    more from this reviewer

    The Essential Rumi

    I love poetry, and I've always found Rumi's poetry to be beautiful and inspiring. The Essential Rumi captures the best of this brilliant poet's work. Well worth reading.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 29, 2009

    This was a college graduation gift.

    A picked this book as I wanted a college graduation gift book about Rumi and this was my choice from about six books on Rumi at the B&N store in the Berwyn,PA store.

    0 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 12, 2008

    If you are a Lover of Poetry

    Do not bypass this book. I enjoyed this and others similar. Outstanding pinpoint for the eye and intriguing depth.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 10, 2003

    The most beautiful words ever written

    After suffering thru the boring likes of Donne, Keats, Dante, Chauncer, etc. in Lit. class; I had given up on ever being able to enjoy classical poetry. Than I discovered Rumi. No one can possibly describe love and life the way he does. No one can possibly do it more beautifully. No one can read this and not say 'OMG, he must be describing MY life!'. But everyone can appreciate the joy and appreciation of life that his poems instill on you. It is impossible to put this book down.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 4, 2002

    BEYOND BELIEF

    This is a spectaular translation of Rumi. I've been blown away by the beauty and imagery in this (accessible) poetry. I can't think of a more wonderful present for someone who likes poetry than this book.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 1, 2001

    Perhaps not Essential, but excellent

    The review above says this edition is perhaps not the 'Essential' Rumi and to look elsewhere. I concede that this is maybe not the definative collection but I find alot of Coleman Barks' renderings very helpful in reflecting on my life. Perhaps not Rumi, but still usefull in your search for the beloved.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 29, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 6, 2012

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 17, 2008

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 9, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 1, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 21, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted April 12, 2012

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 9, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 20, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted February 14, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted April 19, 2012

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 8, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 9, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 26 Customer Reviews
If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble
Why is this product inappropriate?
Comments (optional)
500 character limit