Shab-e Arus…

Since December 17th is the annual day on which dervishes from all over the world gather in the majestic tomb of 13th century Sufi poet Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi in Konya for Shab-e Arus (the anniversary of his death), my Iranian friends and I decided to translate some of his Persian verses to mark today’s mystic occasion…

If the whole world were gripped by sadness,
Without sorrow is the one who holds love tightly.
If love makes one dance, even a little —
That little becomes the universe
that holds the two worlds…

— Rumi