Child of flesh and bone, you are a child of soul.
Love is your trade, your mission, your job.
Why do you busy yourself with so many other tasks?

—Rumi, translated from the Persian by Haleh Liza Gafori in Water 

“Rumi is rooting for us. His concern for humanity is palpable and his central commitment—human liberation through the cultivation of Love—unwavering. His poems are ravishing and rapturous, knotty and demanding … In the midst of life’s challenges, his lines are lifelines,” writes the celebrated translator, who returns to the Academy by popular demand.

In Water, Gafori’s second volume of translations of poetry by Rumi, the word “Love” appears ninety-six times. Through his startling confessions, vivid metaphors, sage advice, and piercing observations, Rumi challenges and uplifts, calling us to love more deeply and palpably in the face of a beautiful and brutal world, “questioning the value system that puts plunderers on pedestals, prioritizes material gain over spiritual connection, and champions control over others rather than mutual fulfillment, he redefines maturity, wealth, and success,” writes Gafori. 

In this three-part seminar, Gafori will discuss a selection of her translations from Water, exploring how love and grief manifest in Rumi’s poetry and how the many “you’s” and “I’s” morph in his poems. She will illuminate central themes in Sufi philosophy and share short excerpts of the original text, offering participants glimpses of the astonishing rhythm, rhyme, and wordplay of the Persian text, while revealing some of the challenges, pleasures, conundrums, and surprises that riddle the translation process.

Class meets from 2:30–3:45 p.m. ET on May 12, 19, and 26.

Students are encouraged to read Gafori’s translations of Water: Poems by Rumi (New York Review Books, 2025), which registrants are encouraged to buy.

This live, virtual class is structured to encourage active participation. Registrants will receive a Zoom link one week prior to each session, one day prior to each session, and the morning of the session. Recordings will be made available within forty-eight hours and will remain available for thirty days.

Scholarship applications must be submitted by Monday, April 21, at 5 p.m. ET.