In Rumis poetry Shams becomes a guide of Allahs Creator love for mankind Shams was a sun "Shams" means "Sun" in Arabic shining the Light of Sun as guide for the right path dispelling darkness in Rumis heart, mind, and body on earth. As the years passed, Rumi attributed more and more of his own poetry to Shams as a sign of love for his departed friend and master. When Rumi awoke, he took Shamss hand, and the two of them returned to Rumis school together on foot.Īfter several years with Rumi in Konya, Shams left and settled in Khoy. Shams, upon hearing these answers, realized that he was face to face with the object of his longing, the one he had prayed God to send him. He cried out, fell to the ground, and lost consciousness for one hour. For that reason he said," I have never known you as I should have.” It is recorded that after this exchange of words, Rumi felt a window open at the top of his head and saw smoke rise to heaven. With every moment he came closer to God, and then regretted his former distant state. His desire was endless, and he was always thirsty. Muhammads capacity was unlimited and could never be filled. He lost himself completely and was filled with God. Shams caught hold of the reins of his donkey and rudely challenged the master with two questions." Who was the greater mystic, Bayazid?" Rumi explained that Muhammad was the greater of the two, because Bayazid could be filled to capacity by a single experience of divine blessings.
His reply was, "Something you do not understand."Īnother version of the first encounter is this: In the marketplace of Konya, amid the cotton stalls, sugar vendors, and vegetable stands, Rumi rode through the street, surrounded by his students. Shams asks Rumi what he is doing, to which Rumi replies, "Something that you do not understand!" At that moment, the books suddenly catch fire and Rumi asks Shams to explain what happened.
Rumi regards him as an uneducated stranger. Rumi then asked Shams, "What is this?" To which Shams replied, "Mowlana, this is what you cannot understand." This is knowledge that cannot be understood by the learned.Ī second version of the tale has Shams passing by Rumi who again is reading a book. Rumi hastily rescued the books and to his surprise they were all dry. On hearing this, Shams threw the stack of books into a nearby pool of water. Shams Tabriz, passing by, asked him, "What are you doing?" Rumi scoffingly replied, "Something you cannot understand." This is knowledge that cannot be understood by the unlearned. One day Rumi was reading next to a large stack of books. As it was said in Haji Bektash Velis book, "Makalat", he was looking for something which he was going to find in Konya. He was claiming to be a travelling merchant. On 15 November 1244, a man in a black suit from head to toe came to the famous inn of Sugar Merchants of Konya. The specificities of how this transference occurred, however, are not yet known.ġ.1. The transference of the epithet to the biography of Rumis mentor suggests that this Imams biography must have been known to Shams-i Tabrīzīs biographers.
This however, is not the occupation listed by Haji Bektash Veli in the Maqālat and was rather the epithet given to the Ismaili Imam Shams al-din Muhammad, who worked as an embroiderer while living in anonymity in Tabriz. Despite his occupation as a weaver, Shams received the epithet of" the embroiderer” zarduz in various biographical accounts including that of the Persian historian Dawlatshah. Before meeting Rumi, he apparently traveled from place to place weaving baskets and selling girdles for a living. Shams received his education in Tabriz and was a disciple of Baba Kamal al-Din Jumdi. However, various scholars have questioned Aflaki’s reliability. Apparently basing his calculations on Haji Bektash Velis Maqālāt Conversations, Aflaki suggests that Shams arrived in Konya at the age of sixty years. In a work entitled Manāqib al-arifīn Eulogies of the Gnostics, Aflaki names a certain Ali as the father of Shams-i Tabrīzī and his grandfather as Malikdad. According to Sipah Salar, a devotee and intimate friend of Rumi who spent forty days with him, Shams was the son of the Imam Ala al-Din.