Creativity And Translation: Jalāl Al-Dīn Rūmī’s Poems Between Arabic And English

Authors : Rawad Alhashmi

Pages : 159-170

View : 83 | Download : 49

Publication Date : 2023-12-25

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :Jalal al-Din Rumi (1207–1273), a 13th-century Persian Islamic poet, is considered one of the greatest Sufi mystic poets in the history of humanity. His legacy has survived many centuries and crossed the threshold of languages through the door of translation, enabling his oeuvre to access other cultures. Rumi composed his poems predominantly in Persian (Farsi), some poems in Arabic, a few poems in Turkish, and fewer in Greek, as in his magnum opus, Divan-e Shams-e Tabrizi, (which was named after his spiritual teacher). Many of his Persian works have been translated into English and other European languages over the past few centuries, and these translations have played a paramount role in introducing Rumi and Sufism to Western audiences. Not surprisingly, Rumi loves Arabic, and he has a special place in his heart for this Semitic tongue. However, despite the importance of Arabic in Rumi’s writing, his Arabic poems are seldom translated or analyzed, unlike Persian poems, which are extensively translated and examined. Hence, the paucity of translating Arabic poems of Rumi into English and their analysis is quite curious. Only a few scholars have tried their hands at translating and examining the Arabic poems of Rumi most notably Franklin Lewis. This essay sheds light on the significance of Arabic in Rumi’s writings, and it then examines Nesreen Akhtarkhavari’s and Anthony Lee’s translation of Love Is My Savior: The Arabic Poems of Rumi (2016). It also seeks to address how the power of creativity in translation is crucial in rendering or reconciling the aesthetic characteristics of Rumi’s Arabic poetic expression into English.
Keywords : Celâlettin Rumi, Arapça, Tercüme, Yaratıcılık