|
On Sunday 12 August we were delighted to have the company of Professor Zeki Saritopak, a leading scholar in Islamic theology and former President of the Rumi Forum of Interfaith Dialogue in Washington. Professor Zeki is visiting Australia to teach a course on Islamic Studies at Monash University and kindly agreed to present the talk ‘Rumi: The Sufi Poet Saint of Love’ as part of our Shiva Symposium series. His fascinating lecture detailed the life of this 12th century mystic poet, the anniversary of whose death is being celebrated world-wide this year. Dr Zeki explicated several of Rumi’s poems which are exquisite in their yearning for union with the Divine. His talk clearly showed how the poet’s belief in love as the transforming force of life is timelier than ever, and we were indeed fortunate to have such an articulate spokesman to share Rumi’s message with us.
|
