The ''Fihi Ma Fihi'' ( fa, فیه مافیه; from ar, فیه ما فیه), "It Is What It Is" or "In It What Is in It") is a Persian prose work of a famous 13th century writer,

Rumi Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī ( fa, جلال‌الدین محمد رومی), also known as Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Balkhī (), Mevlânâ/Mawlānā ( fa, مولانا, lit= our master) and Mevlevî/Mawlawī ( fa, مولوی, lit= my ma ...

. The book has 72 short discourses.

Description

The title and origin of the book

According to J. M. Sadeghi the title ''Fihi Ma Fihi'' has appeared on a copy dated 1316. Another copy of the book dated 1350 has the title ''Asrar al-jalalieh''. Rumi himself in the fifth volume of ''Masnavi-i Ma'navi'' mentions that which most likely refers to this book. The title ''Maghalat-e Mowlana'' of copies of the book published in Iran follows this. Not much is known about the publication time and the writer of the book. According to B. Forouzanfar, the editor of the most reliable copy of the book, it is likely that the book was written by Sultanwalad, the eldest son of Rumi, based on manuscripts and notes taken by himself or others from the lectures of his father on ''Masnavi-i Ma'navi''. In the ''Essence of Rumi'', John Baldock states that ''Fihi Ma Fihi'' was one of Rumi's discourses written towards the end of his life. Rumi lived from 1207 to 1273 so ''Fihi Ma Fihi'' was likely written some time between 1260 and 1273 by Rumi himself.

Significance

This book is one of the first Persian prose books after the so-called

Persian literature Persian literature ( fa, ادبیات فارسی, Adabiyâte fârsi, ) comprises oral compositions and written texts in the Persian language and is one of the world's oldest literatures. It spans over two-and-a-half millennia. Its sources h ...

revolution (enghelāb-e adabi). Moreover, the book has become an introduction to the ''

Masnavi The ''Masnavi'', or ''Masnavi-ye-Ma'navi'' ( fa, مثنوی معنوی), also written ''Mathnawi'', or ''Mathnavi'', is an extensive poem written in Persian by Jalal al-Din Muhammad Balkhi, also known as Rumi. The ''Masnavi'' is one of the mos ...

''. Also many concepts in

Sufism Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality ...

are described in this book in simple terms.

English translations

The book has been ( freely) translated into English under the title ''Discourses of Rumi'' by A. J. Arberry in 1961 and consists of 71 discourses. An authoritative translation by Dr. Bankey Behari was published in 1998 under the title ''Fiha Ma Fiha, Table Talk of Maulani Rumi'' (DK Publishers, New Delhi), . A more recent and lucid translation into English, with commentary for each of the discourses, by Doug Marman (with the assistance of Jamileh Marefat, a direct descendant of Rumi) was published in 2010 under the title ''It Is What It Is, The Personal Discourses of Rumi'' (Spiritual Dialogues Project, Ridgefield, Washington), . Another English translation, by W.M. Thackston, Jr, was published in 1994 under the title 'Signs of the Unseen: The Discourses of Jalaluddin Rumi' (Putney, VT: Threshold Books, 1994; republished by Shambhala Publications, 1999).

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