“A fascinating account of what may have transpired between Jalaluddin Rumi and Shams-i Tabriz behind the closed door of their retreat room. It should be read by all serious students of Rumi.”
--W. M. Thackston Jr., professor of the Persian language, Harvard University

One of the most extraordinary events in the history of Sufism occurred in 1244 when the Sufi poet and mystic Jalaluddin Rumi met a wandering seeker named Shams-i Tabriz. Upon meeting, the two men immediately went into private retreat together, emerging ninety days later in a transformed condition.

In The Spiritual Practices of Rumi, Will Johnson reveals the radical spiritual practice that transpired between Rumi and Shams. To put it simply, they sat and gazed into each other’s eyes. Because the eyes are portals to the soul, their sustained gazing formed the basis of a devotional practice that opened the doors to a profoundly ecstatic state of divine union. Johnson draws on the poetry and prose of Rumi to unfold his story. He also explains how one may embark on the practice of intentional gazing to experience the state of ecstatic divine union shared by Rumi and Shams so many centuries ago.