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Summary

Whilst the notion of the Mystic East and Oriental wisdom was greatly romanticised by the Victorians and others, the shadow of Colonialism has smudged the view.  These great cultures are some of humanity’s earliest, their works, their art some of its most daring and most accomplished.   
 
In these 50 poems across 50 poets we hope, at least in part, to rebalance our view of this subject.  We begin in the 6th century BC and travel with a poet’s words and eyes across India, China, Persia and many other places in between.  The geography and culture may shift to different hues but the flavours, notions, musings and truths of these works bring both simplicity, majesty and beauty to these lands and peoples.   
 
Let us journey with poets such as Lao Tzu, Rumi, Mirabai, Gabirol and Guru Nanak on a journey to seek, to discover and find meaning in their verse that is so relevant to our lives today.    
1 - Fifty Shades of the Mystic East - An Introduction  
2 - Thiruppavi (An Extract) by Andal 
3 - An Ocean Without Shore by Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi 
4 - All Pervading Consciousness by Farid ud-Din Attar 
5 - Because Thou Art by Sri Aurobindo 
6 - Kalam - I  by Sultan Bahu 
7 - If You Are Seeking Allah by Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai 
8 - Shikshashtakam by Chaitanya 
9 - The Value of Friendship by Confucius 
10 - Amrutanubhav (An Extract) by Dnyaneshwar 
11 - The Mockingbird by Dr Fu 
12 - The Song of Chess by Abraham Ibn Ezra 
13 - Beauty of Truth by Khwaja Ghulam Farid 
14 - The Prelude to Shah-Nameh (The Book of Kings) by Ferdowsi 
15 - A Song of Redemption by Solomon Ibn Gabirol 
16 - Navada Bhakti in an Untainted Heart by Gangasati 
17 - The Walled Garden by Sanai Ghaznavi 
18 - Song of the Flower by Khalil Gibran 
19 - The Lute Will Beg by Hafiz 
20 - Song of Loneliness by Jehudah Halevi 
21 - I Do Not Cease Swimming by Mansur Al Hallaj 
22 - The Power of the Pen by Samuel HaNagid 
23 - The Cloud on the Mountain by Alama Iqbal 
24 - Acceptance by Janabai 
25 - The Guest Is Inside You and Also Inside Me by Kabir 
26 - Tears Ere Thy Death by Khansa 
27 - All Things Pass by Lao Tzu 
28 - Vakh - If in the Flux of Time by Lal Ded 
29 - Alone Looking at the Mountain by Li Po 
30 - They All Err by Al-Ma'arri 
31 - Would a Circling Surface Vulture by Akka Mahadevi 
32 - Pointless It Is to Lament by Narsinh Mehta 
33 - Go To That Impenetrable Realm by Mirabai 
34 - The True Name is Like Sandalwood by Namdev 
35 - Tiruvasiriyam by Nammalvar 
36 - Dhanasri Measure by Guru Nanak 
37 - Dream Fable by Rabia al Basri 
38 - Where Shall I Go by Ramananda 
39 - The Name Alone Is the Truth by Ravidas 
40 - Only Breath by Jalaluddin Rumi 
41 - One Body by Saadi 
42 - His Ears Ringeth by Sambandar 
43 - Drive Me Out of My Mind by Ramprasad Sen 
44 - Who Attains the Secret of Unity. From the Mystic Rose Garden by Mahmud Shabistari 
45 - Neither Hindu Nor Muslim by Bulleh Shah 
46 - A Life Without Love by Shams Tabrizi 
47 - The Journey by Tagore 
48 - The Secret of Peace by Tukaram 
49 - Hanuman Chalisa by Tulsidas 
50 - On the Stork Tower by Wang Zhihuan 
51 - Old Lines and New Songs by Wu Zao

Duration: about 2 hours (01:46:37)
Publishing date: 2019-01-01; Unabridged; Copyright Year: — Copyright Statment: —

• Poetry & Theatre