Islamic valises of love, peace can bring close east, west: Mushahid
By Ali Imran

ISLAMABAD—Secretary General Pakistan Muslim League Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed has hoped that the gap between the East and West can be bridged by following its universal values of love, peace, harmony, and tolerance.
In this regard, he said the mystic literature of Islam was a big sourceof inspiration and encouragement. He was speaking as the chief guest atthe launching ceremony of Rumi Forum here on Monday. Mushahid said that Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi was the greatest Turkish Sufiinspirer and he championed the cause of peaceful co-existence and mutual respect. He said that through the founding of the forum, his teachings would bewidely known to the people of Pakistan, and the bond of friendship between the two countries would be further strengthened.
Senator Mushahid Hussain said that during his visit to the US, heinquired at a number of popular book stores about the most widely readpoet of the country and he was surprised to learn that it was Jalaluddin Rumi. He said if there is any general idea underlying Rumi’s poetry it is theabsolute love of Allah. His influence on the thought, literature andforms of esthetic expression in the world of Islam can’t be underrated.
Year 2007 marks the 800 anniversary of the great spiritual masterMaulana Jalaluddin Rumi, who is considered to be one of the most influential spiritual and literary figures in the Islamic history. Born in Balkh, Afghanistan, in 1207, Maulana Rumi was a conservativecleric in his early age but upon his meeting with a wandering dervish, Shams Tabriz in 1247, he metamorphosed into an entirely different personality and from then on he preached the message of love, peace andhumanity. His renderings of the six-volume Mathnavi and Diwan ShamsTabriz by the Western enthusiasts are best-sellers in the US and Europefrom a long time. Maulana Rumi has also been a major influence on some of the most popularnames in the Islamic world, Allama Muhammad Iqbal being one, who considered himself as the Hindi Mureed (Indian Disciple) of Rumi.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) has designated the year 2007 as the ‘Year of Rumi’ to develop inter-faith dialogue and spread his message of humanism throughout the world.