Essential Rumi: Special Calligraphed Collectible Edition About the Author Rumi, the great Sufi poet, is the world's best-selling poet. Born in Persia in 1211 he composed thousands of poems that have continued to be chanted on pilgrimages and during religious ceremonies since. Celebrated as a mystic, he founded the order of Whirling Dervishes of Sufism, which spread throughout the Islamic world after his death.]]]