First Edition presents the oldest copy of Sufi’s "Mathnawi"

March 15, 2026 / 6:39 PM

Sharjah 24 – WAM: The final episode of the “First Edition” program showcaes a significat manuscripts in Sufism, called “Mathnawi Mawlawi” (Mathnawi Collection), by the author Mohammed bin Mohammed bin Hussein al-Balkhi al-Rumi Jalal al-Din, who died in the year 672 AH. He is one of the pillars of Sufism in the Islamic world.

Saeed Al Madawi, the general supervisor of the Manuscripts House, explained that the Mathnawi is one of the most important and influential books in literature. It is a poem consist of 25,632 verses divided into six parts, featuring 424 stories. This copy is one of the oldest manuscript copies of the book in the world. Al Madawi addedthat the manuscript begins: “This is the book of the Mathnawi, which is the foundation of the foundations of religion in revealing the secrets of attainment and certainty. It is the greatest jurisprudence of God and the most radiant law of God. Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Hussein Al-Balkhi says: I have striven to lengthen the Mathnawi poem.”

Al Madawi added that the manuscript is 288 pages long, bound in orange leather and gilded.The titles written in red and in a gilded frame. The manuscript is considered one of the most significant manuscripts in Sufism.