The Book

The Republic of Rimi: a Novel of Reality (2007) is an interactive summary of the works of the Poet-Philosopher Dr. Sir Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938), which can be traced back to the message and purpose of Rumi. The following is a synopsis of the revised version being offered online (see sidebar for contents). Part 3 is being uploaded these days.

The Beginning

The first five chapters introduce the purpose of the book, the connection of Iqbal with Rumi, the mysterious character “Joseph” and five clues for finding him in "the Garden of Poetry".

Part 1: Dilemma

The reader's "self" rather than the mind interacts with the Garden of Poetry. The first stage, with the Poet himself as the reader's guide (Chapter 6), culminates on a vision of Rumi's mentor Shams Tabriz (Chapter 17).

Part 2: Reaction

The Garden of Poetry is capable of "remembering." It is interacting with the reader, who has now become "part" of the Garden. The Poet assumes the fictitious identity of "the Old Man of the Desert" (Chapter 18) and guides the reader to the link between the Garden and the Quran (Chapter 30).

Part 3: The Reversal

The reader becomes aware of their own role as the protagonist. The German poet-thinker Goethe (Chapter 31) guides the reader through the biography of the Poet's mind, which ends on recognizing the English playwright William Shakespeare as Western counterpart of Mawlana Rumi (Chapter 45).

Part 4: The Highest Point

The reader finds Joseph and is able to understand the working of the Garden exclusively through personal experience. The legendary guide Khizr appears at the beginning of this stage (Chapter 46), which culminates on the Fountain of Life (Chapter 60).

Part 5: The Second Reversal

Here the readers is offered a vision of the world in the light of the principles learnt in the Garden. The guide for this stage is Shabistry (Chapter 61), who leads to Mansur Hallaj (Chapter 75).

Part 6: The Lowest Point

Here the reader is offered a vision of the inner world in the light of the principles learnt in the Garden. The guide for this stage is the Spirit of India (Chapter 76), which leads to the famous saint Mujaddid (Chapter 90)

Part 7: Climax

Here the journey culminates on some possibilities about reconstructing the real world in the light of the lessons learnt in the Garden. This stage comprises of Chapters 91 to 111.

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