Where the Reed Flute Calls: An Afternoon of Rumi, Sufi Poetry, and the Ghazal

There are moments when something within us listens — before words, before thought — as if called by a distant music.

In Sufi tradition, the reed flute carries that call. Hollowed, shaped by absence, it sings not in spite of loss, but because of it. Its voice is longing made audible — the soul remembering where it came from.

This gathering begins there.

“Where the Reed Flute Calls” is an invitation into that inner listening — an afternoon shaped by the poetry of Rumi, the depth of Sufi consciousness, and the timeless beauty of the ghazal. Inspired by a heartfelt wish from within our community to return to shared spaces of presence and poetry, we come together again — not just to read, but to remember.

In honoring the legacy of Coleman Barks, whose renderings of Rumi opened doorways for many into this tradition, we also reflect on how poetry travels — across languages, across time, across the quiet spaces between us.

Like the gentle winds of Saba (صبا) and Naseem (نسیم) — symbols of renewal, breath, and awakening — the poems we share will move softly through the room. They will not compete with the noise of the world. They will arrive like something familiar, something inward, something waiting.

This is a circle.

We will read Rumi — in translation, in memory, in resonance.
We will explore the ghazal — its longing, its repetition, its delicate balance between separation and union.
We will make space for other Sufi, mystical, and devotional voices — across languages and traditions.

There will be pauses. There will be silence. There may be music.

And in between, there will be that subtle, shared recognition — the kind poetry makes possible.

Whether you come to listen, to share, or simply to sit within this atmosphere, your presence becomes part of the gathering.

You are welcome to bring:

A poem by Rumi or from Sufi traditions A ghazal you love
A poem of longing, love, or spiritual seeking An original piece inspired by these themes

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