The Status of Woman in Rumi’s Thought

In the works of Jalal al-Din Mohammad Balkhi, known as Rumi, there can be found two types of attitude towards woman; one is a negative attitude that follows the insight common in his time about women and observes the current social and cultural problems of his time or the spiritual and dominion side of women; the other one, being positive, is Rumi’s attitude toward woman’s character which rises from profundity of her religious and mystical insight and observes woman’s natural and inherent side. In Rumi’s opinion, like men, women can go properly through the perfection stages in the journey toward Allah and attain the status of mastership and the perfect man. Arising from his gnostic ideology, Rumi’s Practical conduct and lifestyle indicates that he had special respect for woman, attached a lot of importance to her, and always recommended others to value this beautiful manifestation of Allah. Rumi describes woman’s role in the path of refining the soul and ethics and reaching the excellences as being significant and efficient. In this research, after presenting the generalities of the investigation, the position of woman in Islamic mysticism is explained and both positive and negative attitudes of Rumi towards woman character is analyzed. In the end, the status of woman in the family is subjected to consideration from Rumi’s point of view.