The Mystic Keats: The Poetry of Keats in Light of Rumi & Sufism

The famous Romantic poet John Keats was at heart a visionary mystic. Join Daniel Thomas Dyer as he dives into the wisdom of Rumi to explore the six famous odes written by Keats in 1819, including ‘Ode to a Nightingale’ and ‘Ode on a Grecian Urn’. Viewed through the lens of Sufism, the transcendent realities Keats was intuiting in his poems come into deeper, sharper focus, for they were familiar certainties to Rumi and the Sufis.

Each of the six odes will be explored in an online interactive discussion. To help unlock the beauty of the poems, wisdom from Rumi (and other sources) will be emailed to participants to aid in a rich, nuanced discussion. Sessions will include meditation to open the heart in receptivity to the beauty on offer.

Some key themes that will be discussed:

• Conscious Breathing
• Sacred Feminine
• The Alchemical Work
• The Knowing Heart
• The Ecstasy of Being
• Dying Before We Die

Schedule & Registration

Meetings will be on Zoom: Sunday, 5pm–6.30pm (UK time) on the following days:

12 January – Ode to Psyche
26 January – Ode on a Grecian Urn
9 February – Ode to a Nightingale
23 February – Ode on Indolence
9 March – Ode on Melancholy
23 March – To Autumn

£99 for the full course. Offered through Chickpea Press.

Facilitator

Daniel Thomas Dyer is a whirling dervish in the Threshold Society Mevlevi Order under the guidance of Shaikh Kabir and Camille Helminski, based on the wisdom of Mevlana Jaluluddin Rumi. He is an author, musician, publisher, and regular blogger at Rumi’s Circle. He facilitates Sufi circles and Mathnawi discussion groups in the Lake District and online, and enjoys long walks exploring the sacred in nature. He is working on a new book, The Mystic Keats, and dreaming into a walking tour with other interested hearts in the footsteps of Keats through the Lake District and Scotland. You can connect with him on Instagram @dantomdyer

For an example of what to expect from these seminars, we recommend reading Daniel’s article ‘Keats’ “Ode to a Nightingale” in Light of Rumi’.

Testimonial

Thank you so much, Daniel. Today when I read this poem in college for the first time, I knew for sure that it had deeper meanings than what meets the eye. As it is, I’m growing weary of this material world and as I read the line “Away! Away! For I shall fly away to Thee”, tears filled my eyes and I thought about the day I shall finally dissolve in God and be at blissfull peace at heart. Thank you for your interpretation, it is beautiful.
~Arjun

Darkling I listen; and, for many a time
I have been half in love with easeful Death,
Call’d him soft names in many a musèd rhyme,
To take into the air my quiet breath…
~ Ode to a Nightingale

Within God’s presence there is no place for two I’s.
You say “I,” and He says “I”—
either you must die for Him or
He for you so that duality might disappear.
~ Rumi, Fihi Ma Fihi, Discourse 6