A Mirrored Life: The Rumi Novel

• The novel follows the medieval Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta as he arrives in Konya, where the legendary Sufi mystic Rumi had lived, taught and died. Although more than fifty years have passed since Rumi's death, his presence remains alive through his poetry and the stories told by his followers.

• Rabisankar Bal was a Bengali novelist and short-story writer who wrote numerous novels, short-story collections, poetry and literary essays. His works include Dozakhnama and The Biography of Midnight. He was also a journalist and had a deep interest in literature, music, painting and world cinema. (penguin.co.in )

  Arunava Sinha, the translator, translates classic, modern and contemporary Bengali fiction and non-fiction into English. His extensive translation work has brought many important Bengali literary works to readers around the world.

A Mirrored Life begins with Ibn Battuta's arrival in Konya, the city associated with Rumi. There he encounters Rumi's followers, who give him a manuscript containing stories about the mystic's life and spiritual journey. Battuta carries the manuscript with him as he continues his travels. (penguin.co.in )

As he reads and narrates the stories, the boundaries between past and present, storyteller and listener, begin to blur. The lives of those hearing Rumi's stories seem to echo the experiences contained within them, suggesting that the truths of love, longing, fate and spiritual discovery transcend time and place.