Mathnawi

Mathnawi (/ˌmæθnəˈwiː/ MATH-nə-WEE),^[a] also spelled masnavi,^[b] mesnevi^[c] or masnawi,^[d] is a kind of poem written in rhyming couplets, or more specifically "a poem based on independent, internally rhyming lines". Most mathnawi poems follow a meter of eleven, or occasionally ten, syllables, but had no limit in their length.^[1] Typical mathnawi poems consist of an indefinite number of couplets, with the rhyme scheme aa/bb/cc.

Mathnawi poems have been written in Persian, Arabic, Turkish, Kurdish and Urdu cultures. Certain Persian mathnawi poems, such as Rumi's Masnavi-e Ma’navi, have had a special religious significance in Sufism. Other influential writings include the poems of Ghazali^{[clarification needed]} and ibn Arabi.^[2] Mathnawi's are closely tied to Islamic theology, philosophy, and legends, and cannot be understood properly without knowledge about it.^[3]

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