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Philosopher, astronomer and mathematician, Khayyam as a poet possesses a singular originality. His poetry is richly charged with evocative power and offers a view of life characteristic of his stormy times, with striking relevance to the present day.

In 1859, Edward FitzGerald translated into English the short, epigrammatic poems (or "rub iy t") of medieval Persian poet Omar Khayy m. If not a true translation--his Omar seems to have read Shakespeare and the King James Bible--the poem nevertheless conveyed some of the most... Read Full Overview

A new, beautifully laid-out edition of Edward Fitzgerald's first version of the Rub?iy?t of Omar Khayy?m, as originally published in 1859.

In the renowned translation by Edward FitzGerald, with an introduction by Professor Cedric Watts.

Here is Edward FitzGerald's original translation of the Rub iy t, the collection of poems attributed to the Persian astronomer and mathematician, Omar... Read Full Overview

A book of verses underneath the bough,
A jug of wine, a loaf of bread--and thou.

Some of Omar's Rubaiyat warn us of the danger of Greatness, the instability of Fortune, and while advocating Charity to all Men, recommending us to be too intimate with none. Attar makes Nizam-ulMulk use the very words of his friend Omar [Rub. xxviii.], "When Nizam-ul-Mulk was... Read Full Overview

A work of staggering poetic beauty that has inspired the likes of John Ruskin, T. S. Eliot, and Robert Bly, The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam was written in eleventh-century Persia and was largely unknown in the West until it was translated into English by Edward FitzGerald in 1859... Read Full Overview

The Rub?iy?t of Omar Khayy?m is a lyric poem in quatrains (four-line stanzas). Rather than telling a story with characters, this lyric poem presents the deep feelings and emotions of the poet on subjects such as life, death, love, and religion. Behind Omar Khayyam's outward imagery... Read Full Overview

Omar Khayyam (18 May 1048 - 4 December 1131), was a Persian polymath, known for his contributions to mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, and poetry. He was born in Nishapur, the first capital of the Seljuk Empire, a contemporary to the First Crusade. As a mathematician, he is... Read Full Overview

Omar Khayy m (1048-1122) was a Persian mathematician, astronomer, and a philosopher who was not known as a poet in his lifetime. Later, a body of quatrains became attached to his name, although not all were his works. These verses lay in obscurity until 1859, when Edward FitzGerald... Read Full Overview