Drawing Near to the Beloved: Poetry in Praise of the Prophet ﷺ

Praise of the Prophet has always been a central facet of Islamic spirituality. Rumi famously said that to praise someone is to open a curtain within one’s heart to allow the qualities of that person to enter. Participants are encouraged to reflect on key aspects of the Prophet’s life and legacy, not as a history lesson, but as a living example of the alchemical power to transform and transmute hearts and souls. The intention of this course is to draw near to the Prophet in understanding, love, and emulation. To know him is to love him and to love him is to emulate him and to emulate him is to come to know him deeper still.

Purchase for $99

Curriculum Overview:

    1. Welcome to Drawing Near to the Beloved ﷺ

    2. Drawing Near Syllabus

    1. 1 | Lesson: Roots of Praise: Jahiliyya Poetry & The Sahaba

    2. 1 | Exercise Letter to the Beloved

    3. 1 | Guest Scholar: Dr. Umar Farooq Abd-Allah

    4. 1 | Guest Aritist: Sukina Pilgrim

    5. 1 | Reader - Drawing Near to the Beloved - Rumi Center.pdf

    6. 1 | Poems: Highest Station & Heaven’s Door

    7. 1 | YouTube Playlist - Drawing Near to the Beloved -

    1. 2 | Reader - Drawing Near to the Beloved - Rumi Center

    2. 2 | Lesson: Busiri's Burdah: Poem as Double Portrait

    3. 2 | Video Exercise: Visit from the Prophet

    4. 2 | Poetry Commentary Video: Beloved

    5. 2 | Guest Scholar: Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad: A Tradition of Praise

    6. 2 | Guest Scholar: Syed Omair: The Burdah of al-Busiri

    7. 2 | Guest Artist: Brother Ali

    8. 2 | Guest Artist: Ali Keeler

    1. 3 | Lesson: Poem as Salawat: Dala’il al-Khayrat, Moons, Mirrors and Other Metaphors

    2. 3 | Video Exercise: Writing Salawat for the Prophet

    3. 3 | Poetry Commentary Video: Tradition

    4. 3 | Guest Scholar: Shaykh Idris Watts: The Dala’il al-Khayrat

    5. 3 | Guest Artists: Pearls of Islam

    6. 3 | Readings

    7. 3 | Listenings: Dalayl al Khayrat

    1. 4 | Lesson: All is Praise, The Greatest Praise

    2. 4 | Video Exercise: Sharing the Light

    3. 4 | Poetry Commentary Video: Drawing Muhammad

    4. 4 | Guest Scholar: Dr. Oludamini Ogunnaike

    5. 4 | Reader - Drawing Near to the Beloved - Rumi Center

About this course

  • $99.00
  • 29 lessons
  • 7 hours of video content
  • Instructor: Baraka Blue

Course Summary:

This course is for participants with all levels of experience with writing. It consists of lessons, writing exercises, and meditations from Baraka Blue that focus on poetic form and meaning. Key poems, poets, and themes of the great 1400 year tradition of poetic praise of the Prophet that began with the Prophet’s companions and lives on to this day will be shared. The course will feature guest videos from scholars of this tradition as well as contemporary poets and songwriters who are its living inheritors. You will be exploring writing as a spiritual practice and as a tool for contemplation and reflection.