Seven-and-a-half centuries after the death of Muslim mystic poet Rumi, his verse has lost nothing of its profundity and transformative power. By Marian BrehmerMore

In 1925, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk had the Sufi orders shut down. In modern-day Konya, the city council uses whirling dervishes in its marketing campaigns. Marian Brehmer on Islamic mysticism in TurkeyMore

Sufism has fluid boundaries. Just like Islam, Sufism is inconceivable without its late antique roots. Then again, it has also exerted an influence on Hinduism. Moreover, the Sufic doctrine of divine love exists independently of Islam. By Stefan WeidnerMore

For over fifty years, British photographer Peter Sanders travelled across the Middle East and further afield, seeking out the saints of Islam. His work uncovers a little-known world. By Marian BrehmerMore