ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book investigates the pragmatic questions important to constructing a syllabus for a Religion and Literature classroom. It offers an intensive study on the primacy of "interpretation" as the major work constituting Religion and Literature. The book introduces key concepts in Islam that recur in Rumi's poetry, such as tawhid, the oneness of God, and fana', the annihilation of the self in God. It provides an investigation of how incorporating secularism can be used as a way to introduce Religion and Literature to students who intend to take only a "Religious Studies" or "Literature" course. The book offers an innovative account of how teaching better known but less noble books provides incredibly valuable lessons concerning the work of interpretation "hidden" within banal cultural artifacts. It examines the valuable role that autobiography, or life writing, can play in teaching Religion and Literature.
