Date: September 2026

In this talk, I explore alternative ecological scales by conceptually engaging with the writings of the Muslim mystic and poet-philosopher Jalal al-Din Rumi (d. 1273). Drawing on Rumi’s Masnavi-i-Ma‘navi (The Meaning of All Things), a six-volume poetic corpus comprising 26,000 verses written between 1254 and 1273, I examine his ontological emphasis on ecology through three intersecting themes. First, I investigate Rumi’s focus on the interconnection of all beings, articulated through the term kull (all) rather than juz (parts), which gestures toward a holistic ecological entanglement. Second, I unpack Rumi’s reflections on the earth’s capacity to witness and experience destruction and pain, considering the ethical implications this holds for our relationships with Others. Finally, I explore how Rumi’s philosophy of balance and mutualism, encapsulated in the concept of maizan, invites us to cultivate a deeper, more reciprocal relationship with more-than-human worlds. By bringing Rumi’s ideas to rethink a conceptual scalar shift in ecology, this talk urges a move beyond Western-centric frameworks for relating to the environment.