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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who is Coleman Barks?
(a) Scholar.
(b) Photographer.
(c) Psychologist.
(d) Satirist.

2. In the end, what does the character Ayaz do in a poem in Book 1, Chapter 3?
(a) Runs away.
(b) Hides in fear.
(c) Refuses to obey the King.
(d) Obeys the King.

3. The purpose of Coleman Barks' preambles to Rumi's poems is to:
(a) Help the reader interpret each poem.
(b) Expand upon Barks' discomfort with each.
(c) Add a new twist to the message of each poem.
(d) Get the reader to come up with his or her own judgments.

4. How many years did it take Coleman Barks to truly comprehend Shams Tabriz through Rumi's poetry?
(a) 15.
(b) 28.
(c) 6.
(d) 37.

5. Much of the works in this book focus on what type of relationships?
(a) Family.
(b) Teacher and student.
(c) Romantic.
(d) Same gender.

6. In a poem in Book 1, Chapter 3 involving a complicated love triangle consisting of a man and two women, Rumi explores what subjects?
(a) Humor and tragedy.
(b) Reconciliation, division, and uncertainty.
(c) Love, jealousy, and fear.
(d) Lust and disgust.

7. When speaking to the camel in the story in Book 1, Chapter 3, the mouse admits that it is what?
(a) A lion in disguise.
(b) Tough.
(c) A bear in disguise.
(d) Afraid.

8. In a poem in Book 1, Chapter 2, several men invade a city because they are driven by what?
(a) Their egos.
(b) Greed and hate.
(c) Sexual attraction.
(d) A mad dictator.

9. According to Rumi, people who choose from their own free will come from:
(a) Immorality.
(b) Confusion.
(c) Love.
(d) Fear.

10. In addition to being a religious leader, Rumi was a what?
(a) Gardener.
(b) Physician.
(c) Soldier.
(d) Scholar.

11. In the book, Coleman Barks is the author of what?
(a) Appendix.
(b) Introduction.
(c) Chapter Three.
(d) Conclusion.

12. Which of the following best describes the word exoteric?
(a) Humorous sayings.
(b) Secret rituals.
(c) Open teachings.
(d) Incomprehensible words.

13. In the poem in Book 1, Chapter 2, where several men fall in love with the same woman, her physical beauty is really a representation of what?
(a) Spiritual beauty.
(b) The passage of time.
(c) False hope.
(d) The illusion of happiness.

14. What happened after Shams disappeared a second time?
(a) He went to work for another school.
(b) He fell off a cliff.
(c) He married and had five children.
(d) He never came back.

15. In a poem in Book 1, Chapter 2, when a city is taken by siege, what happens to one of the invaders?
(a) Falls in love instantly.
(b) Is tricked and poisoned.
(c) Is taken prisoner immediately.
(d) Becomes a double agent.

Short Answer Questions

1. What main lesson does Rumi impart through his poem about a man who wants a tattoo in Book 1, Chapter 2?

2. When Coleman Barks first started reading Rumi's works, what types of words turned him away?

3. Rumi's poems focus on what aspect of life?

4. Rumi expresses himself in a way that is what?

5. Whether writing about friendship, love, or God, a common theme covered by Rumi is:

(see the answer keys)

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