Wedding reading
This Marriage
Rumi, in Coleman Barks’s rendering
“This Marriage” by Rumi, in Coleman Barks’s rendering is a poem read at a wedding ceremony. It takes about 45 seconds read aloud, usually by a guest reader. It is still in copyright, so the words are not reprinted here — the reader brings a printed copy.
Why the words are not printed here
The English everybody knows is Coleman Barks’s modern rendering rather than a translation out of the Persian, and it is in copyright — so print it from a licensed edition of his and hand it to the reader. Two things worth knowing before you introduce it: the Victorian translators whose Rumi is public domain worked on the Masnavi, which is a different poem, and the widely circulated "The Sun Never Says" is not Rumi or Hafiz at all.
Pieces still in copyright are listed by title and author only — we name them and tell you where to get them, but we do not reproduce the words. Public-domain text is printed in your script in full.
What it is about
The most-asked-for Rumi at a wedding. The reader brings a licensed copy — and it is worth naming Barks when you introduce it, because the English is his.
Read at a wedding ceremony. Themes: a blessing over the couple · sweetness in the years ahead · a wedding blessing · often requested · Persian · an interfaith wedding · short.
Questions about reading it aloud
How long does “This Marriage” take to read aloud?
“This Marriage” takes about 45 seconds read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.
Who usually reads “This Marriage”?
Usually a guest reader rather than the officiant. “This Marriage” runs about 45 seconds, which is a manageable amount to hand to a friend or family member. Give them a printed copy of their own, in a size they can read without their glasses, and tell them where to stand and how you will introduce them.
Can “This Marriage” be printed in a ceremony script?
Not by us. It is still in copyright, so we name it and point you at a copy rather than reprinting the words. The English everybody knows is Coleman Barks’s modern rendering rather than a translation out of the Persian, and it is in copyright — so print it from a licensed edition of his and hand it to the reader. Two things worth knowing before you introduce it: the Victorian translators whose Rumi is public domain worked on the Masnavi, which is a different poem, and the widely circulated "The Sun Never Says" is not Rumi or Hafiz at all.
A reading is two minutes of the hour.
The rest is the welcome, the vows, the ring exchange, the pronouncement — and the timing that holds them together. Answer some questions about the couple and get the whole ceremony, written out, with this reading in its place.