This issue traces the living spirit of Persian Sufism as it formed in the early Islamic centuries—rooted in love, service, selflessness, and a visionary sense of unity. In his discourse, Dr. Javad Nurbakhsh describes the essential characteristics of early Sufism, contrasting a path of love and heart-insight with the dangers of abstract speculation. Articles explore Rumi’s Mathnawi, vernacular and modern poets, the Sufi doctrine of virtue, and the transcendent art of Islamic calligraphy, while stories and poems offer contemporary echoes of wisdom and devotion. The Conference Report chronicles the Second International Conference on Sufism at George Washington University, where scholars surveyed the origins, development, and literary expressions of Persian Sufism from its early centuries through Rumi.