Intro to Rubaiyat

Depending on the sources of reference that one chooses, Omar Khayyam is believed to have composed somewhere between 200 and 600 Rubaiyat (quatrains). Some are known to be authentic and are attributed to him, while others seem to be combinations or corruption of his poetry, and whose origins are more dubious.

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam is among the few masterpieces that has been translated into most languages, including English, French, German, Italian, Russian, Chinese, Hindi, Arabic, and Urdu.

The most famous translation of the Rubaiyat from Farsi into English was undertaken in 1859 by Edward J. Fitzgerald. It appears that in many of his translations, he has combined a few of the Rubaiyat to compose one, and sometimes it is difficult to trace and correspond the original to the translated version. However, he has tried his utmost to adhere to the spirit of the original poetry.

Taken from okonline.com

Links

 okonline.com   This site offers transalations of the Rubaiyat in different versions. There includes a literal translation, the meaning of these poems and also the version by E.J. Fitzgerald

Electronic Literature Foundation: This also offers  the E.J. Fitzgerald version

The Self Realization Fellowship offer a spiritual interpretation by Paramhansa Yogananda

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam by E.J. Ftizgerald can be bought at Amazon