TEHRAN -- The Managing Director of the Shams and Rumi Foundation Hojjatollah Ayyubi announced that they are willing to hold a special ceremony for Shams-i Tabrizi at UNESCO Headquarters if the necessary budget is allocated.

If financial issues are resolved and the necessary budget is provided, the foundation is ready to hold a program in honor of Shams to help introduce him to the world, said Ayyubi.
“Previously great efforts have been made to introduce Shams and the city of Khoy where he is buried, but more attention to this is required,” Ayyubi added.
“His tomb must be first acknowledged by the people of Khoy, and later we need to build his mausoleum soon.
“We have been holding a Shams festival in Khoy for the past two years and we are now planning to construct his mausoleum.
“We intend to hold an international competition to select the best design for a Shams and Molana symbol. Architects around the world will be asked to submit designs and the best one will be selected for the mausoleum,” he explained.
The foundation commemorated Rumi National Day on September 30 with a ceremony at the tomb of Shams in Khoy. The ceremony ran from September 29 to October 1 with the participation of several scholars of Rumi.
Rumi expert Mohammad-Amin Riahi was also honored for his lifetime efforts to demonstrate that Khoy is home to the tomb of Shams.
Born in the city of Tabriz, Shams lived together with Rumi in Konya for several years. Shams was immortalized in Rumi’s collection of poetry named the “Divan of Shams ad-Din of Tabriz”.
Rumi’s love for him and his bereavement at his death found its expression in an outpouring of music, dance, and lyrical poetry.