stories of sadi of gulzithan

8/11/2019 Stories of Sadi of Gulzithan

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Chapter I

The Manners of Kings

Story 1

I heard a padshah giving orders to kill a prisoner. The helpless fellow began to insult the king on that

occasion of despair, with the tongue he had, and to use foul expressions according to the saying:

Who washes his hands of life

Says whatever he has in his heart.

When a an is in despair his tongue becoes long and he is like a van!uished cat assailing a dog.

In tie of need, when flight is no ore possible,

The hand grasps the point of the sharp sword.

When the king asked what he was saying, a good"natured ve#ier replied: $%y lord, he says: Those who

bridle their anger and forgive en& for 'llah loveth the beneficent.$

The king, oved with pity, forbore taking his life but another ve#ier, the antagonist of the forer, said:

$%en of our rank ought to speak nothing but the truth in the presence of padshahs. This fellow hasinsulted the king and spoken unbecoingly.$ The king, being displeased with these words, said: $That

lie was ore acceptable to e than this truth thou hast uttered because the forer proceeded fro a

conciliatory disposition and the latter fro alignity& and wise en have said: (' falsehood resultingin conciliation is better than a truth producing trouble.($

)e who the shah follows in what he says,

It is a pity if he speaks anything but what is good.

The following inscription was upon the portico of the hall of *eridun:

+ brother, the world reains with no one.

ind the heart to the -reator, it is enough.

ely not upon possessions and this worldecause it has cherished any like thee and slain the.

When the pure soul is about to depart,

What boots it if one dies on a throne or on the ground/

Story 0

+ne of the kings of horasan had a vision in a drea of Sultan %ahud, one hundred years after hisdeath. )is whole person appeared to have been dissolved and turned to dust, except his eyes, which

were revolving in their orbits and looking about. 'll the sages were unable to give an interpretation,

except a dervish who ade his salutation and said: $)e is still looking aa#ed how his kingdobelongs to others.$

%any faous en have been buried under ground


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+f whose existence on earth not a trace has reained

'nd that old corpse which had been surrendered to the earth

Was so consued by the soil that not a bone reains.

The glorious nae of 2ushirvan survives in good repute'lthough uch tie elapsed since he passed away.

3o good, + an, and consider life as a good fortune,

The ore so, as when a shout is raised, a an exists no ore.

Story 4

I have heard that a royal prince of short stature and ean presence, whose brothers were tall and good"

looking, once saw his father glancing on hi with aversion and contept but he had the shrewdness

and penetration to guess the eaning and said: $+ father, a puny intelligent fellow is better than a tallignorant an, neither is everything bigger in stature higher in price. ' sheep is nice to eat and an

elephant is carrion.$

The sallest ountain on earth is 5ur& neverthelessIt is great with 'llah in dignity and station.

)ast thou not heard that a lean scholar+ne day said to a fat fool:

$'lthough an 'rab horse ay be weak

It is thus ore worth than a stable full of asses.$

The father laughed at this sally, the pillars of the state approved of it, but the brothers felt uch

aggrieved.

While a an says not a word

)is fault and virtue are concealed.

Think not that every desert is epty.6ossibly it ay contain a sleeping tiger.

I heard that on the said occasion the king was enaced by a powerful eney and that when the twoaries were about to encounter each other, the first who entered the battlefield was the little fellow

who said:

$I a not he whose back thou wilt see on the day of battle

ut he who thou shalt behold in dust and blood.

Who hiself fights, stakes his own life

In battle but he who flees, the blood of his ary.$

'fter uttering these words he rushed aong the troops of the eney, slew several warriors and,

returning to his father, ade huble obeisance and said:

$+ thou, to who y person appeared conteptible,

3idst not believe in the ipetuosity of y valour.' horse with slender girth is of use

+n the day of battle, not a fattened ox.$


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It is related that the troops of the eney were nuerous, and that the king$s, being few, were about to

flee, but that the puny youth raised a shout, saying: $+ en, take care not to put on the garents of

woen.$ These words augented the rage of the troopers so that they ade a unanious attack and I

heard that they gained the victory on the said occasion. The king kissed the head and eyes of his son,took hi in his ars and daily augented his affection till he appointed hi to succeed hi on the

throne. )is brothers becae envious and placed poison in his food but were perceived by his sister

fro her apartent, whereon she closed the window violently and the youth, shrewdly guessing thesignificance of the act, restrained his hands fro touching the food, and said: $It is ipossible that en

of honour should die, and those who possess none should take their place.$

2o one goes under the shadow of an owl

7ven if the hoa should disappear fro the world.

This state of affairs having been brought to the notice of the father, he severely reproved the brothers

and assigned to each of the a different, but pleasant, district as a place of exile till the confusion was

!uelled and the !uarrel appeased& and it has been said that ten dervishes ay sleep under the sae

blanket but that one country cannot hold two padshahs.

When a pious an eats half a loaf of bread

)e bestows the other half upon dervishes.If a padshah were to con!uer the seven cliates

)e would still in the sae way covet another.

Story 8

' band of 'rab brigands having taken up their position on the top of a ountain and closed the passage

of caravans, the inhabitants of the country were distressed by their stratages and the troops of thesultan foiled because the robbers, having obtained an inaccessible spot on the suit of the ountain,

thus had a refuge which they ade their habitation. The chiefs of that region held a consultation about

getting rid of the calaity because it would be ipossible to offer resistance to the robbers if they wereallowed to reain.

' tree which has 9ust taken root%ay be oved fro the place by the strength of a an

ut, if thou leavest it thus for a long tie,

Thou canst not uproot it with a windlass.The source of a fountain ay be stopped with a bodkin

ut, when it is full, it cannot be crossed on an elephant.

The conclusion was arrived at to send one an as a spy and to wait for the opportunity till the brigandsdeparted to attack soe people and leave the place epty. Then several experienced en, who had

fought in battles, were despatched to keep theselves in abush in a hollow of the ountain. In the

evening the brigands returned fro their excursion with their booty, divested theselves of their ars,put away their plunder and the first eney who attacked the was sleep, till about a watch of the night

had elapsed:

The disk of the sun went into darkness.

5onah went into the outh of the fish.


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The warriors leapt forth fro the abush, tied the hands of every one of the robbers to his shoulders

and brought the in the orning to the court of the king, who ordered all of the to be slain. There

happened to be a youth aong the, the fruit of whose vigour was 9ust ripening and the verdure on the

rose"garden of whose cheek had begun to sprout. +ne of the ve#iers, having kissed the foot of theking$s throne and placed the face of intercession upon the ground, said: $This boy has not yet eaten any

fruit fro the garden of life and has not yet en9oyed the pleasures of youth. I hope your a9esty will

generously and kindly confer an obligation upon your slave by sparing his life.$ The king, beingdispleased with this re!uest, answered:

$)e whose foundation is bad will not take instruction fro the good,To educate unworthy persons is like throwing nuts on a cupola.

$It is preferable to extirpate the race and offspring of these people and better to dig up their roots andfoundations, because it is not the part of wise en to extinguish fire and to leave burning coals or to

kill a viper and leave its young ones.

If a cloud should rain the water of life2ever sip it fro the branch of a willow"tree.

'ssociate not with a base fellow

ecause thou canst not eat sugar fro a at"reed.$

The ve#ier heard these sentients, approved of the nolens volens, praised the opinion of the king and

said: $What y lord has uttered is the very truth itself because if the boy had been brought up in thecopany of those wicked en, he would have becoe one of theselves. ut your slave hopes that he

will, in the society of pious en, profit by education and will ac!uire the disposition of wise persons.

eing yet a child the rebellious and perverse teper of that band has not yet taken hold of his nature

and there is a tradition of the prophet that every infant is born with an inclination for Isla but hisparents ake hi a 5ew, a -hristian or a %a9usi.$

The spouse of ot becae a friend of wicked persons.)is race of prophets becae extinct.

The dog of the copanions of the cave for soe days

'ssociated with good people and becae a an.

When the ve#ier had said these words and soe of the king$s courtiers had added their intercession to

his, the king no longer desired to shed the blood of the youth and said: $I grant the re!uest although Idisapprove"of it.$

nowest thou not what ;al said to the hero asta:

$'n eney cannot be held despicable or helpless.I have seen any a water fro a paltry spring

ecoing great and carrying off a cael with its load.$

In short, the ve#ier brought up the boy delicately, with every cofort, and kept asters to educate hi,

till they had taught hi to address persons in elegant language as well as to reply and he had ac!uired

every accoplishent. +ne day the ve#ier hinted at his talents in the presence of the king, assertingthat the instructions of wise en had taken effect upon the boy and had expelled his previous ignorance

fro his nature. The king siled at these words and said:


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$'t last a wolf$s whelp will be a wolf

'lthough he ay grow up with a an.$

'fter two years had elapsed a band of robbers in the locality 9oined hi, tied the knot of friendship and,when the opportunity presented itself, he killed the ve#ier with his son, took away untold wealth and

succeeded to the position of his own father in the robber"cave where he established hiself. The king,

infored of the event, took the finger of aa#eent between his teeth and said:

$)ow can a an fabricate a good sword of bad iron/

+ sage, who is nobody becoes not soebody by education.The rain, in the beneficence of whose nature there is no flaw,

Will cause tulips to grow in a garden and weeds in bad soil.

Saline earth will not produce hyacinths.Throw not away thy seeds or work thereon.

To do good to wicked persons is like 3oing evil to good en.$

Story


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It is narrated that one of the kings of 6ersia had stretched forth his tyrannical hand to the possessions of

his sub9ects and had begun to oppress the so violently that in conse!uence of his fraudulent extortions

they dispersed in the world and chose exile on account of the affliction entailed by his violence. When

the population had diinished, the prosperity of the country suffered, the treasury reained epty andon every side eneies coitted violence.

Who desires succour in the day of calaity,Say to hi: $e generous in ties of prosperity.$

The slave with a ring in his ear, if not cherished will depart.

e kind because then a stranger will becoe thy slave.

+ne day the Shahnaah was read in his assebly, the sub9ect being the ruin of the doinion of ;ohak

and the reign of *eridun. The ve#ier asked the king how it cae to pass that *eridun, who possessedneither treasure nor land nor a retinue, established hiself upon the throne. )e replied: $'s thou hast

heard, the population enthusiastically gathered around hi and supported hi so that he attained

royalty.$ The ve#ier said: $'s the gathering around of the population is the cause of royalty, then why

dispersest thou the population/ 6erhaps thou hast no desire for royalty/$

It is best to cherish the ary as thy life

ecause a sultan reigns by eans of his troops.

The king asked: $What is the reason for the gathering around of the troops and the population/$ )e

replied: $' padshah ust practise 9ustice that they ay gather around hi and cleency that they aydwell in safety under the shadow of his governent& but thou possessest neither of these !ualities.$

' tyrannic an cannot be a sultan

's a wolf cannot be a shepherd.' padshah who establishes oppression

3estroys the basis of the wall of his own reign.

The king, displeased with the advice of his censorious ve#ier, sent hi to prison. Shortly afterwards the

sons of the king$s uncle rose in rebellion, desirous of recovering the kingdo of their father. The

population, which had been reduced to the last extreity by the king$s oppression and scattered, nowassebled around the and supported the, till he lost control of the governent and they took

possession of it.

' padshah who allows his sub9ects to be oppressed

Will in his day of calaity becoe a violent foe.

e at peace with sub9ects and sit safe fro attacks of foes

ecause his sub9ects are the ary of a 9ust shahanshah.

Story ?

' padshah was in the sae boat with a 6ersian slave who had never before been at sea and experienced

the inconvenience of a vessel. )e began to cry and to treble to such a degree that he could not be

pacified by kindness, so that at last the king becae displeased as the atter could not be reedied. Inthat boat there happened to be a philosopher, who said: $With thy perission I shall !uiet hi.$ The

padshah replied: $It will be a great favour.$ The philosopher ordered the slave to be thrown into the

water so that he swallowed soe of it, whereon be was caught and pulled by his hair to the boat, to the


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stern of which he clung with both his hands. Then he sat down in a corner and becae !uiet. This

appeared strange to the king who knew not what wisdo there was in the proceeding and asked for it.

The philosopher replied: $efore he had tasted the calaity of being drowned, he knew not the safety of

the boat& thus also a an does not appreciate the value of iunity fro a isfortune until it hasbefallen hi.$

+ thou full an, barley"bread pleases thee not.She is y sweetheart who appears ugly to thee.

To the huris of paradise purgatory sees hell.

'sk the deni#ens of hell. To the purgatory is paradise.

There is a difference between hi whose friend is in his ars

'nd hi whose eyes of expectation are upon the door.

Story @

)oru#d, being asked what fault the ve#iers of his father had coitted that he iprisoned the,replied: $I discovered no fault. I saw that boundless awe of e had taken root in their hearts but that

they had no full confidence in y proises, wherefore I apprehended that they, fearing calaities

would befall the, ight attept y life and I acted according to the axi of sages who have said:

$3read hi who dreads thee, + sage,

'lthough thou couldst cope with a hundred like hi.Seest thou not when the cat becoes desperate

)ow he plucks out with his claws the eyes of a tiger/

The viper stings the shepherd$s foot

ecause it fears he will strike his head with a stone.$

Story A

'n 'rab king was sick in his state of decrepitude so that all hopes of life were cut off. ' trooper entered

the gate with the good news that a certain fort had been con!uered by the good luck of the king, that the

eneies had been captured and that the whole population of the district had been reduced to obedience.The king heaved a deep sigh and replied: $This essage is not for e but for y eneies, naely the

heirs of the kingdo.$

I spent y precious life in hopes, alasB

That every desire of y heart will be fulfilled.

%y wishes were reali#ed, but to what profit/ Since

There is no hope that y past life will return.The hand of fate has struck the dru of departure.

+ y two eyes, bid farewell to the head.

+ pal, forear, and ar of y hand,'ll take leave fro each other.

3eath, the foe of y desires, has fallen on e

*or the last tie, + friends. 6ass near e.%y life has elapsed in ignorance.

I have done nothing, be on your guard.


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Story 1C

I was constantly engaged in prayer, at the head of the prophet Dahia$s tob in the cathedral os!ue of

3aascus, when one of the 'rab kings, notorious for his in9ustice, happened to arrive on a pilgriageto it, who offered his supplications and asked for copliance with his needs.

The dervish and the plutocrat are slaves on the floor of thisthreshold

'nd those who are the wealthiest are the ost needy.

Then he said to e: $3ervishes being #ealous and veracious in their dealings, unite thy ind to ine,

for I a apprehensive of a powerful eney.$ I replied: $)ave ercy upon thy feeble sub9ects that thou

ayest not be in9ured by a strong foe.$

With a powerful ar and the strength of the wrist

To break the five fingers of a poor an is sin.

et hi be afraid who spares not the fallenecause if he falls no one will take hold of his hand.

Whoever sows bad seed and expects good fruit

)as cudgelled his brains for nought and begotten vain iaginations.7xtract the cotton fro thy ears and adinister 9ustice to thy

people

'nd if thou failest to do so, there is a day of retribution.

The sons of 'da are libs of each other

)aving been created of one essence.

When the calaity of tie afflicts one lib

The other libs cannot reain at rest.

If thou hast no sypathy for the troubles of othersThou art unworthy to be called by the nae of a an.

Story 11

' dervish, whose prayers et with answers, ade his appearance, and )e9a9 Dusuf, calling hi, said:

$=tter a good prayer for e$, whereon the dervish exclaied: $+ Eod, take his life.$ )e replied: $*orEod$s sake, what prayer is this/$ The dervish re9oined: $It is a good prayer for thee and for all

%usalans.$

+ tyrant, who oppressest thy sub9ects,)ow long wilt thou persevere in this/

+f what use is authority to thee/

To die is better for thee than to oppress en.

Story 10

'n un9ust king asked a devotee what kind of worship is best/ )e replied: $*or thee the best is to sleep

one half of the day so as not to in9ure the people for a while.$


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I saw a tyrant sleeping half the day.

I said: $This confusion, if sleep reoves it, so uch the better&

ut he whose sleep is better than his wakefulness

Is better dead than leading such a bad life.$

Story 14

I heard a king, who had changed ight into day by pleasures, saying in his drunkenness:

$We have in the world no oent ore delightful than this,ecause I care neither for good nor for bad nor for anyone.$

' naked dervish, who was sleeping outside in the cold, then said:

$+ thou like who in happiness there is no one in the world,

I take it if thou carest not, we also do not care.$

The king, being pleased with these words of unconcern, held out a bag of a thousand dinars fro the

window and said: $3ervish, spread out thy skirt.$ )e replied: $Whence can I, who have no robe, bring a

skirt/$ The padshah took pity on his helpless condition, added a robe to his gift and sent it out to hibut the dervish s!uandered the oney in a short tie and returned.

6roperty cannot abide in the hands of the free,2either patience in the heart of a lover nor water in a sieve.

The case of the dervish having been brought to the notice of the king when he was not in good huour,

he becae angry and turned his face away. Therefore it has been said that intelligent and experienceden ought to be on their guard against the violence and despotis of kings because their thoughts are

generally occupied with iportant affairs of state so that they cannot bear to be iportuned by the

crowd of vulgar persons.

)e will be excluded fro the beneficence of the padshah

Who cannot watch for the proper opportunity.efore thou seest the occasion for speaking at hand

3estroy not thy power by heedless talk.

The king said: $3rive away this ipudent and prodigal endicant who has in so short a tie thrown

away so uch oney. )e does not know that the eit"ulal is intended to offer a orsel to the needy

and not to feed the brothers of devils.$

The fool who burns by day a caphor"light

Will soon not have an oil"lap for the night.

+ne of councillor"ve#iers said: $%y lord, it would see proper to grant to such persons a sufficient

allowance to be drawn fro tie to tie so that they ay not s!uander it. ut anger and repulsion, as

anifested by thee, are unworthy of a generous disposition as also to encourage a an by kindness andthen again to distress hi by disappointing his expectation.$

The door ought not to be opened to applicants so


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That, when it is a9ar, it ay not be shut again.

2obody sees the thirsty pilgris to )e9a#

-rowding at the bank of briny water.

Wherever a sweet spring happens to be%en, birds and insects flock around it.

Story 18

+ne of the ancient kings neglected the governent of his real and kept the ary in distress.

'ccordingly the whole of it ran away when a powerful eney appeared.

If he refrains fro giving treasure to the troops

They refrain fro putting their hands to the sword.

What bravery will they display in battle arrayWhen their hands are epty and affairs deplorable/

I was on ters of friendship with one of those who had acted treacherously and reproached hi, telling

hi that it was base, ungrateful, despicable and undutiful to abandon an old aster when his affairshave changed a little and to disregard the obligations incurred for benefits received during any years.

)e replied: $If I infor thee, perhaps thou wilt excuse e for y horse had no barley and y saddle"

cloth was pawned. ' sultan who grudges oney to his troops, they cannot bravely risk their lives forhi.$

Eive gold to the soldier that he ay serve thee.If thou witholdest gold, he will serve elsewhere.

When a warrior is full, he will be brave infight but if his belly be epty, he will be brave in flight.

Story 1

+ne of y friends coplained of the unpropitious ties, telling e that he had a slender incoe, alarge faily, without strength to bear the load of poverty and had often entertained the idea to eigrate

to another country so that no atter how he ade a living no one ight becoe aware of his good or

ill luck.

%any a an slept hungry and no one knew who he was.

%any a an was at the point of death and no one wept for hi.

)e was also apprehensive of the alevolence of eneies who would laugh behind his back and would

attribute the struggle he underwent for the benefit of his faily to his want of anly independence and

that they will say:

$ehold that dishonourable fellow who will never

See the face of prosperity,Will choose bodily cofort for hiself,

'bandoning his wife and children to isery.$

)e also told e that as I knew he possessed soe knowledge of arithetic, I ight, through y

influence, get hi appointed to a post which would becoe the eans of putting his ind at ease and

place hi under obligations to e, which he could not re!uite by gratitude during the rest of his life. Ireplied: $3ear friendB 7ployent by a padshah consists of two parts, naely, the hope for bread and

the danger of life, but it is against the opinion of intelligent en to incur this danger for that hope.$

2o one coes to the house of a dervishTo levy a tax on land and garden.

7ither consent to bear thy anxiety or grief

+r carry thy beloved children to the crows.

)e replied: $Thou hast not uttered these words in confority with y case nor answered y !uestion.

)ast thou not heard the saying/ (Whoever coits treachery let his hand treble at the account.($

Straightness is the eans of acceptance with Eod.

I saw no one lost on the straight road.


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Sages have said: $*our persons are for life in dread of four persons: a robber of the sultan, a thief of the

watchan, an adulterer of an inforer, and a harlot of the uhtasib. ut what has he to fear whose

account of the conscience is clear/$

e not extravagant when in office, if thou desirest

+n thy reoval to see thy foes ebarrassed for iputations againstthee.

e thou pure, + brother, and in fear of no one.

Washeren beat only ipure garents against stones.

I said: $The Story of that fox resebles thy case, who was by soe persons seen fleeing with uch

trouble and asked for the cause of his fear replied: $I have heard that caels are being forced into theservice.$ They said: $+ fool, what connection hast thou with a cael and what reseblance does the

latter bear to thee/$ The fox re9oined: $)ush. If the envious alevolently say that I a a cael and I a

caught, who will care to release e or investigate y case/ Till the antidote is brought fro 7ra! the

snake"bitten person dies.$ Thou art a very excellent and honest an but eneies sit in abush andcopetitors in every corner. If they describe thy character in a contrary anner, thou wouldst be called

upon to give explanations to the padshah and incur reproof. Who would on that occasion venture to say

anything/ 'ccordingly I a of opinion that thou shouldst retire to the doain of contentent andabandon aspirations to doinion. Wise en have said:

$In the sea there are countless gains,ut if thou desirest safety, it will be on the shore.$

%y friend, having heard these words, becae angry, ade a wry face and began to reproach e,

saying: $What sufficiency of wisdo and aturity of intellect is this/ The saying of philosophers hascoe true, that friends are useful in prison because at table all eneies appear as friends.$

'ccount hi not a friend who knocks at the door of prosperity,oasts of aity and calls hiself thy adopted brother.

I consider hi a friend who takes a friend$s hand

When he is in a distressed state and in poverty.

Seeing that he had thus changed and ascribed y advice to an interested otive, I paid a visit to the

6resident of the State -ouncil and, trusting in y old ac!uaintance with hi, explained the case of yfriend who he then appointed to a sall post. In a short tie y friend$s affable behaviour and good

anageent elicited approbation so that he was prooted to a higher office. In this anner the star of

his good luck ascended till he reached the #enith of his aspirations, becae a courtier of his a9esty the

sultan, generally esteeed and trusted. I was delighted with his safe position and said:

$e not apprehensive of tangled affairs and keep not a broken heart

ecause the spring of life is in darkness.$

3o not grieve, + brother in isery,

ecause the Ill"erciful has hidden favours.

Sit not orose on account of the turns of tie& for patience,

'lthough bitter, nevertheless possesses a sweet fruit.


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$'llow e who a the sallest slave

To sit in the line of slaves.$

)e said: $'llah, 'llah, what need is there for such words/$

If thou sittest on y head and eyes

I shall be polite, for thou art polite.

In short, I took a seat and we conversed on a variety of topics till the affair of the error of y

copanions turned up and I said:

$What crie has y lord seen, who was bountiful,

To ake the slave despicable in his sight/To Eod that agnaniity and bounty is surrendered

Which beholds the crie but nevertheless bestows the bread.$

The governor, being pleased with these words, ordered the support of y friends to be attended to asbefore and the arrears to be ade good. I expressed y gratitude, kissed the ground of obedience,

apologi#ed for y boldness, and said:

$Since the a$bah has becoe the Giblah of wants fro distant lands

The people go to visit it fro any farsangs.

Thou ust suffer the iportunity of such as we areecause no one throws stones on a tree without fruit.$

Story 1@

' royal prince, having inherited abundant treasures fro his father, opened the hand of liberality and

satisfied his ipulse of generosity by lavishing without stint benefits upon the ary and the population.

' tray of lignu aloes will eit no odour.

6lace it on fire, it will sell like abergris.If thou wishest to be accounted great, be liberal

ecause grain will not grow unless it be sown.

+ne of his courtiers began heedlessly to adonish hi, saying: $*orer kings have by their exertions

accuulated this wealth and deposited it for a useful purpose. -ease this oveent because calaities

ay arise in front and eneies in the rear. It is not eet for thee to be helpless at a tie of necessity.$

If thou distributest a treasure to the ultitude

7ach householder will receive a grain of rice.

Why takest thou not fro each a barley"corn of silverThat thou ayest accuulate every day a treasure/

The royal prince turned away his face at these words and said: $Eod the ost high has ade e thepossessor of this country, to en9oy and to bestow, not to guard and to retain.$

Garun, who possessed forty treasure houses, perished.


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2ushirvan has not died because he obtained a good reputation.

Story 1A

It is related that, whilst soe gae was being roasted for 2ushirvan the 9ust during a hunting party, no

salt could be found. 'ccordingly a boy was sent to an ad9oining village to bring soe. 2ushirvan said:

$6ay for the salt lest it should becoe a custo and the village be ruined.$ )aving been asked whathar could arise fro such a trifling deand, 2ushirvan replied: $The foundation of oppression was

sall in the world but whoever cae augented it so that it reached its present agnitude.$

If the king eats one apple fro the garden of a sub9ect

)is slaves will pull hi up the tree fro the roots.

*or five eggs which the sultan allows to be taken by force

The people belonging to his ary will put a thousand

fowls on the spit.

' tyrant does not reain in the world

ut the curse on hi abides for ever.

Story 0C

I heard that an oppressor ruined the habitations of the sub9ects to fill the treasury of the sultan,unindful of the axi of philosophers, who have said: $Who offends Eod the ost high to gain the

heart of a created being, Eod will use that very being to bring on his destruction in the world.$

*ire burning with wild rue will not-ause a soke like that of afflicted hearts.

The prince of all anials is the lion and the eanest of beasts the ass. 2evertheless sages agree that anass who carries loads is better than a lion who destroys en.

The poor donkey though void of discernentIs nevertheless esteeed when he carries a burden.

+xen and asses who carry loads

're superior to en oppressing ankind.

When the king had obtained inforation of soe of the oppressor$s isdeeds and bad conduct, he had

hi put on the rack and slain by various tortures.

Thou wilt not obtain the approbation of the sultan

=nless thou seekest the goodwill of his sub9ects.

If thou desirest Eod to condone thy transgressions,3o good to the people who Eod has created.

+ne of the oppressed who passed near hi said:

$2ot everyone who possesses strength of ar and office

In the sultanate ay with ipunity plunder the people.


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' hard bone ay be ade to pass down the throat

ut it will tear the belly when it sticks in the navel.$

Story 01

It is narrated that an oppressor of the people, a soldier, hit the head of a pious an with a stone and that

the dervish, having no eans of taking vengeance, preserved the stone till the tie arrived when theking becae angry with that soldier, and iprisoned hi in a well. Then the dervish ade his

appearance and dropped the stone upon his head. )e asked: $Who art thou, and why hast thou hit y

head with this stone/$ The an replied: $I a the sae person who thou hast struck on the head withthis stone on such and such a day.$ The soldier continued: $Where hast thou been all this tie/$ The

dervish replied: $I was afraid of thy dignity but now when I beheld thee in the well I ade use of the

opportunity.$

When thou seest an unworthy an in good luck

Intelligent en have chosen subission.

If thou hast not a tearing sharp nailIt will be better not to contend with the wicked.

Who grasps with his fist one who has an ar of steel

In9ures only his own powerless wrist.Wait till inconstant fortune ties his hand.

Then, to please thy friends, pick out his brains.

Story 00

' king was sub9ect to a terrible disease, the ention of which is not sanctioned by custo. The tribe of

Dunani physicians agreed that this pain cannot be allayed except by eans of the bile of a personendued with certain !ualities. +rders having been issued to search for an individual of this kind, the son

of a landholder was discovered to possess the !ualities entioned by the doctors. The king suoned

the father and other of the boy whose consent he obtained by giving the iense wealth. The !a#iissued a 9udicial decree that it is perissible to shed the blood of one sub9ect for the safety of the king

and the executioner was ready to slay the boy who then looked heavenwards and siled. The king

asked: $What occasion for laughter is there in such a position/$ The youth replied: $' son looks to theaffection of his father and other to bring his case before the !a#i and to ask 9ustice fro the padshah.

In the present instance, however, the father and other have for the trash of this world surrendered y

blood, the !a#i has issued a decree to kill e, the sultan thinks he will recover his health only throughy destruction and I see no other refuge besides Eod the ost high.$

To who shall I coplain against thy hand

If I a to seek 9ustice also fro thy hand/

The sultan becae troubled at these words, tears rushed to his eyes and he said: $It is better for e to

perish than to shed innocent blood.$ )e kissed the head and eyes of the youth, presented hi withboundless wealth and it is said that the king also recovered his health during that week.

I also reeber the distich recitedy the elephant"driver on the bank of the 2ile:

$If thou knewest the state of the ant under thy foot

It is like thy own condition under the foot of an elephant.$


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they have offered hi, because having been nourished by the bounty of this dynasty, he cannot becoe

unthankful towards his benefactor in conse!uence of a slight change of sentients of the latter, since it

is said:

)e who bestows every oent favours upon thee

Is to be pardoned by thee if once in his life he in9ures thee.$

The king approved of his gratitude, bestowed upon hi a robe of honour, gave hi presents and asked

his pardon, saying: $I coitted a istake.$ )e replied: $%y lord, it was the decree of Eod the ost

high that a isfortune should befall this servant but it was best that it should coe fro thy handswhich had forerly bestowed favours upon hi and placed hi under obligations.$

If people in9ure thee grieve notecause neither rest nor grief coe fro the people.

e aware that the contrasts of friend and foe are fro Eod

ecause the hearts of both are in his keeping.

'lthough the arrow is shot fro the bowWise en look at the archer.

Story 0

It is narrated that a tyrant who purchased wood fro dervishes forcibly gave it away to rich "people

gratuitously. ' pious an passing near said:

$Thou art a snake, stingest who thou beholdest,

+r an owl& wherever thou sittest thou destroyest.

'lthough thy oppression ay pass aong us

It cannot pass with the ord who knows all secrets.

+ppress not the deni#ens of the earth

That their supplications ay not pass to heaven.$


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having ade hi independent, he took no notice. The sultan, in confority with his royal dignity,

becae angry and said: $This tribe of rag"wearers resebles beasts.$ The ve#ier said: $The padshah of

the surface of the earth has passed near thee. Why hast thou not paid hoage and shown good

anners/$ )e replied: $Tell the king to look for hoage fro a an who expects benefits fro hi andalso that kings exist for protecting sub9ects and sub9ects not for obeying kings.$

The padshah is the guardian of the dervish'lthough wealth is in the glory of his reign.

The sheep is not for the shepherd

ut the shepherd for the service of it.

Today thou beholdest one an prosperous

'nd another whose heart is wounded by struggling.Wait a few days till the earth consues

The brain in the head of the visionary.

3istinction between king and slave has ceased

When the decree of fate overtakes the.If a an were to open the tobs of the dead

)e would not distinguish a rich fro a poor an.

The king, who was pleased with the sentients of the dervish, asked hi to ake a re!uest but he

answered that the only one he had to ake was to be left alone. The king then asked for advice and the

dervish said:

$=nderstand now while wealth is in thy hand

That fortune and kingdo will leave thy hand.$

Story 0A

' ve#ier paid a visit to ;ulnun %isri and asked for his favour, saying: $I a day and night engaged inthe service of the sultan and hoping to be rewarded but nevertheless dread to be punished by hi.$

;ulnun wept and said: $)ad I feared Eod, the great and glorious, as thou fearest the sultan, I would be

one of the nuber of the righteous.$

If there were no hope of rest and trouble

The foot of the dervish would be upon the sphere'nd if the ve#ier feared Eod

ike the king he would be king.

Story 4C

' padshah having issued orders to kill an innocent an, the latter said: $+ king, seek not thine own

in9ury on account of the anger thou bearest towards e.$ )e asked: $)ow/$ The an replied: $Thispunishent will abide with e one oent but the sin of it for ever with thee.$

The period of life has passed away like the desert wind.itter and sweet, ugliness and beauty have passed away.

The tyrant fanded he had done in9ury to us.

It reained on his neck and passed away fro us.


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This adonition having taken effect, the king spared his blood.

Story 41

The ve#iers of 2ushirvan happened to discuss an iportant affair of state, each giving his opinion

according to his knowledge. The king likewise gave his opinion and ar#achuihr concurred with it.'fterwards the ve#iers secretly asked hi: $What superiority hast thou discovered in the opinion of the

king above so any other reflections of wise en/$ The philosopher replied: $Since the terination of

the affair is unknown and it depends upon the will of Eod whether the opinion of the others will turnout right or wrong, it was better to agree with the opinion of the king so that, if it should turn out to

have been wrong, we ay, on account of having followed it, reain free fro blae.$

To proffer an opinion contrary to the king$s

%eans to wash the hands in one$s own blood.

Should he in plain day say it is night,

It is eet to shout: $o, the oon and the pleiadsB$

Story 40

'n ipostor arranged his hair in a peculiar fashion, pretended to be a descendant of '$li and entered the

town with a caravan fro the )e9a#, saying that he had 9ust arrived fro a pilgriage. )e also

presented an elegy to the king, alleging that he had hiself coposed it. +ne of the king$s courtiers,who had that year returned fro a 9ourney, said: $I have seen hi at osrah on the '#hah festival, then

how can he be a )a9i/$ 'nother said: $)is father was a -hristian at %elitah. )ow can he be a

descendant of '$li/ 'nd his poetry has been found in the 3ivan of 'nvari.$ The king ordered hi to be

beaten and expelled the country for his great endacity. The an said: $+ lord of the surface of theearth, I shall say soething ore and, if it is not true, I shall deserve any punishent which thou

ayest decree.$ )e asked: $What is it/$

When a stranger brings before thee butterilk

Two easures of it will be water and a spoonful sour ilk.

If thou hast heard heedless talk fro thy slave, be not offended.' an who has seen the world utters uch falsehood.

The king laughed, told hi that all his life he had not uttered ore true words than these and orderedthe present which the fellow hoped for to be got ready.

Story 44

+ne of the ve#iers of a king treated his subordinates with kindness and sought the goodwill of his

colleagues. +nce he happened to be called to account by the king for soething he had done whereon

his colleagues endeavoured to effect his liberation. Those who guarded hi treated hi leniently andthe great en expatiated upon his good character to the padshah till he renounced all further in!uiry. '

pious an who took cogni#ance of this affair said:

$In order to gain the hearts of friends

Sell even the garden of thy father.

In order to boil the pot of well"wishers


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urn even all the furniture of the house.

3o good even to a alevolent fellow.

Tie up the outh of the dog with a sop.$

Story 48

+ne of the sons of )arun"ur"ashid went to his father and angrily infored hi that the son of anofficial had used insulting expressions towards hi whereon )arun asked his courtiers what re!uital he

deserved. +ne of the proposed capital punishent, another the aputation of the tongue whilst a

third recoended fine and iprisonent. Then )arun said: $+h y son, it would be generous topardon hi but, if thou art unable to do so, use likewise insulting expressions concerning his other&

not however to such a degree as to exceed the bounds of vengeance because in that case the wrong will

be on thy side.$

)e is not reputed a an by the wise

Who contends with a furious elephant

ut he is a an in realityWho when angry speaks not idle words.

'n ill"huoured fellow insulted a anWho patiently bore it saying: $+ hopeful youth,

I a worse than thou speakest of e

*or I a ore conscious of y faults than thou.$

Story 4

' herit, being the guest of a padshah, ate less than he wished when sitting at dinner and when he rose

for prayers he prolonged the ore than was his wont in order to enhance the opinion entertained by

the padshah of his piety.

+ 'rab of the desert, I fear thou wilt not reach the a$bah

ecause the road on which thou travellest leads to Turkestan.

When he returned to his own house, he desired the table to be laid out for eating. )e had an intelligent

son who said: $*ather, hast thou not eaten anything at the repast of the sultan/$ )e replied: $I have not

eaten anything to serve a purpose.$ The boy said: $Then likewise say thy prayers again as thou hast notdone anything to serve that purpose.$

+ thou who showest virtues on the pals of the handut concealest thy errors under the arpit

What wilt thou purchase, + vain"glorious fool,

+n the day of distress with counterfeit silver/

Story ?


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I reeber, being in y childhood pious, rising in the night, addicted to devotion and abstinence. +ne

night I was sitting with y father, reaining awake and holding the beloved Guran in y lap, whilst

the people around us were asleep. I said: $2ot one of these persons lifts up his head or akes a

genuflection. They are as fast asleep as if they were dead.$ )e replied: $3arling of thy father, would thatthou wert also asleep rather than disparaging people.$

The pretender sees no one but hiselfecause he has the veil of conceit in front.

If he were endowed with a Eod"discerning eye

)e would see that no one is weaker than hiself.

Story @

' great an was praised in an assebly and, his good !ualities being extolled, he raised his head and

said: $I a such as I know yself to be.$

+ thou who reckonest y virtues, refrainest fro giving e pain,These are y open, and thou knowest not y hidden, !ualities.

%y person is, to the eyes of the world, of good aspectut y internal wickedness akes e droop y head with shae.

The peacock is for his beauteous colours by the people

6raised whilst he is ashaed of his ugly feet.

Story A

+ne of the devotees of %ount ebanon, whose piety was faed in the 'rab country and his iracleswell known, entered the cathedral os!ue of 3aascus and was perforing his purificatory ablution

on the edge of a tank when his feet slipped and he fell into the reservoir but saved hiself with great

trouble. 'fter the congregation had finished their prayers, one of his copanions said: $I have adifficulty.$ )e asked: $What is it/$ )e continued: $I reeber that the sheikh walked on the surface of

the 'frican sea without his feet getting wetted and today he nearly perished in this paltry water which is

not deeper than a an$s stature. What reason is there in this/$ The sheikh drooped his head into theboso of editation and said after a long pause: $)ast thou not heard that the prince of the world,

%uhaad the chosen, upon who be the benediction of 'llah and peace, has said: I have tie with

'llah during which no cherubi nor inspired prophet is e!ual to e/$ ut he did not say that such wasalways the case. The tie alluded to was when Eabriel or %ichael inspired hi whilst on other

occasions he was satisfied with the society of )afsah and ;ainab. The visions of the righteous one are

between brilliancy and obscurity.

Thou showest thy countenance and then hidest it

7nhancing thy value and augenting our desire.

I behold who I love without an intervention.

Then a trance befalls e& I lose the road&

It kindles fire, then !uenches it with a sprinkling shower.Wherefore thou seest e burning and drowning.

Story 1C


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Whilst the body of a fat an becoes lean

' weak an will be dead of exhaustion.

)e replied: $+ brother, the sanctuary is in front of us and brigands in the rear. If thou goest thou wiltprosper. If thou sleepest thou wilt die.$

It is pleasant to sleep under an acacia on the desert roadut alasB thou ust bid farewell to life on the night of departure.

Story 14

I saw a holy an on the seashore who had been wounded by a tiger. 2o edicine could relieve his

pain& he suffered uch but he nevertheless constantly thanked Eod the ost high, saying: $6raise be to'llah that I have fallen into a calaity and not into sin.$

If that beloved *riend decrees e to be slain

I shall not say that oent that I grieve for life+r say: What fault has thy slave coitted/

%y grief will be for having offended thee.

Story 18

' dervish who had fallen into want stole a blanket fro the house of a friend. The 9udge ordered hishand to be aputated but the owner of the blanket interceded, saying that he had condoned the fault.

The 9udge re9oined: $Thy intercession cannot persuade e to neglect the provision of the law.$ The an

continued: $Thou hast spoken the truth but aputation is not applicable to a person who steals soe

property dedicated to pious uses. %ore over a beggar possesses nothing and whatever belongs to adervish is dedicated to the use of the needy.$ Thereon the 9udge released the culprit, saying: $The world

ust indeed have becoe too narrow for thee that thou hast coitted no theft except fro the house

of such a friend.$ )e replied: $)ast thou not heard the saying: Sweep out the house of friends and do notknock at the door of foes.$

If thou sinkest in a calaity be not helpless.Strip thy foes of their skins and thy friends of their fur"coats.

Story 1

' fa!ih had a very ugly daughter and when she attained puberty no one was inclined to arry her in

spite of her dowry and wealth.

ad is the brocade and daask cloth

Which is upon an ugly bride.

't last it becae necessary to arry her to a blind an and it is related that on the said occasion a

physician arrived fro Serandip who was able to restore sight to the blind. The fa!ih, being asked why

he had not put his son"in"law under treatent, replied: $I fear that if he is able to see he will divorce ydaughter.$

It is better if the husband of an ugly woan is blind.

Story 8?

' padshah was casting a glanced of contept upon a copany of dervishes and one of the,

understanding by his sagacity the eaning of it, said: $+ king, in this world we are inferior to thee in

dignity but ore happy in life. In death we are e!ual and in the resurrection superior to thee.$

Though the aster of a country ay have en9oyent

'nd the dervish ay be in need of bread

In that hour when both of the will dieThey will take fro the world not ore than a shroud.

When thou takest thy departure fro the real

It will be better to be a endicant than a padshah.

7xternally the dervish shows a patched robe and a shaved head but in reality his heart is living and his

lust dead.

)e does not sit at the door of pretence away fro people

To fight against the if they oppose hi


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ecause when a illstone rolls fro a ountain

)e is not an '$rif who gets out of the way of the stone.

The way of dervishes is praying, gratitude, service, obedience, alsgiving, contentent, professing theunity of Eod, trust, subission and patience. Whoever possesses these !ualities is really a dervish,

although he ay wear an elegant robe, whereas a prattler who neglects his orisons, is luxurious,

sensual, turns day into night in the bondage of lust, and night into day in the sleep of carelessness, eatswhatever he gets, and speaks whatever coes upon his tongue, is a profligate, although he ay wear

the habit of a dervish.

+ thou whose interior is denuded of piety

ut wearest outwardly the garb of hypocrisy

3o not display a curtain of seven colours.Thou hast reed ats inside thy house.

Story 8@

I saw bou!uets of fresh roses

Tied upon a cupola of grass.

I asked: $What is despicable grassTo sit also in the line of the roses/$

The grass wept and said: $)ushB

-opanionship does not obliterate nobility.'lthough I have no beauty, colour and perfue,

' I not after all the grass of his garden/

I a the slave of a bountiful lord,

-herished fro old by his liberality.Whether I possess virtue or not

I hope for grace fro the ord

'lthough I possess no property2o capital to offer as obedience.

)e knows the reedy for the slave

To who no support reains.It is custoary that the owner gives a writ

+f eancipation to an old slave.

+ Eod, who hast adorned the universe,e bountiful to thy old slave.$

Sa$di, take the road to the a$bah of subission.

+ an of Eod, follow the way of Eod.

=nlucky is he who turns his head'way fro this door for he will find no other door.

Story 8A

' sage having been asked whether liberality or bravery is better replied: $)e who possesses liberality

needs no bravery.$

It is written on the tob of ehra Eur:

$' liberal hand is better than a strong ar.$


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)ati Tai has passed away but for ever

)is high nae will reain celebrated for beneficence.

Set aside the #ekat fro thy property because the exuberant vinesWhen pruned by the vintner will yield ore grapes.

Chapter III

On the Excellence of Contentment

Story 1

' %aghrabi supplicant said in 'leppo in the row of linen"drapers: $ords of wealth, if you were 9ust

and we contented, the trade of begging would vanish fro the world.$

+ contentent, ake e rich

*or besides thee no other wealth exists.

o!an selected the corner of patience.Who has no patience has no wisdo.

Story 0

Two sons of airs were in 7gypt, the one ac!uiring science, the other accuulating wealth, till the

forer becae the ullea of the period and the other the prince of 7gypt& whereon the rich anlooked with contept upon the fa!ih and said: $I have reached the sultanate whilst thou hast reained

in poverty as before.$ )e replied: $+ brother, I a bound to be grateful to the ost high -reator for

having obtained the inheritance of prophets whilst thou hast attained the inheritance of 6haraoh and of

)aan, naely the kingdo of 7gypt.$

I a that ant which is trodden under foot

2ot that wasp, the pain of whose sting causes laent.)ow shall I give due thanks for the blessing

That I do not possess the strength of in9uring ankind/

Story 4

I heard that a dervish, burning in the fire of poverty and sewing patch upon patch, said to cofort his

ind:

$We are contented with dry bread and a patched robe

*or it is easier to bear the load of one$s own troublethan that of thanks to others.$

Soeone said to hi: $Why sittest thou/ ' certain an in this town possesses a benevolent nature, isliberal to all, has girded his loins to serve the pious and is ready to cofort every heart. If he becoes

aware of thy case, he will consider it an obligation to cofort the ind of a worthy person.$ )e replied:

$)ushB It is better to die of inanition than to plead for one$s necessities before any an.$


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closet and the aperture of it walled up with ud bricks. 'fter two weeks it becae known that they

were guiltless. 'ccordingly the doors were opened and the strong an was found to be dead whilst the

weak fellow had reained alive. The people were astonished but a sage averred that the contrary would

have been astonishing because one of the having been voracious possessed no strength to sufferhunger and perished whilst the other who was absteious erely persevered in his habit and reained

safe.

When eating little has becoe the nature of a an

)e takes it easy when a calaity befalls hi

ut when the body becoes strong in affluence)e will die when a hardship overtakes hi.

Story @

+ne of the philosophers forbade his son to eat uch because repletion keeps people ailing. The boy

replied: $+ father, it is hunger that kills. )ast thou not heard of the axi of the ingenious that it is

better to die satiated than to bear hunger/$ )e re9oined: $e oderate. 7at and drink but not to excess.$

7at not so uch that it coes up to thy outh

2or so little that fro weakness thy soul coes up.

'lthough aintenance of life depends upon food

Fictuals bring on disease when eaten to excess.

If thou eatest rose"confectionery without appetite it in9ures theeut eating dry bread after a long fast is like rose"preserve.

Story A

' sick an having been asked what his heart desired replied: $That it ay not desire anything.$

When the bowels are full and the belly painsThere is no use in all other things being right.

Story 1C

' grain dealer to who Sufis were owing soe oney asked the for it every day in the town of

Waset and used harsh language towards the. The copanions had becoe weary of his reproachesbut had no other reedy than to bear the& and one of the who was a pious an rearked: $It is ore

easy to pacify a hungry stoach with proises of food than a grain dealer with proises of oney.$

It is preferable to be without the bounty of a gentleanThan to bear the insults of the gate"keepers.

It is better to die wishing for eat

Than to endure the expostulations of butchers.

Story 11

' brave warrior who had received a dreadful wound in the Tatar war was infored that a certain

erchant possessed a edicine which he would probably not refuse to give if asked for& but it is related

that the said erchant was also well known for his avarice.


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-arry not thy necessity to a sour"faced fellow

ecause his ill"huour will crush thy hopes.

If thou confidest thy heart$s grief, tell it to oneWhose face will cofort thee like ready cash.

Story 18

' year of dearth set in at 'lexandria so that even a dervish lost the reins of patience fro his hands, the

pearls of heaven were withheld fro the earth and the laentations of ankind ascended to thefiraent.

There was no wild beast, fowl, fish or antWhose wailings propted by distress had not reached the sky.

*or a wonder the heart"soke of the people did not condense

To for clouds and the torrents of their tears rain.

In such a year there was an heraphrodite. I owe it to y friends not to describe hi because it would

be an abandonent of good anners, especially in the presence of great en. +n the other hand, it

would likewise be iproper and in the way of negligence not to ention anything about hi becausecertain people would ipute it to the ignorance of the narrator. 'ccordingly I shall briefly describe hi

in the following two distichs because a little indicates uch and a handful is a saple of a donkey load.

If a Tatar slays that heraphrodite

The Tatar ust not be slain in return.

)ow long will he be like the bridge of aghdad

With water flowing beneath and en on the back/

Such a an, a portion of whose eulogy thou hast now heard, possessed in that year boundless wealth,

bestowed silver and gold upon the needy and laid out tables for travellers. ' copany of dervishes who

were by the presence of distress on the point of starvation were inclined to accept of his hospitality andconsulted e on the sub9ect but I struck y head back fro assenting and replied:

' lion does not eat the half of which a dog consued'lthough he ay die of hunger in his lair.

Though getting rich in wealth and property like *eridun

' worthless an is to be considered of no account.

Story 1

I reeber having in the days of y youth passed through a street, intending to see a oon"faced

beauty. It was in Teu#, whose heat dried up the saliva in the outh and whose siu boiled the

arrow in y bones. %y weak huan nature being unable to endure the scorching sun, I took refuge inthe shadow of a wall, wishing soeone ight relieve e fro the suer heat and !uench y fire

with soe water& and lo, all of a sudden, fro the darkness of the porch of a house a light shone forth,

naely a beauty, the grace of which the tongue of elo!uence is unable to describe. She cae out likethe rising dawn after an obscure night or the water of iortality gushing fro a dark cavern, carrying

in her hand a bowl of snow"water, into which sugar had been poured and essence of roses ixed. I

knew not whether she had perfued it with rose"water or whether a few drops fro her rosy face had

fallen into it. In short, I took the beverage fro her beautiful hands, drank it and began to live again.

The thirst of y heart cannot be !uenched

y sipping lipid water even if I drink oceans of it.

lessed is the an of happy destiny whose eye

'lights every orning on such a countenance.+ne drunk of wine awakens at idnight,

+ne drunk of the cupbearer on the orn of resurrection.

Story 1?

In the year when %uhaad hovare# Shah concluded peace with the king of hata to suit his own

purpose, I entered the cathedral os!ue of ashgar and saw an extreely handsoe, graceful boy asdescribed in the siile:

Thy aster has taught thee to co!uet and to ravish hearts,Instructed thee to oppose, to dally, to blae and to be severe.

' person of such figure, teper, stature and gait

I have not seen& perhaps he learnt these tricks fro a fairy.

)e was holding in his hand the introduction to ;aaksharni$s 'rabic syntax and reciting: ;aid struck

'ru and was the in9urer of 'ru. I said: $oyB hovare# and hata have concluded peace, and the

!uarrel between ;aid and 'ru still subsistsB$ )e siled and asked for y birthplace. I replied: $Thesoil of Shira#.$ )e continued: $What reeberest thou of the copositions of Sa$di/$ I recited:

$I a tired by a nahvi who akes a furious attack=pon e, like ;aid in his opposition to 'ru.

When ;aid subits he does not raise his head

'nd how can elevation subsist when subission is the regent/

)e considered awhile and then said: $%ost of his poetry current in this country is in the 6ersian

language. If thou wilt recite soe, it will be ore easily understood.$ Then I said:


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$When thy nature has enticed thee with syntax

It blotted out the for of intellect fro our heart.

'las, the hearts of lovers are captive in thy snare.We are occupied with thee but thou with 'ru and ;aid.$

The next orning, when I was about to depart, soe people told hi that I was Sa$di, whereon he caerunning to e and politely expressed his regret that I had not revealed y identity before so that he

ight have girded his loins to serve e in token of the gratitude due to the presence of a great an.

In spite of thy presence no voice cae to say: I a he.

)e also said: $What would it be if thou wert to spend in this country soe days in repose that we ightderive advantage by serving thee/$ I replied: $I cannot on account of the following adventure which

occurred to e:

I beheld an illustrious an in a ountain regionWho had contentedly retired fro the world into a cave.

Why, said I, coest thou not into the city

*or once to relax the bonds of thy heart/)e replied: $*airy"faced aidens are there.

When clay is plentiful, elephants will stuble.$

This I said. Then we kissed each other$s heads and faces and took leave of each other.

What profits it to kiss a friend$s face

'nd at the sae tie to take leave of hi/Thou wouldst say that he who parts fro friends is an apple.

+ne half of his face is red and the other yellow.

If I die not of grief on the day of separation

eckon e not faithful in friendship.

Story 1@

' an in patched garents$ accopanied us in a caravan to the )e9a# and one of the 'rab airspresented hi with a hundred dinars to spend upon his faily but robbers of the ufatcha tribe

suddenly fell upon the caravan and robbed it clean of everything. The erchants began to wail and to

cry, uttering vain shouts and laentations.

Whether thou iplorest or coplainest

The robber will not return the gold again.

The dervish alone had not lost his e!uaniity and showed no change. I asked: $6erhaps they have not

taken thy oney/$ )e replied: $Des, they have but I was not so uch accustoed to that oney that

separation therefro could grieve y heart$:

The heart ust not be tied to any thing or person

ecause to take off the heart is a difficult affair.


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I replied: $What thou hast said resebles y case because, when I was young, y intiacy with a

young an and y friendship for hi were such that his beauty was the Giblah of y eye and the chief

9oy of y life union with hi$:

6erhaps an angel in heaven but no ortal

-an be on earth e!ual in beauty of for to hi.I swear by the aity, after which copanionship is illicit,

2o huan sper will ever becoe a an like hi.

'll of a sudden the foot of his life sank into the ire of non"existence. The soke of separation arose

fro his faily. I kept hi copany on his grave for any days and one of y copositions on his

loss is as follows:

Would that on the day when the thorn of fate entered thy foot

The hand of heaven had struck a sword on y head&

So that this day y eye could not see the world without thee.)ere I a on thy grave, would that it were over y head.

)e who could take neither rest nor sleepefore he had first scattered roses and narcissi.

The turns of heaven have strewn the roses of his face.

Thorns and brables are growing on his tob.

'fter separation fro hi I resolved and firly deterined to fold up the carpet of pleasure during the

rest of y life and to retire fro ixing in society:

ast night I strutted about like a peacock in the garden of union

ut today, through separation fro y friend, I twist y head like

a snake.The profit of the sea would be good if there were no fear of waves.

The copany of the rose would be sweet if there were no pain fro

thorns.

Story 1A

' king of the 'rabs, having been infored of the relations subsisting between aila and %e9nun, with

an account of the latter$s insanity, to the effect that he had in spite of his great accoplishents and

elo!uence, chosen to roa about in the desert and to let go the reins of self"control fro his hands& he

ordered hi to be brought to his presence, and this having been done, he began to reprove hi and toask hi what defect he had discovered in the nobility of the huan soul that he adopted the habits of

beasts and abandoned the society of ankind. %e9nun replied:

$%any friends have blaed e for loving her.

Will they not see her one day and understand y excuse/$

Would that those who are reproving e

-ould see thy face, + ravisher of hearts,

That instead of a leon in thy presence


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They ight heedlessly cut their hands.

That the truth ay bear witness to the assertion: This is he for whose sake ye blaed e.

The king expressed a wish to see the beauty of aila in order to ascertain the cause of so uch distress.

'ccordingly he ordered her to be searched for. The encapents of various 'rab failies having been

visited, she was found, conveyed to the king and led into the courtyard of the palace. The king lookedat her outward for for soe tie and she appeared despicable in his sight because the eanest

handaids of his hare excelled her in beauty and attractions. %e9nun, who shrewdly understood the

thoughts of the king, said: $It would have been necessary to look fro the window of %e9nun$s eye atthe beauty of aila when the ystery of her aspect would have been revealed to thee.$

If the record of the glade which entered y ears)ad been heard by the leaves of the glade they would

have laented with e.

+ copany of friends, say to hi who is unconcerned

$Would that thou knewest what is in a pining heart

Who are healthy have no pain fro wounds.

I shall tell y grief to no one but a sypathi#er.It is useless to speak of bees to one

Who never in his life felt their sting.

's long as thy state is not like ine%y state will be but an idle tale to thee.

Story 0C

It is related that the !a#i of )adan, having conceived affection towards a farrier"boy and the

horseshoe of his heart being on fire, he sought for soe tie to eet hi, roaing about and seeking

for opportunities, according to the saying of chroniclers:

That straight tall cypress y eyes beheld

It robbed e of y heart and threw e down.Those wanton eyes have taken y heart with a lasso.

If thou desirest to preserve thy heart shut thy eyes.

I was infored that the boy, who had heard soething of the !a#i$s passion, happening to eet hi in a

thoroughfare, anifested iense wrath, assailed the !a#i with disrespectful and insulting words,

snatched up a stone and left no in9ury untried. The !a#i said to an ullea of repute who happened to

be of the sae opinion with hi:

$ook at that sweetheart and his getting angry,

'nd that bitter knot of his sweet eyebrow.$

The 'rab says: $' slap fro a lover is a raisin.

' blow fro the hand on the outh

Is sweeter than eating bread with one$s own hand.


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In the sae way the boy$s ipudence ight be indicating kindness as padshahs utter hard words whilst

they secretly wish for peace:

Erapes yet unripe are sour.Wait two or three days, they will becoe sweet.

'fter saying these words he returned to his court of 9ustice, where soe respectable en connectedwith hi kissed the ground of service and said: $With thy perission we shall, doing obeisance, speak

soe words to thee although they ay be contrary to politeness because illustrious en have said:

It is not perissible to argue on every topic.

To find fault with great en is wrong.

$ut as in conse!uence of favours conferred by thy lordship in forer ties upon thy servants it would

be a kind of treachery to withhold the opinion they entertain, they infor thee that the proper way is

not to yield to thy inclinations concerning this boy but to fold up the carpet of lascivious desires

because thy dignity as !a#i is high and ust not be polluted by a base crie. The copanion thou hastseen is this, and our words thou hast heard are these:

+ne who has done any disreputable things-ares nothing for the reputation of anyone.

%any a good nae of fifty years

Was trodden under foot by one bad nae.(

The !a#i approved of the unanious advice of his friends and appreciated their good opinion as well as

their steadfast fidelity, saying that the view taken by his beloved friends on the arrangeent of his case

was perfectly right and their arguents aditting of no contradiction. 2evertheless:

'lthough love ceases in conse!uence of reproval

I heard that 9ust en soeties concoct falsehoods.

lae e as uch as thou listest

ecause blackness cannot be washed off fro a negro.

2othing can blot out y reebrance of thee.

I a a snake with broken head and cannot turn.

These words he said and sent soe persons to ake in!uiries about hi, spending boundless oney

because it is said that whoever has gold in his hand possesses strength of ar and he who has no

worldly goods has no friends in the whole world:

Whoever has seen gold droops his head,

'lthough he ay be hard to bend like iron"backed scales.

In short, one night he obtained privacy but during that night the police obtained inforation that the

!a#i is spending the whole of it with wine in his hand and a sweetheart on his boso, en9oying hiself,not sleeping, and singing:

)as this cock perhaps not crowed at the proper tie this night


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'nd have the lovers not had their fill of ebrace, and kiss

Whilst alas for only a oent the eye of confusion is asleep/

eain awake that life ay not elapse in vain

Till thou hearest the orning call fro the *riday"os!ue+r the noise of kettle"drus on 'tabek$s palace"gate.

ips against lips like the cock$s eye

're not to part at the crowing of a silly cock.

Whilst the !a#i was in this state one of his dependants entered and said: $'rise and run as far as thy feet

will carry thee because the envious have not only obtained a handle for vexation but have spoken thetruth. We ay, whilst the fire of confusion is yet burning low, perchance extinguish it with the water of

stratage but when it bla#es up high it ay destroy a world.$ The !a#i, however, replied:

$When the lion has his claws on the gae

What boots it if a 9ackal akes his appearance/

eep thy face on the face of the friend and leave

The foe to chew the back of his own hand in rage.$

The sae night inforation was also brought to the king that in his real such a wickedness had been

perpetrated and he was asked what he thought of it. )e replied: $I know that he is one of the ostlearned en, and I account hi to be the paragon of our age. 's it is possible that eneies have

devised a plot against hi, I give no credit to this accusation unless I obtain ocular evidence because

philosophers have said:

)e who grasps the sword in haste

Will repenting carry the back of his hand to his teeth and bite it.$

I heard that at dawn the king with soe of his courtiers arrived at the pillow of the !a#i, saw a lap

standing, the sweetheart sitting, the wine spilled, the goblet broken and the !a#i plunged in the sleep of

drunkenness, unaware of the real of existence. The king awakened hi gently and said: $Eet up forthe sun has risen.$ The !a#i, who perceived the state of affairs, asked: $*ro what direction/$ The sultan

was astonished and replied: $*ro the east as usual.$ The !a#i exclaied: $6raise be to 'llahB The door

of repentance is yet open because according to tradition the gate +f repentance will not be lockedagainst worshippers till the sun rises in its setting place.$

These two things ipelled e to sin:%y ill"luck and y iperfect understanding.

If thou givest e punishent I deserve it

'nd if thou forgivest pardon is better than revenge.

The king replied: $'s thou knowest that thou ust suffer capital punishent, it is of no use to repent.

ut their faith availed the not after they had beholden our vengeance.

$What is the use to proise to forego thieving

When a lasso cannot be thrown up to the palace/

Say to the tall an: (3o not pluck the fruit(,*or he who is short cannot reach the branch.

$*or thee, who hast coitted such wickedness, there is no way of escape.$ 'fter the king had uttered


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these words, the en appointed for the execution took hold of hi, whereon he said: $I have one word

ore to speak in the service of the sultan.$ The king, who heard hi, asked: $What is it/$ 'nd he recited:

$Thou who shakest the sleeve of displeasure upon e

7xpect not that I shall withdraw y hand fro thy skirt.

If escape be ipossible fro this crie which I coittedI trust to the cleency which thou possessest.$

The king replied: $Thou hast adduced this wonderful sally and hast enounced a strange axi but it isipossible according to reason and contrary to usage that thy accoplishents and elo!uence should

this day save thee fro the punishent which I have decreed& and I consider it proper to throw thee

headlong fro the castle that others ay take an exaple.$ )e continued: $+ lord of the world, I havebeen nourished by the bounty of this dynasty, and this crie was not coitted only by e in the

world. Throw another an headlong that I ay take the exaple.$ The king burst out laughing,

pardoned his crie and said to his dependents who desired the !a#i to be slain:

$7veryone of you who are bearers of your own faults

+ught not to blae others for their defects.$

Story 01

' virtuous and beauteous youthWas pledged to a chaste aiden.

I read that in the great sea

They fell into a vortex together.

When a sailor cae to take his hand,est he ight die in that condition,

)e said in anguish fro the waves:

$eave e. Take the hand of y love.$Whilst saying this, he despaired of life.

In his agony he was heard to exclai:

$earn not the tale of love fro the wretchWho forgets his beloved in distress.$

Thus the lives of the lovers terinated.

earn fro what has occurred that thou ayest knowecause Sa$di is of the ways and eans of love affairs

Well aware in the 'rabian city of aghdad.

Tie thy heart to the heart"charer thou possessest

'nd shut thy eye to all the rest of the world.If %e9nun and aila were to coe to life again

They ight indite a tale of love on this occurrence.

Chapter VI

On %ea&ness and Old Age


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Story 1

I was holding a disputation with a copany of learned en in the cathedral os!ue of 3aascus when

a youth stepped aong us, asking whether anyone knew 6ersian, whereon ost of the pointed to e.I asked hi what the atter was and he said that an old an, aged one hundred and fifty years, was in

the agony of death but saying soething in 6ersian which nobody could understand and that if I were

kindly to go and see hi I ight obtain the inforation whether he was perhaps desirous of aking hislast will. When I approached his pillow, he said:

$' while ago I said I shall take soe restut alas, the way of y breath is choked.

'las, that fro the variegated ban!uet of life

We were eating a while and told it is enough.$

I interpreted these words in the 'rabic language to the 3aascenes and they were astonished that

despite of his long life he regretted the terination of it so uch. I asked hi how he felt and he

replied: $What shall I say/$

)ast thou not seen what isery he feels,

The teeth of whose outh are being extracted/-onsider what his state will be at the hour

When life, so precious to hi, abandons his body.

I told hi not to worry his iagination with the idea of death and not to allow a hallucination to obtain

doinion over his nature because Ionian philosophers have said that although the constitution ay be

good no reliance is to be placed on its peranence and although a alady ay be perilous it does not

iply a full indication of death. I asked: $If thou art willing, I shall call a physician to treat thee/$ )elifted his eyes and said, siling:

$The skilled doctor strikes his hands together+n beholding a rival prostrate like a potsherd.

' gentlean is engaged in adorning his hall with paintings

Whilst the very foundation of the house is ruined.

'n aged an was laenting in his last agony

Whilst his old spouse was rubbing hi with sandal.When the e!uilibriu of the constitution is destroyed

2either incantations nor edicines are of any avail.$

Story 0

It is related that an old an, having arried a girl, was sitting with her privately in an apartent

adorned with roses, fixing his eyes and heart upon her. )e did not sleep during long nights but spentthe in telling her 9okes and witty stories, hoping to gain her affection and to con!uer her shyness. +ne

night, however, he infored her that luck had been friendly to her and the eye of fortune awake

because she had becoe the copanion of an old an who is ripe, educated, experienced in the world,of a !uiet disposition, who had felt cold and war, had tried good and bad, who knows the diities of

copanionship, is ready to fulfil the conditions of love, is benevolent, kind, good"natured and sweet"

tongued.


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's far as I a able I shall hold thy heart

'nd if in9ured I shall not in9ure in return.

Though sugar ay be thy food as of a parrotI shall sacrifice sweet life to thy support.

Thou hast not fallen into the hands of a giddy youth, fun of whis, headstrong, fickle inded, runningabout every oent in search of another pleasure and entertaining another opinion, sleeping every

night in another place and taking every day another friend.

Doung en are 9oyous and of handsoe countenance

ut inconstant in fidelity to anyone.

7xpect not faithfulness fro nightingalesWho sing every oent to another rose.

-ontrary to aged en who spend their lives according to wisdo and propriety& not according to the

ipulses of folly and youth.

*ind one better than thyself and consider it fortunate

ecause with one like thyself thou wilt be disappointed.

The old an said: $I continued in this strain, thinking that I had captivated her heart and that it had

becoe y prey.$ She drew, however, a deep sigh fro her grief"filled heart and said: $'ll the wordsthou hast uttered, weighed in the scales of y understanding, are not e!uivalent to the axi I once

heard enounced in y tribe: 'n arrow in the side of a young woan is better than an old an.$

When she perceived in the hands of her husbandSoething pendant like the nether lip of a fasting an,

She said: $This fellow has a corpse with hi

ut incantations are for sleepers not for corpses.$

' woan who arises without satisfaction fro a an

Will raise any a !uarrel and contention.'n old an who is unable to rise fro his place,

7xcept by the aid of a stick, how can his own stick rise/

In short, there being no possibility of harony, a separation at last took place. When the tie of the

lady$s uddat had terinated, she was given in arriage to a young an who was violent, ill"huoured

and epty"handed. She suffered uch fro his bad teper and tyrannical behaviour, and experienced

the iseries of penury. She nevertheless said: $6raise be to 'llah for having been delivered fro thatwretched torent, and attained this peranent blessing.$

3espite of all this violence and hasty natureI shall try to please thee because thou art beauteous.

To be with thee in hell burning is for e

etter than to be with the other in paradise.The sell of an onion fro the outh of a pretty face

Is indeed better than a rose fro an ugly hand.

' nice face and a gown of gold brocade,


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7ssence of roses, fragrant aloes, paint, perfue and lust:

'll these are ornaents of woen.

Take a an& and his testicles are a sufficient ornaent.

Story 4

I was in 3iarbekr, the guest of an old an, who possessed abundant wealth and a beautiful son. +nenight he narrated to e that he had all his life no other son but this boy, telling e that in the locality

people resorted to a certain tree in a valley to offer petitions and that he had during any nights prayed

at the foot of the said tree, till the 'lighty granted hi this son. I overheard the boy whispering to hiscopanion: $)ow good it would be if I knew where that tree is that I ight pray for y father to die.$

%oral: The gentlean is delighted that his son is intelligent and the boy coplains that his father is a

dotard.

Dears elapse without thy visiting

The tob of thy father.

What good hast thou done to hiTo expect the sae fro thy son/

Story 8

+ne day, in the pride of youth, I had travelled hard and arrived perfectly exhausted in the evening at the

foot of an acclivity. ' weak old an, who had likewise been following the caravan, cae and asked ewhy I was sleeping, this not being the place for it. I replied: $)ow a I to travel, having lost the use of

y feet/$ )e said: $)ast thou not heard that it is better to walk gently and to halt now and then than to

run and to becoe exhausted/$

+ thou who desirest to reach the station

Take y advice and learn patience.

'n 'rab horse gallops twice in a race.' cael ables gently night and day.

Story

In the folly of youth I one day shouted at y other who then sat down with a grieved heart in a corner

and said, weeping: $)ast thou forgotten thy infancy that thou art harsh towards e/$

)ow sweetly said the old woan to her son

When she saw hi overthrow a tiger, and elephant"bodied:$If thou hadst reebered the tie of thy infancy

)ow helpless thou wast in y ars

Thou would$st this day not have been harsh*or thou art a lion"like an, and I an old woan.$

Story ?

The son of a wealthy but avaricious old an, having fallen sick, his well"wishers advised hi that it

would be proper to get the whole Guran recited or else to offer a sacrifice. )e editated a while and

then said: $It is preferable to read the Guran because the flock is at a distance.$ ' holy an, who hadheard this, afterwards rearked: $)e selected the reading of the Guran because it is at the tip of the

tongue but the oney at the botto of the heart.$

It is useful to bend the neck in prayers

If they are to be accopanied by alsgiving.

*or one dinar he would reain sticking in ud like an ass,ut if thou askest for 'lhadu he will recite it a hundred ties.

Story @

'n old an, having been asked why he did not arry, replied that he could not be happy with an aged

woan, and on being told that as he was a an of property, he ight take a young one, he said: $I being

an old an and unwilling to associate with an old woan, how could a young one conceive friendshipfor e who a aged/$

et not a an of seventy years ake love.Thou art confessedly blind, kiss her and sleep.

The lady wants strength, not gold.

+ne passage is preferable to her than ten ann of flesh.


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Story A

I have heard that in these days a decrepit aged anTook the fancy in his old head to get a spouse.

)e arried a beauteous little girl, 5ewel by nae,

When he had concealed his casket of 9ewels fro the eyes of en' spectacle took place as is custoary in weddings.

ut in the first onslaught the organ of the sheikh fell asleep.

)e spanned the bow but hit not the target& it beingipossible to sew

' tight coarse robe except with a needle of steel.

)e coplained to his friends and showed proofsThat his furniture had been utterly destroyed by her ipudence.

Such fighting and contention arose between an and wife

That the affair cae before the !a#i& and Sa$di said:

$'fter all this reproach and villainy the fault is not the girl$s.Thou whose hand trebles, how canst thou bore a 5ewel/$

Chapter VII

On the Effects of Ed#cation

Story 1

' ve#ier who had a stupid son gave hi in charge of a scholar to instruct hi and if possible to ake

hi intelligent. )aving been soe tie under instruction but ineffectually, the learned an sent one to

his father with the words: $The boy i

stories of sadi of gulzithan

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