Chapter Four: On Humility

The pure God shaped you out of dust, so, servant, stay as humble as the earth. Don't be greedy, world-burning, or defiant; you were made from earth, not fire. When the terrible fire raised its neck in pride, the earth laid itself down in humility. Because the fire chose arrogance and the earth chose meekness, one became a demon, the other became a human being.

A single raindrop slipped from a cloud, and felt ashamed when it saw the vast sea. Where the sea exists, who am I? If it is truly here, then I am nothing. Because it looked on itself with such humility, an oyster took it in and nursed it with its life. The heavens carried its work so far that it became a famous, royal pearl. It rose high because it had made itself low; it knocked at the door of nothingness until it came to be. The wise and discerning choose humility: the branch heavy with fruit bows its head to the ground.

A wise young man of good and honest roots came in from the sea to a harbor in Anatolia. They saw in him learning, humility, and discernment, so they gave him lodging in a place of honor. One day the head of the pious men said to him, 'Sweep the dust and litter from the mosque.' The moment the traveler heard these words, he walked out, and no one saw him there again. The elder and the others took it to mean that the poor man had no wish to serve. The next day a servant stopped him on the road: 'You did wrong, with a warped and stubborn mind.' 'Didn't you know, you self-satisfied boy, that true men rise to greatness through service?' He began to weep from a deep and burning sincerity: 'My dear, soul-nourishing, heart-lighting friend,' 'I saw no dust or dirt in that holy place; I myself was the filth in that clean spot.' 'So I drew my steps back, of course, because the mosque is cleaner without dust and me.' For the humble dervish there is no other path than to keep his own self cast down low. If you want to rise, choose humility, for that rooftop has no ladder but this one.

I heard that once, at dawn on a feast day, Bayazid came out of the bathhouse. Without warning, someone dumped a basin of ashes on his head from a house above. With his turban and hair a mess, he ran his hand across his face in thanks and said: 'You, my soul, deserve the fire itself; should I frown at a little ash?' The great ones never gazed at themselves in pride; do not expect to see God while you are busy admiring yourself. Greatness is not in reputation and fine talk; loftiness is not in boasting and empty notions. Humility lifts your head to high places; arrogance throws you down into the dust. The stubborn, hot tempered man falls flat on his face; if you want to rise, stop chasing status. Do not seek the path of faith from one drunk on the world; do not expect to see God from someone lost in self. If you want honor, do not act like the mean spirited and look down on others with contempt. How could a clever person ever imagine that true worth lies in a haughty head? Seek no title more honorable than this: that people call you a person of pleasant character. If someone like you turns proud before you, don't you see him as small in your own mind? So if you act just as arrogantly, you will look the same to those you look down on. When you are standing on a high place, if you are wise, do not mock the one who has fallen. Many a person once standing tall has been brought down, and the fallen have taken his place. Suppose you really are free of every fault; still, do not sneer at me and my flaws. One man holds the ring of the Kaaba in his hand; another lies drunk in a ruined tavern. If God calls that one near, who can hold him back? And if He drives this one off, who can bring him back? Neither can that one lean on his own good deeds, nor is the door of repentance closed to this one.

I have heard from those who pass down the word that in the days of Jesus, peace be upon him, there was a man who had wasted his life, spending it in ignorance and error. A brazen man with a black record and a hard heart, so foul that even the devil was ashamed of him. He had passed his days with nothing to show, and no one's heart had ever found peace beside him. His head was empty of reason and dignity, his belly swollen with unlawful gains. His skirt was stained with crookedness, blackened with soot from his own worthlessness. No eye like those who look with honesty, no ear like people who listen to advice. People shunned him like a bad-luck year; he seemed to them like the new moon, best seen from afar. Lust and desire had burned his harvest to ash; he had saved not a single grain of good name. So much did the black-recorded man indulge himself that no space was left in his book to write more. A sinner, willful, and a slave to his appetites, night and day careless, drunk, and befuddled. I heard that Jesus came in from the plain and passed by the chamber of a devout worshiper. The recluse came down from his upper room and fell at his feet, his head to the ground. From afar the ill-starred sinner watched, dazzled by their light like a moth. Ashamed, he pondered in grief and regret, like a beggar before a man of wealth. Embarrassed, he whispered his apologies with burning heart, for the nights he had turned into days of neglect. Tears of sorrow poured from his eyes like rain from a cloud: 'My life has passed in heedlessness, what a waste!' 'I have thrown away the precious coin of my life and gained nothing of goodness in my hands.' 'May no one ever live as I have lived, for his death would be far better than his life.' 'Saved is the one who died in childhood, for he never carried shame into old age.' 'Forgive my sin, O maker of the world, for if it goes with me, what a wretched companion it is.' His head hung low from shame, while tears of regret ran down his sides. In this corner the old sinner wept: 'Come to the aid of my state, O helper.' On the other side, the worshiper with a head full of pride frowned at the sinner from afar. 'Why is this doomed man trailing after us? What has this wretched, ignorant fool to do with us?' 'You have fallen headlong into fire, you have thrown your life to the wind of desire.' 'What good ever came from his filthy soul, that he should sit in the company of the Messiah and me?' 'Better he had taken his trouble away from here and gone off to hell to his own business.' 'His ugly face pains me; I fear his fire might fall on me too.' 'On the day of judgment, when all are gathered, God, do not raise me up together with him.' While this was happening, a revelation from the Glorious One came down to Jesus, peace be upon him: 'Whether this one is learned or that one ignorant, the plea of both has come and been accepted.' 'The man of wasted days and ruined fortune wept before me with grief and burning heart.' 'Whoever comes to me in helplessness, I will not cast him from the threshold of my grace.' 'I have pardoned him for his ugly deeds and will bring him into paradise by my bounty.' 'And if the worshiper feels it beneath him to sit beside him in paradise,' 'tell him: on resurrection day, do not be ashamed of him, for that one is carried to heaven and this one to the fire.' 'For that one's heart bled from burning and pain, while this one relied on his own devotions.' 'He did not know that in the court of the Self-Sufficient, helplessness is better than arrogance and self-conceit.' Whoever has clean clothes but a foul character needs no key to hell's door; it stands open for him. At this threshold, your humility and lowliness are better than your worship and self-regard. When you counted yourself among the good, you erred; there is no room for ego in the presence of God. If you are a real man, do not boast of your manhood; not every horseman carries off the winning ball. That talentless man turned out to be all skin, like an onion, though he imagined he had a kernel inside like a pistachio. This kind of worship is worthless; go instead and offer an apology for the flaws in your worship. What difference between a scattered, wretched rogue and an ascetic who makes life hard for himself? Strive in piety, restraint, sincerity, and purity, but do not try to outdo the Prophet. That fool gained nothing from his worship who was good with God but bad with his fellow creatures. Words remain as keepsakes from the wise; from Saadi, remember just this one saying: A sinner who trembles before God is better than a devout man who only makes a show of worship.

An old scholar in a threadbare, tight coat came and took a seat in the judge's hall. The judge looked him over sharply, then had an usher tug his sleeve: get up. Don't you know this high seat isn't yours? Sit lower, or leave, or stand where you are. Not everyone deserves the place of honor; dignity goes with rank, and a seat with one's worth. Why should anyone have to see you again? This one embarrassment is punishment enough. Whoever sits humbly in a lower place is never toppled from high to low in disgrace. Don't act bold in the seats of the great; if your grip has no strength, don't play the lion. When that wise, shabby-looking man saw that his fortune had turned to a quarrel the moment he sat and rose, the poor man, like a fire, gave off smoke; he sank down to a place below the one he'd had. The scholars set about their disputes, throwing out their 'why nots' and 'I don't concede.' They flung the doors of strife wide open, craning their necks over 'no' and 'yes.' You'd have said fighting cocks had fallen upon each other with beak and claw. One, beside himself with rage, was like a drunk; another slammed both hands on the ground. They fell into a knot so tangled they found no way at all to undo it. The one in the worn coat, in the very back row, roared out like a lion in his den. He said: You champions of the Prophet's law, versed in scripture, jurisprudence, and its roots, you need strong, meaningful arguments, not bulging neck-veins to prove your case. I too can play this game, I have my mallet and ball. They said: If you know it well, then speak. With the pen of eloquence, whatever he said engraved itself on hearts like a seal on a ring. He led them from the alley of surface up to meaning, and struck his pen through their empty claims. From every side they cried out praise: A thousand bravos to your mind and nature! He rode the steed of speech so far ahead that the judge was left stuck like a donkey in mud. The judge came down from his high seat and, with honor and kindness, sent his own turban forward to him. Saying: Alas, I failed to know your worth, and did not welcome your arrival as I should. It pains me that a man of such substance should be seen by me in so low a rank. The usher came to him warmly, meaning to set the judge's turban on his head. With hand and tongue he refused: Keep away! Don't lay the shackle of vanity on my head. For tomorrow, with a turban five yards wide, I'd grow haughty toward the old, plain-clothed men. Once they call me 'master' and 'great eminence,' people would look small in my eyes. Does pure water ever change whether its jug is gold or clay? A man needs wisdom and brains in his head; I don't need a fine turban like yours. No one amounts to anything by a big head; the gourd has a big head too, and no brain. Don't hold your neck high for turban and beard; the turban is only cotton, the whiskers only weeds. Those who only look like men, in appearance, had better keep their mouths shut. One should seek a place to match one's merit; don't be lofty and ill-omened like Saturn. The reed mat gains nothing from height; sugarcane's virtue lies within it, not its stature. With such intellect and spirit, I wouldn't even call you 'you,' even if a hundred servants trailed behind you. How well the cowrie shell spoke, lying in the mud, when a greedy fool picked it up: No one will ever buy me for anything; don't foolishly wrap me in silk. A dung-beetle is worth exactly what it is, even if it settles among the poppies. The rich man is no better than anyone for his wealth; if a donkey wears a silk saddlecloth, it's still a donkey. In this way the quick, eloquent man washed the grudge from his heart with the water of words. Words come down hard on a wounded heart; when your rival has fallen, don't go soft. When you have the chance, strike out your enemy's brains, for the moment washes the dust of grief from the heart. The judge stayed so trapped by his onslaught that he said: Truly this is a hard day. In astonishment he bit his hands, and his eyes stayed fixed on the man like the twin stars. Then the young man turned his high-minded face away, walked out, and no one found a trace of him again. An uproar rose from the notables of the assembly: Where does such a bold-eyed man come from? The chief usher went after him and ran everywhere: Who has seen a man of this manner and look? Someone said: Of such a sweet-souled sort, in this city we know only Saadi. A hundred thousand bravos to the one who said this; see how sweetly he spoke the bitter truth.

In Ganja there was a prince, far from your likeness, corrupt and violent. He staggered into the mosque, singing and drunk, wine in his head and a goblet in his hand. In the prayer niche a pious man was praying, with a winning tongue and a pure heart. A few people were gathered around his words: if you can't be the teacher, at least be a listener. When that stubborn man began his disgraceful ways, the hearts of those good people were ruined inside. When the ruler himself denies what is right, who would dare speak of ordering the good? Garlic overpowers the scent of roses; the sound of the harp is drowned out by the drum. If you have the power to forbid wrong, you shouldn't sit idle like the crippled. And if you lack the hand of power, then speak, so that character may be cleansed by counsel. When neither hand nor tongue has any room, true men show their manhood through inner resolve. Someone came before the wise recluse and wept, pressing his head to the ground and moaning. 'At least pray against this filthy, drunken rogue, for we have neither tongue nor hand to act.' One burning breath from an aware heart is stronger than seventy swords and axes. The worldly wise man raised his hands. What did he say? 'O Lord of the high and the low, this young man is having a fine time in life; God, keep his time forever pleasant.' Someone said to him, 'O model of righteousness, why did you wish good on this evil man? When you wish good for such a treacherous one, are you not wishing ill upon the people of the city?' The sharp-witted seer replied, 'When you don't grasp the heart of a saying, don't fume.' 'I did not disturb the gathering with idle chatter; from the just Creator I asked for his repentance, so that whenever he turns away from his ugly ways, he may reach an eternal joy in paradise. This pleasure lasts only five short days; give it up, and endless joys await him.' The words that the eloquent man spoke, someone from that crowd reported to the prince. Tears gathered in his eyes like clouds from the emotion, and a flood of regret poured down his face. His heart burned in the fire of longing; shame nailed his gaze to the top of his own feet. He sent someone to the good and holy man, knocking at the door of repentance: 'Come to my rescue. Take the trouble to come, so I may lay down my head and set aside the head of ignorance and dishonesty.' The guards lined up in two rows at the gate, and the eloquent man came into the royal hall. He saw sugar and jujube, candles and wine: a house full of blessings but people ruined. One had lost himself entirely, one was half drunk, one recited poems with a flask in hand. From one side the musician raised his uproar, from another the cupbearer's cry of 'Drink!' The companions were wrecked by the ruby-red wine, the lead harpist asleep, curled up like a harp. Among the proud drinking-mates, no one there had eyes open except the narcissus. The tambourine and harp, tuned together, drew a plaintive low wail from their midst. He gave the order, and they smashed everything to pieces; that pure revelry turned into bitter dregs. They broke the harp and snapped its strings, and drove the singer out from his song. In the tavern they struck stones against the jars, sat the wine-gourd down and cut its neck. Tulip-red wine ran from the overturned jug just as blood runs from a slaughtered goose. The wine vat was nine months pregnant with liquor; in that upheaval it quickly miscarried its daughter. They slit the wineskin from belly to navel, while the cup, with bloody eyes, wept over it. He ordered them to tear up the stones of the courtyard and lay them anew, because the ruby-colored stain of the wine would not wash away from the face of the marble. No wonder the drain was wrecked, for it swallowed so much wine that day. After this, anyone who took up a lute got slapped on the neck by the people, like a tambourine. And if any wanton one hoisted a harp on his shoulder, they twisted his ears like a lute's tuning pegs. The youth, once drunk with arrogance and pride, now sat in the corner of worship like an old sage. His father had warned him many times, sternly: 'Walk the worthy path and speak clean words.' He had endured his father's harshness, prison, and chains, yet none of it helped him as much as this advice. If the gentle preacher had spoken to him harshly, saying, 'Cast youth and folly out of your head,' his delusion and pride would have driven him to leave the poor man not alive. A roaring lion does not drop its shield in battle, nor does the leopard fear the sharpest blade. With gentleness you can turn an enemy into a friend; be harsh with a friend, and he becomes your enemy. No one has shown a face as hard as an anvil without taking the hammer of correction on his head. Do not speak roughly to a ruler; when you see him grow harsh, ease off. Get along kindly with everyone you meet, whether they are beneath you or high above. For this neck, out of delicacy, lifts itself to good words, while that proud head draws back. With sweet speech you can win the game; the hot-tempered always carry away bitterness. Learn sweet speech from Saadi, and tell the sour-faced to die in his bitterness.

A man with a smile as sweet as honey was selling his candy, so sweet that hearts melted with longing for it. His sugar was bundled up like sugarcane, and he had more customers than a swarm of flies. If he had offered poison, say, people would have taken it from his hand like honey. Another vendor watched his trade and grew jealous of his booming business. The next day that jealous man went running through the city, honey on his head and vinegar on his brow. He wandered back and forth crying out his wares, but not a single fly settled on his honey. When by nightfall he had made no sale, he sat down heartbroken in a corner. His face soured like a sinner dreading punishment, gloomy as the frown of prisoners on a feast day. A woman teased her husband and said: even honey turns bitter for a sour, scowling face. A foul temper drags a man down to hell, for good character comes straight from paradise. Better to drink warm water scooped from a stream than a cold, sour syrup served with a scowl. The bread of anyone who wrinkles his brow like a folded tablecloth is forbidden and joyless to taste. My friend, do not make life hard on yourself, for the ill tempered have their fortune turned upside down. Suppose you have no silver or gold to your name; do you, like Sadi, not even have a kind tongue?

I heard that a wise man devoted to the truth was grabbed by the collar by a drunken bully. From that dark hearted man the pure souled one took a blow to the neck and calmly did not lift his head. Someone said to him: aren't you a man too? Patience is wasted on such a boor. The good natured man heard these words and told him: don't speak to me this way. An ignorant drunk may tear a wise man's collar, but who would go picking a fight with a battling lion? It does not befit a clear headed, sensible man to lay hands on the collar of an ignorant drunk. This is how a person of merit lives: he suffers cruelty and answers with kindness.

A dog bit the foot of a man of the desert, biting so fiercely that venom dripped from its teeth. The poor man couldn't sleep all night from the pain; among his household he had a little daughter. She scolded her father sharply and said: 'After all, didn't you have teeth too?' Then the man, worn down by his hard day, wept, then laughed and said, 'My dear little one,' 'Even though I had teeth and even the power to bite, I thought too much of my own mouth to use them.' 'It is unthinkable, even if a sword struck my head, that I would sink my teeth into the foot of a dog.' 'One can act badly toward worthless people, but a true human being will never behave like a dog.'

There was a great artist, famous the world over, but his servant had a foul and repulsive character. From his sourness, his hair was tangled and unkempt; he looked as if vinegar had been rubbed into his face. His teeth were poisoned like a serpent's, and he outdid every ugly man in the city. His swollen eyes forever ran with tears, and the reek of onions rose from his armpits. When food was cooking he would frown and sulk; once it was cooked, he sat down knee to knee with the master. He always sat right down to eat his master's bread, and if someone was dying he would not hand them water. Neither words nor a beating could make him work; night and day the house was in uproar because of him. Sometimes he scattered thorns and rubbish across the path, sometimes he threw the hens down the well. His very face filled you with dread; whatever errand he ran, he never came back. Someone asked: from this vile-natured servant what do you want, manners, skill, or beauty? A creature this unpleasant isn't worth it, that you should tolerate his cruelty and bear his burden. I'll get you a fine servant of good disposition; take this one to the slave market. And if he fetches even a single penny, don't refuse; honestly, he's too dear even if given for nothing. The good-hearted man heard these words and laughed: 'My friend of noble stock,' 'This boy's nature and manners are bad, it's true, but through him my own temper turns gentle.' 'Once I have endured so much from him, I can bear the wrongs of anyone at all.' 'Patience tastes to you like poison at first, but once it takes root in your nature it turns to honey.'

Someone found the path of Maruf of Karkh, who from the very start laid aside all claim to fame. I heard a guest came to him, so ill that death was only a step away. His hair had fallen from his head, the color drained from his face; his life hung in his body by a single thread. That night he threw himself down and rested his head, then set his tongue at once to shouting and moaning. By night, sleep never touched him for a moment, and no one else could sleep because of his cries. His temper was restless and his nature harsh; he would not die, yet he killed the household with his complaints. From his shouting and moaning, his tossing and turning, the people took the road of escape from him. In that shrine no one from the town remained, only that sick man and Maruf, and no one more. I heard that for nights he did not sleep for the sake of his service; like true men he girded himself and did what he had promised. One night sleep marched an army over him, for how long can a man endure without rest? The instant his eyes began to close, the traveler began to spew out words. Cursed be this unclean breed, all name and false honor, sham and empty air. Filthy in belief, but dressed in clean clothes, deceivers who peddle piety for show. What does a bloated sack, drunk on sleep, know of a wretch who never shut his eyes? He hurled shameful words at Maruf, asking why for one moment he had dozed and neglected him. The sheikh swallowed these words out of kindness, and the women of the house overheard them. One of them said to Maruf in private: did you hear what that whining beggar said? Go, from now on tell him to look after himself; be no burden, go die somewhere else. Goodness and mercy have their proper place, but doing good to bad people is itself a wrong. Do not lay a scoundrel's head on a pillow; better to lay the head of one who torments others on a stone. Do not do good to the wicked, my good soul, for only a fool plants a tree in salt flats. I do not say ignore people's needs; but do not waste your generosity on the base. Do not show gentle manners to the coarse, for you do not stroke a dog's back as you would a cat's. If you want the truth, a grateful dog is better in character than an ungrateful man. Do not pour the meltwater of mercy on the mean; when you do him a favor, write it on ice. I have never seen anyone so twisted and knotted; show no mercy at all to this worthless creature. He laughed and said: my dear companion, do not be upset by what this distressed man said. If in his sickness he cried out against me, his bitter words fell sweet upon my ear. One should not take the abuse of such a man to heart, one who cannot rest for his own torment. When you find yourself strong and at ease, in gratitude carry the burden of the weak. If you are only a form, like a hollow talisman, you will die and your name will die with your body. But if you nurture the tree of generosity, you will surely feed on a good name. Do you not see that in Karkh there are many tombs, yet none is famous except the grave of Maruf? Only those rose to lasting fortune who cast off the crown of arrogance. The man in love with rank shows pride, not knowing that true dignity lies in forbearance.

A shameless beggar set his greed on a saintly man, but that day there was nothing to be gained. The holy man's belt and hands were empty and clean, for he had scattered his gold like dust before it. The brazen-faced beggar rushed out and began to slander him through the streets: 'Beware of these silent scorpions, these tearing leopards dressed in wool! Like cats they draw their knees up to their hearts in prayer, but if a prey falls near, they pounce like dogs. They have set up their shop of trickery near the mosque, since in a private house one finds less to catch. They rob the caravans of the true brave men, then dress themselves in other people's clothes. They stitch together patches of white and black, and by hypocrisy they secretly hoard gold. What sellers of barley who show wheat! Roaming the world at night as thieves, beggars at every harvest. Don't be fooled that in worship they seem old and feeble; in dancing and ecstasy they are young and nimble. Why must they pray sitting down, when in a dance they can leap so high? They are like the staff of Moses, deeply cheap, only in looks so yellow-faced and gaunt. They are neither pious nor learned; it is enough to say they devour the world in the name of religion. They put on a cloak like beggars, then with an Abyssinian's earnings buy a woman's fine dress. You will see no trace of the Prophet's way in them, except a morning nap and bread eaten before dawn. Their bellies are stuffed to the throat with tight morsels, like a beggar's basket of seventy colors. I won't say more than this in describing them, for to describe them is to describe my own character.' He rattled off things about them he had never seen, for the fault-finding eye sees no virtue. A man who has disgraced himself so many times, why should he worry about anyone else's honor? A disciple carried these words to the sheikh, and if you ask fairly, it was not a wise thing to do. 'Someone spoke ill of me behind my back and did a low thing; worse than him is the friend who brings the words and repeats them. One man shot an arrow that fell on the road; it did not touch my body nor cause me pain. But you picked it up and came to me, and now you are driving it into my side.' The good-natured, saintly man laughed and said, 'This is easy; tell me things far harder than this. What he said of my faults is still only a little; of all that I know, it is one in a hundred. These things he pinned on me from mere guessing, I know for certain about myself that they are true. He only met me this year; how could he know the faults of my seventy years? No one in the world knows my faults better than I do, except the One who knows all hidden things. I have never seen anyone with such kind assumptions, who imagined that this alone was the sum of my faults. If on the Day of Judgment he is the witness to my sin, I won't fear hell, for then my case is good. If my ill-wisher names my faults, tell him to come and take a full copy of them from me. There have been men on the path of God who served as the target for the arrows of affliction. Be humble when they tear your skin; the true saints bear the burden of insolent people. Even if from the dust of holy men they shape a jug, the blamers will smash it with a stone.'

King Salih, one of the rulers of Syria, would go out at dawn with a servant. He wandered through the markets and lanes, his face half covered in the Arab way. For he was a man of insight and a friend to the poor. Whoever has these two qualities is truly King Salih. He found two dervishes asleep in a mosque, both troubled at heart and worn out in spirit. Through the cold night their eyes had known no sleep; like a chameleon they watched and waited for the sun. One of the two was saying to the other: on the Day of Judgment there will be a reckoning. If these proud, high necked kings, wrapped in pleasure and ease, in luxury and comfort, were to enter paradise together with the helpless, I would not even lift my head from the brick of my grave. The highest paradise is our own kingdom and home, for the chains of sorrow are on our feet today. What comfort have you ever known from these people all your life, that you should suffer beside them in the next world too? If Salih climbs the wall of that garden, I will smash his nose with the flat of my hand. When the man had spoken and Salih heard it, he saw no wisdom in staying there any longer. A moment passed until the spring of the sun rose and washed sleep from the eyes of all people. He hurried and sent someone to summon them both; he sat in majesty and seated them with honor. He poured a rain of generosity upon them and washed the dust of humiliation from their beings. After the misery of cold and rain and flood, they sat among the honored nobles of the court. Beggars who had turned nights into days without even a cloak now perfumed their garments over burning incense. One of them quietly said to the king: you whose ear wisdom itself circles like a slave's ring, the worthy rise to greatness; what have you found worthy in us, your servants? The king blossomed with joy like a flower; he laughed in the dervish's face and said: I am not the kind who, out of the pride of my retinue, would frown at the helpless. So you too, put aside that ugly habit with me, this quarreling you would carry even into paradise. Today I have opened the door of peace to you; tomorrow do not shut your door in my face. If you are fortunate, take this path: if you want honor, take the hand of the poor. No one ever picked fruit from the branch of the tree of paradise who did not sow the seed of devotion today. If you have no devotion, do not seek happiness; the ball can only be carried off with the mallet of service. When will you ever blaze like a lamp, when you are as empty of yourself as a lamp's glass is empty of water? Only a being that has a burning in its heart, like a candle, can give light to the gathering.

A man knew a little about the stars, but pride had gone to his head like wine. He came to Kushyar from a distant road, his heart full of eagerness, his head full of arrogance. The wise man simply looked away from him and taught him not a single word. When he set off to return home empty-handed, the proud scholar said to him: You imagine yourself full of wisdom; but a jar already full, how can it hold more? You are so full of your own claims that you leave empty. Come empty, so you may be filled with meaning. Empty yourself of self across the world, like Saadi, and come back full of knowledge.

In anger, a servant turned his back on the king; the king ordered a search, but no one could find him. When the king returned from the road of rage and conflict, he told the executioner: spill his blood. The merciless executioner, thirsting for blood, drew out his blade like a thirsty tongue. I heard that from his wounded, aching heart the servant said: God, I forgive him for my blood. For I have always lived in comfort, ease, and honor, contented under his good fortune. Let it never happen that tomorrow they hold him guilty of my blood, and his enemy rejoices at it. When his words reached the king's ears, the cauldron of the king's anger no longer boiled. The king gave him much and kissed his eyes; he became lord of banner, drum, and war-horn. Through gentleness, fate carried him from that terrifying place up to such high rank. The point of this story is that soft speech is like water upon the fire of an angry man. Be humble, my friend, before a fierce opponent, for gentleness dulls the cutting blade. Don't you see that against sword and arrow, men wear armor of a hundred layers of silk?

From the ruined hut of a ragged mystic, a man heard the barking of a dog. He thought to himself: why is there a dog here? So he went in, asking, 'Where is the pious dervish?' He looked front and back but found no sign of a dog; he found no one there but the mystic himself. Embarrassed, he began to leave, ashamed that he had questioned this mystery. The mystic heard footsteps within and called out, 'Come now, why linger at the door? Come in.' Do not imagine, my dear friend, that a dog was barking here; it was me. When I saw that only helplessness is prized, I set aside my pride, my opinion, and my cleverness. Like a dog I barked much at His door, for I have seen no one more wretched than a dog. If you wish to reach a lofty rank, climb to the heights from the low ground of humility. In this presence, only those took the seat of honor who counted themselves lowest of all. When the flood came rushing with terror and dread, it tumbled headlong from the heights down into the valley. But the dewdrop, humble and small, fell to earth, and the sun's love lifted it up to the highest star.

Some of the eloquent claim that Hatim was truly deaf; don't believe it. One morning came the buzzing of a fly that had fallen into a spider's web. The spider's weakness and stillness were all a trick; the fly mistook the trap for sugar. The wise old man looked on with meaning and said: You who are bound by greed, watch your step. Not everywhere there is sugar, honey, and candy is safe; in the corners lurk the trapper and his snare. One of that circle of thoughtful men said: I'm amazed at you, man of God's path. How did you make out the fly's cry, which barely reached our own ears? You caught the sound of a fly; from now on it isn't right to call you deaf. Smiling, he said: O sharp-witted one, better to be deaf than to hear empty talk. Those who sit with me in private conceal my faults and heap on praise. By hiding my low character, they leave my whole being sunk, my nature debased. So I pretend that I can't hear, hoping to be freed from their flattery. When my companions think me hard of hearing, they'll tell me my good and bad, all as it is. If hearing my faults displeases me, I'll pull back my skirt from doing wrong. Don't lean on the rope of praise; be like Hatim the deaf, and listen to your faults.

In a far corner of Tabriz there lived a good man, always awake, always rising at night. One night he saw a thief in a certain spot, coiling a rope and tossing it up onto a rooftop. He roused the neighbors, and an uproar broke out; from every side men came running with clubs. When the scoundrel heard the shouts of the crowd, he saw no place to stay in the midst of such danger. The commotion frightened him, so fleeing while there was still time seemed the wisest choice. The devout man's heart melted with pity: the poor night thief had left with nothing. In the dark he hurried after him and met him coming, by another road, to greet him. He said, 'My friend, don't go, I am a friend of yours; for your bravery I am the dust beneath your feet.' 'I have never seen anyone as brave as you, for combat is of only two kinds.' 'One is to face your enemy like a man; the other is to escape the battle with your life.' 'For both of these traits I am your servant; whatever your name, I am the slave of your name.' 'If you would kindly agree, I'll lead you to a place I know.' 'There's a low house with a poorly locked door; I don't think its owner is even at home.' 'We'll pile two mud bricks one on the other, and one of us will climb onto the other's shoulder.' 'Take whatever comes to hand, better that than going home empty-handed again.' With comfort and flattery and cunning, he coaxed the thief toward his own house. The bold night thief lowered his shoulder, and the wise man climbed up onto his back. Then the coat, the turban, and whatever clothes he had, he passed down from above into the thief's lap. And from up there he raised the cry, 'Thief! A reward and God's blessing, young men, come help!' The treacherous thief leapt to the door through the uproar, running off with the pious man's clothes tucked under his arm. The man of good faith was content at heart that a lost and desperate soul had gotten his wish. A vile creature who had shown mercy to no one, and yet the good man's heart took pity on him. It is no wonder in the ways of the wise that out of generosity they do good even to the wicked. The wicked survive under the good fortune of the good, even though the wicked are no people for goodness.

There was a man with a simple, open heart like Saadi's, one who had fallen for a beautiful face. He bore cruelty from a harsh, sharp-tongued enemy; like a ball, he was struck by the polo mallet of hardship. He never furrowed his brow at anyone, never turned on a friend with anger. Someone said to him: Have you no shame? Don't all these slaps and stones mean anything to you? Only the base let low people trample their bodies; only the weak endure an enemy's abuse. You shouldn't let an enemy's insult pass, or people will say you had neither courage nor manhood. The lovesick, distracted man gave him an answer worthy of being written in gold. My heart is nothing but a home for my beloved's love; there is no room in it for hatred of anyone. How well the blessed-natured Bahlul spoke when he passed by a quarrelsome mystic: If this pretender truly knew the Friend, he wouldn't waste himself fighting enemies. If he had any real knowledge of God's existence, he would see all creation as nothing beside it.

I heard that Luqman had dark skin; he was not pampered or delicate of frame. A man mistook him for his own slave, saw him as lowly and set him to hard labor with clay. Luqman endured the cruelty and injustice, and within a year built the man a whole house. When the runaway slave was later brought before that man, a wave of dread came over him from Luqman. The man fell at his feet and begged forgiveness. Luqman laughed: what good does an apology do now? For a whole year your cruelty made my heart bleed; how can I clear it from my chest in a single hour? Yet I forgive you all the same, good man, for what you gained from me did me no harm. You built up your own home, while my wisdom and understanding only grew. I have a servant among my household, fortunate friend, whom I sometimes set to grueling tasks. From now on I will not harshly wound his heart, whenever I recall the hardship of working the clay. Anyone who has never suffered the cruelty of the powerful feels no ache in his heart for the weak and small. If harsh words come to you from those who rule, do not be harsh in turn with those beneath you. King Bahram put it well to his minister: do not deal harshly with your subordinates.

I heard that on the plain of Sana, Junaid saw a dog whose hunting teeth had been pulled out. That strength in its lion-catching claws was gone; it lay helpless as an old fox. Once it had chased down wild goats and gazelles; now it took kicks from the sheep of the herd. When Junaid saw it, wretched, worn out, and wounded, he gave it half of his own provisions. I heard that he spoke, weeping gently: 'Who can say which of us two is the better?' 'On the surface, today I stand above it; but who knows what fate has yet in store for me?' 'If my faith's footing does not slip away, I will wear the crown of God's forgiveness on my head.' 'But if the garment of true knowledge falls from me, I am far lower than this creature.' 'For a dog, with all its bad name, when it dies, is not dragged off to hell.' This is the way, Saadi: the true travelers on the path never looked upon themselves with pride. They rose in honor above the angels because they never thought themselves better than a dog.

A drunk man was carrying a lute under his arm; at night he smashed it over the head of a devout man. When morning came, that gentle, good-hearted man took a handful of silver coins to the hard-hearted drunk. He said: 'Last night you were drunk and not yourself. Your lute and my head were both broken.' 'My wound has healed and the danger has passed, but yours will only be mended by silver.' These are the friends of God, who go about in the world and willingly take many a blow upon the head from people.

I heard that in the land of Vakhsh there lived one of the noble ones, hidden away in a quiet corner. A man truly detached, not one who wears the mystic's robe only to stretch out a begging hand to the crowd. Fortune had opened a door toward him, while the doors of ordinary needs stayed shut against his face. A foolish smooth talker set out, out of mischief, to slander this good man. He warned: 'Beware his tricks, his cunning and deceit; he sits like a demon in Solomon's own place.' 'They keep washing their faces like cats, all the while scheming to catch the mice of the street.' 'He wears out his body with penance only for fame and pride, for an empty drum makes the loudest sound from far off.' So he ranted, and a crowd gathered around him, men and women all watching the spectacle. I heard that the wise man of Vakhsh wept and said: 'Lord, grant this servant repentance.' 'And if what he says is true, O pure God, grant me repentance too, so I am not destroyed.' 'I am pleased with the one who found fault in me, for he made my own bad nature clear to me.' If you truly are what your enemy claims, do not be hurt; and if you are not, tell him to go weigh the wind. If a fool calls musk foul-smelling, stay whole and composed; it was he who talked nonsense. And if the same is said of an onion, say: 'It is true, so stop being rotten-brained.' A wise man with a clear conscience does not take the trick of silencing his enemy from some street huckster. It is not the way of reason, judgment, or wisdom for the wise to be fooled by a conjurer's sleight. Whoever wisely minded his own work has already sealed the tongue of the ill-wisher against himself. Keep your own conduct good, so the malicious find no room to speak of any flaw in you. When your enemy's words sting you, look closely at the fault he named, and stop doing it. I know of no one who speaks better of me than the one who lays my faults out plainly before me.

Someone brought a problem to Ali, hoping he would make its answer clear. The commander who bound his enemies and conquered lands answered from knowledge and sound judgment. I heard that a man in that gathering said, 'It is not so, Abul-Hasan.' The renowned Ali took no offense; he said, 'If you know better, then speak.' The man said what he knew, and said it well; you cannot hide the sun's spring behind mud. The king of the brave approved his answer: 'I was wrong, and he was right.' There is one wiser speaker than us, and above his knowledge there is no knowledge. Had a powerful lord been in his place, pride would have kept him from even looking at the man. His doorkeeper would have thrown the man out of the court, and beaten him unjustly, saying, 'From now on, do not shame anyone; it is rude to speak up before the great.' Never imagine that a man with arrogance in his head will listen to the truth. Knowledge wearies him, and he is ashamed of advice; poppies do not grow from stone in the rain. If you hold pearls from the sea of learning, rise and pour your wisdom at the feet of the humble. Do you not see how, from lowly fallen dust, flowers bloom and spring bursts open? Wise one, do not shake out your sleeves of pearls when you see the great man already full of himself. No one rises in others' eyes if he keeps making himself out to be great. Do not boast so that they thank you a thousand times; once you have praised yourself, expect nothing from anyone.