Story No. 7

Iraqi style
English

Story No. 7

I heard one of the wise men say: no one ever admits their own ignorance, except the person who, while another is still speaking and hasn't finished, jumps in and starts talking. Speech has a beginning and an end, wise one; don't drop your words in the middle of someone else's. A person of judgment, learning, and intelligence won't speak until they see it's time for silence to end.
Explanation: The first couplet is Saadi's prose preface; the following two are the verse. The final line means a wise person waits and observes before speaking.

Original · Persian

حکایت شمارهٔ ۷

یکی را از حکما شنیدم که می‌گفت: هرگز کسی به جهلِ خویش اقرار نکرده است مگر آن کس که چون دیگری در سخن باشد، هم چنان ناتمام گفته، سخن آغاز کند.
سخن را سر است اى خردمند و بُن میاور سخن در میانِ سخُن
خداوندِ تدبیر و فرهنگ و هوش نگوید سخن، تا نبیند خموش