Saadi
Thirteenth-century Persian poet, traveler, and Sufi master, born and buried in Shiraz, regarded throughout the Persian-speaking world as the greatest moral poet of the language. After more than thirty years of wandering — through Damascus, Aleppo, the Hejaz, North Africa, and as far as India — he returned to Shiraz and composed the Bostan (The Orchard, 1257) and the Gulistan (The Rose Garden, 1258), two of the most beloved books in Persian literature. The Gulistan in particular blends prose anecdote with verse epigram, and its couplet Bani Adam — "the children of Adam are limbs of one body" — adorns the entrance hall of the United Nations in New York.
106
quotes in library
Quotes by Saadi
106 quotes“Anger destroys the wise as fire destroys the dry grass.”
angerGulistan
“To love is to forget oneself.”
loveBostan
“The arrow of repentance pierces the hardest heart.”
repentanceBostan
“Speak less. Listen more.”
listeningGulistan
“Charity given in secret is twice given.”
charityBostan
“In the desert of the world, the lover is the oasis.”
loveBostan
“Do not boast of what you have. Be grateful you have it.”
gratitudeGulistan
“The traveler who knows no destination wanders. The traveler who knows arrives.”
intentionBostan
“Faith is the bridge across the river of doubt.”
faithBostan
“In the marketplace, watch the man's eyes. They tell the price he will pay.”
observationGulistan
“Whoever serves the dervish serves God.”
serviceBostan
“The wise speak when their words can plant seeds. They are silent when their words would scatter dust.”
speechBostan
“In the school of life, every day is a lesson.”
learningGulistan
“He who has tasted the wine of God's love does not thirst for the world's water.”
tasteBostan
“The garden of Saadi is full of fruit. Pick what suits you.”
generosityGulistan
“Books speak to the wise. The wise speak to other wise.”
transmissionBostan
“Do not refuse a small kindness. The river is fed by streams.”
kindnessBostan
“Whoever fears the king is wise. Whoever fears God is wiser.”
reverenceBostan
“Speak well of others. Your tongue plants what your heart will harvest.”
speechGulistan
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