Sa'di's Rose Garden and Orchard

Sa'di took his pen name from the family name of two princes he served and to whom he dedicated his two best-known works, The Orchard (Bustan) and The Rose Garden (Gulistan). He was born at Shiraz in Persia about 1213 and died in 1292. He was educated at the Nizamiya college in Baghdad. He apparently traveled widely from India and Central Asia to Egypt and North Africa. He was captured by the Franks and made to dig ditches for the fortress at Tripoli. According to his writing Sa'di was ransomed by a Muslim merchant from Aleppo but was obliged to marry his daughter; later he divorced her. In theBustan Sa'di wrote that he once killed a Hindu priest in a temple after he was caught discovering the mechanism for the idol's miraculous movements. He spent his later years in his native Shiraz. His famousGulistan was published during the summer of 1258 only a few months after the destruction of Baghdad by the Mongols.

In the prolog of The Rose Garden Sa'di praised the atabeg Abu Bakr ibn Sa'd ibn Zangi for bringing peace to a country that had been entangled by men shedding blood like wolves or sharp-clawed tigers. He noted that humans may do this because within they have a good disposition like angels. The poet also praised the wisdom of the Creator for causing a servant to make the general welfare a duty. Those who live a good life will find eternal happiness. Sa'di organized his Garden of stories, poetry, and moral maxims into eight chapters.

The first and longest chapter in The Rose Garden is "The Manners of Kings." In the first story when a king condemned a man to be executed, the prisoner vented his anger in a foreign language; but the vizier told the king he was praying for forgiveness, and the king pardoned him. Then the vizier's adversary said that the man had insulted the king, who became displeased, saying that the lie of compassion was more acceptable to him than the truth motivated by malice. Sa'di wrote that whoever does not have sympathy for the troubles of others is not worthy of being called human. He noted that those with a clear conscience have nothing to fear. "Straightness is the means of acceptance with God. I saw no one lost on the straight road."13 Sa'di warned tyrants that they do not remain long in the world but suffer a curse forever. He realized that a few may have the physical strength or power of position in the government to plunder the people; but though a hard bone may pass down the throat, it will tear the stomach.

Sa'di's second chapter, "The Morals of Dervishes," exposes religious hypocrisy and explores real piety. He warned that whoever enumerates the faults of another to you will probably carry your faults to others. A king meets a holy man and asks if he remembers him so that he can get presents; he replies that he does whenever he forgets God. Sa'di recommended helping the distressed when one is prosperous because comforting the poor averts evil from yourself. If you do not give something to a beggar, an oppressor may take it by force. Sa'di summed up the true qualities of a dervish this way:

The way of dervishes is praying, gratitude,
service, obedience, alms-giving, contentment,
professing the unity of God, trust, submission, and patience.
Whoever possesses these qualities is really a dervish,
although he may wear an elegant robe.¹⁴

The luxurious, sensual, and lazy who eat anything and speak whatever comes into their heads are profligates even if they wear the garb of a dervish.

The third chapter of The Rose Garden is on the value of contentment. Sa'di lamented the degradation of begging and believed that poverty is better than diminishing one's honor. The shortest chapter is on the advantages of silence. Those looking with enmity see virtue as a fault; Sa'di suggested that his rose is a thorn to his enemies. Two wise people do not quarrel nor does a scholar fight with someone contemptible. If an ignorant person is rude and speaks harshly, an intelligent person tenderly reconciles the heart. In his stories on love and youth Sa'di found both women and young men attractive. In the sixth chapter on weakness and old age he advised learning patience. Sa'di recalled how he shouted at his mother when he was young. As she sat weeping in a corner, she asked him if he had forgotten his infancy that he is so harsh to her.

In the seventh chapter on the effects of education a sage advises boys to learn a trade because one cannot rely on property and riches; gold and silver may be stolen by a thief, or one may spend them slowly. Yet a profession is a living fountain of permanent wealth. Sa'di believed that the severity of a teacher is better than the love of a father, and he warned against teachers who let children run wild. He found virility in being liberal and friendly, not in the physical figure. Rather than gaining the whole world, he suggested gaining the heart of one person if you can.

Sa'di debated poverty and wealth with a quarreling man who dressed as a dervish but did not act like one. The man said that the liberal have no money and the wealthy no liberality. Sa'di argued that the wealthy can be liberal because they have the ability to perform religious duties and the money to give to the poor. Their garments are clean, their reputations protected, and their hearts at leisure. Yet those who are hungry have little strength to give. Those preoccupied with subsistence do not have time for the happiness of piety. The destitute and bitter may engage desperately in wicked adventures regardless of the consequences; those not fearing punishment do not discriminate between right and wrong. The hungry steal bread, and poverty may drive a modest woman into profligacy. The other man argued that the wealthy are arrogant, greedy, and stingy; they look with contempt on the poor and scholars. They took their dispute to a judge, who noted that among the wealthy are the grateful and the impious and that some dervishes are tolerant and some are impatient. The greatest of the rich sympathize with the dervishes, and the best of the dervishes do not look to the rich but trust in God.

The seventh and final chapter of Sa'di's Rose Garden consists of maxims and admonitions. He began by suggesting that property is for comfort in life, not for accumulating wealth. If you want to profit by riches, be liberal to humanity as God has been liberal to you. Two means of useless trouble and striving without profit are to accumulate property without enjoying it and to learn without practicing what one has learned. He admonished us not to inflict every injury on an enemy because one day that person may become a friend. If you reveal a secret to a friend, that friend has friends too; no one can keep your secret better than you. If an affair can be arranged with money, one should not endanger life. Excessive anger results in alienation, and untimely kindness may destroy authority; do not be so harsh as to disgust people nor embolden them by being too mild. Whoever gives advice to the self-willed is in need of advice. The wise have said that being content with poverty is better than being wealthy without abundance. Whoever does no good when one is able will be distressed when one is unable. No one is more unlucky than the one who oppresses people because in the time of calamity the oppressor has no friend. "Whoever does not listen to advice will have occasion to hear reproof."15 To be kind to sharp-toothed tigers is to be cruel toward sheep. Sa'di warned against capital punishment.

It is quite easy to deprive a man of life.
When he is slain, he cannot be resuscitated again.
It is a condition of wisdom in the archer to be patient
Because when the arrow leaves the bow, it returns no more.¹⁶

Do not be surprised when a wise person ceases to speak in the company of vile persons since the harp cannot overcome the noise of a drum, and the perfume of ambergris is overwhelmed by the stench of rotten garlic. "Intellect may become captive to lust like a weak man in the hands of an artful woman."17 A liberal who eats and gives is better than a devotee who fasts and hoards. Whoever renounces appetites to get approval from people has fallen from licit into illicit appetites. When al-Ghazali was asked how he attained knowledge, he answered that it was by not being ashamed to ask about what he did not know. Whoever becomes noted for lying will not be believed even when telling the truth. Be advised by the misfortunes of others so that others will not be advised by yours. A beggar who comes to a good end is better than a king who comes to a bad end. Whoever has no mercy upon inferiors will suffer from the tyranny of superiors. A dervish prayed that God have mercy on the wicked because God has already had mercy on the good by making them good. One may freely warn kings if one neither fears to lose one's life nor hopes for money. Finally Sa'di thanked God for allowing him to complete his book before his life ended.

In the exordium to his Orchard Sa'di praised God, the messenger Muhammad, and the two kings who patronized him. The ten chapters of The Orchard he described as ten doors of edification. The first gateway is on justice, management, and good judgment and begins with the advice of Nushirwan to Hurmuz that he should be the guardian of the poor, for the emperor holds his crown by virtue of the people. He must take care to treat both merchants and envoys fairly. He advised giving trust to those who fear God's justice, not to those who fear only him. "Be generous, good-natured, and forgiving: as God to you, so be you to your servants!"18 The ruler should beware of hearing an interested party's words, or he may be sorry for acting on them. Subjects should be husbanded like a tree so that friends may eat the fruit with contented hearts. A peasant advises a tyrant to reform and warns that praise gives no aid while blame helps a ruler understand his character. In another tale a slave girl refuses to please the Caliph Ma'mun because of his bad breath. The sovereign was able to correct his problem and concluded:

To tell one lost he's going well
Is utter injustice and mighty maltreatment;
Whenever none tells you frankly your faults,
In ignorance you take your faults for virtues!¹⁹

A prudent man chides a tyrant that until good management is achieved, conciliating an enemy is better than conflict. Yet one may confront him if he seeks malice since kindness toward the malicious is an error. When an enemy asks for quarter, practice generosity; forgive, but beware of guile. Sa'di commended the counsel of wise elders and warned that forceful youths can overthrow foundations; yet he also cautioned against crafty elders, who can lead astray the impetuous youths.

In the chapter on beneficence Sa'di emphasized knowledge, liberality, and fear of God. The great bring good to those in need, fearing they may come to need others. Help those whose hearts are wounded, for you may be wounded in heart too. Sa'di cited Suhrawardi's counsels to look not hardly on the masses and not have self-regard for oneself. Shibli advises forgiveness, for people may be caught by kindness. Generosity, grace, and liberality can end the vileness of an enemy. Do no ill because good fruit will not grow from evil seeds. A king is kind to a man who reviles him. Sa'di made an exception for tyrants, for mercy to such is injustice to a world. Mercy to the robber strikes at the caravan. He believed that violence to the violent is justice and fair play.

The third chapter of The Orchard is on love, intoxication, and delirium. Saints do not desire anything of God but God. To achieve union one must strip away the attachments to renown and power. In the chapter on humility Sa'di suggested,

With mildness one may turn an enemy to a friend.
But treat a friend roughly and of him an enemy you'll make;
None like an anvil looks hard-faced
Unless he's borne upon his head the hammer of correction;
Be not severe in talking to a prince:
But should you see him to be hard, then softly go to work!
In manner, with everyone you see, practice accommodation,
Whether they be subordinate or those who hold their heads aloft:
For gently the latter may retract their stiff-necked stance
At pleasant speech, the former bow their heads.
With sweetness of tongue one may bear off the ball,
Whereas the man sharp-mannered continually bears off bitterness;
Learn to be sweet of tongue from Sa'di,
And tell the sour-faced man to go and die in bitterness!²⁰

A wise person refuses to fight with a quarrelsome drunkard; the virtuous person suffers brutality but still shows kindness. Forbearance at first may seem like poison, but when grown in the nature it turns to honey. Those of heart will bear the burden of the impudent. Bahlul suggests passing by a quarrel-seeking Gnostic; for if the pretender knew the Friend, he would not engage in fighting. Junaid says that people of the way do not think themselves better than dogs, and in this they surpass the angels. A sage advises one to correct the faults pointed out by an enemy, and he considers lighting up his deficiencies as speaking well of him.

Acceptance is the theme of the fifth chapter; it is a human shield because destiny’s arrows cannot be turned aside. The sixth chapter suggests that contentment is what makes one truly wealthy. Why should one go before a prince when by putting aside desire, you are a prince yourself?

In the seventh chapter Sa'di wrote of the propriety that comes from the good management of character. Why be caught in conflict with strangers when you must first learn how the soul must conquer the lower self, the enemy that shares your house? The manly chastise themselves like a child. When you cannot even get the better of yourself, the political state of your bodily existence is full of good and bad. You are the ruler and can be the prudent minister by controlling the pride of passion and desire. Fancy and lust can be robbers and muggers too. If the ruler coddles the evil, what price in comfort must the prudent pay? If greed, hatred, and envy are nurtured, their heads will turn from purpose; but when intelligence is sharpened, burglars, rabble, and the meaner sort will not frequent areas that are watched. Sa'di warned against loose and excessive talking, recommending wise reticence. If you speak abusively, you will not hear blessings because you only reap what you yourself have sown. A dervish advises that three kinds of people can be disparaged correctly. The first is a ruler who approves what is blameworthy because this can cause great harm. Second are shameless persons who even rend the veil around themselves. Third, crooked people who are devious should have their evil deeds exposed.

The last three chapters of The Orchard are on gratitude, repentance, and close communion. Sa'di thanked the Friend for every gift and suggested that disappointment comes from pride. He advised people to repent while they still draw breath, to advance toward the door of reconciliation while it is still open. His book concludes with the plea of a drunkard to God for pardon.

Notes

1. Deliverance from Error 3:4 by Al-Ghazali, tr. W. Montgomery Watt in The Faith and Practice of al-Ghazali, p. 56

2. The Guide for the Perplexed by Moses Maimonides, tr. M. Friedlander, 3:8, p. 262.

3. Ibid., 3:12, p. 268.

4. Ibid., 3:31, p. 322.

5. The Conference of the Birds 18 by ‘Attar, tr. Garcin de Tassy and C. S. Nott, p. 50.

6. Ibid., 23, p. 60.

7. Ibid., 26, p. 68.

8. Masnavi 1:5 by Rumi in Teachings of Rumi tr. E. H. Whinfield, p. 18.

9. The Mathnawi of Jalalu’ddin Rumi Volume 2 tr. Reynold A. Nicholson, p. 3.

10. Masnavi 3:17 by Rumi in Teachings of Rumi tr. E. H. Whinfield, p. 159.

11. Ibid., 4:2, p. 186.

12. Discourses 9 by Rumi, tr. A. J. Arberry, p. 46.

13. The Gulistan 1:16 by Sa‘di, tr. Edward Rehatsek, p. 82.

14. Ibid., 2:47, p. 136-137.

15. Ibid., Chapter 7, Maxim 30, p. 239.

16. Ibid., Admonition 18, p. 240.

17. Ibid., Maxim 39, p. 242.