 
An Anthology of

### Persian Stories and Anecdotes

By Mohammad Ali Heidari-Shahreza

Smashwords Edition

Copyright © 2015 by Mohammad Ali Heidari-Shahreza  
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Table of Contents

Preface

Bald parrot

White lie

Unlucky beggar

Wise mouse

Cunning wife

Layli and Majnoun

Schoolboys

Remembrance

Satan

Gamble

Farmer

Siyavash

If God wants

Suitors

Wasp

Watery milk

Origin of injustice

Daydreamer

Bad luck

Worried cow

Wise enemy

Poor but kind

Cruel lion

False prophet

Bijan and Manijeh

Gardener

Friendship

Tanner

Woodcutter

Best judge

Pious cat

Falcon

Language

Rostam's seven labors

Question

Silence

Justice

Practice makes perfect

Scholar's servant

Old snake

Teacher

Wholesaler

Wise bird

King's ring

Dead dog

Sore eyes

Minister

Apple tree

The beggar in love

Greedy mouse

Thief

Dissatisfied officer

Oldest animal

Pelican

Dead parrot

Wise servant

Lost donkey

Wolf and lost kid

Idol

The secret of Creation

Greedy thieves

Wild elephant

Fee not free

Heartless and brainless donkey

Shepherd

Farhad and Shirin

Dream

The mirror of deeds

War

True lover

Monkey's heart

Traders

Naughty servant

Camel

True server

Fat and thin travelers

Tailor

The secret of health

Rostam and Sohrab

Wise rooster

Whose baby

Blame

The elephant in darkness

White cat

False friends

Mean vs. meat

Fugitive

What kind of death

Impatient turtle

Simorgh

Deaf visitor

Educated donkey

Wine

Ant and paintbrush

Generosity or bravery

Sick teacher

Early bird

**Preface**

Persian literature is the reflection of a glorious culture and civilization adorned with gems of wisdom, art and imagination of Persians over many centuries. It includes a great number of anecdotes and stories, in varying length and genres both in prose and verse which instruct and delight at the same time. The main incentive behind the present anthology was to make Persian literature accessible for a wide range of readers all around the world. Although the outstanding works of Persian literature have already been translated into English and some other languages, these translations mainly suit only an elite number of literary experts who are completely familiar with Persian language and culture. This, in turn, is in contrast with the fact that literature should serve all people from all walks of life.

This anthology contains about one hundred stories and anecdotes recreated out of the following works of Persian literature.

1. Masnavi (rhyming couplets) by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

2. Gulistan (the rose garden), by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

3. Akhlaq-al-Ashraf (ethics of the aristocracy) and Risala-i-Dilgusha (joyous treatise), by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

4. Kelileh o Demneh (Kelileh and Demneh), by Nasr Allah Munshi, 13th century, Persian author and translator, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

5. Marzban-Nama (the book of Marzban), by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

6. Haft-Paykar (seven beauties), Makhzan al-Asrar (the treasury of mysteries), Khosrow o Shirin (khosrow and Shirin), and Layli o Majnoun (Layli and Majnoun) by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

7. Shahnameh (the book of kings) by Ferdowsi, great Persian poet, 10th century.

8. Manteq-ot-Tayr (the conference of the birds), Mosibat-Nameh (the book of suffering) and Ilahi-Nameh (the divine book) by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

9. Sindbad-Nameh (the book of Sindbad) by Zahiri-Samarqandi, the Persian author and translator, 12th century.

10. Qabus-Nameh (the book of Qabus) by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

It is, in essence, a free translation of old Persian stories in varying length, from a few lines of prose to several thousands lines of poetry, into simple prose with an atmosphere of a more familiar world than that of ancient times. Some stories have been originally short as it is often the case with stories from Gulistan by Sa'di or from Risala-i-Dilqusha by Ubayd Zakani. However, in case of long stories (i.e. more than a few pages of prose), such as the ones from Shahnameh by Ferdowsi or Layli and Majnoun by Nizami, the stories have been summarized into not more than three pages of prose, keeping its essence and message intact as far as possible. Therefore, all stories in this anthology are really reader-friendly both in terms of the time needed to be read and the level of language mastery required. This hopefully makes this collection readable for even those many people nowadays who can devote only little time to reading literature or have little mastery over English as an international language. Moreover, almost all stories in this anthology have been directly recreated out of perusing the original works. Yet, some online resources and available Persian books have inspired me to include or exclude some stories among which I would like to acknowledge the series _Good Stories for Good Children_ in Persian by Mehdi Azar-Yazdi that won a UNESCO prize in 1966 and was selected as Iran's best book of the year in 1967. In addition, while the stories in this anthology do not follow any specific order, they are hopefully arranged in the most amusing way, avoiding overlapping themes in successive stories.

Finally, it's worth noting that some of the selected stories have originally had various layers of meaning covering a wide range of concepts from everyday issues to sophisticated ideologies. In case of some stories especially the longer ones, the brevity and simplicity of the present anthology may have been reached at the cost of defocusing some notions. Defensibly speaking, however, the gains are worth the loss. Therefore, the present stories are miniatures of the original ones in terms of the main plot, theme and moral.

Mohammad Ali Heidari-Shahreza,

July, 04, 2015,

Shahreza, Iran.

Bald parrot

Once upon a time there lived a shop keeper who had a talking parrot. The parrot could speak quite a lot of words. So the shop keeper loved it a lot. One day, however, a cat entered the store while the man was away. The parrot was trying to escape the cat when accidentally it dropped down and broke bottles of oil and vinegar. Before long, his owner came back just to see what a mess his store was. The man got angry and hit the parrot on the head. The bird's head got injured and it became bald. The poor bird that saw there was no feather on its head, got very depressed and stopped talking any more. The shopkeeper did everything to cheer it up and encourage it to talk again but it didn't work.

One day, a bald man happened to enter the man's store to buy some groceries.

"He used to have lots of hair on his head. But now he's bald. I don't know why?" the shop keeper said after the shopper had left the store.

"He has definitely broken bottles of oil and got hit on the head." The parrot began to talk.

Everyone there burst into laughter because of the parrot's false comparison.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

**White lie**

##

In one of the wars, several captives were brought to the victorious king. He ordered the soldiers to behead one of them. The helpless captive who was about to be killed began cursing and blaming the king. As it's said, when you have nothing to lose, words pour out of your heart.

"What is he saying?" The king asked.

"A triumphant king forgives the inferiors and is kind with them." One of the wise commanders replied.

The king smiled and forgave the captive. But, another commander stepped forward and told the truth about what the captive had really said.

"That lie is preferable to this truth for that was said out of kindness but this out of evilness. Lie that saves life is better than truth which sheds blood." The king, knowing his evil intentions, frowned and said.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), chapter 1 (the manners of kings), by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Unlucky beggar

Once a homeless beggar stopped a stingy trader to ask for some money. The trader began to give the poor man bad words, without helping him with even a single penny.

"If you don't help me, why on earth are you giving me bad words?" the confused beggar asked.

"Because I felt like giving you something for God's sake. Why not bad words!" The stingy man replied.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha (the joyous treatise) by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Wise mouse

Once upon a time there lived a mouse, a deer, a crow and a turtle together in the jungle. One day, the deer was caught by a hunter. So, the other animals decided to help him out. Firstly, the crow flew over the jungle to see where the poor deer was kept. Then, they all rushed to untie their friend before the hunter arrived.

"Why did you get hunted? You're so fast and smart?" The mouse asked the deer.

"My friend! Fate happens to you if it's ever to, but dear turtle! Why have _you_ come!? You know you can't run away fast if the hunter comes ". The deer said.

"I know well. But, a friend in need is a friend indeed. What's more, life without friends is not life." the kind turtle replied.

Then, the mouse untied the deer quickly. The animals were about to head home when all of a sudden the hunter arrived. They all ran and hid somewhere, except the turtle that was too slow to. So, the hunter caught the turtle and put it into his hunting bag.

Now the animals had to make a plan to free the turtle.

"Lie down somewhere on the hunter's way home and pretend you're dying. When the hunter sees you, run at a speed he can follow you for some time." The wise mouse told the deer.

"You also sit on the deer to make the scene more believable." He told the crow. They all agreed.

The hunter was walking home when he saw the deer lying on the ground. He got happy and took off his bag to be able to run faster.

In the meanwhile, the mouse helped the turtle and they both ray away to the jungle. When the deer was sure they are far enough. He and the crow ran faster so that the hunter couldn't chaste them any more. They once again got together safe and happy.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, Persian author and translator, 13th century, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

**Cunning wife**

Once a man had a very cunning wife. Whatever he bought she ate or spoiled. One day the husband bought six pounds of meat to serve some guests. The wife made a delicious meal out of the meat and ate it before her husband came back home. When the man asked about the meat, she said that their cat had eaten it.

He got surprised and weighed the cat to find the truth.

"It weighs only six pounds. If this is our cat, where's the meat? And if this is the meat, where's the cat?" The man asked his embarrassed wife.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

**Layli and Majnoun**

Once upon a time there lived a young man named Qays who was madly in love with Layli, a girl from another tribe. They loved each other very much. Qays had asked Layli's father many times for permission as it was needed to get married at that time. But the girl's father didn't accept anytime he proposed because he thought Qays was infamously known for his affection for Layli and it could harm his family's honor in the tribe. Qays was so much in love with the girl that he was completely out of mind. Day and night, he just wandered in the desert and wrote poems for his love, Layli. People called him Majnoun (meaning possessed and mad) because his thoughts, words and acts were all and all affected by his true love for her. Layli also had the same affection for Majnoun but, she wasn't allowed to express her feelings freely. Many nights she cried to sleep but she couldn't whisper a word about her love.

Majnoun's family tried very hard to talk him out of this love or convinced the girl's family but neither worked. Majnoun who was tired of others' blame and ridicule decided to live in the desert with the beasts. Layli, while still in love with him, was forced to marry someone else. Many years passed. But things didn't change in favor of the two; the lovers were still apart. It seemed God wanted them to unite in heaven where humans were free of customs, pride and prejudice. One day, finally, Layli passed away. According to her will, she was buried in a white dress like a bride. When Majnoun learned about her death, he cried and cried over Layli's tomb until no one heard his voice any more. He was buried beside the girl. Later, their tombs became the holy shrine of all true lovers in the world and the story of their love spread all over the world beyond the limits of time and place as you just read their story.

From Layli and Majnoun by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century, originally an Arabic story from ancient times.

**Schoolboys**

Once four boys were going to school. Among them was a boy who came from a rich family. He had just bought a beautiful pen. The other boys, however, were poor and couldn't afford the same pen.

"Let me try your new pen, please." The first boy said.

"I'll let you try the pen, if you sound like a dog." The rich boy said.

The poor boy agreed and barked for a while. They all laughed at him.

The second boy also had the same request and for that he had to sound like a donkey. The poor boy obeyed the rich boy and they all laughed at him.

"I want to try it too." The third boy said.

"Sound like a cat!" The rich boy demanded.

But the poor boy hesitated. He asked a passer-by if it was worth a pen.

"It's up to you but I'm much older than you and I have never tried such a pen." The passer-by said.

"I'm a human not a cat. I can't exchange my humanity for a pen." The boy said.

Then, he gave up the pen and headed for school.

From Qabus-Nameh by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

Remembrance

Once a cruel king asked a saint if he had ever thought of him.

"Yes, whenever I forget God." He told the king.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), Chapter 2, on the morals of the pious by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

**Satan**

Once a man visited a saint and asked him for help.

"Satan always tries to mislead me to sins. No matter what I do, he makes me commit sins." The man said.

The saint listened carefully to the man talking how he did wrong. He, then, asked the man what his name was. The man told his name.

"Now I recognized you. Satan also visited me yesterday and complained about you." The saint said.

The man got surprised that Satan knew him and had complained about him.

"He told me although he was supposed to do sins in this world; you had surpassed him in so doing." The saint continued.

"I'm supposed to deceive humans but he always does. What is more, he always blames me for that too." The saint quoted from Satan.

The man came to understand what the saint meant. He decided to take the responsibility of his deeds and go straight in his life.

From Manteq-ot-Tayr by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

Gamble

Once a trader played cards with an experienced gambler. They bet a lot of money on the result of their game. Although the trader was a good player, he was out of luck and lost the game. So he had to pay the gambler the money. But he couldn't afford that much.

"I'll forget your debt, if you can fulfill one of my three conditions." The gambler said.

"Make me a suit out of stone, drink off all water in a sea or let me cut off two pounds of your leg's flesh. Otherwise you'll have to spend your lifetime behind the bars." He added.

The conditions seemed impossible. The trader visited a blind man who was well-known for his great wisdom and asked him for help. Next day, the trader and gambler attended the court. The trader was supposed to either pay the money or fulfill one of the conditions.

"I can't afford the money. But I'm ready to satisfy the conditions." The trader told the judge.

"If you want a suit made of stone, then, give me some cloth and thread made of stone first." The trader told the gambler.

The gambler knew it was impossible. So he gave up the first condition.

"And if you want me to drink off that much water, first you have to block the rivers that reach that sea." He continued.

No one could do this. So the gambler forgot the second condition too.

"Finally, you can cut off two pounds of my flesh, but _exactly,_ neither less nor more." The trader added.

They were all impossible. The gambler gave up his claim and left the court.

From Sindbad-Nameh by Zahiri-Samarqandi, the Persian author and translator, 12th century, from an Indian origin.

Farmer

Once upon a time a king and his companions were passing by a farmland. The king saw a farmer working hard and eagerly in the sun. He asked the man why he worked so hard while he was not sure if it would rain well or not.

"You work hard while no one can guarantee what will happen and what you will get in the end." The king told the man.

"I don't care for ifs and buts. I just plant the seeds and work hard. It's God who makes them grow." The farmer replied.

From Makhzan-al-Asrar (the treasury of mysteries), by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

Siyavash

Once upon a time there ruled a powerful king, named Kay Kavus over the Persian Empire. He had a young son, Siyavash who was very handsome and desirable. Kay Kavus had sent Siavash to Zabolistan to learn arts of war from Rostam, the legendary Persian warrior. When finally Siyavash came back home, the king held a magnificent ceremony to celebrate his arrival. In the party, Soudabeh, Siavash's stepmother and the queen of Persia, met the young prince for the first time. In her lustful eyes, Siavash was more than perfect. As days passed in the palace, she developed more and more a sexual desire for him. She tried several times to invite him to her private room. But, he always refused to betray his father. Soudabeh who was angry with the prince, faked a rape scene and accused him of sexual affairs. Although the Persian king was so angry, thinking of beheading innocent Siyavash, he decided to find the truth himself. So, he ordered Soudabeh and Siyavash to attend his palace. Then, he smelled Soudabeh's garment and hands. They smelled wine. But, the Siavash's smelled rose water. Kay Kavus became almost sure that his son was innocent. He wanted to kill Soudabeh. But she was her lovely wife. What was more; Soudabeh was the daughter of a powerful ally in the East that he didn't want to lose his support.

"Let fire reveal the innocent. Fire doesn't harm him if he hasn't committed the sin." Counselors advised the king.

Therefore, a huge fire was prepared. Siyavash rode on his black horse through the mountain of fire safely. He proved his innocence to all. But things never went well like before. The young prince finally had to leave the country and sought shelter under the rule of Afrasyab, Persians' enemy. Yet, his fate was always against his pure heart. There also, some rumors destroyed his friendship with the king and after several years, he was innocently beheaded far from his real home. Years later, his son, Kay Khosrow became the next Persian king and took revenge on Afrasyab and Turanians.

From Shahnameh (the book of kings) by Ferdowsi, great Persian poet, 10th century.

If God wants

##

Once a trader went to bazaar to buy a donkey. On the way, he ran into an old friend. When he learned that the trader was on business to buy a donkey, he advised him to trust in God and "always say, if God wants".

"Why should I say so? There are lots of donkeys on sale in the bazaar and I have enough money in my pocket". The trader replied and said goodbye.

Before long, while he was still on the way to the bazaar, a robber stole his money. So he had to return home hopelessly. On the way back home, by chance, the trader saw the same friend again. His friend asked him about his shopping.

"If God wants, someone stole my money; if God wants I couldn't buy a donkey; if God wants I am returning home!" The trader answered.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Suitors

Once upon a time there lived a governor who had a beautiful girl. There were many young men who wished they could marry her. One day, the governor summoned all suitors to say his conditions for his daughter's marriage.

Although many wished to marry the governor's daughter, they didn't risk facing with the governor's conditions. So, next day, only three men were ready to hear the conditions.

"First, I'll beat the suitor until I get tired. Secondly, he'll have to live without my support and third, if he ever mistreats my daughter, I'll kill him". The governor announced the conditions.

"It's hard to forget your daughter. But I think I'm not the right person." The first suitor said.

The governor realized he was just a trader, not truly in love with his girl.

"I am ready to cut off my hands and legs, sir." The second suitor said.

The governor discarded him as he was out of mind in his aim.

"I have a cousin who is also a good girl. But I love your daughter more. I appreciate if you let and help me marry your daughter." The third suitor said.

The governor realized that the last suitor had enough of reason and affection to marry her daughter.

"These conditions were to find the best suitor. I'll help you to live happily with my daughter for ever." He said.

Soon, the wedding ceremony was announced.

From Manteq-ot-Tayr by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

Wasp

Once an ant and a wasp were talking with each other.

"You ants work very hard. But we wasps take it easy". The wasp said.

Then, the wasp told the ant how easily he ate fresh meat in the butcher's shop.

He invited the ant to come with him to the butcher's. Next day, they entered the shop. The wasp flew over a piece of meat and began to have his meal while the ant was watching him. But before long, the butcher, who was tired of the insects, rushed toward the wasp and halved it with his carver.

"It's much better to work hard and be safe than to risk my life for a meal." The ant said and began his usual work.

From Sindbad-Nameh by Zahiri-Samarqandi, the Persian author and translator, 12th century, from an Indian origin.

Watery milk

Once upon a time there lived a stockman who owned a lot of goats. Everyday he grazed the animals until the sunset. Then, he milked the goats and headed for a nearby town to sell the milk. But he always added some water to it. His wife warned him many times that it wasn't going to end well but he didn't pay attention. One day, as the goats were grazing in the countryside, it began to rain so heavily that all the sheep were got lost or killed in the flood.

In the evening the stockman returned home all alone. He told his wife what had happened to their goats.

"I could never expect such heavy rain this time of the year." The man told his wife.

"That was not rain. It was the water you added to the milk every day. Little by little it turned into a flood and killed the goats." His wife said.

From Qabus-Nameh by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

Origin of injustice

Once a king and his companions went hunting. They hunted several deer for their lunch. But, they had forgotten to take salt with them. So, the king ordered one of the servants to buy some salt from a nearby village.

"Be sure to pay the price of salt. Otherwise, injustice and oppression will spread over the country." The king warned the man.

"How can a little salt have such an enormous effect?" The servant asked.

"Injustice was very rare and little in the beginning but everyone added something to it. Now it's common all over the world". The king said.

"If a king steals an apple from a tree, his soldiers will root out the entire tree." The king added.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), chapter 1 (the manners of kings), by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Daydreamer

Once upon a time there lived a rich oil trader who had a fanciful neighbor. One day, the trader gave the man a bottle of oil as a gift. The neighbor became so happy and as usual got lost in a daydream.

"I'll wait for several years. The trader probably gives more bottles of oil as he did today. When I've collected enough bottles, I'll sell them all and buy some goats." The fanciful man thought.

"Then, I'll wait for the goats to give birth." He thought further.

The daydreamer went ahead so far as to buy a nice house out of selling a number of his goats and to hire a maid to serve him as servant in the house.

"I should be serious otherwise the servant may not obey my orders." The man thought, lost in a fancy world.

"If she ever disobeys, I hit her with a stick." He said to himself, moving his hand as if he wanted to hit someone.

But, all of a sudden, he came out of his fancy world just to see he had hit and broken the oil bottle. All his fancy ended in pieces of glass.

From Kelileh o Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, 13th century, Persian author and translator, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Bad luck

Once a king and his companions were hunting when they came across an ugly woodcutter.

"Go away! You bring bad luck if you keep looking at the king." One of the king's advisors commanded.

The poor woodcutter got really upset and left. He couldn't forget what he was told.

"I'm an honest man. I work hard everyday. How can I bring bad luck to someone?" The woodcutter asked his brother.

Then, they put their heads together to give the advisor a lesson. In the evening, when the king and his companions were returning, the woodcutter once appeared before the king and asked him how his hunt was. He told the man that everything had been great.

"So why did your advisor tell me I would bring bad luck?" The woodcutter asked the king.

"I've been upset since I saw you but you've had a wonderful day. So, who brings bad luck?" The man added.

The king realized that his advisor had been unfair and impolite to the woodcutter. He ordered his advisor to apologize to the man.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Worried cow

Once upon a time there was a cow that lived in an evergreen meadow. Every morning she began to graze in the meadow until sunset. During the day, she ate eagerly and gained weight. At night, when the cow was going to sleep, she got worried about her tomorrow.

"Will tomorrow be enough food for me to eat in this meadow?" She thought every night.

The cow became so nervous that she lost much of her weight overnight. Again, tomorrow she began to graze as usual and gained weight. She gained and lost weight for years. But the poor animal never understood that she could have lived for years in this evergreen meadow without worrying about tomorrow which was a day like all other days she had grazed well in the meadow.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Wise enemy

Several children were playing hide-and-seek, when, suddenly, one of them fell down and hurt his back badly. He was so injured that he couldn't get up. The other children were really afraid.

"Let's drop Arash into a well and keep it secret. Otherwise, our parents blame us why we played carelessly." A friend of the injured boy told the others.

There was a boy among the children who didn't like Arash and had quarreled with him many times.

"No, everybody knows he and I are not friends, his parents would suspect me for his absence. Let's tell his father." That boy said.

The children agreed and informed his father to take him home. Several weeks later the boy got well. As it's said a wise enemy is better than a stupid friend.

From Makhzan-al-Asrar by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

Poor but kind

Once upon a time there lived a young prince who was fond of mountain climbing. One day, he was reaching the top of a mountain where all of a sudden his foot skidded and got injured so badly that he couldn't move. Several days passed. With no food and this injury he was about to die. Meanwhile, everybody in the country was looking for the prince but since he had left the palace secretly no one knew where he was. The prince had become very weak. He thought he would not survive when he noticed a nest where two birds lived. They constantly brought pieces of bread to feed their chicks. He crawled and reached the nest where he could take some bread. It began to rain too. So now he had some bread and water to restore his strength. Little by little, he felt better until he finally climbed down the mountain and survived. The prince was eager to know where those pieces of bread came from. So he traced the birds several days until he found they brought the bread from a poor man's house.

The man shared his bread with the birds everyday.

"Why do you give your own food to the birds?" The prince asked him

"I believe kindness always pays back, sooner or later." The poor man said.

The prince, who owed his life to the man's kindness, gave him lots of fortune. So he could live comfortably ever after.

From Qabus-Nameh by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

Cruel lion

Once upon a time there lived a cruel lion in the jungle. Every day, he killed several animals for his breakfast, lunch and dinner. All animals were really fed up with his cruelty.

"I have a brilliant idea to get rid of this oppressor." The hare told other animals.

The animals listened to the hare telling her plan and agreed to help her.

Next day, they all went to the lion and told him they would send one of them every day to serve as his breakfast, another for his lunch and one more for his dinner.

"This way you don't have to go hunting everyday. We don't live every day in fear too because we know who's going to be eaten and who's not." The animals said.

The lion got surprised but it seemed a good offer. So he agreed.

Next day, the animals were supposed to send an animal to serve as the lion's breakfast early in the morning. The hare volunteered. But she went to the lion late in the morning. The lion that had waited for his breakfast for a long time got very angry.

"Animals sent you a delicious deer early in the morning. But unfortunately another lion that seemed much like you in size and strength caught the deer and ate it." The hare told the lion.

"I came to let you know it was that lion's fault not we animals." She continued.

The lion that couldn't stand any rival especially one who had eaten his delicious breakfast, asked the hare where that lion lived. The wise hare led the lion to a deep water well outside the jungle.

"That lion lives down this well. If you look down the well you can see him." The hare told the lion.

The cruel lion that was mad with his anger looked down and mistook his own reflection in the water as another lion. So he jumped down the well to attack his rival. But he got drowned. Finally, animals could live in the jungle with no fear thanks to the wise hare.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, 13th century, Persian author and translator, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

False prophet

Once a fraudulent man declared publicly that he was sent from God as a prophet. No one believed and before long, the police arrested the false prophet and brought the case to the court.

"You are such a stupid prophet!" The judge told the defendant, thinking of how fast his fraud was revealed.

"Yes, I made a mistake in choosing my believers. I should have declared my prophecy somewhere else." The man replied.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Bijan and Manijeh

Once upon a time in the glorious kingdom of Persia, there lived a young warrior named Bijan. Once, the king, Kay Khosrow sent him on a mission to a far-fetched region, a few miles away from the country's arch enemies, Turanians to bring back welfare and justice to Persians. One night he was encouraged to cross the border to peep a party that was held in the honor of Turanian king's daughter, Manijeh. That night, Bijan and Manijeh happened to see each other by chance and fell truly in love with each other. But, the love between a Persian warrior and Afrasyab's daughter, the king of Persians' old enemy seemed out of the question. Anyway, they had met each other many times before one day Bijan and Manijeh were finally captured by Turanian spies who had suspected them for a long time. The king first decided to behead the Persian warrior and end this forbidden love forever. But, one of his counselors suggested dropping him secretly into a well to die.

"Beheading a Persian warrior may trigger a war between the countries; a disastrous event that has never favored us." The counselor told Afrasyab, the king.

Thus, soldiers dropped the lover into a deep well and covered it with a heavy piece of rock. Manijeh was also left there to witness his love dying as a punishment. She tired hard to move the rock but it moved an inch or two only to let her drop down some food or water. Several days passed this way. Meanwhile, Kay Khosrow the Persian king who was worried about his warrior's absence, sent Rostam, the legendary warrior to look for him. After some ups and downs, he finally found Manijeh crying near the well. Rostam, with his extraordinary power moved aside the huge rock and pulled up Bijan. Before long, the other Persian warriors joined Rostam. When Bijan fully recovered, they all together attacked Turanians and defeated Afrasyab severely. Then, Bijan and Manijeh together with Rostam and other warriors came back to Persia to hold the wedding ceremony. King of Persia, Kay Khosrow welcomed the newly-weds and gave them enough fortune to live happily ever after.

From Shahnameh (the book of kings) by Ferdowsi, great Persian poet, 10th century.

Gardener

Once the king was passing by a garden where an old gardener was planting a cherry tree.

"You're so old. You may die before this tree begins to bear fruit." The king told the gardener.

"Maybe, but it makes no difference. Our fathers have planted trees to our benefit long ago; we should also plant trees to our children's benefit." The old man replied.

The king admired the gardener's way of thinking and gave him lots of fortune.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Friendship

Once a saint dreamed that the king was sent to the paradise but his pious friend to the hell. He asked God why it was so.

"The king deserved the paradise because he made friends with the pious. But the pious man deserved the hell because he made friends with the kings." God told the saint in his dream.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), Chapter 2, on the morals of the pious, by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Tanner

Once a tanner went to the bazaar of perfumes to buy some perfume. As he was walking in the bazaar, he suddenly fainted and fell to the ground. All people gathered around the man. Each had a suggestion to bring him back to consciousness. But none of them worked. A passer-by who knew the tanner happened to see him lying on the ground. He soon realized why he had fainted. The tanner spent all day long cleaning smelly hides and entrails of animals. So, he didn't use to the aroma of perfumes. The passer-by, therefore, found a piece of dog's shit and hid it in his hand. Then, while putting his hand over the tanner's nose, he pretended to whisper something into his ears. To everyone's surprise, the tanner recovered shortly. People thought the passer-by was a wizard or a saint with supernatural powers.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Woodcutter

Once a king who was in search of a runaway deer came across an old woodcutter. The woodcutter was trying hard to put the firewood on his donkey's back. But, it was too heavy. The king offered help. The man accepted his offer and thanked, not knowing he was the king.

"One never knows what will happen next. If I weren't here, you couldn't put away the load." The king told the man.

"We may not know but God knows well and that's Him who makes the best out of the worst." The old woodcutter said.

The king appreciated his way of thinking and gave him lots of gold coins.

The woodcutter headed home, thinking of how today's trouble brought him lots of fortune.

From Manteq-ot-Tayr by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

Best judge

Once a king decided to identify the best judge with a question. Four judges from all over the country were chosen to answer the king's question. The one who could give the best answer was going to work in the royal court.

"This is the question: Once a master ordered his servant to buy a tub full of milk to serve some guests. The servant bought the milk, put the tub on his head and headed home. While he was walking home, some poison accidentally dropped down into the tub from a snake that was hunted by an eagle up in the sky. The master's guests drank the poisonous milk and died. Now tell me who is guilty and why?" The king asked his question.

"The servant is guilty because she had to cover the tub." The first judge said.

The king didn't accept the answer because it was not fair to punish a servant for a rare accident. In addition, there was no rule to cover a tub.

"No one is to blame. It is an accident. Everyone dies in a way or another. This is fate." The second judge said.

The king rejected his answer because a judge was supposed to bring justice not to succumb to fate.

"The master is to blame because he had to check the milk before it was served for the guests." The third judge said.

But, the king didn't like his judgment because the master wasn't suspicious of anyone. In addition, there was no rule that obligated a host to check his foods in advance.

"I need more explanation to solve this case." The fourth judge said.

"If the snake has dropped its poison into the milk and no one has noticed it, how is it possible that the guests' death has been referred to this accident? I should ask questions from all people involved to see who has said the snake incidence first." He explained more.

The king felt satisfied with the answer and chose him as the judge in the royal court.

"A good judge should not jump into decision. He should take everything into consideration first." The king told the other judges.

From Sindbad-Nameh by Zahiri-Samarqandi, the Persian author and translator, 12th century, from an Indian origin.

Pious cat

Once upon a time there lived a little partridge in the jungle. One day, he left his nest to visit his parents who lived half a mile farther. When he came back, he saw a hare had occupied his nest.

"This is _my_ home, not yours." the partridge said.

"But when I came here, this nest was empty. How can you prove this is yours?" The hare replied.

They argued a lot. But, neither of them agreed to give up the nest. They were about to began a fight when an idea struck the partridge's mind.

"Let's ask the pious cat. He knows best." The little bird told the hare.

The hare agreed. So, they went to the cat that was busy praying to God. The partridge and the hare got surprised that the cat always prayed and didn't care for hunting.

"Come closer, please! I'm old; I cannot see and hear you well." The cat asked the two.

They sat close to the cat and told him about their dispute.

"You should be kind to each other. Don't dispute about this earthy world!" The cat advised them.

While the partridge and the hare were all ears to hear the cat's words. All of a sudden, he jumped and caught both of them. Piety was only a cover over his evil nature. Unfortunately, they didn't realize his intentions.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, 13th century, Persian author and translator, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Falcon

Once a falcon and a nightingale were talking with each other. The nightingale began talking about its beauty and singing.

"I'm beautiful. I sing very well too. But, I sit on branches of trees and eat worms." The little bird complained.

"You're not that pretty. You voice is also harsh. But, you sit on the hand of kings and eat delicious meat of partridges." She continued.

"You only sing and do nothing. On the contrary, I say nothing but I do my duty best and hunt for the kings. That's why." The falcon replied.

From Makhzan-al-Asrar by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

Language

Once four men who spoke different languages happened to travel together. As they spent some time together, they became friends. But they could hardly communicate, mainly using body language. One day, they were making fire for lunch, when they found a gold coin on the ground.

"Let's buy some 'sharab' for lunch." The Persian traveler suggested.

"Why don't we buy some 'nabiz' instead?" The Arab said.

"No! 'Wine' is much better, my friends!" The English speaker told the others.

"I recommend 'sarap'. It's best for our lunch." The Turk said.

They were actually referring to the same thing but because they spoke different languages, they couldn't agree with one another. They were about to fight when a passer-by saw them disputing. He realized what the problem was.

"I can buy all the things you're suggesting with the coin." The man told them.

Half an hour later, he returned with a bottle of wine and it was what they all wanted to buy.

"All of you had the same thing in mind but you used different languages to refer to. Language was the cause of your dispute." The wise man said.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Rostam's seven labors

Once upon a time Kay Kavus, the Persian king and his army went on an expedition to fight with the White demon, lord of demons, to take back the territory of Mazandaran. But, despite their great valor and courage, they failed and the White demon captured and blinded them all. While in prison, Kay Kavus secretly asked Rostam, the greatest of all Persian heroes for help. Rostam with his legendary horse, Rakhsh began his long journey to save the Persians. On his way, he spent a night in a forest where a fierce lion lived. While Rostam was asleep, the lion approached to attack him. But his horse Rakhsh noticed the lion and kicked it to death. When he finally got up he saw a huge lion lying dead beside him. He just realized how much he owed to his brave horse.

They continued their journey through a desert where there was no food or water. Rostam prayed to God and asked him for help. The rider and the horse were about to perish when Rostam saw a sheep a mile away. He traced it and reached a fountain of water where they could survive. They spent the night there unaware of a monstrous serpent that lived nearby. While he was asleep, the serpent wanted to attack him but Rakhsh noticed the danger and awakened him. The serpent just disappeared. So Rostam couldn't realize why Rakhsh had awakened him. Several times it repeated but the dragon serpent vanished quickly every time until the last time Rostam could see the monster through a heavenly beam of light. He stood up and beheaded the serpent with his sword. He once again survived. The Persian hero and his horse resumed their journey. Before long, they came across a green area full of flowers. To his surprise, a table was set there with lots of delicious foods on it. He sat to rest and enjoy the meal when suddenly a beautiful woman appeared. He didn't know she was an evil wizard in disguise. She was flirting to deceive the Persian hero when Rostam began his meal in the name of God. At the mention of the Creator, the woman turned into a demon again. Rostam got up and halved her with his sword.

After hours of riding, he took rest beside a river where he happened to fight with Olad, a powerful warrior and his endless soldiers. But, no one could excel Rostam in strength. So he defeated them all and captured the warrior. Olad begged for his pardon. Rostam released Olad on the condition that he would help him find the castle of demons especially the White demon. He promised and accompanied Rostam to a mountain where demons had kept the Persian king and his army in captive. As he began to climb the mountain he faced a horrendous demon, Arzhang Div who was responsible for keeping away any strangers. Rostam began a bloody fight with him and finally cut off his head. With the help of Olad, he found Kay Kavus, the Persian king and other prisoners. He released them all but they were still blind. He was told that he needed to drop the blood of the White demon's liver into the Persians' eyes to restore their sight. So he headed for the White demon's palace which was in a cave in the heart of mountains. Rostam entered the cave. It was all dark inside. He could hardly see the demon. The fight took several hours. But Rostam finally beheaded the demon and took out his liver to cure the blinded Persians. Soon, they could see again. They all celebrated this victory and headed home.

From Shahnameh (the book of kings) by Ferdowsi, great Persian poet, 10th century.

Question

Once a man asked a question from the king's counselor and minister. He told the man that he didn't know the answer at that time and needed to think more.

The man got upset and behaved impolitely.

"You're well-known for your wisdom. But you can't answer my question! Why does the king pay you such a high salary?" The man asked the minister.

"This salary is for what I know. Remember you need all people to answer all questions." He replied.

From Qabus-Nameh by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

Silence

Once a man was trying hard to teach his donkey a language. He said some words out loud and asked the donkey to repeat after him. A wise passer-by saw him teaching the animal.

"You cannot teach him a language. But the animal can teach you silence." He told the stupid man.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), Chapter 8, on rules for conduct in life by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Justice

Once upon a time, a lion, a wolf and a fox went hunting together. Before long, they hunted a buffalo, a goat and a hare. Then, the lion, the king of the jungle, ordered the wolf to divide the prey fairly.

"Thinking of our sizes and positions, the buffalo for you, the goat for me and the hare for the fox." The wolf said.

The lion, however, got angry and killed the wolf. Then, he asked the fox to divide the prey.

"High majesty! The buffalo for your breakfast, the goat for your lunch and the hare for your dinner." The fox said, thinking of the wolf's fate.

"You can eat all the prey. But tell me how did you learn to divide the prey so fairly?" The lion asked.

"By looking at what happened to the wolf." The wise fox replied.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), Book 1, by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Practice makes perfect

Once upon a time there ruled a young king over the land of Persia. The king often went hunting with a group of officers and servants. He was so skillful that almost no animal could survive his fatal arrow. Every time he succeeded in hunting, all of his companions praised him excessively except a maidservant whom the king loved. Once on a hunt, to win the maid's compliment, the king asked her how she wanted his next arrow to hit the prey. The lovely girl asked the king to hit a zebra right in the middle of its forehead. The proud king accepted the challenge and hit a zebra right on the spot. The maid praised him moderately and told the king that one could gain the same level of expertise if he or she practiced regularly. The king, who expected lots of admiration from her as the others had done, got angry and discarded the servant forever.

The girl left the palace. But, fortunately after several days, she found home and job in a farmhouse where she had to take care of cows and sheep. Several years came and went. One day, a wolf attacked the flock and injured a calf that was just born.

"Take care of this little animal! If it survived, it would be yours." The master told the maidservant that day.

The girl already loved the little calf. So she accepted to take care of it. Everyday, she grazed the calf on the grassland and took it home at the sunset. Then, the girl brought it up to the attic where she also slept. Months passed and the calf grew into a big cow. But the girl still used to bring it upstairs on her back. It was unbelievable how a person could pick up such a heavy animal. Everybody in the town talked about the girl and her cow. Once the king was hunting nearby when one of the officers told him about the amazing girl.

"The king would like to see how you take the cow upstairs by yourself." A soldier told the girl in advance.

The girl, who was waiting for such a chance for a long time, invited the king. Then, she got dressed and covered her face. In less than an hour the king and his companions arrived. They got surprised as the girl picked up the huge cow on her back and took it upstairs.

"It's really extraordinary. Even two strong men cannot lift it." One of the king's companions said.

"This girl has supernatural powers. Her strength is a gift from God." An officer claimed.

"No, this girl has picked up this cow since it's been a little calf. As it has grown heavier little by little, she has become stronger too. Practice makes perfect." The king said.

At this time, the girl uncovered her face and the king recognized her former love.

"High majesty, I had the same idea about your expertise in archery." She said.

"Yes, you were right. Excuse me, please and come back to my palace." The king admitted.

From Haft-Paykar (seven beauties), by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

Scholar's servant

Once a scholar was instructing his students in his house. He was talking about equality. "Everything in this world has equal value. Difference should not be the cause of superiority." He told his students.

The scholar's servant heard the scholar saying so but misunderstood his intention.

"According to his teaching, I should also use the same amount of ingredients for the broth today." The servant thought.

So, she used the same amount of water, meat, salt, pepper, etc. to make the broth. At noon, the scholar sat to eat his lunch. It was intolerable: too salty and too spicy. He asked his servant why the broth tasted so terrible.

"You yourself told the students that things were all equal. So I used equal amounts of the ingredients." The servant answered.

"You have misunderstood my words. Little knowledge always brings awful results like this broth." The scholar said.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Old snake

Once upon a time there lived a snake in the jungle. The snake was so old that he couldn't go hunting anymore. He knew that if he couldn't find some prey, he died soon. While the snake was hopelessly looking for food, he came across a pond where a lot of frogs lived. The old snake crawled near the frogs and began crying.

"Why are you crying? What's wrong with you?" One of the frogs asked.

"I used to eat frogs as my food. But now I'm too old to catch any. Even If I happen to catch one, I can't hold it to eat." The cunning snake replied.

The stupid frog believed and went to the king frog and told him of the snake's disability.

The king invited the snake to its palace and asked him more about his miserable life.

"Once I was chasing a frog at night. It entered a wizard's house. In the darkness, I wanted to bite the frog. But I bit the wizard's leg by mistake. He spelled a curse on me. So I can't eat frogs any more." The snake explained to the king frog.

Having no fear of the snake, the king frog sat on its back. When among the other animals, he boasted that he could sit on the back of a snake. Several days passed. The king was happy that the snake was in his palace.

"If I don't eat anything, I'll die soon." The snake told the king frog one day.

"OK. I'll give you two frogs a day." The boastful frog said with no care for his fellow beings.

From that day on, the snake ate two frogs everyday and didn't care whom he served. Because he knew this way he could always have a ready meal.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, Persian author and translator, 13th century, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Teacher

Once in one of my travels, I came across a school where a bad-tempered teacher taught a number of little boys and girls. The teacher was so intolerant that no student dared to make any trouble in the class. If it ever happened he would punish the guilty student with his stick. I wished he was replaced with a better teacher. Several months later, I heard he was discarded and a patient teacher was employed instead. The new teacher was very kind and never hit the students. I thought this change was to the best of the school. But, having such merciful and tolerant teacher, the students began to make trouble in class and became playful. Several weeks later, I heard the former teacher was once again invited to work in the school.

"It's a big mistake. Why did they fire the new teacher and employ this bad-tempered teacher again?" I asked a wise man.

"Haven't heard that old anecdote?! A king intended to send his dear son to school. On his first day of school, he wrote on his son's notebook: Punishment from your teacher is better that kindness from your father." The old man replied me.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), chapter seven, on the effects of education, by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Wholesaler

##

Once a shopkeeper met a local wholesaler in a restaurant to pay off his debts. He was supposed to give him 455 dollars. But he had only 450 dollars with him. So, the shopkeeper asked for a little discount.

"Never, not even a cent." The wholesaler told the man.

He insisted more and more. But he didn't accept less than 455 dollars. Meanwhile, the shopkeeper saw a friend in the restaurant and borrowed some money from him. This way, he paid the remaining five dollars. When they were leaving the restaurant, the wholesaler gave the waiter 50 dollars as a tip.

"You didn't give up five dollars several minutes ago. But now you give him 50 dollars?!" The surprised shopkeeper asked.

"That was business and in business even a cent counts. But this is gratitude and generosity. I'm ready to give even more." The wholesaler replied.

From Qabus-Nama by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

Wise bird

Once upon a time, a hunter caught a little bird. It asked him for its freedom in return of three pieces of valuable advice.

"I'll give you the first piece of advice when I'm still in your hand. The second when I'm still in your house's yard and the third when I'm safe on the tree in front of your house." The bird said.

The hunter, who was really interested, agreed.

"Never believe something which is impossible." The bird advised as the man let it go from his hand.

"Past is past. Never get upset for something that's gone." The bird flew to the tree as it gave the second advice.

"O hunter! There was a priceless pearl inside my stomach which was two times as heavy as my weight. But, you let me go. So you can't have it any more." The bird said.

The hunter got very disappointed, blaming himself why he had let the bird fly away.

"Didn't I tell you past is past and never believe impossible things. How can I contain a pearl which is much heavier than my entire body?!" The bird said, smiling.

Then, the hunter who realized it was an extraordinary bird, asked him for the third piece of advice.

"You didn't follow my two pieces of advice. There's no point in giving you the third." The wise bird told the man and flew far away.

Its last word, however, was actually the third advice; giving advice to stupid people is like seeding plants in a dry desert.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

King's ring

Once a king decided to carve a brief sentence on his ring's stone. Since the king always wore the ring and used it as a token of authority, he wanted a sentence that could advise him in every situation, no matter his heart was filled with joy or sorrow. The king asked all scholars around the world to suggest a sentence.

They proposed thousands of sayings, proverbs and lines of poetry. But the king approved none of them.

One day, the king was told a poor man would like to suggest a sentence. No one knew the man.

"I listened to so many scholars all in vain. Let's listen to this man." The king said.

"This will also pass." The wise man suggested.

The king felt satisfied and carved the sentence on his ring's precious stone to remind him, in joy or sorrow, of the transitory nature of the world.

From Elahi-Nameh by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

Dead dog

Once there was a dead dog on the road. Every passer-by who saw the dog complained about its being there.

"It smells awful." One said.

"Yeah, and it has an ugly face." Another added.

While people were saying bad things about the poor dog, a wise man addressed them:" Look! What a beautiful fur and teeth it has!"

"Break _yourself_ whenever you look into the mirror and don't feel too proud." He added.

From Makhzan-al-Asrar by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

Sore eyes

Once a man had sore eyes. His eyes really ached.

"What should I do?" He asked his friend.

"You should take them out. Last year I had a terrible toothache. I took my tooth out and its pain vanished." His friend suggested.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Minister

Once upon a time there lived a shepherd who became a minister in the Persian kingdom. Every morning he entered a small room in his office, spent some time there and left the room locked. Little by little, other officials got suspicious of his strange behavior.

"We believe he's hiding something precious there or faking some documents." They told the king.

The king ordered the soldiers to break into the room. To their surprise, they only found a shabby pair of shoes and some old clothes.

"Why do you keep these things?" The king asked his official.

"They were my shoes and clothes when I was a shepherd. I take a look at them, first thing every morning, not to forget who I've been and where I've come from." The man replied.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Apple tree

Once a trader lent a man one thousand gold coins. The man was supposed to return the money in a year. A year and a half passed but he didn't give back the money. One day, the trader visited the man and asked him to return his money.

"Me? When? I have never borrowed any money from you." The man denied that the trader had lent him one thousand coins.

Therefore, they attended the court. There, the judge asked the trader when and where he had lent the money.

"He borrowed the coins from me while I was sitting near an apple tree last year." The trader told the judge.

"I can remember neither the money nor the apple tree." The man said.

There was no witness to confirm the trader's claim. The man also denied any debt. So the judge couldn't decide who told the truth. Then, a brilliant idea came to his mind.

"You lent the money while you were sitting near an apple tree. That tree can be your witness. Go and ask the tree if it can remember you." The judge told the lender.

The trader was surprised but he trusted the judge and left the court to ask the tree. Some time passed.

"Do you think he has reached that apple tree yet?" The judge asked the man.

"No, Sir, It takes him at least two more hours." The man replied.

"You said you didn't remember the apple tree. How do you know when the trader reaches the apple tree!?" The judge asked the man.

He realized that the trader told the truth and the man was guilty.

From Qabus-Nameh by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

The beggar in love

Once a beggar happened to see the king's daughter on her way to the palace and fell in love with her. Everyday from morning to the evening, he sat under a tree near the palace, hoping to see the princess again. Several years passed. Little by little, the king and his daughter learned about the beggar and his love. The king got very angry and wanted to behead the lover but his daughter took pity on him and decided to talk the beggar out of this love.

"The king is going to behead you if you don't give up." The princess told the beggar.

The beggar, then, told her he was ready to die for his love and didn't care what could happen to him.

"It's madness not love. To love is not to die but to revive!" The king's daughter said.

"If you had really loved me, you would have worked hard to deserve me. But you're still a beggar." She added.

From Manteq-ot-Tayr by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

Greedy mouse

Once upon a time there lived a mouse in a house. The mouse took away the owner's foods. The man tried many times to catch the mouse. But he was never successful. Once, a dear guest paid a visit to the man. At night, while the guest was eating dinner and talking about his adventures, the mouse came out of its little home to take away some foods.

"Why do you let this mouse bother you so much?" The guest asked the host.

The owner told him all the things he had done to catch the mouse all in vain.

"I see this mouse is so brave and bravery comes from good support." The wise guest said and started to dig the mouse's hole to see what was what. Before long, he found a bag full of gold coins inside its home.

"This is why the mouse wanders in your house with no fear. I'll also catch it sooner or later." The visitor said.

Meanwhile, the mouse was so upset because it really loved its bag of gold. So, it decided to take back the bag from the guest. At midnight, when it seemed everyone was at asleep, the mouse approached the guest to steal the bag. But he was already waiting for the mouse to appear. So, he hit the mouse on the head with a stick and made it leave the man's house forever.

"I knew it would come again to take the bag." Tthe guest said.

"But you know my friend, greed is a dangerous thing. It may put one into big trouble." He added.

The visitor gave the bag to the owner and said goodbye.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, Persian author and translator, 13th century, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Thief

Once a thief was stealing some fruits from a garden when the owner appeared. The man who was caught red handed, relied on a sophistry.

"God has created me, the garden and the fruits. It's up to God. I'm not to blame." The thief reasoned.

The owner, then, ordered one of his servants to tie the man and started beating him with a stick. The poor thief cried out of pain, asking why he was treated so.

"God has _also_ created me, the rope and this stick. It's up to God. I'm not to blame." The owner replied.

The thief, while begging for pardon, admitted: "It's up to me. I did wrong!"

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Dissatisfied officer

Once a king and his companions were traveling by ship. Among them, was an officer who constantly complained about being on a ship. The other passengers tried to persuade him to take it easy and enjoy the trip. But, he just found faults with the ship, the crew and even the weather. Everybody got tired of him.

"I can make him calm and satisfied." A wise sailor told the king.

Since his complaints were also beyond the king's patience, he agreed. The sailor, then, dropped the officer into the sea. He was getting drowned when the sailor pulled him up and saved his life. To everyone's surprise, the officer felt relaxed and didn't complain anymore.

"How did he become so calm and satisfied? What's the wisdom behind what you did?" The king asked the sailor.

"He had never fallen into the sea before, so he didn't appreciate being safe on ship. Only when a disaster strikes one, he feels grateful for his former welfare." The wise man replied.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), chapter 1 (the manners of kings), by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Oldest animal

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Once a camel, a fox and a wolf were traveling together through a desert. They had not eaten anything for days, so they were really starving when they found a piece of bread on the ground. The animals wanted neither to share the bread nor give it up in favor of the others. Therefore, after lots of dispute, they agreed that the oldest animal deserved the bread. Now, who was the oldest?

"According to my father, I was born seven days before God created Adam and Eve. So I'm the oldest." The dishonest wolf said.

"Yes, you're right. I can remember that night. I was helping the midwife." The cunning fox said.

The camel, who realized they couldn't be honest, swallowed the piece of bread in a second and said:

"After all, anyone who takes a look at my size knows I'm the oldest and deserve the bread best."

From Sindbad-Nameh by Zahiri-Samarqandi, the Persian author and translator, 12th century, from an Indian origin.

Pelican

Once upon a time there lived a so old pelican that couldn't catch fish any more. He had to find a way out otherwise he had a few days left to live. So he decided to deceive the fish.

"I saw two fishers yesterday talking about this pond. They were going to catch all the fish in two or three days." He told a crab who was trusted by all fish.

"I could take them to another pond nearby if they trusted me." The pelican added.

The crab then told the fish what he had heard. It was hard to decide but the fish took the risk of trusting the bird.

"The pelican can at most catch one of us per day. But if the fishers come they will catch all of us at once with their nets." One of the fish reasoned.

So from that day on the pelican carried one or two fish in his beak and apparently flew to the pond where they could be safe. But in fact, he ate the poor fish as long as he flew some distance from their home pond. Several days passed. Both the fish and the bird were happy; the former for their plan to survive and the latter for his plan to catch the fish.

One day the crab asked the pelican to carry him over his back to the new pond. The bird who didn't want the crab to get suspicious, accepted. As the pelican was flying to the pond, the crab saw some bones of fish down on the ground. He soon realized that the bird had deceived them all and no single fish had reached the other pond. So he got angry. The crab held the pelican's neck with his powerful pincers so hard that the bird couldn't breathe any more. Death was the end of both the fish that trusted their old enemy and the bird who deceived the innocent fish.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, 13th century, Persian author and translator, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Dead parrot

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Once upon a time there lived a trader who had a talking parrot. One day, he was going to travel to India on business. So he went to see his parrot before his departure.

"If you happened to see any parrots in India, give my respect and tell them how much I wished to be there." The parrot asked the trader.

The man said goodbye and departed for India. While the businessman was in India, he saw several parrots on a tree by chance. He gave them his parrot's respect and told them how the bird felt. Suddenly, they all hit the ground in a dead faint. The trader thought the birds had got so upset that they died. Anyway, he left them and several days later he traveled back home. Once again at home, he went to see his lovely pet. The man, then, told the parrot how his Indian friends had died. Listening to their story, the parrot also hit the floor in a dead faint too. The bird seemed dead so the trader opened the window and put the dead parrot outside the window. To his great surprise, the parrot revived and flew to a nearby tree where it was safe.

"You were just pretending to be dead to escape. How did you learn this trick?" The man asked the parrot.

"The Indian parrots taught me to do so." The parrot replied and flew away.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Wise servant

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Once upon a time there ruled a king who always decided on impulse. He kept a number of the wildest dogs in the country. Whenever, he got angry with someone, the bad-tempered king threw him/her into the dogs' pen to be eaten. The king had a servant who was always afraid of being the victim of the ruler's anger and facing the same fate. Even though he was among his favorite servants, he knew that the king often decided on impulse and some time later he became regretful. But, the wild dogs made it always too late.

"I should do something. I cannot discourage the king. But I might be able to stop the dogs." He thought.

So, he began to feed the dogs regularly. Whenever he was free, he took some meat from the royal kitchen and threw it to the dogs. One day, as he always foresaw, the king got angry and ordered the soldiers for the same punishment.

They threw the poor servant into the pen and locked the door. Next day, when the king was recovered from his anger, he summoned his favorite servant just to remember his last night's decision. Although hopelessly, the soldiers rushed toward the dogs' pen to see what had happened to the servant. To their surprise, they saw the man playing with the dogs. Since he used to feed the dogs, they had become friends with him. This way, the wise servant could survive the king's impulse.

From Layli and Majnoun by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

Lost donkey

Once a man lost his donkey. As he was looking for it, he constantly thanked God.

"Why do you thank God?" Someone asked.

"I thank God because if I had sat on my donkey's back when it got lost, I would have got lost myself too." He replied.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Wolf and lost kid

Once upon a time, there was a wolf, wandering around, that had not eaten anything for days. By chance, he came across a flock of sheep and a shepherd. The starving wolf wished he could hunt one of the sheep and this way survive the hunger. But, the young shepherd was so attentive that there was no chance of approaching the flock. The flock was heading home; the wolf was almost convinced that he was getting nowhere when his eyes caught a kid who was left behind the flock. The kid soon realized that she was in real danger unless she could outsmart the wolf.

"I've been waiting for you several hours, sir!" The young goat told the wolf.

"Since you didn't attack our flock, the shepherd decided to thank you with a gift." She continued.

"I volunteered to be your gift. Please eat me! Bon appétit!" The sheep added joyfully.

The wolf who got really surprised was about to devour the kid when she interrupted him to say:

"But if you don't mind, I'd like to sing a beautiful song for you before I serve you as a meal."

The wolf who couldn't find any reason to decline her request, agreed. Then, the smart kid sang, actually cried for help as loud as possible. Fortunately, the shepherd could hear his sheep and came back for help. The wolf had no way. He ran away, thinking of how the little kid played a trick on him.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Idol

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Once an angel in heaven noticed God was listening carefully to someone down on the earth. She thought that person was a true worshiper. Otherwise God didn't pay attention to his prays. The curious angel decided to look for the man. She searched in the churches, mosques, temples and holy shrines but couldn't find him.

"Where is the man whom you are listening to?" The angel asked God.

God gave her the address. To the angel's great surprise, the man was in an idol house. He was kneeling before an idol and spoke to it. She flew back to heaven.

"He's worshiping an idol not you. Why, then, are you listening to him?" The angel asked God.

"He doesn't know me but what he prays is concerned with me. This idol only connects him to me." God replied.

From Manteq-ot-Tayr by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

The secret of Creation

Once a saint asked God why human beings were created in the best from, but then after some years of living in this world, they perished. God who knew this question was out of wisdom not infidelity, ordered him to plant some seeds. The saint sowed some wheat grains. Several months later, it was time to harvest the full-grown wheat. So, the saint cut down the wheat heads with a sickle.

"Why did you cut down the heads?" God asked the saint.

"Because they contained valuable grains of wheat." He answered.

" Death serves the same reason, to uncover your soul and what it contains of virtues." God told him.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Greedy thieves

Once three thieves stole a bag full of gold coins from a house and escaped to their hide-out in the countryside. They were so hungry. So one of them returned to the city to buy some food. While he was away, the other thieves decided to kill him and divide his share between them.

"I can own all that money myself. Why should I share it with those two?" The third thief thought while he was heading for the hide-out. So, he decided to poison the foods he had just bought.

When the third thief finally arrived, the other thieves who were waiting for him killed him and began to eat the foods he had just brought. The foods were poisonous so they died in several hours too. The three thieves were lying dead in their hide-out while there was a bag full of gold coins beside them. Greed finally killed them all.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Wild elephant

Once upon a time there lived a king who had lots of elephants. They served him in wars. So the king was always in search of more elephants. One day, he was told a huge elephant, bigger than any elephants he had ever owned, was captured in a far jungle. The king ordered his elephant trainer to train this elephant.

"I'm going to ride on this elephant in wars. Do your best!" The king told the trainer.

"Certainly, but this elephant is wild and is too old to be trained well. It may cause trouble." The trainer replied.

The king who wished to ride on the biggest and strongest elephant in wars didn't give up the animal and ordered the man to train it in three years.

The trainer worked hard and finally the elephant apparently could follow his instructions. The important day arrived and the king got on the elephant. He rode on its back some distance while all of a sudden the elephant got wild and ran away. The king who was on its back couldn't control the animal until the elephant itself got tired and stopped. The king was afraid to death. He ordered the soldiers to behead the trainer.

"O king! I did my best to train this elephant. It followed my instructions well. I can prove it to you." The trainer said, begging for pardon.

Then, the trainer gave some instructions and the elephant followed them exactly. The king realized the trainer was not guilty.

"I shouldn't have expected this elephant to be trained as baby elephants are. It has grown up in wilderness." The king said.

He then forgave the trainer and let him own the elephant.

From Sindbad-Nameh by Zahiri-Samarqandi, the Persian author and translator, 12th century, from an Indian origin.

Fee not free

"Sir! Your son has given an expensive garment to a vagabond for free." One of the servants told his rich but mean master.

He frowned and called on his son to blame him for this unnecessary generosity.

"But father, I read in the book you gave me if one seeks majesty and significance, he should help people with what he owns for free." The young boy explained to his father.

"For _fee_ not free! You had misread my holy book, stupid!" The angry father replied.

From Akhlaq-al-Alshraf (ethics of aristocracy), Chapter 5, generosity by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Heartless and brainless donkey

Once upon a time there lived an old lion in the jungle. The lion was so weak that he couldn't go hunting anymore. Therefore, he asked the fox, his loyal counselor for advice.

"I'm starving to death. But I don't have any strength to hunt." The lion told the fox.

"High majesty! I have an idea. There's a donkey near the lake who works for a farmer. I'll bring him to you." The fox said.

The cunning fox went to the donkey and began a pep talk.

"So why do you work so hard? Does the farmer give you enough food?" The fox asked.

"If you come with me, I'll take you to the jungle where you can live comfortably there for good." He continued.

The donkey who was tired of working for the farmer and tempted by his words, accepted to come with the fox. As the donkey was walking through the jungle, the lion jumped to attack it. But he was not as fast and strong as before. So, the lucky donkey could run away.

"I didn't wait enough for the donkey to get close. Bring it once again and this time he has no way to run away." The lion told the fox.

The fox went to the donkey again and tried to convince him to come again. "What did you escape from? There was nothing there. You had just an illusion because of too much hard work." The fox said.

The stupid donkey agreed to go to the jungle again. This time the old lion was patient enough and hunted the poor donkey.

"OK, I'll wash my paws. Then, we began eating." The happy lion told the fox.

But before he came back, the fox ate the donkey's heart and brains. When the lion came back he got astonished.

"Didn't this donkey have a heart and brains?" He asked the fox.

"Of course not, if this poor donkey had heart and brain, how could I convince him for the second time that he had not seen a lion!" The cunning fox replied.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, Persian author and translator, 13th century, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Shepherd

Once a saint ran into a shepherd who was worshiping God in a strange way.

"O God! Where are you? I really wish I could clean your house, or take care of your livestock. Every night I made you a delicious dinner." The simple-minded shepherd prayed to God.

The saint got surprised and blamed the man for his impolite prayer.

"God is not like us. He doesn't need any food to eat or any place to rest. It is infidelity!" The saint warned the man.

The shepherd, who didn't know any other way, got very disappointed, gave up his praying and left.

That night, the saint had a warning dream.

"Why did you discourage my server from praying to me? Everyone has his own way of worshiping. I listen to hearts not mouths!" God blamed him in his dream.

Next day, the saint looked here and there for the shepherd until he finally found the candid man.

"I have a message form God for you: Pray to God as you may." The saint told him.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Farhad and Shirin

Once upon a time there lived a sculptor named Farhad. One day, he happened to see a beautiful princess, Shirin and fell truly in love with her. Day and night, the sculptor thought of his love. Before long, people began to talk about Farhad's love all over the country. Finally, the king who was also fond of the princess himself, heard the news. He got angry and tried to get rid of his love-rival.

"We can offer him some money. I'm sure he will forget the princess." One of the king's advisers suggested him.

The king accepted. They invited Farhad to the palace and offered him lots of fortune. But the lover didn't accept to give up Shirin.

"Now that he insists on his love, we should send him on a task he could never fulfill."Another consultant told the king.

So the king asked Farhad to dig a way through the mountain so his army could move faster to the fronts. The sculptor accepted the big challenge on the condition that if he succeeded, the king would agree on his marriage with the princess.

The task seemed really impossible. But, Farhad was so much in love with Shirin that he didn't mind how much work or time it needed. Day and night, the lover dug the huge mountain with an extraordinary enthusiasm. Several months later, the king was told that Farhad was going to finish the task by a few weeks. It meant the king was going to lose the princess. So, he asked his advisers for help.

"We should send a messenger to tell him that the princess has died. Surely, he gets disappointed and gives up digging." The king's advisory board recommended.

So a messenger was sent to Farhad who was digging the mountain eagerly. When Farhad was told that his love, Shirin had died, he threw himself from the mountaintop and died. Later, Shirin who had heard of the sculptor, made a shrine in the memory of Farhad, a true lover.

From Khosrow and Shirin by Nizami Ganjavi, great Persian poet, 12th century.

Dream

Once a king dreamt he had lost his teeth. He asked two men to interpret his dream.

"Your family members and relatives die before you die." The first interpreter said.

The king got upset and dismissed the interpreter forever.

"You will outlive your family members and relatives." The second interpreter said.

The King got happy and gave the interpreter a lot of gold coins.

"They had the same interpretation. But how an idea is put into words is what really matters." The king's counselor who witnessed both interpretations told the others.

From Qabus-Nama by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

The mirror of deeds

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Once I was on a ship, traveling with a group of high officials when all of a sudden a nearby boat capsized and its two passengers were getting drowned. One of the officials in our ship ordered a seaman to save their lives.

"I'll give you lots of money for either you can save." He said.

The sailor jumped into the sea immediately. But he could save only one of the two.

"Certainly, one has been foredoomed to die and the other to survive." I told the seaman.

"Yes, destiny is inevitable and death comes when it is to come. But it's not the only reason." He answered.

"They were brothers. One of them was very kind and helped me out once I was lost in the desert. But the other hit me when I was a child. So I hasted to save the former." The sailor continued.

"Surely, what we do mirrors back to us sooner or later, this way or another." I thought.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), chapter 1 (the manners of kings), by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

War

Once upon a time, there broke a war between two countries.

"Why didn't you volunteer to fight against that country?" A soldier who had just come back from the battle asked his friend.

"Their troops don't know me even a little and I don't know any of them either. So how can we be enemies?" His friend replied.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

True lover

Once a man met his beloved after years of separation. The man began to read the love letters he had written to her during these years. Little by little the lady got tired.

"Why are you wasting this chance of being together by reading these letters?" She said.

The lover said he didn't feel the same affection and eagerness now together as he had when they were apart.

"Because you are in love with what your mind has created and your heart decorated not me!" She answered.

"A true lover loves his beloved beyond the states of mind and heart or limits of time and place." She added and left.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Monkey's heart

Once upon a time there lived a turtle and a monkey in the jungle. The monkey lived on a fig tree and the turtle under it. Little by little, they got to know each other more and finally they became close friends. They used to spend many hours together. The turtle often went home very late and this made his wife very annoyed. Thus, his wife decided to end his husband's friendship with the monkey. To do so, she pretended to be very ill. The turtle did everything. But his wife didn't get better.

"Someone told me the only cure for my illness is a monkey's heart." The female turtle told his husband one day.

The turtle was faced with a dilemma. On one hand, he wanted to cure his wife and on the other hand, he had to kill his best friend to get his heart. He finally decided to save his wife at any rates. So, he invited the monkey to his house which was on the other side of a deep river. The monkey who was unaware of the turtle's intentions accepted the invitation and sat on the turtle's shell to cross the river. While they were crossing the river, the turtle was thinking of his plan to kill the monkey. He felt really guilty.

"What's the problem, dear friend?" The monkey asked.

But the turtle evaded the true answer. The monkey asked him for the second time and insisted.

"My wife is very sick and the only medicine is a monkey's heart. I have to kill you to save her." The turtle hesitantly answered.

There seemed no way out of the trouble, especially now that the monkey was on the turtle's shell in the middle of a deep river.

"No problem, my friend! But why didn't you tell me to bring my heart. It's not with me." The monkey said.

"Why isn't with you?" The surprised turtle asked.

"You know heart is the home of woes and sorrows. Monkeys never bring their hearts to someone's home. It may upset the host. Let's return to fetch my heart." The monkey urged him.

The turtle accepted and they came back to the tree down the monkey's house. Now that the monkey had crossed the river safely, he climbed up the tree and broke up with the turtle forever.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, Persian author and translator, 13th century, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Traders

Once upon a time two traders were traveling together by sea. One had bought copper pots and pans and the other had bought bottles of oil. While they were still on ship, someone told the oil trader that copper had a much better chance of selling than oil in the city they were sailing to. So, the trader decided to talk his companion into exchanging their goods.

"I just heard copper is out of luck in our destination unless you spend several months there for customers to arrive." The oil trader said, knowing the copper trader couldn't wait that much.

"To help you, we can exchange our goods. I don't mind waiting several months for a prosperous market. Meanwhile, I'll learn their language." He continued.

The two accepted to exchange their cargo. The oil trader was very happy to own copper now. But, overnight, a severe storm hit the ship. It capsized in heavy seas. Fortunately, they could survive the storm but their cargos were lost. Next day in the morning, they were crying on the beach when something caught their eyes. Oil bottles were floating in the water, moving toward the beach. But, the copper pots and pans were definitely too heavy to have the same luck. The copper trader who owned the bottles became happy while the other trader was thinking of how his own trick worked against himself.

From Mosibat-Nameh by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

Naughty servant

Once a master realized that one of his servants had secretly slept with a man.

"How could you betray your master?" The master told her.

"Sir! That man told me if you really love your master, sleep with me and you know how much I love you!" The naughty servant answered.

"So I couldn't reject his request." She added.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Camel

Once a hare came across a camel that was carrying a load of salt. It was really hot and the camel was tired.

"Why do you carry this load?" The hare asked the camel.

"I have to work hard. That's what humans expect from me." The camel replied.

"I can help you. Next time you're crossing the river, kneel in the water for a while. This way the load of salt loses its weight to a great extent." The hare advised it.

The camel did the same thing. The load got much lighter. So it was much easier to carry. The animal used the same trick for a few weeks. Little by little, the camel-driver realized the camel was playing a trick. So he decided to give the animal a lesson. He put a load of wool on its back. On crossing the river, the camel played the same trick. It knelt down in the water. But wool was different from salt. As it got wet, it became much heavier. But there was no way out. The camel had to carry the load. The camel definitely learned its lesson that day.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

True server

Once a pious man came across several slaves who served the governor. They were wearing beautiful clothes.

"O God! You should learn from the governor. Look! How generous he has been to his slaves." The homeless man complained to God.

Several months passed. The governor was accused of hiding a national treasure and was put into prison together with his slaves. The slaves were tortured to death to reveal where the governor had hidden the treasure. But none of them breathed a word. One night, the pious man dreamed of a saint saying:

"You should learn from these slaves. They sacrificed their lives but did not betray their master."

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Fat and thin travelers

Once upon a time two men were traveling together. One of them was thin and poor. So he could hardly afford a meal every other day. But the other traveler was so fat and rich that ate three meals a day regularly. In the middle of their journey, innocently, they were both accused of espionage and left to die in a locked room as a punishment. After two weeks, it was revealed that they were both innocent and the court ordered their immediate release. To people's surprise, however, the fat man was dead and the thin one was still alive.

"It's not strange at all. The former was used to mere comfort. So he couldn't bear misery." A wise man said.

"The latter, however, had lots of miseries in his life. So he could pass this hardship as well." He added.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), Chapter 3, on the excellence of contentment by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Tailor

Once upon a time there lived a tailor who had a workshop on the way to the graveyard. One day, he decided to count the people who died in a year. But, he was not educated and could not read and write. Therefore, he bought a vase and dropped a small stone whenever someone died. Little by little, people learned about the tailor and the vase.

"What's up today?" People usually asked the tailor.

"Today two persons fell into the vase." He answered, meaning two persons had died that day.

Several years passed. The tailor himself also died. One day, someone who didn't know he had died asked the tailor's neighbor about him.

"The tailor fell into the vase, too." The neighbor answered.

Since then, when a disaster happens to someone who has witnessed the same many times, Persians say the tailor also fell into the vase.

From Qabus-Nameh by Keikavus, the Persian king and author, 11th century.

The secret of health

Once a king sent a skillful physician to one of his cities to treat ill people. The doctor spent more than a year in that city but no one came to see him.

"Last year the king sent me here to treat the sick. But, I haven't had a single patient since then. Why is so?" The physician asked a scholar.

"In this city, no one eats unless he really feels hungry and all avoid eating while they still feel hungry. Therefore no one becomes sick here." The scholar replied.

The doctor got convinced and left the city.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Rostam and Sohrab

Once upon a time in the glorious kingdom of Persia, there lived Rostam, the legendary Persian hero. He became father out of a marriage with a foreign girl, Tahmineh. But Rostam never knew he had a son, named Sohrab.

Years passed. Sohrab grew up and became a great warrior. One day, he asked Tahmineh about his father.

"Your father is a great warrior in the land of Persia." Sohrab's mother told him.

The young warrior who was eager to find his father began his journey to Persia with a group of soldiers. Meanwhile, the king of Persia was told the country had been attacked by a brave warrior, named Sohrab and his army. Therefore, he summoned Rostam, his greatest commander to defend the country.

It is a small and strange world, the old and the young warriors finally faced each other but not as father and son but hostile enemies. They began to fight. Sohrab excelled the old warrior in strength but Rostam was more experienced and war was a matter of both. Hours passed with no sign of victory. Finally, in a fatal moment Rostam could thrust his dagger into the young warrior's chest.

"You won but remember my father, Rostam will revenge on you." The injured Sohrab told the old warrior.

Rostam got shocked as he heard his father was Rostam. He asked the dying warrior about his mother and father more.

"Untie my armor to see a sign from great father." Sohrab said in a weak voice.

Rostam untied his suit and saw an armband. Twenty years ago he had given Tahmineh, his wife the armband.

"I wish I had a son to put it on his arm as a sign of his father." Rostam remembered his departure day, a day after his marriage ceremony, long ago. Now he was sure Sohrab was his son; the son he always wished to have. But, Rostam had killed him with his own hands.

"I am Rostam, your father." Rostam said in a shaky voice.

"Father, you never know how much I wished to see you, how much I was proud of you." Sohrab's voice could hardly be heard.

"But, my wish couldn't overcome my fate." Sohrab uttered his last words.

There remained a father, with a mind shallow in memories but deep in sorrows.

From Shahnameh (the book of kings) by Ferdowsi, great Persian poet, 10th century.

Wise rooster

Once a rooster was walking home when all of a sudden, a fox appeared before his eyes. The rooster jumped quickly on a nearby wall to keep from the fox. The cunning fox told him that he was just passing by and he didn't intend to attack him.

"Haven't you heard the news? The king has ordered all animals to be friends". The fox said.

"So, now dogs and foxes live together, pigeons and eagles share the same nest and even lions take care of deer. Step down and sing a song for me!" He insisted.

The wise rooster who had lots of experience and had outsmarted foxes many times, told the fox that from up the wall he could see a pack of dogs, approaching. The poor fox got shocked and began to run away.

"What are you afraid of? Didn't you tell me that all animals were friends?" The rooster said, laughing.

"Sure, but these dogs may not have heard the news yet." The fox replied as he was running away.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Whose baby

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Once a pregnant woman who was tired of her husband's bad temper, told him:

"What a disaster if our baby would look like you!"

"And how miserable would you be if it looks like someone else not me!" He replied.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Blame

When I was a child, I prayed to God a lot. I remember once, I spent a whole night praying.

"I spent all night praying to God. But others didn't. They were all asleep." I told my father proudly in the morning.

"You should have slept too, my son!" To my surprise, he replied.

"Sleeping is better than praying followed by blaming." My father warned me.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), chapter 2 (the morals of the pious), by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

The elephant in darkness

Once several men entered a stable in which an elephant was kept. The stable was totally dark and the men had never seen or heard of an elephant. They each happened to touch different parts of the elephant. So they came to imagine it in different ways.

"Elephant is like a pillar." Said the man who had touched its leg.

"It resembles a fan." Another man said, touching the animal's ear.

"No, it is like a bed." The third one had touched its back.

Next day, when they looked at the animal again in the daylight, they realized how wrong they had been in their description.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

White cat

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Once upon a time there lived an executioner who served the king. He had a two-month-old baby and a white cat. His wife had just died so he had to take care of the baby himself. One day, he was taking care of the baby, when the king summoned him for a death punishment. The executioner had to leave his baby alone and got back to work. While there was no one at home, a poisonous snake crawled into the house and climbed the baby's bed. The white cat saw the snake and attacked it. The snake and the cat fought until the cat could finally kill the snake. But it was injured and its white fur was covered with blood spots. Several hours later, the executioner was heading home when he came across one of his neighbors. The neighbor asked about the man's family.

"You have left your little baby with a cat? Didn't you think it may harm your baby?" The neighbor told the executioner.

He got very nervous and rushed toward his house. When he entered the house he saw the cat was bloody and the baby was crying. The man thought the cat had harmed his baby. So, he got very angry and killed the innocent cat with his sword. When the father entered his baby's room he realized that the cat had endangered its life to keep the baby from the snake. But it was too late.

"Today I jumped into decision and I killed my innocent cat. It's very likely that sometimes the king also makes bad decisions about innocent people. Why should I be the one who beheads these people?" The man thought.

Next day, he quit his job to find a decent career.

From Sindbad-Nameh by Zahiri-Samarqandi, the Persian author and translator, 12th century, from an Indian origin.

False friends

Once upon a time, there lived a wealthy businessman. He had a son who was very lazy and playful. The boy did nothing but hanging out with his friends. The businessman always warned the boy about his false friends. But, he didn't pay attention.

"Let's see if they are really _your_ friends or your money's friends." The father told his son.

Thus, next day, when the boy and his friends got together again, the boy told them that a mouse had come and eaten their whole sofa the previous night.

"Yes, it usually happens." One of his friends said.

"Last week, a mouse ate our stove." Another commented.

"You've been lucky! Once a mouse ate half of our furniture." Another added.

The boy, who saw his friend's confirmation and support, got happy and told his father about what they had said.

"This shows they are not honest friends. How could they believe your lie and even tell bigger lies!" The father said.

The businessman died several years later. But, his son was still busy doing nothing and hanging out with his friends. He didn't have much money, though. One night, in a party, the boy told his friends that a mouse had come and eaten his bread. So he had spent the night without dinner.

"I can't believe my ears! How can a mouse eat bread?" One of his friends said.

"Even ten mice cannot take away a piece of bread." Another commented.

"Mice never eat bread!" Another added.

The people who had confirmed that a mouse could eat a sofa, now couldn't believe it could eat a piece of bread. That night, the boy was thinking of his father's warnings about his friends. But, it seemed too late.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Mean vs. meat

Once a rich master told his slave that he would free him if he bought some meat from his own savings and made a delicious meal for him. The slave accepted the challenge and made a delicious broth with the meat he had hardly managed to buy. The master ate the soup but not the meat in it.

"Come take the meat! Add some peas and make another meal out of it. Then, I'll let you go." The master said.

The poor slave used the meat which was almost off for the second time and made another broth. Again the master ate the vegetables but not the meat.

"Come take the meat! Sell it in exchange of some eggs to make another meal. Then, I'll let you go." The master said.

"Sir! Be sure I'll serve you as a slave for ever. But if you ever felt any generosity and kindness, please let the meat go for God's sake." The slave who was completely disappointed about his freedom told his master.

From Akhlaq-al-Ashraf, Chapter 5, generosity by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Fugitive

Once a man asked Solomon to send him far away to the land of India on his magic flying carpet.

"This morning I saw the angel of death looking at me in a strange way. I think he's going to take my soul away. I have to escape to a far area." The man said.

Since he insisted a lot, Solomon accepted and sent him to India. In the afternoon, the death angel paid a visit to the Prophet.

Last night God told me to take a man's life in India. I saw him this morning here, far away from that place. I was wondering how he could be in India several hours later." The angel said.

Solomon told the angel how the man had asked himself to be carried there.

"Death happens whenever and wherever it's supposed to. There's no way to escape from." Solomon added.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

What kind of death

One of the rich businessmen always blamed his son for being too much fat and voracious.

"How many times should I tell you that obesity is the mother of all illnesses?" The father once told the son.

"Hunger is also the common reason of death for many people these days." The son answered.

"Isn't it better to die from being full than being hungry?" He continued.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), Chapter 3, on the excellence of contentment by Sa'di, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Impatient turtle

Once upon a time there live a turtle in a pond that became friends with a number of storks. They spent several months together until it was time for the storks to migrate to another region. The turtle who knew he would really miss them a lot, asked the storks to stay there or at least take him with them. The birds couldn't stay there any more so they decided to take the turtle with them. But there was a problem; turtles couldn't fly.

"We'll find a stick and ask him to hold it with his teeth. Then two of us hold the two ends of the stick and lift up the turtle into the sky." One of the storks suggested.

The idea seemed possible but the turtle was very talkative and impatient. The birds then taught the turtle how to hold the stick and warned him about possible dangers. Finally their migration began. Two storks carried the turtle in the sky. As they were flying over cities and villages, people talked about the turtle.

"How stupid is the turtle, making friends with the birds." One said.

"How can a turtle fly this way?" Another said.

The turtle could hear what people said and wanted to answer them. But he had to hold the stick tightly too. Little by little, however, he lost his patience and opened his mouth to answer the people when all of a sudden fell down from up in the sky and died. He could live many years more if he kept silent.

From Kelileh and Demneh, by Nasr Allah Munshi, 13th century, Persian author and translator, originally from Panchatantra, an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in verse and prose, 3rd century BCE.

Simorgh

Once all the birds from all over the world gathered to decide who was their real king. They had different ideas.

"Our king is Simorgh which lives at the top of Ghaf Mountain." The hoopoe who was the wisest of all told the others.

Then he described Simorgh with the best words he could imagine of. The birds all wished to meet their king. But each of them had some concerns.

"I'm in love with a rose. How can I give up my love?" The nightingale said.

"I'll return to Paradise one day. What should I look for Simorgh?" The peacock said.

"I'll serve the kings and enjoy their kindness to me. Is Simorgh worth such a long journey?" The falcon said.

The birds were not sure if they could give up the things they were busy with and began a long journey to meet Simorgh. But the wise hoopoe reasoned how they were wasting their time for the things that were not lasting and they had mistaken the meaning of life. Finally, thousands of birds decided to meet Simorgh and began their mystic journey.

"It's a long and hard journey. You may get tired, injured or even killed. But we should keep going. After all, this journey ends in meeting our king. So it is surely worth any trouble." The hoopoe, who led the birds, told them.

On their way, many of them got tired and began to complain about the difficulties.

"I've been away from my homeland for a long time." A bird said.

"I'll die on the way and never meet Simorgh." Another said.

"My life has been full of woes and sorrows. How can I go ahead with my heavy heart?" A third bird complained.

The wise hoopoe did his best to encourage them to continue the journey.

"There's a long way to go. You may lose many things but you reach a state of happiness and satisfaction that mean everything." The hoopoe, the birds' leader told the remaining birds.

The birds had to cross seven valleys in order to meet Simorgh. The first valley was called 'Desire'. The hoopoe told them that as they were crossing over this valley, desires would attack them and they had to ignore them all. Otherwise they would fall down the valley and got killed.

Some of the birds could cross it safely. Then they had to fly over the second valley that was called 'Love'.

"You should sacrifice everything you own for the sake of Simorgh. It's not a deal but love. Otherwise, you never pass the valley." The hoopoe told them.

He continued the journey with the remaining birds to the third valley which was called 'Recognition' where they had to indentify everything they saw with Simorgh, from a leaf on a tree to mountains.

Some successfully passed it to reach the 'Detachment' valley. They had to feel needless of everything but Simorgh. A number of birds couldn't empty their hearts from their earthy needs and got killed.

The remaining birds arrived at the fifth valley, named 'Unity'.

"There's one and only one in the universe and that's Simorgh. As you fly over this valley you should feel united with Him." The hoopoe said.

A few of them could cross the valley and reach the valley of 'Confusion' where they all felt confused and out of place. Some got lost and few could successfully pass.

Finally they reached the last valley that was called 'Oblivion'. To safely cross this valley they had to forget everything even themselves except Simorgh. Few could give up their selves but many could not pass.

There remained only thirty birds out of thousands. They had crossed the valleys and had finally reached the palace of Simorgh. Buy where was Simorgh? They looked here and there for Simorgh but they just saw their own reflection everywhere.

"Now that you have passed through seven stages of refinement, you are indeed Simorgh which means 'thirty birds'." The birds heard a voice from a mystic source.

From Manteq-ot-Tayr by Attar, the great Persian poet and suphist, 12th century.

Deaf visitor

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Once upon a time, a deaf man decided to pay a visit to an old friend who was very sick. But since he couldn't hear, he decided to predict his conversation with his friend in advance and get ready for what his friend might tell him.

"OK, First I'll ask him how he feels. He probably says he's getting well. Then, I say thank God." He reasoned.

"Then I'll ask him about what medicine he has been taking these days. Surely, he names some medicine. I'll say great!" He was thinking.

"Finally I'll ask him who his doctor is. Then, he names someone. I'll compliment on his expertise." He added.

The man headed for his friend's house. As planned he asked his sick friend how he felt.

"I am about to die." His friend replied.

The deaf man, unaware of his answer, thanked God. Then, he asked about his medication.

"Poison!" His friend answered angrily.

"Great medicine! It really works." The deaf man commented. Then he asked who his doctor was.

"The angel of death". The sick man answered.

"Skillful physician! He really knows the remedy!" The deaf visitor said.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

**Educated donkey**

Once an old donkey was left to die. The king saw the poor animal and asked his soldiers to find its owner. Several days later, they brought a miller to the king. The king asked the man why he had left the donkey to die.

"It was too old to work. I couldn't afford its food too. Although I loved the animal that had worked hard many years, there was no other way." The miller replied.

Then, the king asked the man whether or not he would take care of the animal if he was given enough money.

"Sure, I'll even teach the donkey to read if I have enough money to take care of it." The miller promised, being too happy and excited.

The king laughed and told him he had to return with an educated donkey in six months.

The poor miller didn't know the king was joking. So he thought day and night to find a way to educate the donkey. It seemed impossible but his daughter had a brilliant idea. She found a big book and put some hay on some of its pages. Then she waited until the donkey was very hungry. She opened the book and let the animal eat the hay on the pages. The miller's daughter did the same every day for six months until the donkey was fully conditioned to opening and paging through the book. Therefore, the miller brought the donkey to the king.

He told the king that it could read. Then, he brought the donkey's book and put it on the ground. The animal habitually moved toward the book, opened and paged through the book as if it were really reading the book. The king got surprised and when he was told the trick gave the miller a prize.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

Wine

Once a drunkard who was tired of a saint's preaching on too much drinking asked him about vine, vinegar and grapes.

"Is vine harmful?" The man asked the saint.

"Of course not." He replied.

"Are grapes harmful?" The saint gave the same negative answer.

"Is vinegar harmful?" The drunkard asked and received the same answer.

"So why is wine harmful? It has the same origin!" He asked the preacher.

The saint, then, asked the drunkard the same questions about soil and water. The drunkard confirmed that they were definitely harmless.

"Now, if I combine some soil and water to make a lump of clay and leave it to dry, it becomes a hard brick. What if I hit you on the head with such a brick?" The wise saint asked the drunkard.

"The same is true for too much wine." He added.

From Risala-i-Dilgusha by Ubayd Zakani, the great Persian poet and satirist, 14th century.

Ant and paintbrush

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Once an ant saw a paintbrush moving on a canvas and making beautiful pictures. It told another ant how skillful and creative this brush was. But his friend said it was not the brush but the hand that painted so well. Another ant told these two that it was not the hand but the arm that could paint so skillfully.

"No, my friends! It's the artist's mind which creates these beautiful pictures." Another ant that was the wisest of all said.

But, in fact, even the wisest ant was wrong. It was God who created the beautiful pictures. Because, mind works well when God takes the lead. Otherwise, it is misled to catastrophes.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Generosity or bravery

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"Which one is better? Generosity or bravery?" Once a wise man was asked.

"Generosity because if you're generous you won't need to be brave." He replied.

From Gulistan (the rose garden), by Saadi, the great Persian poet and literary man, 13th century.

Sick teacher

Once the students decided to play a trick on their teacher to skip their class. To do so, they began to give false comments on their teacher's health.

"Sir, you look very pale, today." One of the students said.

The teacher denied firmly but got a little worried.

"That's right, sir. Your eyes are also sunken." Another said.

The teacher came to believe their comments little by little.

"Sir, your voice is shaking too." A third student added.

The teacher, who was almost sure he was sick, dismissed the students and headed home. There, his wife asked him why he had come home so early.

"Don't you see how terrible I feel? My students noticed my illness but you didn't." The teacher said.

The poor teacher spent all day long in bed believing he was really sick.

From Masnavi (rhyming couplets), by Rumi (also Mawlana), the great Persian poet, scholar and Sufi mystic, 13th century.

Early bird

Once upon a time there lived a king who had a wise minister named Bozorgmehr. He always got up early and advised the king to get up early in the morning too.

"Get up early if you want to be successful." The minister always said.

But, the king went to bed late so it was really hard for him to wake up early in the mornings. One day, the king who was tired of his minister's advice, decided to play a trick on him and made him attend the palace late too. So he asked two soldiers to attack Bozorgmehr in disguise on his way to the palace and take away his clothes. This way, the minister had to return home and get dressed again. So he definitely arrived late. Next day as Bozorgmehr was going to the palace early in the morning; the so-called thieves attacked him and left him with his underwear.

"You advised all to get up early. But it seems you have overslept today." The king told his minister.

The minister then told him what had happened to him on his way to the palace.

"So you got up early today but unlike what you always say, you didn't become successful. If it was later there could be some people on the streets and the thieves wouldn't dare to rob you." The king said, laughing.

"No the point is today the thieves got up earlier than me so they were more successful too." The wise minister replied.

From Marzban-Nama by Saʿd-al-Din Varavini, Persian author and translator, 13th century originally by Marzban b. Rostam, a Persian prince, 4th century.

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Mohammad Ali Heidari-Shahreza
