The Bustan of Saadi

This is a prose translation of the Bustan of Saadi, originally published as part of the Wisdom of the East series in the early 20th century, and long out of print. This book is full of practical spiritual wisdom. Saadi doesn't lean on allegory as much as other Sufi writers of the period; most of the stories in this collection have a pretty obvious moral lesson.

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Born in Shiraz, Iran, in 1184, Saadi (pseudonym of Muslih-ud-Din Mushrif ibn Abdullah) is considered one of the major medieval Persian poets. He traveled widely, through regions of what is today Syria, Turkey, Egypt and Iraq. Vignettes of gritty caravan and street scenes give life to his tales. In old age he returned to Shiraz, and composed his two best-known works, the poetic Bustan, or Orchard (in 1257), and the prose Gulistan, the Rose Garden (in 1258). He died in 1283 or possibly 1291.