A STORY NARRATED BY
SHEIKH SA’ADI RE
Sheikh Sa’adi RE has
narrated a story in his Gulistan that once he stayed for a night at a trader’s
home during one of his travels. The whole night the trader kept telling him
stories about what he imported from one country or exported to another country.
After spending the whole night on this topic he said to Sheikh Sa’adi RE that
all my other wishes have been fulfilled and my business has flourished well.
Now I want to undertake just one more journey and if that is successful I will
adopt a life of contentment (قناعت) and will spend the rest of my life sitting in my
shop.
Sheikh Sa’adi RE asked
him, “What travel are you thinking of undertaking?” He said, “I will carry
sulphur from here to sell in China because I have heard that it sells at a very
good price there. From China I will take pots and pans to Rome. From there I
will take Roman clothes to India to sell it there. I will buy steel in India
and sell it in Syria. From Syria I will buy glass and sell it in Yemen. From
Yemen I will bring Yemeni sheets back to Persia. After this journey I will spend
the rest of my life just minding my shop here.”
When Sheikh Sa’adi RE
heard this he said, “Have you heard the story that in a desert the merchandise
of a great trader was lying on the sand having fallen from his camel. The dead
camel was lying on one side of the merchandise, and his own dead body was lying
on the other side. It was as if his merchandise was saying that if a person is
in love with this material world, his appetite can only be sated either by
contentment (قناعت), or the dirt of his grave. There is no
third way of satisfying his appetite.”
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