Chapter I: Story of the Merchant and Robbers
How well spoke the merchant, a prisoner bound,While spear-bearing robbers were standing around :"When in highwaymen courage arises, ah, then!What avail troops of women and armies of men?"The monarch who brings on a merchant distress,On the city and troops shuts the door of success.When again will the wise in that kingdom appear,Where the noise of bad actions alone they can hear?You must win a good name and must goodness elect,And the merchant and messenger, likewise, protect !The Great show for trav'llers solicitous care,That their name linked with praise through the world they may bear.Very soon will the kingdom experience decay,From which the poor stranger heart grieved comes away.Be the stranger's companion and traveller's friend!For a trav'ller will cause a good name to extend.Show respect to a guest and the pilgrims revere ;From their miseries, likewise, preserve yourself clear !From a stranger's regard it is well to abstain ;For a foe can the look of a friend eas'ly feign.The rank of your aged retainers upraise!For those you have reared never show rebel ways.When the sign of old age on your servant appears,Forget not the right that is due to his years !If age has the hand of his usefulness bound,With you a rich hand showing kindness is found.
Words in this poem
- spoke n.
- The radius or ray of a wheel; one of the small bars which are inserted in the hub, or nave, and which serve to support the rim or felly. [OE. spoke, spake, AS, spaca; akin to D. speek, LG. speke, OHG. speihha, G. speiche. sq. root170. Cf. Spike a nail.]
- revere v. t.
- To regard with reverence, or profound respect and affection, mingled with awe or fear; to venerate; to reverence; to honor in estimation. [L. revereri; pref. re- re- + vereri to fear, perh. akin to E. wary: cf. F. révérer.]
- upraise v. t.
- To raise; to lift up.
- rebel a.
- Pertaining to rebels or rebellion; acting in revolt; rebellious; as, rebel troops. [F. rebelle, fr. L. rebellis. See Rebel, v. t.]
- usefulness n.
- The quality or state of being useful; utility; serviceableness; advantage.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Chapter I: Story of the Merchant and Robbers is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Garden of Fragrance: being a complete translation of the Bostan of Sadi from the original Persian into English verse, by G. S. Davie (London: Kegan Paul, Trench and Co., 1882), Internet Archive, the G. S. Davie translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Saadi, Chapter I: Story of the Merchant and Robbers, in The Garden of Fragrance (1882), text of Internet Archive, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/saadi-bostan/1-5.html, id L29510.
Form and metre
Chapter I: Story of the Merchant and Robbers is 26 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets. The metre is anapaestic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 93%).
See other poems in rhyming couplets, other poems in anapaestic tetrameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHDDIIJJKKAA boundA · aroundA · thenB · menB · distressC · successC · appearD · hearD · electE · protectE · careF · bearF · decayG · awayG · friendH · extendH · revereD · clearD · abstainI · feignI · upraiseJ · waysJ · appearsK · yearsK · boundA · foundA
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against anapaestic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| How well spoke the merchant, a prisoner bound, | 11 | ····/˘·/˘˘· |
| While spear-bearing robbers were standing around : | 11 | ··/˘/˘·/˘·· |
| "When in highwaymen courage arises, ah, then! | 12 | ·····/˘˘/˘·· |
| What avail troops of women and armies of men?" | 12 | ·˘/··/˘·/˘·· |
| The monarch who brings on a merchant distress, | 11 | ·/·····/˘˘/ |
| On the city and troops shuts the door of success. | 12 | ··/˘······˘/ |
| When again will the wise in that kingdom appear, | 12 | ·˘/·····/˘˘/ |
| Where the noise of bad actions alone they can hear? | 12 | ·····/˘˘/··· |
| You must win a good name and must goodness elect, | 12 | ········/˘˘/ |
| And the merchant and messenger, likewise, protect ! | 12 | ··/˘·/˘˘/·˘/ |
| The Great show for trav'llers solicitous care, | 11 | ······˘/˘˘· |
| That their name linked with praise through the world they may bear. | 12 | ············ |
| Very soon will the kingdom experience decay, | 12 | /˘···/˘˘/˘˘/ |
| From which the poor stranger heart grieved comes away. | 12 | ····/˘··˘·˘/ |
| Be the stranger's companion and traveller's friend! | 12 | ··/˘˘/˘·/˘˘· |
| For a trav'ller will cause a good name to extend. | 12 | ··········˘/ |
| Show respect to a guest and the pilgrims revere ; | 12 | ·˘/·····/˘˘/ |
| From their miseries, likewise, preserve yourself clear ! | 12 | ··/˘˘/·˘/˘/· |
| From a stranger's regard it is well to abstain ; | 12 | ··/˘˘/····˘/ |
| For a foe can the look of a friend eas'ly feign. | 12 | ············ |
| The rank of your aged retainers upraise! | 10 | ·····˘/˘˘/ |
| For those you have reared never show rebel ways. | 12 | ·····˘/˘·˘/· |
| When the sign of old age on your servant appears, | 12 | ········/˘˘/ |
| Forget not the right that is due to his years ! | 11 | ˘/········· |
| If age has the hand of his usefulness bound, | 11 | ·······/˘˘· |
| With you a rich hand showing kindness is found. | 11 | ·····/˘/˘·· |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.