Chapter II: On Beneficence
To affairs of the spirit incline ; if you've sense;For the spirit remains when the body goes hence.The man without knowledge, free-giving and grace,Does not have in his body for conscience a place.The person sleeps tranquilly under the ground,Through whom, people sleeping in comfort are found.Endure your own grief during life! for your friendsWill neglect you when dead, for their own selfish ends.Gold and affluence give ! while you have them in hand;For after you die, they're not yours to command.If you wish not hereafter affliction to find,Never let the afflicted escape from your mind!You should scatter your treasure in bounty to-day;For to-morrow, the key will have passed from your sway.In almsgiving, bear off your stores during life !For no sympathy comes from a son and a wife !Prosperity's ball, from the world he will bear,Who carries away to the future a share.In compassion, excepting my own nail's, alack!Not a soul in this world thinks of scratching my back.On the palm of your hand, all your wealth do not set !Lest, to-morrow, you gnaw at the hand of Regret.In concealing, the veil of the pious poor try !For the curtain Divine hides from every eye.Do not portionless turn the poor man from your door!Lest begging at gates should for you be in store.On the needy, a noble will favours bestow,For he fears he'll be poor, if he fails to do so.The state of the broken in heart, keep in view!Lest you should, hereafter, be heart-broken, too.To the hearts of the wretched, some gladness impart!And let not the day of distress leave your heart !As a beggar, at other men's doors you don't wait !In gratitude, drive not the poor from your gate !
Words in this poem
- conscience n.
- Knowledge of one's own thoughts or actions; consciousness. [F. conscience, fr. L. conscientia, fr. consciens, p.pr. of conscire to know, to be conscious; con- + scire to know. See Science.]
- tranquilly adv.
- In a tranquil manner; calmly.
- affluence n.
- A flowing to or towards; a concourse; an influx. [F. affluence, L. affluentia, fr. affluens, p. pr. of affluere to flow to; ad + fluere to flow. See Flux.]
- hereafter adv.
- In time to come; in some future time or state. [AS. hræfter.]
- bounty n.
- Goodness, kindness; virtue; worth. [OE. bounte goodness, kindness, F. bonté, fr. L. bonitas, fr. bonus good, for older duonus; cf. Skr. duvas honor, respect.]
- almsgiving n.
- The giving of alms.
- alack interj.
- An exclamation expressive of sorrow. [Prob. from ah! lack! OE. lak loss, failure, misfortune. See Lack.]
- wealth n.
- Weal; welfare; prosperity; good. [OE. welthe, from wele; cf. D. weelde luxury. See Weal prosperity.]
- portionless a.
- Having no portion.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Chapter II: On Beneficence 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 II: On Beneficence, in The Garden of Fragrance (1882), text of Internet Archive, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/saadi-bostan/2-1.html, id L29558.
Form and metre
Chapter II: On Beneficence is 34 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets. The metre is anapaestic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 94%).
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 AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKLLMMNNOOPPQQ senseA · henceA · graceB · placeB · groundC · foundC · friendsD · endsD · handE · commandE · findF · mindF · dayG · swayG · lifeH · wifeH · bearI · shareI · alackJ · backJ · setK · regretK · tryL · eyeL · doorM · storeM · bestowN · soN · viewO · tooO · impartP · heartP · waitQ · gateQ
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 |
|---|---|---|
| To affairs of the spirit incline ; if you've sense; | 12 | ·˘/··/˘˘/··· |
| For the spirit remains when the body goes hence. | 12 | ··/˘˘/··/˘·· |
| The man without knowledge, free-giving and grace, | 11 | ····/˘·/˘·· |
| Does not have in his body for conscience a place. | 12 | ·····/˘·/˘·· |
| The person sleeps tranquilly under the ground, | 11 | ·/˘·/˘˘···· |
| Through whom, people sleeping in comfort are found. | 11 | ··/˘/˘·/˘·· |
| Endure your own grief during life! for your friends | 11 | ˘/···/˘···· |
| Will neglect you when dead, for their own selfish ends. | 12 | ·˘/······/˘· |
| Gold and affluence give ! while you have them in hand; | 12 | ··/˘˘······· |
| For after you die, they're not yours to command. | 11 | ·········˘/ |
| If you wish not hereafter affliction to find, | 12 | ····˘/˘˘/˘·· |
| Never let the afflicted escape from your mind! | 12 | /˘··˘/˘˘/··· |
| You should scatter your treasure in bounty to-day; | 12 | ··/˘·/˘·/˘·· |
| For to-morrow, the key will have passed from your sway. | 12 | ··/˘········ |
| In almsgiving, bear off your stores during life ! | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| For no sympathy comes from a son and a wife ! | 12 | ··/˘˘······· |
| Prosperity's ball, from the world he will bear, | 11 | ˘/˘˘······· |
| Who carries away to the future a share. | 11 | ·/˘˘/··/˘·· |
| In compassion, excepting my own nail's, alack! | 12 | ·˘/˘·/˘···˘/ |
| Not a soul in this world thinks of scratching my back. | 12 | ········/˘·· |
| On the palm of your hand, all your wealth do not set ! | 12 | ············ |
| Lest, to-morrow, you gnaw at the hand of Regret. | 12 | ··/˘······˘/ |
| In concealing, the veil of the pious poor try ! | 12 | ·˘/˘····/˘·· |
| For the curtain Divine hides from every eye. | 12 | ··/˘˘/··/˘˘· |
| Do not portionless turn the poor man from your door! | 12 | ··/˘˘······· |
| Lest begging at gates should for you be in store. | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| On the needy, a noble will favours bestow, | 12 | ··/˘·/˘·/˘˘/ |
| For he fears he'll be poor, if he fails to do so. | 12 | ············ |
| The state of the broken in heart, keep in view! | 11 | ····/˘····· |
| Lest you should, hereafter, be heart-broken, too. | 11 | ···˘/˘··/˘· |
| To the hearts of the wretched, some gladness impart! | 12 | ·····/˘·/˘˘/ |
| And let not the day of distress leave your heart ! | 11 | ······˘/··· |
| As a beggar, at other men's doors you don't wait ! | 12 | ··/˘·/˘····· |
| In gratitude, drive not the poor from your gate ! | 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.