Chapter III: Story of the Saint and the Ferry-boat
It occurred that a saint from Faryab, once, and IIn the land of the west to a river came nigh.I possessed but one direm, so me they took o'erIn the vessel, and left the poor man on the shore.Fast as smoke was the boat by the wicked crew rowed,For the Master no fear of the "Great Master" showed.I wept at thus having my friend to forsake.At my weeping he heartily laughed and, thus, spake:" Oh wise one ! let sorrow for me be remote !He will carry me over Who carries the boat !"His carpet he spread on the face of the stream;Was it merely a fancy, or was it a dream?On account of amazement, I slept not that night;He viewed me and said—at the first dawn of light—"You wondered! oh comrade, of fortunate thought!The boat carried you and by God I was brought !"People chained to the world do not credit this talk,That the holy through fire and through water can walk.The child, of the mischief of fire unaware,The mother protects with the greatest of care.Hence, know, that the people in ecstasy drown'd,In the eyes of the Lord special favour have found :He watches the "friend" in the fierce burning pile!What of Moses small ark being sunk in the Nile?When a youth has escaped who is able to swim,The Tigris though broad has no terror for him.When will you step out on the face of the sea?You're like men on the land, as defiled as can be.
Words in this poem
- amazement n.
- The condition of being amazed; bewilderment ; overwhelming wonder, as from surprise, sudden fear, horror, or admiration.
- wondered a.
- Having performed wonders; able to perform wonderful things.
- unaware a.
- Not aware; not noticing; giving no heed; thoughtless; inattentive.
- favour n.
- Kind regard; propitious aspect; countenance; friendly disposition; kindness; good will. [Written also favour.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Chapter III: Story of the Saint and the Ferry-boat 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 III: Story of the Saint and the Ferry-boat, in The Garden of Fragrance (1882), text of Internet Archive, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/saadi-bostan/3-19.html, id L29611.
Form and metre
Chapter III: Story of the Saint and the Ferry-boat is 28 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets. The metre is anapaestic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%).
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 AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKLLMMNN iA · nighA · o'erB · shoreB · rowedC · showedC · forsakeD · spakeD · remoteE · boatE · streamF · dreamF · nightG · lightG · thoughtH · broughtH · talkI · walkI · unawareJ · careJ · drown'dK · foundK · pileL · nileL · swimM · himM · seaN · beN
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 |
|---|---|---|
| It occurred that a saint from Faryab, once, and I | 12 | ·˘/········· |
| In the land of the west to a river came nigh. | 12 | ········/˘·· |
| I possessed but one direm, so me they took o'er | 12 | ·˘/········· |
| In the vessel, and left the poor man on the shore. | 12 | ··/˘········ |
| Fast as smoke was the boat by the wicked crew rowed, | 12 | ········/˘·· |
| For the Master no fear of the "Great Master" showed. | 12 | ··/˘·····/˘· |
| I wept at thus having my friend to forsake. | 11 | ····/˘···˘/ |
| At my weeping he heartily laughed and, thus, spake: | 12 | ··/˘·/˘˘···· |
| " Oh wise one ! let sorrow for me be remote ! | 11 | ····/˘···˘/ |
| He will carry me over Who carries the boat !" | 12 | ··/˘····/˘·· |
| His carpet he spread on the face of the stream; | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| Was it merely a fancy, or was it a dream? | 12 | ··/˘·/˘····· |
| On account of amazement, I slept not that night; | 12 | ·˘/·˘/˘····· |
| He viewed me and said—at the first dawn of light— | 12 | ··˘········· |
| "You wondered! oh comrade, of fortunate thought! | 12 | ·/˘˘·/··/˘˘· |
| The boat carried you and by God I was brought !" | 11 | ··/˘······· |
| People chained to the world do not credit this talk, | 12 | /˘······/˘·· |
| That the holy through fire and through water can walk. | 12 | ··/˘·/··/˘·· |
| The child, of the mischief of fire unaware, | 12 | ····/˘·/˘·˘/ |
| The mother protects with the greatest of care. | 11 | ·/˘˘/··/˘·· |
| Hence, know, that the people in ecstasy drown'd, | 11 | ····/˘·/˘˘· |
| In the eyes of the Lord special favour have found : | 12 | ······/˘/˘·· |
| He watches the "friend" in the fierce burning pile! | 11 | ·/˘·····/˘· |
| What of Moses small ark being sunk in the Nile? | 12 | ··/˘··/˘···· |
| When a youth has escaped who is able to swim, | 12 | ····˘/··/˘·· |
| The Tigris though broad has no terror for him. | 11 | ·/˘····/˘·· |
| When will you step out on the face of the sea? | 11 | ··········· |
| You're like men on the land, as defiled as can be. | 12 | ············ |
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.