Chapter III: On the Patience and Firmness of the Godly

I thus have a tale from the men of the way—Beneficent poor ; king-like beggars are they.In the morning, to beg, an old pauper set out;And on seeing the door of a mosque gave a shout."This house," some one answered, " belongs not to menWho are wont to give alms; wait not impudent, then !"He inquired of him, "Who is the lord of this placeWhere no mercy is shown towards any one's case?""Be silent," he said, " such false words to let fall!The lord of this house is the Lord over all!"The lamps and the pray'r-niche, the old person eyed;In warmth, from the depths of his heart, he replied:"What a pity it is to go on, from this place!Disappointed to go from this door's a disgrace.Not a street have I quitted, despairing, before ;Why should I, in shame, go away from this door?Here, too, I will stretch out the hand of demand,For I know that I will not return, with bare hand."He sat for a year as a worshipper, there ;As a suppliant, lifted his hands up in pray'r.The feet of his life sank, one night, in the mud,And his heart took to throbbing, from poorness of blood.In the morning, a lamp at his head some one laid,And saw his last breath, like the morning lamp, fade.He was raving and saying in accents of pride :" Whoe'er knocked at the Bounteous One's door, it oped wide!"To a searcher, endurance and patience are good ;I've not heard of an Alchymist, doleful in mood.Much gold he converts into ashes, alas !In the hope that, one day, he'll make gold out of brass.In purchasing, gold is a good thing to spend ;You can't better buy, than the smiles of the "friend."If your heart, through a mistress, should suffer distress,Another grief soother you'll get to caress.Don't embitter your joy through a sour face, accursed!With another one's beauty, extinguish the first !And yet, if in beauty she has not a peer,For a little annoyance, desert not the dear !One can sever his heart from a person, 'tis true,When he finds he is able, without him, to do.