Chapter VII: Story on Fault-finding

There lived an accomplished, intelligent youth;A skilful and manly expounder of Truth;God worshipping, pious and good among men ;His cheek lines more choice than the lines from his pen.In rhetoric strong and in argument bright ;He pronounced not his Alphabet letters aright.To one of the pious the view I expressed,That such a one none of his front teeth possessed.In a rage at my boldness, his face became red ;"Again do not utter such nonsense !" he said ;"The one single fault in his speech you descry,To his numerous merits, you close wisdom's eye."From me hear the truth ! that upon the Last Day,The man sees no ill who has looked the right way!If a man be instructed, far-seeing and wise,And his virtuous feet from their place should arise,For his one little fault, to oppression don't lean !What have the wise spoken? "Accept what is clean!"The thorn and the rose grow together, oh sage!Why cling to the thorns? With a nosegay engage !The man in whose nature ill-will has its seat,In the peacock, sees only his big, ugly feet.Oh, thou void of discretion! make pureness thine own !For a mirror reflects not that dirty has grown.To escape future punishment, seek for a way !Not a letter, on which you your finger may lay!Oh wretch ! do not faults of the people expose !If you do; your own eyes to your faults it will close.Why should I reprove one whose skirt may be vile,When I know that I'm sinful myself, all the while?With harshness to treat any man, is not nice,When by falsely construing, you back your own vice !Since you deprecate evil, from evil, abstain !Bid your neighbour, thereafter, from evil refrain !If I recognize truth, or if cant is my role!My outside's with you and with God is my soul.Since in Chastity neatly adorned I appear,With my error or rectitude don't interfere !If I'm good or I'm bad you must silence maintain!For I'm bearer myself of my loss and my gain !If my nature be pure or depraved through and through,God knows all my secrets much better than you.I expect no reward for my virtues from thee,That for sinning such torture from you I should see.For a good done by one of the pure-minded men,The Lord in His kindness accredits him ten !Oh strange ! to ten faults in a person be blind,In whom you should happen one virtue to find!Do not twist round your finger his one little blot!And bring his unlimited merits to nought !When a foe upon Sadi's poetical lines,Looks with hate and a heart full of evil designs ;To a hundred rare sayings he does not give ear,And on finding one fault, does not scruple to jeer.He has no higher object, for envy has tornThe just-seeing eyes from that object of scorn!Has God not created his creatures with care?There are ugly and handsome and coloured and fair !Not comely's each eyebrow and eye you perceive ;Eat pistachio kernels ! the shells you can leave !