Welcome back to Wisdom from the Golestan of Saadi.
In this story, Saadi shares a journey, both literal and moral, about companionship, deception, and the importance of discernment.
Saadi writes:
A group of travelers had joined together in friendship, sharing the hardships and joys of the road.
I wished to accompany them, but they refused.
I said,
“This is strange conduct for men of good character, to turn away from the company of the poor, and to deny them the blessings of friendship.
For I have the strength and spirit not to be a burden on anyone, but rather a help.”
If I cannot ride with you on horseback,
I will walk beside you carrying your armor.
One of them replied,
“Do not take offense at our hesitation. These days, thieves have begun disguising themselves as dervishes.
One such man joined a group of travelers like us, pretending to be humble and poor.”
How can people know who dwells inside a house?
Only the writer knows what’s hidden in the letter.
The robe of a mystic is the mark of the devout,
but outward signs mean little without inner truth.
That thief, they said, was welcomed by the travelers, mistaken for a holy man.
But one night, as they all slept by the fortress wall,
the false dervish stole a friend’s water jug,
pretending to go for ablution, but going instead for plunder.
See the pious man who wears a holy cloak,
yet uses the garment of the Kaaba to saddle his donkey.
When he had gone far enough to escape sight,
he climbed a tower and robbed a merchant’s chest.
By morning, he had fled;
the rest of the group, innocent and unaware, were arrested and beaten, accused of the theft.
From that day, Saadi says,
“I left the company of men and chose solitude.
For safety lies in being alone.”
When one fool acts rashly in a group,
neither the wise nor the honored are spared.
Have you not heard? One cow soiling the pasture
pollutes the entire herd.
And Saadi concludes with his quiet reflection:
Praise be to God, who did not deprive me of the lesson,
even though I lost the company of the travelers.
From this story I learned, and it will serve me all my life,
that one unpolished soul can offend a gathering of wise men.
Fill a pool with rosewater,
and if a dog falls in, the scent turns foul.
The lesson is timeless:
Be careful whose company you keep.
For a single corrupt heart can taint a circle of saints,
and the sweetest water can sour from one drop of filth.
