A king boarded a ship with a Persian slave who had never seen the sea and had not experienced the hardship of a ship. The slave began to cry and tremble uncontrollably. Despite their efforts to calm him, he would not be soothed, and the king’s enjoyment was spoiled. They did not know what to do. A wise man on the ship said to the king, “If you allow, I can quiet him in a way.” The king replied, “It would be the utmost kindness.”
He ordered the slave to be thrown into the sea. After a few moments of struggling, they pulled him back to the ship. The slave clung to the rudder with both hands. When he was brought back on board, he sat quietly in a corner. The king was amazed and asked, “What wisdom was in this?” The wise man replied, “He had never experienced the distress of drowning and did not appreciate the safety of the ship. Similarly, one who has not faced adversity does not know the value of well-being.”
O you who are full, barley bread does not seem delicious to you. My beloved is the one who appears ugly to you. The houris of paradise find the heights of purgatory to be hell. Ask the people of hell, for purgatory is paradise to them.
There is a difference between one whose beloved is in his arms And one whose eyes are waiting at the door.
