I heard that a just commander did declare

You had a robe with lining beyond compare

One said, O king of the fortunate days,

Sew a robe from Chinese silks ablaze

He replied, this much is comfort and ease,

Beyond it lies beauty and graceful increase.

I do not collect tribute for vanity's sake,

To adorn myself, throne, and crown, make no mistake.

If I wear a garment like women’s attire,

How can I defend my country with such desire?

I too have a hundred desires and will,

But the treasury is not only mine to fill.

The treasures are full for the army's needs,

Not for adornment or jewels that feeds.

An army that is not happy with the king,

Has no regard for the rule or anything.

When the enemy takes the farmer’s beast,

Why should the state take taxes from the least?

The enemy takes his donkey, the sultan claims his dues,

What fortune remains for his crown and shoes?

The peasantry is like a tree, if you nurture them well,

You will harvest the fruits for friends to tell.

Do not uproot with cruelty from the ground,

For the fool harms himself, unwisely unbound.

It is not virtue to exert force on the weak,

To steal the crumbs from an ant is not what we seek.

Those who prosper from youth and luck, they rise,

Yet they are gentle with those beneath their skies.

If a subordinate falls down in despair,

Beware of his cries to God in prayer.

If you can take a city with gentleness,

Do not bring bloodshed, let peace suppress.

For the man who owns the world in full domain,

It is not worth spilling blood upon the plain.

I heard that Jamshid, born of fortune's grace,

Wrote on a stone by a spring's embrace.

Many have breathed upon this spring, and still,

They passed, as quickly as closing one's eyelid will.

We grasped knowledge in strength and might,

But we did not fight ourselves when came the night.

When you have access to your enemy's fall,

Do not harm him, for his grief is enough for all.

Better to leave the living enemy confused,

Than to wear his blood on your neck, bruised.