What makes the Sufi? Purity of heart;
Not the patched mantle and the lust perverse
Of those vile earth-bound men who steal his name.
He in all dregs discerns the essence pure:
In hardship ease, in tribulation joy.
The phantom sentries, who with batons drawn
Guard Beauty's palace-gate and curtained bower,
Give way before him, unafraid he passes,
And showing the King's arrow, enters in.
~ Rumi
Translated by R. A. Nicholson
Truthful words are not beautiful;
Beautiful words are not truthful.
Good words are not persuasive;
Persuasive words are not good.
He who knows has no wide learning;
He who has wide learning does not know.
The sage does not hoard.
Having bestowed all he has on others, he has yet more;
Having given all he has to others, he is richer still.
The way of heaven benefits and does not harm;
The way of the sage is bountiful and does not contend.
chapter 81, tao te ching
translation d c lau
Those whose desires are never satiated
Would find it hard to share this residence.
Roasting on the brazier--"Young Maids" herbs;
On the desk, the book of the Old Master.
With flowers and bamboo
The courtyard steps are freshened;
With wind-blown mists
The windows are purified.
This man of Tao follows what lies beyond;
He sits here in peace, seeking nothing more.
- Weng Chuan (d. 1214)
