Great Throughts Treasury

"A devil takes one and makes two; a saint take two and makes one."

"A donkey laden with books is neither an intellectual nor a wise man, for it is said that however much one studies one cannot know without action!"

"A book is like a garden carried in the pocket."

"A dog on the run can safely be kicked."

"A handful of bees is worth more than a sack full of flies."

"A narrow place is real big to the narrow-minded."

"A pair of women's breasts has more pulling power than a pair of oxen."

"A friend is another self."

"A good bell is heard far; a bad one still farther."

"A sponge to wipe out the past, a rose to make the present sweet, and a kiss to salute the future."

"A small date stone props up the water jar."

"A path and a gateway have no meaning, once the objective is in sight."

"A wise woman is one who has much to say, but remains silent."

"A town's gate can be shut; a fool's mouth, never."

"A peacock has too little in its head and too much in its tail."

"Allah gives dried beans to eat to him who has no teeth left."

"A well-educated man always has a kind word to say about the place where he spends the night."

"All who snore are not asleep."

"A word before is worth two behind."

"An egg cannot break a stone."

"Better a handful of dried dates and content with that than to own the Gate of Peacocks and be kicked in the eye by a broody camel."

"As the sands of the desert are to the weary traveler, so is too much speech to him who loveth silence."

"Allah may love a poor man, but not a dirty one."

"Angels bend down their wings to a seeker of knowledge."

"Beware: the sleep of nonexistence will overcome you at last. For the coming and going of the breath is but the rocking of the cradle."

"Better the gurgling of a camel than the prayers of a fish."

"Better to be watched by a wild animal than a nosey man."

"Every path has a puddle."

"Death is the black camel that kneels before every door."

"By all means make friends with the dog, but do not lay aside the stick."

"Boil the water and the scum will rise to the top."

"Do not search for truth; only cease to hang on to opinions."

"Craft must have clothes, but truth loves to go naked."

"Don't be deceived by the whiteness of the turban; soap is bought on credit."

"Every man thinks of his own fleas as gazelles."

"Courage is fear that has said its prayers."

"Even the feeblest knock is heard on Heaven's door."

"Every road has two directions"

"Every vibration awakens all others of a particular pitch."

"Fire purges everything."

"Few desires, happy life."

"Except for my father and my mother everybody lies."

"Every sheep hangs by his own legs."

"Giving advice to a stupid man is like giving salt to a squirrel."

"For the sake of one rose, the gardener becomes the servant of a thousand souls."

"Every rose has a thorn as it's friend."

"Exile is the brother of death."

"God pardons the ignorant."

"Have faith, though it be only in a stone, and you will recover."

"Haste is from the devil."