Great Throughts Treasury

"It is difficult to control desire of someone who is in great need."

"It is rather impossible to change an established image"

"Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps the singing bird will come."

"Leftover of some could be a hearty meal for others."

"Let us have hashish for this Lakh as well."

"Lice flourishes in rags."

"Like gold which has come out of the fire."

"Long awaited happiness in a family."

"Mannerisms in eating to show off."

"Marry in haste and repent at leisure."

"May God save me from the one, whom I saved (or brought up)."

"May your eyes be opened but see nothing (A curse)."

"Message communicated to one is meant for someone else."

"Misadministration and corruption."

"Misfortunes never come alone."

"Money in the hands of a spendthrift."

"Money makes the mare go."

"Nature has its own peculiar ways to maintain its balance. Sustenance of Kashmiri people during the present turmoil."

"Neither in three, nor in the thirteen."

"Nine days wonder."

"No breakfast for the dear one, but a luncheon for the strangers."

"No man has seen God and lived."

"No place like home."

"No property, no worries."

"Not even wooden shoes to wear for her feet, yet she is called Padmini (a queen)."

"Not to bear a fly on someone's eye."

"O daughter, I'm telling you. O daughter-in-law, listen to it."

"O father, grow old and serve me."

"O good man, do good; the wicked will receive his own due."

"O home, I would sacrifice a thousand houses on you, and would never step out of the door."

"O river, why are you roaming? On seeing my source."

"On seeing a cat, one should be able to utter bishtI (for driving it away)."

"Once in a blue moon."

"Once the Crow living in the old garden, suddenly decided to leave it and to look for other places. After while she flew to a beautiful valley, covered with grass and flowers. Having landed and looked around she saw the Quail all of a sudden and marveled at her feathers and walk. The Crow was astonished with the grace of the Quail's walk - little steps of this bird were amazingly light and proportionate. The Crow understood that she could not change the color of her feathers and that is why she decided to overtake at least the walk of that amazing bird. She started following the Quail on tip toe, trying to copy all her movements, but however hard she tried she could not overtake her walk and because of such a confusion she forgot even her own walk. - Jami"

"One can look at the beauty at a distance but cannot enjoy it."

"One can oneself earn and maintain one's respect."

"One could not reach the fruit, and therefore he said that they were sour."

"One does not value items received free or in gift."

"One innocent person is punished in place of someone else."

"One is to beg, and that too riding on an elephant."

"One is totally unaware of what happens during sleep."

"One kind of laugh is to come down from high horse and another to get on an ass."

"One man can burn water, whereas another cannot even burn oil."

"One man claimed that mind is blind in the street of love, and that the main thing in love is ecstasis and intuition. To prove this he told the story of a lover, who had swum across the river Tigris many times to see his beloved one. But once he noticed a little spot on her face. After that, when he was crossing the Tigris, he could not stop thinking about the seen. And the love, which had inspired him to make that heroic deed, got weak, in the middle of the river his strength left him and he drawned. Nothing should divert the true lover from his love to the beloved one. Knowing this rule, his beloved can always test the sincerity of his love in the same way as one beauty did it. She had to listen to outpourings of one man, who had been claiming how deep and sincere was his passion to her, and she decided to test him: ? Let alone speaking about my beauty, - she said, - you better have a look at my sister! The man, pretending to be a passionate lover, turned immediately in the direction she showed, and she understood at once that his words were deceitful and insincere. - Sanai"

"One man cut the bund/barrage, and a thousand people fell into the river."

"One man is old and sweet, another is old and bitter."

"One man wearing Sufi garments was going once along the road and having seen a dog hit it heavily with his stick. Screaming in pain it ran to the great wizard Abu Sayeed. It fell at his feet and after having demonstrated the wounded leg told him everything and asked him to be a judge between it and that Sufi, who dealt so cruelly with it. The wizard called both of them unto him and told the Sufi:? Oh, headless! How could you do this to a speechless creature?! Look at what you've done!? I have nothing to do with it, ? talked the Sufi back. ? The dog was guilty itself of everything. It was not just by my caprice that I hit it, but because it stained my garments. But the dog kept thinking it was offended unfairly; and then the peerless wizard told it: ? In order to spare you from memorizing the offence till the Great Judgment, let me give you some compensation for your sufferings. The dog replied:? Oh, the wise and the great one! Having seen this man in the garments of Sufis I thought that he would not bring me harm. If I had seen him in common clothes, naturally, I would try to stay away from him. My only guilt is that I thought outer attributes of a servant of the truth to be the guarantee of my safety. If you want to punish him, take the garments of the chosen ones from him. Divest him of the right to wear the garments of the man of goodness. The dog itself was on a certain step of the path. It was a mistake to think that a man definitely had to be better than a dog."

"One man's beard is on fire, and another man warms his hands on it."

"One may be generous at heart, but may not be able to afford it."

"One misery followed by another."