Saadi of Shiraz was born in 1184 and studied under the great Sufi sage Jilani in Baghdad become himself becoming one of the most noteworthy teachers of his age. His books, the Gulistan or Rose Garden and Bostan or Orchard, were written in his eighties and became instant classics of Persian literature. Beyond the surface playfulness of his work, there is a deep consistency to Saadi's poetry that reveals its sufic dimension. Translated by Omar Ali-Shah, himself a respected Sufi teacher and author.