Saadi Shirazi

The Bustan is Saadi's verse work on ethics, completed in the 13th century. The Gulistan is a prose-and-verse collection of moral stories and observations, also from the 13th century.

Saadi is associated with Shiraz, a major city in Persia, now Iran. His tomb in Shiraz remains a major literary and cultural site.

Saadi writes about justice, humility, love, kingship, poverty, and moral conduct. The Gulistan uses short anecdotes to make ethical points memorable.

Saadi's moral stories circulated widely through translation and education. His line about the children of Adam being members of one body is one of the most frequently cited Persian humanist passages.