Saadi Shirazi
c. 1210 – c. 1291
Saadi Shirazi was a Persian poet and prose writer of the medieval period, regarded as one of the greatest masters of classical Persian literature. His two principal works, the Bustan (The Orchard) and the Gulistan (The Rose Garden), blend moral wisdom, humor, and elegant style and have been read across the Persianate world for centuries.
Lived at the same time
Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Saadi Shirazi.
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Life events
Saadi was born in Shiraz in the Fars region of Persia; his father is said to have served the local Salghurid rulers.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgSaadi lost his father while still a child, an experience he later recalled with sympathy for orphans in his poetry.
Amid the turmoil following the Mongol invasions, Saadi departed for Baghdad, where he studied Islamic sciences and literature at the famous Nizamiyya college.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgSaadi spent many years traveling through regions he describes as including Syria, the Hejaz, Anatolia, and beyond, gathering the experiences reflected in his works.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgIn the Gulistan, Saadi relates that he was captured by Frankish Crusaders and put to forced labor before being ransomed, though scholars debate the story's historicity.
Saadi returned to his native Shiraz, then peacefully ruled by the Salghurid atabeg Abu Bakr ibn Sad, to whom he dedicated his major works.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgSaadi finished the Bustan, a book of ethical and mystical poetry composed entirely in verse.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgA year after the Bustan, Saadi completed the Gulistan, a collection of moral anecdotes in mingled prose and verse that became one of the most influential books in Persian.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgSaadi died in Shiraz around 1291 or 1292 and was buried there; his mausoleum, the Saadieh, remains a landmark of the city.
Source: en.wikipedia.org