When the wise man had pierced this pearl of lustrous truth, the king exclaimed: “Better than this it would be impossible to speak. Permissible it is to look toward the fair in one who can thus excuse himself. Had I not in wisdom acted with deliberation, I should have wronged him through the speech of an enemy.” To carry the hand quickly to the sword in anger is to carry the back of the hand to the teeth in regret. Heed not the words of the envious; if thou actest upon them, remorseful wilt thou be. Admonishing the slanderer for his evil words, the king further increased the dignity of the vazier, who directed the affairs of the State for many years with justice and benevolence, and was long remembered for his virtues. STORY OF THE KING WHOSE COAT WAS COARSE A certain just king habitually wore a coat of coarse material. Some one said to him: “O happy king! Make for thyself a coat of Chinese brocade.” “That which I wear,” the king replied, “affords both covering and comfort; anything beyond that is luxury. I collect not tribute that I may adorn my person and my throne. If, like a woman, I ornament my body, how, like a man, can I repulse the enemy? The royal treasuries are not for me alone—they are filled for the sake of the army, not for the purchase of ornaments and jewellery.” STORY OF DARIUS[9] AND THE HERDSMAN Darius, king of Persia, became separated from his retinue while hunting. A herdsman came running towards him, and the king, assuming the man to be an enemy, adjusted his bow. Thereupon the herdsman cried: “I am no enemy; seek not to kill me. I am he who tends the king’s horses, and in this meadow am thus engaged.” Becoming again composed, the king smiled and said: “Heaven has befriended thee; otherwise would I have drawn the bowstring to my ear.” “It showeth neither wise administration nor good judgment,” replied the herdsman, “when the king knows not an enemy from a friend. Those who are greatest should know those who are least. Many times hast thou seen me in thy presence, and asked of me concerning the horses and the grazing-fields. Now that I come again before thee thou takest me for an enemy. More skilled am I, O king, for I can distinguish one horse out of a hundred thousand. Tend thou thy people as I, with sense and judgment, tend my horses.” Ruin brings sorrow to that kingdom where the wisdom of the shepherd exceeds that of the king. STORY OF ABDUL AZIZ AND THE PEARL The story is told of Abdul Aziz that he had a pearl of great beauty and value set in a ring. Shortly after, a severe drought occurred, causing distress among the people. Moved by compassion, the king ordered the pearl to be sold and the money that it fetched to be given to the poor. Some one chided him for doing this, saying: “Never again will such a stone come into thy hands.”