137 Quotes by Iranian authors

Iranian sayings braid tenderness with irony, mystic yearning with streetwise wit. Here the rose keeps the thorn’s company, the nightingale sings to a silent heart, and the reed-flute tells of separation and return. Poets and grandmothers alike weigh words as carefully as saffron, brief, fragrant, and exacting. Themes circle love, hospitality, dignity, patience in hardship, and the restless dance of fate on a chessboard of dust and jasmine. Between tavern and prayer rug, caravan and courtyard, these lines invite reflection, kindness, and a steady gaze toward justice.

See the complete list of authors from Iran

"Have patience. All things are difficult before they become easy"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"The idea of cultural relativism is nothing but an excuse to violate human rights"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"The beloved of the Almighty are: the rich who have the humility of the poor, and the poor who have the magnanimity of the rich"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"The rose and the thorn, and sorrow and gladness are linked together"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"An enemy to whom you show kindness becomes your friend, excepting lust, the indulgence of which increases its enmity"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"When Karim and his group heard about Saddam coming, they wanted to kill him, but fate had other ideas"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"Americans are the great Satan, the wounded snake"

Ayatollah Khomeini, Statesman

Small: Ayatollah Khomeini

"My advisers built a wall between myself and my people. I didn't realize what was happening. When I woke up, I had lost my people"

Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Royalty

"He who is a slave to his stomach seldom worships God"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"The best loved by God are those that are rich, yet have the humility of the poor, and those that are poor and have the magnanimity of the rich"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"My main mistake was to have made an ancient people advance by forced marches toward independence, health, culture, affluence, comfort"

Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Royalty

"One thing I congratulate everyone on is the great explosion which has occurred in Washington's Black House and the very important scandal which has gripped leaders of America"

Ayatollah Khomeini, Statesman

Small: Ayatollah Khomeini

"The first writing of the human being was drawing, not writing"

Marjane Satrapi, Artist

"Technical knowledge has now become an integral aspect of the Iranian psyche"

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Statesman

"When the belly is empty, the body becomes spirit; and when it is full, the spirit becomes body"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"VX is now a dead issue... It is political, really"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"Oman overall has great animal and plant biodiversity because it has mountains, desert, coastal areas and rich coral reefs"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"Most of the birds of the Old World can be found here, as Oman is on a strategic route for migrating birds"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"A little and a little, collected together, becomes a great deal; the heap in the barn consists of single grains, and drop and drop make the inundation"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"Whenever you argue with another wiser than yourself in order that others may admire your wisdom, they will discover your ignorance"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"I fear God and next to God I mostly fear them that fear him not"

Saadi, Poet

Small: Saadi

"The Iranian government intends to use the nuclear program for peaceful purposes, but must convince international public opinion of that"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"Lawyers should not be charged with the same crimes as their clients. Trials related to political charges are not in accordance with human rights"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"I maintain that nothing useful and lasting can emerge from violence"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"How can you defy fear? Fear is a human instinct, just like hunger. Whether you like it or not, you become hungry. Similarly with fear. But I have learned to train myself to live with this fear"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"Women are the victims of this patriarchal culture, but they are also its carriers. Let us keep in mind that every oppressive man was raised in the confines of his mother's home"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"When we criticize in Iran the actions of the government, the fundamentalists say that we and the Bush Administration are in the same camp. The funny thing is that human rights activists and Mr. Bush can never be situated in the same group"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"I hope the example of Saddam Hussein will give a lesson to leaders of other countries where human rights are not respected"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"Human rights is a universal standard. It is a component of every religion and every civilization"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"We must not enable anyone to impose his personal view regarding religion on others by force, oppression, or pressure"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"No American soldier should be allowed to set foot on Iranian soil, regardless of the criticism we have of the Iranian government"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"What is important is that one utilizes one's intellect and not to be 100 percent sure about one's convictions. One should always leave room for doubt"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"My aim is to show that those governments that violate the rights of people by invoking the name of Islam have been misusing Islam"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"Democracy doesn't recognize east or west; democracy is simply people's will. Therefore, I do not acknowledge that there are various models of democracy; there is just democracy itself"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"When a person is humiliated, when his rights are being violated, and he does not have the proper education, naturally he gravitates toward terrorism"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"Sadly the job security of lawyers has been ruined, so they are less willing to defend political defendants"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"The condition of women in Islamic societies as a whole is also far from desirable. However, we should acknowledge that there are differences. In certain countries, the conditions are much better and in others much worse"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"Lawyers have a dangerous job in Iran"

Shirin Ebadi, Lawyer

"Let me tell you quite bluntly that this king business has given me personally nothing but headaches"

Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Royalty

"Shah is a kind of magic word with the Persian people"

Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Royalty

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