Sadi studied in Baghdad but the Mongol invasion led him to travel through Anatolia, Syria, Egypt and North Africa before returning to Persia.

His two most famous works are the 'Bustan' and the 'Golestan' where he contrasts the fate of those who depend on the moods of kings to the freedom of the dervishes. He says: 'I am neither a lord of subjects, nor a slave of a potentate; I draw my breath freely and thus spend my life'