One of greatest Persian writers of both classical prose and poetry, Sa¿di was revered in his time as a man of great wisdom and passion. Sometimes said to have lived over one hundred years, the body of his work was written in the thirteenth century. Filled with extracts of the poet¿s melodious and insightful writing, and critical analysis thereof, this revealing biography examines why he was so idolised until the 1950s, and why since then he has fallen into relative obscurity. Focussing on the themes of both physical and spiritual love stitched through Sa¿di¿s writing, as well as the impact of his many years travelling, Katouzian sheds a unique insight on who he calls 'the poet of life, love and compassion'.