In Section 38 of the Tuhfat al-Ahrar (part of Jami's Haft Awrang), the Ninth Discourse, Jami praises silence (samt / khamushi) as the wealth of salvation and the ornament of ascending spiritual stations.

Key Images and Arguments

• The Point of Speech (نقطه نطق): Jami plays on the diacritical dot of the letters, noting that the 'point' of speech set upon the tongue becomes the source of loss (ziyan); were one to erase it, even the vault of heaven would bow to one's command.
• The Hollow Drum: Speaking much is no sign of eloquence — the loud clamor of the drum arises precisely from its being empty and brainless.
• The Wine Jar: A jar full of wine is empty of noise, while once emptied it rings loudly with sound, an emblem that inner fullness yields outward quiet.
• Guarding the Unseen Flower: When a flower blooms in the heart from the Unseen (ghayb), one must not scatter it to the wind through unpleasant, idle speech.
• The Treasury of Meaning: Unle...