The First Story - Section 7:persian is sugar

Translation:

Ramazan, poor soul, had once lost his courage entirely, shuffling himself backwards from one corner of the prison to the other, throwing terrified glances at the Sheikh as if he were fainting. Under his breath, he muttered curses against the devil and recited something resembling Ayat al-Kursi to ward off evil as he blew over his head. It was clear that his imagination had run wild, and the darkness only added to his fear, draining his courage entirely. I truly felt sorry for him.

Meanwhile, the esteemed Sheikh, seemingly struck by a torrent of speech, continued without pause. His hands, covered in hair resembling a sheep’s fleece, protruded from his sleeves as he pushed his cloak back. Without shifting his intense and fiery gaze from the innocent patch of wall, he began to address the absent clerk responsible for issuing travel documents, using strange gestures and fiery accusations. He delivered a litany of insults such as “ignorant wretch,” “heretic,” “wine-drinker,” “prayer-abandoner,” “cursed by parents,” and “illegitimate child,” among others—each one sufficient, by Islamic standards, to justify excommunication or punishment.

Occasionally, with calmness and feigned sympathy, he expounded on the negligence shown towards religious scholars and servants of the sacred law, lamenting the insults they endured “hour by hour” and the “grave worldly and spiritual consequences” of such mistreatment. But as he rambled on, his words became so incoherent and cryptic that not only Ramazan but even his forefathers would have been unable to grasp a single sentence.

As for myself, despite my proud claims of Arabic knowledge and years spent grappling with Zayd and Amr (characters in Arabic grammar), engaging in disputes, arguments, and countless theoretical pursuits, I could not decipher the meaning of his convoluted sermon. I had squandered part of my youth on empty scholastic debates, dashed from one institution to another at the promise of enlightenment, suffered humiliation, endured mockery, and wasted precious time on theoretical complexities—and yet, here I was, entirely baffled by the Sheikh’s monologue.

Let me know if further refinements are needed!