“رِفق” in the Masnavi

3 couplets in the Masnavi

نرم‌نرمک گفت شهر تو کجاست
که علاج اهل هر شهری جداست‌‌

Gently, he asked, 'Where is your town? For the cure for the people of each town differs.'

آن حکیم خارچین استاد بود
دست می‌‌زد جابه‌جا می‌‌آزمود

That thorn-removing physician was a master; he kept touching here and there, testing and examining.

زان کنیزک بر طریق داستان
باز می‌‌پرسید حال دوستان‌‌

Under the guise of narrative and storytelling, he kept asking about her friends.