M3:623 — یک جفا از خویش و از یار و تبار / در گرانی هست چون سیصد هزار

This beyt appears in the story of the merchant (Khwaja) who, having been robbed and left for dead, is eventually found by a villager. The villager, initially helpful, becomes increasingly demanding and cruel, exploiting the Khwaja's desperate situation. The Khwaja, having endured five days of intense suffering and the villager's escalating demands for payment, reflects on his plight.

The preceding lines describe the Khwaja's growing despair and his realization that he had to abandon his previous expectations of the villager. He laments the 'five years of hardship' condensed into 'five days' of torment in the heat and burning sun. It is in this context that he utters this couplet, expressing the profound sting of betrayal. The 'kin, or friend, or clan' (خویش و از یار و تبار) here refers metaphorically to anyone from whom one expects kindness or compassion, especially when in dire need. The villager, having initially offered aid, has now become a source of 'cruelty' (جفا), and this betrayal, coming from someone who should have been a rescuer, feels far more burdensome than any amount of suffering inflicted by an unknown enemy. It's the violation of trust and the expectation of human decency that amplifies the pain, making 'one cruelty' feel like 'three hundred thousand' in its emotional weight.