Criminal behaviors have long posed challenges to societies, and criminology emphasizes the role of the social environment, particularly friends and peers. This study aimed to examine the approach of the Gulistan of Saadi to the role of friends and peers in the commission of crime, with the goal of offering preventive strategies through comparison with contemporary theories. The research employed a qualitative, descriptive-analytical method using textual content analysis of the Gulistan of Saadi and NVivo software. The statistical population consisted of 12 related anecdotes from the Gulistan, purposefully selected. The findings showed that 58% of the anecdotes addressed the negative influence of peers, 33% referred to preventive strategies such as family upbringing, and 8% focused exclusively on the role of education. Saadi, by emphasizing the notion of the “bad companion,” described gradual deviation, which aligns with Differential Association Theory by Edwin Sutherland and Observational Learning Theory by Albert Bandura, although he paid less attention to structural factors. The conclusion indicates that the Gulistan of Saadi is a valuable criminological source that, when integrated with modern approaches, can be applied in educational policymaking and crime prevention, particularly in virtual environments. This study contributes to the enrichment of interdisciplinary knowledge and highlights the necessity of future research using field data.