Ancient Wisdom

Though ' Khoja Nasrudin' seemed content with his married life, for the Mohammedan never speaks of his home life, but to the surprise of the neighbours the widow suddenly sued one day for a divorce, and both she and the ' Khoja ' appeared in court, the wife to plead her case and the husband to defend himself as best he could. The widow complained loudly that the ' Khoja ' had ill-treated her to such a degree that she could no longer stay with him. He had destroyed and broken all her furniture and belongings, and at the same time inflicted on her, and that without any cause, severe bodily injuries. "Yes, verily," quoted the good woman, "having first smashed all the crockery in the house with a flat-iron, he suddenly hit me over the head with a frying-pan. There's still a lump on my head as big as a duck's egg, but without the permission of the Court I cannot, of course, raise my veil in order to exhibit it." The irate lady concluded b...

Some boys, anxious to play a practical joke on the Khoja , asked him to climb a tree, their purpose was to run away with his sandals. They informed the Khoja that no one had ever been able to climb that particular tree, and the Khoja , always a sportsman, despite his years and the restrictions imposed on him by his sacred profession, at once said that he could do it; whereupon the boys, of course, told him stoutly that he could not, and persuaded him to try. The  Khoja  immediately accepted the challenge, and gathered up the skirts of his robe which he tied round his waist to give his limbs freedom. Then taking off his sandals he placed them in his bosom and began to climb the tree. Naturally the boys were disappointed and hurt on seeing the sandals go up the tree as well as the  Khoja , and it was not without asperity that they asked the holy man what he was going to do with his sandals in the tree.  "O, " said the  Khoja , some what taken a back "I - I need t...

Once Mulla entered into a vegetable garden. He collected such vegetables as he felt he required at the moment or might require later on. The gardener happened to come upon the scene, however; and speaking loudly, he inquired what the holy man was doing there. Without any hesitation, the Mulla replied mildly that the wind had blown him thither.  The gardener then asked how it came to pass that those vegetables which belonged to him, the gardener, happened to be in the Mulla's hands, and how a number of other vegetables had managed to get stowed away in the Mulla's bosom. In a benignant voice, Nasrudin answered, saying that the wind was so violent that, in trying to save himself from being overturned, he had caught at anything and everything which came in his way, with the result that those vegetables had got into his hands and into the breast of his garment. "But what about these vegetables in the sack?" continued the gardener, whose manner was becoming decidedly impo...

One day the ' Mulla Nasrudin Effendi' was seen to be standing on one foot at the hour of prayer. When asked why he stood like a stork, on one foot, he answered that the other foot had not performed the ablution, as he had not sufficient water.