First and Last Payment | Mullah Nasruddin Books by Ron J. Suresha

First and Last Payment

Once Nasruddin went to the hamam for his bath at the end of the day in his dirty, dingy work clothes. The attendants scoffed at him and gave him a sliver of soap, a rag for a loincloth, and a grungy old towel. Nasruddin had his bath and as he left, he handed the two men a gold coin each.

The two hamamjis, the bath attendants, could not believe their good fortune, after having treated the young Mullah so shabbily without a complaint from him. Surely, they decided, they misjudged his true worth and would give him better treatment next time, and so receive an even more generous tip.

The next time Nasruddin went to the bathhouse, the attendants looked after him with much greater attention and deference, and offered him all the nice amenities. Nasruddin was bathed, massaged, and perfumed like a VIP and, as he exited the hamam, he handed each of the attendants the smallest possible copper coin. The head hamamji protested, “Sir, I ask you — is it fair to leave such a small tip for all the extra services you received today?”

“The gold coins you received before were for this time,” Nasruddin replied, “and these coppers are for the last time. Now we’re even.”

Excerpted from The Uncommon Sense of the Immortal Mullah Nasruddin: Stories, Jests, and Donkey Tales of the Beloved Persian Folk Hero

Your Daily Nasruddin

Justice and fairness are recurring themes in Nasruddin stories. There is often in such tales a distinct sense of comeuppance, where the antagonist — be he a liar, thief, crook, schnook, or intellectual snob — is put in his rightful (inferior) place by our hero.

The Mullah is, on several occasions in different stories, treated shabbily for wearing shabby clothes. We Nasruddin lovers know our hero’s (immeasurable) true worth, but his apparent poverty leads him into several situations where he is shunned then returns to reveal his true value (as a customer, to the religious and civic community, etc).

“Last time counted for this time; and this time counts for last” is a switcheroo that rebukes and reproves the greedy hamamjis, who are more concerned with counting their tips than with providing good service to everyone, every time. Of course, the implication is that if they provided consistently good service, they would get always receive a generous tip.