Mullah Nasruddin Books by Ron J. Suresha

Door-to-door Salesmen

or, Who’s selling here, you or me?

Nasruddin wanted to sell his firewood door-to-door, but he needed a new donkey to help carry the load around town. After much haggling at the market, he bought the milkman’s donkey, and set off on his rounds.

He led the young, perky beast of burden away from the market. The donkey, for her part, was a creature of habit and always remembered the daily route through the streets, helping her master sell his milk, through the streets around Akşehir. Unknown to Nasruddin, though, this donkey had developed the habit, as she reached certain spots along the route where the previous master had sold his milk, of braying loudly as a signal to the locals that they should come out and get their milk.

After Nasruddin loaded up, he began leading the donkey the quickest way toward the market, but the animal stubbornly insisted on taking its previous path. Nasruddin threw up his hands and relented. He thought, This donkey acts like she knows the way better than I do — so maybe she is right! He slackened the tether, and let the young donkey lead the way until they reached the first point of sale, where the donkey stopped abruptly and would not budge forward even a hair.

Nasruddin thought that the donkey must know that this is a good spot to sell, so he took a deep breath, and got ready to call out for folks to come buy his wood. He was interrupted, however, by a loud, long bray. One of the local women, Setare, who was long accustomed to hearing the familiar call of the milkman’s donkey, brought out the milkcans, but when they saw that it was just Nasruddin selling firewood, she reviled him and went back inside.

As the donkey led the way to the next stop on the route, Nasruddin was rapidly becoming less delighted with the animal. Again he drew in his breath, ready to proclaim his firewood to all — and again the donkey opened her lips wide, almost seeming to smile, and brayed loud enough to drown out Nasruddin as he made the call for firewood. Soon enough, another local woman, Turan, came out with a milk jug under each arm, but soon enough she realized Nasruddin’s folly, and returned to her home disappointed.

After several episodes of the same unsuccessful sales tactic, Nasruddin had sold not so much as a matchstick of wood. Finally the Mullah could stand it no more. He faced the donkey, shook his fists, and yelled, “Let’s settle this matter once and for all, you miserable, impudent animal: Who is selling here — you or me‽ You bray to announce the firewood, and they attack me for not bringing the milk.”

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

Your Daily Nasruddin

It’s always funny when someone speaks to an animal as if the animal could understand exactly what the person was saying. Especially so with the Mullah and his beloved grey donkey, who occasionally seems to understand more than the Mullah.

The story doesn’t make clear whether the old donkey is his favorite, or if the new donkey is the one Mullah makes famous in his stories.

In this case, the donkey, who would bray in specific locations where her previous master (either a milk-seller or a pickle seller) had trained her to, is always a creature of habit.

So when Nasruddin takes the donkey on his neighborhood rounds to sell his firewood, the donkey brays at the wrong time, besides which everyone in town knows the bray of this donkey is the sound announcing the milk-seller … hilarity ensues.

The funniest part is when Nasruddin confronts his donkey – this happens regularly in Mullah donkey tales – and berates Karakachan, saying “Who’s selling here – you, or me?” And of course, we know the answer – is that the ass is selling, not the man.