Don’t Ask Me — Ask the Donkey

by rjs
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Published on: January 26, 2013

Don’t Ask Me — Ask the Donkey

. . . continued from previous entry. . .

The Uncommon Sense of the Immortal Mullah NasruddinNasruddin rode his little grey donkey, Karakacan, sitting backward as usual, facing his students.

As he was about to make a point, suddenly there was a series of loud pops and bangs — one of the boys, Mehmet, had set off firecrackers! The frightened donkey bolted with Nasruddin clinging to its backside and the kids running behind them, laughing and yelling. As the terrorized donkey galloped into the village, the Mullah held on for dear life. His turban came undone, but he dare not take one hand off to tuck it back in.

By the time the donkey entered the market with Nasruddin bouncing and bumping on its rear end, shouting for it to stop, his turban waving like a long banner from his bald head, and the kids shrieking as they followed, the whole market turned to witness the spectacle and laugh.

Nasruddin’s son, Ahmet, saw him riding backward at full donkey speed and called out, “Oh Father, you are going ass-backward!”

Nasruddin called out to Ahmet, between bumps, “It’s not me . . . that’s sitting on . . . my donkey backward . . . it’s the donkey . . . that’s facing . . . the wrong way!”

The donkey kept running in circles, but Nasruddin could not get it to stop. On their next circling around the market square, someone yelled, “Hey Nasruddin, where are you going in such a hurry?”

Nasruddin yelled back, in a shaken, desperate voice, “Don’t ask me — ask my donkey!”

. . . to be continued . . .

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

 

 

 

Your Daily Nasruddin

This story is classic Nasruddin, riding backward on his donkey (or a horse in certain versions). Asked why he travels backward, Nasruddin will deny that it is he who is facing the wrong direction. Asked where he is destined, Nasruddin can only reply, “Don’t ask me, ask the donkey.” And in all honesty, the Mullah does not know where he is headed, so the most logical (though still incredibly foolish) response is to refer the questioner to the animal who is wildly dragging the man behind him throughout the marketplace.

One grape is as good as another

by rjs
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Published on: October 13, 2011

One grape is as good as another

The Uncommon Sense of the Immortal Mullah NasruddinOnce Nasruddin was returning from the vineyard, his little grey donkey laden with two baskets filled with bunches of luscious grapes, which he intended for sale at market.

The village kids gathered around the Mullah and pestered him mercilessly for some grapes, and after sufficient nagging Nasruddin finally stopped, handed each of the boys a single grape, then turned to leave.

Mehmet, the oldest boy, complained, “Why are you so stingy, Nasruddin? You have so many grapes. Can’t we have more than one apiece?”

“Don’t be foolish,” said Nasruddin as he made a hasty exit. “All grapes taste exactly alike. If you’ve tasted one grape, you’ve tasted them all. So it doesn’t matter in the least if you get one or a whole bunch.”

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

 

Your Daily Nasruddin

Nasruddin holds to his stinginess and evades the kids with a simple (il)logical ruse:

If you’ve tasted one grape, that singular event is sufficient to be able to say, “I have tasted such a grape, and lo! because the grape was so delicious and juicy, I then decided, I am satisfied with my grape experience and require not even one more of that luscious fruit.

 Compare this story with the one in which Nasruddin hands out walnuts to the village kids, often titled, “God’s way, or mortal’s way?”.

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