Lord, leave me alone

April 1, 2017 by rjs

A Mullah Nasruddin / Nasreddin Hoca story Lord, leave me alone Nasruddin’s mother, Leyla, thought her young son was basically a lost cause. She didn’t know what to do with him, so as a last resort she hired him as an errand boy to an innkeeper. The innkeeper instructed him, “Okay kid, go to the shore and wash out this old wineskin. But do it properly; otherwise, you will be punished!” So Nasruddin took the wineskin to the sea. And there he washed the wineskin, for all his worth, and continued cleaning it out through the long morning. By…

From the book Extraordinary Adventures

Big fish, little fish

August 1, 2016August 1, 2016 by rjs

A Mullah Nasruddin / Nasreddin Hoca story Big fish, little fish One day, young Nasruddin’s mother, Leyla, was cooking and speaking to her husband, Yousef, as the child watched them unseen through a hidden crack in the door. Leyla said, “Listen, my husband, I have prepared both a large fish and a small fish. We will hide the big fish under the wooden bench and serve the little one on the table to eat.” Yousef understood. “So, when the boy then has eaten and gone to bed, we will take out the big fish and eat it all ourselves.”…

From the book Uncommon Sense

Minding the door

December 5, 2011 by rjs

Minding the door Once when Nasruddin was too young to attend school, but Leyla, his mother, had to go to the well, she pulled his ear and told him, “Mind you, do not leave the door for even a moment. Keep your eye on it.” Then she left, gossiping with her friends Turan and Setare, along the way to the well. Once they got going, they could keep chatting at the well with the other village women for most of a day. Nasruddin sat in a chair staring intently at the front entrance, for the first hour. He paced around…

From the book Uncommon Sense

Stones Are Included

September 24, 2011September 21, 2011 by rjs

Stones Are Included Once, young Nasruddin bought a small bag of dates at the market and returned home to eat them. His mother noticed that he was pocketing each pit very carefully and asked, “Why are you eating the stones with the dates?” Nasruddin said, “You think I am about to throw them into the street? Not I!” “Why don’t you throw away the pits, like everyone else does?” she asked. “When I bought them,” he replied, “I asked the grocer if the price for the dates included the pits, and he said that it was all included. ‘The fruits…

From the book Uncommon Sense

Reflections and Projections

June 3, 2011June 4, 2011 by rjs

Reflections and Projections (The Thief Hiding in the Water Jug) Once, as a young child, Nasruddin happened to gaze into a large jar full of water, and saw his reflection. He cried: “Mother! There is a young boy hiding in the water pitcher — he must be a thief!” His mother, Leyla, looked into it likewise, saw her reflection, and shrieked as she recoiled in horror, “Yes, by God, it is true! And with him is an ugly old woman!” Nasruddin toppled the water jug onto the floor, where it broke and water gushed forth. His mother, trying to save…