MULLA NASRUDIN

[dant]

Good post! Some of these jokes are quite revealing, and others
are funny because of the unexpected response.

I know a good joke, some people find it funny while others don't.

How true this is!

Can jokes be used as a "divining rod" of character?

When the response is opposite of what was expected,
does one begin to doubt themselves, or of others?

All interesting, indeed!

 

[Buddy]

{snip}

What do you think about?

I think that these stories, if designed for a general audience, will mean different things to different people.

SEARCHING FOR THE KEY

To me, this one is about how simple associative thinking with it's emphasis on superficial meanings, may appear (to the mind) to solve problems when it really only perpetuates foolishness (in external reality).



APPROACHING QUIETLY TO HIMSELF

Again...taking something too literally while in a dissociated state.

One of his favorite stories, The Sweetest Strawberry the World Has Ever Known, is actually a Nasruddin-ized version of a beautiful zen Buddhist tale. In Nasruddin's hands it is filled with danger, humor, excitement, absurdity; the audience is not aware they have just imbibed subtle and valuable esoteric teachings!

Now I have thought about this joke for some time, but I fail to see the "wisdom" in it. May be someone has a better idea ...

And I am here to tell you that if you are hanging on a cliff from a bush that is pulling out by the roots, and there is a tiger above you and a tiger below you, and you find a strawberry and you eat it, that will be the sweetest strawberry the world has ever known!
_http://www.nasruddin.org/pages/stories/sweetest.html
_http://www.nasruddin.org/pages/storylist.html

To me, this is about the relationship between the concentration of attention and the concentration (intensity) of life experience. I also see a similar principle in Laura's signature, although that one is also about getting things done and done right the first time.

I don't think all the stories are intended to supply 'spiritual truths', so much as just giving people a tool to help themselves. I read somewhere (Idries Shah made the statement) that the tales are intentionally designed to occupy the false personality with superficialities until the deeper insight or impression is absorbed in an "all or nothing" kind of way.

If you already know the lesson though, a given tale will probably just seem to be so much sillyness to you because you may already have 'gotten' what it has to offer. :)

Some of the 'jokes' were designed as a 'scratch test' for would-be teachers. For example, if a Dervish or "Sufi (so-called)" couldn't laugh at jokes about other gurus or whatever, then there was still too much self-importance there and that would be a 'telling' indicator of who you were dealing with.

Edit: removed a duplicate word.

 

[un chien anadolu]

There is another Nasreddin Hodja (or Hoca in Turkish) story I like :

One day Nasreddin Hodja borrowed a big stewpot from his neighbour. After a couple of days he knocked his neighbours door to return the borrowed stewpot. The neighbour noticed that there was another, smaller pot inside of his pot. The neighbour asked curiously "Hodja , what is this?" Nasreddin replied : " Your stewpot bred, and this is her baby". The neighbour was astonished but he was also happy, so he took the both pots without questioning any further.

After couple of weeks Nasreddin Hodja borrowed the same stewpot again. This time his neighbour was more eager to lend it to Hodja. But this time several weeks went by and Nasreddin didn't return the pot back. Finally the neighbour got very anxious and knocked Hodja's door to get his stewpot back. Nasreddin Hodja told him in a sad manner that his stewpot had died. The neighbour was shocked and furious, he shouted "Come on Hodja, how can a stewpot die ? Do you think I am a fool ? " Hodja replied calmly : "So you believe that your stewpot can breed. How come that you would not believe it may die ?"

 

[dant]

Oh, so the moral of the story is:
Do not lend your stewpot, lest you inherit a crackpot? (oh! an unexpected joke?)

 

[eliansito]

I think a lot of Mulla Nasrudin stories(not all of course), those that seem to make no sense at all is like zen koans, trying to make meaning of something that has no meaning, trying to find the proper explanation as to Mullas reply or saying will bring nothing, as that is logical thinking, but by reflecting on it eventually the mind should reach a brief instance of sudden enlightenment, a glimpse of reality. (nothing to do with the joke).

Trying to find the meaning of such stories is missing the point altogether.

Similar as the taoist concept of Wu wei, doing nothing, trying without trying and so...

There is the story of the zen archer student that was hitting the target's bulls eye all of the time, every time, yet his master kept on telling him, "you still dont get it!", the discouraged student after years of trying to please his master and realizing his best efforts still met the masters despise announced one day that he was leaving, as he was leaving the master said, ok you can leave but do it one more time. he did it for the last time, carefree and without purpose as he was all packed and ready to go, he hit the bulls eye and the master said "that s it, you got it!" It was the only time he just was, his doing was unattached from hitting the target or from doing it properly, let alone pleasing his master.

Many intended uses for the stories the above being only one of them.

me2cents.
R

 

[hnd]

To Make People Stop Talking

One day, Hodja and his son went on a journey. Hodja let his son ride the donkey while he walked. Along the way, they passed some people who said, ‘Look at that healthy young boy on the donkey!’

The boy then let his father ride while he walked. Hodja rode and the boy walked by his side. Soon they met another group.

‘Look at that! Poor little boy has to walk while his father rides the donkey.’ This time, Hodja climbed onto the donkey behind his son. Soon they met another group, who said, ‘Look at that poor donkey! He has to carry the weight of two people.’

Hodja then told his son. ‘The best thing is for us to walk and lead the donkey. Then no one can complain.’ So, they continued their journey on foot. Again, they met some others who said: ‘Just take a look at those fools. Both of them are walking under this hot sun and neither of them is riding the donkey.’

In exasperation, Hodja lifted the donkey onto his shoulders and said, ‘Come on, if we don't do this, it will be impossible to make people stop talking.

This one, already shared by Vulcan 59, is my favorite. In a way, it tells us how meaningless the effort of making an impression on people is. Hodja seems to seek the external confirmation of others, but at the same time he doesn't have a distorted self-image, acting like a wise fool again.

Not all the jokes related with him are good, and I'm not sure if they are really his, but I like the ones which tease the hypocrisy of human beings, like the one un chien anadolu shared.

IMO, this cartoon from the `International Nasreddin Hodja Cartoon Contest` is a very creative way of describing his being a wise fool.

http://www.irancartoon.ir/gallery/album311/Yuri_Manaev_Russia

 

[sid]

Oh, so the moral of the story is:
Do not lend your stewpot, lest you inherit a crackpot? (oh! an unexpected joke?)

Actually, to me that appeared to describe double standards in people. They'd continuously believe a lie as long as it benefits them.

 

[hnd]

I thought it was some kind of hypocrisy and couldn't think of a better expression, but pretending to believe a lie as long as it benefits one describes the situation much more clearly. Thank you for clarifying it. However, I doubt it is an example of a `double standard`.

A double standard, thus, can be described as a sort of biased, morally unfair suspension (toward a certain group) of the principle that all are equal in their freedoms. Double standards also violate the principle of justice known as impartiality, which is based on the assumption that the same standards should be applied to all people, without regard to subjective bias or favoritism based on social class, rank, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation or other distinction. A double standard violates this principle by holding different people accountable according to different standards. The proverb "life is not fair" is often invoked in order to mollify concerns over double standards.

There is a distinction to be made between double standards and hypocrisy, which implies the stated or presumed acceptance of a single standard a person claims to hold himself or herself accountable to, but which, in practice, may be disregarded.

 

[sid]

Yes, hypocrisy is better. I tend to use the term "double standard" term quite liberally. :P