Arumugam - Nasreddin Hodja

also by Raj Arumugam:

Nasrudin, the worlds best-loved wise fool

2011 Raj Arumugam
eBook ISBN: 978-1-62112-109-1

cover picture with kind permission of balavenise (flickr); other pictures in public domain

.the stories of Nasreddin represent, at one level, the whole of human behaviorthe stories reflect the duality and contrary states in our mind and actions: at one moment Nasreddin is wise, in another story he is the fool; in one story he is kind, in another he can be mean; in one he exists to satisfy his physical appetites - in one he is sublime; in one he is a cheat, in another he is the victim; in one story he is honest and brave - and yet in another he is dishonest and is a sycophant..what are we to make of such a mix of traits in one person, in the figure of Nasreddin?

It is a reflection, if one is honest, of the multiplicities in ones own mind and beingone simply has to observe ones own mind and thoughts to see thisOften one is quick to find fault in others and yet one does not see the same defect in oneself

And so in this book, Nasreddin says to those who laugh at him:

Yes, you may see the humor;
but I dont think you see the irony

Contents

see
this is when Nasreddin is little
and Nasreddin is in class

his teacher interrupts his lesson
and shouts at Nasreddin:
Hey you - boy
in the front row!
Are you nodding off
into sleep during my lesson?

No, Sir, says Nasreddin
Im trying very hard
to stay awake!

see, Nasreddin
is sitting in class
and talking and telling stories
and the teacher
is angry and the teacher shouts:
Nasreddin!
Since you do not listen in class
you shall be laughed at in future as a clown
and tales will be told of you
and not just one - but at least seven
each time you are spoken of

Hodja means teacherand yet, in many of the stories of Nasreddin Hodja, he does not seem to be the Hodjait is the other characters who appear in one story and disappear completely that seem to be the teacherit appears Nasreddin cannot teach - it is the nameless others who can teach and so they teach Nasreddin Hodjaand so often we have this reversal of roles of the teacher and the one who learns - the teacher becomes the student and the student becomes the teacherthe difference becomes blurredone wonders what this blurring meansperhaps it points to the lesson to be learned in inquiry into the self, into truth: one is ones own teacher, for it is one who must see truth oneself

Nasreddin is in his teens
and he works at the warehouse

see, each worker
lifts three sacks a time
and puts them on a pile
and walks back for more

but see Nasreddin
how he works:
he carries just one bag
and puts it on a pile
and walks back for one more

Now, says the foreman
why is it you only carry one sack
when others carry three at a time?

Sir, says Nasreddin
I carry one bag a time
and make three trips in all
But the others
unlike me
are just
too lazy to make three trips

Nasreddin joins the monastery;
he must stay in isolation
and is allowed to say two words
every two years

two years pass
and Nasreddin is brought before
the Elders
and he is allowed his two words
cold room, he says

two years later
again Nasreddin is brought before
the Elders
and he is allowed his two words
bad food, he says

two years later
Nasreddin is brought before
the Elders
and he is allowed his two words
bad music, he says

two years later again
Nasreddin is brought before
the Elders
and he is allowed his two words
I quit, he says

Not surprising, say the Elders
All you have done since you came here is to complain

see how young
Nasreddin is
and hes on his donkey
in the town square
and his friends ride slowly with him

then in mischief
and with a wink to his friends
Nasreddin shouts to the market crowd:
Gold! Gold! Gold!
Theyve just discovered gold
in the woods in the South!

and see, everyone disappears
Everyone runs
when they hear of the gold
Everyone runs South
where Nasreddin says they
found gold

and see
the town square is empty
And Nasreddin laughs
And his friends laugh
And suddenly Nasreddin is grim
and he shouts and he rides his donkey
and Nasreddin rides his donkey fast and shouts to go faster
and his friends are bewildered and they ride after him
and they say:
Nasreddin! Where are you going?
and listen! - Nasreddin shouts back
and he screams, still riding furiously:
Gold! Gold! I too am going for the gold!

But, shout his friends its a lie;
theres no gold
Remember?
You were just playing a trick
on the crowd!

Yes, says Nasreddin, urging his donkey to be even faster
Yes, I know! But look everyones gone!
So many people believe in it
it must be true!
So lets go: Gold! Gold! Gold!

1
I cant get any girl to talk to me
says Nasreddin to his mother
I dont seem to be able
to impress the girls

Well, says Nasreddins mum
cool and composed
In these parts of the country
they like their religion
So talk at length to the girls
about religion and theology

2
two months later
Nasreddins mum asks him
if he has had any success
with girls
Has he heeded her advice?

Oh, I took your advice all right,
says Nasreddin
And I talked at length about religion
and theology to a beautiful girl
and she was so impressed
in fact she was so impressed,
she has gone away to become a nun
Now mum, Im still without a girlfriend

1
its graduation day
and the teacher gives awards
to each :
a book to one
a staff to another
silk or precious stones;
and to Nasreddin
the teacher
gives a donkey

2
it is some years
and the teacher
hears of Nasreddins fame
and comes to visit
the House of Prayer Nasreddin oversees
and to pay homage to the Saint
buried just beside

3
O Nasreddin,
says the teacher
how great your fame
and vast your following
Tell me, which Eminent Saint
is buried in the mound
beside the House of Prayer
you oversee?

O Master,
says Nasreddin
Its the donkey
you gave me
It died just four years after
and I buried him here
And everyone wants a Saint
so I have not disabused people
of their faith

4
The teacher nods with a smile
and Nasreddin continues:
But tell me Master
which Eminent Saint is buried in the mound
beside the House of Prayer
you oversee?

Ah, Nasreddin,
says the teacher
though people believe its a Saint
its really your dead donkeys mother

Nasreddins villagers
want to see the world
they want to know what lies beyond
and they want to see what is next
and Nasreddin obliges