An Unkown Turkish Philosopher: Nasreddin Hodja

Many people do not know about Nasreddin Hodja even they traveled to Turkey, He is a wise person, we are growing up with the jokes of him. When i was a restaurant for lunch today, the waiter told a joke of Hodja because of a situation. Then I realized he is still on our lives.

Nasreddin was a Seljuq satirical Sufi, believed to have lived and died during the 13th century in Akşehir, near Konya, a capital of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, in today's Turkey. He is considered a populist philosopher and wise man, remembered for his funny stories and anecdotes. He appears in thousands of stories, sometimes witty, sometimes wise, but often, too, a fool or the butt of a joke. A Nasreddin story usually has subtle humour and a pedagogic nature. The international Nasreddin Hodja fest is celebrated between 5 and 10 july in his hometown every year.

TALES

The Nasreddin stories are known throughout the Middle East and have touched cultures around the world. superficially, most of the Nasreddin stories may be told and retold endlessly in the teahouses and caravanserais of Asia and can be heard in homes and on the radio. But it is inherent in a Nasreddin story that it may be understood at many levels. there is the joke, followed by a moral and usually the little extra which brings the consciousness of the potential mystic a little further on the way to realization.

 Everyone Is Right

Once when Nasreddin Hodja was serving as qadi, one of his neighbors came to him with a complaint against a fellow neighbor.

The Hodja listened to the charges carefully, then concluded, "Yes, dear neighbor, you are quite right."
Then the other neighbor came to him. The Hodja listened to his defense carefully, then concluded,

"Yes, dear neighbor, you are quite right."
The Hodja's wife, having listened in on the entire proceeding, said to him, "Husband, both men cannot be right."

The Hodja answered, "Yes, dear wife, you are quite right."

Eat, My Coat, Eat

The Hodja was invited to a banquet. Not wanting to be pretentious, he wore his everyday clothes, only to discover that everyone ignored him, including the host. So he went back home and put on his fanciest coat, and then returned to the banquet. Now he was greeted cordially by everyone and invited to sit down and eat and drink.

When the soup was served to him he dunked the sleeve of his coat into the bowl and said, "Eat, my coat, eat!"

The startled host asked the Hodja to explain his strange behavior.

"When I arrived here wearing my other clothes," explained the Hodja, "no one offered me anything to eat or drink. But when I returned wearing this fine coat, I was immediately offered the best of everything, so I can only assume that it was the coat and not myself who was invited to your banquet."

Everyone Is Right

Once when Nasreddin Hodja was serving as qadi, one of his neighbors came to him with a complaint against a fellow neighbor.

The Hodja listened to the charges carefully, then concluded, "Yes, dear neighbor, you are quite right."

Then the other neighbor came to him. The Hodja listened to his defense carefully, then concluded, "Yes, dear neighbor, you are quite right."

The Hodja's wife, having listened in on the entire proceeding, said to him, "Husband, both men cannot be right."

The Hodja answered, "Yes, dear wife, you are quite right."