Odilia Carmen Chirica

To the Sufi, perhaps the greatest absurdity in life is the way in which people strive for things – such as knowledge – without the basic equipment for acquiring them. They have assumed that all they need is ‘two eyes, a nose and a mouth’, as Nasrudin says. In Sufism, a person cannot learn until he is in a state in which he can perceive what he is learning, and what it means. Nasrudin went one day to a well, in order to teach this point to a disciple who wanted to know ‘the truth’. With him he took the disciple and a pitcher. The Mulla drew a bucket of water, and poured it into his pitcher. Then he drew another, and poured it in. As he was pouring in the third, the disciple could not contain himself any longer: ‘Mulla, the water is running out. There is no bottom in that pitcher.’ Nasrudin looked at him indignantly. ‘I am trying to fill the pitcher. In order to see when it is full, my eyes are fixed upon the neck, not the bottom. When I see the water rise to the neck, the pitcher will b...

Jalal, an old friend of Nasrudin’s, called one day. The Mulla said, ‘I am delighted to see you after such a long time. I am just about to start on a round of visits, however. Come, walk with me, and we can talk.’ ‘Lend me a decent robe,’ said Jalal, ‘because, as you see, I am not dressed for visiting.’ Nasrudin lent him a very fine robe. At the first house Nasrudin presented his friend. ‘This is my old companion, Jalal: but the robe he is wearing, that is mine!’ On their way to the next village, Jalal said: ‘What a stupid thing to say! “The robe is mine” indeed! Don’t do it again.’ Nasrudin promised. When they were comfortably seated at the next house, Nasrudin said: ‘This is Jalal, an old friend, come to visit me. But the robe: the robe is his!’ As they left, Jalal was just as annoyed as before. ‘Why did you say that? Are you crazy?’ ‘I only wanted to make amends. Now we are quits.’ ‘If you do not mind,’ said Jalal, slowly and carefully, ‘we shall not say any more about the robe...