—Lutfi Mansur (Ph.D.) The Academic Arab Institute, Beit Berl College, Israel
Being Employed Is Better Than Being Unemployed
A man came to the prophet and said to him: O, messenger of God, I am poor and I cannot find food to feed my children and family. Help me.
The prophet gave him an ax and said to him: Go to the forest and gather wood, then return to me.
The man went to the forest and gathered a bundle of wood, then sold it and bought food and clothes for his children. When he returned, the prophet said to him: All work, no matter how simple, is better than sitting around complaining about poverty and waiting for charity.
Juha and the Police Officer
Juha left his house in the middle of the night and was walking the streets when a police officer encountered him and asked: What are you doing in the street in the middle of the night?
Juha replied: My sleep ran away, and I’m looking for it.
Detail from The Night Halt (Muhammad Zaman flor. 1649-1694), page from an album of paintings and calligraphy most of whose pages are now stored at the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg. Gouache, gold and ink on paper, 1660–1665, Iran. Department of Islamic art, Louvre Museum. Former Duffeuty collection; gift of the Friends of the Louvre, 1998.
The Child and the Grocer
A boy went to the grocery store to buy 60 dirhams worth of dates. The grocer gave him dates but reduced the weight. The boy said: Why are these dates lighter?
The grocer replied: To make it easier for you to carry it.
He asked for the money, and the boy paid him fifty dirhams.
The grocer said: The price of the dates is sixty dirhams. Why did you pay less?
The boy replied: To make it easier for you to count the money.
Juha and the Thief
Juha sensed that there was a thief in his house one night, so he went to his bedroom closet and hid in it. The thief was looking for something to steal but couldn’t find anything. When he saw the closet he opened it, and there was Juha inside. The thief was frightened, but he took courage and said: What are you doing here, old man?
To that Juha replied: I’m sorry, sir, but I knew that you wouldn’t find anything worth stealing, and for that I was ashamed and hid out of embarrassment.
Detail from The Owner of a House and a Thief, 1663 (1703 AH). Walters Art Museum W.626.136). Acquired by Henry Walters.
If I Had Been Riding It, I Would Have Been Lost
One day Juha’s donkey was missing, so he started to search for it, praising God and thanking him.
People asked him, Why do you praise God and thank him when your ass has been lost?
And Juha said: I praise him and thank him because if I was riding the donkey, I would have been lost with it.
An Appropriate Answer
A Bedouin entered the place of one of the princes, and he saw the prince sitting and all the notables around him, and he greeted the prince saying: Peace be upon you, O Prince, and he asked him: How are you, O Prince?
And the prince answered: As you like.
The Bedouin said: If it was as I like, I would be in your place and you would be in my place.
The prince and the dignitaries laughed.
Fish Is Sold Here
A man opened a fish shop, and above the door of the store he hung a small panel on which he wrote: Fish Sold Here.
A customer came and said to him: Why did you write the word “here”? Aren’t fish sold in other places?
So he deleted the word “here.”
Then came another customer, who said: There’s no need for the word “sold,” since people understand that you don’t give the fish away for free.
So he deleted the word “sold.”
Then came another and said: There is no need for the word “fish,” since people see it and smell it.
So he took down the panel.
The Intelligent Boy and the Caliph
Ahmad was a smart boy from a poor family. All people—elders, men, and women—liked him for his acumen and intelligence. His name became famous, and word of him reached the Caliph Harun al-Rashid. He ordered that Ahmad be brought to his palace in Baghdad. In the welcoming hall, in the presence of his ministers, he turned to him and asked: What do you want me to give you?
I want you to give me your advice and your knowledge, so I can become wise like you, Ahmad said.
The Caliph smiled and ordered to be brought rings made of gold and rings made of silver, and put them in front of the boy and said to him: What is the thing that you like most? Choose whatever you want.
The Caliph is what I like most, but I will choose these rings, and he put his hand on the golden rings.
The Caliph laughed when he heard his wise answer. He gave him the rings and instructed the ministers to take care of his education and studies until he became a man.
Reza Abbasi (1565—1635). The Princely Youth and the Dervish. Isfahan, Persia, in the second quarter of the 17th Century. Metropolitan Museum of Art.