Jokes of Mulla Nasruddin

Dedication written on July 21, 1971

1.

A rich farmer had been trying desperately to marry off his daughters. One day he met Mulla Nasrudin.

"I have several daughters," the farmer told the Mulla. "I would like to see them comfortably fixed. And I will say this, they won't go to their husbands without a little bit in the bank, either. The youngest one is twenty-three and she will take Rupees 25,000 with her. The next one is thirty-two, and she will take Rupees 50,000 with her. Another is forty-three and she will take Rupees 75,000 with her."

"That's interesting," said Nasrudin. "I was just wondering if you have one about fifty years old."

2.

Mulla Nasrudin's family was upset because the girl he was planning to marry was an atheist.

"We'll not have you marrying an atheist," his mother said.

"What can I do? I love her," the young Nasrudin said.

"Well," said his mother, "if she loves you, she will do anything you ask. You should talk religion to her. If you are persistent, you can win her over."

Several weeks went by, then one morning at breakfast the young Mulla seemed absolutely brokenhearted.

"What's the matter?" his mother asked. "I thought you were making such good progress in your talks about religion to your young girlfriend."

"THAT'S THE TROUBLE," said Nasrudin. I OVER DID IT. LAST NIGHT SHE TOLD ME SHE WAS SO CONVINCED THAT SHE IS GOING TO STUDY TO BE A NUN."

3.

The young lady's hopes had been high for two years while Mulla Nasrudin remained silent on the question of marriage. Then one evening he said to her, "I had a most unusual dream last night. I dreamed that I asked to marry you. I wonder what that means."

"THAT MEANS," said his girlfriend, "THAT YOU HAVE MORE SENSE ASLEEP THAN YOU HAVE AWAKE."

4.

Mulla Nasrudin had been calling on his girlfriend for over a year. One evening the girl's father stopped him as he was leaving and asked, "Look here, young man, you have been seeing my daughter for a year now, and I would like to know whether your intentions are honorable or dishonorable?"

Nasrudin's face lit up. "DO YOU MEAN TO SAY, SIR," he said, "THAT I HAVE A CHOICE?"

5.

Mulla Nasrudin's mother, worrying about her son's safety, said to him:

"Didn't I say you should not let that girl come over to your room last night? You know how things like that worry me."

"But I didn't invite her to my room," said Nasrudin. "I went over to her room. NOW YOU CAN LET HER MOTHER DO THE WORRYING."

6.

"Well, young man, I understand you want to become my son-in-law," said the father to his daughter's boyfriend, Mulla Nasrudin.

"NO, SIR, NOT EXACTLY," replied Nasrudin. "BUT IF I MARRY YOUR DAUGHTER, I DON'T SEE HOW I CAN GET OUT OF IT."

7.

Mulla Nasrudin was talking to a friend about his recently broken romance. "Do you mean," asked the friend, "that at her request, you gave up drinking, and smoking, and gambling, and dancing, and playing pool?"

"Yes, just because she insisted," said the Mulla.

"Then why didn't you marry her?" the fellow asked.

"WELL, AFTER ALL THAT REFORMING," said Nasrudin, "I DECIDED I COULD DO BETTER."

8.

A girlfriend at a cocktail party said to Mulla Nasrudin, "I keep hearing you use the word 'idiot;' I hope you are not referring to me."

"DON'T BE SO CONCEITED," said the Mulla. "AS IF THERE WERE NO OTHER IDIOTS IN THE WORLD!"

9.

Mulla Nasrudin sat fishing in a bucket of water.

A visitor, wishing to be friendly, asked, "How many have you caught?"

"YOU ARE THE NINTH," said Nasrudin.

10.

The young lady became angry with her boyfriend, Mulla Nasrudin, and said, "You are a perfect dope!"

"DON'T TRY FLATTERY," said Nasrudin. "NONE OF US IS PERFECT!"

11.

One night, Mulla Nasrudin's father noticed a light in his barn. He went to see what it was all about and he found Nasrudin with a lantern, all dressed up.

"What are you doing all dressed up and with that lantern?" asked his father.

"I am going to call on my girlfriend, Dad," said Nasrudin. "I have got to go through the woods and it is dark."

"When I was your age calling on my wife for the first time," said the father, "I went through the woods without a lantern."

"I KNOW," said Nasrudin, "BUT LOOK WHAT YOU GOT, DAD!"

12.

"Darling," said the young woman,"I could die for your sake."

"YOU ARE ALWAYS PROMISING THAT," said Mulla Nasrudin, "BUT YOU NEVER DO IT."

13.

Mulla Nasrudin, who was really unaccustomed to public speaking, arose in confusion after dinner and muttered hesitatingly:

"M-m-my f-f-friends, when I came here tonight only God and myself knew what I was about to say to you AND NOW ONLY GOD KNOWS!"

14.

After the bride's first dinner, she asked her husband, Mulla Nasrudin, "Now, dear, what will I get if I cook a dinner like that for you everyday?"

"MY LIFE INSURANCE," said Nasrudin.

15.

Mulla Nasrudin's young wife, recently returned from her honeymoon, was complaining to her friend about her husband's drinking habits.

"If you knew he drank, why did you marry him?" her friend asked.

"I DID NOT KNOW HE DRANK," said Nasrudin's wife, "UNTIL ONE NIGHT HE CAME HOME SOBER."

16.

Mulla Nasrudin, who had just passed his test for his first-aid certificate, was on his way home.

Suddenly, he saw a man lying face down in the street. Without a second thought, he threw himself upon the man and began applying artificial respiration.

After a while, the man raised his head and said, "SIR, I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO DO, BUT I AM TRYING TO FISH A WIRE DOWN THIS MANHOLE."

17.

Mulla Nasrudin was drunk and at a football game was making such a nuisance of himself that the people around him threatened to call the police if he didn't sit down and shut up. At that he shouted, "show me a policeman, and I will show you a dope."

The words were no sooner spoken when a big six-foot policeman arrived on the scene and said: "I am a policeman."

"WONDERFUL!" said Nasrudin. "I AM A DOPE!"

18.

The lady contributed to Mulla Nasrudin on crutches, but could not resist the temptation to preach to him.

"It must be terrible to be lame," she said, "but think how much worse it is to be blind."

"That's right, Lady," said the Mulla. "WHEN I WAS BLIND, PEOPLE KEPT PASSING COUNTERFEIT MONEY OFF ON ME."

19.

The young father was pushing the crying baby down the street with what appeared to be absolute calm and self-assurance. People on the street could hear what he was saying as he passed.

"Take it easy, Nasrudin," he said. "Don't let it get you down, Nasrudin, you will soon be safe back home. Things will be all right, Nasrudin, if you just keep calm."

One motherly type woman waiting for a bus, heard and saw the young father and said to him, "I think you are wonderful the way you are taking care of the baby." Then she leaned over to the baby and said, "Now, don't cry, Nasrudin, everything is going to be all right."

"LADY," said the father, "YOU HAVE GOT IT ALL WRONG. HIS NAME IS TOMMY - I AM NASRUDIN."

20.

"I don't guess I have anything to complain about," said the mussed up young man, Mulla Nasrudin, as he listened to another mussed up young man describe his ejection from a dance hall. "They treated me all right."

"What do you mean, treated you all right," said the other young man. "They threw you out, didn't they?"

"Yes," said Nasrudin, "They threw me out the back door, but when I told the bouncer that my family was in the social register, he picked me up gently, brushed me off, and escorted me back into the dance hall. THEN HE THREW ME OUT THE FRONT DOOR."

21.

"You don't love me any more," said Mulla Nasrudin's wife through her tears. "When you see me crying, you never ask why."

"I am sorry, Darling," said Nasrudin, "BUT THAT SORT OF QUESTION HAS ALREADY COST ME AN AWFUL LOT OF MONEY."

22.

The hay wagon had upset in the road and the young driver, Mulla Nasrudin, was terribly worried about it. A kindhearted farmer told the young fellow to forget his troubles and come in and have some supper with his family. "Then we will straighten up the wagon," the farmer said.

The Mulla said he didn't think his father would like it.

"Oh, don't worry about that," said the farmer. "Everything will be all right."

So Nasrudin stayed for supper. Afterwards he said he felt better and thanked the farmer. "But," he said, "I still don't think my father will like it."

"Forget it," said the farmer. "By the way," he added, "Where is your father?"

"He's under the hay!" said Nasrudin.

23.

Mulla Nasrudin was getting ready to apply to a local department store for a job. A friend told him that it was the policy of the store to hire nobody but Catholic Christians, and that if he wanted a job there, he would have to lie about being a Catholic Christian.

Nasrudin applied for the job and the personnel man asked him the usual questions. Then he said to the Mulla, "And what church do you belong to?"

"I am a Catholic," said Nasrudin. "And all my family are Catholics. IN FACT, MY FATHER IS A PRIEST AND MY MOTHER IS A NUN, SIR."

24.

Mulla Nasrudin was applying for a job. "Does the company pay for my hospitalization?" he asked.

"No, you pay for it," the personnel director said. "We take it out of your salary each month."

"The last place I worked, they paid for it," said the Mulla.

"That's unusual," the personnel man said. "How much vacation did you get?"

"Six weeks," replied the Mulla.

"Did you get a bonus?" the personnel man asked.

"Yes," said the Mulla. "Not only that, they gave us an annual bonus, sent us a turkey on Thanksgiving, gave us the use of a company car and threw a big barbecue for us each year."

"Why did you leave?" asked the personnel director.

"THEY WENT BUSTED," said Nasrudin.

25.

Mulla Nasrudin got on a double-decker bus and climbed to the upper deck. A few minutes later, he staggered down the steps, muttering to himself.

"Is anything the matter?" asked the driver.

"IT AIN'T SAFE UP THERE," said Nasrudin. "NO DRIVER."

26.

Mulla Nasrudin and his wife were arguing.

"I was a fool when I married you," said the wife.

"I GUESS YOU WERE," replied Nasrudin, "BUT I WAS SO INFATUATED AT THE TIME, I DIDN'T NOTICE IT."

27.

The town's richest man had died. The next morning, another rich, and particularly miserly, old man said to Mulla Nasrudin, "I wonder how much he left."

Mulla Nasrudin laughed and said, "EVERY CENT OF IT, SIR."

28.

Mulla Nasrudin used to say: "Every man should have at least one wife, because there are somethings that just can't be blamed on the government."

29.

Mulla Nasrudin had just checked into the hotel.

"Welcome," said the clerk at the desk. "We want you to know you are welcome. We are going to do everything we can to make you comfortable and help you to feel at home."

"PLEASE DON'T," said the Mulla. "I LEFT HOME SO I COULD FIND A CHANGE. FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS I WANT TO FEEL AS IF I AM AT A BEACH RESORT."

30.

The lady said to Mulla Nasrudin at the door, "Have you ever been offered work?"

"Only once Lady," said Nasrudin. "Aside from that, I HAVE MET WITH NOTHING BUT KINDNESS."

31.

The judge was questioning Mulla Nasrudin. "I understand that your wife is scared to death of you,"

he said.

"That's right, your Honor," said the Mulla.

The judge leaned over and whispered in his ear, "Man to man," he said, "HOW DO YOU DO IT?"

32.

The man said to Mulla Nasrudin on the street who had asked him for a handout, "You would stand more chance of getting a job if you would shave and clean yourself up."

"Yes, Sir," the Mulla said. "I FOUND THAT OUT YEARS AGO."

33.

Mulla Nasrudin reported to the superintendent of the mental hospital and asked: "Have any of your male patients escaped lately?"

"Why do you ask? said the superintendent.

"BECAUSE, " said the Mulla, "SOMEONE HAS RUN OFF WITH MY WIFE."

34.

Mulla Nasrudin was chatting with his master who had taken up art.

"When I look at one of your paintings, Sir," he said, "all I can do is stand and wonder."

"Wonder how I do it?" asked the master.

"No," said Nasrudin. "WHY YOU DO IT."

35.

Mulla Nasrudin approached a genteel-appearing, elderly man with his tale of woe and a request for assistance.

The old gentleman refused him, saying, "I am sorry, my friend, I have no money, but I can give you some good advice."

The Mulla said in a disgusted tone, "No thanks, IF YOU AIN'T GOT NO MONEY, I DON'T GUESS YOUR ADVICE IS WORTH ANYTHING, SIR."

36.

A man said to his friend Mulla Nasrudin: "Who is the boss in your house?"

"Well," said Nasrudin, "my wife assumes command of the children, the servants, the dog and the parakeet. BUT I SAY PRETTY MUCH WHAT I PLEASE TO THE GOLDFISH."

37.

A young man had just passed his examination for his private pilot's license. He wanted to show off and persuaded the Mulla Nasrudin to go up with him.

When they landed, the Mulla said: "Thanks for the two rides."

"What do you mean,two rides, Uncle?" asked the young man. "You had only one."

"Oh no," said Nasrudin. "TWO. MY FIRST AND MY LAST."

38.

Mulla Nasrudin was lying beside the wrecked car with a broken leg.

He was being questioned by the highway patrolman.

"Married?" asked the patrolman.

"NO," said Nasrudin. "THIS IS THE WORST MESS I HAVE EVER BEEN IN."

39.

The housewife gave Mulla Nasrudin a sandwich, but asked him, "Haven't you been able to find work?"

"Yes, Lady, there is plenty of work," said the Mulla, "but everybody wants a reference from my last employer."

"Can't you get one?" she asked.

"NO," said Nasrudin. "HE HAS BEEN DEAD TWENTY YEARS."

40.

"What in the world happened at the picnic yesterday?" a fellow asked Mulla Nasrudin. "They are saying around the tavern that you acted like a coward."

"Well, I am no fool," the Mulla said. "Some of the girls found a big hornet's nest in the top of a tree and dared me to climb up and get it. And I just didn't do it, that's all."

"Whether you were smart or not," said the friend, "That sort of thing makes you unhonored and unsung around here."

"THAT'S RIGHT," said Nasrudin, "BUT I AM ALSO UNHARMED AND UNSTUNG."

41.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife said to him at a buffet supper: "That's the fifth time you have gone back for more fried chicken. Doesn't it embarrass you?"

"NOT AT ALL," he said. "I KEEP TELLING THEM I AM GETTING IT FOR YOU."

42.

Mulla Nasrudin came up and shook hands with the future bridegroom.

"Congratulations, friend," he said, "on this, one of the happiest days of your life."

"But I am not getting married until tomorrow," said the future bridegroom.

"I KNOW," said the Mulla. "THAT'S WHAT MAKES THIS ONE OF YOUR HAPPIEST DAYS."

43.

Mulla Nasrudin and his wife were gossiping about the recent wedding scandal.

"Just think," said the wife, "it was just as the bride was coming down the aisle that the groom suddenly turned and ran from the church and skipped town. I guess he lost his nerve."

"OH, I DON'T THINK SO," said the Mulla. "I FIGURE HE FOUND IT."

44.

"Daddy, Daddy," the girl cried. "Mummy has just fallen off the roof!"

"I KNOW, DEAR," said Mulla Nasrudin. "I SAW HER PASS THE WINDOW."

45.

The election was being challenged by the defeated candidate, Mulla Nasrudin.

"I know it was crooked," said the Mulla. "A FRIEND OF MINE VOTED FOR ME FIFTEEN TIMES IN THE THIRD PRECINCT AND I DIDN'T GET BUT FOUR VOTES THERE."

46.

The rival political candidates were scheduled to speak at the county fair on the same program. Mulla Nasrudin was chosen to introduce them. He arose and said, "I want to present to you a man who, above anyone, has the welfare of each and everyone of you at heart. More than anyone I know, he is devoted to our great and glorious nation."

Then he turned to the candidates and asked, "WHICH OF YOU FELLOWS WANTS TO TALK FIRST?"

47.

Mulla Nasrudin was complaining about the slowness of the bus to the driver.

After he couldn't stand the complaining any longer, the driver said, "If you don't like it, why don't you get out and walk?"

"I WOULD," said the Mulla, "BUT MY WIFE IS GOING TO MEET ME AND SHE DOESN'T EXPECT ME UNTIL THIS BUS GETS THERE."

48.

The new man in town told Mulla Nasrudin, "I have come out here to make an honest living."

"WELL," said the Mulla, "THERE'S NOT MUCH COMPETITION."

49.

Mulla Nasrudin rushed into a bar and said breathlessly, "The usual, please, and hurry, I gotta catch my train."

The bartender set up five martinis in a row and the Mulla gulped the second, third and fourth, leaving the first and last drinks on the bar. Then he rushed out as rapidly as he had entered.

A bystander asked the bartender why the customer left the two drinks.

"Oh, he does that all the time," said the bartender. "He says THE FIRST ONE ALWAYS TASTES TERRIBLE AND THE LAST ONE GETS HIM IN TROUBLE AT HOME."

50.

Mulla Nasrudin was complaining about his wife to a friend.

"I don't know what I am going to do about her," he said. "She has the worst memory in the world."

"You mean she forgets everything?" asked his friend.

"HECK, NO," said Nasrudin. "SHE REMEMBERS EVERYTHING."

51.

"Doctor," a woman said as she rushed into Mulla Nasrudin's house, "I want you to tell me frankly, exactly what is wrong with me."

Nasrudin looked her over from head to foot, then said, "Madam, I have three things to tell you. First, you are about fifty pounds overweight, Second, your looks would be improved if you took off several layers of rouge and lipstick. AND THIRD, I AM NOT THE DOCTOR. THE DOCTOR'S OFFICE IS ACROSS THE STREET."

52.

Mulla Nasrudin had been fishing all afternoon. A man, who had just walked up, asked him, "How many have you caught today, Mulla?"

"Well," said Nasrudin, "IF I CATCH THIS ONE THAT'S NIBBLING, AND THEN TWO MORE, I WILL HAVE THREE."

53.

Mulla Nasrudin went to see his lawyer about a divorce.

"What grounds do you think you have for a divorce?" the lawyer asked.

"It's my wife's manners," said the Mulla. "She has such bad table manners that she is disgracing the whole family."

"That's bad," the lawyer said. "How long have you been married?"

"Nine years," said the Mulla.

"If you have been able to put up with her table manners for nine years, I can't understand why you want a divorce now," the lawyer said.

"WELL," said Nasrudin, "I DIDN'T KNOW IT BEFORE. I JUST BOUGHT A BOOK OF ETIQUETTE THIS MORNING."

54.

"Insurance is the greatest thing in the world," the eager insurance salesman said to his prospect, Mulla Nasrudin. "Why, I carry a 75,000policyonmyownlife, payabletomywife."

"IN THAT CASE," said Nasrudin, "WHAT EXCUSE DO YOU HAVE FOR LIVING?"

55.

Mulla Nasrudin was telling his wife about a dream he had experienced the night before. "It was terrible," he said. "I was at a birthday party at Joe's house. His mother had baked a chocolate cake three feet high, and when she cut it everybody was given a piece that was so large that it hung over the sides of the plate. Then she dipped up some homemade ice cream. She had so much of it that she had to give each one of us our share in a soup bowl."

"What was so terrible about that dream?" asked his wife.

"OH," said Nasrudin, "I WOKE UP BEFORE I COULD GET THE FIRST TASTE."

56.

It had been a real big night at the tavern. Mulla Nasrudin had to be carried back to his shack by his friends. When he woke up the next day, he was started to see a huge ape sitting on the foot of his bunk. He carefully reached for his 45. He took careful aim and said, "IF YOU ARE A REAL MONKEY, YOU ARE IN A BAD FIX. BUT IF YOU ARE NOT, THEN I AM."

57.

Mulla Nasrudin said to his wife, "My dear, this article says women need more sleep than men."

"Is that right? " she said .

"YES, DEAR," said the Mulla, "SO MAYBE YOU'D BETTER NOT WAIT UP FOR ME TONIGHT."

58.

Mulla Nasrudin called on a psychiatrist and told him that he had problems and needed help.

"I want to talk to you," said the Mulla, "because my ethics have not been what they should be and my conscience is bothering me."

"I understand," the psychiatrist said, "and you want me to help you build up a stronger will power, is that it?"

"NO," said Nasrudin, "THAT'S NOT IT. I WANT YOU TO TRY TO WEAKEN MY CONSCIENCE."

59.

Mulla Nasrudin had lost out in the last election and was feeling sorry for himself.

"I was a victim," he said, "nothing but a victim."

"A victim?, asked a friend. "A victim of what?"

"A VICTIM OF ACCURATE COUNTING," said Nasrudin.

60.

A young playwright gave a special invitation to Mulla Nasrudin to watch his new play. The Mulla came to the play, but slept through the entire performance.

The young playwright was indignant and said, "How could you sleep when you knew how much I wanted your opinion?"

"YOUNG MAN," said Nasrudin, "SLEEP IS AN OPINION."

61.

"Oh, what a funny-looking cow," the young city-girl said to Mulla Nasrudin.

"There are many reasons," said Nasrudin, "why a cow does not have horns. Some do not grow them until late in life. Others are dehorned. Some breeds are not supposed to have horns. AND, THIS PARTICULAR COW DOES NOT HAVE HORNS BECAUSE IT IS A HORSE!"

62.

Mulla Nasrudin thought he was going to die with a toothache. He asked his friend, "What can I do to relieve the pain?"

"I will tell you what I do," his friend said. "When I have a toothache, or a pain, I go over to my wife, and she puts her arms around me, and caresses me, and soothes me until finally I forget all about the pain."

Nasrudin brightened up and said: "GEE, THAT'S WONDERFUL! IS SHE HOME NOW?"

63.

A well-known dead-beat caught Mulla Nasrudin on the street one day before the Mulla could duck.

"I am really in a jam and need money," he said to the Mulla," and I have not any idea where I am going to get some."

"I AM SURE GLAD TO HEAR THAT," said Nasrudin. "I WAS AFRAID YOU MIGHT HAVE THE MISTAKEN IDEA YOU COULD BORROW SOME FROM ME."

64.

Mulla Nasrudin was telling his friends in the tavern one day about his family.

"Nine boys," he said, "and all good, except Abdul. HE LEARNED TO READ."

65.

Mulla Nasrudin came home and was told by his wife that the cook had quit.

"Again?" moaned the Mulla. "What was the matter this time?"

"You were!" said his wife. "She said you used insulting language to her over the phone this morning."

"GOOD GRIEF! " said Nasrudin. "I AM SORRY, I THOUGHT I WAS TALKING TO YOU. "

66.

The bus was crowded when the little old lady got on, and Mulla Nasrudin stood up. She pushed the Mulla back gently and said, "No, thanks."

Nasrudin tried to rise again and she pushed him back a second time. Finally, Nasrudin said to her, "PLEASE LET ME GET UP, LADY, I AM TWO BLOCKS PAST MY STOP NOW."

67.

A member of the finance committee called on Mulla Nasrudin.

"I am calling about the yearly contribution to the fund for converting the heathen," he said. "last year you gave a rupee."

"WHAT!" said Nasrudin in surprise "HAVEN'T YOU CONVERTED THEM YET?"

68.

Mulla Nasrudin lived far beyond his means and was constantly hounded by his creditors. But he was so used to them that their presence caused him no distress. In fact, he treated them with the utmost courtesy. Once he even served a bill collector champagne.

"If you cannot afford to pay your debts," the bill collector demanded, "how can you afford to serve champagne?"

"DON'T GET SORE," said Nasrudin, "I ASSURE YOU, THIS HASN'T BEEN PAID FOR EITHER, SIR."

69.

Mulla Nasrudin had been working day and night throughout his district in a life or death struggle for reelection. He was relaxing one evening, following a speech, in the home of a friend.

"I have heard your speeches," his friend said, "but I think the real question is what will you do if you are reelected."

"NO," said Nasrudin, "THE REAL QUESTION IS WHAT WILL I DO IF I AM NOT."

70.

A young preacher was just getting acquainted with his duties. One of his first chores was to visit the hospital where Mulla Nasrudin, a member of his flock, was confined as a result of an automobile accident. The Mulla had been seriously injured: a broken leg, both arms broken, a broken collar bone, terrible cuts over his face and head, and several broken ribs.

He was so thoroughly bandaged and taped and strapped up that only his two eyes and mouth were showing.

The young preacher was at a loss for words, but realized that he must say something, so he asked the Mulla: "How do you feel today? I suppose all of those broken bones and cuts cause a great deal of pain. Do you suffer very much?"

"NO, NOT MUCH," said Nasrudin, "ONLY WHEN I LAUGH."

71.

A mechanic sold a car he had fixed up and repaired to his friend, Mulla Nasrudin. The next day he was sorry he sold it, so he went to see the Mulla.

"I will buy the car back from you," he said, "and give you fifty dollars' profit."

So Nasrudin sold him the car. The following day, he looked up the mechanic.

"I am sorry I sold the car back to you," the Mulla said. "I will give you seventy-five dollars' profit for it."

So the Mulla bought the car back. The next day, the mechanic was sorry he sold it and bought it back again, giving Nasrudin one hundred dollars profit. The following day, the Mulla came to buy it back, but learned that the mechanic had sold it to a used-car dealer.

"YOU DOPE! WHY DID YOU SELL IT TO A STRANGER?" said Nasrudin, "ESPECIALLY WHEN WE WERE BOTH MAKING SUCH A WONDERFUL LIVING OUT OF IT."

72.

Mulla Nasrudin was drinking too much. So much that it began to worry his friends. Finally, they figured out a plan to cure him. The plan was for one of them to dress up like a devil, with horns and a pitchfork. They planned to scare the Mulla into giving up drink.

Late one night,as Nasrudin headed home drunk, his friend jumped from behind a tree and shouted, "You will have to stop drinking!"

"Who are you?" asked the Mulla.

"I am the devil," said his friend.

"OH, YOU ARE THE DEVIL," said Nasrudin. "I AM GLAD TO MEET YOU. I AM THE GUY WHO MARRIED YOUR SISTER."

73.

Mulla Nasrudin was sitting under a tree chatting with a neighbour, when his boy came up the road carrying a chicken.

"Where did you get that chicken?" Nasrudin asked his boy.

"Stole it," said the boy.

Mulla Nasrudin turned to his friend and said proudly, "THIS IS MY BOY. HE MAY STEAL, BUT HE WON'T LIE."

74.

Mulla Nasrudin and one of his friends were lying on the green grass beside a country road. Above them was the warm sun. Birds were singing in the trees. It was quiet, restful, and a peaceful scene.

"Boy," said the Mulla, "right now I would not change places with anybody not for a million dollars."

"How about five million, Mulla?" asked his friend.

"No, not even for five million," said the Mulla.

"Well," said the other, "how about one dollar?"

Mulla Nasrudin sat up. "WELL," he said, "THAT'S DIFFERENT. NOW YOU ARE TALKING REAL MONEY."

75.

"Where have you been for the last two hours?" demanded the man's wife.

"I MET MULLA NASRUDIN IN FRONT OF THE POST OFFICE AND MADE THE MISTAKE OF ASKING HIM HOW HE WAS FEELING," said the man.

76.

Mulla Nasrudin: "A pack of cigarettes, please."

Clerk: "Yes, Sir, regular or king size?"

Nasrudin: "King size."

Clerk: "Filter or plain?"

Nasrudin: "Filter."

Clerk: "Menthol or non-menthol?"

Nasrudin: "Non-menthol."

Clerk: "Pack or box?"

Nasrudin: "Box."

Clerk: "Turkish blend or - "

Nasrudin: "FORGET IT PLEASE! I JUST GAVE UP THE HABIT!"

77.

Mulla Nasrudin limped into a doctor's office with a badly swollen ankle.

"Goodness, Man," said the doctor, after looking at Nasrudin's ankle, "how long has it been in this condition?"

"About three weeks," said the Mulla.

"Why, this ankle is broken," said the doctor. "Why didn't you come to me right away?"

"Well, I sort of hesitated," said the Mulla, "BECAUSE EVERY TIME I SAY ANYTHING IS WRONG WITH ME, MY WIFE INSISTS THAT I STOP SMOKING."

78.

Mulla Nasrudin called on the minister and told him a distressing story of poverty and misery in the neighborhood.

"This poor widow," said the Mulla, "with four starving children to feed, is sick in bed with no money for the doctor, and besides that she owes 100rentforthreemonthsandisabouttobeevicted.I "I certainly can," said the minister. "If you can give your time to this cause, so can I. By the way, who are you?"

"I AM THE LANDLORD," said Nasrudin.

79.

As usual, Mulla Nasrudin showed up for supper with dirty hands and a dirty face.

"Go wash up," his wife screamed at him. "Night after night I tell you. And night after night you always come to the table without washing. Why don't you ever do it without my shouting at you?"

"WELL," said the Mulla, "IT'S ALWAYS WORTH A TRY. WHO KNOWS? YOU MIGHT FORGET ONCE."

80.

The burglar was not only carrying a mean-looking gun, he also appeared to be drunk. "Get ready to die," he said to Mulla Nasrudin. "I am going to shoot you."

"Why shoot me?" asked the Mulla.

"I have always said that I would shoot anyone who looked like me," the burglar said.

"And do I look like you?" asked the Mulla.

"Yes, you do," said the burglar.

"THAN GO AHEAD AND SHOOT," said Nasrudin. "ONE LESS LIKE YOU, THE BETTER."

81.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife played bridge wisely and according to the rules. Mulla Nasrudin boasted of knowing no rules. However, one evening, he bid and made a grand slam, doubled and redoubled.

Excitedly he said to his wife, "See, you thought I couldn't do it!"

"WELL, DARLING," said his wife, "YOU COULDN'T HAVE, IF YOU'D PLAYED IT CORRECTLY."

82.

A man and wife checked in at a resort hotel. After cleaning up, the lady forgot to turn off the faucets in the bathroom. Half an hour later, Mulla Nasrudin, the guest in the room directly under them, opened his window, stuck out his head and called upstairs to attract their attention.

"Hey, you up there!" shouted the Mulla.

The man upstairs opened his window and stuck out his head. "What's the matter?" he asked.

"Turn off those faucets in your bathroom!" demanded Nasrudin. "It's pouring down here. What's the matter with you? You must be a dope." He ended his tirade with a wild outburst of profanity.

"Wait a minute," said the man upstairs. "Stop your cursing. I have got a lady up here."

"WHAT DO YOU THINK I HAVE GOT DOWN HERE," yelled Nasrudin, "A DUCK?"

83.

Mulla Nasrudin stopped the doctor on the street one summer day. "You remember when you cured my rheumatism ten years ago, Doctor," asked the Mulla, "and told me not to get wet?"

"Y-e-s, Yes, I remember," said the doctor.

"WELL, I JUST WONDERED IF YOU THINK IT'S SAFE FOR ME TO TAKE A BATH YET," said Nasrudin.

84.

The clerk was waiting on a customer, Mulla Nasrudin, at the meat counter, when a woman pushed herself ahead of the Mulla and said, "Give me a pound Or cat food, quick, I am in a hurry."

Then she turned to the Mulla and said, I hope you don't mind my being waited on ahead of you."

"NOT IF YOU ARE THAT HUNGRY," said Nasrudin sweetly.

85.

The parents-teachers association meeting was becoming rather spirited as the question of male versus female teachers was being discussed.

"I say that women make the best teachers," said one large and noisy woman. "Where would man be if it were not for women?"

"IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN EATING WATERMELON AND TAKING IT EASY," shouted Mulla Nasrudin from the back.

86.

Mulla Nasrudin said to a man sitting next to him in a bar, "one drink always makes me drunk."

"Really?" asked the stranger, "only one?"

"YES," said the Mulla. "AND IT'S USUALLY THE SIXTH."

87.

Mulla Nasrudin had just bought a dog and was bragging about his good points to a friend.

"He is not what you would call a pedigree dog," said the Mulla, "but no prowler could come near the house without him letting us know about it."

"What does he do?" asked the friend. "Bark and arouse the neighbourhood?"

"NO," said Nasrudin proudly,"HE CRAWLS UNDER THE BED."

88.

Mulla Nasrudin was weeping and complaining in a bar.

"I don't have anything to worry about," he said. "My wife takes care of my money. My mother-in-law tends to my business. ALL I HAVE TO DO IS WORK."

89.

A friend gave a bottle of cheap liquor to Mulla Nasrudin as a birthday present. Later he asked the Mulla how it was.

"It was just exactly right," said the Mulla.

"What do you mean just right?" asked the friend.

"WELL," said Nasrudin, "IF IT HAD BEEN ANY BETTER YOU WOULDN'T HAVE GIVEN IT TO ME, IF IT HAD BEEN ANY WORSE, I COULDN'T HAVE DRUNK IT."

90.

Mulla Nasrudin was bragging to his friend about his family.

"When I go home at night," he said, "everything is ready for me, my slippers, my pipe, the easy chair in the corner with the light turned on, my book open at the same place I left it the night before - and always plenty of hot water."

"I get all that stuff about the slippers and easy chair and book and the pipe," his friend said, "but what about the hot water, Mulla?"

"WELL," replied Nasrudin, "MY FAMILY LOVES ME. YOU DON'T THINK THEY ARE GOING TO MAKE ME WASH DISHES IN COLD WATER, DO YOU?"

91.

Every chair in the doctor's waiting room was taken. Several people were standing. There was no word from the doctor. Finally, Mulla Nasrudin stood up wearily and said, "WELL, I GUESS I WILL JUST GO HOME AND DIE NATURAL DEATH."

92.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife was feeling a bit sorry for herself. "You don't seem as devoted to me as you used to," she complained. "Do you still love me?"

Nasrudin looked up from his newspaper and shouted, "YES, I STILL LOVE YOU. NOW SHUT YOUR BIG MOUTH AND LET ME READ MY PAPER."

93.

"Look here," she said to Mulla Nasrudin, "Why do you always come to my house to beg?"

"Doctor's orders, lady," said the Mulla.

"What do you mean, doctor's orders?" she asked.

"He told me," said Nasrudin, "THAT WHEN I FOUND FOOD THAT AGREED WITH ME, I SHOULD STICK TO IT."

94.

"When I was broke," Mulla Nasrudin told his neighbour, "Harry volunteered to lend me 1000"

"Did you take it?" his neighbour asked.

"NO," said Nasrudin. "THAT KIND OF FRIENDSHIP IS TOO VALUABLE TO LOSE."

95.

Mulla Nasrudin and his friend were talking about their wives.

"My wife is very touchy," said the friend. "The least little thing sets her off."

"You are lucky," said Nasrudin. "MINE IS A SELF-STARTER."

96.

Mulla Nasrudin and his neighbour were chatting.

"Yesterday, I took a girl to the coke bar in the afternoon," said the neighbour, "and I paid for that.

Then I took her to the drive-in for a hot dog and I paid for that. After that, I took her to a movie, and I paid for that. Then I took her to a nightclub and I paid for that. Do you think I should have kissed her goodnight, Mulla?"

"NO," said Nasrudin. "I THINK YOU DID ENOUGH FOR HER FOR ONE DAY."

97.

Mulla Nasrudin had listened to the encouragement of a friend who had touted a certain horse pretty highly. The next day, after the horse had come in last, the Mulla saw the tipster and screamed, "Brother, have I got it in for you. That horse you told me to bet on came in last."

"Last?" the fellow said. "I can't understand it. He should have been able to win that race in a walk."

"THAT'S THE WAY HE TRIED IT," said Nasrudin, "BUT HE STILL CAME IN LAST."

98.

One day Mulla Nasrudin visited a large department store to buy his wife some nylon hose.

Inadvertently, he got caught in a mad rush at a counter where a bargain sale was going on. He soon found himself being pushed and stepped on by frantic women. He stood it as long as he could.

Then with head lowered and elbows out, he plowed through the crowd.

"You there!" said a woman. "Can't you act like a gentleman?"

"NOT ANY MORE," said Nasrudin. "I HAVE BEEN ACTING LIKE A GENTLEMAN FOR AN HOUR.

FROM NOW ON, I AM ACTING LIKE A LADY."

99.

Mulla Nasrudin and his neighbour were greeting each other.

"Good morning," said the Mulla. "You are looking fine this morning."

"I am sorry I can't say the same thing for you," said the neighbour.

"YOU COULD," said Nasrudin, "IF YOU WERE AS BIG A LIAR AS I AM."

100.

Mulla Nasrudin came home about midnight and threw himself on the couch in the living room. He woke his wife up with his clumsiness and she stuck her head out of the bedroom door and said, "Well, you finally came home. I guess you found that your home is the best place to be this time of the night."

"NOT EXACTLY," said Nasrudin, "BUT IT'S THE ONLY PLACE THAT'S OPEN AFTER MIDNIGHT."

101.

Mulla Nasrudin and his wife were talking about a neighbour.

"I have never heard a man talk so fast in all my life," said the wife.

"THAT ' S NOT SURPRISING, " said Nasrudin. "HIS FATHER WAS A POLITICIAN AND HIS MOTHER WAS A WOMAN. "

102.

The doctor was giving some bad news to Mulla Nasrudin about his wife. "This is a serious case," the doctor said. "I hate to tell you, but your wife's mind is gone, completely gone."

"WELL, I AM NOT SURPRISED," said Nasrudin. "SHE HAS BEEN GIVING ME A LITTLE PIECE OF IT EVERYDAY FOR FIFTEEN YEARS."

103.

Invited to stop for a drink with his friends following the lodge meeting, Mulla Nasrudin said he had to hurry home. "I can't stop," he said, "I have got to go home and explain to my wife."

"Explain what?" one of his friends asked.

"I DON'T KNOW," said Nasrudin, "I AM NOT HOME YET."

104.

Mulla Nasrudin fainted on the street and a crowd quickly gathered.

"Give him air!" shouted a man. "Clear the way. Hurry up someone, get him a drink!"

Nasrudin's eyes fluttered open and he gasped, "PLEASE, MAKE IT A DOUBLE MARTINI."

105.

Mulla Nasrudin was talking with his neighbour over the back fence.

"Was not that something," said the neighbour, "the way Lucy's stove exploded last night? The explosion blew her and her husband right out of the front door into the street! "

"YES, " said the Mulla. "THAT'S THE FIRST TIME THEY HAVE GONE OUT TOGETHER IN THIRTY YEARS."

106.

Mulla Nasrudin and one of his friends were walking past the high board fence that surrounded a nudist colony. Nasrudin spotted a knothole and peeked in. "Hey," he shouted to his companion, "there's a lot of people in there."

"Men or women?" asked the friend.

"I CAN'T TELL," said Nasrudin. "THEY DON'T HAVE ANY CLOTHES ON."

107.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife was sitting down to breakfast one morning when she read an announcement of her own death in the newspaper. She quickly called Mulla Nasrudin who was outside the town and said:

"Have you read the morning paper, Mulla? And, did you see the announcement of my death?"

"YES," said Nasrudin. "WHERE ARE YOU CALLING FROM?"

108.

Mulla Nasrudin had been to the state legislature. After he had spent thirty days with his fellow legislators at the state capital, he came home for a weekend.

In telling his wife about it, he said: "I HAVE DISCOVERED ONE THING - IT'S THE FIRST INSANE ASYLUM I HAVE EVER SEEN THAT'S RUN BY THE INMATES."

109.

Mulla Nasrudin was milking a cow, when suddenly a bull tore across the meadow toward him. The Mulla didn't move, but kept on milking. Several men, who were watching from the next field, were surprised when the bull stopped dead within a few yards of the Mulla. He then turned around and walked away.

"Were you not afraid, Mulla?" asked the men.

"OF COURSE NOT," replied Nasrudin. "THIS COW IS HIS MOTHER-IN-LAW."

110.

Mulla Nasrudin was watching the youngsters put on their horse show. He said to a bystander, "It's terrible the way they dress today. Just look at that young boy with the cigarette, sloppy haircut, and tight breeches."

"That is not a boy," said the other. "It's a girl and she's my daughter."

"Oh, excuse me, Sir," said the Mulla. "I meant no offence. I didn't know you were her father."

"I AM NOT," said the other. "I AM HER MOTHER."

111.

A preacher was being entertained at dinner and the other guests were praising his sermon. One of them turned to Mulla Nasrudin, who was at the talk, but had remained silent, and asked, "Mulla, what did you think of the sermon?"

"OH, IT WAS ALL RIGHT," said Nasrudin, "ONLY HE PASSED UP THREE REAL GOOD PLACES WHERE HE COULD HAVE STOPPED."

112.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife complained bitterly to the Mulla. "I am absolutely ashamed of the way we live.

Mother pays our rent. My aunt buys our clothes. My sister sends us money for food. I don't like to complain, but I am ashamed that we cannot do better than that."

"YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED," said Nasrudin. "YOU HAVE GOT TWO UNCLES THAT DON'T SEND US A DIME."

113.

A man in the upstairs apartment yelled to Mulla Nasrudin downstairs, "If you don't stop playing that clarinet, I will go crazy."

"TOO LATE NOW," said Nasrudin. "I STOPPED AN HOUR AGO, SIR."

114.

The preacher was visiting Mulla Nasrudin in the hospital, who had been injured in a fight. "I am going to pray so you will forgive your enemy for hitting you with a brick," the preacher said.

"IT MIGHT BE BETTER," said Nasrudin, "IF YOU WAITED UNTIL I GET OUT OF HERE AND THEN PRAY FOR THE OTHER FELLOW, SIR."

115.

The wife of Mulla Nasrudin had received a beautiful skunk coat for her birthday a gift from her husband.

"Why," she said with excitement,"I just can't understand how a beautiful coat like that could possibly come from such a miserable evil-smelling little beast."

"WELL," said Nasrudin, "I DID NOT EXACTLY EXPECT ANY GRATITUDE FROM YOU, BUT I DO THINK I DESERVE A LITTLE BIT MORE RESPECT."

116.

A vacuum cleaner salesman rang the doorbell of Mulla Nasrudin's house and was admitted by a woman, who immediately left the room. After talking a bit to the Mulla who was in the room, the salesman said, "Was that your wife, Sir, who let me in?"

"CERTAINLY. DO YOU THINK I WOULD HIRE A MAID AS HOMELY AS THAT?" asked Nasrudin.

117.

The drunk Mulla Nasrudin approached the policeman on the corner and said, "Pardon me, Officer, but where am I?"

"You are on the corner of Main and Forth," the policeman said.

"NEVER MIND THE DETAILS," said Nasrudin. "WHAT TOWN AM I IN?"

118.

"Everybody has something to be thankful for," the minister said to Mulla Nasrudin, who was sitting in his office telling a tale of woe. "Look at the man across the street from you who just lost his wife in an automobile accident."

"YES," said Nasrudin, "BUT EVERYBODY CAN'T BE THAT LUCKY, SIR."

119.

"This is a lesson in logic," said the old professor in the teahouse. "If the show starts at nine and dinner is at six and my son has the measles, and brother drives a Cadillac, how old am I?"

"You are eighty-four," replied Mulla Nasrudin promptly.

"Right," said the professor. "Now tell the rest of the fellows here how you arrived at the correct answer."

"IT'S EASY," said Nasrudin. "I HAVE GOT AN UNCLE WHO IS FORTY-TWO AND HE IS ONLY HALF NUTS, SIR."

120.

Mulla Nasrudin's son, home from college, was talking to his father about the "Law of Compensation,"

which he had studied. "If a person loses one eye," he explained, "the sight in the other becomes stronger. If he loses the hearing in one ear, the hearing in the other becomes more acute. If he loses one hand, he becomes more agile with the other."

"I GUESS THAT'S RIGHT," said Nasrudin. "I HAVE ALWAYS NOTICED THAT WHEN A MAN HAS ONE SHORT LEG THE OTHER IS LONGER."

121.

A college freshman was talking about girls with Mulla Nasrudin. "Which would you advise me to do?

Marry a sensible girl or a beautiful girl, Mulla?" he asked.

"I don't think you will be able to marry either," said the Mulla.

"Why not?" asked the freshman.

"IT'S LOGICAL," said Nasrudin. "A BEAUTIFUL GIRL COULD DO BETTER AND A SENSIBLE!

GIRL WOULD KNOW BETTER."

122.

"What are you doing hiding under the bed?" asked Mulla Nasrudin's wife.

"It's all lightening and thunder," said the Mulla. "And I don't want to get struck by lightening.

"Oh, that's silly," said his wife. "If lightening is going to strike you, it will strike you no matter where you are."

"THAT'S ALL RIGHT," said Nasrudin. "BUT, IF IT IS GOING TO STRIKE ME, I JUST WANT TO BE HARD TO FIND."

123.

Mulla Nasrudin and one of his friends were sitting under the bridge listening to the holiday traffic passing overhead. "I hate holidays," said the friend.

"YES, " said Nasrudin, "IT MAKES YOU FEEL RIGHT COMMON WHEN NOBODY AIN'T WORKING. "

124.

"This book," said the salesman, "will do half your work."

"FINE," said Mulla Nasrudin. "I WILL TAKE TWO OF THEM."

125.

Mulla Nasrudin used to say:

"IF YOU WANT YOUR WIFE TO PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU ARE SAYING, WHISPER IT TO ANOTHER WOMAN IN A LOW VOICE."

126.

New neighbours had moved in and had been under observation for several days.

"They seem like a most devoted couple," said Mulla Nasrudin's wife to her husband. "Every time he leaves for work she comes out on the porch and he hugs and kisses her. Why don't you do that?"

"ME?" said Nasrudin. "I SHOULD SAY NOT. I HAVE NOT EVEN BEEN INTRODUCED TO HER YET."

127.

A policeman stopped drunk Mulla Nasrudin and said to him, "Do you know who I am?"

"I CAN'T SAY THAT I DO," said Nasrudin, "BUT IF YOU WILL TELL ME WHERE YOU LIVE, I WILL HELP YOU HOME."

128.

The young man had kissed his girlfriend, Mulla Nasrudin's daughter, goodnight about a dozen times.

They just could not seem to say goodnight. Finally he said, "Love is wonderful. Darling, do we really have to say goodnight?"

Mulla Nasrudin's voice came from deep within the house, "CERTAINLY NOT. STICK AROUND ANOTHER HALF HOUR AND YOU CAN SAY GOOD MORNING."

129.

The two burglars worked as a team. One stayed outside as a lookout, while the other robbed the house. One night, when the inside man returned, his buddy said, "How much did you get?"

"Nothing," the other said. "This is the house of Mulla Nasrudin."

"GEE!" said his buddy. "THEN HOW MUCH DID YOU LOSE?"

130.

It seemed that every time Mulla Nasrudin met his lawyer, he had some added legal fees. It worried the Mulla to the point of ulcers. Then one day, he met his lawyer in the post office and said, "NICE DAY, ISN'T IT? AND REMEMBER, I AM TELLING YOU, NOT ASKING YOU, SIR."

131.

"You ought to stand on your two feet and show your wife who is running things at your house," a big, bossy fellow said to his friend, Mulla Nasrudin.

"THERE IS NO NEED TO," said Nasrudin, "SHE ALREADY KNOWS."

132.

The stranger was talking in the tavern.

"For fifteen years," he said, "my habits were as regular as clockwork. I rose exactly at six. Half an hour later I was at breakfast. At seven I was at work. I had lunch at one, and supper at six, and was in bed at nine-thirty. I ate only plain food, and didn't have a day of sickness during all those years."

"MY," said Mulla Nasrudin who was listening to the story, "AND WHAT WERE YOU IN JAIL FOR?"

133.

Mulla Nasrudin had been arrested for stealing a hog. The trial was short and sweet. There was no concrete evidence against the Mulla and the judge dismissed the case against him. But for some reason the Mulla seemed not to understand.

"The case is dismissed," the judge said, "It is over. You are acquitted. You can go."

"WELL, THANKS, JUDGE," said Nasrudin. "BUT DO I HAVE TO GIVE HIM BACK HIS HOG?"

134.

Mulla Nasrudin kept begging the noted pianist to play.

"Well, all right, since you insist," he said. "What shall I play?"

"ANYTHING YOU LIKE," said Nasrudin. "IT'S ONLY TO ANNOY THE NEIGHBOURS."

135.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife used to give the Mulla a regular inspection every night when he came home.

Every hair she discovered on his coat would be cause for a terrible scene.

One evening, when she didn't find a single hair, she screamed at him, "NOW YOU ARE EVEN RUNNING AFTER BALD-HEADED WOMEN."

136.

Mulla Nasrudin was introduced as the man who had just made 800,000inanoildealinOklahoma.

In response, the Mulla said, "IT WAS NOT AN OIL DEAL, IT WAS A REAL ESTATE DEAL. IT WAS NOT IN OKLAHOMA, BUT IN VIRGINIA. I AM SORRY, BUT THE MAN HAD HIS FIGURES MIXED UP. IT WAS NOT 800,000, BUT800. AND BESIDES THAT, IT WAS NOT A PROFIT, BUT A LOSS. AND, IN THE END, IF YOU DON'T MIND, LET ME TELL YOU, THAT I AM NOT THE MAN CONCERNED, SIR."

137.

Mulla Nasrudin, the landlord of a rather rundown rooming house, had led a prospective tenant to a third-floor room with badly spotted wall paper.

Nasrudin: "The last man who lived in this room was an inventor he invented some sort of explosive."

Prospect: "Oh, these spots on the walls are chemicals?"

Nasrudin: "NO, THE INVENTOR."

138.

Mulla Nasrudin was called in the election bribery case.

"You say," asked the judge, "that you were given 10tovotefortheDemocrats, andyougotanother10 to vote for the republicans?"

"Yes, Sir, Your Honour," said the Mulla.

"And how did you vote?" asked the judge.

"YOUR HONOUR," said Nasrudin, "I VOTED ACCORDING TO MY CONSCIENCE."

139.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife was upset and was confiding in her maid. "Do you know," she said, "I suspect my husband is having an affair with the cook."

"OH," cried the maid. "YOU CAN'T BELIEVE THAT. YOU ARE JUST SAYING THAT TO MAKE ME JEALOUS."

140.

"You sure do look downhearted, Mulla? What's the matter?" asked a friend.

"It's my future that worries me," said Nasrudin.

"What makes your future so black?" the friend asked.

"MY PAST," replied Nasrudin.

141.

A friend was visiting Mulla Nasrudin. "My boy has just written me from jail," he said. "He says they're going to cut six months off his sentence for good behaviour."

"MY," said Mulla Nasrudin. "YOU MUST BE PROUD TO HAVE A SON LIKE THAT."

142.

Mulla Nasrudin walked into a psychiatrist's office, opened a tobacco pouch, and stuffed his nose with tobacco.

"Man, I can see that you need me," the psychiatrist said. "Come on in and tell me your problem."

"MY ONLY PROBLEM IS," said Nasrudin, "I NEED A LIGHT."

143.

Mulla Nasrudin climbed into a barber's chair and asked, "Where's the barber who used to work on the next chair?"

"Oh, that was a sad case," the barber said. "He became so nervous and despondent over poor business, that one day when a customer said he didn't want a massage, he went out of his mind and cut the customer's throat with a razor. He is now in the state mental hospital. By the way, would you like a massage, Sir?"

"ABSOLUTELY!" said Mulla Nasrudin.

144.

Mulla Nasrudin told his psychiatrist that he had the same nightmare over and over again, night after night.

"And what do you dream about?" asked the doctor.

"I dream that I am married," said the Mulla.

"And to whom are you married in this dream?" the doctor wanted to know.

"TO MY WIFE," said Nasrudin. "THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT A NIGHTMARE, SIR."

145.

Mulla Nasrudin was on his first ocean voyage and was deathly ill. Trying to comfort him, the steward said, "Don't be so down-hearted, Sir, I have never heard of anyone dying of sea-sickness."

"OH, DON'T TELL ME THAT," moaned Nasrudin. "IT HAS ONLY BEEN THE HOPE OF DYING THAT HAS KEPT ME ALIVE."

146.

Mulla Nasrudin and one of his friends were thinking one day to join the army.

"What makes you think to join the army?" asked the Mulla.

"Well, I don't have a wife and I love war," said the friend. "And why you are thinking to join it?"

"ME?" said Nasrudin. "I HAVE A WIFE AND I LOVE PEACE."

147.

Late one night a psychiatrist found himself staring into the muzzle of a large pistol. He was shocked to recognize the gunman who was holding him up.

"See here, Nasrudin," he said. "Don't you remember me? I am your benefactor. Don't you remember the time I saved you from the electric chair by proving you were crazy?"

Mulla Nasrudin laughed and laughed and laughed. "SURE I REMEMBER YOU, SIR. BUT, AIN'T ROBBING YOUR BENEFACTOR A CRAZY THING TO DO?"

148.

"Young man," said the angry father, Mulla Nasrudin, "didn't I hear the clock strike four when you brought my daughter home?"

"Yes, Sir," said the boy. "It was going to strike ten, but I grabbed the gong and held it so it wouldn't disturb you."

"I WILL BE A SO-AND-SO," said Nasrudin. "WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THAT IN MY YOUNGER DAYS?"

149.

Mulla Nasrudin was coming to after a serious operation. He was just conscious enough to feel the softness of the comfortable bed and the warmth of gentle hands on his forehead.

"Where am I?" he asked. "In Heaven?"

"NO," said his wife, "I AM STILL RIGHT HERE WITH YOU."

150.

A man was chatting to Mulla Nasrudin who was a rabid fisherman.

"I notice," he said, "that when you tell about the fish you caught you vary the size of it for different listeners."

"YES," replied Nasrudin, "I NEVER TELL A MAN MORE THAN I THINK HE WILL BELIEVE."

151.

Mulla Nasrudin was being selected as a juror in a murder trial. The attorney for the defense was challenging prospective jurors. He questioned Mulla Nasrudin, "Are you married or single?"

"Married for ten years," said the Mulla.

"Have you formed or expressed an opinion?" asked the attorney.

"NOT FOR TEN YEARS," replied Nasrudin.

152.

Mulla Nasrudin was visiting his psychiatrist. Among the many questions the doctor asked was: "Are you bothered by improper thoughts?"

"NOT AT ALL," said Nasrudin. "THE TRUTH IS I RATHER ENJOY THEM."

153.

"Why don't you stop picking on me?" said Mulla Nasrudin to his wife. "I am trying to do everything possible to make you happy."

"There's one thing you haven't done that my first husband did to make me happy," she said.

"What's that?" asked the Mulla.

"HE DROPPED DEAD," she said.

154.

The young daughter of Mulla Nasrudin heard a tapping on her window in the early hours of the morning. There on a ladder was her boyfriend. Their elopement was going according to plan.

"Are you all ready?" her boyfriend asked.

"Yes," whispered the girl, "but don't talk so loud, you might wake up my father."

"WAKE HIM UP?" her boyfriend asked. "WHO DO YOU THINK IS HOLDING THE LADDER?"

155.

"Why are you so down in the mouth, Mulla?" asked someone in the tavern.

"Aw," said Mulla Nasrudin, "I just heard a guy call another fellow a liar. And that fellow said that if he didn't apologize, he would whip him."

"Well, why should that make you so sad?" asked the first.

"BECAUSE," said Nasrudin, "THE GUY APOLOGIZED."

156.

It was the 'better part of town' and the lady who came to the door said to Mulla Nasrudin: "I should think you would be ashamed to beg in this neighborhood."

"DON'T APOLOGIZE FOR IT, LADY," said Nasrudin, "I HAVE SEEN WORSE."

157.

"It certainly is hard," said the sad individual "to love one's relatives."

"HARD? " said Nasrudin. "HARD? IT IS PRACTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE!"

158.

The editor of the local newspaper was beside himself. He said to Mulla Nasrudin in the teahouse:

"What are we going to do for our front page tonight? Nothing scandalous has happened in town for almost twenty-four hours!"

"TAKE IT EASY " said Nasrudin. "SOMETHING WILL HAPPEN. YOU SHOULDN'T LOSE FAITH IN HUMAN NATURE, SIR."

159.

"This sure is a lousy party," a guest at a cocktail party said to Mulla Nasrudin, who was next to him.

"I am going to finish this one and then get out of here."

"I WOULD TOO," said Nasrudin, "BUT I HAVE GOT TO STAY. I AM THE HOST."

160.

A guest at a concert turned to Mulla Nasrudin sitting next to him and criticised the voice of the woman who was singing.

"What a terrible voice," he said. "Do you know who she is?"

"Yes," said the Mulla. "She's my wife."

"Oh," said the embarrassed guest, "I beg your pardon. Of course, it is not her voice that is bad, it is that awful song she has to sing. I wonder who wrote it."

"I DID," said Nasrudin.

161.

A drunk cowhand rushed into a bar waving and firing his guns at random and shouting, "All you dirty, lousy skunks get outta here."

Within a minute everybody had scattered and disappeared except Mulla Nasrudin, who sat at the bar finishing his drink.

"Well," barked the cowhand, waving his smoking gun. "What about it?"

"My," said the Mulla, "THERE WERE CERTAINLY A LOT OF THEM, WEREN'T THEY?"

162.

Mulla Nasrudin always said: "Oh, well, it might have been worse."

One day an acquaintance stopped him and said, "I dreamed last night that I died, went to hell, and was doomed to everlasting torment."

"Oh, well," said Nasrudin, "it might have been worse."

"What do you mean, Mulla!" cried the man. "How could it have been worse?"

"IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN TRUE," said Nasrudin.

163.

"You have got to have more recreation and relaxation," said Mulla Nasrudin to the overworked friend.

"But I am too busy," said the friend.

"THAT'S SILLY," replied Nasrudin. "ANTS HAVE THE GREATEST REPUTATION FOR BEING BUSY ALL THE TIME, YET THEY NEVER MISS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND A PICNIC."

164.

Mulla Nasrudin was visited by a boyhood friend whom he had not seen for years. The man told him a long story of misfortune: bankruptcy, death of wife and children, personal illness. He ended by asking for a loan.

The Mulla called his son and a big, athletic-type walked in. "TOMMY," said Nasrudin, "THROW THIS POOR FELLOW DOWNSTAIRS; HE IS BREAKING MY HEART."

165.

Mulla Nasrudin had just returned a sheaf of poems to the budding young poet.

"Do you think it would help if I put more fire into my poetry, Sir?" the young man asked Nasrudin.

"NO," said the Mulla. "I WOULD RECOMMEND THE REVERSE."

166.

Mulla Nasrudin finally bought a parrot at an auction after some rather spirited bidding.

"I assume the bird talks," he said to the auctioneer.

"TALKS?" the auctioneer said. "WHO DO YOU THINK HAS BEEN BIDDING AGAINST YOU FOR THE PAST HALF HOUR?"

167.

Mulla Nasrudin, carrying a chair, walked up to the owner of a secondhand store and asked how much it was worth.

"Three dollars," said the secondhand dealer.

The Mulla seemed surprised. "Isn't it worth more than that?" he said.

"Three dollars is the limit," the owner said. "See that? Where the leg is split? And look here where the paint is peeling."

"OKAY THEN," said Nasrudin. "I SAW IT IN FRONT OF YOUR STORE MARKED 10, BUT IT HOUGHT T HEREMUST BEAMIST AKE.F OR3 I WILL TAKE IT."

168.

The editor tried hard to read Mulla Nasrudin's handwriting. "Mulla, this handwriting is so bad I can hardly read it," he said. "Why didn't you type out these poems before you brought them in?"

"TYPE THEM!" cried Nasrudin. "DO YOU THINK FOR A MOMENT THAT IF I COULD TYPE, I WOULD BE WASTING MY TIME TRYING TO WRITE POETRY?"

169.

Mulla Nasrudin's son, studying political science, asked his father, "Dad, what's a traitor in politics?"

"Any man who leaves our party," said the Mulla, "and goes over to the other one is a traitor."

"Well, what about a man who leaves his party and comes over to your's?" asked the young man.

"HE'D BE A CONVERT, SON," said Nasrudin, "A REAL CONVERT."

170.

Mulla Nasrudin was obviously envious of the rich man who had just given him a dollar.

"You have no reason to envy me," said the rich man, "even if I do look prosperous. I have my troubles, too, you know."

"YOU HAVE PROBABLY GOT PLENTY OF TROUBLES," said Nasrudin, "BUT THE DIFFERENCE IS, I AIN'T GOT NOTHING ELSE, SIR."

171.

"I am going to get a divorce," a friend told Mulla Nasrudin. "My wife has not spoken to me in three months."

"I'D THINK TWICE IF I WERE YOU," said the Mulla. "WIVES LIKE THAT ARE HARD TO FIND."

172.

Mulla Nasrudin was telling a friend his future through palmistry. He said, "You will be poor and unhappy and miserable until you are sixty."

"Then what?" asked the man hopefully.

"BY THAT TIME," said Nasrudin, "YOU WILL BE USED TO IT."

173.

Mulla Nasrudin was sitting on his cot in a flophouse.

"You know," he said to the fellow on the next cot, "when I was seventeen years old, I made up my mind that nothing was going to stop me from getting rich."

"Well, how came you never got rich?" his friend asked.

"OH," said Nasrudin, "BY THE TIME I WAS NINETEEN, I REALIZED IT WOULD BE EASIER TO CHANGE MY MIND."

174.

"My wife used to play the piano," a friend told Mulla Nasrudin, "but since the children came, she has not had time to touch it."

"CHILDREN SOMETIMES ARE A COMFORT, ARE THEY NOT?" said Nasrudin.

175.

The situation was desperate. Mulla Nasrudin had been bitten by a rabid dog and the doctors were not certain that he had begun treatment in time to save him.

After a consultation on the matter, they came into the room and told him the plain truth - that he might develop hydrophobia - that his chances were pretty bad.

Instead of seeming to be upset at the news, Mulla Nasrudin asked for a pen and paper and began to write at great length. After an hour of steady writing, his nurse said to him, "What are you writing, Mulla? Is it your will or a letter to your family?"

"NO," said Nasrudin, "IT'S A LIST OF PEOPLE I AM GOING TO BITE."

176.

Mulla Nasrudin and his young son were driving in the country one winter. It was snowing. Their bullock-cart broke down. They finally reached a farmhouse and were welcomed for the night. The house was cold, and the attic in which they were invited to spend the night was like an icebox.

Stripping to his underwear, the Mulla jumped into a featherbed and pulled the blankets over his head.

The young man was slightly embarrassed. "Excuse me, Dad," he said, "don't you think we ought to say our prayers before going to bed?"

The Mulla stuck one eye out from under the covers. "SON," he said, "I KEEP PRAYED UP AHEAD FOR SITUATIONS JUST LIKE THIS ONE."

177.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife was giving her daughter a few interesting facts about married life. "I hope," she told the young girl, "that your lot in life is going to be easier than mine was. For the fifty-five years I have been married, I have carried two heavy burdens, your father and the fire. EVERY TIME I HAVE TURNED AROUND TO LOOK AFTER ONE OF THEM, THE OTHER HAS GONE OUT."

178.

A young lady went to old Mulla Nasrudin for advice. She said to the Mulla: "Should I marry a fellow who lies to me?"

"YES, UNLESS YOU WANT TO REMAIN UNMARRIED FOREVER," said Nasrudin.

179.

Mulla Nasrudin's mule kicked his wife in the head and she died. A huge crowd turned out for the funeral, most of them men. The minister following the ceremonies, said: "This lady must have been very popular. Look at the large number of people who have left their work to come to her funeral."

"THEY ARE NOT HERE FOR THE FUNERAL," said Nasrudin. "THEY ARE HERE TO BID ON THE MULE."

180.

"Stand up," shouted the preacher, "if you want to go to heaven."

Everybody stood up but old Mulla Nasrudin.

"Don't you want to go to heaven, brother?" asked the preacher.

"YES, SIR," said Nasrudin, "BUT I AIN'T GOING WITH NO EXCURSION."

181.

A man went to the funeral of Mulla Nasrudin's wife. In the funeral home, the Mulla was standing at the end of the casket. The man looked at his friend's dead wife and said, "Does she not look wonderful!"

"WHY NOT? " asked Nasrudin. "SHE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL ALL WINTER! "

182.

Mulla Nasrudin was in an accident and sued the insurance company for 1,000andwonhiscase.W henhereceivedhischeck; hecalledonhislawyertosettleup.

"How much do I owe you?" he asked the lawyer.

"Well," said the lawyer, "I will tell you how it is. Since I am an old friend of your's and your father before you, my fee will be only 900."

"I am sure glad," said Nasrudin as he made out his check for 900,"T HAT Y OUW ERENOT AF RIENDOF MY GRANDF AT HER ST OO."

183.

A school teacher wrote a note home to Abdul's mother: "Dear Mrs. Nasrudin, your son, Abdul, is a smart boy, but he spends all of his time with the girls. I am trying to break him of this habit."

The teacher received this reply: "I wish you success. Please let me know how you do it. I HAVE BEEN TRYING FOR YEARS TO BREAK HIS FATHER OF THE SAME HABIT."

184.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife was in the hospital dying. Just before she passed away, she said to her husband who was sitting by the bedside, "Darling, I have only one regret as I pass on. I hate to leave you behind in all of your loneliness. I just want you to know that if you should ever want to remarry, you have my consent. Only, if you do, I wonder if you would promise me something."

"Yes, Darling," said the Mulla.'what is it?"

"Would you promise not to let your new wife wear my old clothes and remind you of me?" she asked.

"WHY,CERTAINLY I WILL PROMISE YOU THAT," said Nasrudin. "I WOULDN'T THINK OF DOING SUCH A THING. BESIDES, ALL OF YOUR SUITS ARE TOO SMALL FOR FATIMA ANYWAY."

185.

Mulla Nasrudin and his friend, Old Joe, went into a bar and Joe ordered four straight shots in about four minutes. Each time he would gulp it down. After the fourth, and before he could order the fifth, Joe passed out - plunk, right on the floor. "WELL," said Nasrudin, "ONE THING ABOUT OLD JOE - HE KNOWS WHEN HE'S HAD ENOUGH."

186.

Mulla Nasrudin and his neighbour were talking about the problems of raising their boys.

"Is your son very ambitious, Mulla?" asked the neighbour.

"YES," said Nasrudin, "HE HAS SUCH BIG IDEAS ABOUT BEING RICH AND SUCCESSFUL, THAT ALREADY HE'S BEGINNING TO LOOK ON ME AS A SORT OF POOR RELATION."

187.

A drunk sat next to old Mulla Nasrudin on a bus. Thinking Mulla Nasrudin to be a preacher from his appearance and trying to start a conversation, he said, "I ain't going to heaven. There ain't no heaven."

The Mulla never said a word.

"I say there ain't no heaven," said the drunk in a loud voice.

The Mulla still didn't answer him.

"I said I ain't going to heaven," shouted the drunk.

Mulla Nasrudin quietly turned to the drunk and said, "WELL, GO TO HELL, THEN; BUT BE QUIET ABOUT IT."

188.

The old Mulla Nasrudin was complaining to his landlady about the lack of heat in his room.

"SOMETIMES IT GETS SO COLD AT NIGHT," he said, "THAT I WAKE UP AND HEAR MY TEETH CHATTERING ON THE NIGHT TABLE."

189.

Mulla Nasrudin bought one of those new hearing aids that are practically invisible. He was told that he could return it if it didn't prove twice as good as the cumbersome device he had been using.

He stopped by a few days later to express his satisfaction with the new device.

"I will bet your family likes it too," said the clerk.

"Oh, they don't even know I have got it," said Nasrudin. "AND DO YOU KNOW WHAT? I AM HAVING MORE FUN WITH IT! IN THE PAST TWO DAYS, I HAVE CHANGED MY WILL THREE TIMES."

190.

"That pain in your leg is caused by old age," the doctor told Mulla Nasrudin.

"That can't be," replied the Mulla. "THE OTHER LEG IS THE SAME AGE AND DOESN'T HURT A BIT."

191.

Mulla Nasrudin's wife woke him up one morning and said, "Honey, wake up. Today is our 42nd wedding anniversary. I think we ought to celebrate. What do you say we kill a chicken?"

The Mulla looked at her and said, "WHY IN THE WORLD DO YOU WANT TO PUNISH A POOR CHICKEN FOR SOMETHING THAT HAPPENED 42 YEARS AGO?"

192.

Mulla Nasrudin was talking to his lawyer about having his will drawn up.

The lawyer asked him: "What's to be different about this will?"

"OH," said Nasrudin, "I AM LEAVING EVERYTHING TO MY WIFE ON THE CONDITION THAT SHE MARRIES AGAIN. I WANT SOMEBODY TO BE SORRY I DIED."

193.

Mulla Nasrudin, celebrating his 95th birthday was asked by a friend:

"Don't you hate growing old, Mulla?"

"HECK, NO,"said Nasrudin. "IF I WASN'T GROWING OLD, I'D BE DEAD."

194.

A newspaper reporter was interviewing Mulla Nasrudin on his 99th birthday. As he was shaking hands to leave, he said, "I hope I can come back next year and see you on your 100th birthday."

"I DON'T SEE WHY YOU CAN'T," said the old Mulla. "YOU LOOK HEALTHY ENOUGH."

195.

The tourist was talking to Mulla Nasrudin who had just celebrated his 100th birthday. "And to what do you owe your great age?" he asked.

"WELL, I AM NOT SURE YET," said Nasrudin. "I AM DICKERING WITH A COUPLE OF BREAKFAST FOOD COMPANIES, SIR."

196.

A newspaper reporter was interviewing Mulla Nasrudin on his 100th birthday.

"If you had your life to live over," he asked, "do you think you would make the same mistakes again?"

"CERTAINLY, " said the old Mulla, "BUT I WOULD START A LOT SOONER."

197.

Mulla Nasrudin finally reached the age of 105. A newspaper reporter from town came out to take his picture and write a story about him. The reporter was talking to a neighbour about the old man and asked him, "How do you figure your friend was able to live so long?"

"I GUESS," said the neighbour, "IT WAS BECAUSE HE NEVER DID ANYTHING ELSE."

198.

A newspaperman was interviewing Mulla Nasrudin on his 105th birthday. He noticed that the Mulla was wearing a rabbit's foot on his key chain.

"You don't mean to tell me," said the newspaperman, "that a man of your experience still believes in that old and childish superstition? "

"CERTAINLY NOT," said Nasrudin, "BUT MY WIFE: TELLS ME IT IS SUPPOSED TO BRING YOU LUCK WHETHER YOU BELIEVE IN IT OR NOT."

199.

Mulla Nasrudin was stabbed by burglars.

But before dying he wrote a note to his wife from the hospital.

The last paragraph of it read:

"I have been very fortunate because only the day before I had put all of my money and negotiable bonds in my safety deposit box at the bank, SO THAT I AM LOSING PRACTICALLY NOTHING BUT MY LIFE."

200.

When Mulla Nasrudin died, his wife decided to have him cremated. The attendant at the crematory showed his widow a display of beautifully decorated urns for his ashes.