A neighbor came to Sufi Mullah Nasrudin.
"Would you lend me your donkey today, Mullah?" the neighbor asks, "I have goods to transport to the next town."
Nasrudin answered: "I'm sorry, but I've already lent her to somebody else."
Suddenly the two hear the donkey braying loudly behind a wall.
"You lied to me, Mullah!" the neighbor exclaims, "There is the donkey!"
"What do you mean?" the Mullah replies indignantly, "Whom would you rather believe, a donkey or your Mullah?"
One may someday have a choice between between a true Teacher--who seems wrong--or the braying of an ass--who seems right.
I would've thought that the meaning of that passage is about the falsity of some of the leaders in religion
The fact that the 'mullah' claims that there is no donkey, whereas the donkey is obviously there, seems to kinda show the fact that some leaders are just completely BSing and that you have to listen to common sense sometimes
Or am i understanding it completely wrong
Originally posted by banx99I don't think you are wrong, at all.
I would've thought that the meaning of that passage is about the falsity of some of the leaders in religion
The fact that the 'mullah' claims that there is no donkey, whereas the donkey is obviously there, seems to kinda show the fact that some leaders are just completely BSing and that you have to listen to common sense sometimes
Or am i understanding it completely wrong
You can take this story a couple of different ways, of course. Another possible way is that you should trust the Teacher because he wants to show you self-reliance is better than borrowing his donkey. But, since I don't have the facts to support that idea conclusively, and I know Nazrudin to often be a big of a lovable rogue who is not wedded to the truth if there is money in it for himself, I prefer to think the ironic intent of the joke is what you got.
In a way, this is could be a very anti-clerical joke. It is clear to me from reading Greg Mortenson's book that in the part of the world that likes to tell Nazrudin stories, some but not all clerics promote their worldly self interests using their office as cover. That is sort of a universal problem, however, certainly not unique to Islam.
On the other hand, if your view is to have faith in your clergy, not even the clear evidence contradicting Nazrudin should deter you from following his advice. If he is "wrong" it is for a reason you may not appreciate, but since your obedience is required, it is irrelevant whether the donkey is behind the wall or not. And perhaps that is why the story uses an ass to contradict the Teacher.
I think the story illustrates the problem of trusting that which you perceive to be the case or trusting in faith, authority or even the mere appearance of authority.