One
day, Mulla Nasruddin was talking to his neighbour. The neighbour was looking so
miserable that Nasruddin asked him what was bothering him. The man started to
complain about the lack of space in his house and said, “It is such a small
house, Mulla. And me, my wife, my three children and my mother-in-law–all have
to live together in the same little cottage. It is very cramped and there is
hardly any space to move around.” He asked Nasruddin for some advice on how to
deal with this problem.
Nasruddin
said, “Do you keep chickens in the yard?” “Yes, ten of them,” replied the man.
image courtesy: Google images
“Good. Bring them inside the house and keep them there,” said Nasruddin. “But,
Mulla!” the man exclaimed. “My house is already overcrowded.” “Just do as I
say,” Nasruddin replied.
The man
was really very troubled and wanted to find a solution to his problem. He decided
to give the Mulla’s advice a try. So the man went home and brought all the
chickens into the house. Next day, he went to meet Nasruddin again. He said,
“Mulla, I followed your advice and took the chickens into the house. But it did
not solve anything. In fact, it has made matters worse. My house is even more
cramped now.
“I
see,” said Nasruddin. ” Now take your donkey and keep it inside your house. The
man did not think much of this idea but Nasruddin managed to convince him to do
it.
The
next day, the man came to Nasruddin, looking very distressed, and said,”Now,
it’s six humans , ten chickens and a donkey inside my house. It is so crowded
that one can hardly move.” Nasruddin replied, “You own a goat too, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do,” said the man.
“Great,” Nasruddin said. “Take it inside the house
too.” The man objected, “How is that going to solve anything?” but Nasruddin
once again convinced him to do as he had said.
The
next day, the man walked up to Nasruddin in a state of anger and distress and
said, “Your plan has made our lives miserable. The house is now so crowded that
we are finding it difficult to even breathe. My family is upset and everyone is
complaining about the lack of space.”
“Don’t
get so upset, friend,” said Nasruddin. “Go back home and take all the animals
back outside.” The man did as he was told.
Next
day, when the man came across Nasruddin, he was beaming. He said, “I must thank
you, Mulla! Your plan has worked wonders. Now that all the animals are outside,
there is enough space in the house for all the family members. Everyone is
happy and content with the house now.”
The
End.
