Nasreddin Hodja: The Weight of Words

Nasreddin Hodja: The Weight of Words

Joke (English)

One day, the Hodja's path led him to the village square. There, he encountered a pompous Rumourmonger (News Spreader), a man who constantly spoke nonsense, offered unwarranted opinions on everything, but never actually worked. The Rumourmonger was loudly dispensing baseless, unnecessary information to the crowd around him.

The Rumourmonger saw the Hodja and immediately approached him: "Oh, Hodja! How lucky you are to hear the words of a wise man like me. Every word that comes out of my mouth is worth more than gold!"

The Hodja tied his donkey aside, took a handful of dry hay from his pocket, and pressed it into the Rumourmonger's palm.

The Rumourmonger was astonished: "What is this, Hodja? Why are you giving me hay?"

The Hodja replied with a very serious expression:

"My son, as you know, our donkey does not speak much; he only brays for truly important matters. Every word of his is rarer and heavier than ten minutes of your talking."

"You claim that your words are worth more than gold. But remember that in this world, the only thing that can weigh a word is the ear capable of enduring its burden! Take this, let this be the feed 'equal to the burden' of your words!"