One day, several future students came to Nasreddin and asked him to give them a lecture.
“Okay,” he said, “follow me to the lecture hall.”
Obeying the order, everyone lined up in a chain and followed Nasreddin, who was sitting backwards on his donkey. At first, the young people were somewhat embarrassed by this circumstance, but then they remembered that they should not question even the most incredible actions of the teacher. However, in the end, they could no longer bear the ridicule of ordinary passers-by.
Sensing their awkwardness, the mullah stopped and looked at them. The bravest of them approached Nasreddin:
“Mulla, it’s not entirely clear to us why you are sitting on the donkey backwards?”
“It’s very simple,” said Nasreddin. “You see, if you walked in front of me, it would be disrespectful to me, and if I drove with my back to you, it would be disrespectful to you.” Thus, this is the only possible compromise.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru