My Excuses.

Parable Of Great Supper. 

"A certain man gave a great supper and invited many"

http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/luke-chapter-14/

 

Dates.

One day the Hodja and his wife were eating dates. Hodja's wife noticed that the Hodja was eating the dates with their seeds. `Hodja Effendi, why are you eating the dates with the seeds?' she asked. `Because when the grocer sold them to me, he weighed them with the seeds.' was Hodja's explanation.

Helva Blues.

One day Nasreddin Hodja felt like eating helva. He would have made some but there was no butter, no sugar and no flour at home. The larder was empty, his stomach was empty and his pockets were empty. He was being tormented with the dream of a huge plate full of helva and he was getting hungrier and hungrier. Finally, he decided to walk down the road to the grocery store.
 `Do you have flour?' he asked the grocer.
`I certainly do, Hodja Effendi.'
`Do you have sugar?'
 `Yes, I do.'
 `Do you have butter?'
 `Yes, Hodja Effendi.'
 `So then, what's holding you back, my friend? Make yourself a good pot of helva and eat it!'

IF THIS BE THE LIVER.

Nasreddin Hodja was very fond of liver. But every time he brought some home, his wife would seize the opportunity and give a party to her friends. Come evening, the Hodja would again be fed some soup or rice.
The excuse was always the same: "Ah, Effendi, that good-for-nothing cat of yours stole the liver and ate the lot!"
On one such evening, the Hodja could contain himself no longer. He sprang up, fetched the steelyard and, tying a handkerchief around the cat's middle, weighed it carefully. Then, turning to his wife, he said, "I thought so! The liver I brought home today weighed exactly one kilo. This cat here weighs one kilo too. Well, woman, if this be the liver, where is my cat!?"

Finding A Piece Of Truth.

One day Mara, the Evil One, was travelling through the villages of India with his attendants. he saw a man doing walking meditation whose face was lit up on wonder. The man had just discovered something on the ground in front of him.

Mara's attendant asked what that was and Mara replied, "A piece of truth." "Doesn't this bother you when someone finds a piece of truth, O Evil One?" his attendant asked. "No," Mara replied. "Right after this, they usually make a belief out of it."

LAST HOPE.

The Hodja had lost his donkey and was going about searching for it, at the same time singing gaily.

Someone couldn't help asking:

"It is funny hearing you sing, Hodja Effendi, when everyone knows you have lost your donkey. One would expect to hear you wailing and lamenting your loss!"

"My one last hope is that the dumb creature may be behind that hill yonder, my friend," replied the Hodja. "Wait and hear the wailing and lamenting if that shouldn't be the case!"

Interest.

One day a friend asked Nasreddin Hodja to lend him some money.

`Hodja, I am a little hard up,' he said, `can you lend me some money with interest.'

`I don't have any cash,' the Hodja replied, `but I can lend you as much interest as you want.'