I am an expat who has been working in Adana for almost 11 years. I am originally from Dallas, Texas, in the US. I teach English at a private institution and I enjoy every moment of it. It is so enjoyable to interact with Turkish people.

If you ask me how to describe Turkish people in general, I would say they are very hospitable, friendly, genuine, warm-hearted, helpful and tolerant -- especially of the religions, ideas and cultures of other people. Most importantly, however, I would mention their wonderful sense of humor, which can always be seen on their radiating and shining faces. Today I'd like to talk about this admirable sense of humor of theirs, citing the example of their national icon of humor, Nasreddin Hodja.

Hodja had an excellent sense of humor. However, I should first describe what humor is. As we know, humor is the quality that makes something laughable or amusing. It is the ability to perceive, enjoy or express what is amusing or comical. There are good humor and bad humor, good humorists and bad humorists, humorless people and even humorless jokes. A good sense of humor would be a sensible and logical, rather than senseless, foolish, meaningless or obscene. The sense of humor of Hodja, who was and is one the greatest humorists of all time, was full of finesse, refinement, delicacy and artisanship. It dealt with the problems of daily life with subtle and precise skills.

And now here is one of my favorite examples of his splendid humor. One sunny day, Hodja was picking the bugs off his tomato plant. He was hot and tired. There was nobody nearby, so he took off his turban and sat under a walnut tree to rest. He saw a big, green watermelon in his garden. He said to himself: "Now look at that, there is a giant watermelon on a skinny little vine. But on this great big sturdy tree, there are tiny little walnuts. Ah, who can understand the wisdom of God? If I had made the world, I would have put the walnuts on the little vine and the watermelons on the big tree." Then he fell asleep. Suddenly a walnut dropped from the tree and bounced off of Hodja's bare head. He woke up with a start and rubbed the sore spot in great pain. Then a slow, wide smile spread across his face. He bowed his head to the ground in reverence to God and in admiration of His creation. With great humility and modesty he said to himself: "Oh God, forgive me! Your wisdom is truly great, amazing and miraculous! What if I had been deciding things? Just now I would have been hit on the head by a watermelon! Praise God and glorify Him, we cannot question His wisdom, His creation with our very limited minds." What a fantastic story, full of wisdom and admittance of one's errors in life.

The Hodja

According to Wikipedia, Turkish tradition relates that the humorous imam known as Nasreddin Hodja was born during the 13th century in the village of Hortu in Eskişehir's Sivrihisar district. The cheerful imam eventually settled in Akşehir and later on moved to the city of Konya, where he lived until he passed away. Each year the town of Akşehir hosts the "International Nasreddin Hodja Festival" between July 5-10 to remember the man who has inspired and amused so many over the centuries.

With each passing generation, new stories were added to the legend of Hodja's life, while other stories were modified. The character and his tales spread to neighboring regions and his stories became a part of the folklore of a number of nations. Many of Hodja's tales take place in the setting of a small village. However, the stories themselves defy time, in a way similar to Aesop's fables. They tell different stories of trials and tribulations.

Today, stories of the imam are told in many regions and have consequently found a place in many languages. In many regions, the character of Hodja is embedded in the culture -- referenced throughout everyday life. In the thousands of stories circulating about his life, one can find a lesson for virtually every occasion in life.


26.11.2007
todayszaman.com
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