Nasiruddin Hodja was going to the city with his son and a donkey. To ensure the donkey didn’t get too tired, the son rode the donkey while Hodja walked.
People on the road said: “Look at that! The boy is riding the donkey while his poor old father is walking!”
Ashamed by the people’s comments, the father and son switched places. Now Hodja rode the donkey, and the son walked beside.
Again, people said: “A father riding the donkey while making his little son walk? How heartless!”
Irritated by the remarks, Hodja and his son both got off the donkey and started walking alongside it.
This time people laughed and said: “There’s a donkey, yet no one is riding it. How foolish!”
So they decided to both ride the donkey together.
But people still didn’t stop talking: “How cruel! Both of them are riding the poor donkey. The donkey must be suffering!”
At this point, an angry Hodja and his son lifted the donkey onto their shoulders and began walking.
Now the people on the roadside burst out laughing and said: “Look! How stupid can people be? Instead of riding the donkey, they are carrying it!”
Hodja smiled and said: “If you try to please everyone, one day even a donkey will ask you to carry it!”
Moral of the story: If you try to please everyone, you’ll end up becoming a laughingstock yourself.
Who Will Ride the Donkey?
Nasiruddin Hodja was going to the city with his son and a donkey. To ensure the donkey didn’t get too tired, the son rode the donkey while Hodja walked.
People on the road said:
“Look at that! The boy is riding the donkey while his poor old father is walking!”
Ashamed by the people’s comments, the father and son switched places. Now Hodja rode the donkey, and the son walked beside.
Again, people said:
“A father riding the donkey while making his little son walk? How heartless!”
Irritated by the remarks, Hodja and his son both got off the donkey and started walking alongside it.
This time people laughed and said:
“There’s a donkey, yet no one is riding it. How foolish!”
So they decided to both ride the donkey together.
But people still didn’t stop talking:
“How cruel! Both of them are riding the poor donkey. The donkey must be suffering!”
At this point, an angry Hodja and his son lifted the donkey onto their shoulders and began walking.
Now the people on the roadside burst out laughing and said:
“Look! How stupid can people be? Instead of riding the donkey, they are carrying it!”
Hodja smiled and said:
“If you try to please everyone, one day even a donkey will ask you to carry it!”
Moral of the story:
If you try to please everyone, you’ll end up becoming a laughingstock yourself.
Trying to please everyone leads to failure