Hoja and the Camel's Head (1950s)

[Music] In a way, a moving picture screen is like a magic window that can open out anywhere in the world. Here is a peaceful corner in a nearby city. The noonday sun is hot and all is quiet. [Music] All is quiet. Our eager donkey, well, our donkey is ready to carry us just a few streets away for a visit with our friend the shake, who often passes the noon hour in that coffee house, retelling the old stories of Nasaredine Hocha. We could well use the Hoch's wisdom and humor in troubled times like these to help us with some of our problems. There's another way of solving problems with education. And that picture of the new school is good to [Music] [Applause] see. Uh-oh. That troublemaker Hamid is going inside. Let's hope he'll be quiet while the shake tells of Nasaredine Hocha. Coffee. Coffee. Hamid is in a sour mood. Why not? Have you seen that new model school? We've both seen it. The shake and I liked it very much. What did you think of it, Aendi? It has the spirit of our architectural traditions and the art of our culture. In such a school, I hope our children will learn to appreciate their heritage as well as learn the skills of the modern world. It's not modern. Everything old has to go if we want progress. That's your opinion. A lot of my friends think so, too. And one school won't make us forget all the other problems. Education trains us to solve other problems with intelligence. That'll take centuries and we have to move fast. We know your methods, Hamid. Tear down everything and start your way. Nothing is right if it doesn't agree with you. You are young, Hamid. You do not understand that worthwhile things are built up slowly. Even though tearing down can be done in a hurry. Your kind of criticism is destructive. You're wrong. I'm not destructive. You're not destructive. Have you visited the school or looked at the books? We don't have to look. We have smart leaders who study these things and tell us. Maybe you'd be smarter to examine things yourself. Enough of this arguing. I know a story of Naseradin Hocha which might help you Hamid and other people too who believe what they hear without questioning. [Music] It is not easy to spin good yarn as the faithful wife of Nasaredine could well have told you. First the snarled and dirty wool that is cut from the sheep must be carded and cleaned. Then it takes many hours of many days for a woman to pick the longest fibers and twist them on her spindle to make the yarn. By the time it was evening, the wife of Nasared was always tired. [Music] [Music] Being a woman, the Hocha's wife thought of all the things she needed as she set off to sell her precious yarn. There were new clothes. There was a rug. There was a flagen of sherbet. And there was the wool merchant. [Music] Two piestas. Only two [Music] piestas. In vain did the Hocha's wife argue for the true worth of her yarn. But it was like arguing with a stone. In the end, the greedy merchant had his way. Only two measly piestas for those long days of work. [Music] [Music] The merchant should have known that while it is unfair to cheat a fool, it is dangerous to cheat a wise man. By the time his good wife had finished another week's work, the hocher had made up his mind. Carefully he wound the wool about the head of a camel, so that when the camel's head was fully covered, it would appear to be a tremendous ball of [Music] yarn. I offer 20 piestas. As usual, the merchant offered much less than the yarn was worth, or rather much less than he thought it was worth. To his surprise, the hocha cried, "Agreed. Cash [Music] down." Now the merchant was suspicious. I hope there's nothing but wool inside. Only the head of a camel. How the merchant laughed, but not for [Music] long. Angrily, he confronted Nazeredine, but the hocher remained calm. See here, I told you it was the head of a camel, but you hadn't looked for yourself. Now, take this lesson to heart, and you will gain far more than by cheating others. [Music] And so we all can learn from this trick of the big lie that Naseredine used to teach the greedy merchant a lesson. Sometimes it is hard to believe that under the wool wrappings of truth there are many lies. But a wise man opens up all problems and searches for the truth himself. I wonder if we are as wise as the hocha. [Music]