The other villagers asked him, “What are you doing?  Have you gone mad?”

But Juha replied, “Have you ever seen so many hens without a rooster?”

Interpreting the tales: Those of you who know

Although some of the trickster-fool tales appear to be quite straightforward, either as moral lessons or simply as farcical entertainment, others are more complex.  Some, such as “Juha at the Mosque,” have even been used by Sufi masters to teach philosophical and mystical lessons.

It is perhaps best, then, to let Juha have the final word on the question of what the tales mean, and just what it is that he would say to us.

                                                                       *****

Juha was very religious.  Every Friday, he went to pray at the mosque.  One Friday, after finishing his prayer, he got up and said, “People, do you know what I am going to say to you?”

"No, we don’t know," they answered.

“In that case,” said Juha, “it’s not worth the trouble to tell you.”

The next Friday, the people got together and said, “If Juha asks us today, we will all answer, Yes.”

After a moment, Juha arrived, prayed, got up, and said, “People, do you know what I’m going to say to you?”

Everyone answered, “Yes.”

“Well, if you know, then it isn’t worth the trouble for me to tell you.”

The following Friday, the people got together again and said, “If Juha again asks us his question, half of us must answer yes and half of us must answer no.”