WITH YOUR PRAYER AND MY BRAINS
One night the Hodja heard someone walking stealthily on the roof of his house. He suspected it to be a burglar trying to break in. In a loud but conversational tone, he started talking to his wife.
"Last night when I came home," he said, "you were out and I had forgotten my keys. You know how easy it is to climb up our roof by using the nearby trees. But to get down into our courtyard was a problem. I could see no possible way, when I started praying and had a divine inspiration. I just got hold of the beam of the moon and slid down into the courtyard."
The burglar had listened carefully to every word the Hodja had said. Now it was time for the Hodja to listen. There was silence, except for the murmuring of the burglar at prayer. Then there was a loud thud, followed by moans.
The Hodja rushed out to the courtyard and there was the burglar lying in a heap, trying to suppress his moans. He grabbed the man by the collar and shouted to his wife:
"Bring a light down, quick! I've caught the burglar!"
"There is no hurry, Hodja Effendi," murmured the man. "What with your so efficient prayers and my so inefficient brains, I can hardly escape you!"
