Short Story - Naseruddin and the Smell of Soup

Naseruddin and the Smell of Soup

One day, a poor man, who had only one piece of bread to eat, was walking past a restaurant. There was a large pot of soup on the table. The poor man held his bread over the soup, so the steam from the soup went into the bread, and gave it a good smell. Then he ate the bread.

The restaurant owner was very angry at this, and he asked the man for money, in exchange for the steam from the soup. The poor man had no money, so the restaurant owner took him to Naseruddin, who was a judge at that time. Naseruddin thought about the case for a little while.

Then he took some money from his pocket. He held the coins next to the restaurant owner's ear, and shook them, so that they made a jingling noise.

"What was that?" asked the restaurant owner.

"That was payment for you," answered Naseruddin.

"What do you mean? That was just the sound of coins!" protested the restaurant owner.

"The sound of the coins is payment for the smell of the soup," answered Naseruddin. "Now go back to your restaurant."

Comprehension & Exercise

1. What food did the poor man have?
1.   soup
2.   bread
3.   nothing
2. What kind of food did he see in the restaurant?
1.   bread
2.   meat
3.   soup
3. Why did he hold the bread over the soup?
1.   So the steam from the soup would go into the bread.
2.   So he could warm his hand.
3.   So the restaurant owner would get angry.
4. Why did the restaurant owner take the poor man to Naseruddin?
1.   Because Naseruddin was a judge.
2.   So that Naseruddin could pay for the soup.
3.   Because Naseruddin was the man's relative.
5. What did Naseruddin do with the coins?
1.   He gave them to the restaurant owner.
2.   He made a noise with them.
3.   He gave them to the poor man.
6. What was the payment for the smell of the soup?
1.   the sound of money
2.   a few coins
3.   there was no payment