It happened once upon a time that Mullah Nasruddin was walking through his village, accompanied by a large group of people. Every few steps, the Mullah would stop, shake his hands in the air, bend down and slap his feet, and then leap up and shout ‘Hu! Hu!’ Those with him all did exactly the same.

Naturally, the people of the village were very curious about this strange behaviour, and when one of them found the Mullah alone later, he asked him who the group of followers were, and what was the point of these unusual antics.

“These are my students,” Nasruddin replied, “and I am helping them to reach enlightenment.”

“You are able to bring these people to enlightenment?”

“Without doubt,” replied the mullah. “A number have already experienced that condition.”

The villager was intrigued. “How do you know when they have reached enlightenment?”

“Oh,” said Nasruddin, “that’s easy. Every morning I count them to see how many there are, and the ones that have left have seen the light.”