A26 A Lost Donkey
Yulia Davudi من ⁺Hassar ⁺Baba-čanga في Sydney, Australia
xá-yuma ⁺malla ⁺Nasradən bərrə́xšələ gu … ⁺bazar xmaru talúk̭ulə. xmara bətlak̭a lət-xmara. bədráyələ k̭alə ʾay-⁺havā́r! xmari tlík̭ələ. cut-mačəxlə xá-dana ⁺dinar b-yavvənnə. xmara bətlak̭a bərrə́xšələ. ⁺malla꞊da mara xōdɑ̄́ šucr xōdɑ̄́ šucr, təžbuxta ⁺ʾal-ʾalaha, təžbuxta ⁺ʾal-ʾalaha. xōdɑ̄́ šucr ⁺yanə … ⁺xk̭ira šəmmət ʾalaha ⁺xk̭ira šəmmət ʾalaha təžbuxta ⁺ʾal-ʾalaha.
našə mara k̭a-mudi xmarux tlík̭ələ, ʾina ʾat təžbuxta massuk̭ət ⁺ʾal-ʾalaha? mara təžbuxta massuk̭ən k̭at-gani lēnva ⁺ʾal-xmara. ʾən-ʾávənva gani꞊da ⁺ʾal-xmara, k̭ay꞊da b-labliva.
One day the mullah is walking in the market and he loses his donkey. His donkey disappears. There is no donkey. He shouts ‘Oh woe! My donkey has disappeared. I shall give a dinar to whoever finds it.’ The donkey disappears and he goes along. The mullah says ‘Thanks be to God, thanks be to God, praise be to God, praise be to God—thanks be to God, that is may the name of God be glorified, may the name of God be glorified, praise be to God.
The people say ‘Why is it that your donkey has disappeared but you send up praise to God?’ He says ‘I send up praise that I myself was not on the donkey. If I myself had been on the donkey, they would have taken me also.’