The Beginning of a Chaotic Day
In the heart of a bustling ancient city, where the scent of roasted spices mingled with the dust of the marketplaces, lived a humble poultry merchant named Hasan. Hasan was known for two things: his sharp knives and his perpetually worried expression. His shop was a small, frantic hub of squawking birds and flying feathers.
One Tuesday morning, a stern, wealthy man entered the shop holding a large, freshly slaughtered chicken. "Hasan," the man barked, "I want this bird plucked, cleaned, and quartered. I have guests arriving for dinner, and I want it done perfectly. I shall return in half an hour."
Hasan nodded submissively. "It will be ready, sir. A chicken fit for a king."
No sooner had the owner of the chicken left than the city’s High Judge—a man whose appetite for fine food was rivaled only by his reputation for bending the law—walked past the shop. The Judge’s eyes fell upon the plump, freshly slaughtered chicken resting on Hasan's wooden block.
"That," the Judge declared, pointing a jewel-encrusted finger, "is a magnificent bird. Wrap it up for me, Hasan. I shall have it for my lunch."
Hasan paled. "My Lord, I cannot! This chicken belongs to a formidable man who will return momentarily to claim it. It is already dead and waiting for the knife."
The Judge leaned in, a wicked glint in his eye. "Hasan, do you know who I am? I am the law. If that man returns, tell him the chicken flew away."
Hasan stared in disbelief. "My Lord, with all respect... the bird is dead. Its throat is cut. Its feathers are half-plucked. How can I tell a rational man that a dead, headless chicken took flight?"
The Judge chuckled, a deep, ominous sound. "Tell him exactly that. If he protests, tell him to take it up with the court. I am the court. Give me the bird, and I shall ensure your safety."
Terrified of the Judge’s power, Hasan handed over the chicken. As the Judge disappeared around the corner with the prize, Hasan sat down, trembling, awaiting the storm.
The Storm Arrives
When the owner returned and found his chicken missing, the shop erupted. "It flew away?" the man screamed, his face turning a deep shade of crimson. "Are you mocking me? I brought it to you dead! Dead birds do not fly, Hasan!"
"By the Will of the Almighty," Hasan stammered, remembering the Judge's words, "it simply... ascended. One moment it was on the block, the next, it grew ghostly wings and vanished into the sky."
"To the Judge!" the man roared, grabbing Hasan by the collar. "We shall see if the law believes in resurrected poultry!"
A Chain of Calamities
As they marched toward the courthouse, Hasan’s luck went from bad to disastrous. They passed through a narrow alley where a Muslim merchant and a Jewish trader were locked in a violent scuffle over a debt. Hasan, being a man of peace, attempted to intervene. He reached out to pull them apart, but in the chaos, his finger accidentally struck the Jewish man in the eye with such force that it caused a permanent injury.
"My eye!" the man shrieked. "You have blinded me!" Now, a second accuser joined the procession. The Jewish merchant grabbed Hasan’s other arm. "To the Judge! An eye for an eye!"
Overwhelmed by panic, Hasan saw the courthouse in the distance. Desperate to escape the two angry men, he broke free and bolted toward a nearby mosque. He sprinted up the spiral stairs of the minaret, hoping to hide until the crowd dispersed. However, his pursuers were right behind him.
Seeing no way out, Hasan looked down and saw an old man sitting peacefully in the courtyard below. Thinking he could jump into a pile of hay nearby, Hasan leaped—but his aim was off. He landed directly on the elderly man. The impact was fatal; the old man died instantly.
The old man’s son, witnessing the tragedy, wailed in grief and seized Hasan. "You have murdered my father! To the Judge! Blood for blood!"
The Hall of Judgment
Hasan stood before the Judge, his head bowed, facing three separate plaintiffs: the man with the "flying" chicken, the blinded merchant, and the grieving son.
The Judge looked down from his high bench, suppressed a smile when he saw Hasan, and remembered the delicious lunch he had just finished. He cleared his throat. "We shall hear these cases one by one," he announced. "Justice must be precise."
The First Case: The Chicken The first man stepped forward. "My Lord, this butcher stole my slaughtered chicken and claims it flew away. I demand compensation and punishment for his lies!"
The Judge looked at the man sternly. "Do you believe in the power of the Creator?" "Of course," the man replied. "Does the Holy Text not say that He can bring the dead back to life?" "It does, but—" "Then," the Judge interrupted, "who are you to deny a miracle? If the Almighty wished for that chicken to fly, it shall fly. The case is dismissed. Next!"
The Second Case: The Eye The Jewish merchant stepped forward, pointing to his bandaged eye. "He blinded me, Judge. The law states an eye for an eye."
The Judge pondered for a moment. "The law of indemnity states that a non-believer’s compensation is half that of a believer’s. Therefore, to make the scales equal so that we may take one of Hasan's eyes, we must first blind your other eye so you are fully blind, then we shall take one of his. Shall we proceed with the surgery?"
The merchant, horrified, backed away. "No! I forgive him! I want to keep my remaining eye!" "Case dismissed," the Judge barked.
The Third Case: The Father Finally, the grieving son stood up. "He jumped from the minaret and crushed my father. I demand his life!"
The Judge nodded gravely. "The law of Qisas is clear. You shall have your revenge. We shall go to the same mosque. Hasan will sit exactly where your father sat, and you shall climb to the very top of the minaret and jump onto him."
The son looked up at the towering height of the minaret and then at Hasan. "But... if I miss or land poorly, I might die myself!"
The Judge leaned forward. "That is the risk of justice. Your father did not move to the left or the right to save himself; why should Hasan? If you are afraid, you must forfeit your claim."
The son sighed and walked away, defeated.
The Moral of the Story
Hasan walked out of the court a free man, though his heart was still heavy with the day’s chaos. He looked back at the courthouse and realized a bitter truth about the world: while the Judge had saved him, he did so not out of mercy, but out of a shared web of corruption and cleverness.
The Lesson: There is always someone who can pull you out of a mess like a hair pulled from dough—provided you have a "chicken" to give them. But beware, for while the judges of the Earth may be swayed by a meal, the Judge of the Heavens sees all.
Key Information & Metadata
Keywords: Cunning Judge, Arabic Folk Tale, Satire, Legal Wisdom, Flying Chicken Story, Hasan the Butcher, Irony, Justice and Corruption, Middle Eastern Folklore, Wisdom Tales.
The Miracle of the Ascending Poultry and the Absurd Decrees of the Cunning Magistrate of the Orient
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