Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2018 March 18

= March 18 =

Meaning of this joke
Can someone please tell me the meaning of this little joke? Is it simply about the linguistic difference between the lack of demand to meet a person and being shown with living place ? Jon Ascton   (talk)  17:19, 18 March 2018 (UTC)
 * I would hesitate to call it a joke at all; jokes are funny. I guess the "gag" is supposed to be that the visitor clearly wants to visit with Mr. Banta, but Santa has chosen to interpret his request literally and shown him his flat. Since Santa watches you all the time, he would know very well where Mr Banta was at all times. Matt Deres (talk) 12:36, 18 March 2018 (UTC)
 * It reminds me of the story of the balloonist who's lost and asks a person on the ground where he is. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 02:56, 19 March 2018 (UTC)


 * Thanks for your reply, Matt. But you very much mistaken - I must tell you, a mistake that should be forgiven for taking the joker's name to be Santa Claus, that's because you are not familiar with Indian joke scenario ! Here most jokes are about my community, ( and mostly, you will be surprised to know, are invented by us (the Sikhs)). Santa and Banta are in fact two typical Sikhs, who are the heroes of many a Sikh jokes. Actually the Sikh-jokes originated in British times when Nihangs, who formed suicide-squads of newly formed ranks to defend the Empire, (Nihangs - the Indian editions of Japanese Samurai), but unlike the Japanese warriors of bygone era, still carry tradional weapons like swords (when jestly asked what would a sword do in this era of technology, a nihang replied that swords are not only for killing, but keeping one's person armed helped greatly in achieving and keeping "choice less awareness" which is the only meaningful thing in a religious man's life. The questioner was in fact an employee of American embassy, and years later while on a tour of Japan was to learn that Japanese Armed Monks who follow Zen Buddhism and live in strict discipline ( not unlike Nihangs following Sikhism ) also, in spite of living in world's most high-technology nation, still bear the ceremonial Japanese swords (both short and long), because keeping oneself armed, they say, keeps one in "touch with Buddha", even in deepest sleep (such sleep is far more blissful and invigorating than ordinary people's, one of them claimed.) In modern India, it is the success of Sikhs in all spheres of life that, like Jews in the west, made them a target of jealousy by non-Sikh communities (especially the effeminate hindu who has long been a victim of Gandhi like sages ) : OP — Preceding unsigned comment added by 27.255.221.177 (talk) 23:20, 19 March 2018 (UTC)
 * Sardarji joke mentions Santa-Banta jokes. PrimeHunter (talk) 23:37, 19 March 2018 (UTC)
 * Too bad. My riff onto Santa Claus was the closest thing to funny that joke has seen. Matt Deres (talk) 01:12, 20 March 2018 (UTC)
 * So after all that, can anybody explain the joke? Alansplodge (talk) 21:36, 22 March 2018 (UTC)
 * The "joke" is that Santa took things literally and instead of immediately telling the visitor Banta was out took him to the flat even though he should have known the visitor had no interest in the location of the flat per se and was coming to see Santa. Capisce? That's the same kind of joke that Bugs mentioned: "Where are we?" "In a balloon". You need to get the feel of those sardar jokes: here's a site to browse. Basemetal  21:59, 22 March 2018 (UTC)