Many ancient cultures had a fool/ jester of some sort. The Celts had a version, and even in Orthodox (Eastern) Christianity, a number of their saints held in highest esteem are called "fools for Christ" - coming from the passage in St Paul's writings.
Snippet:
“Foolishness for Christ refers to behavior such as giving up all one’s worldly possessions upon joining a monastic order, or to deliberate flouting of society’s conventions to serve a religious purpose – particularly of Christianity. Such individuals were known as both “holy fools” and “blessed fools.” The term “blessed” connotes both feeblemindedness and innocence in the eyes of God.
The term fools for Christ derives from the writings of Saint Paul. Desert Fathers and other saints acted the part of Holy Fools, as have the yurodivy (or iurodstvo) of Eastern Orthodox asceticism. Fools for Christ often employ shocking, unconventional behavior to challenge accepted norms, deliver prophecies or to mask their piety….
http://citydesert.wordpress.com/2013/12 ... or-christ/
That's in a strictly religious context. In old Russia, such "fools for Christ" could be found advising (or shaming) local rulers and even the tsar and thus reminding them that their temporal authority and power amounted to nothing if they ignored what awaited them later on.
The Fool,The Joker And The Monk
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The Fool,The Joker And The Monk
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