‘My dear little parrot’

“Come and rest on my shoulder sweet little parrot,” says the king to the parrot who had been living for some time in the royal palace. The king had more time to talk to the she parrot and please his own mind in the best possible manner. The royal courtiers knew that the parrot was the creature the king admired most in the palace.

Even at the time of taking meals the king would request the parrot to come and sit beside him. Then he would ask the parrot to eat a little from his plate. The parrot would hop on to the table and share a bit from the king’s plate. There were moments of silence when the king would watch the behaviour of his loving parrot. She looks so sweet that he would murmur to himself in a tone inaudible to others around.

One day the parrot wanted to go back to her village which was far away from the palace. So she addressed the king in a pleasing tone.

“Please let me see my kith and kin. I assure I will return as soon as possible. Please do not feel sorry about my absence,” said the parrot

“All right, you can go. But try to come back soon,” said the king.

The parrot flew off into the sky to reach her distant village.

The king gazed his eyes until she was out of sight. As the days rolled by the king was seen in a desolate mood spending in the palace in a crestfallen look.

“Oh why has she not returned to see me? Did I do anything terrible to her or has she forgotten me and gone off never to return?” Then the king checked what had happened to her and wanted know all about her as soon as possible.

“Go forth to all directions of this kingdom and see where my little parrot is. If you happen to see her, ask her to come and see me in the shortest possible time without any delay,” ordered the king to his royal courtiers. The royal courtiers went in all directions but failed to see where the parrot lived. Then they came back and informed the king that they failed to see the parrot anywhere in the kingdom. The king was displeased.

“You are a pack of good for nothing courtiers.” The courtiers knew how angry the king could be in the absence of the dearest parrot he had. They kept silent. But the search did not stop at that. One day the parrot came back to the palace to the surprise of the king. There were two mangoes she had hung in her beak as a present to the king. But the king was angry to see her.

“Why have you been absent for such a long time?” The king asked.

“I will tell you by and by but meanwhile please accept this present I brought all the way from the distant village where my parents live.” Then the parrot tried to present the two mangoes to the king. But the king was in a fit of anger and threw away the mangoes clamping his hands. One royal dog wolfed down a mango. The onlookers witnessed the dog struggling hard to live in pangs of agony and drew the last breath. King noted this. He got hold of the parrot and wrangled her neck and killed her.

“I thought you loved me but I see your evil intention now. You wanted to make me eat the mangoes to kill me for no apparent reason. I do not love you any more.”

The royal courtiers were dumbfounded on seeing the entire dismal scene. At this juncture the other mango was thrown off to the nearby garden where the royal park keeper, an old man lived. The royal park keeper who knew about the death of the royal dog was one man who had a suicidal feeling lingering in his heart for some time.

So with this death wish in his mind he picked up the other mango and ate a piece of thinking that he will die.

But what happened was surprising. He was seen by all as a smiling young man. The royal park keeper who was surprised at this sudden transformation and had a feeling of youth in him handed over the other piece of mango to his wife who was an old woman.

“Eat this,” he said. The old woman who saw the youthful appearance of her husband instantly ate the other piece of mango. She too regained her youth hood and looked like a 16-year old damsel.

The royal courtiers who knew all about this sudden transformation informed the king.

“I cannot believe you,” the king said. But the royal park keeper and his wife were brought before the king who wanted to know the truth behind the event .The royal park keeper and his wife narrated the entire event as it happened. The king felt extremely sorry for his sudden anger. He was shedding tears: “I cannot bear this,” said the king who wanted to kill himself. But the wise men of the palace prevented it.

“But I want to know how the dog died by eating one mango,” said the king.

“That, we will find soon.” Said the wise man went in search of the tree from which the mangoes were plucked by the parrot. To the surprise of the wise man who went with a retinue of other courtiers found the secret behind it. The mango had been plucked from a park known as fairy mango park. A venomous serpent had crept into one of the mango trees. One of the mangoes had been nipped and bitten by that serpent .This happened to be the mango that was eaten by the dog.

As such the intention of the parrot had been noble. She never had the intention of killing the king at any cost. “I must do something to overcome my grievances,” said the king, “what can I do to remember the loving nature of my sweet little parrot?”

The courtiers kept silent.

“I want a right royal cremation for this parrot,” said the king and added: “You should erect a statue of this dear parrot in the royal mango park.”