The Clever Parrot

There was a great merchant in Magadha who traded overseas. Whenever he went abroad, he would call his family and ask each one, “What shall I bring for you?”

On one occasion, he asked all his family members and finally asked his pet parrot, “What shall I bring for you?”

“Do you remember the forest where you caught me?” the parrot said. “In that forest, there is a giant pipal tree. On it, you will find numberless parrots like me. Tell them I am with you and ask them for a message. That is all I want from you.”

The merchant started on a voyage, traded for six months, and then went to the pipal tree to meet the parrots. He told them what his pet had said. When he asked for the message, one parrot became lifeless and fell, and the rest flew off without answering the merchant.

Surprised and disappointed, the merchant came home and told his parrot what had happened.

On hearing the merchant’s narration, the parrot in the cage had a fit, at the end of which it fell,l lifeless. Shocked at this, the merchant opened the door of the cell. At once, the parrot returned to life and flew away through the open compartment, leaving the merchant shocked and dumbfounded.