The Bird and the Hunter
Once upon a time, a hunter caught hold of a bird.
The bird was astonishingly beautiful. To the amazement of the hunter, the bird even began to speak.
The bird asked the hunter, ‘What are you going to do with me?’. The hunter replied, ‘I will sell you for a good price’.
The bird asked again, ‘What would my new owner do with me?’
The hunter said, ‘I don’t know! He might put you in a cage, or cook you or sell it to someone else.’
The bird asked, ‘So, by selling me, you would get some money, isn’t it?’
The hunter, ‘Yes’
Bird, ‘If you will listen to me, I will give you three valuable advices. If you follow those advices, it will change your life towards the better.’ The hunter immediately jumped forward, ‘Yes. Tell me…’
‘Would I not want something in return for the advice that I give you?’
‘What do you want in return?’
The bird asked him to release it. It continued, ‘I shall give the first advice sitting on the branch of the tree nearby, the second, from the top of the hillock nearby, and the third one, flying.
The hunter agreed and freed the bird. The bird immediately flew to the branch of the nearby tree and sat there. It then gave the first advice –
‘Don’t feel for something that has already left your hands.’
The hunter promptly noted it down and asked for the second advice.
The bird flew to the top of the hillock nearby and said, “Did you know that there is a precious stone inside my body?”
Hearing this, the hunter got wild. He realized it was so foolish of him to have released the bird. He went red with anger and screaming at the bird, ‘You cheated me! You cheated me!’ , he started throwing stones on it.
Immediately the bird said, ‘I lied! The story of a gem being inside my body is not true. It is just to test you that I said so. Did I not give my first advice, not to repent for the spilt milk? You did not pay heed to my advice and now, you are crying!’
The bird took off from the tree, and said, ‘Here you go, my third and most important advice, ‘Do not give anymore advices to someone who does not follow the earlier advices!’
