Radha took Her parrot from its jeweled cage. She placed it on Her palm. She offered ripe pomegranate seeds close to its beak. Again and again She taught it to say Krishna's name. Love for Him filled Her heart. Between these repetitions She also recited a verse. It spoke of the difficulty of reaching Her beloved and of Her bashfulness. It mentioned the elders' stern words and Her own lack of independence.
The parrot listened carefully to the verse. Hearing it repeatedly, it learned it by heart. Then it suddenly flew from Radha's hand. Even in flight it continued repeating Krishna's name. Not yet skilled at flying, it descended from one rooftop to another. Thus it reached the veranda of Krishna's home. There it recited the verse in a gentle voice. Krishna was astonished, approached it, and asked it to repeat the words.
Krishna praised the little bird's learning. The parrot instead reproached its own restlessness. It said it had left the palm of the mistress who tenderly taught it Krishna's name. Krishna reflected that someone full of love must have cared for it. He offered His hand and asked it to remain with Him for a while. The parrot climbed fearlessly onto His palm. Then His witty friend Kusumasava arrived. He praised the bird and began feeding it pomegranate seeds.
Meanwhile Radha sent Madhurika to search for the parrot. Another companion went with her. Looking in different places, they discovered it with Krishna. Krishna and Kusumasava were caring for it and listening to its song. Madhurika approached Krishna respectfully. She explained that the parrot belonged to her mistress. She kindly asked Him to return it. But Kusumasava turned the request into an opportunity for joking.
He asked for evidence that the bird really belonged to them. He proposed that Madhurika call it and see whether it would come to her hand. Madhurika replied that anyone would wish to remain on Krishna's palm. Even the flute, she said, did not leave His touch. She explained that her mistress grieved without the parrot's song. Kusumasava asked who this mistress was. At first Madhurika answered only that she was someone's daughter, as Krishna was someone's son. His friend replied that the bird had come by itself and no one had stolen it.
Then Mother Yashoda arrived and called Krishna to eat. The food was cooling, and the appointed mealtime was passing. His friends had already been fed and were waiting for Him. The cows too were awaiting His arrival. Kusumasava gave her a richly playful account of the remarkable parrot. Yashoda noticed Madhurika and greeted her kindly. Madhurika explained that Radha was unhappy without Her bird. Yashoda promised to send the parrot back once Krishna left for the forest.
Yashoda asked Kusumasava to guard the bird carefully and feed it. Krishna immediately said that He would feed it Himself. Then He recited an answering verse for the parrot to hear. It mentioned the forest, His friends, the flute, and tending the cows. His words revealed how deeply the utterance of His beloved had affected Him. Krishna sat down in the place prepared for His meal. Before Him was a golden vessel of rice flavored with fragrant ghee. With His own hand He fed some of that rice to the parrot.
Before leaving with the cows, Krishna again asked His mother to protect the bird. After His departure, Yashoda sent the parrot to Radha's home. One of her attendants carried it there. Radha rose to welcome her respectfully. She invited her to sit and asked about Yashoda's welfare. The visitor described how much joy the parrot had brought Krishna. She explained that Yashoda did not wish Radha to grieve even for a moment. Therefore she had returned the bird without delay.
Shyama remarked on the parrot's good fortune in being held by Krishna. She proposed that Lalita later take it to Him again in Yashoda's presence. Radha sent greetings and respectful obeisances to Krishna's mother. When the visitor had left, She called the parrot onto Her hand. She said that She too wished to touch the bird Krishna had held. Then She asked it what it had seen and heard. The parrot described how deeply Her verse had moved Krishna. It also repeated His answering words addressed to Kusumasava.
Shyama understood the message as an acknowledgment of Radha. In the phrase about a beloved's utterance she heard Krishna's acceptance of Her. Radha tried to turn aside this interpretation through a grammatical distinction. She said the words could mean a dear utterance without necessarily naming its speaker. Then She asked how Krishna could have known who stood behind the verse. Shyama reminded Her that everyone in Gokula knew Madhurika as Her attendant. Once Madhurika said the bird belonged to her mistress, its owner was recognizable. With that answer their playful discussion came to rest.