Somewhere, somewhen I’ve seen, But where or when I’ll never know, Parrots of shrilly green With crests of shriller scarlet flying Out of black cedars as the sun was dying Against cold peaks of snow.
From what forgotten life Of other worlds I cannot tell Flashes that screeching strife; Yet the shrill colour and shrill crying Sing through my blood and set my heart replying And jangling like a bell.
(Wilfred Wilson Gibson)
The parrot commands attention: bright green feathers, curved red bill, upright stance, strong legs and clawed feet. It is showcased in truck art because, notwithstanding painting imperfections, its red and green makes it distinguishable.
A nonconformist figure in the animal kingdom, the parrot is linked to humans by its ability to speak. It meets us at an equal level, as it would a fellow parrot. The bird is part of our cultural history - we are delighted by it and, in many writings, the “idea” of the parrot is used to represent the human condition.
Mughal rulers retained a parrot as an informant in their harems to keep tabs on intrigues and liaisons
In fiction, it acts as a guard: a keeper of secrets and a revealer of secrets. Mughal rulers retained a parrot as an informant in their harems to keep tabs on intrigues and liaisons. Many illicit liaisons were divulged by the bird.
A pet parrot accepts people around it as a part of its ‘flock’ and learns the language spoken in the home. Mimicking gets it noticed. It loves phrases of excitement and energy and can curse with gusto.
Parrots are vocal by nature and though they do not have vocal chords, they learn to control the movement of the throat muscles to direct the airflow to reproduce tones and sounds. Since time immemorial, their ability to remember and speak makes them prized. The trade in parrots as pets is lucrative and they are sold more than other fauna. Trapping them for trade has diminished wild populations - they are more exploited than any other bird.
Mughal emperor Akbar commissioned an illustrated version of the fourteenth-century Persian text 'Tutinamah' (Tales of a parrot)
A parrot-shaped ring dating back to the early 17th century Mughal era
The parrot has existed in the consciousness of many cultures.
In Hindu mythology it is a symbol of love. Kama, the god of love, enjoys perpetual youth. Kama’s steed is the parrot, the Indian love bird. Its green feathers and red beak symbolise fertility. The red beak represents the red earth before the rain and the green feathers represent the green earth after the rains. Also, red represents unfulfilled desire, full of yearning, and green represents fulfilled desire, full of joy.
A parrot symbolises romance: it is, in fact, a subtle sex symbol. In miniature painting, a woman with a parrot conveys she is waiting for her mate. Small wonder, then, that parrot jokes often have a sexual content or undertone. The earliest collection of erotic stories, Sukasaptati (70 Tales of the Parrot), was compiled in Sanskrit during the 12th century AD).
In the wild, parrots form close relationships. They are monogamous and they mate for life. However, if their mate does not produce offspring, they go and get another mate. A pet parrot bonds more with one person in the home and is jealous when this person gives attention to another person or bird.
The parrot is intelligent, mischievous, fussy, loving, wanting to please and, at the same time, strong-willed and independent - in short, a quirky pet prone to screaming and chewing on furniture. It creates a mess and drops things all over the place with its busy beak. Often, people have to reserve an area for the bird, with lots of toys, so as to save their furniture.
The Indian deity Kama is traditionally depicted mounted on a parrot
A parrot symbolises romance: it is, in fact, a subtle sex symbol
Parrots do not fly like other birds: they dart from one place to another. They have a fast landing and great dexterity of movement. They can climb trees using their bills by hooking onto branches. Their claws are nimble - a parrot can hold a whole guava in its claw while pecking at it to eat the seeds. On ground, the parrot has a rolling gait.
In South India, a parrot soothsayer was a popular figure. He sat under a banyan tree by the temple wall, wore a white dhoti and smeared his forehead with vermilion. His small table carried 27 fortune cards based on the Indian cosmic system. Each card depicted a Hindu deity or an image of Buddha or the Virgin Mary cradling infant Jesus.
The astrologer asked the customer for his name and repeated it to the parrot, instructing it to pick a card. The parrot, strutting like a wise soul, selected a card and was rewarded with a few nuts. The astrologer interpreted the customer’s fortune based on the image on the card.
Fortune telling by parrot came to Pakistan with migrants from India. It got converted to faal. Faal tellers arrive at a number for their deck by consulting an astrologer or use their house or car number. A faal deck is 31, 51, 49 or 61. More cards, more kismet (fortune) options - so they prefer a larger deck. Once seen squatting on the main roads of big cities, they are now only found at shrines or melas (festivals).
The parrot in South Asia is a symbol of romance and intimacy
Friends in Sukkur said they had a rose-ringed parrot that was fond of tea. One day the parrot escaped and flew away. In small towns, people do the breakfast dishes and turn them upside down on a charpai in the courtyard. Later, when the children were at school and the husband at work, the wife heard someone near the washed dishes. She went outside to investigate and found the tea-addicted parrot turning the tea cups looking for his caffeine fix. She put the bird right back into its cage before offering it a nice fresh brew. After that the parrot never attempted to escape.
An environmentalist told me: “The disappearance of parrots from Lahore is due to the extermination of indigenous trees. You do not find the Beri tree anymore, and rarely a Sohanjna or even the Pipal or Gullar. We have parrots visiting our little garden for the Shisham when it is in seed. They create quite a ruckus as they feed and litter the area under the tree with the skins of the seed pod.
Parrots are not seen in all these crazy new areas like Defence, Iqbal Town, Johar Town, etc. because of a lack of indigenous trees. But you can still find them in Lawrence Gardens, Mayo Gardens, Aitchison College and Gulberg. We need to go back to our own trees to bring back the birds”.
Phrases revolving around parrots add great colour to human language. Take for instance “parroting” - to repeat by rote. The British expression “sick as a parrot” refers to extreme disappointment (not sickness).
In Urdu, “Hathon key Totae urr Gaae” (parrots of the hands flew away) describes a feeling of devastation and helplessness. And of course, there is “Apne Moun Mian Minthu” (one who sings their own praises).
Then, we have “Tota Chashm” for a faithless one and “Totay ki tarah aankhain phair laina” (to turn one’s eyes like a parrot) for a betrayer. Bhang is euphemistically called Hara Tota.
Our dear Mian Mithu makes life colorful when we have the privilege of its presence in our home.
