NCERT Class 5 English Santoor Chapter 04 The Wise Parrot PDF Download

Chapter 4: The Wise Parrot

Let us Read

In a quiet village, a rich merchant kept a bright and talkative parrot in a cage of gold. The parrot had a sharp mind and often entertained the merchant with stories and songs. However, deep inside, the bird longed for the open skies and green trees.

One day, the merchant decided to travel far away for business. He thought he would do something to please his pet. He walked up to the cage and said, "My beloved parrot, I am about to travel to a far-off land. What can I bring for you from there?"

The parrot replied, "Dear master, you look after my needs so well that I have tasted all the tender fruits and chillies. But, I want to taste the joy of flying in the sky. If you really want me to be happy, please let me fly off into the sky."

The merchant said, "You are very dear to me and I cannot bear to let you go away. Ask for anything else."

The bird sighed. "Since you cannot let me fly, when you see my friends in the jungle tell them that I send them greetings from my cage."

The merchant went off on his travels. One day in a forest, he saw a flight of parrots with the same colour as his pet. He walked up to the tree and said, "O beautiful parrots, I have one of your relatives as a pet and I keep it in a cage of gold. It has sent greetings for you all."

As the merchant finished speaking, one parrot dropped like a stone from the tree and fell on the ground.

The merchant was distressed at this. He hurried away from there.

On returning home, he went up to his parrot's cage and described all the wonders and the beauty he had seen on his journey, and how a flight of parrots had come to the forest he was visiting.

He then told his pet about the message he had conveyed, and, with great sorrow, described how one bird had been so shocked that it fell to the ground.

As soon as he finished talking, his own pet parrot fell from the perch to the floor of the cage.

The merchant couldn't understand how his beloved pet died so suddenly. He reached into the cage and gently took the still warm body of the bird and placed it on the windowsill.

As soon as he stepped back, the bird stirred, stretched its beautiful green wings and flew off into the open sky saying, "My friend showed me how I could escape and now I can fly in the sky. Goodbye!"

Teacher's Note

Notice how the parrot's friend in the jungle helped by pretending to fall dead. The captive parrot learned from this clever trick and used it to escape. When reading the story again, pay attention to how the merchant didn't understand what was really happening, even though both parrots were very intelligent about how to use a message to signal the plan for freedom.

New Words

merchant tender distressed perch windowsill sighed

Let us Think

A. Answer the following questions.

1. Why did the merchant keep the parrot in a cage of gold?
2. What made the parrot a favourite pet of the merchant?
3. What message did the parrot ask the merchant to convey to its friends?
4. What happened after the merchant gave the message to the parrots?
5. How did the parrot escape from the cage?

B. Think and discuss

1. If you were the merchant, how would you respond to the parrot's request for freedom?
2. Can you think of a real-life situation where intelligence is more useful than strength?
3. Which parrot from the chapter was actually 'wise' according to you? Give reasons for your answer.

Teacher's Note

When the merchant meets the wild parrots, he doesn't realize that the parrot's message about the cage is a secret code. The wild parrot drops dead to show the captive parrot how to escape - by pretending to die. This is the story's clue about why the captive parrot later falls to the floor. Reading for hidden meanings helps you understand why characters act the way they do.

Key Points

• The captive parrot asked the merchant to deliver a message to wild parrots in the jungle, though it seemed like a simple greeting about life in a golden cage.
• When the merchant reported the message, one wild parrot fell dead, which taught the captive parrot a clever method to escape from its comfortable prison.
• The parrot in the story was wise because it understood that freedom to fly in the sky was more valuable than living in a cage of gold with tender fruit and comfort.

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