ENTERING ANOTHER'S BODY. 17 



The Yogin embalms his own body, buries it secretly, and then 

 proceeds to impersonate Vikrama. One day the parrot reconnoitres 

 the palace, and flutters about the head of the trick king, who is 

 afraid that he will peck out his eyes. He therefore issues a procla- 

 mation to the hunters of his domains that he will pay a gold mohur 

 each for parrots, in the hope that he will in this way get rid of the 

 parrot inhabited by Vikrama. As many as are brought to him he 

 promptly orders to be roasted. Now a certain hunter, Kalia by 

 name, spreads a net under the tree inhabited by the royal parrot. 

 The latter deliberately flies into the net, and is followed by all his 

 tribe of parrots. Then he asks Kalia to release them all, on the 

 plea that he will manage to obtain a thousand mohurs as his own 

 price. The hunter is impressed with the royal parrot's accomplish- 

 ments, and enters upon his scheme. 



In the meantime the queens of the palace show repugnance to 

 the usurper, and refuse him the proper marital attentions, so that 

 he is led to cast his eyes upon the daughter of his treasurer Ounian, 

 who is, of course, flattered by this distinction, and promises him his 

 daughter in marriage. One day the maiden with her attendants 

 goes to bathe in a certain bathing tank, passing and repassing on 

 the way the house of the hunter Kaliah. The parrot, hanging in 

 his cage outside, enchants her by his sayings and songs, so that she 

 finally buys him at the exorbitant price of a thousand mohurs — the 

 price which the parrot had set upon himself. When she takes him 

 to her own apartments he notices there the signs of festal doings. 

 He asks her what is the occasion, and she tells him that she is to be 

 married to the king in four days. The parrot breaks out into 

 hilarious laughter, believing that he sees a way to revenge himself 

 on the Yogin. When the treasurer's daughter asks him to explain 

 his hilarity, he tells her that she is making a mistake in marrying 

 the king, since as his wife she would share his affection with a thou- 

 sand others. She asks what she is to do, and he tells her as 

 follows : " Buy a young deer, small and weakly. On the marriage 

 day, when you are conducted to the palace, take him with you and 

 tie him to the foot of your bed. When the king comes, tell him that 

 you love the deer as a brother, and that marital intimacies must 

 therefore not take place in his presence. The king, angry because 



PROC. AMER. PHTL. SOC. , VOL. I VI, B, APRIL 3, I917. 



