From Nagapattinam to Kodikkarai, Poonguzhali’s boat glided along the canal. With her in the boat was Sendhan Amudhan. The boat was drawing near to Kodikkarai. On the banks of the canal, golden screw-pine flowers spread their petals wide, filling the air everywhere with their fragrance. Upon one of those flowers, a green parrot flew down and perched. As it settled, the screw-pine blossom swayed as if it were on a swing, and the parrot swayed along with it. Then, with its coral-red beak, the parrot pecked at the golden petal.

As the boat approached, the parrot screeched “kikki, kikki!” and flew away.

“If I am to be born again, let it be as a green parrot!” said Poonguzhali.

“You wish for such a thing! Who knows how much sorrow and hardship it faces?” said Sendhan Amudhan.

“No matter what sorrow or hardship there may be, isn’t it free to fly as it pleases in the boundless sky? What greater joy could there be than that?” said Poonguzhali.

“But some people catch those wandering parrots and shut them up in cages!” said Sendhan Amudhan.

“Yes, yes! Princesses living in palaces lock green parrots in cages! Cruel ogresses! They imprison the parrots and then dote on them and play with them. If I were a maid in one of those palaces, I would poison the caged parrots and kill them. I would even give poison to the princesses who cage the parrots…”

“If anyone heard you now, they would call you a cruel ogress too!”

“Let them say so! I would rather be an ogress than a princess.”

“Why do you bear such anger towards princesses, Poonguzhali? If you think about it, shouldn’t we pity them too? Like the caged parrots, they too are shut up within palace walls, spending their days in captivity.” If they somehow managed to escape and step outside, what a multitude of guards! What secrecy! What vigilance! Could they, like you, climb into a boat and wander alone through streams and seas? Could they roam the forests as freely as a deer leaping at its whim?”

“Who is asking them to stay confined? Did I ever say so? If they wished, couldn’t they too wander the forests at their will?”

“Mere desire is not enough; it depends on one’s birth and upbringing. You, like a parrot, wish to soar in the sky—do you think that is possible? You were born and raised by the seashore. That is why you are able to live so independently. Those born and raised in palaces cannot do so. Listen to another strange thing. Some parrots, after being caged and fed by the hands of princesses, even if the cage is opened later, do not wish to fly away. They flutter a short distance, circle around, screech ‘kreech, kreech,’ and return to the cage. I have seen this myself in the palaces of Thanjai and Pazhaiyarai…”

“I would never consent to be caged, not for a single day. If I were a