The Two-Headed Bird

In a certain forest lived an unusual bird named Bharunda. This bird had a single body but two separate heads, each with its own mind and thoughts. Since they shared one stomach, whatever one head ate would nourish them both equally.

One day, while wandering through the forest, the bird came upon a tree bearing a wonderfully delicious, almost divine fruit. One of the heads ate the fruit and felt completely satisfied and content with its taste.

Seeing this, the other head grew bitterly jealous. "Why did you eat that wonderful fruit without asking me first?" it demanded angrily. "I wanted to taste it too!" The first head tried to explain, "We share one stomach — when I eat, you're nourished as well. There's no reason to be upset."

But the second head refused to listen, and resentment took root in its heart. Some days later, that same second head came across a poisonous fruit along the path. "I will eat this poisonous fruit," it thought, "and teach my companion a lesson — even if it harms me too."

The first head warned desperately, "Don't do this! We share the same body — if you eat that, we will both die!" But the second head, blinded by jealousy and anger, refused to listen and ate the poisonous fruit anyway.

Just as the first head had warned, the poison spread quickly through their shared body, and soon the entire bird — both heads together — died. Their mutual resentment and disunity had destroyed them both.

Moral: Jealousy and disunity never lead to anything good. Members of the same family or group must live with unity and cooperation, or both sides will ultimately suffer.