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Overview
The bihangama and bihangami birds nest in the tree beside the gate of the distant woman’s palace. Their chicks provide the substance needed to restore the blinded king in Day’s Hiraman tale. The parrot flies back across the oceans and rivers, catches the nestlings’ fresh droppings on a leaf and returns with them; when applied to the king’s eyes, they restore his sight in the narrative. The passage does not describe the family’s size, plumage or species, and its miraculous cure is not a practical treatment.
In the earlier Prince Sobur tale, the disguised bride saves the pair’s two chicks from a climbing serpent. The returning parents learn what she has done. Bihangama knows her identity and the cause of her husband’s mysterious illness; their overheard conversation reveals a cure using their droppings. He then carries her to the distant prince and back, on condition that she accept no presents there. She refuses treasure but receives her husband’s ring as a token.
The two tales differ in the patient and ailment: Hiraman seeks restored eyesight for a blinded king, while Sobur’s bride removes the harm caused by powdered glass hidden in the marriage bed. The collection calls the Sobur birds divine, but supplies no fixed plumage or zoological species. Their medicinal powers belong to the narratives, not usable treatments.
Origins & earliest records
Bengali oral storytelling translated by Lal Behari Day
Records & interpretation
Complete relevant tale, attached notes,1883 preface and1912 edition credits directly read.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Folk-Tales of Bengal
XVI, The Story of a Hiraman, pp.209–210, within complete tale200–210; first edition1883, illustrationsWarwickGoble
- 02
Folk-Tales of Bengal
VIII, The Story of Prince Sobur, pp.128–131; complete tale119–131 and notes read
Family, evolution & connections
Bihangama and Bihangami’s two nestlings — Day VIII
The Story of Prince Sobur, pp. 128–130.
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- Two unnamed nestlings
The returning mates expressly identify the two nestlings as their offspring. The root labels a joint parental pair, not one organism. Nestlings remain unnamed and without a stated zoological species. The Hiraman tale’s unspecified chicks are a separate narrative witness, not assumed to be these same two birds. The miraculous cure is narrative content, not medical guidance.
The two nestlings in Day’s Prince Sobur
Day calls Bihangama and Bihangami mates and identifies the two birds in their nest as their offspring. Sobur’s disguised bride saves the young from a serpent. The distinct Hiraman tale mentions chicks without supplying their number; its family is not silently merged with this pair.
Primary records and illustrations
Lal Behari Day, Folk-Tales of Bengal (Macmillan,1912; first edition1883)
XVI. XVI, The Story of a Hiraman, pp.209–210, within complete tale200–210; VIII, The Story of Prince Sobur, pp.128–131
Complete tale and footnotes read, pluspreface andeditionhistory. Bengali oral informants described collectively, individual teller of this tale not identified. Original paraphrase; no source-image verification claimed. Complete VIII and notes also read; serpent rescue, divine-bird dialogue, carriage and cure compared with XVI without merging the patients.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Historical translated oral narrative and collector notesLal Behari Day, Folk-Tales of Bengal (1912), XVI, The Story of a Hiraman, pp.209–210, within complete tale200–210Research access: 2026-10-05
- Historical translated oral narrativeDay, Prince Sobur, VIII, pp.128–131Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
