Rebirth of Chinese Starlings of the Song Dynasty

During the Yuan You era of Emperor Zhezong's reign in the Song Dynasty (1086–1093 CE), a resident of Changsha County kept a Chinese starling, commonly called Baba’er （Bage in Chinese or Myna in English). One day, the starling overheard a monk chanting Amitabha Buddha’s name and began reciting it, too. From that point on, it chanted Amitabha Buddha’s name continuously throughout the day. Because of this, the owner gave the bird to the monk. After some time, the starling passed away, and the monk prepared a coffin to bury it in. Soon after, a lotus flower grew from its mouth. Someone composed a verse in its honour:

"There was a wise and spiritual bird, a Baba’er,
Who knew to recite Amituofo like the monk.
After its death, it was buried in the flat ground,
and yet a lotus bloomed from its mouth—
How can we, as humans, not know to recite Amitabha Buddha’s name?

In another account, at Zhengdeng Temple on Mount Tiantai in Huangyan, a Dharma Master named Guan raised a starling that often followed people in chanting Amituofo. One morning, the bird died standing in its cage. The monk dug a small grave to bury it in, and later, a purple lotus flower bloomed from the tip of the bird’s tongue. The Preceptor Venerable Dazhi composed a verse in praise of the bird. (The Buddha’s Chronicle)

- Excerpt from ‘Records of the Pure Land Sages’