Naarad Jee pretended to be hurt, he said in a sorrowful voice - "You greatly insult me, Lord Shiv, I have just come here to give you a gift."
"A gift for me? What is it Naarad?", asked Lord Shiv. Naarad, hearing the eagerness in Shiv's voice, smiled to himself in amusement and produced a golden mango and gave it to the Lord.
"A mango!" exclaimed Shiv. "Now don't say you that you traveled all the way here to give me this fruit."
"It is no ordinary fruit, my Lord," Naarad Jee replied, "The taste of this fruit is said to be sweeter than nectar. This is the Divine fruit of knowledge that bestows eternal wisdom to those who eat it.
"Is it so?" asked Shiv, looking at the mango. He then asked his wife Paarvatee to have a bite.
Naarad Jee cried - "No, no, stop! What are you doing?"
Shiv looked at Naarad curiously. "Why? Do you want me to eat it without letting Paarvatee taste it? Surely I am going to share it with her". Saying so, he turned to share the fruit with his wife, Paarvatee.
Naarad Jee again shook his head in disagreement. "That cannot be done, Lord Shiv. It is a magical fruit, blessed by the sages and Devtaa. It is not possible to cut the mango into pieces. It should be eaten by a single person as a whole fruit".

Now the divine couple looked at each other. They were confused. Then Shiv shrugged his shoulders and said to Paarvatee - "If that is the case, let my better half have this fruit. Here it is, Paarvatee, you can have this whole mango," and offered that mango to his wife.
Paarvatee was surprised. She refused to eat it saying - "Oh no, I don't want to eat it. You are my husband. How can I eat it without you having a taste of it?".

Both Shiv and Naarad requested her to eat the fruit but Paarvatee steadily declined and then suggested - "Instead, let one of our children have the fruit".

"But, how is that possible?" asked Naarad slyly. "There is only one fruit and two children. Who should be given this fruit - Ganesh or Kaarttik?"
While the elders were talking, Ganesh and Kaarttik appeared in Kailaash. They saw that their parents and Sage Naarad were having some serious talk on something. Then Kaarttik noticed something yellow and round in Naarad's hand.

Kaarttik asked Ganesh - "What is it that Uncle Naarad having in his hand?" Ganesh was equally curious.
Ganesh was about to say something that Naarad Jee replied - "This is a magical mango, Kaarttik, I gave it to your father but he wanted that your mother should eat it. But she won't eat it. She wants to give it to one of you."
"A magical mango? I love mangoes!" shouted Kaarttik, "I want it! I want it!".

"No, no, it should come to me. I love mangoes too! I'm the elder son and the right one to eat the fruit of knowledge," argued Ganesh. Soon the brothers started fighting for the mango.

The Divine parents were perplexed. This is nothing but a mountain out of a molehill. Shiv looked at Naarad and said - "So this is why you came to Kailaash? I knew it, I knew there was something in your mind. Well done Naarad, you have finally played the trick. This is why you came here. But now that you have created trouble, please solve it. You decide to whom the mango should go to."

Naarad Jee was delighted that his plan was working so well. "Why don't we have a competition to settle the matter?" he said with a twinkle in his eye. The children agreed to Naarad's suggestion. Shiv Jee thought over the matter for a few moments and said to his children - "All right, then, We'll have a contest. Whoever of you goes around the world three times and returns first will get the fruit."

Hearing this, Kaarttik immediately mounted his vehicle, the peacock, and his brother Ganesh rode on his vehicle, the mouse. Ganesh was fat and slow. Kaarttik laughed to himself in glee. He was very certain that he would win. Ganesh Jee understood that his vehicle, the mouse, could not compete with the peacock's speed. So he thought for a moment. Suddenly, he got an idea. He smiled to himself. Kaarttik had flew around the world stopping at all temples and sacred spots on the way and offering his prayers. To his astonishment, he found Ganesh at every major stop. Kaarttik was puzzled. How did Ganesh managed to be so fast that he arrived at the places before him?

The reason was the razor-sharp intelligence and the great wisdom of Ganesh. Back in Kailash, Ganesh Jee remembered that his parents Shiv and Paarvatee represented the entire universe. Without delay, the young elephant-headed god walked around his parents with great devotion, folding his hands.

"Why are you circling us Ganesh?" asked Shiv Jee.
"I'm your son and to me, you two make up my whole world. Why should I go further to win the contest?" replied Ganesh.
Shiv Jee was very pleased with his elder son's smart answer and gave the magical fruit to him.

When Kaarttik returned after his voyage, he understood what would had happened and accepted the superiority of his clever brother Ganesh. The Devtaa also found the answer to their doubt. They praised and blessed Ganesh. Naarad chuckled to himself. His father had praised him too. So did the Devtaa.

Service to one's Parents is service to God.