Citing several examples to illustrate that ups and downs are a part of politics, the Sena chief advised the BJP leadership to come out of the shock of the rout in the May 2009 Lok Sabha elections.

Taking an indirect dig at the current party leadership, he pointed out that it was different in the times of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the late Pramod Mahajan when there were regular exchanges between the leaders of the two allies.

'But now, when I was ill, leaders like (L.K.) Advani and Rajnath Singh came down to see, that's all,' the editorial noted, indicating a virtual breakdown of communication between the two parties in recent times, a fact that has been privately acknowledged by top leaders of both parties.

He said that the two parties came together solely on the issue of 'Hindutva', which has not been diluted so far.

'We read that the BJP is collapsing everywhere. But it is our friend, at least we think so... And we hope that it does not collapse,' it added.

On the other hand, he pointed out that the Sena is growing by leaps and bounds with the support of Shiv Sainiks and the sons-of-the-soil.

'We pray to Goddess Jagdamba that the dead parrot springs back to life and takes flight with the Shiv Sena's Garuda,' Thackeray concluded.