A man insulted a saint in anger. The next day, he went to apologize. The saint told him, "Place bird feathers in the middle of the town.

Words spoken in anger hurt others. Anger weakens our ability to think and understand clearly. Because of this, many people say things in anger that they later regret. However, words once spoken cannot be taken back. This is why one must be very cautious while speaking. This lesson can be understood through a folk tale.

According to the story, in ancient times, a saint used to preach daily to his disciples and other people. Most villagers greatly respected the saint, but some disliked him.

One day, a man who envied the saint came to his ashram and insulted him in front of everyone. However, the saint did not respond to him. When the man grew tired of speaking, he left. The villagers were saddened by what they saw. The saint resumed his discourse.

When the man reached home, he realized his mistake. The next day, he went to the saint's ashram to apologize. The saint said to him, "Do one thing. There are many bird feathers scattered around the ashram. Collect them and bring them to me." The man immediately began the task and returned after gathering the feathers.

The saint then told him, "Now take these feathers and place them in the middle of the town." The man obeyed the saint's instruction, placed the feathers in the town center, and returned to the saint.

The saint said to him, "Now do one final task. Bring back all the feathers you placed in the town."

When the man reached the town center, he saw that the feathers had been blown away in all directions by the wind. Gathering them all was impossible for him. He returned empty-handed and explained the situation to the saint.

The saint said to him, "Brother, in the same way, when we are angry, the words we speak hurt others. When our mind calms down, we realize our mistake, but by then, there’s nothing we can do. Just as it is impossible to gather all the feathers, the words spoken cannot be taken back. Therefore, one must avoid anger and be extremely cautious while speaking."