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—Swami Ramarajyam—
There lived a sparrow couple with their fledglings (young ones) on a tree in a jungle.
Once, on a very cold night, two travellers took shelter under that tree. One of them said, "I am hungry."
The other one said, "I am also feeling hungry."
The first one said, "If we laid a fire, we could escape the cold."
The other one said, "It has been raining throughout the day. All the wood is wet. How can a fire be laid?"
The sparrow couple was listening to their conversation. The he-sparrow said to his spouse, "Will they go away from here hungry and shivering with cold?"
The she-sparrow said, "Let us do something."
The he-sparrow thought for a little while and, then, making his nest a little thinner, dropped some dry straw and twigs.
The sight of the dry straw and twigs made the travellers very happy. One of them took out his matchbox and set them on fire.
The satisfied he-sparrow looked at his wife and said, "Will we keep them hungry? Let us find some way out."
His spouse thought for a little while and said, "I will fulfil your wish. Take care of our young ones. Goodbye." Having said this, lo and behold, she jumped down into the fire.
She thus instantly ended her life for offering the hungry travellers food in the form of her roasted body.
Shedding tears, the he-sparrow said, "No, no, you alone cannot satisfy the hunger of the two travellers."
And, he also jumped into the fire.
Thus both of them ended their lives for the sake of those travellers.
Sitting in their nest, the sparrow couple's fledglings were watching aghast at this sight.
The fire had almost gone out. The eldest one led the other young ones out of the nest and dropped the remains of the nest into the fire. The fire blazed up.
The eldest one said, "Our parents died for the sake of these travellers. Let us also try to do our bit to satisfy their hunger."
And, all the fledglings jumped together into the fire.
Dear children, we should be ready to do whatever can be done to comfort others—known and unknown; otherwise we, the human beings, would prove ourselves inferior to those birds who made such a great sacrifice. The motto of our behaviour should be—'Comfort for others, not for one's self'.
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