"There is a very moving story in the Jataka Tales about fearlessness. Once there was a parrot who lived in the forest, and one day the forest caught fire. Since the parrot was able to fly, she started to fly away. Then she heard the crying of the animals and insects trapped in the forest. They could not fly away like she could. When the parrot heard their anguish, she thought to herself, 'I cannot just go away; I must help my friends.'

"So, the parrot went to the river, where she soaked all her feathers, and then flew back to the forest. She shook her feathers over the forest, but it was very little water, not nearly enough to stop a forest fire. So, she went back to the river, wet her feathers, and did this over and over again. The fire was so strong and hot that her feathers were scorched and burned, and she was choking on the smoke. But even though she was about to die, she kept going back and forth.

"Up in the god realms, some of the gods were looking down and laughing, saying, 'Look at that silly little parrot. She is trying to put out a forest fire with her tiny wings.'

"Indra, the king of the gods, overheard them. He wanted to see for himself, so he transformed himself into a big eagle and flew down just above the parrot. The eagle called out, 'Hey, foolish parrot! What are you doing? You're not doing any good, and you're about to be burned alive. Get away while you can!'

"The parrot replied, 'You are such a big bird, why don't you help me to put out the fire? I don't need your advice; I need your help.'

"When the little parrot said this with so much courage and conviction, the eagle, who was actually the king of the gods, shed tears because he was so moved. His tears were so powerful that they put out the fire. Some of Indra's tears also fell on the parrot's burned feathers. Wherever the tears fell, the feathers grew back in different colors. This is said to be the origin of parrots' colorful feathers. So, it turned out that the little parrot's courage made the fire go out, and at the same time, she became more beautiful than ever."