They floated about filling the whole marketplace as the rush of people and cars created great gusts of wind scattering the feathers to high and distant corners of the city. Then he reported to the Rabbi that the mission had been accomplished and he was ready for the final step before being cleared. The Rabbi then told him that all he needed to do now was to gather all the feathers, and return them to the pillow. The fellow was horrified. He told the Rabbi that it was impossible to retrieve all the feathers because they were now all over town and still blowing in the wind.
Slanderous talk is tantamount to murder.
Destroying a person's reputation is like a suicide bomb. It kills the speaker as well as the victim and the receiver of the news. All are permanently stained in the process. This coarse equation is found in the verse at the top of the page. Passively watching your brother's blood being shed, and tale-bearing, are conceptually connected.