This verse instructs one to chase a mother bird from its nest before taking its fledglings. On a deeper level, this law reflects the state of the Jewish people in exile. According to the mystical work Zohar, the mother bird who has been chased away cries about the separation from her children. When her cries are heard on high, the angels ask Hashem why He has commanded that the mother bird suffer such a sad fate. God answers that He shares the same fate as the mother bird: His presence has been driven from the Beit Hamikdash, and His children have been taken into exile. God asks that the angels sympathize with His plight and the plight of the Jewish people. He demands that they pray for the return of the Jewish people to their homeland and for the restoration of the Beit Hamikdash so that His presence can once again dwell in Yerushalayim.