Every child knows the answer to the question: “Why was the Torah given on Har Sinai?” Hashem chose to give the Torah on a small, plain mountain with nothing seemingly special about it, and not on a huge, high mountain, or a beautiful mountain adorned with trees and flowers, because Torah can only be given where there’s humility.
But Reb Moshe Kozhnitzer, citing the Nachlas Shimon, asks: “Why did Hashem give the Torah on a mountain at all?” If it was so important to stress the importance of humility, why not give the Torah on level ground somewhere in the desert, or perhaps in a valley or canyon?
The Nachlas Shimon answers this by pointing to a passuk in this week’s parshah: “Ve’itchem yihyu ish ish lamateh, ish rosh levais-avosav hu—And with you there shall be a man, a man from each tribe, a man who is head of his father’s house.”
The threefold repetition of the word “ish—man” teaches us, he says, that while a person must be aware that he is nothing but a mere mortal, he must also realize that as a Jew he has gadlus, because only then can he serve the true “man,” Hashem, who is described as “ish milchamah.”
While we need to be aware of our weaknesses as humans, we also need to know our potential in order to use our lives as Hashem wishes. Sometimes, serving Hashem will require anavah — but at other times, it will require us to stand up for what we know is right, even in the face of opposition or ridicule. This is why the Torah was given on a mountain — a small one, but still a mountain.
When it comes to relationships, as important as it is to be humble, considerate, and kind, it’s just as important to avoid self-obliterating in the name of caring for others. A person should never be at the mercy of other people or allow himself to be taken advantage of. However nice and humble we may prefer to be, and as special an attribute as anavah is, there are times when we have to stand up for ourselves and for what is right, and know that this, too, is avodas Hashem.
