A man was recently in Argentina where a wealthy member of the community took him for a visit to the local zoo. Over there, he saw something shocking. He saw visitors walk up to unchained, unguarded lions and hand-feed them. The lions were docile and treated the humans with respect.
The shocked visitor asked his host, “These lions act like young, peaceful children. How is this possible? Lions are ferocious, dangerous animals! How do people get so close, and why don’t the lions attack?”
The Lions Think that They are Dogs
“When these lions were born,” answered the host, “they were raised together with dogs and were fed all that they needed. They never discovered that they were lions and that they possess mighty strength. They think they are dogs.”
Elephants and camels also make this mistake. They have immense strength but can be trained not to be aware of it. People also make the same error. They don’t recognize their potential and strength, and thus are convinced that nothing much will come from them. Especially when they’re surrounded by people who don’t accomplish much, they think they won’t be different from their peers.
The truth is that everyone has amazing strengths, and when one devotes himself to Hashem’s service, he can accomplish a lot. (Reprinted with permission from Be’er Haparsha, Torah Wellsprings, Beshalach, p. 4)
Reprinted from the Parshas Yisro 5784 email of The Zichru Toras Moshe.
