Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz (5733:20) provides another example from the story of Balak and Bilaam. Among the ten things created during twilight on the sixth day of Creation was פִּ י הָ אָ תוֹן – the mouth of Bilaam’s donkey. After 2450 years standing by waiting to talk, the donkey finally spoke up to Bilaam, questioning why he had been beaten given the presence of an angel blocking the path and preventing him from proceeding. That donkey deserved respect, after all, it is the mother to Avraham Avinu’s donkey, the same donkey that brought Moshe Rabbeinu to Egypt and on which Mashiach will arrive. Back in our story, Bilaam’s eyes were then opened, and he too saw the angel blocking their path. What did the angel say to him?
אֹ תְ כָ ה הָ רַ גְ תִּ י וְ אוֹ תָ הּ הֶ חֱ יֵ יתִ יַם ּכִּי עַתָּה ג – you are the one I should have killed, while sparing her. The angel killed the donkey, but why? The donkey that was one of ten special things to be created just as the first Shabbat began, and whose progeny led, and will lead, Bnei Yisrael – why was it killed? Rashi questions this decision to kill the donkey, given its innocence, and suggests its demise was due to it revealing household secrets, embarrassing to Bilaam. Despite Bilaam's own acts and defiance of Hakadosh Baruch Hu’s orders leading to his embarrassment, Hakadosh Baruch Hu deemed that even Bilaam should not face disgrace and shame.
Rav Shmuelevitz marvels at the potential insights and lessons that could have been gained from this donkey. This donkey was created for the sole purpose of sanctifying G-d’s name! Why kill it?! Just imagine people lining up for hours and paying top dollars to hear its wisdom, even in the form of quick one-liners. This attraction would be a genuine Kiddush Hashem of the greatest proportions! Nevertheless, due to the embarrassment that could be caused to Bilaam, a non-Jew, an evil baby-murderer (in Egypt as Pharoah’s advisor) who disobeyed Hakadosh Baruch Hu, the opportunity was forgone, and the donkey was put to death after uttering a mere few words.
I’d like to bring forth one last idea, found in a sefer titled Yizraeli by Chacham Avraham ben Azaria. In it is a story, likely imaginary, but worth retelling in my own language.
There was a man who regularly visited the forest to cut down trees. In the forest he spotted a lion. It was a calm lion, and the man would collect wood, the lion would simply look on, content as though he had just eaten a giraffe. As the man walked directly by him, he hesitated for a moment, and then upon seeing the lion not roaring or opening its mouth to take a bite, he raised his hand – to wave hello. Sure enough, the lion waved back. The man figured he’d reward the lion, so the next time he returned, he did so with a nice package of fresh meat. He did this for a month or two, until eventually he sat down next to the lion during their lunch break, and they ate together. The lion said, "Good morning, Yehudi. I own this forest, and nobody will touch you! Do what you need, I’ll protect you." One day, the man was quite tired and decided to lie down for a quick nap. The lion noticed and approached quietly to sit nearby and protect the man. But the lion was also tired, and he, too, fell asleep, slumping over onto the man’s lap. The man woke up quickly and did not know what to do. He was still afraid the wrong move would lead to an impromptu trip to the land she’kulo tov.
So, he began to calmly pet the lion’s head. The lion was clearly pleased because he let out a huge burp accompanied by a foul smell! The man reacted, "What an awful smell! I’ve never smelled anything that disgusting!" The lion opened one eye and then went back to sleep, and the man figured there’s no way the sleeping lion heard him. But he did. Upon waking up, the lion complained, "I have a really bad headache." The man suggested, "I'd offer you some Tylenol, but you'd need at least a case!" The lion proposed, "No, we lions heal naturally. If you give me a big blow to the head with your axe, my pain will be gone." The man wavered, but the lion insisted, threatening him if he didn’t carry it out. Reluctantly, the man tapped the lion lightly with the axe handle, to which the lion responded, "That's it? I didn’t ask you to tickle my head. Hit me harder!" Feeling compelled, the man delivered a forceful blow, splitting the lion’s head open and chasing him back into the woods with a trail of blood behind. Fearing retaliation, the man avoided the forest for a while until he eventually ran out of wood and had no choice but to return. He went back in, but there was no lion to be found. The next week as well, and the following too. That was it, he figured, the lion was gone forever. But just then, the lion reappeared and asked, "Hi Yehudi, how are you?" Shaking but relieved, the man answered, "Great!" The lion then invited him closer, showing his healed wound, and remarking, "You see the wound from your hand and axe? It healed quite nicely. But the blow from your mouth – when you said how bad I smelled – that I’m still hurt by today! Don’t ever come back to this forest again!" This is the story Yizraeli says happened. Or perhaps not.
Look at the power of our mouths as learned from animals! The power of our mouths is dangerous! Embarrassing family members, or teachers, or neighbors in shul, or colleagues at work – Rachel Imeinu teaches us one word is all it takes for a record that can never be erased. It can only be collected and stashed away, but it remains forever.
