Being tough
However, just as one understands that humility is an essential prelude to Torah study, the opposite is true as well, that one must not always express their humility. In order for one's service of G-d to be complete, one must also employ his personal strengths, attaining the proper balance of both aspects.
Humility alone will not vanquish the darkness of the world. A person should not conduct himself solely with a meek demeanor. He must know how to garner his strengths in his efforts to spread G-dliness. This is the reason that the first directive brought in the code of Jewish law is the mishna that instructs a person to have a strong identity in their service of G-d. For, without this, they would not be able to accomplish anything.
Text 10
Yehudah the son of Teima would say: “Be bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, fleeting as a deer and mighty as a lion to do the will of your Father in heaven.”
Mishna, Avot, 5:20
One must have strength of character and not be uncomfortable in their faith. A person must be strong as a lion to be able to overpower his evil inclination which tempts him to sin. It is through the tenaciousness of oxen and donkeys that one is able to properly affect the world and transform its darkness into light.
A person must be vigilant, though, not to allow this powerful might to become an expression of his own ego. His strength must stem only from G-d and the Torah. This is the reason why the author of this statement, Yehudah ben Teimah, is specifically mentioned. The word “Yehudah” derives from the word “hoda’a,” which means to submit, and to have humility. The word “[ben] Teimah,” which means saying or expressing, teaches that this humility must be expressed in our ego as well.
Not only does a person need to begin his service of G-d with humility, but throughout the entire service, he must not forget it for a moment. This humility must be the driving force behind his entire identity—that his goal is to serve G-d.
When he uses in his own strong qualities to fight the darkness of the world, coupled with a sense of humility, he will be successful in transforming the world into a G-dly place.
