Who are YOU. A tiger or a Human being? Parable - Story.

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Knowledge is Power -- G-dly Knowledge is Super Power.

Many of us have plenty time to think and to read thanks to the hurricane. There couldn’t be a better time to reflect on our lives than during this period of time, the ten days of repentance as we prepare for Yom Kippur.

If the hurricane, can be appreciated and seen with such reverence, fear and respect, how much more so G-d who is surely stronger than this ONE creation of His!!

The Dubner Maggid (1740 – 1804)  Rabbi Jacob ben Wolf Kranz of Dubno was a Lithuanian (Belarus)-born preacher (maggid) famous for his fables or parables designed to teach or illustrate an instructive lesson based on Jewish tradition.

Most Jews, are awakened or at the very least have a small pinch of urging in their soul when we enter this period of time on the calendar. It may even be a thought like, “who would I be fooling if I where to go to synagogue on this very special day”. “Praying in the synagogue and taking this day seriously is no more than living the life of a hypocrite.”  And they may very well decide to stay home or worse yet, waste the day by living another very regular ordinary and mundane day.

To this, The Dubner Maggid offered the following parable.

Once, there were two brothers who wanted very much to see a certain pair of tigers in a very special holding. They saved the money and after arranging for the visit they took all their savings and made the journey.

They checked in to the park and were waiting for their guide at the entrance when they happened to overhear a strange conversation that took place between what appeared like two animals.

It wasn’t long before the guide took them in to the park and guided them to the other side of the huge cage which contained these beautiful cats. The guide was extremely detailed in his description of these two precious and almost extinct animals and motioned to the tigers and they both let out a special sound unique to this breed.

The two brothers looked at each other, they both recognized the sound and in incredulity said at the same time to each other, it was these two animals talking like human beings not too long ago!!

They immediately confronted to zoo reserve guide and shared with him their suspicion. “These tigers are not tigers at all, they are human beings dressed like tigers!”

The zoo guide immediately took them off to the side and told them quietly.

Listen, these two tigers are exactly what you see the entire year, every single day of the year. They are tigers. You just happened to get lucky, and on the one day of the year they change their suits for fresh suits, you happened to hear and see them in a different form.”

Everyone understands that if these two tigers where able to act and speak like a human being for even one moment, they were NEVER animals and are ALWAYS human beings.

As beautiful as it is to be a rare breed tiger, there is no question there is so much more in being a human being, no matter the opportunities there may be to act like a rare breed tiger. Nothing, can be compared to belonging to G-d as His choice nation and people.

When it comes any time of the year, and in particular a time when the Prophet Isaiah says, “seek G-d when He can be found, call Him when He is close by”, and we feel a little G-dly, a little guilty, a little yearning in our soul for more G-dliness, for more attachment with our faith for more connection with our people, this isn’t the anomaly. THIS IS WHO WE REALLY ARE, THAT WE COVER AND HIDE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.

If we can feel even the slightest bit inspired, this is our sign from G-d that our souls are like none other, our souls haven’t extinguished yet G-d forbid, and there is lots of hope. With enough fanning of the inner G-dly flame, and spiritual nourishment during these many Holidays throughout the month, we don’t have to settle for anything less in our lives.

The Day of Atonement – Yom Kippur is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity to clean our slate and begin a brand new chapter in our relationship with G-d, and the G-d inside each once of us. If we were granted only one such chance in our lifetimes we would be so lucky, how much more so when it is coming up in just a few days for all of us.

May G-d grant us all a Sweet New Year. The intelligence and strength to use out our lives productively, for the purpose we were placed here to begin with.