Be Like an Ant: A Lag BaOmer Message

Every now and then we get those pesky little ants in our home that crawl in and around the kitchen, seemingly minding their own business, but terribly annoying ours. Who invited them anyways? They don’t pay rent. They don’t do chores. All they seem to do is rummage along the floor for dropped crumbs and spilled yogurt. Nasty, right?!

But recently, one of these ants actually taught me a lesson. So there it was, a little black house ant crawling along the kitchen counter. I decided that enough is enough. I couldn’t step on it, unless I would have gotten onto the counter, which would have just been weird. I suppose I could have squished it with a napkin, or better yet, let it crawl onto a plate and bring it outside. But I didn’t do that either. Instead, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I waited for the ant to go near the ledge, then in a single swooping motion, I knocked the ant off the counter with my hand.

Although the deadly blow didn’t actually occur in slow motion, the level of intensity certainly felt as if it was happening in slow motion. With dramatic music, of course (don’t worry, this happened before Sefira). 

Feeling proud and strong, I looked down upon the floor to observe my victory as, once and for all, I taught the ant a lesson.

And that’s when I saw it. …(slow motion ends, dramatic music stops playing)...

THE ANT WAS STILL ALIVE! Not only was it still moving, it was not even limping; it was crawling along the floor with the same speed as it did prior to the assassination attempt. I was stunned, shocked, and in disbelief. How could that have just happened? Did I just witness a miracle? An ant is typically between 1 mm and 5 mm in length. As such, for an ant to fall from a standard counterheight surface (36 in), the fall is roughly 200 body lengths of the ant! To put that in human terms: If a 6-foot person fell 200 body lengths, that would be like falling from 1200 feet, roughly the height of the Empire State building or a bit taller than the Eiffel Tower. Without a parachute, a fall that size for a human being would be unsurvivable. Yet, for the ant, it didn’t seem to be a problem; it walked away completely unharmed. 

Apparently, I learned, ants can actually fall from any height and survive. This is due to its low mass and high air resistance, acting as a cushion, keeping their maximum speed (terminal velocity) extremely low (only about 4 mph). Simply incredible!

In the end, I didn’t teach the ant a lesson; the ant taught me a lesson.

Shlomo HaMelech (see Mishlei 6:6) advises us to learn from the ant:  לך אל נמלה עצל ראה דרכיה וחכם – Go to the ant, you lazy one; see its ways and become wise. The Midrash (see Devarim Rabbah 5) describes that the ant has three homes (that is, ant holes have three compartments): an upper, middle, and bottom. It does not store food in the upper to avoid water dripping in, nor in the bottom because of the moisture of the mud; rather, the ant stores all its food in the middle home.

Despite the fact that the ant only lives six months, it stores way more food than necessary. Why is that? The ant only consumes one-and-a-half wheat kernels over its six month lifespan, so why does it store so much food? The Midrash relates that the ant says: “Perhaps Hashem will decree more life for me, and by collecting all these foods I will have the provisions I need to eat.” 

The Midrash, then, quotes a teaching from the heiliga tanna, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai: It once happened that people found three hundred kor (large amounts) of grain in an ants hole, from what it brought in from the summer for the winter. Therefore, Shlomo HaMelech said, “Go to the ant and become wise.” Meaning, you, too, should similarly prepare for yourselves mitzvos from This World for the World to Come.  

There are trillions of ants that crawl along the planet. They are a species known to live for a very short period of time. Yet, this reality doesn’t stop the ant from working tremendously hard and gathering in all its necessary food, and then some! “Because maybe HaShem will give me more life.” The ant pushes itself now in the moment, putting in the hard work at the present, because maybe, just maybe, it will be given more life, and it needs to be ready. 

Everything about the ant is beyond scale and normal measure. It’s tiny, yet so big. It can fall from any height and survive. It can carry more than ten times its mass. It gathers way more food than it needs in a lifetime. 

One of our great secrets is our likeness to the ant. Small, yes. But Oh so big! Like ants, we defy the standard laws of nature. Like ants, we may fall great heights, but will always survive. Like ants, we are able to carry a ton on our shoulders. Like ants, we can accomplish so much with our allotted time on this planet. Like ants, we are meant to amass as much spiritual wealth in this world as we so possibly can.

When the Ten Spies overheard the giants talking about the Jews, they were described as ants in the form of people—נְמָלִים יֵשׁ בַּכְּרָמִים כַּאֲנָשִׁים (see Rashi to Bamidbar 13:33). The Spies perceived this comment in the negative: “We are so small and weak compared to these great giants.” But this was a big mistake! Being compared to an ant is not a negative, it’s tremendously positive. The Spies, on some level, perhaps failed to “Go to the ant” and learn from them. They should have harnessed, tapped into, and associated with the immeasurable nature of the ant. It’s true the ant is small, but ants are not limited by their smallness. 

The ant stands ready, always. And we are meant to do the same. “Go to the ant,” Shlomo Hamelech says. Go to your inner ant and be reminded, “If I am alive right now, I am meant to work hard and prepare. I am meant to accomplish holy things and be the best Jew I possibly can be.” 

Today is Lag BaOmer, a day where we celebrate the heiliga tanna, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the author of the holy Zohar. All yidden come together, singing and dancing around a fire. The avoda is to observe the external fire, and be reminded of the fire that already exists inside of you. The avoda is to see that the Zohar, the light/radiance/illumination of Torah, is already present. It’s just covered up. The word לג (Lag) when rearranged spells גל (gal), to reveal. On Lag Baomer, we are reminded to uncover and reveal the burning spiritual fire that exists in every single one of us.

You see, Lag Baomer is not simply a reminder of the Jew I can be, but perhaps more importantly, it’s a reminder of the Jew I already am. Because deep down, there is a Jew in me that is on fire with my yiddishkiet. Deep down there is a Jew in me that is always hopeful for more life and for more opportunities of connection with HaShem. Deep down there is a Jew in me that values what it means to be small yet so big. Deep down there is a Jew in me that is eternal and will always survive.

Deep down, there is a Jew in me that is likened to the ant. The ant that stands ready. The ant that works with a zerizus, a bren, and a fire. The ant that knows no bounds. 

Who knows, but maybe it’s not a coincidence that the gematria of the heiliga tanna, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai—רבי שמעון בר יוחאי—is 915, which happens to be the exact gematria (and the only pasuk in all of Tanach with this gematria) as the pasuk in Mishlei 6:6—לך-אל-נמלה עצל; ראה דרכיה וחכם, “Go to the ant, you lazy one; see its ways and become wise.”

It is none other than Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai who is the one that expounds on this pasuk, teaching us to be like the ant and take advantage of our time here in this world! 

In the merit of the heiliga tanna, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, let us not sit around idly and lazy during our time in this world. Instead, “Go to the ant” inside of you. Live with zerizus. With passion. With a fiery excitement to serve the Creator.

Make your most of it, with everything you’ve got!

Wishing you ah lichtige Lag Baomer!

Rabbi Ori Strum