1) When you think beast, what animal comes to mind? What are 5 beast like characteristics? Do you believe you have them within yourself?
2) If you had super strength and energy to focus on one task, what would it be and why?
3) Do you think Judaism encourages to run from our animal selves or embrace it?
(א) והנחש היה ערום. ... אֶלָּא לִמֶּדְךָ מֵאֵיזוֹ עֵצָה קָפַץ הַנָּחַשׁ עֲלֵיהֶם, רָאָה אוֹתָם עֲרֻמִּים וְעוֹסְקִים בְּתַשְׁמִישׁ לְעֵין כֹּל וְנִתְאַוָּה לָהּ:
(1) והנחש היה ערום AND THE SERPENT WAS MORE SUBTLE ... with what plan did the serpent assail them? He saw them naked and engaged in relations in public and he coveted her (Eve) ...
(א) דין השכמת הבוקר ובו ט סעיפים:
יתגבר כארי לעמוד בבוקר לעבודת בוראו שיהא הוא מעורר השחר
(1) One should strengthen himself like a lion to get up in the morning to serve his Creator, so that it is he who awakens the dawn.
(כ) יְהוּדָה בֶן תֵּימָא אוֹמֵר, הֱוֵי עַז כַּנָּמֵר, וְקַל כַּנֶּשֶׁר, וְרָץ כַּצְּבִי, וְגִבּוֹר כָּאֲרִי, לַעֲשׂוֹת רְצוֹן אָבִיךָ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמָיִם...
(20) Judah ben Tema said: Be strong as a leopard, and swift as an eagle, and fleet as a gazelle, and brave as a lion, to do the will of your Father who is in heaven ...
Elijah the prophet once met a man who claimed to have a feeble mind and therefore never learned Torah.
Elijah asked the man what he did for a living. The man replied he was a fisherman and went on to describe the intricacies of fishing, making nets, boats, tides, etc. Elijah questioned why the man thought he had no intellect for Torah, but was quite intelligent when it came to fishing. The man only sighed, raised his voice, and wept.
When Rabbi Imi was kidnapped in Sifsufa, Rabbi Yochanan despaired and proclaimed him as good as dead. Reish Lakish replied to him before we abandon hope that he has been killed I am willing to run the risk that I may be killed in order to save him. He went and rescued him from the hands of the kidnappers, who all were eventually killed themselves.
(17) but shepherds came and drove them off. Moses rose to their defense, and he watered their flock.
(יז) וְסִֽיסְרָא֙ נָ֣ס בְּרַגְלָ֔יו אֶל־אֹ֣הֶל יָעֵ֔ל ... וַתִּקַּ֣ח יָעֵ֣ל אֵֽשֶׁת־חֶ֠בֶר אֶת־יְתַ֨ד הָאֹ֜הֶל וַתָּ֧שֶׂם אֶת־הַמַּקֶּ֣בֶת בְּיָדָ֗הּ וַתָּב֤וֹא אֵלָיו֙ בַּלָּ֔אט וַתִּתְקַ֤ע אֶת־הַיָּתֵד֙ בְּרַקָּת֔וֹ וַתִּצְנַ֖ח בָּאָ֑רֶץ וְהֽוּא־נִרְדָּ֥ם וַיָּ֖עַף וַיָּמֹֽת׃
(17) Sisera, meanwhile, had fled on foot to the tent of Jael, ... Then Jael wife of Heber took a tent pin and grasped the mallet. When he was fast asleep from exhaustion, she approached him stealthily and drove the pin through his temple till it went down to the ground. Thus he died.
Rabbi Yisrael Zev Gustman (1908-1991) was a Talmudic genius. As a young man, he married the daughter of a top rabbi in Vilna, the center of Jewish life in the early 20th century. Rabbi Gustman's father-in-law died shortly before the wedding, thus the young 20-year-old inherited a seat on the illustrious rabbinical court of Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, the head of European Jewry prior to WW2...
When Rabbi Gustman reached the forest, his plan was to become a partisan to fight against the Nazis and defend himself and his family. However, to be accepted as a partisan, there was a single condition: A person had to come with a weapon.
Rabbi Gustman's opportunity came when he saw a lone Nazi soldier passing through a quiet place in the forest. Rabbi Gustman jumped the soldier, threw his rifle as far as away as he could, and killed the soldier with his bare hands.