הֱוֵי זָנָב לָאֲרָיוֹת וְאַל תְּהִי רֹאשׁ לַשּׁוּעָלִים

ביטוי (אנגלית)

Be a tail to lions and do not be a head to jackals/ rather be a tail to lions and be not a head to jackals

הגדרה (אנגלית)

By analogy: It is preferable to hold a lowly position among a company of wise or good people than to be in a high position among foolish or wicked people (see also: "Woe to the head of jackals and not the tail of lions").

("Rabbi Matthias ben Charash Omer says, "Be a leader in the peace of all men, and be a tail to lions, and do not be a head to foxes" - Avot 4:16, and so: "Like a pomegranate, your temples are empty, even though they are empty, and you are full of commandments like a pomegranate... My fathers said to her, "Be a tail to lions, and do not be a head to foxes" - Sanhedrin 37 A.A., and so on: "There is a head for foxes/ and a head for lions/ you must decide/ which head to be/ there is a head that has no heart/ this is the head that is pitiful/ and for us, what fun/ there is only the head of a cherub" - Talma Eligon-Rose/ Cherub Head)