English: “For they are chayos” — what is the meaning of chayos? \ldots Rather they said to him: This nation is compared to animals — Yehudah a lion’s cub, Dan a serpent, Naftali a hind let loose, Yissachar a strong-boned donkey, Yosef a firstling ox, Binyamin a wolf that tears.
On the daf / in context: See the cited source for the full section.
Type of Learning
Custom — reading chayos against the tribal animal metaphors of Bereishis 49.
What Is Learned
Chazal teach that the midwives justified their non-compliance by appealing to the animal-like self-sufficiency of Israel in childbirth, drawn from the blessings of the tribes.