How Do We Achieve Humility? Pray and Know Your Place
Just as we pray every day for livelihood, health, and wisdom, we must also pray for humility, as it is the root of joy.
- הרב יגאל כהן
- פורסם י' תמוז התשפ"ד
Image of a man standing with his back to the viewer, gazing at the blue sky with white clouds and looking directly towards the sun. #VALUE!
The evil inclination is made of fire and we are flesh and blood. If not for the support of Hashem, who helps us against it, we could not overcome it (see Kiddushin 30b). If you ask how Hashem intervenes with our free choice, the answer is that He sends faithful messengers to teach us the path to achieving this wonderful trait. Additionally, He places in our hearts ideas on overcoming anger and pride. Sometimes, Hashem ensures reminders reach us, helping us understand our place.
Just as we pray every day for livelihood, health, and wisdom, we must also pray for humility, as it is the root of joy that brings a person to the peak of happiness.
Know Your Place
Ramban writes in his letter to his son: "Every person should be considered greater than you in your eyes. If he is wise or wealthy, you should honor him. If he is poor and you are wealthier or wiser than him, think in your heart that you are more obligated than him and he is more justified than you, for if he sins, it is inadvertent while you sin knowingly."
Moses, peace be upon him, was more humble than anyone of his generation, as we mentioned earlier. The question arises, what did Moses think in his heart when he saw the wicked Dathan and Abiram, thinking they were better than him? Is this true humility, to think contrary to logic?
In "Letter from Eliyahu," it is written that Moses felt Dathan and Abiram were better in a certain respect for two reasons: first, he thought to himself that if he had been given souls like theirs and raised in their environment, he might have acted worse than they did. Secondly, a person is judged by Hashem not by successes and failures but by maximizing one's potential. Hence, Moses thought to himself that he, being granted a high soul, was expected to meet greater demands from Hashem, and maybe he was not meeting these expectations. Meanwhile, Dathan and Abiram were born with lower souls and were thus maximizing their abilities against their formidable evil inclinations.
