[Avodah] believe in ourselves

[Micha Berger]

On Tue, Jun 24, 2008 at 08:53:54AM -0400, M Cohen wrote:
: I have heard many times from my rebbi (R Noach Orlowek of Torah Ohr Jer'm)
: that every Jew must know that he/she are intrinsically good.
: (and therefore should believe in themselves/have self esteem)
: his oft-quoted rayah is from birchas hashachar..
: elokai - neshama shenasata bi tehorra hi..

And of course, Slaboka and Gadlus haAdam produced what may have been
the majority of the 20th century's Torah leaders. (Okay, that's an
exageration, but not by much!)

I wrote much on this subject, given the role of anavah in mussar.
The blog category is at <http://www.aishdas.org/asp/category/anavah>,
but for an overview I pulled all the threads together into a single
notion about a month back in "In the Name of the One Who Said It"
<http://www.aishdas.org/asp/2008/05/name-of-1-who-said-it.shtml>.

Teaser:
> This conclusion [kol ha'omeir davar besheim omero...] is drawn from
> verse about Esther...
...
> Here are some of the conclusions about anavah that we have explored in
> the past:
> - Anavah is the emulation of Hashem's tzimtzum...
> - Anavah is the middle path between ga'avah (egotism) and shefeilus
>   (lowliness)....
> - Because of this, anavah motivates. It doesn't lead me to believe
>   I am too puny to get anything done, nor have me complacent in my
>   accomplishments, real or imagined. We looked at a number of
>   figures from history who erred in either direction, and portrayed
>   Esther as an example of someone who found the proper balance...
> - ... [A]navah therefore also brings happiness, contentment with one's
>   lot, one's role to play in history...
> - This is why an enigmatic gemara defines an anav as someone who always
>   prays in his maqom qavu'ah (permanent, established, location). Anavah
>   is having one place in the big whole.
...
> Anavah: knowing that one is only one letter, but that anyone could
> make oneself critical to the kashrus of the entire scroll.
...
> The process then, is the sprouting of truth. The anav knows to
> contribute to it, that he may be a mere screw, a single letter, that
> will not be famous or recorded in the annals of history. But he can
> make himself critical to reaching the end. Part of eternity.
...
> To close with another medrash (with thanks to MBD for turning it into
> song lyrics ...
>> The Rabbis taught: As the time that the messianic (i.e. annointed)
>> king is revealed, he will come and stand on the roof of the Beis
>> haMiqdash. And he makes himself heard to Israel and says, "Anavim -
>> higi'ah zeman ge'ulaskhem!..."

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             One doesn't learn mussar to be a tzaddik,
micha at aishdas.org        but to become a tzaddik.
http://www.aishdas.org                         - Rav Yisrael Salanter
Fax: (270) 514-1507