Tanya Life - Tanya Background p. 1/2 | Comprehensive Backstory

Aug 16, 2023

Tanya Chapter 30 | The Power of Humility | When You Should Compare Yourself to Others | Dealing with Judgmentalism

Chapter Thirty: Now, the sixth method in crippling the ego to un-obstruct the critical flow channel from the mind to the heart. This one, more of a perspective: Usually, comparing yourself to others is a bad trait - especially if it's a spontaneous thought that breeds jealousy or self- misery. There is a time, though, when it could be an asset. To break your ego, you must come to a raw and honest realization that you are the worst person you know - lower than the lowest person you are familiar with! This isn't just humility - not boasting or gloating. Because, although that is commendable, it presupposes that you do recognize your own qualities, and that they are better than those around you, but you just righteously choose to keep those facts and thoughts to yourself - or better, you don't think of it at all. This, though, will not break your spirit. You must take it to the next level and bring your mind to realize that you have nothing at all to be proud about! The idea is to engage in a mental pursuit that is otherwise very detrimental, but healthy in this context: compare yourself to the least redeemable person you know. This, in an exercise in three steps: * Them. Recognize that no matter how low, annoying, sinful, and distasteful that person is - you can never, ever really judge them until you have experienced their position; their history, their tendencies, their knowledge, their nature and nurture. It is impossible, so you must realize that you cannot honestly brand him with any label. * Yourself. Yourself, on the other hand, you can and must judge. Recognize that you are far, far from perfect. On a normal day you excuse yourself ceaselessly. But, in this exercise, be brutally honest. You have a long way to go until the ideal. So, in reality, at the very least you stand on equal keel as the other in this comparison game - them: you can never judge; you: every mistake must be critically judged and owned. * The Fallout. If all the above is true and honest, then the logical conclusion is that you - a person who is in the space of Torah knowledge, Mitzvah observance, good manners and good person - must automatically be lower because as a rule: the better you are as a person the more is expected of you. Ironically, the more you think better of yourself, the more, in this mental exercise, you must be critical of yourself. So, as a fact, you are literally the worst person you know! If you go through this exercise in an honest way, you are certain to break your spirit, and therefore your ego. Mission accomplished! -_-_-_- Source Sheet: Chapter 30

48 min