What Blocks Peace?

“So that he may learn to fear the Lord his God… in order that his heart not be lifted above his brothers and not turn aside from the commandment to the right or to the left.” (Devarim. 17:19–20) 

False Humility 

It is told of the Ramban, of blessed memory, that once people came and spoke to him about a certain priest who, they said, was a man of great humility. He would defer to everyone, speak even with children, and conduct himself with self-effacement in many ways. 

The Ramban, however, replied that he did not believe the priest’s humility was genuine—for true humility can only be found in a Jew who believes Hashem’s Divine Providence. 

Nevertheless, the Ramban traveled with them to see for himself how the priest behaved. Indeed, he observed that the priest conducted himself with remarkable humility. 

When the Ramban prepared to take leave and return home, the priest asked him: “Well then, what do you think of my humility?” 

It became clear at once that his conduct did not stem from genuine humility, but rather the opposite—he sought pride in the very fact that he appeared humble. 

To drive the point home, the Ramban said to him, “A great difficulty has arisen for me. For in our Torah it is written, ‘And the man Moshe was exceedingly humble, more than any person on the face of the earth’ (Bamidbar. 12:3). Yet it seems you are even more humble than he!” 

The priest replied: “Indeed, I have long had the same question myself.” 

At that, the Ramban said: “Since you yourself have this question, I no longer do.” 

Humility Through Faith 

We are living in galut, in exile, where even the presidents and national leaders generally conduct themselves with arrogance and pride. And even those who try to present themselves as humble—upon closer examination, it is evident that their behavior is meant only to be admired and honored by others. 

This is why it is so difficult to resolve conflicts and find peace. Even when one side recognizes that a dispute harms them, they feel that yielding would diminish their honor. Out of pride, they are willing to sacrifice their own well-being – and that of their people – rather than humble themselves to make peace. 

Therefore, we must be very careful not to be influenced by this culture. We cannot become accustomed to tolerating pride as if it were normal, for then we may begin to imitate their ways. Instead, we must strengthen our faith in Divine Providence by learning the seforim that addresses this level of faith, for it leads to true humility. 

This concept that genuine humility stems from faith in Hashem’s Divine Providence, is beautifully explained in a famous letter written by the Ramban to his son in Catalonia. There he writes that one whose heart is rooted in the knowledge that all he possesses is not from his own strength or power, understands that he has nothing to be proud of. As he put it: “One who is arrogant in his heart toward others, is rebelling against the sovereignty of Heaven. And with what should a person be proud? If with wealth, ‘The Lord impoverishes and enriches’ (Shmuel I 2:7). If with wisdom, ‘He removes speech from the faithful and takes away understanding from the elders’ (Iyov 12:20).” 

But when one neglects to study the seforim that can instill faith in Providence and heighten one’s awareness of Hashem’s greatness, he risks becoming arrogant himself. And this haughtiness brings the gravest kind of impurity. Pride breeds quarrels, jealousy, hatred, gossip, anger, falsehood, and mockery. It also causes the Shechinah to withdraw from a person, as Chazal taught (Sotah 5a) regarding the arrogant, that the Holy One, blessed be He, says: “He and I cannot dwell together.” Inevitably, this leaves the person vulnerable to the forces of impurity, which leads him to grow lax in all the mitzvot. 

The Need to Study Mussar 

To my deep regret, I have observed over the years, that some yeshivot do not have a set time in their schedules to study mussar or similar works. 

True, in the years before the First World War, some of the great leaders of Lithuanian Jewry did not see a need to set aside daily time for mussar study in their yeshivot. They believed that the inherent sanctity and purity of Torah study alone was sufficient. 

Yet the Chafetz Chaim, of blessed memory, already wrote in his work Beis Yisrael (published in 1928), that in later years, when he spoke again with those same leaders, they admitted that in our times—when false ideologies are so widespread—the study of mussar has become essential. Without it, we cannot be certain that Torah and fear of Heaven will endure among us. 

This principle was already taught by Chazal (Shabbos 31a) through a parable: just as when one stores wheat in a silo, one must mix in salty earth to preserve it from rotting, so too must one mix fear of Heaven into Torah study. Only in this way will a person remain faithful to the Torah throughout his life. 

The Yetzer Harah’s Devices 

The pasuk in Tehillim (36:4) says, “The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit; he ceases to be wise, to do good.” The Baal Shem Tov explained that the main deceit of the Yetzer Harah is to convince a person to stop seeking wisdom that would bring him to true goodness—namely, the study of mussar and Chassidut, which instills fear of Heaven. And where the Yetzer Harah succeeds in preventing such learning, it is not so concerned with Torah study itself, for Torah without fear of Heaven cannot endure. 

For this reason, it is urgently necessary that yeshivot and Torah institutions establish fixed classes for mussar. 

We can clearly observe that young men who leave yeshivot without ever learning works that teach Hashem’s Greatness and the smallness of man, often suffer spiritual decline after marriage. Having never refined their hearts through humility, when they enter family life and must interact with many others, their pride breeds jealousy and hatred, leading them astray from sound judgment and from the will of their Creator. In this way, they destroy their lives, both spiritually and materially. 

Thus, the verse teaches: “So that he may learn to fear the Lord his God”—that is, he must study books of awe and mussar. “In order that his heart not be lifted above his brothers”—so that he does not become arrogant. And through this he will merit “not turning aside from the commandment to the right or to the left.” 

*** 

The Kalever Rebbe is the seventh Rebbe of the Kaalov Chasidic dynasty, begun by his ancestor who was born to his previously childless parents after receiving a blessing from the Baal Shem Tov zy”a, and later learned under the Maggid of Mezeritch zt”l. The Rebbe has been involved in outreach for more than 30 years and writes weekly emails on understanding current issues through the Torah. Sign up at www.kaalov.org.