What are you going to do?
We began with Aristotle on Monday, so let’s briefly return to him. The influential, ancient philosopher devised an expansive principle around the state of being that he called eudemonia—a condition of fulfillment and well-being. He taught that a person in pursuit of wisdom, focused on virtue, and who takes pleasure in one’s existence, is achieving eudemonia. Happiness, virtue, and balance are linked.
Taking a page from Aristotle’s teachings, the ideas of the Mussars are not focused on self-denial or stoicism. Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (1707-1746) wrote that “God wants each person to complete himself, body and soul.” To complete oneself is to be whole, in Hebrew shalem (related to the familiar word: shalom). Rabbi Alan Morinis, the scholar most responsible for bringing Mussar teachings into Reform Judaism, challenges practitioners of Mussar to strive for wholeness by balancing the middot (see Wednesday). Shalom and shalem are linked. Mussar teaches that pursuing wholeness (balancing middot) in one’s life also brings peace.
Today’s world often rewards traits which Mussar warns us not to give preeminence: impatience, stinginess, fear, judgment and so on. While acting in this way may bring short-term gains and fleeting satisfaction, ultimately being driven by these qualities will leave our souls shadowed and unfulfilled. Mussar calls us to reject these false paths and embrace virtues like patience, generosity, and gratitude, bringing light and integrity to ourselves and the world.
As we approach the new year and the holiday season, you might consider choosing a trait a week and monitoring you own behavior and inner thoughts so that you give the positive virtue prominence. In your pursuit of shalem (wholeness) you might also find deeper inner shalom (peace).
—Rabbi Ron Stern