Key Scriptures
“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” – Micah 6:8
“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” – Philippians 2:3
“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” – James 4:6
Opening Thought
Humility, or anavah, is one of those middot (traits) we tend to misunderstand. Many people think humility means putting yourself down, denying your gifts, or shrinking back so others can shine. But Mussar offers a different picture.
Anavah is about knowing your place in the world… before God and before others… and living in that place with grace. It is the balance between arrogance and self-negation. As Rabbi Simcha Zissel of Kelm taught, humility means not making yourself bigger than you are, but also not making yourself smaller.
Humility is not thinking less of yourself—it is thinking of yourself rightly, and often, less often.