MUSSAR PROGRAM ClASS #2 - JewishPathways.com

From this perspective, then, all of our weaknesses, failings and
shortcomings are not simply flaws – they have a purpose. Rectifying
each one is a step toward wholeness. In English, the relationship
between wholeness and holiness is evident, even in the words
themselves. Wholeness – shlemut – is not so much a reward as it is
the fulfillment of the purpose of our lives. Rabbi Yisrael Salanter, who
did so much to mark the way of the soul, speaks to the same issue in
his book, Ohr Yisrael:
The Midrash (Breishit Rabba 11:6) teaches: “Everything that
came into being during the six days of Creation requires
improvement – for example, the mustard seed needs to be
sweetened... Also, man needs rectification.”
Our world is a world of transformation. When we are improving
and refining ourselves, we are in concert with the Divine plan –
fulfilling our purpose for existing in this world... Not only is the
human being created for this purpose, but he is also given the
ability and capacity to attain this supreme goal.
The Mussar teachers never make perfectly clear what constitutes
wholeness. I perceive this an ideal state of being in which every inner
trait is in perfect equilibrium. Maimonides writes about the shevil
ha'zahav – the golden mean – which is a measure we can apply to
each inner trait: When any trait tends toward the extreme, whether
excess or deficiency, it is problematic. Only when the trait is in the
mid-range, will it operate harmoniously and beneficially. And when all
our traits are in that condition, then we can call ourselves whole.
To whatever extent our lives manifest wholeness, that should not be
thought of as a steady state in which we have come to a final and
permanent completion. Life isn't like that, and we can only hope to be
whole in any given moment and situation. That provides no assurance
of how whole we will be in the next one.
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