Day 35: Not being arrogant about one's learning

Day 35: לֹא מֵגִיס לִבּוֹ בְתַלְמוּדוֹ / Not being arrogant about one's learning

As we ascend towards the final weeks of this project, we find ourselves receiving frequent reminders to remain humble, even in the face of our immense learning and growth.

Yesterday we learned that losing humility means shedding our integrity, and today we add to that warning by suggesting that arrogance leads to complacency. In other words, arrogance not only negates all of our learning and progress up to this point, but it also causes us to lose the drive to keep pushing forward. 

The Talmud cautions even its sages from the stumbling block of hubris, offering, "Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said: 'Even a Torah scholar should not have any arrogance'" (BT Sotah 5a)". While we are now attuned to the logic of this point, it is actually quite radical that our tradition's exemplars of wisdom established checks to contain their own prestige. We have come too far to let ourselves stumble, and we must resist the temptations of comfort and self-adulation.

Reflection:
Jewish tradition encourages emphatic debate. What does substantive debate look like that is firm but also unsullied by ego?
When do we cross the line from pride in our accomplishments to arrogance? 

Lived practice:
We are now 5 weeks into this project, but we must keep our eyes forward-looking. As school years end and the transition to summer commences, set for yourself a new learning goal to accomplish in the next few weeks. What is a book you want to read or a class you want to attend? Keep pushing!