Saturday 17 September 2011

Mussar: How much Time for Mussar Study?

A Chaveir of mine does not study Mussar - EXCEPT during Hodesh Elul he takes a Mussar Sefer and studies that as a preparation for Yamim Noraim.
I have a proposal loosely based upon his premise
1. Take one Classic Mussar Sefer for intense study during Hodesh Elul
2. For the remainder of the year take another sefer or collection, and learn THAT just a few minutes a day, enough to keep one's Mussar Mindset going all year long, w/o straining one's schedule.

Shalom,
RRW

1 comment:

Avraham said...

The problem with all modern Musar books is they have no believable advice for people. They are propaganda. They are meant to program people be more narrow minded more fanatical and less human and they work well in those directions. If you really want to learn Musar the at least confine yourself to the great thinkers like the Rambam and Saadia Geon and the Chovot Levavot. Stop "draiying a kupp" and wasting peoples time with the second hand trash.

Modern so called Musar books have no coherent concept of the self or the human soul. They bounce around words without defining them. They talk about subjects they have no knowledge about and think that since they know a little Gemara that makes them legitimate authorities in biology and physics. The modern Musar movement is intellectually incapable and sloppy.
It is not arrogance to express an opinion about a subject that you have expertize in. But few mashgichim have any expertize of have any coherent idea of what the Rambam is talking about in the More Nevuchim (Guide For The Perplexed) . How can you talk about the Jewish thought without knowing The Guide For the Perplexed and the Emunot and Deot of Saadia Geon backwards and forwards--even if you want to disagree with them