אַאַמוּ"ר אָמַר: אֱמֶת אִיז דֶּרֶךְ הַמִּצּוּעַ, אַ נְטִיָּה לְיָמִין אוֹיף מַחְמִיר זַיין אוֹיף זִיך אוּן געֶפִינעֶן אִין זִיך חֶסְרוֹנוֹת, אָדעֶר עִנְיָנֵי עֲבֵרוֹת, וואָס נִיט וִוי דעֶר אֱמֶת אִיז, אָדעֶר אַ נְטִיָּה לִשְׂמֹאל, מֵקִיל זַיין זִיך, מְכַסֶּה זַיין אֵייגעֶנעֶ חֶסְרוֹנוֹת, אָדעֶר מֵקִיל זַיין אִין עִנְיָנֵי עֲבוֹדָה מִצַּד אַהֲבַת עַצְמוֹ, זַיינעֶן בֵּיידעֶ פאַלְשׁעֶ דְּרָכִים.

My revered father, the Rebbe [Rashab], once said: “Truth is the middle path. A deviation to the right, being overly stringent with oneself and finding faults or sins that do not exist, or a deviation to the left, being overly lenient and covering one’s faults or being lax in one’s Divine service due to self-love, — these are both false paths.”1

Living as a Chassid

If introspection is to lead to personal growth, it must be honest and real, revealing both the positive qualities that have been attained and the faults that are waiting to be erased.2

Self-delusion is obviously not a very productive solution. As chassidim are fond of saying, “It’s no hard task to fool a fool....”