He used to say: the ones who were born are to die, and the ones who have died are to be brought to life, and the ones brought to life are...

Rabbi Elazar Ha-kappar said: envy, desire, and honor remove a person from the world.   The three deadly sins, according to Rabbi Elazar...

(A)    Elisha ben Avuyah said: He who learns when a child, to what is he compared? To ink written upon a new writing sheet. And he who...

Shmuel Hakatan said: “If your enemy falls, do not exult; If he trips, let your heart not rejoice; Lest God see it and be displeased, and...

Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar said: Do not try to appease your friend during his hour of anger; Nor comfort him at the hour while his dead...

Rabbi Jacob said: this world is like a vestibule before the world to come; prepare yourself in the vestibule, so that you may enter the...

Rabbi Yannai said: It is not in our hands [to explain the reason for] either the security of the wicked or even of the afflictions of the...

Rabbi Nehorai said: exile yourself to a place of Torah and do not assume that it will come after you, for your fellow students will...

Rabbi Shimon said: There are three crowns: the crown of Torah, the crown of priesthood, and the crown of royalty, but the crown of a good...

Rabbi Judah said: be careful in study (talmud), for an error in study counts as deliberate sin.    Memory is fragile. Cognitive...

Rabbi Elazar ben Shammua said: let the honor of your student be as dear to you as your own, and the honor of your colleague as the...

Rabbi Yochanan HaSandlar said: every assembly which is for the sake of Heaven, will in the end endure; and every assembly which is not...

Rabbi Eliezer ben Jacob said: he who performs one commandment acquires for himself one advocate, and he who commits one transgression...

Rabbi Meir said: Engage but little in business, and busy yourself (asok)with the Torah. Be of humble spirit before all people. If you...

Rabbi Jonathan said: whoever fulfills the Torah out of a state of poverty, his end will be to fulfill it out of a state of wealth; And...

In two juxtaposed mishnayot, Rabbi Ishmael the son of Rabbi Yose communicates four related ethical exhortations primarily intended for...

Rabbi Yose said: whoever honors the Torah is himself honored by others, and whoever dishonors the Torah is himself dishonored by others....

Rabbi Ishmael his son said: He who learns in order to teach, it is granted to him to study and to teach; And he who learns in order to...

Rabbi Yohanan ben Berokah said: whoever profanes the name of Heaven in secret, they exact punishment from him in public. Unwittingly or...

Rabbi Levitas a man of Yavneh said: be exceeding humble spirit” – me’od me’od hevei shefal ruach – for the end of man is the worm. To...

He used to say: ‘Do not disparage anyone, and do not discriminate against anything, for there is no man that has not his hour, and there...

Ben Azzai said: Be quick in performing a minor commandment as in the case of a major one, and flee from transgression; For one...

Ben Zoma said: Who is wise? He who learns from every man, as it is said: “From all who taught me have I gained understanding” (Psalms...

Rabbi Elazar ben Hisma said: the laws of mixed bird offerings (kinnim) and the key to the calculations of menstruation days (pitchei...

1.     He used to say: one whose wisdom exceeds his deeds, to what may he be compared? To a tree whose branches are numerous but whose...

Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah is known in rabbinic tradition for his wisdom, maturity, and leadership at a young age. In this Mishnah, he...

In the previous Mishna (Avot 3:15), Rabbi Akiva offered a succinct aphorism synthesizing the apparent contradiction between the concepts...

“Hakol tzafui, vehareshut netunah” – “Everything is foreseen yet freedom of choice is granted.”  After emphasizing the belovedness of...

The second of Rabbi Akiva’s four teachings consists of a repeated pattern of three ideas, each with three elements.   The three-by-three...

Rabbi Akiva says: Mocking and frivolity lead to immorality; tradition is a fence for Torah; tithes are a fence for protecting wealth;...

In personality psychology, agreeableness, and its opposite, disagreeableness, is one of the main traits used to describe people. People...

Rabbi Elazar of Modiin said: one who desecrates sacred things, and one who despises the festivals, and one who shames his fellow in...

The importance of being productive is a cherished theme in Pirkei Avot. We have already analyzed related messages in Psyched for Avot on...

Two central themes of Pirkei Avot are the importance of developing proper character traits and the centrality of Torah learning. In a...

There are several theories in psychology about the mechanisms of forgetting. One, developed by Edward Thorndike in the early 20thcentury,...

Environmental psychologists study the interplay between people and their surroundings. One interesting question that they explore is how...

One of the signature features of the field of positive psychology is the classification of character strengths. Basing themselves on...

In his bestselling book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey describes a powerful productivity framework, which he...

Rabbi Chananiah ben Chachinai said: one who stays awake at night, one who travels alone on the road, and one who turns his heart to...

If we were to extract two broad messages from the first two chapters of Pirkei Avot, they would likely be related to: (1) the importance...

Are human beings naturally good or naturally bad? Writing about mankind, 18th century Genevan philosopher, Jean-Jacques Rousseau argued...

Despite their prevalence, most people don’t enjoy negative emotions. We want to be happy, upbeat, and positive. Sadness, worry, and...

Rabbi Tarfon said: the day is short, and the work is plentiful, and the laborers are lazy, and the reward is great, and the master of the...

Rabbi Elazar said: Be diligent in the study of the Torah; And know how to answer an Apikores, And know before whom you toil, and that...

Rabbi Shimon said: Be careful with the reading of Shema and with prayer; and when you pray, do not make your prayers routine, but...

Rabbi Yose said: Let the property of your fellow be as precious unto you as your own; Make yourself fit to study Torah for it will not be...

Rabbi Yehoshua said: an evil eye, the evil inclination, and hatred for humankind put a person out of the world. Rabbi Yehoshua cautions...

They [each] said three things: Rabbi Eliezer said: Let the honor of your friend be as dear to you as your own; And be not easily provoked...

As we have explored in the previous Psyched for Avot articles, in Avot 2:9 Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai asks his students to “go forth and...

How do we acquire moral knowledge? How do we know the correct traits to inculcate and which to avoid? How do we know the best path...