Before his passing, Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov said to his disciples: “You must seek a new master and mentor, for soon I shall pass on from this world.”
“To whom shall we turn for guidance?” they asked.
“I shall give you a sign,” said Rabbi Israel. “He who knows the answer to the query, `How can one overcome the pride in one’s heart?’—he is the man who can guide you in your service of the Almighty.”
“And what is the answer? How does one vanquish pride?”
“The answer is that there is no way in which to vanquish pride. All `techniques’ to achieve humility are only additional causes for pride, as their practitioner revels in how humbly he is behaving. One must simply pray to the Almighty that He humble our hearts before Him.”
Adapted from the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe by Yanki Tauber