It is correct for a person to flee from honor like one who flees from a fire, for it is like a fire that destroys completely. One must use all one’s strength to keep away from every bad character trait which one’s inclination desires strongly, for their punishment is immense, and especially these about which Chazal have said that they take one out of the world.
A person should reflect and say, “Who am I and what is my life worth, I am a putrid drop, dust and ashes, gall and worms, a vessel full of embarrassment and shame, an object which has no substance! What will I gain if other people like myself honor or abuse me, we are all nothings, and if I know that I am honored in front of the Glorious King, what do I care about the imagined honors of mere flesh and blood, and if I am abused and disgusted in front of the Glorious King and all the hosts of the heights, why do I need life and what is the honor of mere people worth? If I would be fitting to be honored, Heaven would give me that honor. It is apparent that I am a sinner, and it is my sins which prevent me from receiving honor.” With this a person will humble his heart and he will accept the judgment of heaven happily, and he will not be upset with anyone nor quarrel with anyone, for what does a living man complain about; a strong man about his own sins.
