devny:
The Mussar movement was a wonderful thing. But like any tool, it can be used improperly. It is also like any map. If not consulted, it becomes useless. I studied in yeshivos, and we had a mussar seder. It was empty ritual. The alternative was to make sifrei mussar an academic study. Seforim and sedarim are terrific. But until there is applied mussar, the beauty of the seforim and sedarim remains hidden.