Pirkei Avot 2:1

Pirkei Avot 2:1

"Rabbi [Yehuda haNasi] said: What is the proper path a person should choose for himself? Whatever brings glory to himself [before G-d], and grants him glory before others. Be careful with a minor mitzvah (commandment) as with a major one, for you do not know the reward for the mitzvos. Consider the loss incurred for performing a mitzvah compared to its reward, and the 'reward' received for sinning compared to the loss. Consider three things and you will not come to sin: Know what is above you: an eye that sees and an ear that hears, and all your deeds are recorded in the Book."

The advice of Rabbi Yehuda haNasi in this mishna is dramatically different from the rule that governs the conduct of most people in the secular world.  In the secular world, most people are guided by the pursuit of happiness, which to most people is either immediate gratification or advancement of some personal goal, such as wealth or success.  The rule of conduct that Rabbi Yehuda haNasi advises is to act in such a way as to bring glory to himself before G-d and before others. 

Bringing glory to oneself before G-d may at times seem to require different action than action which brings glory to oneself before others, but the two can be reconciled: we must find a way to follow G-d's commands that doesn't denigrate or separate ourselves from others, since G-d Himself wants us to live harmoniously in our community, as an example that makes others want to follow our lead.  However what is most striking is the contrast between the self-centered rules of conduct of the modern secular world and the G-d centered rules of conduct advocated by Rabbi Yehuda haNasi.  The secular person sees himself as the center of the world and a free agent, who chooses him own goals based on his personal objectives.  To him, there is no objective rule of conduct, and it makes no difference to anyone other than himself what ultimate goal he chooses.  To Rabbi Yehuda haNasi, and to the religious person, however, there is an eye that sees, an ear that hears, and a book in which all deeds are recorded.  We are not atoms in a meaningless universe, but responsible actors in a universe that was created by and still judged by a G-d who judges and rewards or punishes us for our choices.  Unlike the amoral universe of secular man, it is a profoundly moral universe, in which we are observed and judged in every detail by the Master of the universe, to whom our choices and actions matter.