The central belief of Stoicism is that we should live according to the universe’s natural, rational order. They believed the world is intelligently designed and controlled by reason or “Logos.” So, to live a good life, humans must make choices and act in a way that follows this cosmic wisdom. This requires self-control to overcome our desires and align with the more significant natural order. Practicing discipline allows us to live in harmony with Nature instead of constantly fighting against it.
Stoics Said Virtue is the Only True Good
Stoics argued that virtue is the highest excellent and necessary for well-being (eudaemonia). Virtue means having excellence of character – things like wisdom, justice, courage, and moderation that come from our ability to reason. We must control our emotions and sensations with reason to reach excellence in virtue. So mastering self-control is critical to limiting destructive passions and enabling virtuous choices and actions.
Self-Discipline Allows Us to Live Virtuously
Therefore, Stoicism says reason must rule over irrational emotions and impulses to allow virtuous choices and behavior. A prominent example was showing control around the pleasures of the body. While physical enjoyment itself is morally neutral, we should restrain our desire for excess pleasure so it does not lead to vice. By consciously limiting ourselves, we can train to handle hardship when needed and not overindulge in good times. Other intense emotions like grief, anger, and desire should also be controlled by rational discipline so we can judge situations.
Practicing Self-Control Over Passions and Urges
Specifically, Stoics identified essential irrational passions that must be conquered through diligent self-discipline: appetite, fear, anger, grief, and lust. For example, Epictetus said the strength of our appetite for things like wealth, lavish food, or attention comes from our judgments about them – not the things themselves. We gain self-mastery over these urges by purposefully training our desires rather than mindlessly encouraging them. Common triggers also set off fear and anxiety, but learning to evaluate impressions lets us manage fleeting passions.
Distinguishing What We Control Versus What We Don’t
This connects to the famous Stoic dichotomy of control – separating what is up to us versus what is not. Stoics said the only thing in our control is our reasoned choice – our judgments, values, and intentions. Everything else, like the outcomes of our decisions or external events, ultimately lies beyond our control and should be considered morally neutral.
Cultivating Detachment From External Things
So, for Stoics, external things indifferent to virtue include health, wealth, pleasure, pain, fame, death, etc. This does not mean we are apathetic about seeking preferred indifferents, like having necessities. But it requires the discipline not to fixate or depend on them for happiness overly. Worthwhile achievement comes solely from the excellence of one’s soul. Though we may endure hardships, what matters most is keeping control of our impressions to handle trials nobly and act rightly no matter the situation.
The Discipline of Desire: Wanting What You Already Have
Seeking excess luxury indicates a lack of discipline over insatiable physical cravings. So, Stoics practice limiting their desires to enjoy the superficial happiness that is already better available. For example, Musonius Rufus had students periodically abstain from customary meat and wine to encourage moderation. Disciplining ourselves through voluntary hardship builds gratitude for basics like food, water, and shelter, which most take for granted. Training to handle deprivation also strengthens resilience against misfortunes. By narrowing our needs to necessities through deliberate self-denial, we reduce unnecessary distress over things beyond our control.
Building Hardiness and Resilience Through Discomfort
For this purpose, overcoming physical discomfort and adversity was an active part of Stoic self-discipline. Seneca described cold baths, athletic exertion, long hikes, and other practices to “prepare yourself for hardship and want.” Toughening the body against avoidable comforts and pleasures creates emotional resilience when natural misfortunes eventually arise. As Marcus Aurelius wrote about this self-mastery training: “Do outside things distract you? Then make time to learn something useful; stop letting yourself be pulled in all directions…” We can withstand turbulent outside events by maintaining control of our inner reasoning.
Self-Mastery Leads to Unshakable Calm
Through Stoic self-rule, we gain an unshakeable tranquility – what Seneca called “steadfast and immovable” security. This comes from releasing attachments to outward things beyond our control, allowing our judgments to stay stable no matter what happens. Clarity of thinking combined with mastery of desires produces extraordinary evenness of mind amidst adversity – akin to the perfect balance of a skilled acrobat.
Achieving Equanimity in All Situations
Equanimity means maintaining composure under stress and good times alike. Because true good and evil originate from our reasoning rather than external happenings, the Stoic sage responds calmly to all events as part of the more significant design of Nature. Worldly ups and downs become sublime perfection instead of disruptive instability once emotional turbulence is overcome through disciplined reason. “Take everything Fortune sends as if it comes from Providence,” reflected Marcus Aurelius. So regardless of uncontrollable circumstances, with self-mastery, we endure hardship bravely, act justly, and see events as fated.
Freedom Through Self-Rule of One’s Mind
Epictetus declared that while our physical body is vulnerable, our moral purpose remains invincible. Through meticulous self-control to master impressions and limit desires, we gain inner freedom no external restraints can hamper. “On the occasion of every accident…remember to turn to yourself and ask what power you have to turn it to use.” Self-mastery grants us this lasting power to overcome adversity nobly. By governing our judgments and mitigating undisciplined impulses, we rule the only true realm that matters – our willful mind. Thus, Stoicism says disciplining this inner domain secures genuine tranquility and moral purpose against fortune’s storms.
Conclusion
The ancient Greco-Roman philosophy of Stoicism offers compelling insights for understanding self-control and resilience amidst life’s turbulence. By rigorously submitting our fleeting emotions to reason’s rule, we gain stability resembling the universe’s rational constancy. Through practicing voluntary hardship, we steel our endurance against inevitable adversity to bear trials courageously when they arise. Governing our red-hot impulses further allows us to temper destructive desires before they control us. Applying these and other exacting disciplines, Stoicism instills an unshakable equanimity and virtue to withstand fortune’s storms.
For the Stoic sages, genuine tranquility arises from aligning our transient judgments with Nature’s magnificent design through conscious self-mastery. What lies within our power is not the impermanent outcomes of our decisions but rather the wisdom to judge rightly and act justly regardless of external factors by focusing solely on governing the willful mind while accepting that which lies beyond our control with grace, providential order emerges from apparent chaos.
