Episode 28 – Temperance: The Problem with Pleasure

This episode presents the Stoic path to unshakeable inner peace through the "discipline of desire," a core practice focused on mastering our impulses and cravings. It argues that our mental tranquility is constantly undermined by our pursuit of things outside our control and our aversion to things we cannot avoid. The Stoics proposed a radical solution: to reorient our desires and aversions exclusively toward what is within our power—our own judgments, intentions, and actions. This fundamental shift is the key to breaking free from the emotional rollercoaster of hope and fear.

The discussion explains the Stoic classification of desires into three categories: natural and necessary, natural but unnecessary, and unnatural and unnecessary. By focusing on satisfying only the first category—our basic needs for survival and well-being—we can free ourselves from the endless and often destructive pursuit of the others, like luxury or fame. This isn't about a life of grim austerity, but about finding contentment in simplicity and recognizing that true happiness isn't found in acquiring more things, but in wanting less.

The episode offers practical exercises for cultivating this discipline, such as intentionally practicing poverty or discomfort to lessen our fear of loss and our attachment to comfort. The practice of "cognitive distancing" is also emphasized—stripping away our value judgments from external things to see them as they objectively are, thus reducing their seductive power. By consistently applying these tools, we can train our minds to find peace not in the fleeting satisfaction of external desires, but in the enduring strength of a virtuous and well-ordered inner self.