What is self-control?
We have two kinds of desires: the desires of the body and the desires of the mind. The body desires to eat, sleep, be comfortable and have sex. The mind’s desires are more internal: it is the mind that seeks knowledge, goodness, beauty, and so forth. Self-control has to do with the proper ordering of these desires. The mind should take control over the body so that physical desires do not become a hindrance to the fulfillment of our primary, internal goals in life. For instance, our internal desire to pursue goodness should prevent us from stealing something a nice car, perhaps that we desire externally; our internal desire for beauty will prevent us from littering; our internal desire for knowledge will push us to study further, even if we feel sleepy. Just as there are two kinds of desire, there are also two kinds of freedom. To grant freedom to our physical body without regard to the mind is called licentiousness. Real freedom is the internal sense of freedom that comes when we achi
