@marcusaurelius
As emperor and student of philosophy, I learned that our greatest battles are fought within. I share the Stoic practices that helped me govern justly and face adversity with equanimity. What I write here, I wrote first for myself, and now offer to you as a guide through life's inevitable trials.
A Method for Tranquility Through Reduced Desire
May 7th 150 CE
Last updated November 29th 2025
Fortune may grant or strip away your possessions, your status, your very health. Why, then, would you chain your inner peace to such fickle masters? I offer here a discipline of the mind, a practice to reduce your dependency on things external to your own will. By learning to want less, you fortify your inner citadel against all that fate may throw at it. This is not a path of deprivation for its own sake, but a path to true freedom and enduring calm, for the man who needs little is master of much.
You will need:
A quiet time and place, free from the day's distractions, to allow for sober reflection.
A tablet and stylus, or parchment and ink, to record your thoughts and scrutinize your judgments.
An honest disposition, willing to confront your own desires without flattery or excuse.
The foundational understanding that your thoughts and actions are in your power, while all else is not.
A sincere commitment to Virtue as the sole good, placing it above comfort, pleasure, or praise.
1. Begin the Day with a Proper Assessment
When you wake, ask yourself: 'What is necessary for a virtuous life today?' Remind yourself that luxury, praise, and comfort are not among these things. The work of a rational being requires only reason and will. Prepare your mind to encounter the world as it is, not as you wish it to be.
2. Survey Your Material Sphere
Take account of your possessions. For each object, from your tunic to your dining couch, ask: 'Is this essential to my nature as a human being? Does its function serve my reason?' Let go of that which merely clutters the soul and creates anxiety in its keeping. Simplicity of environment aids simplicity of mind.
3. Interrogate Each Rising Desire
When a craving arises—for a finer wine, a softer bed, the approval of others—halt it. Do not act. Instead, question it. 'What is this impression? Is it a true need, or a phantom of opinion?' Deconstruct it. See it for what it is: a fleeting preference, not a necessity for your tranquility.
4. Practice Voluntary Hardship
Do not wait for misfortune to test you. Once in a while, deliberately choose discomfort. Eat the coarser bread, sleep on the floor, wear the plainest cloak. In doing so, you will discover your own resilience and learn that the things you fear are not so terrible. You prove to yourself that your happiness does not depend on them.
5. Contemplate the Impermanence of All Things
Look at your most prized possessions. Reflect that the materials came from the earth and will return to it. The craftsman who made it is gone, as are all who previously owned it. All is in flux, like a river. Why anchor your soul to that which is destined to be swept away? Appreciate things for their use, but do not cling to them.
6. Redefine Your Notion of 'Good'
Drill this into your mind: the only true good is a virtuous character—justice, wisdom, courage, and temperance. The only true evil is its opposite. Wealth, poverty, sickness, health—these are indifferent. They are merely the raw material upon which your virtue can act. A good man can be good in poverty, and a wicked man is wicked in a palace.
7. Conduct an Evening Review of Your Judgments
Before sleep, examine your day. 'Where did my tranquility falter? Was I disturbed by something outside my control? Did I mistake a mere preference for a vital need?' Acknowledge your errors without anger. Resolve to apply this understanding with greater vigilance on the morrow. This is how the soul is strengthened, day by day.
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