What is The Difference Between Freedom and Lack of Self-Discipline?

Identifying the difference between freedom and lack of self-discipline is an essential teaching on our journey as spiritual beings. Thich Nhat Hanh offers us perspective to help those struggling with this important concern for anyone with or wanting to have a spiritual practice, whether it is meditation, Hatha Yoga, Tai Qi, Qi Gong or any other regular spiritual practice.

Is There A Difference Between Freedom and Lack of Self-Discipline?

Self-discipline gets a bad rap. For some people, it conjures up images of an old nun at a Catholic school smacking their wooden ruler on the knuckles of children. For others, self-discipline is a reminder of all the times they have failed to achieve consistent physical exercise. In my professional work, some clients think they are somehow defective because they have never been able to create a habit of spiritual practice like meditation or Hatha Yoga.

Freedom has a much different feel to most people.  When discussing freedom, their eyes light up, and their face radiates with excitement. They talk about swimming in the ocean, walking on the beach at sunset, dancing till exhausted, or falling asleep in the arms of their partner after a night of making love together. For me, freedom and self-discipline are connected. After 20+ years of daily meditation practice, I have the freedom of a focused mind. I have the freedom to make decisions knowing they will probably serve more than my need to satisfy my ego or fears. More often than not, I have the freedom to be myself! I have the freedom to consciously choose to eat foods that are not healthy because I know it is part of a balanced life, not because I am desperate to fill a hole. I have the freedom to surf the Internet because I know I can stop when I am “done”. Viewing Facebook posts does not detract from my life; it adds to it in small doses. I do not have a fear of spending three hours on Facebook because I can’t pull myself away. I do not have the fear of staying up till three in the morning watching TV, and I don’t enjoy it because I can’t decide to go to bed. These are some of the freedoms I enjoy that are a direct result of self-discipline.

What is the difference between freedom and lack of self-discipline? – Thich Nhat Hanh Video

Turning on closed captioning to read along with the video helps compensate for the poor sound quality; I think it is worth it.

Benefits of Meditation – Difference Between Freedom and Self-Discipline

“One of the best things I got from meditation was a sense of self-discipline. But, before I could really become strong within myself, I had to see what was happening inside. In my meditations I began to try and introspect, and I slowly saw where I needed to improve, and then the self-discipline came naturally. In other words, I saw that some of my behavior was harmful or not good for me in some ways, and then understandably I felt the desire to change. I wanted something different for myself, that was the most important step. Then, the more I meditated the more I found a strength inside, and then one day it became that whatever I wanted to change, I simply changed.” CoolCheck

“It’s ironic, but real freedom comes from discipline.  It’s all about self-control.  Most of us think we hate it.  But it offers us the best chance for happiness and harmony.”Randy Gage

What is your perspective and experiences with the difference between freedom and lack of self-discipline? What advice can you share with others trying to understand the difference between freedom and lack of self-discipline?

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