Dostoevsky - Don't Become A Slave to Pleasure
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ABOUT THE VIDEO
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In this video, I talk about Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov, comfort, pleasure, worldly people, monks, suffering, growth, and freedom.
In The Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevsky compares two different types of people: Worldly People and Monks. Worldly People are slaves to pleasure, and because of that, they lose their freedom, meanwhile Monks give up the pursuit of pleasure, and because of that, they keep their freedom. And if that’s true, then why? That’s what I wanna explore in this essay.
If you have faith that there’s a reason and meaning for suffering, you’ll be able to endure it, even if you don’t know exactly what that reason is, and by being able to endure suffering, you will not be a slave to pleasure and comfort, an by not being a slave to pleasure and comfort, you’ll retain your freedom, and by retaining your freedom, you’ll be able to serve any idea you want, rather than the idea someone else wants you to serve. But if you believe suffering has no meaning, it makes no sense to endure it, and it makes perfect sense to escape from it through pleasure and comfort, but if you escape from it, when tragedy eventually strikes, when you lose the pleasure and comfort you built for yourself, you’ll end up surrendering your freedom to the first person who can offer you pleasure and comfort, and why wouldn’t you, if suffering has no meaning?
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”The secret of happiness is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less”… it fits well for this video.
I like this
Socrates was a very very smart man
Well read jain philosophy if you want to know about this quote
happiness without meaning is empty
suffering with meaning is fulfilling
@@thomas.thomas agreed
"Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes" - Carl Jung
I’ve already made the mistake of indulging into too much pleasures yet I consider myself a monk cuz I’m all spiritual. If you want to know pleasure, go all the way in, then you’ll see it’s nothing more than pain.
Wisdom.
Or like, just take this guys word for it and get your shit together. Why dig a well of suffering by indebting your neurotransmitters with shovels full of meaningless pleasure chemicals? Instead, engrane yourself in the world around you and live a life you can be proud of. Don’t chase the dragon, be the dragon.
Don't give into apathy. There is no wisdom in suppressing desire
Ecclesiastes found in the Bible; summarized to a modern day TH-cam comment.
@@maxluthor6800 why
Desires make slave out of kings, Patient make king out of slaves. Imam Al Ghazali
The "Wordly Monk" is the way to go for me. An individual that enjoys what the world has to offer with balance and aligned with his principles, not taking anything for granted and having the flexibility to adapt when disgrace knocks the door. The strong desire for freedom, in my view, is in itself a way of slavery and also not very helpful if what you're after is "happiness". That's because one needs to consider the human condition, and pleasures are part of it. Going a bit pretentious here, but to someone that might be reading this and watching related videos searching for answers, go and read philosophy, stop taking shortcuts and assuming things from short videos. Start with the classics, read a bit of everything, understand clashing concepts and you'll probably come to the conclusion that things are non-binary, there's no right and wrong - everything is both right and wrong at the same time - and ultimately this all is pointless, but you can give your own meaning(s) to satisfy your mind and keep going. At the end of the day, all that matters to your existence is what you think of it. Do it your way.
I feel the same way to a certain extent but the worldly monk is the best way to go about it👌🏾
'Whatever you deny yourself will become your mental prison' - agree that worldly monk offers one the most freedom. I fell into the trap of trying to become free by detaching myself from my desires, having indulged in them far too much when I was young. One day I realised I hadn't actually detached myself from my desires - they were still in me, I was just repressing them (along with many of my negative thoughts and feelings). Real strength and freedom for me is found in being able to see and listen to these desires, but having choice whether to act on them or not.
@@lemoniceymo moderation wit your desires bro and you ever heard of shadow work?
@Tripti Mehra How to decide: pick the one you like the most. I recommend a book called "The Conspiracy Against the Human Race", it may give you some more food for thought on the things you mentioned. Edit: Disclaimer - Do not read it if you're depressed or weak at heart. Also, I don't really recommend it if you want to avoid existential crisis.
@Tripti Mehra I'm not saying it's ok, that's left for you to decide for yourself, that's my only point. Just because you "really want" to do something doesn't make it more right or more wrong. My point of "Do your own thing" in fact gets trickier when it's regarding actions that affect others, so think more carefully about all the nuances before jumping to conclusions. "Is murder okay?" is a very open question, you'll probably not find any answers without including details. Usually our systems do permit murder without punishment when it's self defense. Unjustified murder is obviously going to bring more bad than good, so it's easier to decide what's better. But if you happen to have a another reason, is it really worthy it? Psychology speaking, some would say that if you have the slightest feeling that "no, this may not be right/good", then your answer was already "no" from the start. You don't need to think twice when you're certain about something. About God's existence, that's another topic, but from your response I strongly believe that book is not for you (yet), please disregard my recommendation.
1:09 this quote is scarily true 👏
21 rules of miyamoto musashi - the path of loner :
1 Accept everything just the way it is.
2 Do not seek pleasure for its own sake.
3 Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling.
4 Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world.
5 Be detached from desire your whole life.
6 Do not regret what you have done.
7 Never be jealous.
8 Never let yourself be saddened by a separation.
9 Resentment and complaint are appropriate neither for oneself nor others.
10 Do not let yourself be guided by the feeling of lust or love.
11 In all things, have no preferences.
12 Be indifferent to where you live.
13 Do not pursue the taste of good food.
14 Do not hold on to possessions you no longer need.
15 Do not act following customary beliefs.
16 Do not collect weapons or practice with weapons beyond what is useful.
17 Do not fear death.
18 Do not seek to possess either goods or fiefs for your old age.
19 Respect Buddha and the gods without counting on their help.
20 You may abandon your own body but you must preserve your honour.
21 Never stray from the way.
Sounds alot like people shouldnt act as humans.
This is stoic
@@ThisDonut well it sure is "ancient teachings" but still many of them are proven right. specially useful in modern world.
@@ThisDonut if you were being honest, you have no idea how dumb thats statement is, please dont be mad. You are just an ordinary average person with dull intuition to look deeper into meanings you just take everything too literally without asking why theres such statements from the first place if you are 19yo its not too late to develop yourself. From that statement alone you just showcase how dumb humanity is
@@ThisDonut humans are double sided. Animalistic, worldly, selfish. Yet also wise, disciplined, selfless.
Dostoevsky, suffered, and credited that suffering to his prolific output of novels, his passion and raw truth to the human condition cannot be surpassed.
If you can be with the pleasant and not chase after it.With the unpleasant and not resist it.With the neutral and not ignore it, then we have cut the chain of suffering at least for a moment and that is an incredible freedom and blessing.
-Rick Hanson
Buddha's Brain
Reading this right now. Dostoyevsky is timeless.
I won’t give into simple pleasures and desires anymore 🙏🏾 I want to be free of my addictions
Honestly bro I think a lot of people NEEDED this video right now thank you man 🙏❤️
Never thought Artoria would use the word "bro."
I've been suffering from a sick that I still don't know and this video proves me that when you know the purpose of your own sufferings, you can endure it no matter what. It made my belief built stronger and to hold on to the faith I am currently establishing. It's going to be alright!
Stay strong you got this :)
it's not about getting know the purpose of suffering but accept the fact that there is meaning behind the suffering without analysing why is there but rather making peace with it. wish you all the best!
"And in the end...the love you take..is equal to the love you make"
Your channel taught me more than my whole school teachers and university professors.
As a human being we run through emotions. Our mind trick us with pleasure. We feel taste and get high when we eat nice food, we get aroused inorder intimate , we get anger so we can knockdown our opponent etc. Those who learn to live without enjoying pleasure is those who defeated our natural subconscious emotions driven force. These monks are leaving dead as a Rock.
Some people are less able to overcome this primitive forces
neurologically.
@@lugaritzbrown2250 And some more... psychopaths have been likened to Tibetan monk in their ability to deal with stress and having little to no emotions to cloud their judgment.
I really thought about the lifestyle of a monk.
If you really think about it, they live more in a neutral state than in a happy state.
Happiness is not permanent and to be happy you have to experience the opposite.
Monks merely avoid suffering by also avoiding pleasure.
They strive more for neutrality, they don't want highs because they don't want lows, they don't want lows because they don't want highs.
Conclusion:
Living the life of a monk is a lifestyle of not experiencing the waves of positive and negative. You live a life purely on one axis which is 0 (neutral )
Its why they don't have wives or husbands, as amazing as an intimate relationship is, there also comes suffering with it
Man cannot remake himself without suffering for he is both marble and sculptor
I desperately needed this video man! I am in a situation where virtually everyone around me is endulging in pleasure and I've been meaning to tell them they are a slave to whatever gives them pleasure, but didnt know how to put it! I will definitely get the book and read it !
It's for oneself first ma good sir
They aren't going to listen
The meaning of suffering can be this - it pushes you, shapes you to be a certain type of a person. It gives your life a purpose. In example. I suffered when I was a kid. ( Like everyone else to a certain degree ). Suffering shaped me, made me to choose a certain path for many years, which I would not choose if I wasn't suffering. It made me who I am and who I am becoming. As it never ends I guess. That does not mean I'm suffering all the time. That is my ( currently) meaning of suffering. Thank you for the video. It reminded me that.
🤡
Suffering has a meaning, it exists to make us stronger
I agree👍🏻 trough experiences and failures you will suffer at times but at the same time it will allow you deeper knowledge, you will grow, be more mature and expanding your own horizon.
"Man's freedom is final and immediate if he so wills it, and it depends not on outer but inner victories." - Paramhansa Yogananda
Beautiful. The explanation where it depends on you whether to have faith (meaning) and endure suffering which make it worthy or choose to become apathic thus looking for escape in pleasures. Choose faith coz either way we can't predict what happens next moment so it somehow gives an intrinsic energy to endure pain. Meaning in your suffering makes life purposeful.
Thank you so much! This video came at the perfect time for me.
Great way to simplify this otherwise ambiguous concept. How you broke it down to digestible bites was utterly BRILLIANT!
3:15
As long as you find reason for your suffering and give it a meaning you will win.
As long as you are targeted into this one goal no matter what it takes.
You will need to do it, and with the meaning in the that goal
You put to yourself that no matter what happens in the way you are unbroken
5:10
In your world what. Meaning there is to suffering
This is profound! Thank you for sharing.
These topics are way too relatable.
just what i needed! talked to my mates about it last night :D
Thank you!
God bless you!! Hugs from Brazil.
Thank you 🙏
Touching
There is another dimension: liberating others from the unnecessary suffering that tyrants impose.
Joy is the bringer of sorrows
Spectacular! Thank you
Moderation in everything. Suffering doesn't necessarily have to be constructive and it can easily break a person.
Thanks!
I think a mixture of both will be the perfect fit. The balance of pleasure and suffering.
Emotional and Profound..
I feel like one doesn't have to necessarily believe that there is any inherent meaning to suffering. I feel like one can assign meaning to suffering and thus know for certain that that suffering is serving a purpose. One however could also choose to not assign the suffering any meaning. But only few can live that way.
That's was a wonderful video. Thank you for sharing 💖🙏🏼
Suffering and meaning point was brilliant
Not necessarily suffering must have a meaning ,we humans give it meaning as per the outcome of that suffering
Thank you so much. I appreciate this.
This is *everything.*
Thank you & great video...🙏🏻👏
Dostoevsky is the man!
u just read my mind, i needed this
This is a banger video man keep it up
Thank your for this insight
I've realised that I've been a worldy person since a couple years. Pride killed me.
Simply have "purpose". That's the summary of this video and the reason people stress on why as a man you need purpose.
As someone who is still searching her raison d'etre,,,, I'm still in searching phase
Thanks these videos really helps
This differences remind me of a teacher who told me that the today working class persons are more worried about a "to have" life. It means that they only are looking for the material pleasures of life and because of that, they make part of this slavery system where everybody it's suffering in shitty works and only thinking on making much money every single day. I know there's people who are struggling and poverty it's a fact in a lot of places around the world. But the point is that are culture only cares for the material things, the superficial pleasures. And my teacher says to me that the most important thing is not to have, it's to be. "Find a deffinition of yourself, beyond all of this things, find yourself in a personal philosophy and build your own wisdom, not because you have to impress the people, do it because it's you're existence the only thing that should be important to you. Not the money, the expensive cars, or the big houses, and all the things that offers you a plastic life that has teaching us our culture. Find who you truly are."
This was great thank you
The concept of this video is much bigger than the channel itself.
I congratulate Justin on creating such content on YT for its viewership
I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS! Thanks a lot
We can change our whole life by changing our habits. Discipline is the key if we want to change our trajectory!
After I lost my business and the good life I went through the 7 stages of grief...then I realized I was trapped by my materialistic objects and saw that chasing earthly pleasure and happiness leads to chaos. Basically live like a monk now and move through life with purpose. My 2 cents😌🤷♂️
Peace 🕊is a part of it follow what you seek
This is straight facts!! ❤️
AMAZING
Great content!
Wow, this was a really good video. This is something I've been thinking about all these days, and this was like putting it into words.
We need to develop a motive for which to endure suffering, and then we will have true freedom, and not the false one that is camouflaged in the form of pleasure.
This channel is pretty good. Keep up your great work!
Sorry if I made mistakes, I'm learning English :)
I think you're capacity to withstand discomfort is as important as your ability to enjoy comfort while you have it. A monk may have overcome discomfort in a worldly sense, but now they're a slave to the ideology they initially followed
Dope stuff as usual ma homie.
This is a very inspirational video. But I think I would still playing computer games the next day morning after watching it XD
For the why kids go through suffering I think it’s to make them stronger and better as person because innocence can’t make you blind n weak to an extent
You need money to do anything with your freedom. Balance is the key word.
Powerful
Amazing🤩
Great video
Faith, Hope and Love
It's the only answer
Those who think the Bible is superstitious old ideas, will all eventually learn that it's simply ... true.
Those people who say this didn't actually read the Bible. Yes there are some strange stories in the old testament, but the message of the Bible, the Gospel and prophets is wise , meaningful and relevant even today.
Great video.
in the right time
Nice one
I think suffering is a part of humans so that we can grow...wether for the better or worse
The worst kind of suffering is the one you think there is a way out of. When you know there is no way out, it's easier to bear.
Craving leads to suffering and the only way to be liberated from suffering is to be liberated from craving. And the only way to be liberated from craving is to train the mind to accept reality as it is.
-Buddha
Maybe this kind of content deserve to not skip ads
Dostoevsky had a deep faith in Christianity. The "world" in the bible has a deeper meaning than we might think. And this video reminds me of this verse "Do not love the world or the things in the world" (1 John 2:15) Because the world is also related to evil desires whether to possess sth. or sb. And I believe this is what Dostoevsky had in mind when he was writing his book.
This is healthy way to “weaponize” the mind.
I am no longer able to endure what you call suffering. I'd much rather live in a material world because I have given up the will to fight discomfort that involves my life. I no longer enjoy learning, I no longer wish to believe that whichever partner I meet could be the right one or not, I no longer want to try and struggle.
Deep down though I know that there is something to suffering and there is something to learn with it but I don't know when it all left me. I feel today at 25 that I was much stronger when I was 16 and had cancer. I knew what was important in life and I never would have taken shit from everyone. Now I am just a fool who would rather have the comfortable life but with no will to pursue ambitions.
notice how you say “no longer” yet deep down you know something else to be true. my brother, the meaning you seek has not left you. it has only been covered up by your limiting beliefs. you are stronger than your words my friend - lean into the truth.
The meaning of suffering is to alleviate it. That's also why it feels so good to alleviate it. Of course, if you are unable to alleviate suffering in your own life, then enduring it is a great skill to have. But you only need to learn the ability to be without your pleasure, not give up your pleasure.
For instance, I love video games and unhealthy food. But if I didn't have those for six months or longer, I would view it as an opportunity to work on myself, to find meaning in other things. Maybe get healthier.
A worldly person need not be a slave to one specific thing, but must be able to diversify their pursuit of happiness fully. So that when the need arises where you are no longer able to reap the pleasures that you prefer, you are now able to reap the pleasures of what you have left.
Unfortunately, most people don't think this way, and so they desperately search for that preferred pleasure over and over again at the cost of everything.
For instance, I used to love eggs and bacon for breakfast in the morning, this was my favourite part of the day. However, when I learned about animal agriculture and the animal abuse that systematically goes on there, I was compelled to become vegan for the animals, and I no longer felt like I could indulge in that pleasure. But I adapted. I learned. And now my favourite part of the day is when I eat delicious vegan food for breakfast. It feels clean and refreshing. There was pleasure on the other side of the fence too, I just had to go get it.
Pleasure is a funny thing because it works pretty much the same way regardless of which source it comes from. You just need to understand just how many sources of pleasures there are, and then you can be worldly to your heart's content without being a slave to anyone.
Reminds me of this quote from the old chunk of coal himself:
"The key to unhappiness is indulgence."
- Norm Macdonald
Such a great video and message.I just want to add that this is what religion Islam is all about. Anyone looking for freedom and trying to understand the meaning of life and the reason behind suffering, I request you to just give Quran(Holy book of Islam) a read and let your mind and heart decide.
'' Suffering is a blessing. In it is hidden mercy. '' ~Rumi
Suffer toughens up humans
I agree with you, Freedom In Though!👍
More people need to start watching and understanding this video!
As for me, I'm not going to be a slave to pleasure, I'm going to become a indie game developer, and make some awesome, bad-ass/edgy games in the future!
Your channel is red pill in our matrix .
Now that I think about it, I never use AC in summer or heaters in winter, instead I choose to endure the discomfort as I believe it makes my will stronger. Not crumble when it's too hot or too cold. Not to get used to the pleasures of comfort, or else I will be dependent on them, become enslaved by them.
if you are conciously aware of the choice to abstain, you are still a slave to the idea of pleasure or comfort. only when you don't even think about it are you free. as an ideal of course
Suffering's not a virtue in itself it's just that to survive it can, if approached right, make you stronger or wiser. And virtue means strength.
Or in other words, suffering doesn't have meaning, meaning is made from life's hard lessons.
Nice explanation of extract from Bhagwat Geeta.
Thanks for this video
Enjoying CRIME AND PUNISHMENT at the moment
Nice vid
People rarely want to admit that happiness is their ultimate goal because they don't like how it sounds. No one wants to be thought of as a hedonist, someone who only cares about pleasure.
They claim to pursue loftier goals and that they are capable of enduring a lot of adversity. Suffering gives them meaning, it Makes them strong, it makes them free. All very high status goals in people's minds. What noble people they must be, so much better than everyone else.
On the other hand, hedonists are perceived to be low status. Probably unreliable people that you wouldn't want to associate with let alone be one yourself.
But all you are doing is becoming a slave to something else, status. And the funny thing is status only has instrumental value, the actual hidden reason behind why people desire status so much, is because it makes them feel good, being happy is the true terminal value anyway!
And it's not even a good way to be happy at all for most people, It's a zero sum game where only a few at the top of the hierarchy get to really enjoy it.
"Suffering gives life meaning" is a cope. It's to accept the status quo out of powerlessness and to free yourself from the guilt of not being able to help the countless conscious beings in pain in our world.
If we actually stopped accepting it, we could do a lot of progress in trying to abolish suffering wherever we find it.
Very good point. I only think that, trying to abolish suffering is fundamentally impossible, not even worth it. You presented hedonism with a philosophical foundation, but there's also the version without such background, which ends up being the so called slavery. Suffering has it's own value for being part of the human experience. Existence implies suffering at some point, so it's not practical to avoid or disregard it all the time. But as you said, what everyone ultimately wants is to feel good. It always was about feelings, but things got so complex that society started taking such tiring and elaborated paths to acquire what should in fact be way more simple.
@@schopenhauer666 Feeling good all the time is not enough for most people. We need meaning, purpose, and challenges to truly feel alive and fulfilled. If we wanted to feel good all the time, then we would constantly do the things that make us feel good and nothing else. But that will surely only create emptiness inside. Living a shallow and empty life is not the ideal path to true happiness. It is much deeper than that. Like Jordan Peterson said, chase what's meaningful, not what's expedient.
I see tons of grown-ups with constant mid-life crises, desperate for external approval and attention, and it's quite pathetic, to be honest. When you have strong internal validation and follow your true purpose, that's when you're truly happy in life. Not when you're following what everyone else is doing.
You need to create and follow your own true path in life, right or wrong. That's just the way it is. Every person out there has their own perception of reality, and so do you. You need to accept and embrace your own reality, not other people's reality.
@@True38 Thanks for your comment, much appreciated to contribute to the discussion. My perception is that there's no such a thing as "true purpose".
As you said, it's the individual who creates it, his assumptions are fated to be a prisoner of his perception (which can't represent reality how it really is), and that means it's artificial. If you hit your head and suffer some mental injury all these self-made stories are gone instantly.
And I also believe the urges to have purpose or meaning is just a fancy/masked way to say you want to "feel good". After all, it's better to watch a whole movie instead of jumping to the end and knowing what happened, all that time spent on the "journey" contributes to maximize the positive feeling in the end. I am not vehemently against any idea at all, since everything in our minds is essentially an illusion, I believe each one should do what they want/believe to be better and be respected for that.
@@schopenhauer666 No, I actually do strongly believe in following one's own purpose and I'm almost certain that everyone has one, based on their strengths, talents, interests, and values.
Robert Greene has talked about how awful he felt whenever he deviated from his true path in life, and I feel the same way. There are certain things that I KNOW I should be doing, and there are other things that I KNOW I should NOT be doing.
Staying true to yourself is an important key aspect of life no matter if you're poor or rich. It's what's inside of you, your own unique true power that counts at the end of the day.
@@True38 Once again thanks for sharing your views, even tho I disagree on this point I'm glad to know you stick to your own principles and values, this much we have in common. That's the beauty of literally practicing philosophy, to explore different ideas and expand our horizons 😊
For some reason first thing that came to my mind watching this vid was Uncle Iroh from ATLA.
It seems like this is a black-and-white answer to a nuanced issue. It seems to me that a better answer lies in a balanced option that lies in the gray area between being a hedonist and being a monk.
I have multiple sclerosis videos like this are very helpful thank you
Indulging into pleasure is not a problem. How often you do that, whether you can control that or not, and if that pleasure is damaging for you, there is the problem.
Changing completely the subject: being afraid of suffering, of difficulties, of being hurt by love is cowardice, is a weak life: because you fear suffering.