Balance and The Virtue of Temperance

Of thirteen beneficial principles outlined by Benjamin Franklin as keys to his success, Temperance was listed first. Was there a reason for this? Could it be the most important virtue?

Franklin further explained his first principle with the instructions "eat not dullness; drink not to elevation." Taken literally, the meaning of this advice is obvious. Eating too much makes us feel dull or ill and can lead to obesity and the corresponding health defects. Drinking too much alcohol can make us lose control, do things we normally wouldn't and shouldn't do, make us sick and ruin our organs.

But what about further implications? Why would Benjamin Franklin see this virtue as so important?

This week I thought a lot about Temperance and what it really means to exercise it. My conclusion was that Temperance is paramount to a balanced life because without employing it we cannot begin to master any of the other virtues necessary for success.

How can one sustain any virtue without the ability to control the self in the presence of desire? Metaphorically, eating to dullness and drinking to elevation symbolize indulging in desires to a point at which doing so has rendered us less effective individuals. This is why maintaining our appetites within the bounds of reason is essential to moving forward in our quest to master ourselves and increase our quality of life.

Can the man who has eaten three boxes of cookies and a quart of ice cream get up and have the energy he needs to accomplish his tasks? Can he who has consumed an excess of alcohol be trusted to make the right decisions for himself and his family in a time of crisis? Similarly, when we cannot control our actions in the face of temptation we cannot expect ourselves to perform at our peak levels or think clearly enough to make the right choices when it counts.

The importance of Temperance is further demonstrated in the fact that it is considered one of the four Cardinal Virtues of Christianity and Catholicism. In this instance it is known as the practice of moderation and interestingly, St. Augustine defined it as "love giving itself entirely to that which is loved..." St. Augustine's is a vision of believing in something so highly that it would be a sin to allow for distraction or corruption away from its value.

Temperance is commonly represented in allegorical sculpture as a woman mixing wine and water in two jugs. Thus both the wine and water are diluted with each other to make two mixtures of equal and moderate potency. The wine is tempered by the water.

Ghandi's Seven Blunders of the World (view here in previous Natural Balance blog) exemplify this concept of tempering---or diluting---one thing with another in order to render the potency of a potentially problematic concept more benign. Wealth is tempered with work, pleasure is tempered with conscience, knowledge with character, commerce with morality, science with humanity, worship with sacrifice and politics with principle.

Fourteenth century sculptures show Temperance, Temperantia, with a clock on her head and wearing a horses harness. Here the bit is in her mouth and she is holding the reins. The clock can represent dominance and control over the passage of time (see how temperance relates to tempo and temporal), in addition to a measure of self-control---for it is the strict regulation of the mechanics of clockwork that renders the clock useful. So may our regulation of ourselves deem us useful in the eyes of Temperantia.

Because of its wild freedom, endurance and virility a horse can symbolize our own will and animal instincts. Temperantia both wears the bit and holds the reins. She is thus both controlled and controlling.

To Doug McManaman, author of an article entitled The Virtue of Temperance, "the measure of temperance is the order of reason." This means that the moderate behavior is governed by our determination of what action is most reasonable in a given situation.

McManaman continues to describe intemperance as a condition akin to slavery and states that acquiring the four Cardinal Virtues of Prudence, Justice, Courage and Temperance all depend on Temperance itself. He further explains that this is because the virtues are a function of the will, yet with intemperance the will is not free but rather at the mercy of our longing.

This dependence of all virtue upon the practice of Temperance is precisely why it is classified as a cardinal virtue, where "cardinal" signifies "pivotal." Every righteous habit we are to acquire is rooted in our ability to exercise discipline, restraint, moderation and ultimately, Balance.

In order to determine the most reasonable action in any circumstance and achieve mastery of Temperance we look to Greek philosopher Aristotle, who believed that all virtue is rooted in the mean. By 'mean,' he was referring to the arithmetic average, or most typical and rational behavior in a determined set of behavioral choices. This average is also known in mathematics as the "central tendency," and according to Aristotle it is toward this central tendency that the virtuous man will lean.

An average as a model for righteous behavior can similarly be seen in the Neo-Confucian Chinese concept entitled the "Doctrine of the Mean." This concept echoes the Taoist philosophy of honoring the balance of nature through moderation in all things. The natural balance represented in Taoism can be seen depicted in the Ying Yang.

Doctrine of the Mean has also been translated as the "Middle Way," the "Unwobbling Pivot," and "Focusing the Familiar." Unwobbling pivot in Chinese is 'chung yung,' where 'chung' means leaning neither one way nor another and 'yung' means not changing.

According to the Doctrine of the Mean, the mean is a way of perfecting the self through directing one's mind toward a constant state of equilibrium and therefore achieving eternal balance. The guiding principle of this doctrine is abstention from acting in excess.

Temperance and abstaining from excess can in fact be seen in countless literary depictions throughout both ancient and modern history, with the earliest documented representation in the Cretan story of Icarus and his father Daedalus. In this story, Daedalus builds wings for his son and himself so that they can escape from their king. He warned Icarus to "fly the middle course," but Icarus did not listen. Icarus flew so high that he burned his wings on the sun and fell to his death.

Other examples include the words "Nothing in Excess" inscribed on the door to the temple of Delphi and Plato's philosophy of proportionality exemplified in the metaphor of a boat. According to Plato, "If we disregard due proportion by giving anything what is too much for it; too much canvas to a boat, too much authority to a soul, the consequence is always shipwreck."

Temperance is ultimately a balance in action, and by tempering our behavior we can invite the benefits of a more balanced disposition into our lives. It is self-restraint, control and rationality. What are some ways we can integrate it into our every day choices and interactions? How will this lead to further success in other areas?

Ghandi's Seven Blunders of the World

1. Wealth without work

2. Pleasure without conscience

3. Knowledge without character

4. Commerce without morality

5. Science without humanity

6. Worship without sacrifice

7. Politics without principle


—Mahatma Gandhi

Take It From Benjamin

In 1723, seventeen year old Benjamin Franklin arrived broke as can be in Philadelphia. Success after success followed in the form of inventions, business ventures and political esteem. He was later able to retire at the age of 42 as a very wealthy man. Franklin claimed that his great success was owed to practicing and religiously following thirteen principles. These principles are:

1. Temperance: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
   
   
2. Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself, avoid trifling conversation.
   
   
3. Order: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have it's time.
   
   
4. Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
   
   
5. Frugality: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; waste nothing.
   
   
6. Industry: Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
   
   
7. Sincerity: Use no harmful deceit; think innocently and justly; and if you speak, speak accordingly.
   
   
8. Justice: wrong none by doing injuries or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
   
   
9. Moderation: Avoid extremes; forebear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
   
   
10. Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanness in body, clothes or habitation.
    
    
11. Tranquility: Be not disturbed at trifles, nor at accidents.
    
    
12. Chastity: Be chaste in matters with the opposite sex.
    
    
13. Humility: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

Many have suggested exploring Franklin's principle by means of meditating on one per week and trying to incorporate each weekly principle into your life as much as possible.

The Body-Mind Balance Connection

An interesting connection has recently been found by researchers at Tel Aviv University between physical balance and anxiety disorders. Dr. Orit Bart and her associates have analyzed children diagnosed with anxiety disorders and discovered that the majority of them also suffer from problems with balance and coordination. Moreover, Bart claims that physical therapy targeting and improving physical balance problems has been shown to also help resolve anxiety issues.

Bart's research shows that while not all children with anxiety also have balance problems, all children with balance problems do exhibit anxiety. After a twelve week sensory-motor intervention, children in Bart's research group had markedly improved balance skills. With this new balance came heightened self-esteem, and eventual return of previous anxiety to normal levels. This is a direct example of treating the mind through the body.

When the body is in balance, the mind is in balance. When we lack balance, we feel anxious about the control we may or may not have over ourselves and therefore doubt the effectiveness of our minds. But when we work to obtain greater balance, our confidence increases and we are empowered to trust our minds' abilities more. Thus we are engaged in a cycle where power begets power and struggle begets struggle.

Therefore we must work to increase our balancing ability, and we may rest assured that it is easier than we may think. This is because with the knowledge that we may use the physical realm as a means of ensuring a higher degree of mental wellness, there are a host of tools and techniques at our disposal that we can see, touch and feel. We are not limited to the abstract, or to cognitive approaches which for most can seem elusive and difficult.

Because of the power we have over the physical, we can use our own operational thinking to the advantage of our minds. For example, an operation---or action---as simple as cleaning your desk. My desk is so cluttered right now that I feel anxious about all this stuff I have to do. Everything is a mess before me and I don't know where to start. But if I take a few minutes and organize my desk, stack the papers in the right places with the most important documents on top, throw away trash, take my empty yogurt and cups to the kitchen and a quick wipe clean with a sponge, I will definitely feel more in control of the situation.

I can even make a list of what I need to do, of my priorities, and set it neatly in front of me on the desk. At that point I will know all that I need to do, and I won't have to remember it---it is right there on the list. There is no clutter clouding my vision of the tasks at hand. What can be done is done at the moment. Then I can continue to write this with a clearer mind, with more confidence, with more BALANCE. That is the connection between the physical and the mental/emotional. Between the body and the mind.

Balance is about effectiveness, and ultimately, about happiness and contentment with our selves and the world around us.

What can you do today to increase the balance of your body or of your physical world? How will this affect the state of balance in your mind? Will you feel better? Accomplish more? Have less anxiety?

A Balanced Diet

Eating a balanced diet is probably the single most important thing that you can do for yourself. When we are properly nourished, we think clearer, feel better, and can contribute more. When we are improperly nourished the effects can be severe, and sometimes we don't even recognize it.

If your body has all it needs it can function the way it's supposed to, making all of the chemicals it needs to keep you running smoothly. This sounds obvious, but at times the negative effects of less-than-ideal nutrition can accumulate subtly over time without us being fully aware of them.

Being tired, feeling depressed, not sleeping well---these can all be related to your nutrition. And it isn't even all about avoiding junk food---more often than not, we are more negatively affected by what we don't eat than what we do.

No carbs, low fat, no sugar, no dairy, no red meat, you name it. The list goes on and I'm sure that all of us at one time have been at least tempted to consider these "diets" as effective. But what they say is true---if you deny yourself, you will have cravings. These cravings are your body's way of telling you what it needs.

Our brains run on glucose, a sugar. Carbohydrates are our fuel. We need fat to make lipids, which make up the very shape of our cells. And we need the amino acids which come from protein to make up the hormones that are our body's communication system. Leave any essential components out of your diet and you are asking for trouble.

So eat balanced meals! That means a little of everything. Variety is the only way to assure you are taking in all of the essential nutrients you need to function at your optimal level. This idea of a little of everything, and everything in moderation should guide us in all of our choices in life. Balance is the key to success.