Importance Of Mental Freedom Essay

The Importance of Mental Freedom
The mind is a powerful machine, whatever it perceives, the body can achieve. Citizens of modern society often disregard the importance of mental freedom, however, in the book War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy, we see a battle between the French and the Russian troops, but mainly a Russian troop named Pierre, that is won through mental freedom. This book proves the importance of mental freedom over physical freedom. This book also shows us the benefits of mental freedom such as, mental freedom can change your mindset, improve your well-being, and improve your chance of success by improving your confidence.
To begin, freedom is nothing but a state of mind. This means, even when one is physically captive, they still

have the ability to be mentally free. This is because mental and physical freedoms are independent of each other, An example of this is shown when Tolstoy states, “In a burned and devastated Moscow, Pierre experienced almost the extreme limits a man can endure .

. . he endured this position not only lightly, but joyfully” (Tolstoy 2384). This quote takes place after Pierre, one of the main characters, is locked in a French prison, where he is tortured, and nearly executed. This quote proves the thesis, mental freedom is more important, because it did not matter that Pierre was physically imprisoned, but that he was mentally free. This was feasible because Pierre kept an open mind throughout the entire novel, this is shown through the various religions Pierre switched through. Pierre was able to be mentally free, because he had an open mind, or as ancient Greek author Sophocles explains, “If my body is enslaved, still my mind is free” (Sophocles). Expressing a similar message of mental freedom is only possible if you have an open outlook towards everything. Likewise, if one were to keep a closed mind, then they would believe the value of their life can decrease, because they do not trust their own opinions. This would lead to a self-induced restriction of both physical and mental freedom, because this causes one to think their life is not good enough, meaning they will spend the rest of their lives trying to fix their life, instead of enjoying

it. Physical freedom does not determine mental freedom; both are individual of each other, although, mental freedom may lead to a physical freedom, because when you have a free mind, you develop a positive mindset, which allows you to get through harsh situations in life, and advance far beyond them. To put this in other words, a positive mindset, leads to a positive life. Or as Joyce Meyer believes, “You cannot live a positive life, and a negative mind” (Meyer). This quote shows the co-relation between one’s mind, and the effect it has on their life; a positive mind leads to a positive life, and a negative mind leads to a negative life. Mental freedom leads to a positive mindset, which leads to a positive life.
In addition, mental freedom leads to the well-being of an individual. Most people describe complete physical freedom as having access to expensive or useful items, such as money, or cars. Since there are a limited number of items in the world, it is not possible for every person to achieve complete physical freedom. Whereas Mental freedom can be achieved with or without anything, because mental freedom comes from how we appreciate the items we have. Since mental freedom is easier to achieve, it improves our well-being. Charles Spurgen describes this in the quote, “It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness” (Spurgen). This quote describes how physical objects do not determine our well-being. In the example of War and Peace, Tolstoy states, “How can one be well . . . when one suffers morally” (Tolstoy 4). This quote relates to the fact that one cannot be well, no matter what items they have, unless they are mentally free, and because most people fail to realize this, they waste time trying to acquire items. Moreover, physical freedom is not achievable by yourself, you require other people to add value to the things you have. Mental freedom, on the other hand, is possible to achieve alone. Paul Twitchell illustrates this, by saying, “The higher one climbs on the spiritual level, the more they will grant their own freedom” (Twitchell). The basis of Twitchell’s argument is that one will not be free if they value life based on physical wealth, rather, one will be free, when they realize, that mental wealth is the most important, because its value cannot decrease, as physical wealth does. By mental wealth is to refer to how free your mind is in being able to liberate yourself from material items, and focus on your own persona, which leads to the improvement of your well-being. In other words, a free mind leads to a good life, and improves your well-being.
Lastly, mental freedom makes us confident in our abilities, which motivates us to succeed. This is shown in War and Peace during the battle of Borodino. This battle took place in 1812, and was between the French and Russian forces, this battle lead to the retreat of the French troops from Russia. The French troops were highly trained, with well thought out plans, and advanced equipment. The Russian troops, on the other hand, had less equipment, less troops, and were ambushed, but the Russian troops were confidant in themselves and were able to win the battle. This proves that confidence leads to success. Confidence can only be produced by being mentally free, and confidence is the most important aspect of success. World-renowned author Leo Tolstoy states this as, “A battle is won by he who is firmly resolved to win it” (Tolstoy 1821). Being mentally free, means being able to control your thoughts and think for yourself. This allows us to focus our mind on advantages we have, rather than letting other people put doubt into our minds. By focusing on the positive sides of everything, we build self-confidence that helps us succeed. Katori Hall illustrates this by saying, “Don’t let others put thoughts into your mind that takes away self-confidence” (Hall). Part of being mentally free, is being clam. This means you are able to control your mind and put thoughts into perspective, which reduces stress, and improves confidence. Being calm also improves how we think, as well as how we handle situations. The Dalai Lama explains this as, “Calm mind brings inner strength and self-confidence, so that’s very important for good health” (Dalai Lama). In other words, mental freedom leads to confidence.
In conclusion, mental freedom is an important part of living a positive life. A free mind leads to a positive mindset, which leads to confidence, which leads to your well-being. The power of the mind is very underestimated, and does more than we expect it to. The mind is what helps us reach our full potential, and is what true wealth is measured by, because a free mind is the only thing that can never decrease in value, and physical freedom is an illusion; we are all slaves to something other than our minds.