The Four Cardinal Virtues
This week you are going to learn about the Four Cardinal Virtues: wisdom, courage, justice, and temperance. "Cardinal" comes from the Latin cardo, meaning hinge. These four are the hinges on which a good life swings. The Stoics inherited them from Plato and Socrates, then sharpened them into something practical: not ideals to admire from a distance, but habits of mind and action you can exercise every single day. By Saturday, you will not just know what they are; you will have a feel for how they work together as one way of living.
Passage
And, indeed, virtue in general may be said to consist almost wholly in three properties; the first is [Wisdom,] the ability to perceive what in any given instance is true and real, what its relations are, its consequences, and its causes; the second is [Temperance,] the ability to restrain the passions (which the Greeks call πάθη ) and make the impulses ( ὁρμαί ) obedient to reason; and the third is [Justice,] the skill to treat with consideration and wisdom those with whom we are associated, in order that we may through their cooperation have our natural wants supplied in full and overflowing measure, that we may ward of any impending trouble, avenge ourselves upon those who have attempted to injure us, and visit them with such retribution as justice and humanity will permit.
— Cicero, On Duties 2.18
Reflection
Today Cicero lays out how the virtues divide up the territory of a human life. Wisdom handles perception: seeing what is actually true in a situation, understanding causes and consequences. Temperance handles the interior: keeping passions (the Greek word is pathe, meaning powerful emotional reactions that can overwhelm reason) in check and making impulses (hormai, our instinctive drives toward or away from things) answerable to rational judgment. Justice handles the social: how you treat the people around you, what you owe them, and how to live well alongside others. Courage, implied here, is what makes you act on what the other three tell you is right, even when it is difficult. Together they cover your mind, your body, your relationships, and your nerve.
Go deeper
Which of the four domains (perception, interior regulation, relationships, or the nerve to act) feels most underdeveloped in your life right now, and what does that cost you on a daily basis?
Practice
Virtue Inventory
Spend eight minutes writing a short, honest paragraph about each of the four virtues as they show up (or go missing) in your current life. Wisdom: do you usually see situations clearly, or do you react before understanding? Temperance: do your desires generally stay within bounds you are proud of? Justice: are you treating the people close to you as they deserve? Courage: when you know what the right thing is, do you actually do it? Keep it brief and specific; vague answers teach you nothing.