Kant's Radical Notion: True Freedom Lies in Following Moral Law

In a recent short video, philosopher Slavoj Žižek explores Immanuel Kant's counterintuitive concept of freedom: that genuine autonomy is achieved not by pursuing desires, but by obeying the moral law. Kant argued that freedom isn't doing whatever we want—that would be slavery to impulses. Instead, true freedom is self-legislation: acting according to a universal moral principle we give to ourselves, independent of external pressures or personal inclinations. This idea challenges modern notions of freedom as mere choice or lack of constraint. The video, part of a longer podcast, invites viewers to reconsider determinism and free will through a Kantian lens.