It needs to be continually learned and reacquired. The essence of slavery, Torah tells us, is self-concern. Preoccupation with myself, my success or failure, and with others' respect, rob me of the freedom to choose and act. I am a slave to anxiety and compulsion. A man who can't stop smoking isn't free nor is one who dreads pain and rejection.
Heroes make a statement of freedom by their willingness to risk themselves for an ideal.
When Natan Sharansky refused to leave his prison without his book of Psalms, he proclaimed his determination to maintain conscience at any price. His freedom is breathtaking. The worst enslavement is not external. Pompous with air and insubstantial, it looks impressive but yields no nourishment. Ego is a facade without substance, skin deep power.