Surviving desire: what Buddhist thought teaches us about our war on want

‘We live in a culture adept at stimulating desire while simultaneously encouraging us to distrust it,’ writes Nadine Levy. Illustration: Guardian Design

When I was a kid, I had a designated “junk food drawer”. I remember a particular kind of joy in choosing what I felt like eating: chips, chocolate, biscuits. I would saunter into the kitchen, choose my poison and kick back on the couch.

These were simpler times.