“Who is the truly valorous individual? The one who conquers his base instincts.” Pious abstinence consists of three main ingredients: abstinence in the realm of pleasures, abstinence in the realm of laws, and abstinence in the realm of conduct.
There are rules of legal conduct and there are rules of pious conduct. A person who is fit for such is called upon to adopt pious conduct. Pious abstinence is not for everybody, but those who are able to behave in such a manner uplift everybody else.