Asceticism

Asceticism describes a life characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures (austerity). Those who practice ascetic lifestyles often perceive their practices as virtuous and pursue them to achieve greater spirituality. Many ascetics believe the action of purifying the body helps to purify the soul, and thus obtain a greater connection with the Divine or find inner peace. This may take the form of self-mortification, rituals, or renunciations of pleasure. However, ascetics maintain that self-imposed constraints bring them greater freedom in various areas of their lives, such as increased clarity of thought and the ability to resist potentially destructive temptations.

The term "ascetic" derives from the ancient Greek word askēsis (practice, training, or exercise), which described the regimen many Greek warriors and athletes followed to attain optimal bodily fitness and grace. Historically, there have been two main categories of asceticism: the "otherworldly," which has been practiced by people who withdraw from the world in order to live an ascetic life, including monks and hermits; and "worldly" asceticism, referring to those who live ascetic lives but don't withdraw from the world.

While monks, yogis, or priests are commonly thought of as ascetics, any individual may choose to lead an ascetic life. Famous examples of such include Lao Zi, Gautama Buddha, Francis of Assisi, and Mahatma Gandhi. Such men forsook their families, possessions, and homes to live an ascetic life, and according to their followers, achieved spiritual enlightnement.

Many religions—Hinduism, Jainism, Budhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Sufism—have their ascetic traditions. However, there can be secular motivations to follow an ascetic lifestyle, such as an artist who deprives himself for his work, or the stoic whose beliefs can be described as nonreligious, but adheres to asceticism nonetheless. The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche describes the paradoxical notion that asceticism might serve one's self-interests in that it can help attain mastery over oneself.

Meditating philosopher by Rembrandt van Rijn.

Etymology

The adjective "ascetic" derives from the ancient Greek term askēsis (practice, training, or exercise). Originally associated with any form of disciplined practice, the term ascetic has come to mean anyone who practices a renunciation of worldly pursuits to achieve higher intellectual and spiritual goals.

Many warriors and athletes in Greek society applied the discipline of askēsis to attain optimal bodily fitness and grace. A person who adopts the manner of life, doctrine, or principles of askēsis is referred to as an ascetic.

Worldly versus otherworldly

Sociologist of religion Max Weber made a distinction between asceticism practiced "inside the world" and "outside the world." The latter, or "otherworldly" asceticism, is practiced by people who withdraw from the everyday world in order to live an ascetic life. This includes monks who live communally in monasteries, as well as hermits who live alone. "Worldly" asceticism refers to people who live ascetic lives but do not withdraw from the world—often referred to as being "in the world" but not "of the world."

Types of religious asceticism

Asceticism is most commonly associated with monks, yogis, or certain types of priests. However any individual may choose to lead an ascetic life. Lao Zi, Shakyamuni Gautama, Mahavir Swami, Saint Anthony, Francis of Assisi, and Mahatma Gandhi are among the best known ascetics.

Hinduism

In Hinduism, "The Eternal Way" (in Sanskrit सनातन धर्म, Sanātana Dharma), speaks to the idea that certain spiritual principles hold eternally true, transcending man-made constructs, representing a pure science of consciousness. This consciousness is not merely that of the body or mind and intellect, but of a supra-mental spiritual state that exists within and beyond our existence, the unsullied Self of all. Sadhus, men believed to be holy, are known for extreme forms of self-denial. The particular types of asceticism involved vary from sect to sect, and from holy man to holy man.

There are several forms of yoga practiced in Hinduism. Raja yoga (or meditational union) is based on the sage Patanjali's influential text the Yoga Sutra, which is essentially a compilation and systematization of previous meditational yoga philosophy. The Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita are also indispensable literature in the study of yoga.

The goal of Raja Yoga is clearly stated in the opening verse of the Yoga Sutra: citti vritti nirodha ("cessation of mental fluctuations"). Realization of this goal is known as ''samadhi''. A primary means of the attainment of samadhi is sanyāsa—meaning "renunciation" or "abandonment."

Unlike monks in the Western world, whose lives are regulated by a monastery or an abbey and its rules, the Hindu sannyasin is usually a lone personage and a wanderer (parivrājaka). Hindu monasteries (mathas) do not have a large number of monks living under one roof. The monasteries exist primarily for educational purposes and have become centers of pilgrimage for the lay population. Most traditional Hindu orders do not have women sannyasis, but this situation is undergoing changes in recent times.

Jainism

Jainism is a specifically ascetic religion with its origins in the prehistory of India and is still practiced today by several million people. Like Hindu asceticism, Jainism encourages fasting, yoga practices, meditation in difficult postures, and other austerities. Also as in the Hindu tradition, one's highest goal should be moksha (i.e., liberation from the cycle of birth and rebirth). For this, a soul has to be completely passionless and without attachment. This can be achieved only by the monks and nuns who take five great vows: non-violence, truth, non-stealing, of non-possession, and of celibacy.

Many of the austerities and ascetic practices can be traced back to Vardhaman Mahavira. The Acaranga Sutra, or "Book of Good Conduct," is a sacred book within Jainism that discusses the ascetic code of conduct. Since Jain ascetics practice complete non-violence, they do not hurt any living animal being, be it an insect or a human. Some Jains wear a cloth over the mouth to prevent accidental harm to airborne germs and insects.

Jain monks and nuns travel barefoot from city to city, often crossing forests and deserts. They sleep on the floor without blankets and sit on special wooden platforms. To prevent attachment to any place, Jain ascetics do not stay in a single place for more than two months, except during four months of monsoon (rainy season), they continue to stay at a single place to avoid killing of life forms that thrives during the rains.

Jain ascetics follow a strict vegetarian diet without root vegetables. Fasting is a routine feature of Jain asceticism, with fasts lasting for a day or longer, up to a month. Some monks avoid or limit medicine and hospitalization out of disregard for the physical body. Other austerities include meditation in seated or standing posture near river banks in the cold wind, or meditation atop hills and mountains, especially at noon when the sun is at its fiercest. Such austerities are undertaken according to the physical and mental limits of the individual ascetic.

Almost completely without possessions, some Jain own only unstitched white robes and a bowl used for eating and collecting alms. Jain monks and nuns also practice complete celibacy. They do not touch or share a sitting platform with a person of opposite sex. Every day is spent either in study of scriptures, meditation, or teaching.

Buddhism

As with Hinduism and Jainism, the aim of Buddhist practice is to end the suffering of cyclic existence—samsara—by awakening the practitioner to the realization of true reality, the achievement of spiritual liberation (nirvana). To achieve this, one must purify and train the mind and act according to the laws of karma by performing positive, wholesome actions, and avoid negative, harmful actions.

Buddhists seek refuge in what are often referred to as the Three Jewels, Triple Gem, or Triple Jewel. These are the Buddha, the Dharma (or Dhamma), and the "noble" Sangha, or community, of monks and nuns (sometimes all other buddhists are included). While it is impossible to escape one's karma or the effects caused by previous thoughts, words, and deeds, it is possible to avoid the suffering that comes from it by becoming enlightened. In this way, dharma offers a refuge. Dharma, used in the sense of the Buddha's teachings, provides a raft (method) and is thus a temporary refuge while entering and crossing the river. However, the real refuge (of enlightenment) is on the other side of the river.

To someone who is seeking to become enlightened, taking refuge constitutes a continuing commitment to pursuing enlightenment and following in the footsteps of the people who have followed the path to enlightenment before. It contains an element of confidence that enlightenment is in fact a refuge, a supreme resort. Many Buddhists take the refuges each day, often more than once in order to remind themselves of what they are doing and to direct their resolve inwardly towards liberation.

In all forms of Buddhism, refuge in the Three Jewels are taken before the Sangha for the first time, as a part of the conversion ritual. However, the personal choice for taking ones' life-path in this direction is more important than any external ritual.

It is good to note that in Buddhism, the word "refuge" should often not be taken in the English sense of "hiding" or "escape;" instead, many scholars have said, it ought be thought of as a homecoming, or place of healing, much as a parent's home might be a refuge for someone. This simple misunderstanding has led some Western scholars to conclude that Buddhism is "a religion for sticking one's head in the sand," when most Buddhists would assert quite the opposite. On the other hand, the main goal of Buddhism is to escape from the suffering of cyclic existence. Some translators also translate it as "taking safe direction."

Buddhists undertake certain precepts as aids on the path to coming into contact with ultimate reality. Laypeople generally undertake (at least one of) five precepts. The Five Precepts are not given in the form of commands such as "thou shalt not ...", but rather are promises to oneself: "I will (try) to...".

The five precepts are, to refrain from: harming living creatures (killing), taking that which is not freely given (stealing), sexual misconduct, incorrect speech (lying, harsh language, slander, idle chit-chat), and intoxicants which lead to loss of mindfulness.

Judaism

The history of Jewish asceticism goes back thousands of years to the references of the Nazirite (Numbers 6) and the Wilderness Tradition that evolved out of the 40 years in the desert. The prophets and their disciples were ascetic to the extreme, including many examples of fasting and hermitic living conditions. After the Jews returned from the Babylonian exile and the prophetic institution was done away with a different form of asceticism arose when Antiochus IV Epiphanes threatened the Jewish religion in 167 B.C.E. The Hassidean sect attracted observant Jews to its fold and they lived as holy warriors in the wilderness during the war against the Seleucid Empire. With the rise of the Hasmoneans and finally Jonathan's claim to the High Priesthood in 152 B.C.E., the Essene sect separated under the Teacher of Righteousness and they took the banner of asceticism for the next 200 years culminating in the Dead Sea Sect.

Fasting played an essential a part in the practices of ascetics, classically found official recognition only in the development of the Day of Atonement. The Prophets, again, had little patience with fasting. There are some obscure allusions to fast days of popular observance, but the Prophets of exilic and postexilic days insist on the futility of this custom. Nevertheless, fasting among the Jews was resorted to in times of great distress.

The attempt has been made to explain the Biblical Nazarites as forerunners of monastic orders addicted to the practice of ascetic discipline. Pentateuchal legislation concerning them shows them to have been merely tolerated. Modern criticism explains their peculiarities as arising from motives other than those that determine the conduct of ascetics. Likeswise, the Essenes are not classed among the order of ascetics. While some of their institutions, notably celibacy, appear to lend support to the theory that would class them as such, their fundamental doctrines show no connection with the pessimism that is the essential factor in Asceticism. They stood for a universal fellowship of the pure and just, setting but little store by the goods of this earth, and were members of a communistic fraternity. But it cannot be understood from their hopes and habits the inference that in them is to be found a genuine Jewish order of monks and ascetics.

Among the rabbis in the Talmud, some are mentioned as great and consistent fasters, Rabbi Zeira especially is remembered for his fondness of this form of piety. Yet to make of him an ascetic would transcend the bounds of truth. He fasted that he might forget his Babylonian method of teaching before emigrating to Palestine. The story continues that he abstained from drink and food for the period of 100 days, in order that hell-fire might later have no power over him. Simon ben Yoai is depicted as an ascetic in the traditions preserved in rabbinical literature.

The development and growth of the Kabbala (Hebrew: קַבָּלָה, meaning "received tradition," referring to an esoteric collection of Jewish mystical doctrines about Yahweh (God) and God's relationship to Creation), produced other forms of asceticism. In fact, medieval apocalyptic literature tells of the survival of Essenism, ablutions, and fasting that were resorted to by followers of the Kabbala as means of attaining communion with the upper world. Some of these Hasidim would spend the whole week—without or with interruption, according to their physical endurance-—in fasting, rendering only the Sabbath a day of comfort and joy. The object of their penitences and fastings was to bring about the time of divine favor, the Messianic era. Every Messianic movement had therefore Ascetics as leaders, such as the Shabbethaians and others like Abraham ben Samuel Cohen of Lask. Others would live on vegetarian diet, like the Buddhists or the Pythagoreans of old.

Rejected by modern-day Judaism, asceticism is considered contrary to God's wishes for the world. God intended for the world to be enjoyed, in a permitted context of course [1]. The Talmud says that "if a person has the opportunity to taste a new fruit and refuses to do so, he will have to account for that in the next world." There are different categories of pleasure. From simple, short-lived things, like eating something tasty, to more complex pleasures, such as the satisfaction of succeeding in a difficult task. The closest Judaism comes to asceticism is when it tries to teach people to enjoy the more intellectual and spiritual pleasures, and not to chase after the simpler pleasures.

Christianity

Asceticism within Christian tradition is the set of disciplines practiced to work out the believer's salvation and further the believer's repentance as well as for the purpose of spiritual enlightenment. Although monks and nuns are known for especially strict acts of asceticism, ascetic practices are evident among other early Christians.

Christian authors of late antiquity such as Origen, Jerome, John Chrysostom, and Augustine interpreted meanings of Biblical texts within a highly asceticized religious environment. Through their commentaries, they created a new “asceticized Scripture,” and in the process an asceticized version of Christianity. Scriptural examples of asceticism could be found in the lives of John the Baptist, Jesus, the twelve apostles, and Saint Paul, as well as in the primitive Christian community depicted by Luke (Acts 4:32). The Dead Sea Scrolls revealed ascetic practices of the ancient Jewish sect of Essenes who took vows of abstinence to prepare for a holy war.

Thus, the asceticism of practitioners like Jerome was hardly original (although some of his critics thought it was), and a desert ascetic like Antony the Great (251-356 C.E.) was in the tradition of ascetics in noted communities and sects of the previous centuries. Clearly, emphasis on an ascetic religious life was evident in both early Christian writings (Philokalia) and practices (hesychasm). Other Christian followers of asceticism include the Cathars plus individuals such as Francis of Assisi, Saint David, and Simeon Stylites.

To the uninformed modern reader, early monastic asceticism may seem to be only about sexual renunciation. However, sexual abstinence was merely one aspect of ascetic renunciation. The ancient monks and nuns had other, equally weighty concerns: pride, humility, compassion, discernment, patience, judging others, prayer, hospitality, and almsgiving. For some early Christians, gluttony represented a more primordial problem than sex, and as such the reduced intake of food is also a facet of asceticism. As an illustration, the systematic collection of the Apophthegmata, or Sayings of the desert fathers and mothers has more than 20 chapters divided by theme; only one chapter is devoted to porneia (“sexual lust").

Islam

The Islamic word for asceticism is zuhd.

The Prophet Muhammad is quoted to have said, "What have I to do with worldly things? My connection with the world is like that of a traveler resting for a while underneath the shade of a tree and then moving on."

He advised the people to live simple lives and himself practiced great austerities. Even when he had become the virtual king of Arabia, he lived an austere life bordering on privation. His wife Ayesha says that there was hardly a day in his life when he had two square meals (Muslim, Sahih Muslim, Vol.2, pg 198)

Muslim scholars, one being Muhammad Asad wrote that he found the Qur’an to say “Yes to action, No to passivity. Yes to life, No to asceticism.” Asad believed that Allah did not simply provide men and women with bodily needs, only to expect them to suppress such needs and concentrate on their spirit. Rather the Qur’an and Hadith offer much practical advice concerned with the earthly affairs of men and women. Thus scholars such as Asad point out that, the Qur’an and Hadith show us a path where the needs of our flesh and spirit are both harmoniously balanced.

Fasting during Ramadan

During the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, when the Qur'an was revealed, the most prominent event is the daytime fasting (sawm) practiced by most observant Muslims. Every day during the month of Ramadan, Muslims around the world get up before dawn to eat (sahur) and perform their fajr prayer. They break their fast when the fourth prayer of the day, Maghrib (sunset), is due.

During Ramadan, Muslims are also expected to put more effort into following the teachings of Islam as well as refraining from lying, stealing, anger, envy, greed, lust, sarcastic retorts, backbiting, and gossip. Obscene and irreligious sights and sounds are to be avoided; sexual activities during fasting hours is also forbidden.[Qur'an 2:187] Purity of both thought and action is important. The fast is intended to be an exacting act of deep personal worship in which Muslims seek a raised level of closeness to God. The act of fasting is said to redirect the heart away from worldly activities, its purpose being to cleanse the inner soul and free it from harm. Properly observing the fast is supposed to induce a comfortable feeling of peace and calm. It also allows Muslims to practice self-discipline, sacrifice, as well as sympathy for those who are less fortunate, intending to make Muslims more generous and charitable.

In addition to prayer and fasting, Muslims are encouraged to read the entire Qur'an.

Sufism

Sufism evolved not as a mystical, but as an ascetic movement, as even the name suggests; Sufi refers to a rough woolen robe of the ascetic. A natural bridge from asceticism to mysticism has often been crossed by Muslim ascetics.

Sufism may have emerged from the practice of Muslim asceticism. People of ascetic temperaments were found throughout Muslim communities early in the history of Islam. Through meditation on the Qur'an and praying to Allah, the Muslim ascetic believes that he draws near to Allah, and by leading an ascetic life paves the way for absorption in Allah, the Sufi way to salvation.

These ascetics focused on introspection and maintained a strict control over their life and behavior. They followed a lifestyle of modesty, temperance, contentment and the denial of luxury. Their practices included fasting, wearing light clothing in the depths of winter, or withdrawing themselves from the world. Other theories have been suggested for the origins of Sufism, which link it to outside non-Muslim influences.

If early Sufism arose out of the practice of asceticism—the turning away from worldly life to concentrate on prayer to Allah—then it likely resulted in being limited to a small number of devoted practitioners. However, by the middle of the ninth century, Sufi mysticism started to burgeon. One major figure and catalyst in its growth was the female mystic Rabiah al-Adawiyah (died 801), who emphasized the absolute love for Allah above everything else. The shift of Sufism from asceticism to divine love captured the attention of the masses and elites, and soon Sufism began to flourish in Baghdad spreading then to Persia, Pakistan, India, North Africa, and Muslim Spain.

Religious versus secular motivation

Observation of ascetic lifestyles have its beginnings in both religious and secular settings. For example, the religious motivations of the ancient Hebrew sects, fasting in order to become Holy, priestesses in the temples of ancient Greece abstaining from sex to better serve their particular god, and Stoic philosophers disciplining their will against a life of sensual pleasure to achieve spiritual goals, is balanced by the examples of Spartans undertaking regimens of severe physical discipline to prepare for battle and the belief in Rome that the purity of the Vestal Virgins was a safeguard against harm to the city.

Secular motivation

Examples of secular asceticism:

• A "Starving Artist" is someone who minimizes their living expenses in order to spend more time and effort on their art.
• Eccentric inventors sometimes live similar lives in pursuit of technical rather than artistic goals.
• "Hackers" often consider their programming projects to be more important than personal wealth or comfort.
• Various individuals have attempted an ascetic lifestyle to free themselves from modern-day addictions, such as alcohol, tobacco, drugs, fast food, gambling, and sex.
• Many professional athletes abstain from sex, rich foods, and other pleasures before major competitions in order to mentally prepare themselves for the upcoming contest.

Critics

In the third essay ("What Do Ascetic Ideals Mean?" [2]) from his book On the Genealogy of Morals, Friedrich Nietzsche discusses what he terms the "ascetic ideal" and its role in the formulation of morality along with the history of the will. In the essay, Nietzsche describes how such a paradoxical action as asceticism might serve the interests of life: through asceticism one can attain mastery over oneself.

In this way, one can express both ressentiment and the will to power. Nietzsche describes the morality of the ascetic priest as characterized by Christianity as one where, finding oneself in pain, one places the blame for the pain on oneself and thereby attempts and attains mastery over the world, a tactic that Nietzsche places behind secular science as well as behind religion.

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Brakke, David. Athanasius and Asceticism, The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998. ISBN 978-0801860553
• Chadwick, Owen. Western Asceticism, Westminster John Knox Press, 1975. ISBN 978-0664241612
• Cole, Letha B. & Winkler, Mary G. The Good Body: Asceticism in Contemporary Culture, Yale University Press, 1994. ISBN 978-0300056280
• Wimbush, Vincent L. & Valantasis, Richard. Aceticism, Oxford University OPress, 2002. ISBN 978-0195151381

External links

• St. Simeon Stylites by George Lamb
• An example of contemporary ascetic mysticism
• Christian Cyclopedia: Asceticism

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