Asceticism in simple words and what are its advantages

Recently, voluntary renunciation of material wealth in favor of spirituality - asceticism - has become very popular.

Asceticism is a person’s spiritual journey, not connected with worldly affairs. But can ascetics actually isolate themselves from the physical world in which they live? Do they worry about world news and events happening in the outside world? If so, how do they reconcile asceticism and worldly concerns?

In this article we will try to answer in simple words the question of what asceticism is and how this direction affects human life in the modern world.

What is asceticism?

Asceticism in philosophy is the practice of renouncing physical or psychological desires, strict self-denial of worldly pleasures as a measure of personal and especially spiritual discipline. This is a strict control over the mind, body and feelings, caused by the desire to escape from excess consumption [Inquiries, 2014].

Asceticism has always been an integral part of Christian spirituality. The word itself comes from the Greek word askesis, meaning “exercise” or “training.” This term goes back to the Stoics, Cynics and Eastern religions, including Buddhism [Eureka street, 2007].

Ascetic practices are used for many purposes. Many religious traditions encourage the voluntary renunciation of habitual benefits at periodic or specific times in the religious calendar, usually to purify the individual's soul or to prepare for a significant ritual event [IAFOR Journal of Ethics, Religion & Philosophy, 2017].

Perhaps there is not a single religion in the world that can do without ascetic practices. The value of asceticism in strengthening a person's will and deeper spiritual powers has been part of many philosophical and religious movements throughout history. The 19th century German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, for example, advocated a type of asceticism that destroys the will to live. His compatriot and earlier contemporary, the philosopher Immanuel Kant, adhered to moral asceticism for the development of virtue [Britannica, 2021].

Athletic austerities (“training”) were designed to provide the highest possible degree of physical fitness for an athlete to achieve an ideal. Among the ancient Greeks, athletes preparing for competitions (such as the Olympic Games) disciplined their bodies by abstaining from ordinary pleasures and enduring severe physical tests. To achieve high skill in martial arts, many warriors also used various ascetic practices. For example, the ancient Israelites abstained from sexual intercourse before battle [Britannica, 2021].

As values ​​other than physical ability developed, the concept expressed by asceticism and related concepts was applied to other ideals, such as mental ability, moral vitality, and spiritual values.

The idea that one must deny one's lower desires (such as physiological needs) as opposed to spiritual desires has become a central tenet of ethical thought. The ancient Greek philosopher Plato believed that it was necessary to suppress bodily desires so that the soul could freely seek knowledge [Britannica, 2021].

the emergence and cultivation of religious asceticism :

• fear of the hostile influence of demons and dark forces;
• the belief that a person must be in a state of ritual purity to enter into communication with a higher mind;
• the desire to attract the attention of divine or sacred beings to the self-denial of their petitioners;
• an attempt to earn pity, compassion and salvation on merit due to selfless actions;
• a sense of guilt and sin that motivates redemption.

Factors influencing the increased popularity of asceticism in many religions (for example, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity) also include awareness of the transitory nature of earthly life, which causes a desire to consolidate hope for a better life in the other world [Britannica, 2021].

Asceticism is divided into two types:

1. Natural asceticism, consisting of a way of life in which material aspects are reduced to the utmost simplicity and minimum, but without the mutilation and severe austerities from which the human body suffers.
2. Unnatural asceticism is a practice that involves inflicting pain on oneself, such as sleeping on nails or self-mutilation [IAFOR Journal of Ethics, Religion & Philosophy, 2017].

Asceticism also includes the development of moral qualities that require self-restraint and discipline, such as patience and forbearance. It is seen as an important component of spiritual growth, including a wide range of practices aimed at identifying vices and cultivating virtues.

Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms

The basic prerequisite for reading is listening and listening. The practice of the Jesus Prayer is focused listening, not rote repetition. In some ways it resembles meditation, reading mantras and other spiritual exercises, but it has its own tasks and many features. When we talk about the types and forms of asceticism, as a rule, many divide it into spiritual and material asceticism. It goes without saying that by the word “spiritual” we mean the renunciation of various emotional pleasures and interaction with the world. Materiality, in turn, implies a rejection of certain material benefits of modern civilization. And yet, if you think about it, many aspects of these forms will work together, which is why asceticism can also be classified as follows:

Forms of religious asceticism

In traditional religion there is no universally acceptable form of asceticism that would be suitable for other religious traditions. To maintain a connection with higher powers, a person must observe certain taboos [IAFOR Journal of Ethics, Religion & Philosophy, 2017].

Most religions have at least some practices that can be considered ascetic: fasting, celibacy, seclusion, voluntary or complete abstinence from intoxicants, renunciation of worldly goods and possessions, and in some cases even religious suicide.

In the early church and during the Roman persecutions, martyrdom was the ideal form of asceticism, which later transformed into a cult of abstinence and then into hermitage.

This principle of asceticism is often demonstrated in Africa as a rite of passage. Most rites of passage or life cycle require some form of self-denial and self-discipline on the part of the person performing the rituals [IAFOR Journal of Ethics, Religion & Philosophy, 2017].

In some cases, ascetic practices are used as a kind of ritual to attract magical or divine powers. In other situations, voluntary renunciation is perceived as a way to ensure a happy afterlife or rebirth.

In all strictly ascetic movements, celibacy was considered the first and fundamental commandment. Chastity occupied a prominent place in the first Christian communities. In some religions, only celibates were allowed to become priests (for example, the Aztec religion and Catholicism).

Renunciation of worldly goods is another fundamental principle of asceticism. It manifests itself especially clearly in monastic communities. In Christian monasticism, this ideal was proclaimed in its most radical form by Alexander Akoimetos, the founder of monasteries in Mesopotamia [Britannica, 2021].

Alexander doomed himself to poverty and, through his students, expanded his own influence in Eastern Christian monasteries. The monks lived off the alms they asked, but did not allow the gifts to accumulate and create problems with the household. In the East, wandering Hindu ascetics and Buddhist monks also live according to rules that prescribe the denial of worldly goods [Britannica, 2021].

Abstaining from food and fasting are the most common of all ascetic practices. Among primitive peoples, fasting arose in part from the belief that eating food was dangerous, since demonic forces could enter the body while eating.

Fasting associated with religious holidays has very ancient roots. In ancient Greek religion, refusal of meat was especially common among the Orphics, a mystical vegetarian cult. Among a number of churches, the most important period of fasting in the liturgical year is the 40 days before Easter (Lent), and for Muslims the most important period is the holy month of Ramadan.

However, regular fasting cycles did not satisfy the needs of ascetics, so they created their own traditions. The Syrian ascetics tried everything that could reduce sleep and make short-term rest as unpleasant as possible. In their monasteries, they tied ropes to their stomachs and then suspended themselves in an awkward position, and some were tied to standing poles.

Personal hygiene was also condemned among ascetics. Among the deserts and the scorching sun, refusing water was considered a serious form of asceticism. Another ascetic practice - restriction of movements - was especially popular among Syrian monks who loved complete solitude in their cells.

The practice of limiting human contact culminated in solitary confinement in the desert, on cliffs, in desert border areas and in the mountains. In general, any settled dwelling was unacceptable for ascetic thinking, as noted in the ascetic movements of many religions.

In addition to physical forms, psychological forms of asceticism are also very popular. The technique of painful self-examination was used by Buddhist ascetics in connection with their meditation practices. The Syrian monks, striving for higher goals, created a psychological atmosphere in which fear and anxiety were systematically cultivated.

Morbid asceticism manifested itself in many forms. It was a common custom to perform certain physically exhausting or painful exercises. A striking example of ascetic people who prefer this format were Hindu fakirs. According to some sources, ascetics stared at the sun until they went blind, or raised their hands above their heads until they lost sensitivity [Britannica, 2021].

Painful forms of asceticism include self-harm such as cutting, spanking, and even castration. It originated as a mass movement in Italy and Germany during the Middle Ages and is still practiced in parts of Mexico and the southwestern United States.

Syrian Christian monasticism also showed ingenuity in its forms of self-torture. The highly regarded custom included the use of iron devices such as belts or chains, which were placed around the lower back, neck, arms and legs and often hidden under clothing.

Pros and cons of asceticism

Through asceticism, integration into culture occurs at all levels of human existence: consciously and unconsciously, voluntarily or forcibly, physiologically and psychologically, emotionally and rationally.

According to many philosophers, asceticism promotes:

• spiritual healing, cleansing and rejuvenation;
• maintaining a virtuous life;
• preparing for a meeting with higher powers;
• achieving enlightenment and self-realization;
• improving the moral and spiritual content of a person;
• determining goals in life;
• the emergence of a desire for the future [IAFOR Journal of Ethics, Religion & Philosophy, 2017].

The first type of danger to which asceticism is susceptible is excessiveness. For example, prolonged fasting can lead to excessive pride in your achievements, which will ultimately be counterproductive. Almost anyone who has tried to follow a long and exhausting diet knows that such fasting quickly gives way to overeating.

Excessive refusal can lead to the other negative extreme. For example, a prolonged period of dieting is sometimes a catalyst for an anxiety disorder such as anorexia.

It is clear that both cultural and religious views influenced the eating habits of medieval women, much in the same way that popular culture or social archetypes influence women's consumption today. Thus, it seems quite clear that asceticism has survived into modern times and certainly has a place in it. But it is still unclear whether it is identical to Antiquity or represents something new [Inquiries, 2014].

The traditional remedy for excessive fasting is the doctrine of the "mean." Saint Thomas Aquinas said that one should not fast to such an extent as to harm one’s health or weaken the body too much. He recommended a gradual approach: starting small and gradually building up to medium [Thinking Faith, 2011].

The second way of distorting asceticism is more subtle and therefore more insidious. In Catholic spirituality, those ascetics who seek progress in the spiritual life often encourage the “mortification” of their own flesh, literally putting it to death.

The risk is that some ascetic practices unconsciously convey a disregard for the body. The meaning of true asceticism is not to free the soul from the body and not even to suppress physical impulses, but to raise them to a truly spiritual level. In simple words, the big disadvantage of asceticism is the risk of dualism, which implies the emergence of double standards [IAFOR Journal of Ethics, Religion & Philosophy, 2017].

The main idea of ​​asceticism is to live in sufficient isolation so that one can understand the true nature of man. Since no being can be completely separated or isolated from the surrounding reality, ascetic practices are a kind of formal way of creating space and time for the practice of self-knowledge.

Now, to better understand your feelings, emotions and desires, you do not have to become a hermit or spend several hours a day in meditation. To better understand yourself, you can, for example, take the online Self-Knowledge program. We have selected the most effective and useful techniques that you can master in just a few lessons a week. From them you will learn a lot of new things about your leadership styles, type of self-motivation, role in the team, creative features and much more, which will add bonuses to your knowledge about yourself.

How do ascetics live?

In modern society, an ascetic is a person who has decided to follow the path of liberation in order to rid himself of unnecessary consumerism and everything outdated: things, connections, thinking, the old way of life. The word ascetic itself means stern, strict, Spartan. Today, people who have chosen the path of asceticism live by adhering to the following rules:

1. Contentment with little, without the feeling of inferiority imposed by marketers. Good books are better than expensive household appliances and furniture.
2. A minimum of things.
3. Great importance is attached to the development of inner peace.
4. Respect for nature (plastic bags and bottles are absent from the everyday life of ascetics due to the cluttering of the planet with these oil products).
5. Charity.

Asceticism in the modern world

Previously, renunciation of the worldly was associated only with hermit monks who voluntarily deprived themselves of all material goods and pleasures. The essence of asceticism in its classical understanding comes down to the exaltation of chastity and a life full of deprivation and refusal, as well as rejection of any pleasures [Inquiries, 2014].

Asceticism was once a thriving practice. The monastic law ruled the ecclesiastical peoples with astonishing rigidity, and even the laity were subject to a complex world of feasts and fasts. But with the beginning of the Reformation era in society, asceticism was lost forever.

However, it would be a terrible mistake to believe that the Reformation buried the ascetic life forever. In fact, it could be argued that voluntary desistance is thriving in ways never seen before. With the decline of religious beliefs and practices, ascetic instincts turned into their secular counterparts. Food for the soul has ceased to be relevant, and it has been replaced by a focus on the body. The desire to serve higher powers quickly decreases, but instead there is a desire to seek materialistic ways of salvation through strict control of the body.

Today, asceticism does not disappear, it turns into intellectual practices, rather than bodily suffering. For many people, their discipline centers around things like staying physically fit, including rigorous workouts or gym sessions [Medium, 2017].

In the modern world, asceticism can extend to the following areas:

Nutrition

To maintain asceticism in food, it is not at all necessary to fast. Refusal of sweet and unhealthy foods, vegetarianism, raw food diet and other types of nutrition can be a form of asceticism in food.

Moderate and adequate exclusion of certain foods from the diet can contribute not only to the improvement of spiritual values, but also to the improvement of the physical body.

Reasonable consumption

The modern world is dominated by the dogmas of economic rationalism and consumerism, and the radical spiritual desire for justice and equality seems completely incompatible with such a cultural atmosphere [Eureka street, 2007].

Giving up excessive consumption of material goods will be useful even if you do not intend to practice asceticism. Perhaps one of the most important advantages of reasonable consumption and asceticism in clothing is significant savings in money and protection of the planet from environmental disaster.

In addition, an obsession with material things can significantly hinder spiritual development. This happens when things of an exclusively material nature begin to bring pleasure to a person.

Refusal of entertainment

Giving up entertainment does not mean at all that a person who has chosen this path of asceticism should lock himself at home and forget about all worldly joys.

Of course, its more radical supporters choose solitude, which means refusing to communicate for religious purposes. Such isolation can take place in the desert, forest, or mountains. Physical and mental isolation from society means that the chances of the temptations of the material world are greatly reduced by seclusion from them. For example, in African traditional religion, most shrines were built either on the seashore or in the forest. And monks and hermits exist in almost every religion.

Fortunately, the advanced technologies of the modern world provide the possibility of privacy in your own apartment.

Information detox

The amount of information consumed is growing every year. If you do not filter the entire information flow, you can very quickly get lost in all this abundance of news, advertising, educational and work projects.

To clear your head, you need to periodically arrange days of silence, during which you refuse to watch TV, surf the Internet or communicate with other people. An information detox for a day, a week or even a month will allow you to clear your mind of unnecessary noise and begin to listen to yourself and your feelings.

Asceticism in the interior

Interior design fashion has changed significantly over the past few years. The lush and flashy style was replaced by laconic and practical minimalism. This type of asceticism has become so popular that a large number of books with step-by-step algorithms and guidelines for action are devoted to it. Supporters of the trend are convinced that space freed from unnecessary furniture releases a large amount of energy necessary for implementation in other important areas.

Minimalism is a modern approach to asceticism. To stick to it, you don’t have to go to remote corners. You can live in the city, but consciously and intentionally live with the least possible possessions.

Physical things, their condition and location in your living space often reflect the state of your mind. If there is a lot of garbage in your physical space, then most likely there will be the same amount of information “junk” in your head.

Discipline

Discipline as a form of asceticism may include:

• getting up early in the morning;
• playing sports;
• work in intensive mode;
• rejection of bad habits;
• setting your own records.

Any limitation of one's own desires in favor of achieving goals or increasing personal effectiveness can be a form of discipline. As soon as a person makes this trait a habit, his results both in his personal life and at work increase significantly.

Social asceticism

Social asceticism is a relatively young trend, which, nevertheless, was able to gain popularity among residents of the United States and Western European countries. This type of refusal was discussed in detail by psychologist Patrick J. Hall in his book Social Asceticism. In it, he explains in detail what kind of philosophical movement this is, how to come to it and what benefits it brings to humanity.

According to the author, consciously limiting social contacts allows you not only to get to know yourself better and understand the meaning of life, but also relieves you of feelings of loneliness.

Often the desire to post your every step on social networks and wait for positive reinforcement in the form of positive comments and likes is due to internal self-doubt. Working through this on your own or with a psychologist can greatly improve your self-esteem.

Dictionary of the Ozhegov language

Asceticism as a way of life has been taken up by the modern generation of youth. People who have taken the path of abstinence doubt the advisability of asceticism. Reasonable asceticism brings a person tangible benefits that correspond to the meaning for which asceticism is performed. Practical consequences of asceticism: The deserts of the Middle East were once inhabited by thousands of men and women. Christian ascetics, hermits and heremites, including Saint Anthony the Great (aka Saint Anthony the Desert), Saint Mary of Egypt and Saint Simeon the Stylite, known together as the Fathers and Mothers of the Desert. In 963 AD, a union of monasteries called Lavra was created on Mount Athos in the Orthodox tradition. In subsequent centuries it became the most important Orthodox ascetic group. Nowadays, important centers are Mount Athos and Meteora.