Quotes About Asceticism

Read from a distant star the majuscule script of our earthly existence would perhaps tempt one to conclude that the earth is the ascetic planet par excellence, a nook of discontented, arrogant, and repulsive creatures who could not get rid of a deep displeasure with themselves, with the earth, with all life and who caused themselves as much pain as possible out of pleasure in causing pain:?probably their only pleasure.

Man, the bravest of animals, and the one most accustomed to suffering, does not repudiate suffering as such; he desires it, he even seeks it out, provided he is shown a meaning for it, a purpose of suffering. The meaninglessness of suffering, not suffering itself, was the curse that lay over mankind so far — and the ascetic ideal offered man meaning!

The ascetic ideal has an aim - this goal is, putting it generally, that all the other interests of human life should, measured by its standard, appear petty and narrow; it explains epochs, nations, men, in reference to this one end; it forbids any other interpretation, any other end; it

Apart from the ascetic ideal, man, the human animal, had no meaning so far. His existence on earth contained no goal; "why man at all? – was a question without an answer…

In fact, for the longest time on Earth, philosophy would not have been at all possible without an ascetic cover and costume, without an ascetic misunderstanding.

The whole morality of the Sermon on the Mount belongs here; man takes a truly voluptuous pleasure in violating himself by exaggerated demands and then deifying this something in his soul that is so tyrannically taxing. In each ascetic morality, man prays to one part of himself as god and also finds its necessary to diabolify the rest.

He was taught to dress plainly and to live simply, to avoid all softness and luxury.

Asceticism doesn't lie in mere words; He is an ascetic who treats everyone alike. Asceticism doesn't lie in visiting burial places; it lies not in wandering about nor in bathing at places of pilgrimage. Asceticism is to remain pure amidst impurities.

Vive usted prácticamente como un monje, su casa es de una enorme austeridad, su dormitorio parece la celda de un trapense, realmente es de una sobriedad extraordinaria.

Împingând la paroxism viaÅ£a auster? care-mi fusese h?r?zit?, am transformat-o în vocaÅ£ie; am convertit privaÅ£iunea de pl?ceri în ascez?; în loc s? m? târ?sc de la o zi la alta, într-o plictisitoare uniformitate, mi-o luasem mie îns?mi înainte, mut?, cu privirea fix?, îndreptându-m? c?tre o Å£int? ascuns?.

All honor to those who can abnegate for themselves the personal enjoyment of life, when by such renunciation they contribute worthily to increase the amount of happiness in the world; but he who does it, or professes to do it, for any other purpose, is no more deserving of admiration than the ascetic mounted on his pillar.

The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection, that one is sometimes willing to commit sins for the sake of loyalty, that one does not push asceticism to the point where it makes friendly intercourse impossible, and that one is prepared in the end to be defeated and broken up by life, which is the inevitable price of fastening one's love upon other human individuals.

The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection, that one is sometimes willing to commit sins for the sake of loyalty, that one does not push asceticism to the point where it makes friendly intercourse impossible, and that one is prepared in the end to be defeated and broken up by life, which is the inevitable price of fastening one's love upon other human individuals.

Saints and mystics spend their lives trying to escape the prison of the flesh;

Everywhere where detestable Islam has not yet driven out the ancient, profound religions of humanity with fire and sword, my ascetic results would have to fear the reproach of being trivial

Asceticism is the denial of the will to live; and the transition from the Old Testament to the New, from the dominion of Law to that of Faith, from justification by works to redemption through the Mediator, from the domain of sin and death to eternal life in Christ, means, when taken in its real sense, the transition from the merely moral virtues to the denial of the will to live.

Voluntary and complete chastity is the first step in asceticism or the denial of the will-to-live.

O espírito íntimo e o sentido da vida verdadeira e pura do claustro e do ascetismo em geral, é sentirmo-nos dignos e capazes de uma existência melhor do que a nossa, e querermos fortificar e manter esta convicção pelo desprezo de todos os vãos gozos deste mundo. Espera-se com segurança e calma o fim desta vida, livre das ilusões enganadoras, para saudar um dia a hora da morte como a da libertação.

Intend to live in continual mortification, and never to expect or desire any worldly ease or pleasure.

El antónimo más exacto de la soberbia es la humildad, característica del hombre que reconoce sus defectos y es capaz de someter su razón, su voluntad y sus preferencias en bien de los demás; se interesa por los problemas y las circunstancias ajenas. La humildad es el mejor camino para la ascética personal y la espiritualidad trascendente.

With the legalization of Christianity, the opportunity to be martyred disappeared. As a result, people who wanted to prove their faith turned to "white martyrdom" — the living of a strict, ascetic life — as the most viable alternative to actual martyrdom.

Unlike ascetic and puritanical regimes, humanistic ethics does not second-guess the intrinsic worth of people seeking comfort, pleasure, and fulfillment—if people didn't seek them, there would be no people.

it would seem that these super-religious ascetics would be extremely so. But the witness of everyone who visited them for counsel was the opposite. They were some of the

it would seem that these super-religious ascetics would be extremely so. But the witness of everyone who visited them for counsel was the opposite. They were some of the most gracious souls the world has ever known. The story is told of an Abba