r/Pessimism • u/lacrimisisfinti • 25d ago
Discussion Does anyone here practice asceticism?
Schopenhauer is probably the great advocate of asceticism within the tradition of philosophical pessimism since, for him, liberation from suffering necessarily passes through the denial of the Will, seeing the ending of one’s own life as a false way out for someone who loves life but wishes to escape suffering.
I know there are religious pessimists, especially Christians and Buddhists, and that traditions such as these have developed fairly sophisticated forms of ascetic practice, but I’m curious, however, to know whether anyone here follows some form of secular asceticism. I’m not simply thinking of “minimalism” or living with less, but of a conscious renunciation of the world, with voluntary poverty, celibacy/chastity, mortification of the flesh, quietism, profound resignation, etc.
It seems extremely difficult to sustain something like this without a religious framework to serve as an anchor — without ending up with a noose around your neck in the process. Schopenhauer himself, although he theorized about the subject, did not practice it in his daily life, regarding asceticism as the pinnacle reserved only for an aristocracy of “heroic individuals.” For the overwhelming majority, what remains is distraction (clinging to work, relationships, entertainment, or addictions) simply to endure existence without collapsing.
Has anyone here ever tried or had practical experience with some form of secular denial of the Will? How do you deal with its abyss in everyday life?
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u/Allcars01 25d ago
I’m trying to head down the path of ascetic practice, tomorrow I have a flight to Brazil and I hope to slowly integrate into the forest where I can devote my life to finding the divine and follow the path of hermits through inner silence
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u/lacrimisisfinti 25d ago
I’m brazilian, so it’s nice to hear that you’re coming here! There are good places here for that
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u/Allcars01 25d ago
Yes I hope so man on the plane now, God bless
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u/NpOno 25d ago
Advaita Vedanta works. I’d recommend you read “I Am That” by Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj.
The most extreme practices induce awareness. As do dangerous life threatening sports. But the danger is losing life-time.
The basic practice of being here now is a direct way to cut out the mind’s dictatorial control over your life. It is the narrator of your life that you need to question.
I highly recommend any books by Jiddu Krishnamurti. He’s a negationist! He deconstructs all of the mind’s pointless activity. Totally secular and non religious, no dogma’s. He points out all the mind’s pointless activity games and traps of consciousness. It’s the most pure form of Advaita Vedanta, non-duality there is. As such not easy to grasp onto. In fact it’s impossible to grasp onto.
The big shift seems a little thing. Just to become aware of thoughts and feelings, watching the inner mind with great curiosity. Just being here now, aware is the switch into stillness. There is really no other viable option in life that will liberate awareness from the illusion of consciousness.
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u/stephennedumpally 25d ago
Budhism isn't ascetic. Budha himself chose the middle way and rejected asceticism.
Jainism would be the most ascetic and the sadhus and sanyasis of Hinduism also practices ascetisicm.
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u/lacrimisisfinti 25d ago
Buddhism is a strongly ascetic tradition, but the Buddha rejected the extreme asceticism of the śramaṇas of his time, such as the Jains, Ājīvikas, and other renunciants who practiced nudity, extreme fasting, and deliberate harm to the body. The Middle Way is not moderation in the Aristotelian sense of avoiding excess, as it is mistakenly interpreted in the West, along the lines of “have a little sexual desire, but not too much,” but rather a rejection of mistaken premises. Extreme mortification is not useless because it is “excessive,” but because it is soteriologically misguided (it strengthens pride and does not eliminate the mental defilements). It also has a doctrinally metaphysical meaning: avoiding the extremes of eternalism (sassata-diṭṭhi) and annihilationism (uccheda-diṭṭhi).
Monastic life involves celibacy, alms-begging, dietary restrictions, material simplicity, and other austere disciplines. There are also the thirteen optional dhutaṅga practices, such as living in the forest or in cemeteries, wearing rag robes, and eating only once a day. The Buddha rejected mortification as a necessary means to liberation, not asceticism as a spiritual discipline. Monastic celibacy, for example, is not a “moderation of sexuality,” but a refusal to participate in the logic of desire itself — otherwise, masturbation would be permitted and practices such as asubha-bhāvanā would be nonsensical.
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u/yesimfinewhyyouask 25d ago
Isn’t it proven now that if you don’t drain your snake once in a while, you’ll end up with all sorts of problems, particularly prostate cancer. Which again would be suffering.
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u/Can_i_be_certain 25d ago
I will be writing more about this at some point.
Because Schopenahauer didnt know about neuroscience and neurons ect. He though will denial was a sort of solution, and ge wasnt wrong.
But basically all schopenhauer is saying is being on flow states i believe as the only work around
Basically if we are able deny ourselves for carnal needs for a while then when we fulfill them the pleasure is much more intense (think about the guy drinking water after going thirsty for 2 days) sadly for him its been 2 days of suffering. If however the gentleman was in a flow state then perhaps it wasnt so bad.
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u/WanderingUrist 24d ago
No, I don't practice it. No practice is required, I simply have a natural talent for it, so I just improvise it on the fly.
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u/Natural-Carry-8700 24d ago
Through a chain of unfortunate events although i di fry ti run sway from the lsst whar dhs djd make me suffer either way just not beware so i needed tk djt still abd suffer
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u/WoodpeckerNo1 16d ago
I'm not convinced this is really feasible. At least not for the vast majority of humanity, including me.
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u/IbanezUniverse90 25d ago
Why make life even more miserable than it has to be?
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u/lacrimisisfinti 25d ago
Because the goal of asceticism isn't to make life more miserable, but to free us from what perpetuates our misery
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u/IbanezUniverse90 25d ago
Asceticism just seems like throwing the baby out with the bath water. It’s only certain copes and distractions that make existence bearable
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u/neonblack108 25d ago
I practiced asceticism once upon a time. I hope to return to it one day, probably sooner than later considering the Shitstorm that's barreling down on us. Despite my having blooped, the quaint way the Society I was a part of to describe the sound the soul makes when it falls back down into the Ocean of Material existence, bloop, I still maintain some of the active discipline to practice my sadhana, and much of the conditioning still affects my thought process, both consciously and otherwise.