Unpublished Paper
Ancient World Religion and Philosophy
(2021)
Abstract
In many religions and philosophies, the practice of asceticism, or rather, the severe self-discipline of non indulgence, is fundamental. Two of the most recognized religions and philosophies grounded in asceticism were Buddhism and Cynicism. The ascetic religion of Buddhism taught that the path to eternal freedom is through religious salvation. It began to develop in the mid 400s BCE and preached that one must reach Unbinding since existence is suffering. 3,596 miles away, the Cynic school of philosophy was beginning to rise (450 BCE). It preached living an ascetic life through virtuous action and rejected much of what the world had to offer. Both philosophies promoted the idea that realizing one’s self desires was the first step. Although Cynicism and Buddhism share a common foundation in asceticism, their rationale for a modest lifestyle greatly differs, with Cynics viewing asceticism as living a very simple life with the intention of living life by virtue, while Buddhists, contrarily, understand asceticism as living with the purpose of obtaining religious freedom. This composition highlights the different applications of asceticism between the religion Buddhism and the philosophy Cynicism. It provides background context and compares the ascetic lifestyle for Buddhism and Cynicism on the basis of their end goal and the methods to attain that goal, emphasizing the difference between the cessation of desires and following desires.
Keywords
- Cynicism,
- Asceticism,
- Buddhism
Disciplines
Publication Date
Fall November 21, 2021
Citation Information
Gabriel Delgado. "Ancient World Religion and Philosophy" (2021) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/gabriel-delgado/6/