Extremely rigid in self-denial and devotions; austere; severe.
In the early church, one who devoted himself to a solitary and contemplative life, characterized by devotion, extreme self-denial, and self-mortification; a hermit; a recluse; hence, one who practices extreme rigor and self-denial in religious things.
the practice of self-denial as a way of religious life; from the Greek asketikos, meaning laborious
practices self denial as spiritual discipline
pertaining to or characteristic of an ascetic or the practice of rigorous self-discipline; "ascetic practices"
practicing great self-denial; "Be systematically ascetic...do...something for no other reason than that you would rather not do it"- William James; "a desert nomad's austere life"; "a spartan diet"; "a spartan existence"
a person who lives an austere life of self-denial for religious reasons
a sadhu who tries to achieve spiritual benefit from living very simply and from treating the body with the strictest discipline
a spiritual seeker who often lives in solitude, and abstains from all normal forms of sustenance
A simple lifestyle of self-denial and self-discipline, often with religious or spiritual aims. Ascetics often refuse worldly comforts, food, sex, and money.
A term for any person who lives without material luxuries, often for religious reasons.
one who practices rigorous self-discipline and self-denial.
One who practices exceptional self denial and abstains from worldly forms of pleasure in order to follow Christ's example and attain a higher spiritual state. In this rigorous discipline to integrate body and spirit, fasting, renunciation of earthly possessions, solitary contemplation, and perpetual chastity, among other things, may be required. Return to Theme