Asceticism in religion. The Life of the Standing Monks of India, or How to Achieve Enlightenment Through Suffering

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Asceticism is a way of life in which a person undergoes any restrictions of his own free will. This is usually accompanied by a renunciation of human pleasures in the material world. Ascetics refuse food, sleep, sexual pleasures, alcohol and much more. Their belief, which they adhere to, says that the whole world is an illusion, and enjoying it, a person forgets the essence of his existence, moving further and further away from the divine. In order to achieve spiritual enlightenment and become closer to God, one must throw off everything superfluous from oneself, get rid of material attachments. And only then will a person comprehend the Truth.

The cult of asceticism in the religions of the world

Religions around the world practice asceticism in their faith. Not even a religion, but its followers. After all, as "true believers" say, renunciation of life's pleasures is the greatest happiness that God can give them. This is how their whole life goes. In self-discipline, suffering and self-flagellation.

The ascetic way of life is present in the life of both ordinary believers and "official" followers of the faith. For example, inIn Islam, ascetics are called Zuhd Zuhd or zahids, that is, those who completely limited themselves in human pleasures and devoted their lives to God.

In Christianity, asceticism is a special technique for achieving the spiritual through the exercise of self-discipline and limitations. Christian ascetics spend their lives praying and fasting, keeping vows of obedience and piety.

Vow is a kind of expression of the will of an ascetic, who expresses the imposition of obligations to overcome difficulties, gain divine recognition or for other purposes. It can be applied for a certain time or for a lifetime.

But for the most part, the vow, unfortunately, is a means of exposing one's ascetic persona for show, so that as many people as possible know that a person is silent, has stopped eating, sleeping, or something else has stopped doing, or, conversely, began to perform any ritual actions every day and every day for the sake of a great goal or because of the injustice that took place in the world, for the sake of God. Most of them, except for hermit monks, simply want to draw attention to themselves or to some actual problem by their actions.

In a faith like Buddhism, an ascetic lifestyle is generally the norm, and any kind of restriction is only welcomed, but not flaunted. Buddhist monks, like the Buddha, renounce many of the joys of human life, because they can enjoy simple things and see beauty in everything. Therefore, they do not need any material goods.human world.

Followers of Hinduism compare their lives with suffering, which are completely given to the will of the Gods. This kind of faith is based on the truth of the rebirth of the soul, reincarnation. Hindus say that no matter how difficult and difficult life God gives, the next one will be better. However, their suffering is not limited to forced ones. Adherents of various sects and offshoots from the main religious teachings achieve incredible pains and bodily exhaustion in their austerities.

Through suffering to the freedom of the soul, or How to approach God, standing still

Some ascetics experience inhuman torment to achieve enlightenment. The most debilitating practice of self-torture in the world is to constantly be in a standing position. Having made this vow, people no longer have the opportunity to sit or lie down. And through this position, they reach the divine essence.

These people are called standing monks. In India, this sect began its inception and found a greater response.

Standing monks

Followers of such an ascetic way of life are few - there are about a hundred of them. After all, not everyone will be able to cross the pain in order to know the spiritual component of the world. And not everyone wants to. There are more standing monks in India than anywhere else in the world. This is reflected in the predominance of the mentality of the majority of the Indian population, which is accustomed to all sorts of restrictions.

"Achievements" of false monks who torture themselves on the streets of Indian cities for the sake of money, as well as spiritu althe practice of the Tibetan gurus, which provides for a hermitic lifestyle, is nothing compared to the painful experiences of standing monks. India is the most suitable place for those people who have decided to renounce their lives and embark on the spiritual path of enlightenment by joining the ascetics of any faith.

"Practice" of standing monks

Monks who decide to take a vow of constant standing are forced to stay in the vrikasana pose all the time, in the pose of a tree, becoming it in part. They eat, drink, cope with their vital needs only while standing. They even sleep on their feet, tied so that they can't fall.

In the future, due to constant tension, the legs swell, elephantiasis begins to develop. Then the reverse process begins. The legs become so thin that all the veins on them are visible, and the bones clearly appear behind the thinnest layer of skin. From unrelenting tension, chronic pain arises, and a person experiences constant torment. In order not to feel this, the monks are pumped from foot to foot, becoming like an eternally swinging pendulum. It doesn't make the pain go away, but their swaying image gives a really weird feeling.

In India, standing monks are allowed to release some tension by bending one leg to the pelvis and tying it in that position. Also, some of them build themselves a makeshift hanging palm rest in order to lean on it and thereby transfer the center of gravity from feet to hands. And more sophisticated monks hold their hand up, also for enlightenment.

Tormenting Enlightenment

People of different circles, classes and ages join the sect of the standing monks of India. The younger generation, having read religious books and inspired by the examples of the ascetics of the previous generation, become monks in order to achieve enlightenment. For older people, this is like preparing for death, cleansing their karma and soul.

You can become a standing monk with any kind of faith. Experiencing constant excruciating pain, they perceive everything else as unimportant. Ascetics begin to feel divine pleasure in this. Their eyes begin to see clearly, the soul becomes bright and pure. They gain spiritual peace.

Temple

The world's only temple of standing monks is located in India, on the outskirts of the city of Mumbai. Few people know of his whereabouts and few can stand such a sight. The standing monks of India of different ages and nationalities find their peace in this place. There they eat, sleep and constantly smoke hashish in order to somehow drown out this debilitating pain. The temple is their home for the rest of their lives.

Four years after beginning their penance, standing monks acquire the status of Hareshwari and can return to their lives. But so far no monk has renounced his path.