Monks practice abnegation of the material aspects of human life.
Did you know?
Abnegation plays an important part in the teachings of all the major religions. The founder of Buddhism was a prince who gave up all his worldly goods when he discovered the world of poverty that lay outside the palace gates, and abnegation has been a Buddhism practice ever since. Hinduism has an even older tradition of abnegation. Special periods of abnegation and fasting may even be included in a religion's yearly calendar; serious Christians give up some pleasure for the 40-day period of Lent, for instance, and Muslims are forbidden to eat during daylight hours during the month of Ramadan.
the couple's sudden abnegation of life in the fast lane for work as missionaries stunned everyone
Recent Examples on the WebThe life that Alharthi describes is one of almost saintly self-abnegation. Ron Charles, Washington Post, 24 May 2022 His naïve insolence punctures the vanities of other filmmakers while offering no alternative, and the movie that results is a joyless, confused self-abnegation. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 11 Apr. 2022 That abnegation of critical judgment is the most important feature of the 1994 statement. Michael Bérubé, The New Republic, 21 Mar. 2022 Where to go in a world where every slight, every frown, every chagrin, every cloud and every rainy day is a cause for outrage, denunciation, shame, self-abnegation and maybe even a congressional investigation or two?WSJ, 14 June 2021 Many performers practice public self-abnegation about their talent.Washington Post, 12 May 2021 That abnegation is an illness that has reached pandemic-level proportions under the panopticon of white-supremacist patriarchy, which seeds division among women through social pressure.Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2021 Her thinking is already programmed for self-sacrifice; the self-abnegation of religion is only a quick step behind. Helen Shaw, Vulture, 6 Mar. 2021 In his telling, Klara’s self-abnegation feels both ennobling and tragic.Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2021 See More
Word History
Etymology
Middle English abnegacioun, borrowed from Late Latin abnegātiōn-, abnegātiō, from Latin abnegāre "to refute, decline, deny" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns — more at abnegate