Eremitism in China

Abstract

The ascetic-eremitic life typical of the elite spirituality of Buddhism and pre-Protestant Christianity was not a part of Chinese culture prior to the introduction of Buddhism, and it has been viewed askance from the standpoint of normative Chinese values to the present. On the other hand, an unusual non-ascetic eremitism has a history in China that precedes Buddhism. The equivalent of the eremitic life in China into the present, for the elite, of course, was to refuse to hold governmental office or to be forced into retirement. This was a lifestyle understood as a religious one - often related to ecstatic religious experience - as well as maintaining the highest ethical values. There was no asceticism involved - indeed, such a life was often one devoted to aesthetic pursuits -except the poverty that may follow from being unemployed.