this post was submitted on 10 Feb 2026
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I counter with Stoicism.
There are actually some records of Cynics interacting with ascetics in India and recognizing them as engaging in similar practice (i.e. living simply to live virtuously and happily).
Stoicism is just Cynicism with more boot ๐คช
Early Buddhism was also criticized as hedonistic by Vedic religious authorities because it rejected asceticism, so in a real way Buddhism is more aligned with Cynicism than you would think (though there are also real differences).
What I want to say is: What is "EAST" and what is "WEST"? Can you just lump together everyone you put under that arbitrary label? If so, what's the point?
While there are arbitrary aspects, it's not like these things are entirely made up without any kind of thread it pulls on, e.g. the West broadly refers to the culture of Europe and the Mediterranean with roots in ancient Greece and Rome, and going even further back some ancient Egypt and western Asian cultures. And in terms of location, places influenced by that culture are usually included, usually due to colonialism places like North America would count even though they aren't in Europe.
Meanwhile the East (clearly a Euro-centric term) broadly refers to the cultures in Asia, including Western Asia ("the Middle East"). Buddhism and Hinduism are "Eastern" in the sense that they originate in India, which is considered part of "the East".
That said, I agree - asceticism in Indian religion doesn't translate to asceticism in Indian culture more broadly, let alone the East (e.g. across Korea, China, Japan, etc.).
That said, it's clearly Eastern in some sense, even if it's just a subset of Eastern culture rather than total.