''Ascesis: The Saviors of God'' (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

and

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

: . ) is a series of "

spiritual exercises The ''Spiritual Exercises'' ( la, Exercitia spiritualia), composed 1522–1524, are a set of Christian meditations, contemplations, and prayers written by Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th-century Spanish priest, theologian, and founder of the Society ...

" written by

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

Nikos Kazantzakis Nikos Kazantzakis ( el, ; 2 March ( OS 18 February) 188326 October 1957) was a Greek writer. Widely considered a giant of modern Greek literature, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in nine different years. Kazantzakis's no ...

. It was first written between 1922 and 1923, while staying in

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and

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, and subsequently published in

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 * ...

in the

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magazine ''Anayennisi'' (''Renaissance''). The text was later revised on various occasions and reached its final state in

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

.Page on ''Askitiki'' from the Nikos Kazantzakis Museum Foundation website
/ref>

Presentation

The author first presents a prologue. Given the sacred tone of the book, which strives to go beyond

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

and

metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

, this introduction is better understood as an

admonition Admonition (or "being admonished") is the lightest punishment under Scots law. It occurs when an offender who has been found guilty or who has pleaded guilty, is not given a fine, but instead receives a lesser penalty in the form of a verbal wa ...

. The first words summarize the undercurrent of ''The Saviors of God'': "We came from an abyss of darkness; we end in an abyss of darkness: the interval of light between one and another we name life." Kazantzakis thought that there are two streams in life: the first one runs toward ascesis,

synthesis Synthesis or synthesize may refer to: Science Chemistry and biochemistry *Chemical synthesis, the execution of chemical reactions to form a more complex molecule from chemical precursors ** Organic synthesis, the chemical synthesis of organ ...

life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...

and

immortality Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some modern species may possess biological immortality. Some scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body, with some suggesting that human immorta ...

, while the second one runs towards

dissolution Dissolution may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books * ''Dissolution'' (''Forgotten Realms'' novel), a 2002 fantasy novel by Richard Lee Byers * ''Dissolution'' (Sansom novel), a 2003 historical novel by C. J. Sansom Music * Dissolution, in mu ...

matter In classical physics and general chemistry, matter is any substance that has mass and takes up space by having volume. All everyday objects that can be touched are ultimately composed of atoms, which are made up of interacting subatomic partic ...

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

. However, both streams are part of the

universe The universe is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological description of the development of the universe. Acc ...

, and being so, sacred. One of Kazantzakis' main concerns was what force drives the uncreated to the created. As opposition seems to be intrinsic to life and infinite,

human beings Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, an ...

should strive to ascend to a harmonic view of these oppositions, to be a guide for thought and action.

Significance

According to

Kimon Friar Kimon Friar (April 8, 1911 – May 25, 1993) was a Greek-American poet and translator of Greek poetry. Youth and education Friar was born in 1911 in İmralı, Ottoman Empire, to a Greek father and a Greek mother. In 1915, the family moved to th ...

, the English translator of many of Kazantzakis' writings, ''The Saviors of God'' occupies a central role in the work of the Greek author. In the second part of his lengthy introduction to '' The Odyssey: A Modern Sequel'', Friar notes:

Notes

References

*Kazantzakis, Nikos. ''The Odyssey: A Modern Sequel''. Trans. Kimon Friar. New York: Clarion / Simon and Schuster, 1958. *Kazantzakis, Nikos. ''The Saviors of God. Spiritual Exercises''. Trans. Kimon Friar. New York: Touchstone / Simon and Schuster, 1960.

External links

Full text of ''The Saviors of God''
on Angel.net 1944 non-fiction books Books about spirituality Works by Nikos Kazantzakis {{spirituality-stub