“It was from Egypt, Chaldea, and Persia, that the Jews and Greeks derived the principles of their ascetic philosophy, and it was through this philosophy, mainly, that the Church derived those principles of ascetism that led to all the extravagancies of Christian monkery.”

~ statement by Henry Ruffner in his 1850 book entitled “The Fathers of the Desert”… it should be noted that Iranians (Persians) did not promote self-denial as it would stress the body and eventually one’s well-being… the original meaning of “ascetic” meant to train which Iranians advocated…

[pic source stpetersbasilica: St. Anastasius the Persian (early 7th c.) … a statue dating to 1702… no. 60 from the 140 Saints of the Colonnade at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican… for educational purposes only]