[Buddha-l] Nudity was: Re: +AFs-Buddha-l+AF0- Sense and sensibility

[Joy Vriens]

Chris wrote:

> If by 'monks' you mean wandering ascetics, some are naked, most are not. 
> Some naked ascetics are Saivite, many are not.

When Danielou talks about the Nature cult of Shiva-Dionysos, he means 
the pre-aryan, pre-vedic form of it, that appeared or was "codified" in 
the 6th millenary before JC and that spread itself via the Sumerians in 
the Middle-East, Creta and continental Greece from the 4th millenary 
onwards. I am not sure about these "facts" (both in favour or against), 
but I find many parts of his theory quite plausible. The cult or rather 
the various cults under that attributed header were severely attacked at 
different times and it obviously had to adopt quite a bit in order to 
survive, or rather whatever currents adopted itself managed to survive. 
I think it is quite likely that the further one goes back in time, the 
more ascetics/Saivites tended to be naked. Btw monk comes from the the 
Greek: monachos, which designs a solitary person. Danielou also called 
followers of Shiva/Dionysos bhakta/bacchants, he sees a link between 
those words.

Joy