From medieval monks swearing off sex to Reddit bros pledging “No Nut November,” humanity’s obsession with sexual restraint has been around longer than your grandma’s secret recipe. Whether for spiritual purity, moral superiority, or just to see if you can, abstinence movements have been turning heads—and raising eyebrows—for centuries.

Ancient Abstinence: Sex = Spiritual Kryptonite  

Long before TikTok challenges, celibacy was seen as a superpower.

• Pythagoreans (6th century BCE): Thought nutting zapped your brain power. Math > orgasms.

• Roman Vestal Virgins: Priestesses vowed 30 years of chastity to keep the sacred flame burning. Slip up? Buried alive.

• Hindu and Taoist monks: Believed abstinence preserved spiritual energy (prana/chi), making enlightenment easier to reach.

Religious Celibacy: God’s HR Policy

As religions spread, celibacy became a divine job requirement.

• Catholic priests (12th century): Forced into celibacy to protect church land from being inherited by their kids.

• Buddhist monks: Abstained to avoid earthly distractions. Nirvana, not Netflix and chill.

• Jain monks: Complete ascetics—no sex, no clothes, no attachments.

Medieval Madness: Chastity Goes Hardcore

Abstinence got darker in the Middle Ages.

• Flagellants: Religious fanatics whipped themselves to atone for sin while practicing celibacy. Kinky minus the fun.

• Chastity belts: Mostly a myth, but these crotch cages symbolized keeping women “pure” while husbands crusaded.

The Victorian Era: When Abstinence Got Hysterical

Victorians treated pleasure like arsenic. 

• John Harvey Kellogg (yes, the cornflake guy) preached that sex caused blindness. Solution? Bland food and circumcision.

• Sylvester Graham invented the graham cracker to suppress urges. Still boring.

• Purity movements: Chastity rings and pledges became moral flexes.

Modern-Day Abstinence: From God to Reddit

Welcome to meme-based celibacy, where no sex = superpowers.

• NoFap (2011): Reddit movement where men quit porn and masturbation, believing it boosts confidence.

• No Nut November: Joke-turned-challenge where men abstain for 30 days, claiming it makes them stronger.

• TikTok celibacy influencers: Preach “semen retention” as the key to success, clarity, and better dating lives (Andrew Tate, anyone?).

Final Thoughts: To Nut or Not to Nut?

From chastity belts to No Nut November, abstinence has evolved from spiritual sacrifice to self-improvement stunt. Whether you’re into monk-mode discipline or just curious about the hype, one thing’s clear: people will do anything for a little self-control clout.

About the author: 

Madhu (she/her) has been an avid reader of all things spicy since her childhood. She writes sassy blog posts and listicles now so that others may benefit from her wholly inappropriate, wholly informative tastes too.