Vita contemplativa-don't know where to ask this Q?

Question:

Vita contemplativa-don't know where to ask this Q?

Anyone "get" the meaning of 'vita contemplativa' and 'vita activa'?
I want to know if vita contemplativa applied only to monkish type of peoples who studied alot. Where did these terms originate? Sounds latin in origin... where were these terms used? In which time period and for whom?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

What I understand is that "Vita contemplativa" refers to a life in contemplation.
Plato already used a similar term in his "Symposium" over 2000 years ago.
Vita contemplativa is the last step of Plato's "Ladder of Love" :total detachment and contemplation of the inmense "Ocean of Beauty".
I don't think this life is limited to monks, but they are the only ones that try to detach from the ego... and this is the only way to achieve that "vita contemplativa" you ask about.