In religion
Buddhism
Four Noble Truths – Dukkha, Samudaya, Nirodha, Magga
Four sights – observations which affected Prince Siddhartha deeply and made him realize the sufferings of all beings, and compelled him to begin his spiritual journey—an old man, a sick man, a dead man, and an ascetic
Four Great Elements – earth, water, fire, and wind
Four Heavenly Kings
Four Foundations of Mindfulness – contemplation of the body, contemplation of feelings, contemplation of mind, contemplation of mental objects
Four Right Exertions
Four Bases of Power
Four jhānas
Four arūpajhānas
Four Divine Abidings – loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity
Four stages of enlightenment – stream-enterer, once-returner, non-returner, and arahant
Four main pilgrimage sites – Lumbini, Bodh Gaya, Sarnath, and Kusinara

Judeo-Christian symbolism
The Tetragrammaton is the four-letter name of God. Ezekiel has a vision of four living creatures: a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle. The four Matriarchs (foremothers) of Judaism are Sarah, Rebekah, Leah, and Rachel. The Four Species (lulav, hadass, aravah and etrog) are taken as one of the mitzvot on the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. (Judaism)
The Four Cups of Wine to drink on the Jewish holiday of Passover. (Judaism)
The Four Questions to be asked on the Jewish holiday of Passover. (Judaism)
The Four Sons to be dealt with on the Jewish holiday of Passover. (Judaism)
The Four Expressions of Redemption to be said on the Jewish holiday of Passover. (Judaism)
The four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. (Christianity)
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse ride in the Book of Revelation.
Other causes of incomplete evacuation include non-emptying defects like a rectocele. Straining to defecate pushes stool into the rectocele, which acts like a diverticulum and causes stool sequestration. Once the voluntary attempt to defecate, albeit dysfunctional, is finished, the voluntary muscles relax, and residual rectal contents are then able to descend into the anal canal and cause leaking. : 37

Central nervous system
Continence requires conscious and subconscious networking of information from and to the anorectum. Defects/brain damage may affect the central nervous system focally (e.g. stroke, tumor, spinal cord lesions, trauma, multiple sclerosis) or diffusely (e.g. dementia, multiple sclerosis, infection, Parkinsons disease or drug-induced). FI (and urinary incontinence) may also occur during epileptic seizures. Dural ectasia is an example of a spinal cord lesion that may affect continence. Diarrhea
Liquid stool is more difficult to control than formed, solid stool. Hence, FI can be exacerbated by diarrhea. Some consider diarrhea to be the most common aggravating factor. Where diarrhea is caused by temporary problems such as mild infections or food reactions, incontinence tends to be short lived. Chronic conditions, such as irritable bowel syndrome or Crohns disease, can cause severe diarrhea lasting for weeks or months. Diseases, drugs, and indigestible dietary fats that interfere with the intestineal absorption may cause steatorrhea (oily rectal discharge & fatty diarrhea) and degrees of FI. Respective examples include cystic fibrosis, orlistat, and olestra. Postcholecystectomy diarrhea is diarrhea that occurs following gall bladder removal, due to excess bile acid. Orlistat is an anti-obesity (weight loss) drug that blocks the absorption of fats.