254 History of Monsters

n and foresight, and requires the sleep of contemplation and glory. By these means, the life of grace is guarded and preserved, lest it perish defiled by sin. However, we must contemplate these matters more accurately in their specific forms, beginning with food, which we find to be of many kinds. Delicate and light foods contain few impurities and consequently produce an abundance of blood. Others are thick in substance and redundant with waste, generating little blood. Similarly, spiritual foods—namely divine grace and the Eucharist—beget the blood of piety and mercy, and are therefore free from the waste of vice. In contrast, worldly foods—that is, the fleeting goods of fortune—produce little blood of piety but much of the waste of crime. We might also say that delicacies, which are quickly transformed into the substance of the one nourished, are suitable for a weak stomach, while coarse and thick foods are appropriate for a stomach of a hot temperament.

In this teaching, the just are like light foods of the best substance, concerning whom Christ spoke in the Gospel of John: "I have food to eat that you know nothing about." Beyond the fact that such "foods" are easily prepared, once they are disposed through faith and grace, they are converted into the body of the Church. Coarse and thick foods, however, are the wealthy and those devoted to greed; they are digested with difficulty and, returning to a fruitful state either never or only very late, they are converted into the body of the Church. Thus, the former foods are suited only for a delicate stomach—namely, the glory of Paradise—while the latter are fit only for a burning stomach—the fire of Hell. Ultimately, just as moderate and healthy food preserves strength, restores lost vigor, tempers heat, increases blood, brings sleep, and protects good health, so too does the moderate food of knowledge, penance, the Eucharist, or charity and friendship bring many benefits to the soul. First, it restores the lost strength of grace, tempers the heat of desires, increases the blood of piety, provokes the sleep of contemplation, and finally preserves the health of the soul.

Having discussed food, we must now turn to drink, which is divided into three categories. The first is simple, like water, which provides minimal nourishment but serves as a vehicle to carry nutrients to the parts of the body. The second is wine, which is not only a vehicle for nourishment but, when mixed with other foods, eventually nourishes the body itself. The third is the medicinal potion, which shares the nature of neither true drink nor food. Moral doctrine displays this same triple distinction in drinks. The first is called a simple drink, such as Philosophy and other sciences of this kind, by which men are made simply learned, but not necessarily upright or perfect. Another is the drink possessing the nature of both wine and food, such as the science of Theology, which, like a potion, pours forth knowledge and nourishes a man with virtues. The third "potion" is like Jurisprudence, which can take the place of neither food nor drink, as it can make a man neither perfect in speculation nor upright in morals; it is, however, called a medicinal potion because, by erasing vices and punishing criminals, it serves the public good like a medicine.

Furthermore, a drink serving as a vehicle for human nourishment must be either wine or water. Wine, when taken in moderation, brings infinite benefits to the human body; it increases heat, refreshes the spirits, excites joy and boldness, strengthens virtue, mitigates anger, moistens a dry body, provokes the appetite, aids digestion, sharpens the wit, opens obstructions, consumes waste, clears dimness of sight, generates eloquence, heals stones, draws out gravel, and is ultimately suitable for the healing of wounds. But if a man exceeds moderation in draining his wine, he drinks not unmixed wine, but poison, according to the well-known verse:

If you drench your mouth with excessive wine,

You drink foul poison instead of sweet nectar.

In this context, we can understand wine to mean the memorial of the blood of Christ, or the fervor of piety, or divine science, or penance; for all these are spiritual wines that benefit the soul in a wondrous way, according to that passage in Proverbs: "Be intoxicated, my companions; drink the wine I have mixed for you." Therefore, this kind of wine increases the fervor of charity, strengthens the virtue of fortitude, and excites joy in the divine spirit and the boldness to undertake good works. It tempers the cause of anger, moistens the dryness of impiety, provokes an appetite for good deeds, illustrates the intellect, opens the obstruction of shame through confession, and consumes superfluous riches through alms-