…that which is enough for health is too little for delight, and that which is for my delight destroys my health, and still it is uncertain for what end I do indeed desire; and the worst of the evil is this, that the soul is glad because it is uncertain, and that an excuse is ready, that under the pretence of health, the design of pleasure may be advanced and protected.
—St. Austin[from —Rev. Jeremy Taylor, The House of Feasting .The Whole Works of the Rt. Rev. Jeremy Taylor, Volume 1]
Category: FOOD
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A wandering mind is made stable by reading, vigil and prayer. Flaming lust is extinguished by hunger, labor, and solitude. Stirrings of anger are calmed by psalmody, magnanimity, and mercifulness. All this has its effect when used at its proper time and in due measure. Everything untimely or without proper measure is short-lived; and short-lived things are more harmful than useful.
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Our desires are possible to gratify, but impossible to satisfy.
—Jonathan Bailey, The Eternal Journey -
Don’t aim to get full. Be satisfied.
6 Steps to Stop Overeating: Mindful Eating Applied -
Remember that in life you ought to behave as at a banquet. Suppose that something is carried round and is opposite to you. Stretch out your hand and take a portion with decency. Suppose that it passes by you. Do not detain it. Suppose that it is not yet come to you. Do not send your desire forward to it, but wait till it is opposite to you. Do so with respect to children, so with respect to a wife, so with respect to magisterial offices, so with respect to wealth, and you will be some time a worthy partner of the banquets of the gods. But if you take none of the things which are set before you, and even despise them, then you will be not only a fellow-banqueter with the gods, but also a partner with them in power.
—Epictetus, Enchiridion
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Far from feasting copiously, Epicurus was content with bread and water, which prevented him from starving and so abated any pain. He was not opposed to the occasional indulgence, at one point writing in correspondence, “Send me a little pot of cheese, that, when I like, I may fare sumptuously,” but once he’d sated his hunger, he thought no greater pleasure would come from actively seeking more elaborate dining.
Hedonism holds the secret to a happier life, but not for the reasons you think
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St. Diodochos of Photiki explains another important principal for those who tend to be very zealous:
“It is in no way contrary to the principles of true knowledge to eat and drink from all that is set before you, giving thanks to God; for “everything is very good” (cf. Gen I.31). But gladly to abstain from eating too pleasurably or too much shows great discrimination and understanding. However, we shall not gladly detach ourselves from the pleasures of this life unless we have fully and consciously tasted the sweetness of God.”
Notice how St. Diodochos says “gladly” to abstain and detach ourselves. This is key: we only can gladly abstain when we’ve tasted something better, “the sweetness of God.” It’s difficult to exercise self-control in the right spirit if we have not experienced the sweetness of God, or if we have forgotten our “first love” (Rev 2.4). But it’s common for those tempted by zealousness to try to jump to the top of the ladder right away, rather than going up one step at a time, to use the image of St. Dorotheos. They see that something is better, and assume they must accomplish it right away.
Glory and Honor: Orthodox Christian Resources on Marriage
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After the gratifications of brutish appetites are past, the greatest pleasure then is to get rid of that which entertained it.
—Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Don Quixote -
Restaurants meals could feed two or three people, but most of us eat whatever is put in front of us. When we went out, I slowed down, enjoying time with my family more than the food I ate. Since I only ate a third of the food I order, I felt great on the way home.
SO GOOD QUOTES 