Caput XXXII. Vera discretio, carni animam praeponere.
The Nature of True Discretion
The author introduces discretion as the mother of all virtues and warns against cloaking pleasure under its false name.
I say these things to lay bare discretion, which is both the mother and the nourisher of all the virtues; but let us keep in check the raw materials of vice — gluttony, bodily ease, and the familiarity and intimate association of women and effeminate men — and confine them within the bounds that are truly necessary. For often, under the false name of discretion, we cloak the business of pleasure.123
Soul Before Flesh
True discretion means preferring the soul's salvation over the flesh's comfort, even at the flesh's expense.
True discretion is this: to set the soul before the flesh, and where both are at risk — since the salvation of one cannot be secured without this kind of disadvantage to the other — to neglect the flesh for the sake of the soul's good.45
Modesty, Humility, and the Withering of Virtue
The author urges careful attention to modesty and warns that even this crowning virtue withers without humility.
We have said these things so that you might recognize how great the care ought to be for you in giving due consideration to modesty.67 And although this virtue is the flower and ornament of all the virtues, without humility it nevertheless dries up and withers.8
Read the original Latin
Haec dico ut discretionem, quae omnium virtutum et mater et nutrix est, detegam: sed vitiorum materias gulam comprimamus, requiem corporis, feminarum et effeminatorum familiaritatem atque convictum intra metas necessarias cohibeamus; quia saepe falso nomine discretionis palliamus negotium voluptatis. Vera enim discretio est animam carni praeponere, et ubi periclitatur utraque, nec sine hujusmodi incommodo illi potest salus consistere, pro illius utilitate istam negligere. Haec diximus ut quanta tibi debeat in consideranda pudicitia esse sollicitudo, adverteres. Quae cum omnium virtutum flos sit et ornamentum, sine humilitate tamen aret atque marcescit.
Notes
- 1 ↩effeminatorum: rare form; gender/number assignment uncertain.
- 2 ↩palliamus: form ambiguous between indicative and subjunctive; context favors indicative ('we cloak').
- 3 ↩convictum: precise sense of 'intimate association' in this context is uncertain.
- 4 ↩periclitatur: deponent or passive reading ambiguous.
- 5 ↩illi/illius/istam: referents assigned contextually (illi/istam → caro, illius → anima) but not certain.
- 6 ↩adverteres: subjunctive in purpose clause; tense/mood reading contextually motivated.
- 7 ↩pudicitia: ablative of sphere ('in the area of modesty').
- 8 ↩aret: metaphorical sense 'dries up' contextually assigned.
De institutione inclusarum (A Rule of Life for a Recluse) companion
A rule only lives if you keep it daily
Chosen Portion gives your new rule its anchor: one free devotional portion every day.
Aelred built his sister's day around fixed times of prayer and meditation; Chosen Portion supplies the fixed daily portion that makes a modern rule of life keepable.
- Anchor your rule with a fixed 10-minute daily portion
- Practice Aelred's threefold meditation with guided daily prompts
- Review and adjust your one-page rule after 30 days of tracked practice