The Eight Vices - Gluttony
Remember that food is for fuel
I think it is fair to say that gluttony has become part and parcel of normal society. We have normalized over-indulgence, we celebreate excess and we tell ourselves that we deserve all the nice things we want. But gluttony is a vice, nonetheless. It is a corrupting force that will only feed into the other vices and ultimately lead to our souls corruption and destruction, if left unchecked and unchallenged.
The most familiar type of gluttony we all face is that of our bellies. We eat too much, we treasure tastes and flavours and the pleasures of our tongues. Ever think how little we think about sustenance, and providing nourishment to our bodies and minds? That is right, we do not. If we do not even acknowledge gluttony, even understand it as the vice that it is, how can we expect to fight, challenge and ultimately defeat it.
To control gluttony is to control ones stomach. We must avoid over-eating and the filling of our bellies. There is no better way to do that, than a periodic fast. Fasts do not have to be torture. They can be one day in five, where for 24 hours we avoid any intake to our stomachs and during that time, give thought and thanks to things like your health, your happiness and your ability to fast by choice due to the abundance you have in your life. If you that way inclined, fasting and prayer can be a powerful combination as you try and live a conscious and good life.
You see, there is a balance to be struck here. for if we are too hungry for too long, it can affect our happiness and therefore a lot of other things in our lives, and if attempting any kind of ascetic lifestyle, it can be detrimental to our spiritual practice. To full, on the other hand and our soul becomes listless, slack and lethargic. These are roads to other vices that can assist you slide downwards and to your souls destruction over time. All vices feed each other and gluttony is a dangerous contributor to the success of the other vices that are constantly trying to trip you up in life.
Do not be deceived by the filling of the belly - Prov 24:15
When we place food and sustenance in the same category as pleasure, we get the modern addiction to food. Food can provide status (pride and avarice) depending on what and where we eat, food can provide pleasure of the tongue, incentivizing us to forgoe the stable food types that nourish and instead choose the sugary foods that give us chemical hits and keep us coming back for more. And with more food choice, the more variation we have and this can lead to unchastity, again bring other vices into our lives.
One way to combat all this is to simply avoid too much of anything, balance the intake, do not praise or place food on pedestals, and remember this one point
Food is for fuel
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