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ἐπὶ δὲ τροφὴν παραγενομένους, ἂν μὲν ᾖ τι τῶν πρόσθεν ὄφελος λόγων οἷς τὰς ὀρέξεις κηλοῦμεν 1 καὶ καταπραΰνομεν, ἄλλο τι χρὴ παραινεῖν τῶν ἐφεξῆς: ἂν δ᾽ ὥσπερ ἐκ δεσμῶν λελυμένῃ 2 χαλεπὸν ᾖ χρῆσθαι καὶ φιλονεικεῖν πρὸς γαστέρα ὦτα μὴ ἔχουσαν, ὡς ἔλεγε Κάτων, διαμηχανητέον τῇ ποιότητι τῆς τροφῆς ἐλαφρότερον ποιεῖν τὸ πλῆθος. καὶ τὰ μὲν στερεὰ καὶ πολύτροφα: τῶν σιτίων, οἷον τὰ [p. 322] κρεώδη καὶ τυρώδη καὶ σύκων τὰ ξηρὰ καὶ ᾠῶν τὰ ἑφθά, προσφέρεσθαι πεφυλαγμένως ἁπτόμενον ἔργον γὰρ ἀεὶ παραιτεῖσθαι , τοῖς δὲ λεπτοῖς ἐμφύεσθαι καὶ κούφοις, οἷα τὰ πολλὰ τῶν λαχάνων καὶ τὰ πτηνὰ καὶ τῶν ἰχθύων οἱ μὴ πίονες. ἔστι γὰρ τὰ τοιαῦτα προσφερόμενον καὶ χαρίζεσθαι ταῖς ὀρέξεσι καὶ τὸ σῶμα μὴ πιέζειν. μάλιστα δὲ τὰς ἀπὸ κρεῶν φοβητέον ἀπεψίας: καὶ γὰρ εὐθὺς σφόδρα καὶ βαρύνουσι, καὶ λείψανον εἰσαῦθις πονηρὸν ἀπ᾽ αὐτῶν παραμένει. καὶ κράτιστον μὲν ἐθίσαι τὸ σῶμα μηδεμιᾶς προσδεῖσθαι σαρκοφαγίας: πολλὰ γὰρ οὐ μόνον πρὸς διατροφὴν ἄφθονα ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς εὐπάθειαν καὶ ἀπόλαυσιν ἀναδίδωσιν ἡ γῆ, τοῖς μὲν αὐτόθεν ἀπραγμόνως χρῆσθαι παρέχουσα, τὰ δὲ μιγνύμενα παντοδαπῶς καὶ σκευαζόμενα συνηδύνειν. ἐπεὶ δὲ τὸ ἔθος τρόπον τινὰ φύσις τοῦ παρὰ φύσιν γέγονεν, οὐ δεῖ χρῆσθαι κρεοφαγίᾳ πρὸς ἀποπλήρωσιν ὀρέξεως, ὥσπερ λύκους ἢ λέοντας, ἀλλ᾽ οἷον ὑπέρεισμα καὶ διάζωμα τῆς τροφῆς ἐμβαλλομένους ἑτέροις σιτίοις χρῆσθαι καὶ ὄψοις, ἃ καὶ τῷ σώματι μᾶλλόν ἐστι 3 κατὰ φύσιν, καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς ἧττον ἀμβλύνει τὸ λογικόν, ὥσπερ ἐκ λιτῆς καὶ ἐλαφρᾶς ὕλης ἀναπτόμενον.
Plutarch. Moralia. Gregorius N. Bernardakis. Leipzig. Teubner. 1888. 1.
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