Doesn’t this just look great? It’s probably too much to eat healthily.

Evening Gents, it’s Jonah from The Young Gentleman’s Guide here!

First off, Max and I apologize (again) for the inconsistent posting schedule. Breaks for Christmas, school, and a massive fire that attacked our hometown have thrown things for a loop. But like manly men, let’s get right back to improving ourselves with vigour.

Today we continue our series on lessons from the Norse, especially Norse mythology. Our source material again is the Hávamál, or Sayings of the High One, and our topic is temperance.

“Temperance, Jonah? Never heard of it.”

The virtue of temperance relates to eating and drinking moderately.This affects both normal food and drink, and the consumption of alcoholic beverages, for those of us 21 and over.

“But Jonah, the Vikings were rowdy warriors who feasted and drank, partying ‘til daylight! Isn’t that manly?”

Dear Sir, the schools have not taught you the full truth about the Norse! They valued discipline in limiting one’s consumption of food and drink. Which is timely, I think, to remember around this holiday season. Let’s see what the Norse had to say:

Sayings of the High One

20. A greedy man,/ if he be not moderate,/ eats to his mortal sorrow./ Oftentimes his belly/ draws laughter on a silly man,/ who among the prudent comes.

And to go back a few lines:

12. A worse provision/ no man can take from table/ than too much beer-bibbing:/ for the more he drinks/ the less control he has/ of his own mind.
13. Let a man hold the cup,/yet of the mead drink moderately,/ speak sensibly or be silent./As of a fault/ no man will admonish thee,/ if thou goest betimes to sleep.

So, now for some context and breakdown! Remember that in the time and place of the  Vikings, one’s reputation was important to your success. It was a more dangerous time, and food and other goods were somewhat scarce, so friends and connections were important to maintain in all areas of life. As aspiring gentlemen, we also ought to care what some people think of us (a detailed topic for a later post!) as well. This is why verse 20 talks about “laughter on a silly man”.

Remember also that  to admonish is to reprimand, especially publicly.

The Norse poets and scholars, arbiters of culture, understood that to eat moderately was good for one’s health and reputation, and is polite to others. To eat excessively, especially at a party or large dinner, shows thoughtlessness for everyone else at the table, but to eat moderately sized portions makes sure everyone gets some of each dish.

Thus, to eat and drink temperately also shows that you are not overly concerned with yourself, but more concerned with others, which is the core of gentlemanliness. To do so is to master your appetites and build discipline.

What’s more, it is better for your health! Most Americans eat until we are overfull. This practice, combined with awful food from the big industry and a sedentary lifestyle, has created the obesity epidemic, which top military leaders now judge a national security risk. You can easily find lots of information on the health risks of being overweight, and the benefits of being a healthy weight.

However, the good news is there is a simple start to the habit of temperance:

“Eat when hungry; stop when full.”

–Brett Mckay, The Art of Manliness blog

When you actually start feeling full, stop eating. Your body is telling you it has enough; listen to your body. When you are no longer thirsty, stop drinking. Getting fast food? Get a single burger instead of a double, and a medium drink instead of the jumbo whatever.  Then really enjoy it (especially if it’s In N Out!); taste the flavors.

This extends to all of your appetites, not just food and drink. The video game you’re playing stopped being fun a half hour ago? Put it down and go do something else. Nothing that is actually interesting or edifying in your Instagram feed? Put your phone away and go interact with someone face-to-face. You’ve started to wake up in the morning? Get up promptly, even if – especially if – you’ve slept later than usual (hello, weekends!). No one felt more energized from lazing around in bed.

This way we train ourselves to consume only what is truly satisfying – whether food and drink, a fun video game in a moderate amount, (another topic for a future post!), some interesting tidbits in our Facebook feed (another future post about your social media feeds!), restful sleep, or any other pleasure or luxury especially available in our modern age.

We also train ourselves to appreciate these good things more.

So drink of the cup moderately, in the most satisfying amount. Your health, physical, mental, and spiritual, will thank you for it; and you will be practising a great tenet of gentlemanliness.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading tonight’s post! Be sure to share the post, follow us of Facebook and Instagram, and pass it along to your fellow aspiring gentlemen. This is Jonah from The Young Gentleman’s Guide, and I’ll see you in my next post!

Evening Gents, it’s Jonah from The Young Gentleman’s Guide here!

Today is my first blog post. I’ll be running a series of posts on lessons from Viking mythology and culture, taken from literature and historical reports, because I love history, literature, mythology, and stories in general.

“But Jonah, the Vikings were little more than barbarian warriors who ravaged the coasts of England!”

Not so, dear reader, not so.

The Vikings, or more properly, the Norse, were a Germanic people from Scandinavia who excelled at seafaring, trading, exploration, navigation, and yes, fighting. However, many aspects of Norse culture may surprise you, some things which I will explore over the next few weeks. You will find that we have much to learn from the Norse.

Like many cultures, the Norse had a  rich tradition of stories handed down from generation to generation, often in poetic form. The most common poetic form in those days was alliterative, meaning lines would contain many words starting with the same syllable. Many of these works were written down and adapted by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson in the twelfth century.

One of these poems was called the Hávamál, which means “Sayings of the High One”. The first eighty verses are wisdom sayings, everyday maxims which were said to be told by the Norse god Odin in the myths. They are concerned with hospitality, etiquette, and living well. The Norse considered etiquette and courtesy a matter of honor.

For the first post, I will write about the value of silence. The Norse knew that to listen more than to speak is powerful.

For example, the 7th stanza of the Sayings of the High One advises,

7. “A wary guest to refection comes, keeps a cautious silence, and with his eyes observes: so explores every prudent man.”

A little context: the word refection is similar to refreshment, and means “refreshment by food or drink” (dictionary.com.) In this context, it is used in a party setting – a gathering at someone’s house or hall with food and drinks involved.

Consider also stanza 29:

29. “He utters too many futile words who is never silent; a garrulous tongue, if it be not checked, sings often to its own harm.”

If a person speaks overmuch, his words will not be taken as seriously. Also if a person talks excessively, he may say things that he regrets, things that hurt  other people, or cast a discolored light on his own reputation.

The Norse understood this, and that is why it was thought wise to be silent and listen more then you speak. If you speak less, your words will mean more. To be silent a little more often means letting other people speak and express their ideas. This shows that you value the other person in the conversation, and showing that respect is what being a gentleman is all about.

Speaking less in conversation also trains us to be good listeners, and to be humble. We ought not to be the center of every conversation. We will learn much by listening to what people have to say. We could learn profound things about who a person is, or realize important life lessons in a few words –  things we may have missed if we spoke more, or thought only, “What will I say next?”

To speak less is to be selfless, which is what a gentleman does – puts others ahead of himself. Again, selflessness is what being a gentleman, what being a man, is all about.

So let’s all speak less in conversation and listen more.

I hope you all enjoyed reading today’s post. Please be sure to share the post, follow the blog, and follow The Young Gentleman’s Guide on Facebook and Instagram. And on that note, this is Jonah Blessum from The Young Gentleman’s Guide, and I’ll see you next time!