Ildegarda di Bingen. Dio è rotondo. Esposizione della Regola di san Benedetto.

This volume presents a translation of Hildegard of Bingen’s Explanatio Regulae Benedicti, accompanied by an analytical commentary and introduction. Hildegard wrote the work in response to a request from the abbot of the Ummense monastery, probably identifiable with the house of Augustinian canons at Hunsrück-Ravengiersburg. The volume is intended to supplement and supersede Ildegarda di Bingen, Il centro della ruota: spiegazione della Regola di San Benedetto, edited by A. Carlevaris (Sesto San Giovanni, 1997), which has long been out of print. Hildegard comments on the chapters of the Rule concerning communal life and the practical provisions needed to sustain its harmony. The Explanatio brings to light six central themes for understanding and living the Benedictine spirit: the interaction between human beings and their environment; moderation in eating as a communal practice; the ordering of activities according to weekly and seasonal rhythms, with due regard for Sunday; a balance between waking and sleeping, work and rest; proper bodily hygiene in harmony with nature; and harmony between mind and emotions, fostered by music and joy as sources of inner serenity.