Causae et Curae, by the German Benedictine abbess Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179), is a medical treatise which concerns the workings of the human body and its diseases and treatments in relation to humanity’s connection to the cosmos. Hildegard’s experience of monastic herb gardens, infirmaries, and reading in the libraries at Disibodenberg, and, later, Rupertsberg, contributed to her medical knowledge base. The work takes a holistic approach, blending the Christian framework of Hildegard’s monastic world with her scientific understanding of the universe as a macrocosm into which humankind fits microcosmically, requiring the balance of elements and humors for health.