Corrupt weapons against corruption

Meaning

II.3.10 criticizes the attempt to oppose bodily corruption with remedies that themselves carry impurity. The weapons metaphor makes the objection vivid: an instrument weakened by the enemy's own quality may fail in combat. The author nevertheless expresses respect for physicians; the criticism is directed at the condition and reach of the remedies rather than a simple denial of all medical skill. Corrompuës and corrompantes distinguish being corrupted from actively corrupting: the remedy’s impurity is said to afflict Nature as much as, or more than, the disease, not merely to weaken an otherwise harmless tool.

The attributed Petrarch comparison says rain does not dry rivers and flames do not extinguish fire: corruptible matter added to corruptible matter increases corruption. Its exact external source is not established by the supplied local citation. The image should therefore remain attributed and explained rather than embellished with an invented reference. It prepares the claim that medicine must both remove an offending cause and restore what supports life, not merely produce a visible evacuation.