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Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names · 12 of 15 · tr. C.E. Rolt

Chapter 1, Section 1l

The formless essence (ἀμορφία) of a thing is simple and imageless—a Platonic idea—perceived by the mind; things which have bodily form are, as it were, types and symbols perceived by the senses. 54 Or “indeterminate.” 55 Thus the three grades are: (1) the material world; (2) the spiritual world of truths, personality, etc.; (3) the Godhead which is, so to speak, supra-spiritual. 56 i. e. A Supra-Personal Personality. See Intr., p. 4 f. 57 νοῦς ἀνοητός. Probably not ” Irrational Mind” (as Dr. Inge translates it). Maximus takes it passively, as translated above. 58 Ps. cxlv. 3 ; Matt. xi 27 ; Rom. xi. 33 ; I Cor. ii. 11 ; Eph. iii. 8 . 59 ὡς οὐκ ὄντος ἴχνους τῶν ἐπὶ τὴν κρυφίαν αὐτῆς ἀπειρίαν διεληλυθότων. Two interpretations of this passage are possible: (1) Those who have penetrated the hidden Depths cannot describe the Vision (cf. Dante, Par. xxxiii. 55–66) ; (2) Nobody has ever penetrated into the ultimate Depths of Deity. 60 θεωριά, κοινωνία, δμοίωσις. These are three elements of one process. Resemblance is the final goal, cf. I John iii. 2. D. defines Deification as “a process whereby we are made like unto God (ἀφομοίωσις) and are united unto Him (ἕνωσις) so far as these things may be.” (Eccl. Hier. I. 4. Migne, p. 376, A.) 61 Two kinds of danger: (1) spiritual presumption; (2) the temptations of our earthly nature. In dealing with the first D. warns us against leaving the Affirmative Path until we are ready. The Negative Path goes on where the Affirmative Path stops. St. John of the Cross and other spiritual writers insist that, though contemplation is a higher activity than meditation through images, yet not all are called to it, and that it is disastrous prematurely to abandon meditation. S. John of the Cross, in the Dark Night of the Soul, explains the signs which will show when the time has come for the transition. Note the spiritual sanity of D. His Unknowing is not a blank. 62 τὰς ὅλας . . . τῶν ὑπερουρανίων τάξεων ἁγίας διακοσμήσεις. 63 A depth opens up in the heart of man corresponding to the depth of the Godhead. Deep answers unto deep. Cf. I Cor. ii. 10, 11 . 64 πρὸς τοὺς θεαρχικοὺς ὕμνους. Either (1) “leads us to declare the Divine praises”; or (2) “leads us to apprehend the Divine praises as sung by angels,” etc.
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Themes
Apophatic Theologytheology

Describing the divine only by negation—God transcends all positive categories and concepts; the via negativa.

The text emphasizes that God is 'Supra-spiritual' and cannot be described by human language or categories.

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Body As Obstacleanthropology

The material body viewed as a prison, tomb, or source of error that hinders spiritual knowledge and return.

The material world is contrasted with the spiritual realm, implying the body hinders higher knowledge.

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Divine Hiddennesstheology

The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father.

The passage explicitly states that those who have penetrated the hidden Depths cannot describe the Vision.

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Divine Simplicitytheology

The doctrine that God has no parts, divisions, or composite attributes; pure undivided being.

The formless essence of a thing is described as 'simple and imageless,' mirroring God's nature.

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Emanation Hierarchycosmology

A chain of divine beings or principles flowing downward from a single transcendent source (the One or the Father), each level less perfect than the one above.

The text outlines three grades of reality: material world, spiritual world, and supra-spiritual Godhead.

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Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology

Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.

The passage focuses on the 'Vision' and 'perception by the mind' of the divine essence as a path to Deification.

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Hidden Sayingssoteriology

Esoteric teachings reserved for those ready to receive them; outer meaning conceals an inner liberating truth.

The text warns that those who have penetrated the hidden Depths cannot describe the Vision.

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Inner Lightanthropology

The divine spark or luminous quality residing within the human person, potentially recognisable through introspection.

A depth opens up in the heart of man corresponding to the depth of the Godhead.

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Kingdom Withinanthropology

The claim that the divine realm is present inside the individual, accessible without external mediation.

The text suggests that a depth opens up in the heart of man corresponding to the depth of the Godhead.

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Meditationpraxis

Disciplined inward attention — sitting, focused, or open-awareness practice — as a stand-alone term that umbrellas active_contemplation, inner_silence, and dhyana-style sitting.

The passage discusses the dangers of abandoning meditation prematurely and distinguishes it from contemplation.

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Mystical Unionsoteriology

The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.

The goal described is 'united unto Him' and 'Deification' where we are made like unto God.

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Theosis Deificationsoteriology

The doctrine — central to Eastern Orthodox and Maximian theology — that the human person is progressively transformed into a partaker of the divine nature by grace, not merely justified or united in passing ecstasy.

The passage explicitly defines Deification as being made like unto God and united unto Him.

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Related passages · 11 parallels
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Shared concept: Emanation Hierarchy — A chain of divine beings or principles flowing downward from a single transcendent source (the One or the Father), each level less perfect than the one above. (derived)
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Shared concept: Body As Obstacle — The material body viewed as a prison, tomb, or source of error that hinders spiritual knowledge and return. (derived)
neoplatonism|Iamblichus: On the Mysteries|Chapter XX
“Omitting, therefore, these things, we may reasonably adduce a second cause, assigned by you, of the above mentioned particulars: viz. “ that the soul says and imagines these things, and that they are the passions of it, excited from small i…”
Shared concept: Gnosis Direct Knowledge — Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone. (derived)
egyptian|The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani)|Chapter 43 (part 69)
“unity of a supreme and self-existent being, his eternity, his almightiness, and external reproduction thereby as God; the attributing of the creation of the world and of all living beings to this supreme God; the immortality of the soul, co…”
Shared concept: Divine Hiddenness — The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father. (derived)
western_esoteric|The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall)|The Mysteries and Their Emissaries-a
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Shared concept: Gnosis Direct Knowledge — Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone. (derived)
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Shared concept: Meditation — Disciplined inward attention — sitting, focused, or open-awareness practice — as a stand-alone term that umbrellas active_contemplation, inner_silence, and dhyana-style sitting. (derived)
hinduism|Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book III|Sutra 3
“When the perceiving consciousness in this meditative is wholly given to illuminating the essential meaning of the object contemplated, and is freed from the sense of separateness and personality, this is contemplation (samadhi). Let us revi…”
Shared concept: Meditation — Disciplined inward attention — sitting, focused, or open-awareness practice — as a stand-alone term that umbrellas active_contemplation, inner_silence, and dhyana-style sitting. (derived)