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Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names · 7 of 39 · tr. C.E. Rolt

Chapter 4, Section 1g

and because It is the Cause of the harmony and splendour in all things, flashing forth upon them all, like light, the beautifying communications of Its originating ray; and because It summons all things to fare unto Itself (from whence It hath the name of “Fairness” 272 272 ὡς πάντα πρὸς ἑαυτὸ καλοῦν (ὅθεν καὶ κάλλος λέγεται). Cf. iv. 4. ), and because It 96 draws all things together in a state of mutual inter penetration. And it is called “Beautiful” because It is All-Beautiful and more than Beautiful, and is eternally, unvaryingly, unchangeably Beautiful; in capable of birth or death or growth or decay; and not beautiful in one part and foul in another; nor yet at one time and not at another; nor yet beautiful in relation to one thing but not to another; nor yet beautiful in one place and not in another (as if It were beautiful for some but were not beautiful for others); nay, on the contrary, It is, in Itself and by Itself, uniquely and eternally beautiful, and from beforehand It contains in a transcendent manner the originating beauty of everything that is beautiful. For in the simple and supernatural nature belonging to the world of beautiful things, 273 273 The ultimate nature of all beautiful things is a simple and supernatural Element common to them all and manifested in them all. The law of life is that it has its true and ultimate being outside it. The true beauty of all beautiful things is outside them in God. Hence all great art (even when not directly religious) tends towards the Supernatural or has a kind of supernatural atmosphere. all beauty and all that is beautiful hath its unique and pre-existent Cause. From this Beautiful all things possess their existence, each kind being beautiful in its own manner, and the Beautiful causes the harmonies and sympathies and communities of all things. And by the Beautiful all things are united together and the Beautiful is the beginning of all things, as being the Creative Cause which moves the world and holds all things in existence by their yearning for their own Beauty. And It is the Goal of all things, and their Beloved, as being their Final Cause (for ‘tis the desire of the Beautiful that brings them all into existence), and It is their Exemplar 274 274 παραδειγματικόν—i.e. the ultimate Law of their being, the Idea or Type. from which they derive their definite limits; and hence the Beautiful is the 97 same as the Good, inasmuch as all things, in all causation, desire the Beautiful and Good; nor is there anything in the world but hath a share in the Beautiful and Good. Moreover our Discourse will dare to aver that even the Non-Existent 275 275 τὸ μὴ ὄν—i.e. that mere nothingness which is manifested either as (1) formless “matter” or (2) evil. See Intr., p. 20. shares in the Beautiful and Good, for Non-Existence 276 276 Evil is non-existent in one sense. The Good is Non-Existent in another. Cf. p. 90, n. 1. is itself beautiful and good when, by the Negation of all Attributes, it is ascribed Super-Essentially to God. This One Good and Beautiful is in Its oneness the Cause of all the many beautiful and good things.
Themes
◆Apophatic Theologytheology

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

The text explicitly negates temporal, spatial, and binary attributes to define the divine nature.

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◆Cosmic Sympathycosmology

The Stoic and Plotinian doctrine that all parts of the cosmos are bound by hidden affinities, so that a movement in one part resonates through the whole; the metaphysical basis for astrology, magic, and divination.

It describes harmonies and sympathies resulting from the Beautiful causing communities among all things.

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◆Divine Hiddennesstheology

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

The divine is described as transcending ordinary perception and being outside the world of beautiful things.

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◆Divine Lighttheology

The uncreated luminous quality of the divine, sometimes experienced directly in mystical states; illumination as revelation.

The text repeatedly uses imagery of light flashing forth upon all things from the divine source.

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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.

It describes a flow of beauty and existence from the One to all things, implying a downward movement of divine influence.

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◆Evil As Privationtheology

Augustinian and Plotinian doctrine that evil has no positive being of its own but is a lack, distortion, or absence of the good — denying ontological dualism while preserving moral seriousness.

Non-Existence is described as beautiful and good when negating attributes, aligning with the doctrine that evil lacks positive being.

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◆Living Godtheology

The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.

The divine is portrayed as an active Cause that moves the world and holds all things in existence.

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◆Monadcosmology

The absolutely simple, undivided first principle from which all multiplicity and existence flows.

The passage centers on 'This One Good and Beautiful' as the singular source from which all multiplicity flows.

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◆Mystical Unionsoteriology

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

All things are drawn to fare unto Itself, implying a union with the divine source.

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◆Return To Sourcesoteriology

The soul's journey back to its divine origin, reversing the fall into matter through stages of purification or illumination.

The text states that all things are summoned to fare unto Itself from whence they came.

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◆Unity Of Beingtheology

The doctrine that all existence is ultimately one substance or one divine reality; non-duality as a theological claim.

The passage asserts that the Beautiful is the same as the Good and that all things share in this ultimate reality.

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Related passages · 6 parallels
◆jewish_mysticism|Sefer Yetzirah (The Book of Formation)|Section 1g
“The Eighteenth Path is called the House of Influence (by the greatness of whose abundance the influx of good things upon created beings is increased) and from the midst of the investigation the arcana and hidden senses are drawn forth, whic…”
Both passages discuss the attributes and functions of divine intelligences or causes that govern the creation and harmony of the universe. They emphasize the interconnectedness and beauty of all things, drawing from their respective mystical traditions.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 228 (part 2)
“In a word; all that is truly good in a Soul acting to the purposes of nature and within its appointed order, all this is Real-Being: anything else is alien, no act of the Soul, but merely something that happens to it: a parallel may be foun…”
Both passages discuss the nature of the divine as the source of beauty and goodness, and how all things yearn for and derive their existence from this divine source. They share a metaphysical perspective on the unity and transcendence of the divine.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 486
“Section 8 8. This then is Beauty primally: it is entire and omnipresent as an entirety; and therefore in none of its parts or members lacking in beauty; beautiful thus beyond denial. Certainly it cannot be anything [be, for example, Beauty]…”
Both passages discuss the concept of Beauty as a primordial, transcendent, and all-encompassing principle. They emphasize that Beauty is not partial or changeable but is eternally and uniquely beautiful, serving as the cause and goal of all things.
◆renaissance_hermeticism|Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter XIV — Of the Spirit of the World, What It Is, and How by Way of Medium It Unites Occult Virtues to Their Subjects|Chapter XIV, Section 1a
“CHAPTER XIV. Of the Spirit of the World, What It Is, and How by Way of Medium It Unites Occult Virtues to Their Subjects . Democritus and Orpheus, and many Pythagoreans, having most diligently searched into the virtues of celestial things…”
Both passages discuss the concept of a transcendent, unifying principle that permeates all things and is the source of their beauty, goodness, and virtue. They describe this principle as both the cause and the goal of all existence, though they use different terminology and cultural contexts.
◆western_esoteric|The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall)|The Pythagorean Theory of Music and Colora
“HARMONY is a state recognized by great philosophers as the immediate prerequisite of beauty. A compound is termed beautiful only when its parts are in harmonious combination. The world is called beautiful and its Creator is designated the…”
Both passages explore the concept of beauty as an expression of harmony and the Good. They share the idea that beauty is a manifestation of a higher, harmonious principle and that this principle is intrinsic to the nature of the universe and the divine.
◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XXII (part 8)
“Permanency also suffers no change of its nature, because it is not mingled with the unstable. And the beautiful there is beautiful, because it does not subsist in beauty (as in a subject). Each thing too is there p. 280 established, not…”
Both passages explore the concept of beauty and its relationship to the divine or ultimate reality. They describe beauty as an eternal, unchanging attribute that is the cause and goal of all things, and they emphasize the unity and harmony brought about by this beauty. The passages come from different mystical traditions but share a deep conceptual parallel in their understanding of beauty as a transcendent and unifying principle.