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Iamblichus: On the Mysteries · 126 of 218 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Chapter III

In the next place we shall explain how divination is effected through sacred animals, such, for instance, as hawks. We must never say, therefore, that the Gods accede through bodies that are thus procured, being employed. For they do not preside over animals, either partibly, or proximately, or materially, or with a certain habitude towards them. But to dæmons and these such as are very much divided, to different orders of whom different animals are allotted, and who proximately exercise a government of this kind, and do not obtain their proper dominion in a way perfectly independent and immaterial, such a contact with the organs of divination must be ascribed. Or, if some one is willing so to admit, a seat must be attributed to them, through which we may be able to associate with and employ them. It is necessary, therefore, to think that this seat should be pure from bodies. For there can be no communion whatever between the pure 278 and its contrary; but it is reasonable to admit that this seat is conjoined with men, through the soul of animals. For this soul has a certain alliance to men, through homogeneity of life; but it is allied to dæmons, because, being liberated from body, it has in a certain respect a separate subsistence. Hence, being a medium between both, it is subservient to its presiding dæmon, but announces to those who are yet detained in body that which its prefect commands. And it imparts to both these a common bond with each other.
Themes
◆Body As Obstacleanthropology

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

The text explicitly states that communion cannot occur between the pure and its contrary, implying the body hinders divine contact.

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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.

The passage describes a hidden affinity between souls of animals and humans that allows divination through a common bond.

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◆Divine Hiddennesstheology

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

The text emphasizes that the seat of dæmons is pure and not accessible through bodies, indicating divine concealment.

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◆Ritual Puritypraxis

The maintenance of a state of cleanliness—physical, moral, or spiritual—required for encounter with the divine.

The passage stresses that the seat of dæmons must be pure from bodies for communion to occur.

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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 soul is described as liberated from body and having a separate subsistence, implying a state of higher spiritual being.

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Related passages · 4 parallels
◆egyptian|The Egyptian Heaven and Hell|Chapter 9 (part 2)
“29), various animal- and bird-headed gods, goddesses both with and without uraei on their heads, the "Crook" ( mest ) of Osiris, the serpent-protector of Osiris, and so on. The gods on the right of AFU-RA are they who give him "the seasons…”
Both passages discuss the role of intermediaries (dæmons in Iamblichus and gods in the Egyptian text) that facilitate communication and action between the divine and the human realms. They share the concept of these intermediaries being activated or governed by higher powers.
◆renaissance_hermeticism|Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter LV — How Auspicias Are Verified by the Light of Natural Instinct, and of Some Rules of Finding It Out|Chapter LV, Section 1a
“CHAPTER LV. How Auspicias Are Verified by the Light of Natural Instinct, and of Some Rules of Finding It Out . AUSPICIA and Auguria, which foretell things to come by animals and birds, Orpheus, the divine, himself, as we read, did teach a…”
Both passages discuss the role of animals in divination and the idea that certain animals possess a natural instinct or connection to supernatural entities that allows them to foresee events or detect hidden things. They explore the intermediary role of animals between humans and higher beings or forces.
◆renaissance_hermeticism|Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter LV — How Auspicias Are Verified by the Light of Natural Instinct, and of Some Rules of Finding It Out|Chapter LV, Section 1b
“For, according to the doctrine of the Platonists, there is a certain power put into inferior things by which, for the most part, they agree with the superiors; whence also the tacit consents of animals seem to agree with divine bodies, and…”
Both passages discuss the role of animals, particularly birds, in divination and their connection to divine or demonic entities. They share the concept of animals serving as intermediaries between the divine and human realms, though they come from different mystical traditions.
◆renaissance_hermeticism|The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori)|Fourth Dialoguei
“And amongst men the same thing is seen, according as some resemble one species of brute beast and some another: these having something of the quadruped, and those of birds, and, may be, some affinity, which I will not explain, but through w…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between the soul, divine entities, and the material world, exploring how the soul interacts with and transcends the physical realm through divine or mystical means.