Select Works of Plotinus · 47 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor
Select Works, Section 53
Section 3 3. Yes, but if the well-being has lasted a long time, if that present spectacle has been a longer time before the eyes? If in the greater length of time the man has seen more deeply, time has certainly done something for him, but if all the process has brought him no further vision, then one glance would give all he has had.
§ Ask Guru about this passage →Themes
Active Contemplationpraxis
A form of meditation that uses imagery, imagination, or symbolic thought rather than purely empty stillness.
[auto] The text describes a 'spectacle' before the eyes and questions the duration of this visual contemplative act regarding its efficacy.
All passages →Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology
Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.
[auto] The passage argues that immediate vision ('one glance') is sufficient for the experience if time adds no depth, emphasizing direct knowledge over temporal process.
All passages →Related passages · 5 parallels
western_esoteric|Psychic Self-Defence (Dion Fortune)|18. Methods Of Defence II-a
“THERE are two types of practical psychic work which may be used separately or in combination, the latter method, in my opinion, giving by far the best results, though the exponents of each are apt to decry the other.
The method which we wi…”
Shared concept: Active Contemplation — A form of meditation that uses imagery, imagination, or symbolic thought rather than purely empty stillness. (derived)
hinduism|Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book I|Sutra 17
“Meditation with an object follows these stages: first, exterior examining, then interior judicial action, then joy, then realization of individual being. In the practice of meditation, a beginning may be made by fixing the attention upon so…”
Shared concept: Active Contemplation — A form of meditation that uses imagery, imagination, or symbolic thought rather than purely empty stillness. (derived)
christian_mysticism|Meister Eckhart's Sermons (Field translation)|V-b
“It is necessary, therefore, for all the creatures which issued forth from God to co-operate earnestly with all their powers to form a Man who may again attain that union with God which Adam enjoyed before he fell, and who may again restore…”
Shared concept: Gnosis Direct Knowledge — Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone. (derived)
western_esoteric|Psychic Self-Defence (Dion Fortune)|19. Methods Of Defence III-b
“We are not now considering the legitimate use of this force for healing, or for teaching and developing neophytes, so we will not, therefore, consider its modus operandi in detail.
Enough has been said to show in what way it works.
Let us…”
Shared concept: Active Contemplation — A form of meditation that uses imagery, imagination, or symbolic thought rather than purely empty stillness. (derived)
hinduism|Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book III|Sutra 2
“A prolonged holding of the perceiving consciousness in that region is meditation (dhyana). This will apply equally to outer and inner things. I may for a moment fix my attention on some visible object, in a single penetrating glance, or I m…”
Shared concept: Active Contemplation — A form of meditation that uses imagery, imagination, or symbolic thought rather than purely empty stillness. (derived)