← Home
Select Works of Plotinus · 154 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Select Works, Section 162 (part 2)

As a matter of fact the ancient doctrine of the Divine Essences was far the sounder and more instructed, and must be accepted by all not caught in the delusions that beset humanity: it is easy also to identify what has been conveyed in these later times from the ancients with incongruous novelties- how for example, where they must set up a contradictory doctrine, they introduce a medley of generation and destruction, how they cavil at the Universe, how they make the Soul blameable for the association with body, how they revile the Administrator of this All, how they ascribe to the Creator, identified with the Soul, the character and experiences appropriate to partial be beings.
Themes
◆Demiurgecosmology

A secondary creator deity—often ignorant or malevolent—responsible for fashioning the material world, distinct from the supreme transcendent God.

The text discusses 'the Maker' and his motives for constructing an Intermediate World distinct from the Intellectual world.

All passages →
◆Divine Sparkscosmology

Fragments of divine light or spirit trapped inside material bodies, awaiting liberation and return to their source.

The passage discusses the claim that the human soul is deathless and divine, implying a connection to the higher principle.

All passages →
◆Logoscosmology

The divine reason, word, or ordering principle through which the universe was created; mediates between the transcendent God and the material world.

References to the order, pattern, and discipline prevailing in the heavens suggest a rational ordering principle.

All passages →
◆Microcosm Macrocosmcosmology

The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.

The text suggests that 'Souls exhibit the Ideal-Form of the Universe', linking the human soul to the cosmic structure.

All passages →
◆Spiritual Ascentpraxis

A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.

The mention of the 'way towards truth' implies a journey or ascent hindered by earthly conditions.

All passages →
◇Body As Obstacleanthropology

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

[auto] It explicitly states that human bodies bind individuals to desire and grief, hindering their path toward truth.

All passages →
◇Cosmic Dualismtheology

Ontological opposition between two primal principles (light/darkness, truth/lie, spirit/matter) as the fundamental structure of reality.

[auto] The text contrasts the order and purity of the celestial realm with the disorder and deficiency of the earthly condition.

All passages →
◇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.

[auto] The passage describes a hierarchy from the Intelligible World and Immortal Principle down to the heavens and human bodies.

All passages →
Related passages · 3 parallels
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 1 (part 3)
“7.) "I do not wish to divert men from the Word as it is written and taught; but my writings are intended to lead them from a merely historical belief to a living faith, even to Jesus Christ (the Light and Truth) Himself. All preaching and…”
Both passages discuss the nature of the human soul and its connection to the divine. They emphasize the divine spark within humans and the potential for divine knowledge or communion, though they come from different mystical traditions.
◆hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 10: The Sermon on the Mount|Section 1f
“But God is o'er them all, and God contains them all. God's rays, to use a figure, are His energies; the Cosmos's are natures, the arts and sciences are man's. The energies act through the Cosmos, thence through the nature-rays of Cosmos u…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between the divine, the cosmos, and human souls. They explore the hierarchy and interconnectedness of these elements, with Plotinus emphasizing the unreasonableness of certain beliefs about the soul and Hermes discussing the dispensation of the universe and the role of the mind in the soul.
◆western_esoteric|Transcendental Magic II: The Ritual (Éliphas Lévi)|9. The Ceremonial Of Initiatesb
“Taken literally and understood materially, such books could be only an inconceivable tissue of absurdities and scandals, as the school of Voltaire has demonstrated but too well. It is the same with all the ancient dogmas, the brilliant the…”
Both passages critique misinterpretations of ancient doctrines and emphasize the importance of understanding deeper truths beyond literal interpretations. Passage A criticizes later doctrines that contradict ancient teachings, while Passage B discusses the misinterpretation of ancient dogmas and the necessity of understanding symbols to avoid calumny.