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Select Works of Plotinus · 224 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Select Works, Section 225

Section 4 4. Does each individual Soul, then, contain within itself such a Love in essence and substantial reality? Since not only the pure All-Soul but also that of the Universe contain such a Love, it would be difficult to explain why our personal Soul should not. It must be so, even, with all that has life. This indwelling love is no other than the Spirit which, as we are told, walks with every being, the affection dominant in each several nature. It implants the characteristic desire; the particular Soul, strained towards its own natural objects, brings forth its own Eros, the guiding spirit realizing its worth and the quality of its Being. As the All-Soul contains the Universal Love, so must the single Soul be allowed its own single Love: and as closely as the single Soul holds to the All-Soul, never cut off but embraced within it, the two together constituting one principle of life, so the single separate Love holds to the All-Love. Similarly, the individual love keeps with the individual Soul as that other, the great Love, goes with the All-Soul; and the Love within the All permeates it throughout so that the one Love becomes many, showing itself where it chooses at any moment of the Universe, taking definite shape in these its partial phases and revealing itself at its will. In the same way we must conceive many Aphrodites in the All, Spirits entering it together with Love, all emanating from an Aphrodite of the All, a train of particular Aphrodites dependent upon the first, and each with the particular Love in attendance: this multiplicity cannot be denied, if Soul be the mother of Love, and Aphrodite mean Soul, and Love be an act of a Soul seeking good. This Love, then, leader of particular Souls to The Good, is twofold: the Love in the loftier Soul would be a god ever linking the Soul to the divine; the Love in the mingling Soul will be a celestial spirit.
Themes
◆Body As Obstacleanthropology

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

The contrast between heavenly Aphrodite and earthly unions implies the material realm is inferior to the divine.

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◆Divine Simplicitytheology

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

The higher Aphrodite is described as not being born of a mother, suggesting a lack of composite origin.

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◆Divine Sparkscosmology

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

The text mentions an already existing impulse within human souls towards the supernal beauty.

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◆Hidden Sayingssoteriology

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

The author states that the mythological matter requires philosophical examination to uncover its true meaning.

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◆Mystical Unionsoteriology

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

The goal of Eros is described as directing souls towards supernal beauty, implying a union with the divine.

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◇Anthropomorphismtheology

Attributing human characteristics, emotions, or form to the divine; embodied divine imagery.

[auto] The passage utilizes mythological figures like Aphrodite, Zeus, Penia, and Poros with human relationships and genealogies.

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◇Cosmic Dualismtheology

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

[auto] A clear distinction is made between the heavenly realm and earthly unions, reflecting an ontological opposition.

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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.

[auto] The passage distinguishes between a heavenly Aphrodite and an earthly Aphrodite, implying a hierarchical structure of divine beings.

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◇Ladder Of Lovesoteriology

Diotima's staged ascent from love of beautiful bodies → beautiful souls → beautiful pursuits → beautiful knowledge → Beauty itself; the canonical scala amoris that grounds Plotinus's On the Beautiful and Bruno's Eroici Furori — distinct from generic spiritual_ascent in that eros is the specific motive force.

[auto] The text references Plato's Symposium and describes Eros as the inciter of souls towards supernal beauty, grounding the ascent.

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◇Paradox As Teachingethics

Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.

[auto] The text highlights the contradictory genealogies of Eros (child vs. birth-fellow) to demand philosophical discussion.

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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.

[auto] The text describes Love as quickening an impulse towards the supernal beauty, suggesting a return to the divine origin.

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◇Spiritual Ascentpraxis

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

[auto] Eros is described as an inciter of human souls towards supernal beauty, indicating a journey upward.

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Related passages · 8 parallels
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 11, Section 1b
“Plotinus says the Godhead is indivisibly divided. doth not leave Its own Unity, but, even in the act of going forth to all things, remains entirely within Itself through the excess of that all-transcendent Unity: concerning these things ‘t…”
Both passages explore the concept of a universal love or unity that permeates all things, with individual manifestations reflecting a greater whole. They discuss the interconnectedness of all beings and the divine nature of love or unity.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 13, Section 1c
“Emily Brontë: “Every existence would exist in Thee.”) And if all things be conceived as being ultimately unified with each other, then all things taken as a whole are One. 507 507 All things possess the same Super-Essence, and that is why…”
Both passages explore the concept of unity and the interconnectedness of all things within a divine or universal framework. Passage A discusses the individual Soul's connection to the All-Soul and the universal Love, while Passage B describes the ultimate unity of all things within the One, emphasizing the Super-Essence that binds everything together.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 2, Section 1o
“Yet It is a Whole because It includes the true existence of all things, and is Partitive because It contains the principle of separate Individuality whereby Christ possesses a Human Soul distinct from all other human souls, and whereby, too…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between the individual soul and a higher, universal principle. Passage A from Plotinus describes the individual soul's love as part of a universal love, while Passage B from the Christian mystical tradition discusses the individual soul's relationship to the Godhead and the Trinity, emphasizing the unity and distinction within the divine.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 7, Section 1b
“(2) Wisdom as a whole = Wisdom embodied in the universe as a whole. (3) Wisdom in each individual instance = Wisdom as shown in the structure of some particular plant or animal, or part of a plant or animal. (1) Is an Emanation; (2) and (…”
Both passages discuss the concept of a universal wisdom or love that emanates from a higher source and is reflected in individual instances. They explore the relationship between the universal and the particular, and the nature of divine intuition or perception.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 7 (part 6)
“2.) There existed in man also the third principle, wherein resides sensual desire. He was not endowed with this principle for the purpose of surrendering himself to it, but that he might introduce it into the light of God, and glorify Him…”
Both passages discuss the concept of love or desire as a mediating force between the divine and the human, and the role of the soul in connecting with the divine. They explore the idea of a higher, spiritual love that elevates the individual towards a divine or intellectual principle.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 10 (part 13)
“202:2 "Jesus" means "Wisdom." Divine wisdom is love. 202:3 Woman, being on the whole more refined, more submissive and intuitional than man, is also more receptive for the germ of true spirituality. 203:1 Whether a person is of the male o…”
Both passages discuss the concept of divine love and its role in connecting the human soul to the divine. Passage A explores the nature of Eros and Aphrodite in Platonic thought, while Passage B discusses the divine wisdom and love represented by Jesus and Mary in a mystical Christian context.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 11 (part 5)
“If, then, the soul of the child is in the Holy Trinity, do you then not think that its glorious light beautifully illuminates the mother, and does not that mother rightfully put her feet upon the Moon, 1 as being exalted above all that is o…”
Both passages discuss the role of a divine feminine figure in the birth and perfection of a divine being. Passage A focuses on Mary's role in the birth of Christ, while Passage B discusses Aphrodite's role in the birth of Eros, highlighting the divine nature and perfection achieved through their respective divine children.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 11 (part 6)
“90.) "The living Word that dwelt within the eternal virgin attracted to itself the flesh of Mary—that is to say, the essences from the corporeal body of Mary—and thus there grew in nine months a complete human being with soul, spirit, and f…”
Both passages discuss the nature of divine beings and their relationship with the material world, exploring themes of divine emanation and the interaction between the divine and human realms. Passage A discusses the nature of Eros and Aphrodite in Platonic thought, while Passage B discusses the incarnation of Christ in Christian mysticism, but both explore the concept of divine love and its role in connecting the divine and human.