Select Works of Plotinus · 306 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor
Select Works, Section 294
Section 7 7. So far, so good: but what of the passage in the Philebus taken to imply that the other souls are parts of the All-Soul? The statement there made does not bear the meaning read into it; it expresses only, what the author was then concerned with, that the heavens are ensouled- a teaching which he maintains in the observation that it is preposterous to make the heavens soulless when we, who contain a part of the body of the All, have a soul; how, he asks, could there be soul in the part and none in the total. He makes his teaching quite clear in the Timaeus, where he shows us the other souls brought into existence after the All-Soul, but compounded from the same mixing bowl"; secondary and tertiary are duly marked off from the primal but every form of soul is presented as being of identical ideal-nature with the All-Soul. As for saying of the Phaedrus. "All that is soul cares for all that is soulless," this simply tells us that the corporeal kind cannot be controlled- fashioned, set in place or brought into being- by anything but the Soul. And we cannot think that there is one soul whose nature includes this power and another without it. "The perfect soul, that of the All," we read, "going its lofty journey, operates upon the kosmos not by sinking into it, but, as it were, by brooding over it"; and "every perfect soul exercises this governance"; he distinguishes the other, the soul in this sphere as "the soul when its wing is broken." As for our souls being entrained in the kosmic circuit, and taking character and condition thence; this is no indication that they are parts: soul-nature may very well take some tincture from even the qualities of place, from water and from air; residence in this city or in that, and the varying make-up of the body may have their influence [upon our human souls which, yet, are no parts of place or of body]. We have always admitted that as members of the universe we take over something from the All-Soul; we do not deny the influence of the Kosmic Circuit; but against all this we oppose another soul in us [the Intellectual as distinguished from the merely vitalizing] proven to be distinct by that power of opposition. As for our being begotten children of the kosmos, we answer that in motherhood the entrant soul is distinct, is not the mother's.
Themes
◆Soul Migrationcosmology
The transmigration of the soul across lives.
The text mentions the human soul leaving the body, implying movement between states of embodiment.
All passages →◆Spiritual Ascentpraxis
A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.
The discussion of the soul going 'free of the body' implies a movement away from material constraint.
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 contrasts the embodied state with the disembodied state, highlighting the difficulty of soul in body.
All passages →◇Divine Simplicitytheology
The doctrine that God has no parts, divisions, or composite attributes; pure undivided being.
[auto] It references the 'eternal identity of that Essence' which secures unity despite differentiation.
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 text distinguishes between the Intellectual-Principle and the Soul, noting differentiation from a primal source.
All passages →◇Monadcosmology
The absolutely simple, undivided first principle from which all multiplicity and existence flows.
[auto] The concept of an undivided 'Essence' maintaining identity through differentiation aligns with the monadic principle.
All passages →◇Paradox As Teachingethics
Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.
[auto] The author explicitly frames the discussion around meeting 'problems' and 'difficulties' regarding metaphysical presence.
All passages →◇Unity Of Beingtheology
The doctrine that all existence is ultimately one substance or one divine reality; non-duality as a theological claim.
[auto] The passage centrally debates the metaphysical problem of how the soul maintains unity while present in multiple bodies.
All passages →Related passages · 10 parallels
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 1, Section 1m
“65 In the whole of this passage God is spoken of as at the same time Efficient, Formal and Final Cause of the soul’s activity.
D.
teaches that God is present in all things, but not equally in all.
Cf.
Intr., p.
14 66 Gen.
i.
67 Three…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between a higher, transcendent entity (the All-Soul in Plotinus, God in the second passage) and individual souls or beings. They explore the nature of this relationship, emphasizing the unity and interconnectedness of all souls with the higher entity, while also acknowledging the distinctness and individuality of each soul.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 9 (part 11)
“Unless this distinction of the various aspects of man is kept in mind, we are always exposed to mistaking the leaves of the tree of life for the branches, and the branches for the trunk, and the trunk for the roots.
197:1 Each soul constit…”
Both passages discuss the nature of the soul and its relationship to the body and the divine. They explore the idea of a unified soul that manifests in different forms or aspects, and the distinction between higher and lower aspects of the soul.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 11 (part 3)
“Now can I truly say, 'The soul of Christ is my brother, and the body of Christ is the nutriment of my soul.'" ( Three Principles , xxii.
78.) p.
229 But if Christ had come only from a terrestrial virgin He would not have come from above,…”
Both passages discuss the concept of a celestial or divine element interacting with human beings to bring about a higher state of being. In Passage A, the celestial virgin becomes incorporated in Mary, enabling the birth of Christ. In Passage B, the All-Soul influences individual souls, suggesting a connection between the divine and human realms.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 11 (part 7)
“48.) "The soul and the Word are not one or one being.
The soul is born from the centre of nature, from the essences, and belongs to the body, for she issues from the essences of the body, and attracts to herself the body; but the Word is f…”
Both passages explore the relationship between the soul and a higher, divine principle. They discuss the unity and differentiation of the soul, and how it interacts with the body and the divine, showing a conceptual parallel in their mystical insights.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 14 (part 2)
“2.) During his terrestrial existence man can remain consciously in the three worlds, and by the power of the will with which he is endowed penetrate into either one or the other; but after the separation of the soul from the body has taken…”
Both passages discuss the nature of the soul and its relationship to the body, exploring the idea of the soul's existence both within and beyond the physical realm. They also touch on the concept of the soul's unity and differentiation.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 14 (part 8)
“, in the heavenly essentiality (Devachan)—cannot be disturbed by anybody, unless they should wish it themselves, in case that they were very favourably inclined towards some particular soul in harmony with their own.
They do not trouble th…”
Both passages discuss the nature of the soul and its relationship to the body and the divine. They explore the idea of a unified soul that interacts with individual souls, and the concept of higher and lower aspects of the soul. The passages also touch on the theme of the soul's connection to the divine and its role in the spiritual realm.
◆egyptian|The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani)|Chapter 43 (part 49)
“lxv} 2.
ba-sen met Unas Their soul[1] is in Unas.[2] 3.
aha ba-k emma neteru Standeth thy soul among the gods.[3] 4.
ha Pepi pu i-nek maat Heru metu-s thu Hail, Pepi this!
cometh to thee the eye of Horus, it speaketh with thee.
i-nek b…”
Both passages discuss the concept of the soul and its relationship to the divine or the cosmos. They explore the idea of the soul's connection to a higher, universal soul or divine entity, showing a genuine conceptual parallel across different mystical traditions.
◆greek_mystery|Orphic Hymns|Front Matter, p. 4 (part 4)
“Hence according to his theology there are two worlds, the intelligible and the sensible.
Hence too his three demiurgic principles: Jovial, Dionysiacal, and Adonical, Δΐι#, ( ) Διονυσιακὴ, Αδωναϊκὴ, from whence many orders and differences o…”
Both passages discuss the hierarchical structure of reality, with a emphasis on the role of intellect and soul in the cosmos. They share the idea of a unified, intelligent principle that governs the universe and its parts, reflecting a mystical and metaphysical understanding of existence.
◆hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 10: The Sermon on the Mount|Section 1c
“For that the soul who hath no knowledge of the things that are, or knowledge of their nature, or of Good, is blinded by the body's passions and tossed about.
This wretched soul, not knowing what she is, becomes the slave of bodies of stran…”
Both passages discuss the nature of the soul and its relationship to the cosmos. They explore the idea of the soul's connection to the universal soul or intellect, and the influence of the cosmos on individual souls, though from different philosophical and mystical perspectives.
◆platonism|Plato: Phaedo|Section 1q
“Then reflect, Cebes: is not the conclusion of the whole matter this?-that the soul is in the very likeness of the divine, and immortal, and intelligible, and uniform, and indissoluble, and unchangeable; and the body is in the very likeness…”
Both passages discuss the nature of the soul and its relationship to the body and the divine. They share the idea that the soul is higher and more pure than the body, and that the soul's connection to the divine is central to its nature.