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Select Works of Plotinus · 431 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Select Works, Section 408

Section 8 8. And- if it is desirable to venture the more definite statement of a personal conviction clashing with the general view- even our human soul has not sunk entire; something of it is continuously in the Intellectual Realm, though if that part, which is in this sphere of sense, hold the mastery, or rather be mastered here and troubled, it keeps us blind to what the upper phase holds in contemplation. The object of the Intellectual Act comes within our ken only when it reaches downward to the level of sensation: for not all that occurs at any part of the soul is immediately known to us; a thing must, for that knowledge, be present to the total soul; thus desire locked up within the desiring faculty remains unknown except when we make it fully ours by the central faculty of perception, or by the individual choice or by both at once. Once more, every soul has something of the lower on the body side and something of the higher on the side of the Intellectual-Principle. The Soul of the All, as an entirety, governs the universe through that part of it which leans to the body side, but since it does not exercise a will based on calculation as we do- but proceeds by purely intellectual act as in the execution of an artistic conception- its ministrance is that of a labourless overpoising, only its lowest phase being active upon the universe it embellishes. The souls that have gone into division and become appropriated to some thing partial have also their transcendent phase, but are preoccupied by sensation, and in the mere fact of exercising perception they take in much that clashes with their nature and brings distress and trouble since the object of their concern is partial, deficient, exposed to many alien influences, filled with desires of its own and taking its pleasure, that pleasure which is its lure. But there is always the other, that which finds no savour in passing pleasure, but holds its own even way.
Themes
◆Apophatic Theologytheology

Describing the divine only by negation—God transcends all positive categories and concepts; the via negativa.

The description of governance by a 'power not calling upon act' hints at the ineffable nature of divine action.

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◆Body As Obstacleanthropology

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

The passage explicitly addresses the view of the body as a source of evil, arguing against it for the higher soul.

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◆Logoscosmology

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

The governance of the universe is effected by a power, reflecting the mediating ordering principle between the Supreme and matter.

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◇Divine Providencetheology

Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity.

[auto] The passage explicitly describes the governance of the universe effected by a divine power without active intervention.

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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 implies a hierarchical structure where the soul governs the universe while remaining oriented toward the Supreme source.

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◇Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology

Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.

[auto] The text describes a 'noblest and most blessed vision,' indicating direct experiential knowledge of the divine.

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◇Monadcosmology

The absolutely simple, undivided first principle from which all multiplicity and existence flows.

[auto] The reference to 'the Supreme' corresponds to the Neoplatonic first principle or Monad from which existence flows.

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◇Mystical Unionsoteriology

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

[auto] The soul 'remains always intent upon the Supreme,' suggesting a sustained state of connection or union with the divine.

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Related passages · 5 parallels
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 4, Section 1i
“an introversion 288 288 ἡ εἰς ἑαυτὴν εἴσοδος. from things without and the unified concentration 289 289 In souls being unified and simplified. See Intr., p. 25. of its spiritual powers—which gives it a kind of fixed revolution, and, tur…”
Both passages discuss the dual nature of the soul, its connection to both the intellectual/spiritual realm and the material/sensual world. They also explore the idea of the soul's movement and contemplation, highlighting the tension between the higher and lower aspects of the soul.
◆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 discuss the relationship between the soul and a higher, divine principle. They explore the idea of a higher part of the soul that is connected to the divine and a lower part that is connected to the physical world, although they use different terminology and frameworks.
◆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, its relationship with the body, and the concept of knowledge (Gnosis in Hermeticism and Intellectual Act in Plotinus). They also explore the duality of the material and intelligible realms and the struggle of the soul within these realms.
◆renaissance_hermeticism|The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori)|Fourth Dialoguej
“This I understand right well, and also that which you would infer about the principal intention; that is to say, that these are the degrees of the loves, of the affections, and of the enthusiasms, according to the degrees of greater and les…”
Both passages discuss the dual nature of the soul, its connection to the intellectual or divine realm, and its descent into the material world. They also explore the idea of the soul's ascent and descent, and the influence of higher and lower aspects on the soul's perception and actions.
◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XIX (part 7)
“In the reduction of your soul to its simplest self, its divine essence, you realize this union—this identity. But this sublime condition is not of permanent duration. It is only now and then that we can enjoy this elevation above the limi…”
Both passages discuss the concept of the soul's connection to a higher, intellectual or divine realm. They explore the idea of a higher self that transcends the physical and sensory experiences, and the temporary nature of achieving union or contemplation with this higher realm.