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Select Works of Plotinus · 514 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Select Works, Section 491

Section 13 13. The God fettered [as in the Kronos Myth] to an unchanging identity leaves the ordering of this universe to his son (to Zeus), for it could not be in his character to neglect his rule within the divine sphere, and, as though sated with the Authentic-Beauty, seek a lordship too recent and too poor for his might. Ignoring this lower world, Kronos [Intellectual-Principle] claims for his own father [Ouranoo, the Absolute, or One] with all the upward-tending between them: and he counts all that tends to the inferior, beginning from his son [Zeus, the All-Soul], as ranking beneath him. Thus he holds a mid position determined on the one side by the differentiation implied in the severance from the very highest and, on the other, by that which keeps him apart from the link between himself and the lower: he stands between a greater father and an inferior son. But since that father is too lofty to be thought of under the name of Beauty, the second God remains the primally beautiful. Soul also has beauty, but is less beautiful than Intellect as being its image and therefore, though beautiful in nature, taking increase of beauty by looking to that original. Since then the All-Soul- to use the more familiar term- since Aphrodite herself is so beautiful, what name can we give to that other? If Soul is so lovely in its own right, of what quality must that prior be? And since its being is derived, what must that power be from which the Soul takes the double beauty, the borrowed and the inherent? We ourselves possess beauty when we are true to our own being; our ugliness is in going over to another order; our self-knowledge, that is to say, is our beauty; in self-ignorance we are ugly. Thus beauty is of the Divine and comes Thence only. Do these considerations suffice to a clear understanding of the Intellectual Sphere, or must we make yet another attempt by another road?
Themes
◆Active Contemplationpraxis

A form of meditation that uses imagery, imagination, or symbolic thought rather than purely empty stillness.

Philosophical statement is achieved through images and pictures rather than discursive words, aligning with imagery-based understanding.

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◆Correspondencecosmology

The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.

The text posits that understanding one chief thing allows application to all entities, reflecting the axiom that cosmic structures are legible maps of one another.

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◆Divine Hiddennesstheology

The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father.

The original wisdom is announced in an outward stage by a less compact image, implying the source remains concealed behind its manifestation.

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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.

Wisdom is described as imparting causes to produced entities, functioning as a mediating principle between the Supreme and generated things.

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◇Apophatic Theologytheology

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

[auto] The passage suggests the Supreme's mode cannot be captured by writing-forms or propositions of reasoning, implying ineffability.

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◇Divine Simplicitytheology

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

[auto] Wisdom is characterized as an immediate unity that is not an aggregate of discursive reasoning or detailed willing.

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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 explicitly describes the Supreme going forth and wisdom appearing in subsequent forms of being, outlining a hierarchical flow from unity to multiplicity.

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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] Knowledge is defined as a distinct image and immediate unity rather than an aggregate of discursive reasoning or propositions.

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◇Hidden Sayingssoteriology

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

[auto] The wise of Egypt used pictures instead of writing-forms to indicate truth, suggesting an esoteric mode of conveying meaning.

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◇Monadcosmology

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

[auto] The Supreme is presented as a singular source of unity from which other forms of being flow.

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◇Unity Of Beingtheology

The doctrine that all existence is ultimately one substance or one divine reality; non-duality as a theological claim.

[auto] The text emphasizes wisdom existing in unity as the source from which other manifestations appear.

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Related passages · 11 parallels
◆buddhism|Vajrakkhedika (Diamond Cutter)|Section 1p
“If, O Subhûti, there existed a stock of merit, the Tathâgata would not have preached: "A stock of merit, a stock of merit indeed!"'(19) XX. 'What do you think then, O Subhûti, is a Tathâgata to be seen (known) by the shape of his visible b…”
Both passages explore the paradoxical nature of ultimate reality and the limitations of conceptual understanding. The Diamond Sutra emphasizes the emptiness of all phenomena, including merit, form, and the Dharma itself, while the Egyptian wisdom described in Select Works highlights the unity and immediacy of supreme knowledge beyond discursive reasoning.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 11, Section 1e
“Hence the Good God is called the Fount, first, of the Very Primaries: then, of those creatures which share completely therein; then, of those which share partially therein. 484 484 Migne’s text here is corrupt, I have emended it. (1) The…”
Both passages discuss the hierarchical nature of divine beauty and goodness, with Plotinus focusing on the Intellectual-Principle and the All-Soul, while the second passage describes the Good God as the Fount of various qualities. Both emphasize the emanation and differentiation of beauty and goodness from a higher, transcendent source.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 1 (part 4)
“Let them, therefore, again go out with their will from their wilful ignorance or malignity and enter again into the will of God." ( Menschwerdung , 3, 5.) All this goes to show that it is useless and vain to seek for divine wisdom, meaning…”
Both passages discuss the nature of divine wisdom and the limitations of external forms of knowledge. They emphasize the importance of inner realization and unity with the divine, though they come from different mystical traditions.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 7 (part 5)
“13.) Man can attain real similarity to God and perfect beatitude only by decisively willing to put his will into the Son, as the Heart or Light of the Father. "God has the eternal and unchangeable will to generate His Heart and his Son, an…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between the divine and the soul, emphasizing the soul's connection to a higher, more beautiful, or divine principle. They both explore the idea of the soul's beauty and its derivation from a higher source, as well as the soul's will and its alignment with the divine will.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 10 (part 15)
“"The Spirit of Christ in His children is not bound to a certain form, so that He could say nothing but what is found in the writings of the apostles; but as the Spirit was free in the apostles, and as they did not all use the same expressio…”
Both passages discuss the idea that divine wisdom and truth are expressed in various forms and through different means, emphasizing that the essence of wisdom is not bound to a single form or expression. They highlight the unity behind diverse manifestations of spiritual insight.
◆greek_mystery|Orphic Hymns|Front Matter, p. 4 (part 2)
“For a self-motive being, is the cause of motion to those, which are moved by another, in the same manner as that which is immovable, inserts in all beings the power of moving. And again, that which is moved only, must depend on those natur…”
Both passages discuss the concept of a supreme, immaterial deity that is the source of life and intelligence in the universe. They also mention the existence of subordinate intelligences or divine beings that govern various aspects of the cosmos, reflecting a hierarchical structure in their theological systems.
◆greek_mystery|Orphic Hymns|Hymn IX. NATURE (part 1)
“IX. TO NATURE. * The FUMIGATION from AROMATICS. NATURE, all parent, ancient, and divine, O Much-mechanic mother, art is thine; p. 127 Heav'nly, abundant, venerable queen, In ev'ry part of thy dominions seen. p. 128 Untam'd, all-taming…”
Both passages explore the concept of a divine, creative force that governs the universe. Passage A discusses the Intellectual-Principle and the All-Soul in Platonic terms, while Passage B describes Nature as a divine, all-encompassing entity. Both texts emphasize the beauty, power, and primal nature of these forces, highlighting their roles in maintaining cosmic order.
◆hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres|Section 1b
“But when He raised His head, I see in Mind the Light, [but] now in Powers no man could number, and Cosmos grown beyond all bounds, and that the Fire was compassed round about by a most mighty Power, and [now] subdued had come unto a stand.…”
Both passages discuss the emanation of the divine into the material world and the role of divine wisdom or logos in creation. They share a mystical perspective on the nature of reality and the origin of the cosmos, though they come from different traditions.
◆platonism|Plato: Phaedrus|Section 1q
“Thus far I have been speaking of the fourth and last kind of madness, which is imputed to him who, when he sees the beauty of earth, is transported with the recollection of the true beauty; he would like to fly away, but he cannot; he is li…”
Both passages discuss the nature of beauty and its divine origin, emphasizing the relationship between the divine and the soul's perception of beauty. They explore the idea of a higher, intellectual sphere and the soul's connection to it.
◆platonism|Plato: Symposium|Section 1w
“The truth of the matter is this: No god is a philosopher. or seeker after wisdom, for he is wise already; nor does any man who is wise seek after wisdom. Neither do the ignorant seek after Wisdom. For herein is the evil of ignorance, tha…”
Both passages explore the nature of wisdom and the pursuit of knowledge, highlighting the distinction between the wise and the ignorant, and the role of love or wonder in the quest for understanding. They both emphasize the idea that wisdom is a distinct and immediate unity, not merely an aggregate of discursive reasoning.
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◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XXII (part 7)
“Now we have established that illogicality (from our standpoint) is the necessary condition of the knowledge of truth or of the real world. This does not mean that everything that is illogical is true and real, but it means absolutely, that…”
Both passages explore the idea of a higher logic or wisdom that transcends ordinary reasoning. They discuss how ancient texts and traditions sought to convey truths that go beyond the phenomenal world, using symbols and images to represent unified, non-discursive knowledge.