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Select Works of Plotinus · 523 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Select Works, Section 500

Section 8 8. If, then, the Intellection is an act upon the inner content [of a perfect unity], that content is at once the Idea [as object: eidos] and the Idea itself [as concept: idea]. What, then, is that content? An Intellectual-Principle and an Intellective Essence, no concept distinguishable from the Intellectual-Principle, each actually being that Principle. The Intellectual-Principle entire is the total of the Ideas, and each of them is the [entire] Intellectual-Principle in a special form. Thus a science entire is the total of the relevant considerations each of which, again, is a member of the entire science, a member not distinct in space yet having its individual efficacy in a total. This Intellectual-Principle, therefore, is a unity while by that possession of itself it is, tranquilly, the eternal abundance. If the Intellectual-Principle were envisaged as preceding Being, it would at once become a principle whose expression, its intellectual Act, achieves and engenders the Beings: but, since we are compelled to think of existence as preceding that which knows it, we can but think that the Beings are the actual content of the knowing principle and that the very act, the intellection, is inherent to the Beings, as fire stands equipped from the beginning with fire-act; in this conception, the Beings contain the Intellectual-Principle as one and the same with themselves, as their own activity. Thus, Being is itself an activity: there is one activity, then, in both or, rather, both are one thing. Being, therefore, and the Intellectual-Principle are one Nature: the Beings, and the Act of that which is, and the Intellectual-Principle thus constituted, all are one: and the resultant Intellections are the Idea of Being and its shape and its act. It is our separating habit that sets the one order before the other: for there is a separating intellect, of another order than the true, distinct from the intellect, inseparable and unseparating, which is Being and the universe of things.
Themes
◆Divine Simplicitytheology

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

The First Principle is described as 'self-springing,' implying an undivided source of beauty.

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◆Divine Sparkscosmology

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

The soul's capacity to ascend suggests an inherent divine nature or spark within the lover.

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◇Active Contemplationpraxis

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

[auto] The ascent involves taking refuge in 'virtue, knowledge, institutions, law and custom' as objects of contemplation.

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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.

[auto] Material things are described as changing and potentially distasteful, requiring the soul to take refuge from them.

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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 drawn between 'material loveliness' and the superior 'beauty is of the soul.'

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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 ascent moves through distinct levels: material beauty, soul's beauty, source of Soul's beauty, and finally the First Principle.

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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] Salvation is framed through being 'authentically philosophic' and possessing 'knowledge' rather than ritual.

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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.

[auto] The 'pattern giving beauty to the corporeal' acting as 'Idea to its Matter' functions as the ordering principle or Logos.

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◇Monadcosmology

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

[auto] The 'First, the Principle whose beauty is self-springing' corresponds to the concept of the simple, undivided first principle.

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◇Mystical Unionsoteriology

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

[auto] Attaining the First Principle is described as ending the 'pain inassuageable before,' implying a unitive state.

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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 details the process of rising from material things back to the source of loveliness and the uttermost Principle.

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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] The passage explicitly describes the soul's journey upward through stages from material beauty to the First Principle.

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Related passages · 9 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 discuss the unity and indivisibility of the divine or intellectual principle, emphasizing the interconnectedness of being and intellect. They share a mystical perspective on the nature of reality and the divine, though they come from different traditions.
◆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 interconnection of all things within a divine or intellectual principle. They discuss the idea that the ultimate reality is a unified whole, from which all individual beings and concepts derive their existence and essence.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 2, Section 1b
“And if they deny that the whole Godhead is Life, how can that Sacred Word be true Which declared “As the Father raiseth the dead and quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom He will,” 175 175 John v. 21 . and also, “It is the Spir…”
Both passages explore the unity and interrelationship of divine aspects within their respective traditions. Pseudo-Dionysius discusses the unity of the Trinity and the shared attributes among the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, while Plotinus (Select Works) examines the unity of the Intellectual-Principle and Being, suggesting they are one nature. Both texts emphasize the interconnectedness and indivisibility of divine elements.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 2, Section 1k
“Indeed, He is not an unity in this sense, and doth not participate in unity nor possess it; 224 224 These two phrases well express the meaning of the title “Beyond things and supernally infusing Unity” (ὑπερηνωμένη), which I have generally…”
Both passages discuss the nature of unity and the divine, exploring the relationship between the One and the Many, and the concept of an undifferentiated unity that is also pluralistic. They share a mystical approach to understanding the divine essence and its manifestations.
◆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 nature of the divine and its relationship to existence and intellect. Passage A from Plotinus explores the unity of Being and Intellectual-Principle, while Passage B from the Christian mystical tradition discusses the Godhead and its relationship to creation and personality. Both texts emphasize the transcendent and immanent aspects of the divine, showing a genuine conceptual parallel.
◆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 nature of the Intellectual-Principle or Divine Wisdom, emphasizing the unity and activity of the divine intellect. They explore how the divine essence is both the source and the content of all existence, though they use different terminology and frameworks.
◆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 ascent of the soul or human being towards a higher, divine principle. They emphasize the need to transcend the material world and align with a higher, spiritual reality, though they use different terminology and frameworks.
◆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, divine principles, and the ascent towards higher spiritual realities. They share a common theme of the soul's journey towards understanding and uniting with the divine, though they use different metaphors and conceptual frameworks.
◆platonism|Plato: Symposium|Section 1{
“"These are the lesser mysteries of love, into which even you, Socrates, may enter; to the greater and more hidden ones which are the crown of these, and to which, if you pursue them in a right spirit, they will lead, I know not whether you…”
Both passages describe a mystical ascent from the appreciation of physical beauty to the contemplation of absolute beauty or the Intellectual-Principle. They share a similar structure of progression from lower to higher forms of beauty, emphasizing the ultimate goal of understanding the essence of beauty.