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Select Works of Plotinus · 657 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Select Works, Section 631

Section 11 11. It may be suggested that the decad is nothing more than so many henads; admitting the one henad why should we reject the ten? As the one is a real existence why not the rest? We are certainly not compelled to attach that one henad to some one thing and so deprive all the rest of the means to unity: since every existent must be one thing, the unity is obviously common to all. This means one principle applying to many, the principle whose existence within itself we affirmed to be presupposed by its manifestation outside. But if a henad exists in some given object and further is observed in something else, then that first henad being real, there cannot be only one henad in existence; there must be a multiplicity of henads. Supposing that first henad alone to exist, it must obviously be lodged either in the thing of completest Being or at all events in the thing most completely a unity. If in the thing of completest Being, then the other henads are but nominal and cannot be ranked with the first henad, or else Number becomes a collection of unlike monads and there are differences among monads [an impossibility]. If that first henad is to be taken as lodged in the thing of completest unity, there is the question why that most perfect unity should require the first henad to give it unity. Since all this is impossible, then, before any particular can be thought of as a unit, there must exist a unity bare, unrelated by very essence. If in that realm also there must be a unity apart from anything that can be called one thing, why should there not exist another unity as well? Each particular, considered in itself, would be a manifold of monads, totalling to a collective unity. If however Nature produces continuously- or rather has produced once for all- not halting at the first production but bringing a sort of continuous unity into being, then it produces the minor numbers by the sheer fact of setting an early limit to its advance: outgoing to a greater extent- not in the sense of moving from point to point but in its inner changes- it would produce the larger numbers; to each number so emerging it would attach the due quantities and the appropriate thing, knowing that without this adaptation to Number the thing could not exist or would be a stray, something outside, at once, of both Number and Reason.
Themes
◆Divine Sparkscosmology

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

The description of things feeling 'exile' and 'sundrance from its essence' suggests a fragment seeking return to its origin.

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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] Extension and magnitude are described as 'grievous' and a state of 'exile', framing material manifestation as hindering true being.

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◇Divine Simplicitytheology

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

[auto] The contrast between 'The Unity' and the 'manifold' or 'extension' highlights the doctrine of undivided being versus composite existence.

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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 describes a downward flow from Unity to multiplicity where things 'flows outward' and lose unity, indicating an emanative structure.

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◇Kingdom Withinanthropology

The claim that the divine realm is present inside the individual, accessible without external mediation.

[auto] The passage states that 'to the possession of the self the way is inward', locating the divine or true being within rather than in extension.

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◇Monadcosmology

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

[auto] The text centers on 'The Unity' as the source from which multiplicity falls away, aligning with the concept of an undivided first principle.

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◇Mystical Unionsoteriology

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

[auto] Holding to one's own being and moving inward implies a reunification with the essence or Unity from which one fell.

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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 passage explicitly describes the 'way is inward' as the path to possession of the self, reversing the outward flow into multiplicity.

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◇Self Knowledgesoteriology

The recognition of one's own true divine nature as the primary path to liberation; 'know thyself' as soteriology.

[auto] The text emphasizes that 'Everything seeks not the alien but itself' and that the way to possession is inward self-possession.

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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 'movement is inward' is presented as the correct path against the 'outward moving', signifying a journey back toward the source.

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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 asserts that everything seeks itself and that true existence is holding to one's own being, implying an underlying ontological unity.

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Related passages · 6 parallels
◆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 One as the fundamental principle underlying all existence. They discuss the nature of unity in relation to multiplicity and the role of the One in the creation and sustenance of all things, showing a genuine conceptual parallel across different mystical traditions.
◆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 multiplicity in a divine context, exploring how a singular, undifferentiated unity can manifest in multiple forms or entities. They share a mystical approach to understanding the relationship between the One and the Many, though they come from different philosophical and religious traditions.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 5, Section 1e
“And if these Universals exist by participating in Existence, far more is this true of the things which participate in them. 6. Thus the first gift which the Absolute and Transcendent Goodness bestows is that of mere Existence, and so It d…”
Both passages explore the concept of unity and multiplicity, discussing how unity is the fundamental principle from which all things derive their existence and how multiplicity arises from this unity. They share a metaphysical exploration of the nature of being and the role of the One or Absolute Goodness in creation.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 8 (part 6)
“1.) "The terrestrial consciousness corrupted the celestial one, and the former became the Turba of the latter. Likewise, the Fiat made the earth and stones out of the eternal essentiality." ( Menschwerdung , i. 9.) "But in the earth we fi…”
Both passages explore the concept of unity and multiplicity, and the degradation or corruption that occurs when unity is lost. Passage A discusses the falling away from The Unity into multiplicity and the resulting exile and fragmentation, while Passage B describes the corruption of celestial consciousness by terrestrial consciousness and the penetration of death and rottenness into all things. Both texts emphasize the importance of retaining unity and the authentic essence.
◆egyptian|The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani)|Chapter 43 (part 69)
“xcii} unity of a supreme and self-existent being, his eternity, his almightiness, and external reproduction thereby as God; the attributing of the creation of the world and of all living beings to this supreme God; the immortality of the so…”
Both passages discuss the concept of unity and the nature of the divine. Passage A explores the idea of henads and the unity of being in a Neoplatonic context, while Passage B discusses the monotheistic beliefs of ancient Egyptians, emphasizing the unity and eternity of God. Both texts grapple with the nature of the one and its relationship to multiplicity.
◆western_esoteric|Transcendental Magic I: The Doctrine (Éliphas Lévi)|2. The Pillars Of The Templec
“The undiscerning disciples of Zoroaster divided the duad without referring it to unity, thus separating the Pillars of the Temple and endeavouring to halve God. Conceive the Absolute as two, and you must immediately conceive it as three to…”
Both passages explore the concept of unity and multiplicity within a divine or metaphysical framework. Passage A discusses the existence of multiple henads (unities) and their relationship to a singular, bare unity, while Passage B explores the division and reunification of the Absolute into a duad and triad, emphasizing the interplay between unity and multiplicity in divine and moral realms.