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Select Works of Plotinus · 674 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor

Select Works, Section 645

Section 6 6. But how can that higher soul have sense-perception? It is the perception of what falls under perception There, sensation in the mode of that realm: it is the source of the soul's perception of the sense-realm in its correspondence with the Intellectual. Man as sense-percipient becomes aware of that correspondence and accommodates the sense-realm to the lowest extremity of its counterpart There, proceeding from the fire Intellectual to the fire here which becomes perceptible by its analogy with that of the higher sphere. If material things existed There, the soul would perceive them; Man in the Intellectual, Man as Intellectual soul, would be aware of the terrestrial. This is how the secondary Man, copy of Man in the Intellectual, contains the Reason-Principles in copy; and Man in the Intellectual-Principle contained the Man that existed before any man. The diviner shines out upon the secondary and the secondary upon the tertiary; and even the latest possesses them all- not in the sense of actually living by them all but as standing in under-parallel to them. Some of us act by this lowest; in another rank there is a double activity, a trace of the higher being included; in yet another there is a blending of the third grade with the others: each is that Man by which he acts while each too contains all the grades, though in some sense not so. On the separation of the third life and third Man from the body, then if the second also departs- of course not losing hold on the Above- the two, as we are told, will occupy the same place. No doubt it seems strange that a soul which has been the Reason-Principle of a man should come to occupy the body of an animal: but the soul has always been all, and will at different times be this and that. Pure, not yet fallen to evil, the soul chooses man and is man, for this is the higher, and it produces the higher. It produces also the still loftier beings, the Celestials [Daimons], who are of one Form with the soul that makes Man: higher still stands that Man more entirely of the Celestial rank, almost a god, reproducing God, a Celestial closely bound to God as a man is to Man. For that Being into which man develops is not to be called a god; there remains the difference which distinguishes souls, all of the same race though they be. This is taking "Celestial" ["Daimon"] in the sense of Plato. When a soul which in the human state has been thus attached chooses animal nature and descends to that, it is giving forth the Reason-Principle- necessarily in it- of that particular animal: this lower it contained and the activity has been to the lower.
Themes
◆Active Contemplationpraxis

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

The passage references the Intellectual-Principle 'seeing' reality and the use of conception to understand the Absolute Line.

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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 contrasts perfect configurations without extension against the extended bodily reproductions that require external support.

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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.

It asserts that configurations of the universe exist antecedently in the Intellectual realm before their bodily reproductions.

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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.

It distinguishes between the actual quantitative world and the higher realm of Intellectual Beings where true infinity resides.

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◆Infinite Cosmoscosmology

The doctrine of the universe as boundless and without center or circumference, populated by innumerable worlds — Bruno's rejection of the closed Aristotelian sphere; the divine and the cosmos as ontologically infinite.

The text discusses the concept of an infinite line and number in relation to the path of the universe, though distinguishing intellectual from quantitative infinity.

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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 Intellectual-Principle functions as the ordering reason that precedes and structures the Living-Form and material configurations.

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◆Monadcosmology

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

Unity is described as a fundamental observation within the Intellectual Line and Real-Being, reflecting the principle of undivided existence.

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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.

The text emphasizes that 'all is one' and that the Intellectual-Principle is not external to the Life-Form.

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◇Apophatic Theologytheology

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

[auto] The text defines the Intellectual Line by negating quantitative attributes and limits rather than affirming positive material properties.

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◇Divine Simplicitytheology

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

[auto] It describes the Intellectual Line as without quantity or limit, reflecting a non-composite mode of being distinct from material extension.

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◇Numerical Mysticismtheology

Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality.

[auto] The passage centrally investigates the metaphysical nature of Infinite Number and its existence within the Intellectual realm.

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Related passages · 12 parallels
◆buddhism|Vajrakkhedika (Diamond Cutter)|Section 1o
“Bhagavat said: 'What do you think, O Subhûti, has the Tathâgata the bodily eye?' Subhûti said: 'So it is, O Bhagavat, the Tathâgata has the bodily eye.' Bhagavat said: 'What do you think, O Subhûti, has the Tathâgata the heavenly eye?' Subh…”
Both passages explore the concept of infinity and the nature of reality beyond finite perception. Plotinus discusses the infinite line in the Intellectual realm, while the Buddhist text delves into the idea of infinite worlds and the nature of thought, both emphasizing the transcendence of conventional understanding.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 4, Section 1l
“Need is there to understand that in proper truth we do but use the elements and syllables and phrases and written terms and words as an aid to our senses; inasmuch as when our soul is moved by spiritual energies unto spiritual things, our s…”
Both passages discuss the transcendence of sensory perception to achieve a higher, spiritual understanding. Plotinus describes the soul's perception of the Intellectual realm, while the Dionysian text discusses the soul's movement towards spiritual contemplation and ultimate union with divine light, both involving a progression beyond sense perception.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 5, Section 1b
“367 367 Sense-perception is a direct apprehension of that which we actually touch, see, hear, taste, or smell; Reason or Inference is an indirect apprehension of that which we do not actually touch, see, etc. Intuition is a direct apprehen…”
Both passages discuss the nature of perception and the hierarchy of existence, with Plotinus describing the soul's perception of the Intellectual realm and its correspondence with the material world, while the second passage from Dhun-nun Misri's Kitab al-tawhid talks about the different levels of apprehension (sense-perception, reason, intuition) and the emanation of divine wisdom.
◆christian_mysticism|Meister Eckhart's Sermons (Field translation)|IIb
“So, if my soul is to know God, it must be God-like.” Now, how is the soul to arrive at this heavenly state that it recognizes God in itself, and knows that He is near? By copying the heavens, which can receive no impulse from without to ma…”
Both passages discuss the soul's ascent to a higher, divine state, emphasizing the need for the soul to transcend earthly concerns and temporal constraints to achieve union with the divine. They share a mystical focus on the soul's transformation and its ability to perceive higher realities.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 2 (part 1)
“p. 58 CHAPTER II. THE UNITY OF THE ALL. "We are all one body in Christ, and have all the Spirit of Christ within our reach. If, then, we enter into the Christ, we may see and know everything by the power of His Spirit." ( Forty Question…”
Both passages explore the concept of the infinite and the limitations of human understanding in grasping it. They discuss the nature of the infinite in terms of intellectual and divine realms, using similar metaphors and conceptual frameworks.
◆hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 15: The Hymn of Hermes|Section 1b
“It sendeth forth of its 4 abundance, and in the place [of what it sendeth forth] receiveth the subsistence from above. 5 For thus the Demiurge 6 —I mean the Sun—eternally doth order Heaven and Earth, pouring down Essence, 7 and taking Matt…”
Both passages explore the nature of the infinite and the divine principles that govern the cosmos. They discuss the interplay between the intellectual or divine realm and the material world, highlighting the role of configurations or forms in the structure of reality.
◆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 concept of the soul's ascent and descent, and its connection to different realms of existence. They explore the idea of the soul's progression through various states and its relationship with the divine and the material world, reflecting a shared mystical insight across different traditions.
◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XIII (part 7)
“153 has really entered a cul de sac out of which there is no escape, and the official recognition of the fact that the direction it has taken is entirely the wrong one, is only a question of time. _____ We may say—not as an assumption, but…”
Both passages explore the concept of an infinite, noumenal reality underlying the finite, phenomenal world. They discuss the limitations of human perception and understanding in grasping the full complexity of this reality, though they use different metaphors and philosophical frameworks.
◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XVI (part 14)
“The mystery of infinity —the greatest of all mysteries—it tells us that all the visible universe and its galaxies of stars have no dimension : that in relation to infinity they are equal to a point , a mathematical point which has no extens…”
Both passages explore the concept of infinity and the limitations of human perception and understanding. They discuss how the infinite cannot be fully grasped by finite human consciousness and the nature of reality beyond our immediate sensory experience.
◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XX (part 4)
“The chief of these conditional data consists in the fact that in problems of this mathematics there is always taken the t of the universe only , i.e., one section only of the universe is taken, p. 249 which section is never taken in conjun…”
Both passages explore the concept of infinity and its relationship to mathematics and reality. They discuss the limitations of finite mathematics and the existence of a higher, more real mathematics that deals with infinite and variable magnitudes. The passages also touch on the idea of transfinite numbers and their properties, showing a genuine conceptual parallel across different mystical traditions.
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◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XX (part 5)
“Consequently, the number of points in the cube, a 3 is equal to ∞ ∞∞ , this expression is equal to the expression ∞ ∞ and ∞, i.e., this means that an infinity continues to grow, remaining at the same time unchanged . ______ Thus in transfi…”
Both passages explore the nature of infinity and the limitations of conventional mathematics and logic. They both challenge traditional axioms and propose that these axioms are only valid under specific conditions, highlighting the need for a new understanding of mathematics and logic that can accommodate infinite and changing magnitudes.
◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XXI (part 5)
“Penetrating there, it first of all renounces its fundamental axioms of identity and difference. In the world of infinite and fluent magnitudes, a magnitude may be not equal to itself; a part may be equal to the whole; and of two equal magn…”
Both passages discuss the limitations of conventional logic and mathematics when applied to higher or transcendent realities. They explore the idea of a higher logic or mathematics that transcends the finite and constant, touching on themes of infinity and the ineffable nature of higher truths.