Select Works of Plotinus · 712 of 752 · tr. Thomas Taylor
Select Works, Section 679 (part 2)
But this would make the power something outside itself; there would be, I mean, the power it grasped and the power by which it grasped: if there is but the one power, what is there to grasp at?
Themes
◆Microcosm Macrocosmcosmology
The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.
The soul's internal capacity for knowledge and vision mirrors the Supreme Good it seeks.
All passages →◇Divine Sparkscosmology
Fragments of divine light or spirit trapped inside material bodies, awaiting liberation and return to their source.
[auto] The soul is described as having 'in itself something of that principle,' indicating a fragment of the divine within.
All passages →◇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 a downward flow from the Supreme to the Intellectual-Principle and then to the Soul.
All passages →◇Monadcosmology
The absolutely simple, undivided first principle from which all multiplicity and existence flows.
[auto] The 'Supreme' is presented as the singular source from which beauty and light in all things flow.
All passages →◇Mystical Unionsoteriology
The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.
[auto] It depicts the Intellectual-Principle remaining with the Supreme and the soul clinging to what it saw in a state of rapture.
All passages →◇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 focuses on the soul's longing and movement back toward the Supreme Good from which it originated.
All passages →Related passages · 11 parallels
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 8, Section 1e
“It thus = (1) “equality”; (2) “rightness.” D.
maintains that all things possess the latter though not the former.
421 The highest power our minds can conceive is that of the angels.
But God has the dominion over them, and hence His power…”
Both passages explore the nature of divine power and its relationship to creation. Passage A discusses the unity of power within the divine, while Passage B elaborates on the undifferentiated nature of God's power and its transcendence over creation.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 6 (part 5)
“But when this took place the love in the light of God broke through that heaven of division and ignited the heat." ( Aurora , xxv.
68.) "God, the eternal light and the eternal will, shines within the darkness, and the darkness has captured…”
Both passages discuss the emanation of divine light and its relationship to the created world, as well as the soul's longing for union with the divine. They share a mystical perspective on the origin and nature of light, wisdom, and the soul's journey towards the divine.
◆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 soul's longing and striving towards a divine or supreme reality, emphasizing the transformation and union with the divine through love and will. They share a mystical theme of the soul's ascent and union with the divine, though they come from different traditions.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 9 (part 1)
“p.
180 CHAPTER IX.
GENERATION.
"Let every Brahman, with fixed attention, consider all nature, both visible and invisible, as existing in the Divine Spirit.
For when he contemplates the boundless universe in the Divine Spirit, he cannot…”
Both passages describe the soul's longing for and connection to a divine or supreme reality. They discuss the soul's desire to transcend the material world and unite with the divine, highlighting the transformative and illuminating nature of this union.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 9 (part 2)
“If the soul does not do this, but imagines within herself, in her own fierce forms or states conducive to the fire-torture (passion), and not in the fountain of love, then will her self-torture arise from her harshness, acridity, and bitter…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between the soul and the divine, emphasizing the soul's longing for union with the divine source. They also explore the consequences of the soul's separation from the divine, though they use different metaphors and conceptual frameworks.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 11 (part 5)
“If, then, the soul of the child is in the Holy Trinity, do you then not think that its glorious light beautifully illuminates the mother, and does not that mother rightfully put her feet upon the Moon, 1 as being exalted above all that is o…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between a divine entity and a human or semi-divine figure, emphasizing the elevation and perfection of the latter through the former. Passage A focuses on Mary and her relationship with Christ, while Passage B discusses the soul's relationship with the Supreme Good, highlighting the soul's longing and eventual union with the divine.
◆christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 12 (part 11)
“The human will refuses to submit itself entirely to the exquisite grace which offers itself out of divine love, and seeks for its own self and for the love of that self which belongs to that which is impermanent.
It loves itself and the st…”
Both passages explore the theme of the soul's struggle between worldly desires and divine love. They discuss the soul's temptation to seek its own power and the need to surrender to a higher divine will, reflecting a conceptual parallel in mystical traditions.
◆hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres|Section 1f
“All this befell me from my Mind, that is Man-Shepherd, Word (Logos) of all masterhood, by whom being God-inspired I came unto the Plain of Truth.
Wherefore with all my soul and strength thanksgiving give I unto Father-God.
31.
Holy art T…”
Both passages explore the theme of divine illumination and the soul's ascent to higher knowledge and union with the divine. They share a mystical focus on the transcendent nature of the divine and the soul's longing for union with it.
◆renaissance_hermeticism|The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part II (Gli Eroici Furori)|First Dialoguec
“And I will say, because to me this pain Is dearer than all other pleasures are.
Mar.
In reference to this I told you that although one should be attached to corporeal and external beauty yet he may honourably and worthily be so attached;…”
Both passages explore the theme of ascending from the appreciation of physical beauty to the contemplation of divine beauty. They share a mystical perspective on how the beauty of the material world can serve as a pathway to understanding and experiencing higher, spiritual realities.
◆renaissance_hermeticism|The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part II (Gli Eroici Furori)|First Dialoguel
“Besides which, because he does not believe that all which is not, could not be, he prays the divine light, that by its beauty, which ought not to be entirely concealed, at least according to the capacity of whoever beholds it, and by his lo…”
Both passages explore the theme of the soul's longing for union with the divine, emphasizing the beauty and love of the divine light. They describe the soul's struggle and transformation through this divine connection, highlighting the intellectual and spiritual ascent towards the Supreme Good or divine light.