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The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) · 37 of 63 · tr. L. Williams

Fourth Dialogued

To be infinite, it must be infinitely pursued with that form of pursuit which is not incited physically, but metaphysically, and is not from imperfect to perfect, but goes circulating through the grades of perfection to arrive at that infinite centre which is not form, and is not formed. Cic. I should like to know how, by circumambulating, one is to arrive at the centre? Tans. I cannot know that. Cic. Why do you say it? Tans. I can say it, and leave it to you to consider. Cic. If you do not mean that he who pursues the infinite is like him who talks about the circumference when he is seeking for the centre, I do not know what you mean. Tans. Quite the contrary. Cic. Now if you will not explain yourself, I cannot understand you; but tell me, prythee, what he means by saying the heart is bound by cruel, spiteful bonds. Tans. He speaks in similitude or metaphor; as you would say, cruel was one who did not allow a full enjoyment, and who lives more in the desire than in possession, and who, partially possessing, is not content, but desires, faints, and dies. Cic. What are those thoughts that call him back from the noble enterprise? Tans. The sensual and natural affections, which regard the government of the body. Cic . What have they to do with it, that in no way can either help or favour it? Tans . They have not to do with it, but with the soul, which, being so absorbed in one work or study, becomes remiss and careless in others. Cic . Why does he call him insane? Tans . Because he surpasses in knowledge. Cic . It is usual to call insane those who know nothing. Tans . On the contrary. Those are called insane who know not in the ordinary way, or who rise above the ordinary from having more intellect. Cic . I perceive that thou sayest truly. Now tell me what are the pricks, the lightnings, and the chains? Tans . Pricks are those experiences that stimulate and awaken the affection, to make it on the alert; lightnings are the rays of the present beauty, which enlighten those who watch and wait for them; chains are those effects and circumstances which keep fixed the eyes of attention and unite together the object and the powers. Cic . What are the looks, the accents, and the customs? Tans . Looks are the means by which the object is made present to us; accents are the means through which we are inspired and informed; customs are the circumstances which are most pleasant and agreeable to us. So that the heart that gently suffers, patiently burns and constantly perseveres in the work, fears that its hurt will heal, its fire be extinguished, and its bands be loosened. Cic . Now relate that which follows. Tans .: 21. Lofty, profound, and stirring thoughts of mine, Ye long to sever the maternal ties Of the afflicted soul, and like to proud And able bowmen, draw at the mark, Which is the germ of all your high conceits. In those steep paths where cruel beasts may be, Let not heaven leave ye! Remember to return, and summon back The heart that tarries with the wild wood nymph; Arm ye with love, Warm with the flame of domesticity, And with strong repression guard thy sight, That strangers keep thee not companioned with my heart; At least bring news of that, Which unto him is such delight and joy. Here he describes the natural solicitude of the attentive soul on the subject, of its inclination towards generation, which it has contracted with matter.
Themes
◆Active Contemplationpraxis

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

The pursuit is defined as metaphysical rather than physical, involving study and attention.

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◆Divine Simplicitytheology

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

The centre is described as not form and not formed, implying lack of composite attributes.

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◆Ladder Of Lovesoteriology

Diotima's staged ascent from love of beautiful bodies → beautiful souls → beautiful pursuits → beautiful knowledge → Beauty itself; the canonical scala amoris that grounds Plotinus's On the Beautiful and Bruno's Eroici Furori — distinct from generic spiritual_ascent in that eros is the specific motive force.

The text describes circulating through grades of perfection and the heart burning in pursuit.

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◆Monadcosmology

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

The infinite centre which is not form suggests a simple, undivided first principle.

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◆Mystical Unionsoteriology

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

Arriving at the infinite centre implies a merging or union with the divine source.

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◇Apophatic Theologytheology

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

[auto] The infinite center is defined negatively as that which is not form and is not formed.

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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] Sensual affections regarding the body are described as hindering the soul's higher work.

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◇Divine Lighttheology

The uncreated luminous quality of the divine, sometimes experienced directly in mystical states; illumination as revelation.

[auto] Lightnings are described as rays of beauty that enlighten those who watch and wait for them.

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◇Divine Madnesssoteriology

Ecstatic irrational rapture — Plato's mania, Bruno's furore — by which the soul transcends ordinary reason and attains direct contact with divine reality; madness reframed as higher knowledge.

[auto] The text explicitly redefines insanity as rising above ordinary intellect to attain higher knowledge.

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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 or understanding is linked to intellect that rises above ordinary ways of knowing.

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◇Heroic Furorpraxis

Bruno's eroici furori — a passionate, ennobling spiritual ardor that drives the soul toward divine wisdom; distinguished from base or animal passions by its orientation to infinite truth.

[auto] The passage explicitly describes the passionate, persevering spiritual ardor that defines Bruno's concept of heroic furor.

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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.

[auto] The dialogue centers on the metaphysical pursuit of an infinite center, reflecting Bruno's doctrine of ontological infinity.

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◇Paradox As Teachingethics

Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.

[auto] The text uses the paradox of circumambulating to reach a center and insanity as wisdom to provoke insight.

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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 soul is described as circulating through grades of perfection to arrive at the infinite center or origin.

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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 text outlines a journey through grades of perfection toward a higher metaphysical state.

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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 infinite center implies a singular divine reality underlying all existence, consistent with Bruno's monism.

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Related passages · 9 parallels
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 10, Section 1c
“It is spoken of by ail the Christian Mystics as the root of our being, or as the spark, or the Synteresis, etc. Our perfection consists in this ultimate reality, which is each man’s self, shining through his whole being and transforming it…”
Both passages explore the concept of pursuing an infinite or eternal state, with the soul or self transcending temporal limitations. They discuss the transformation of the individual through intense spiritual or metaphysical experiences, aiming for a higher, timeless reality.
◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 4, Section 1o
“And herein the Divine Yearning showeth especially its beginningless and endless nature, revolving in a perpetual circle for the Good, from the Good, in the Good, and to the Good, with unerring revolution, never varying its centre or directi…”
Both passages discuss the concept of an infinite pursuit or yearning that revolves around a central, divine principle. They share the idea of a metaphysical journey towards a higher, unchanging center or good, using metaphors of circulation and yearning.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 100 (part 2)
“Such motion alone can constitute its impulse towards its centre: it cannot coincide with the centre, for then there would be no circle; since this may not be, it whirls about it; so only can it indulge its tendence. If, on the other hand,…”
Both passages discuss the concept of pursuing an infinite or divine center through a circular or spiraling motion. They share the idea of the soul's journey towards unity and the nature of this metaphysical pursuit, albeit within different philosophical and mystical frameworks.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 101
“Section 2 2. And what of lower things? [Why have they not this motion?] [Their case is very different]: the single thing here is not an all but a part and limited to a given segment of space; that other realm is all, is space, so to speak,…”
Both passages discuss the concept of pursuing an infinite or divine center through a circular or spiraling motion. They explore the idea of the soul's journey and the nature of its movement towards a higher, metaphysical goal, though they use different metaphors and contexts.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 633 (part 1)
“Section 13 13. It cannot reasonably be thought that the notion of unity is derived from the object since this is physical- man, animal, even stone, a presentation of that order is something very different from unity [which must be a thing…”
Both passages explore the concept of the infinite and the pursuit of it, discussing the nature of the infinite and the limitations of human understanding and expression in relation to it. They both use metaphorical language to describe the process of seeking the infinite, though from different cultural and philosophical contexts.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 638
“Section 18 18. It appears then that Number in that realm is definite; it is we that can conceive the "More than is present"; the infinity lies in our counting: in the Real is no conceiving more than has been conceived; all stands entire; no…”
Both passages explore the concept of the infinite and the pursuit of higher knowledge or divine reality. They discuss the nature of the soul's journey towards understanding and the obstacles it faces, though they use different metaphors and frameworks.
◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 646
“Section 7 7. But if it is by becoming evil and inferior that the soul produces the animal nature, the making of ox or horse was not at the outset in its character; the reason-principle of the animal, and the animal itself, must lie outside…”
Both passages explore the concept of the infinite and the pursuit of higher knowledge or divine reality. They discuss the nature of the soul's journey towards understanding and the obstacles it faces, albeit within different philosophical and mystical 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 the infinite and the human pursuit of understanding it. They discuss the limitations of finite human perception in grasping the infinite nature of the universe, albeit from different mystical traditions.
◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XX (part 1)
“p. 243 CHAPTER XX The sense of infinity. The Neophyte's first ordeal. An intolerable sadness. The loss of everything real. What would an animal feel on becoming a man? The transition to the new logic. Our logic as founded on the obse…”
Both passages explore the theme of transitioning to a higher reality or understanding, emphasizing the initial fear, sadness, and transformation involved. They discuss the concept of infinity and the profound impact it has on the individual's perception of reality.