Library / Renaissance Hermeticism / The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part II (Gli Eroici Furori) ← First Dialogueb First Dialogued → 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; provided that, through this material beauty, which is a glittering ray of spiritual form and action, of which it is the trace and shadow, he comes to raise himself to the consideration and worship of divine beauty, light and majesty; so that, from these visible things his heart becomes exalted towards those things which are more excellent in themselves and grateful to the purified soul, in so far as they are removed from matter and sense.
Ah me!
he will say, if beauty so shadowy, so dim, so fugitive, painted on the surface of bodily matter pleases me so much, and moves my affections so much, and stamps upon my spirit I know not what of reverence for majesty, captivates me, softly binds me, and draws me, so that I find nothing that comes within the senses that satisfies me so much,—how will it be with the substantially, originally, primitively beautiful?
How will it be with my soul, the divine intellect, and the law of nature?
It is right, then, that the contemplation of this vestige of light lead me, through the purification of my soul, to the imitation, and to conformity and participation in that which is more worthy and higher, into which I am transformed and unto which I unite myself: for I am certain that nature, which has placed this beauty before my eyes and has gifted me with an interior sense, through which I am able to infer a deeper and incomparably greater beauty, wills that I be promoted to the altitude and eminence of more excellent kinds.
Nor do I believe that my true divinity, as she shows herself to me in symbols and vestiges, will scorn me if in symbols and vestiges I honour her and sacrifice to her; as my heart and affections are always so ordered as to look higher.
For who may he be, that can honour in essence and real substance, if in such manner he cannot understand it?
It is in and through Symbols that man, consciously or unconsciously, lives, works, and has his being.
For is not a Symbol ever, to him who has eyes for it, some dimmer or clearer revelation, of the Godlike?—("Sartor Resartus.") Ces.
Right well do you demonstrate how, to men of heroic spirit, all things turn to good and how they are able to turn captivity into greater liberty, and the being vanquished into an occasion for greater victory.
Well dost thou know that the love of corporeal beauty to those who are well disposed, not only does not keep them back from higher enterprises, but rather does it lend wings to arrive at these, when the necessity for love is converted into a study of the virtuous, through which the lover is forced into those conditions in which he is worthy of the thing loved and perchance of even a still higher, better and more beautiful thing; so that he comes to be either contented to have gained that which he desires, or so satisfied with its own beauty, that he can despise that of others, which comes to be, by him, vanquished and overcome, so that he either remains tranquil, or else he aspires to things more excellent and grand.
And so will the heroic spirit ever go on trying until it becomes raised to the desire of divine beauty itself, without similitude, figure, symbol, or kind, if it be possible, and what is more one knows that he will reach that height.
Mar.
Themes
◆ Active Contemplationpraxis A form of meditation that uses imagery, imagination, or symbolic thought rather than purely empty stillness.
The ascent is achieved through 'consideration and worship' and the 'study of the virtuous'.
All passages → ◆ Alchemical Workpraxis The transformation of base substance — outer matter or the inner soul — into a purified, perfected, or 'gold' state; the magnum opus as both laboratory practice and spiritual allegory.
The soul undergoes 'purification' and is 'transformed', mirroring the alchemical magnum opus.
All passages → ◆ Anamnesissoteriology Platonic recollection: knowledge as the soul's recovery of what it knew before birth, with learning as remembering rather than acquisition.
The 'interior sense' allows the soul to infer a beauty it did not acquire from matter, suggesting recollection.
All passages → ◆ Apophatic Theologytheology Describing the divine only by negation—God transcends all positive categories and concepts; the via negativa.
The ultimate divine beauty is described as being 'without similitude, figure, symbol, or kind'.
All passages → ◆ Body As Obstacleanthropology The material body viewed as a prison, tomb, or source of error that hinders spiritual knowledge and return.
Material beauty is 'shadowy' and the soul must be 'removed from matter and sense' to reach the divine.
All passages → ◆ 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.
Material beauty is described as a 'glittering ray of spiritual form' and a 'trace and shadow', reflecting higher reality.
All passages → ◆ Divine Hiddennesstheology The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father.
The true divinity 'shows herself to me in symbols and vestiges', implying concealment behind the material.
All passages → ◆ Divine Lighttheology The uncreated luminous quality of the divine, sometimes experienced directly in mystical states; illumination as revelation.
The text references a 'glittering ray of spiritual form' and a 'vestige of light'.
All passages → ◆ Divine Providencetheology Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity.
Nature is said to 'will that I be promoted' to higher kinds, indicating divine ordering.
All passages → ◆ Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.
Salvation is framed through 'consideration and worship' and the ability to 'infer a deeper... beauty'.
All passages → ◆ Hidden Sayingssoteriology Esoteric teachings reserved for those ready to receive them; outer meaning conceals an inner liberating truth.
Symbols are described as 'dimmer or clearer revelation' of the Godlike, concealing deeper truth.
All passages → ◆ Inner Lightanthropology The divine spark or luminous quality residing within the human person, potentially recognisable through introspection.
The speaker possesses an 'interior sense' through which they infer greater beauty.
All passages → ◆ Kingdom Withinanthropology The claim that the divine realm is present inside the individual, accessible without external mediation.
The divine is accessed through an 'interior sense' rather than solely external observation.
All passages → ◆ Meditationpraxis Disciplined inward attention — sitting, focused, or open-awareness practice — as a stand-alone term that umbrellas active_contemplation, inner_silence, and dhyana-style sitting.
The text advocates for a 'study' and 'consideration' that functions as disciplined inward attention.
All passages → ◆ 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 human soul and intellect are presented as capable of inferring and reflecting the deeper divine beauty.
All passages → ◆ Paradox As Teachingethics Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.
The opening line states 'this pain Is dearer than all other pleasures are', presenting a spiritual paradox.
All passages → ◆ Prayerpraxis Direct address to the divine, whether petitionary, contemplative, or liturgical; speech and silence offered upward.
The speaker mentions 'worship' and to 'sacrifice to her' as part of the spiritual practice.
All passages → ◆ Ritual Puritypraxis The maintenance of a state of cleanliness—physical, moral, or spiritual—required for encounter with the divine.
The text calls for the 'purification of my soul' as a prerequisite for higher ascent.
All passages → ◆ Self Knowledgesoteriology The recognition of one's own true divine nature as the primary path to liberation; 'know thyself' as soteriology.
The path involves the 'purification of my soul' to recognize the interior sense of divine beauty.
All passages → ◆ Theurgypraxis Iamblichean ritual practice that engages the gods directly through consecrated material symbols and actions, on the premise that divine power descends into properly prepared matter — distinct from philosophical contemplation alone.
The use of 'symbols and vestiges' to honor the divinity suggests a theurgical engagement with matter.
All passages → ◆ Tripartite Soulanthropology Division of the human being into three principles: spirit (pneuma), soul (psyche), and body/matter (hyle or soma).
The text distinguishes between 'heart and affections', 'divine intellect', and 'bodily matter'.
All passages → ◆ Unity Of Beingtheology The doctrine that all existence is ultimately one substance or one divine reality; non-duality as a theological claim.
The goal is to 'unite myself' with the divine, implying an underlying ontological unity.
All passages → ◇ 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 text is explicitly from 'Gli Eroici Furori' and describes the 'heroic spirit' transforming passion into virtue and liberty.
All passages → ◇ 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.
[auto] The passage describes the ascent from love of corporeal beauty to divine beauty without similitude, mirroring Diotima's scala amoris.
All passages → ◇ Mystical Unionsoteriology The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.
[auto] The speaker states they are 'transformed and unto which I unite myself' with the divine beauty.
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 details the soul's journey to 'raise himself' and be 'promoted to the altitude' of divine origin.
All passages → ◇ Spiritual Ascentpraxis A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.
[auto] The passage details the soul's journey from corporeal beauty to divine beauty, being 'promoted to the altitude' of higher kinds.
All passages → ◇ Theosis Deificationsoteriology The doctrine — central to Eastern Orthodox and Maximian theology — that the human person is progressively transformed into a partaker of the divine nature by grace, not merely justified or united in passing ecstasy.
[auto] The speaker speaks of 'participation in that which is more worthy' and being 'transformed' into the divine.
All passages → Related passages · 28 parallels
◆ buddhism | The Dhammapada | Chapter XVI, Section 1
“p. 56 CHAPTER XVI. PLEASURE. 209. He who gives himself to vanity, and does not give himself to meditation, forgetting the real aim (of life) and grasping at pleasure, will in time envy him who has exerted himself in meditation. 210. Let no…”
Both passages explore the theme of detachment from worldly pleasures and the pursuit of higher, spiritual ideals. The Dhammapada emphasizes the avoidance of pleasure and affection to achieve freedom from grief and fear, while the First Dialogue discusses the use of corporeal beauty as a stepping stone to divine beauty and spiritual elevation.
◆ christian_mysticism | Meister Eckhart's Sermons (Field translation) | Ic
“In order that God may draw more to Himself, and forget His wrath, the Son saith, “Beloved Father, seeing that Thou wouldest not forgive sins because of all the former sacrifices offered, lo I, Thine Only begotten Son, Who resemble Thy Godhe…”
Both passages explore the theme of divine attraction and the transformative power of love and suffering. Meister Eckhart's passage focuses on Christ's sacrifice and the Holy Spirit's role in drawing humanity to divine love, while the Second Dialogue discusses the ascent from corporeal beauty to divine beauty through love and purification. Both emphasize the idea of being drawn to a higher, divine reality through love and suffering.
◆ christian_mysticism | Meister Eckhart's Sermons (Field translation) | VId
“That is not due to the heat, but to the variety of the materials.
Similarly God works in all hearts not alike but in proportion as He finds them prepared and susceptible.
If the heart is to be ready for the highest, it must he vacant of a…”
Both passages discuss the idea of transcending material and corporeal attachments to achieve a higher spiritual union with the divine. They emphasize the need for purification and sanctification of the heart/soul to attain this union, highlighting the concept of divine beauty and the soul's aspiration towards it.
◆ christian_mysticism | The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme | Chapter 3 (part 4)
“The will cannot attain this light, and the more it desires for freedom the greater will be the attraction caused by the desire." ( Six Theosophical Points , i, 38.) "There must be au opposition, for the will desires not to be dark, and this…”
Both passages explore the tension between desire and spiritual aspiration, highlighting the internal struggle and the transformative potential of this conflict. They share a mystical perspective on the human condition, emphasizing the journey from material attachment to higher spiritual realization.
◆ 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 ascending from the appreciation of earthly beauty or desires to a higher, divine love or beauty. They discuss the purification of the soul and the transformation of human will and desires towards the divine.
◆ christian_mysticism | The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme | Chapter 13 (part 11)
“27.) No Christian should contemplate his own holiness, or fancy himself to be better than others; but he should rather realise his own unworthiness, and regret the perverted state of himself and of humanity as a whole.
"No one should want…”
Both passages discuss the journey from earthly beauty or suffering to divine beauty or grace, emphasizing the transformative power of this journey. They share a mystical focus on elevating the soul through contemplation and suffering, though they come from different religious traditions.
◆ greek_mystery | Orphic Hymns | Hymn LXXV. THE MUSES (part 1)
“LXXV.
TO THE MUSES.
The FUMIGATION from FRANKINCENSE.
Daughters of Jove, dire-sounding and divine, 1 Renown'd Pierian, sweetly speaking Nine; p.
206 To those whose breasts your sacred furies fire Much-form'd, the objects of supreme desi…”
Both passages discuss the ascent from the appreciation of earthly beauty to the contemplation of divine beauty. They emphasize the use of symbols and the purification of the soul to reach a higher, more spiritual understanding.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 41
“Section 8 8. As for violent personal sufferings, he will carry them off as well as he can; if they overpass his endurance they will carry him off. And so in all his pain he asks no pity: there is always the radiance in the inner soul of the…”
Both passages discuss the concept of enduring suffering and finding higher meaning or virtue through it. Passage A focuses on the Sage's ability to remain untroubled by external pains, while Passage B explores how attachment to beauty can lead to a higher understanding and divine beauty, turning suffering into a means of spiritual elevation.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 65
“Section 4 4. But there are earlier and loftier beauties than these. In the sense-bound life we are no longer granted to know them, but the soul, taking no help from the organs, sees and proclaims them. To the vision of these we must mount,…”
Both passages discuss the ascent from physical beauty to a higher, spiritual beauty that the soul perceives. They emphasize the transformative and awe-inspiring nature of this higher beauty, which leads to a deeper understanding and love.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 66 (part 1)
“Section 5 5.
These Lovers, then, lovers of the beauty outside of sense, must be made to declare themselves.
What do you feel in presence of the grace you discern in actions, in manners, in sound morality, in all the works and fruits of vi…”
Both passages explore the concept of beauty transcending the physical and the soul's longing for higher, spiritual beauty. They discuss the ugliness of the soul when it is entangled with material desires and the purification needed to appreciate true beauty.
18 more ◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 66 (part 2)
“The dishonour of the Soul is in its ceasing to be clean and apart.
Gold is degraded when it is mixed with earthy particles; if these be worked out, the gold is left and is beautiful, isolated from all that is foreign, gold with gold alone.…”
Both passages explore the concept of ascending from the appreciation of physical beauty to the contemplation of divine or spiritual beauty. They emphasize the transformative power of love and virtue in elevating the soul towards higher, more abstract ideals.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 68
“Section 7 7. Therefore we must ascend again towards the Good, the desired of every Soul. Anyone that has seen This, knows what I intend when I say that it is beautiful. Even the desire of it is to be desired as a Good. To attain it is for t…”
Both passages describe the ascent of the soul towards a higher, divine beauty, emphasizing the purification process and the ultimate union with the divine. They share a mystical theme of transcending the physical to attain spiritual enlightenment.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 70
“Section 9 9. And this inner vision, what is its operation? Newly awakened it is all too feeble to bear the ultimate splendour. Therefore the Soul must be trained- to the habit of remarking, first, all noble pursuits, then the works of beaut…”
Both passages discuss the journey of the soul towards the contemplation of divine beauty and the necessity of inner purification and virtue to perceive higher realities. They emphasize the transformation of the individual to become like the divine beauty they seek to understand.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 173 (part 1)
“Section 17 17.
Perhaps the hate of this school for the corporeal is due to their reading of Plato who inveighs against body as a grave hindrance to Soul and pronounces the corporeal to be characteristically the inferior.
Then let them for…”
Both passages discuss the relationship between corporeal beauty and the divine, emphasizing that physical beauty can be a pathway to understanding higher, spiritual beauty. They share the insight that the appreciation of earthly beauty can lead to a deeper appreciation of divine beauty, though they come from different mystical traditions.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | Select Works, Section 340
“Section 20 20. As with bodily pain and pleasure so with the bodily desires; their origin, also, must be attributed to what thus stands midway, to that Nature we described as the corporeal. Body undetermined cannot be imagined to give rise t…”
Both passages explore the relationship between the physical and the spiritual, and how desires or pleasures in the physical realm can lead to a higher understanding or connection with the spiritual. They both discuss the idea of the soul interacting with bodily experiences and using them as a pathway to higher truths.
◆ neoplatonism | Select Works of Plotinus | 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?…”
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.
◆ platonism | Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1i
“But hear what follows, and Perhaps the fit may be averted; all is in their hands above.
I will go on talking to my youth.
Listen: Thus, my friend, we have declared and defined the nature of the subject.
Keeping the definition in view, le…”
Both passages explore the nature of love and its effects on the beloved, but from different perspectives. Plato's passage discusses the negative impacts of a lover who seeks to control and diminish the beloved, while the Second Dialogue passage discusses the potential for love of beauty to elevate the soul towards divine beauty. Both touch on the transformative power of love, but in different contexts and with different outcomes.
◆ platonism | Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1q
“Thus far I have been speaking of the fourth and last kind of madness, which is imputed to him who, when he sees the beauty of earth, is transported with the recollection of the true beauty; he would like to fly away, but he cannot; he is li…”
Both passages discuss the ascent from earthly beauty to divine beauty, emphasizing the role of symbols and the purification of the soul in this process. They share a mystical perspective on the relationship between physical and spiritual beauty.
◆ platonism | Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1r
“But he whose initiation is recent, and who has been the spectator of many glories in the other world, is amazed when he sees any one having a godlike face or form, which is the expression of divine beauty; and at first a shudder runs throug…”
Both passages explore the theme of ascending from physical beauty to divine beauty, using the experience of love and beauty as a pathway to spiritual elevation. They share a mystical perspective on the transformative power of beauty and love.
◆ platonism | Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1v
“For those who have once begun the heavenward pilgrimage may not go down again to darkness and the journey beneath the earth, but they live in light always; happy companions in their pilgrimage, and when the time comes at which they receive…”
Both passages explore the transformative power of love and beauty, suggesting that attachment to earthly beauty can elevate the soul towards divine or higher beauty. They share a mystical perspective on the journey of the soul and the role of love in spiritual ascent.
◆ platonism | Plato: Symposium | Section 1j
“And on the same principle he who gives himself to a lover because he is a good man, and in the hope that he will be improved by his company, shows himself to be virtuous, even though the object of his affection turn out to be a villain, and…”
Both passages explore the theme of love and its transformative power, emphasizing the elevation of the soul or individual towards higher virtues and divine beauty. They share a conceptual parallel in the idea that love, whether for virtue or beauty, can lead to spiritual and moral improvement.
◆ 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 or divine beauty. They share a similar structure of moving from the particular to the universal, emphasizing the transformative power of love and beauty in the spiritual journey.
◆ platonism | Plato: Symposium | Section 1|
“This, my dear Socrates," said the stranger of Mantineia, "is that life above all others which man should live, in the contemplation of beauty absolute; a beauty which if you once beheld, you would see not to be after the measure of gold, an…”
Both passages discuss the contemplation of beauty as a path to higher spiritual understanding and divine connection. They emphasize the importance of transcending physical beauty to attain a deeper, more pure form of beauty and virtue.
◆ platonism | Plato: Symposium | Section 1
“Now I feel that I should be a fool to refuse you this or any other favour, and therefore I come to lay at your feet all that I have and all that my friends have, in the hope that you will assist me in the way of virtue, which I desire above…”
Both passages explore the theme of the pursuit of higher, divine beauty and virtue through the contemplation of earthly beauty. They share a conceptual parallel in the idea that physical beauty can lead to a deeper understanding and appreciation of spiritual beauty and virtue.
◆ sufism | The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY Ib
“That precious Soul caught my skirt, Smelling the perfume of the garment of Yusuf; And said, "For the sake of our ancient friendship, Tell forth a hint of those sweet states of ecstasy, That earth and heaven may be rejoiced, And also Reason…”
Both passages explore the theme of the ineffable nature of divine beauty and the limitations of human expression in describing it. They also discuss the transformative power of divine love and the journey towards spiritual enlightenment.
◆ sufism | The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY VIIb
“What matters it if it be heathen or true?
Why hast thou forsaken thy Beloved?
What matters it if she be fair or ugly?" 4 Let me then, I say, make complaint Of the severity of That Fickle Fair One.
I cry, and my cries sound sweet in His e…”
Both passages explore the theme of divine love and the transformative power of suffering and beauty. They emphasize the soul's journey towards union with the divine, using metaphors of love, pain, and the transcendence of earthly dualities.
◆ sufism | The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY VIIc
“My ardour arises not from joy or grief, My sense mates not with illusion and fancy.
My condition is different, for it is strange.
Deny it not !
God is all-powerful.
Argue not from the condition of common men, Stumble not at severity and…”
Both passages explore the theme of divine beauty and the soul's journey towards it. They discuss how worldly beauty and experiences are mere shadows or symbols of a higher, divine reality, and how the soul can use these to elevate itself towards the divine.
◆ western_esoteric | Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky) | Chapter XVIII (part 8)
“There can be pure sympathy, and there can be sympathy mixed with calculation to receive something for one's sympathy.
There can be pure love of knowledge, a thirst for knowledge for its own sake, and there can be an inclination to knowledg…”
Both passages discuss the purification of emotions and the distinction between pure and impure motivations. They emphasize the importance of elevating emotions to achieve a higher understanding and moral beauty, though they come from different mystical traditions.
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