Neoplatonism
The label Neoplatonism did not exist in the ancient world. A modern scholar coined this term to describe a series of Platonic thinkers from the third century AD onward. Before that label emerged, these philosophers simply called themselves Platonists. The word implies a break between Plotinus and his predecessors, yet some scholars argue only marginal differences separate their teachings from earlier Middle Platonism. Plotinus studied under Ammonius Saccas, who taught that Plato and Aristotle were in harmony. This teacher influenced the direction of thought that would later define the movement. The history of interpretation stretches back to Aristotle himself and continued through centuries before Plotinus ever wrote. Some contemporary researchers doubt whether Neoplatonism constitutes a useful historical category at all. They claim the distinction is artificial rather than substantive. Marsilio Ficino believed the Neoplotnic interpretation was an authentic representation of Plato's original philosophy. It took until the first decade of the nineteenth century for scholars to clearly differentiate the two schools. Friedrich Schleiermacher stands as an early thinker who separated Plato from his Neoplatonic interpreters. Others suggest this disassociation resulted from a protracted historical development preceding Schleiermacher's work.
Plotinus lived until 270 AD and serves as the father of Neoplatonism. Porphyry wrote a biography detailing the life of his teacher and edited the Enneads into six books of nine treatises each. He also produced commentaries on Euclid's Elements which Pappus used for his own work. Porphyry famously stated that gods proclaimed Christ pious but called Christians a confused sect. Iamblichus directed later Neoplatonic philosophy toward salvation through rites known as theurgy. His system stretched divinities down to material nature where souls became embodied in human beings. Proclus Lycaeus lived from the 8th of February 412 to the 17th of April 485 and created one of the most elaborate systems ever devised. He inserted levels of individual ones called henads between the One itself and divine Intellect. These henads stand at the head of chains of causation and give them their particular character. Hypatia served as head of the Platonist school in Alexandria until her murder in 415 AD by Coptic Parabalani monks. She taught philosophy, mathematics, and astronomy while advising prefect Orestes during his feud with Cyril. The academies in Alexandria and Athens flourished during the fifth and sixth centuries before Justinian closed the Athenian academy in 529 AD.
Plotinus described reality as emanating from an utterly simple principle he called the One. This source contains no division or multiplicity and exists beyond all categories of being. Nothing can be said to exist if it is not prior to all existents. From this first principle flows Nous or mind which contains all knowledge in unified form. The Nous acts as both knower and known while embodying complete unity. A lesser reality known as Soul receives information from the Nous and actualizes it into the sensible world. Time does not exist within the One, the Nous, or the Soul but only appears in the phenomenal realm. Matter remains indeterminate and devoid of qualities yet capable of receiving form. Evil functions as a parasite having no existence of its own but arising as an unavoidable outcome of the universe. The soul occupies an intermediate position between the intelligible world and the corporeal sphere. It may preserve unity within the nous or unite with the physical body and become disintegrated. Human perfection could be achieved through philosophical contemplation without waiting for an afterlife. All people return to the One from which they originally emanated.
Augustine of Hippo used Neoplatonism as a bridge on his journey from Manichaeism to Christianity. As a Manichaean he believed evil had substantial being and God consisted of matter. His conversion to Neoplotnic thought changed these views entirely. He came to believe evil was merely a privation of good rather than a substance. Augustine wrote treatises like On True Religion years after his baptism in 387 AD where his faith remained tempered by Neoplotnic ideas. Origen studied under Ammonius Saccas and identified the Neoplotnic One with the Christian god. Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite authored works translated into Latin by John Scotus in the ninth century. These texts influenced Eastern Orthodox and Western Christianity alike while developing mystical practices. Plotinus rebuked Gnosticism in his ninth tractate of the second Enneads against those affirming the creator of the cosmos to be evil. He argued followers of Gnosticism corrupted Plato's original teachings through dogmatic theology. The term logos appeared variously interpreted within Neoplotnic frameworks linking Soul, Spirit, and the One. St. John introduced relations between Logos and Christ whereas Paul called him Son, Image, and Form.
Arabic translations made Neoplatonic texts available to Muslim scholars greatly due to conquests in Egypt and Syria. Turkish, Persian, and Arabic thinkers such as Avicenna and al-Farabi adapted concepts to fit monotheistic constraints. They attributed the First Principle directly to God who remains transcendent and omnipresent. Islamic philosophers used mysticism to interpret Neoplotnic writings without major modification from Greek sources. Solomon ibn Gabirol modified ideas in light of Jewish monotheism alongside Kabbalists like Isaac the Blind. Azriel of Gerona and Nachmanides also incorporated these elements into their own thinking. The availability of Greek copies allowed for widespread dissemination across the Islamic cultural sphere. These adaptations presented no significant doctrinal shift toward monotheism despite changing terminology. The framework of Islamic mysticism provided tools for interpreting ancient texts effectively. This transmission ensured survival of Neoplotnic thought long after Christian academies closed in Byzantium.
Gemistos Plethon met Cosimo de' Medici at Florence during a failed attempt to reconcile East and West in 1438. Cosimo appointed Marsilio Ficino to translate all Plato's dialogues and Plotinus' Enneads into Latin. Between 1462 and 1469 Ficino translated thirty-six dialogues making them widely accessible since few could read Greek. He then translated Plotinus between 1484 and 1492 bringing them to Western audiences for the first time. Giovanni Pico della Mirandola spoke Latin and Greek while knowing Hebrew and Arabic yet his works faced papal bans as heretical. The Renaissance combined Christian ideas with new awareness of Plato's writings through these translations. Cosimo de' Medici provided Ficino with complete Greek manuscripts enabling this massive scholarly effort. The revival largely accounts for renewed interest in Platonic philosophy accompanying the Italian Renaissance. Scholars like Henry More, Ralph Cudworth, Benjamin Whichcote, and John Smith formed the Cambridge Platonists school in seventeenth-century England. Thomas Taylor became the first person to translate Plotinus' works into English outside Latin tradition.
Common questions
Who coined the term Neoplatonism and when did it emerge?
A modern scholar coined the label Neoplotnicism to describe a series of Platonic thinkers from the third century AD onward. Before that label emerged, these philosophers simply called themselves Platonists.
When was Plotinus born and what year did he die?
Plotinus lived until 270 AD and serves as the father of Neoplotnicism. He studied under Ammonius Saccas who taught that Plato and Aristotle were in harmony.
What happened to Hypatia in 415 AD and where did she teach?
Hypatia served as head of the Platonist school in Alexandria until her murder in 415 AD by Coptic Parabalani monks. She taught philosophy, mathematics, and astronomy while advising prefect Orestes during his feud with Cyril.
How did Augustine of Hippo use Neoplotnic thought after his conversion?
Augustine of Hippo used Neoplotnicism as a bridge on his journey from Manichaeism to Christianity. His conversion changed his views entirely so he came to believe evil was merely a privation of good rather than a substance.
Which Islamic scholars adapted Neoplotnic texts for monotheistic constraints?
Turkish, Persian, and Arabic thinkers such as Avicenna and al-Farabi adapted concepts to fit monotheistic constraints. They attributed the First Principle directly to God who remains transcendent and omnipresent.
All sources
25 references cited across the entry
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- 2bookOxford Handbook of Science and Medicine in the Classical WorldOxford University Press — 2018
- 3webNeoplatonismSarah Klitenic Wear — Oxford University Press — 16 October 2018
- 4bookA History of GodKaren Armstrong — Alfred A. Knopf — 1993
- 5bookHistory of Jewish PhilosophyHoward Kreisel — Routledge — 1997
- 7inlineetymonline.com, Neoplatonism
- 9citationNeoplatonismChristian Wildberg — Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University — 2021
- 10journalFicino's Lecture on the Good?Michael J.B. Allen — Summer 1977
- 11webNeoplatonismEdward Moore — n.d.
- 12bookThe Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyMetaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University — 2021
- 15book"Theism" and Related Categories in the Study of Ancient ReligionsFrederick Brenk — Society for Classical Studies (University of Pennsylvania) — January 2016
- 18bookPalestine Across Millennia: A History of Literacy, Learning and Educational RevolutionsNur Masalha — Bloomsbury Publishing — 24 February 2022
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- 22journalShelley and Thomas TaylorJames A. Notopoulos — 1936
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- 24bookOccult Imperium: Arturo Reghini, Roman Traditionalism, and the Anti-Modern Reaction in Fascist ItalyChristian Giudice — Oxford University Press — 2022
- 25bookIris Murdoch, Philosopher: A Collection of Essay sJustin Broackes — Oxford University Press — 2012