8/11/2019 R.C. Kissling. the Oxhma-PNEUMA of the Neo-Platonists and the de Insomniis of Synesius of Cyrene
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The Oxhma-PNEUMA of the Neo-Platonists and the De Insomniis of Synesius of Cyrene
Author(s): Robert Christian KisslingSource: The American Journal of Philology, Vol. 43, No. 4 (1922), pp. 318-330Published by: The Johns Hopkins University PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/288931.
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8/11/2019 R.C. Kissling. the Oxhma-PNEUMA of the Neo-Platonists and the de Insomniis of Synesius of Cyrene
3/14
THE
OXHMA-IINETMA
ND
THE
DE
INSOMNIIS.
body,6
but in
his
Timaeus
he
speaks
of
a
certain
oSxrpa
ssigned
to each of them:7
W.fiaS
ES
U
pa v TOVravros
crtv,
etc.
The
Vxfa
herecan be
nothing
else than
the
star
itself.
In two
other
passages
of
the Timaeus
8
the
word
6xqa
is
used
with
no
reference o
the
soul.
The
Phaedo
affordedeven a
smaller
handle
for
foisting
an
extraneous
hought
on Plato.9 Yet it
was
precisely
these
Platonic
passages
into
which
allegorical
commentators
mported
a
mystical
meaning10?
o make them
comport
with
a
perverse
exposition
of the
Phaedrus
myth."
Consequently, the
oxvUa
was
regarded
as
something
attached to
the
soul,12
grown
together
with
the
soul."3
This
interpretation
was
helped
by
the
Aristotelian
assump-
tion of the
7vepa.
According
to
Aristotle14
the soul
is
com-
pletelyincorporeal.
According
o his
philosophy
his
is natural
enough,
since the soul
is
only
the
formal cause.
However,
t
is
not
XopUh4
To)
optafroq,
but
has its seat in a certain
substance
transmitted n
the
act of
procreation.
This substancehe
designates
both as
Ocpuo'v
nd as
7revpa.
The
nature of this
wevCpa
e
defines
"I
as
avdXoyov
rw.rv
ao'rpov
aTrotXcd,
hat
is,
the
7rE.'r-ov
.
w
a,
the
aether. Aristotle
speaks
of
this
rv4vpa
s
7rvpEVa
'-#vrov
and
assigned
it
to
all animals.'8
The
harmonizing
nterpretation
f the commentators esulted
in the
identification of
Plato's
gxvpa
and
the
Aristotelian
7rvevpa.
So
Philoponus
7
speaks
of
the veva
To
Oeplp.ov.
It
is
with him
the
seat
of
movement n the
body,
as
the
soul
according
o
Aris-
Zeller
II
14,
p.
820,
note 3.
Tim. 41
D.
Tim. 44
E,
69
C.
'
Phaedo
113 B.
"
Prod. in
Tim.
311
C,
312 B, 321
C,
D;
in Rem
Pub. II,
p.
257;
of.
also
Plato's
Rep.
621
B
and
Prodl.
in
Tim. 320 D. Proclus in
Rem
Pub.
II,
p.
161
derives
the
"
sowing
"
of the
xia-ra
from
Tim.
41
A.
Hierocles
in
Mullach
I,
p.
478 makes
the
assertion
that
Plato
took
over
the 5xn7garom Pythagoras.
tHierocles
in
Mullach
I,
pp.
478, 480.
"
xnI%a
en
ot,dvov
vs
vxvis.
e-TeOreaft&
ecurs
frequently.
138
aIofvevs
Xn/tAa,
requent.
'
Zeller
II
23,
pp.
483 ff.
and
notes.
"De
Gen.
An. 736
b 29.
Zeller II
2,
p.
483,
long
note.
7
On
De
Anima III
10,
p.
588.
319
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AMERICAN
JOURNAL
OF
PHILOLOGY.
totle was
immovable.18
So Hierocles
19
defines
the
7rvevUac
re-
cisely in the way that Aristotle defines his
vvrev4a.
Accordingly
no
distinction
was made
between the
oX/iua
and the
rvevda
20
and
both were
comprehended
under the
appellation
of
the
7rVEVLCTtLKOV
oX
2a.20
Various
names were
employed
to
desig-
nate
it.21
Although
Aristotle defines
the
nature
of the
7rvevpua
as
avdXoyov,
tc.
(vide
supra),
he
was
far
from
accepting
the
soul's
mystical
residence
in the
stars;
yet
his
language
lent
itself
to emotional
interpretations.
From the Aristotelian 7rvevijaao-vvTov the Platonic
XVrpa
took
on
the
epithet
avpfrve;,
and from his definition
davXoyov
ro
rTv
arTpW(v
rTOLXEc
he
epithet
avyoet3e,22
the
"luminosi cor-
poris"
amictus of
Macrob.,
Somn.
Scip.,
I
12,
13.
An
instructive
passage
that contributes to bear
out the con-
tention
advanced is found
in
Themistius:
23
7rapa
IIXdTarwvtL
TO
avyoetLe
oXrl/a
TlaVT7
(EXTaL
Ty7
V7rovolas,
7rapa
'ApWTroT07'XEa
TO
avaXoyov
w
7rE/7rT)
o-WxarTt.
Now there
is nowhere
in
Plato an
avyoceSE
'Xqjpxa, but there is in Aristotle, as we have seen, a
7rvevpa
dowered
with the
radiance of
the fifth element.
What
Themistius
has in
mind
with
the
avdXoyov
Tr)
7r17rTz'r
ac(o/tar
is the
7rvevdiaof
De
Gen.
An.
736 b 29
quoted
above.24
Sim-
plicius
tells us that the
substance
of
the
oX?)pa
s
not the
ordi-
nary
visible,
but
the
heavenly
fire.25
We look in
vain
in
Plato
for
any
elucidation.
The learned
Neo-Platonic
commentators
that
carry
over
Aristotle's doctrine
of the
oav'XVTrov
rvevvpa, afford some miscellaneous information.
It
appears
that the
oXrlja-7rvev/,a
was
fundamentally
connected
On De Anima
III
10,
p.
588.
"'
Mullach
I,
p.
478.
0a
Simpl.
on
De
Anima,
pp.
213-214;
Procl.
in
Tim.
34
E;
Procl.
in
)Rem.
Pub.
I,
p.
119.
20b
E.
g.
Procl.
in
Tim.
311
A.
21
repifX?iLc1a
TrveUev/IacKov,
oXr/La
I/VXLKOV,
VXLKOv
TrvevULa, SXILYa
avyoe&Les,
etre.
22
Observe
quotations
that are
to
follow.
On
aviyoetss 6X?17a
cf.
Procl.
in
Rem
Pub.
I,
p.
119;
De
Myst.
III c. 14:
r
TrepLKeijeEvOv
.v
vX- aiOep0wes
Kal
av'yoetis
6Xrl.a.
23
On
De
Anima,
p.
19;
p.
32,
Berlin
(1899)
ed.
24
Cf.
Procl.
in
Tim.
2 D
XI)X/a
alOpLov
d
vXoyov
TC
oVpavy.
2
Simpl.
on De
Anima,
p.
73
ov rb
0pav6tvbevov
roUO
Tvrp
etc.
320
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THE OXHMA-IINETMA
AND THE
DE INSOMNIIS.
with the functions of
sense-perception
and
imagination.
Sim-
plicius writes
26
aOttKov
yap
KaL
favrarov
taOa
TC K
7T aWepW8e3s
Trs
^cfTrepaT
EvXxa
ZXrnpa.
This
twofold
functional
activity
is as-
signed
to
it
also
by
Priscian.27
In
its
first
activity
it
is
most
intimately
related to the
sensorium,28
and is
the
rveviua
Tr
7rpYrws
aiTcrOTTKov
escribed
by
Themistius
(on
De
Anima,
pp.
86
sq.):
rit ToV
7rvevpuaTro5
/fErBKVL
TOV
7rpToaTW5
aiO'rTLKoi.29
In
this
setting
the
statement
of
Syrian
30
becomes
invested
with
meaning:
KCLVO E
ecTLv
aXv0r0e',
Ort
-7
ILEV
vT
rK)
T
&as
KrTvas
Tas
7retu7ro,evaS
a7r6
roV avyoaeoovS oX/LuaTroV
7rT Ta
opara
etc. According
to its second function
it
is
capable
of
becoming
the
receptacle
of
the
imaginative
impressions.31
The
passage
to
be
quoted
from
Simplicius
affords
additional
illumination.
Speaking
of
the
operation
of the
imagination
(avavrara)
he
says
that it
employs
the same
instrument:
opyav
vw v rw
avir
Xpywotev
'XX'
oVX
US
aaTo'/07TtKW
alt
E$wO'V
Tt
7raQOatvo/eLvw,
)sg
8e
favTaWTtKW
al
vro
trj5
avTao-TatK7SJ
tc.
Porphyry's
statements
concerning
the
function of the
oXr~ma-
vcivta
are in the same
vein:32 cK
?
TrpOS
TO
ao'wia
7rporaraOetas
. .
.
evaT7rO/JpyvvraL
TVrOS T7rS
aVTaCra
s
etc.33
The
difference
of
the
4
avTaci'a
and
its
operation
from
the
6Xr,fa-7rvei,aj
s set forth
by
Simplicius:
34
avirr
4
avrTaca
etc.
With
this
agrees
the statement
of
Synesius
as
illuminated
by
Augustine.
Synesius
says
35
that
philosophers
called
the
7rvevia
of
which
he is
speaking
also
7rvevjuaTLKx
vX'.
Now
the
7rvevta-
tK/
1vUX
of
which
Synesius
is
speaking
is
the
oXrwa-7rv6vpa
and
identical with Augustine's "anima spiritalis qua corporalium
'
Simpl.
on De
Anima,
p.
17.
Cf.
also
Beare,
Greek
Theories
of
Elementary
Cognition,
pp.
333-336.
27
Metaphrasis
7repl
Obavraalas
.
264.
2"
Themistius
on
De
Anima, pp.
86,
87.
29,Cf.
Procl.
in
Rem Pub.
II,
p.
167.
$"
In
Metaphysica
888
b
17.
1
Simpl.
on De
Anima,
p.
214.
39
Sent. e.
32.
3Porph.
7rpos
ravpov
VI
1 is
quoted
by
Mommert,
p.
13.
It
may
be
mentioned
in
passing
that
Mommert was
misled
by
the external
simi-
larity
of
the
quotation
from
Porphyry
in
Wolff,
p.
160.
The
rveiJLa
there
is
something
entirely
different,
as
Wolff
proceeds
to
explain,
p.
161,
and
as
Porphyry's
words show.
34
Simpl.
on
De
Anima,
p.
214.
'
De Ins.
c.
5 1293
A
(Migne).
3
321
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AMERICAN
JOURNAL OF PHILOLOGY.
rerum
capiuntur
imagines."
This
Augustine
distinguishes
from
the "intellectualis anima qua rerum intellegibilium percipitur
veritas."
This
then
is the
nature of the
oX,/a-7rvepta.
Plotinus has
the
evdpa
(Enn.
II
2,
2
7rap'
j1tv
TO
irvevap
TO
rCpL;
T?]v
XrXv),
but
Plotinus
does
not
apply
the
epithet
auyoeSECs
o it nor the
term
0Xrna.
It
seems
that
the
identification
of Plato's
$ovxx
and
Aristotle's
7rvdfjpa
s
posterior
to
Plotinus. Enn.
III
4,
6
shows that
he
did
not
mystify
the
Timaeus
passage.
Cf.
Enn.
I 6, 7; IV 3, 10; IV 3, 9, where he speaks of successive
uJaUT7a
assumed and laid aside
by
the
descending
soul.
Porphyry,36
Iamblichus,37
Syrian,38
Hierocles,89
and
Proclus
accept
it. In the
hands
of
Proclus,04
it becomes
a
means
of
recognition
for
posthumous
souls. It
underlies the
words of
Boethius,4l'
"
Tu
causis
animas
paribus vitasque
minores
|
Provehis et
levibus sublimes
curribus
aptans
|
In caelum
ter-
ramque
seris."
Philoponus4lb
creates
a confusion.
He distin-
guishes the
avyoeuSEs
JXrlmarom the
7rvevtJrLKOVv
ZXrtZa cf. p. 18).
His
7rv?EVJaTtKOV
o3xr]a
is the
&EvTrpov
xr7/Xa
f
Proclus to
which
we
shall
refer
subsequently.
And
yet
he,
like
Themistius,
re-
lates
the
TrvevtmTtLKOv
Xrp
to
the
sensorium
(p.
481):
'
KicoL
aLaOrOr7Ys
avrCT)
uiv
a
C/aTo
crO-TLV
. . v.
ev
TW
TV&v/JTLKW
ytVovTaL,
The
explanation
seems
to
lie in
the
assumption
that
Philoponus
was
a late
writer who
took
over Proclus'
view
of
the
oevrepov
oXrnpa
and
ascribed
to this
the
predication
made
by
the
Neo-Platonists
(who accepted no
e~vTEpov
Xr]Xpaf the irrational soul) of the
avyoeLSes
oXVllua.
The
destiny
of
the
Xtpiua-7rvevpa
was
closely
bound
up
with
the
destiny
of
the soul
to
which
it
belonged.42
After
having
been
purified
it
reascended
together
with the soul to its
astral
seat.43
It was
capable
of
purification
through
the
double
pro-
36Procl.
in Tim.
311
A;
Sent.
c. 32.
a7Procl.
in
Tim.
311
B;
321
A;
324
D.
38
Cf.
quotations
that
follow.
3
Comm.
in Aur. Carm.
Mullach
I,
p.
478,
483.
40
Comm.
in
Rem Pub.
II,
p.
174.
a"
De Phil.
Cons.
III 9.
4b
Philoponus
on De Anima.
2
Procl.
Inst.
Theol. 209.
43Procl.
in
Tim.
333
B;
cf.
in Rem
Pub.
II,
p.
162.
322
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THE
OXHMA-IINETMA
AND
THE
DE
INSOMNIIS.
cess of
a clean
life
and
the
religious
rites. So
Augustine44
writes: "Confiteris (sc. Porphyry) tamen etiam spiritalem
animam
sine
teletis
posse
continentiae virtute
purgari"
and
again45
"Porphyrius
quandam
quasi
purgationem per
theur-
gian
.
.
.
promittit
.
.
.
porro
autem
(sc. dicit)
a
theurgo
spiritalem
purgari."
Hierocles also
speaks
of the
purification
of the
OXrvjal-rvev,a.46
Proclus
makes the same statements con-
cerning
his
8EVTrpOV3JXpa
in
In Tim.
331
B,
emphasizing
the
lAo'o-o(os
ly
and
the
7TXEc0arU
47
Through
such
purification
it
became adapted to attract good spirits and to obtain the vision
of
God.48
Hence
Augustine
writes "Per
quasdam
consecra-
tiones
theurgicas
quas
teletas
vocant idoneam fieri
atque
aptam
susceptioni
spirituum
et
angelorum
et ad
videndos
deos" and
Hierocles
49
7rpo
Trqv
TWV
KaOapWv
irvev/Larv
'avvov'Iav
etc.
Moreover,
the
xw-ua-rvev,a
was
capable
in
its
extra-corporeal
state of
being
thickened
by
moisture,
of
becoming
dark and
murky
through
hylic
attraction and thus visible.
Thus Pro-
clus
o
writes TOojx7 ,aTaT ieSpT7rpUevavrwiv etc. That the
avyoESts
o'X71pa
s
meant is
discernible
from the
preceding pas-
sage.
Cf. also
p.
119
'7rEpL,Xrjpaa
.
.
ei7t0oXovt,cva
V{roTWv
vvXOwv.
Porphyry
writessl
ra's
,tXoo-/jaTrov
. .
.
VEVO-Ca),
and
again'2
?raxvvOevTos
.
. .
opaTra
y7tvwea.-at
In
it the
soul
suffered
post-
letal
punishment.64
Proclus
developed
the
o'Xrja
theory
and
assumed
a
second
intermediate
oxrpa
between the
'XCa
o
svpes
and the
human
body (EaxaTova>La,
'aTpE&8S
awcia). This 8&vrepovr
wrpoo'4vse
"
De
Civ.
Dei
X
c.
28,
p.
446.
"
De
Civ.
Dei
X
c.
9,
pp.
415
and
416.
"
Mullach
I,
p.
479.
The
purification
of the
IX'tsua
s an aid
to the
soul. The 26th
chapter
of Hierocles is the best
commentary
on
the
KaOapaos
of the
tSXVta.
47
Cf.
Hiero.les
in
Mullach
I,
p.
482
for
a
defense
of
TeXeoTKcj.
"De
Civ.
Dei
X
c.
9,
p.
415.
"
Mullach
I,
p.
481.
"?In
Rem
Pub.
I,
p.
119;
p.
121; II,
p.
156;
Porphyry
Sent. c.
32,
whole
chapter.
,1
De Ant.
Nymph.
11.
62
See reference
in
Note
51.
63Cf.
In
Rem
Pub.,
p.
119.
1
Sent.
c.
32;
Philoponus
on
De
Anima
I,
p.
18.
323
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8/14
AMERICAN
JOURNAL
OF PHILOLOGY.
oxrVLa
was
interpreted
out
of
Plato
65
and attached
to
the
irra-
tional soul.56 It was composed of the four elements.57 It was
laid
aside
by
those
thoroughly
purified
through
philosophy
58
and was resolved into
its elements.
In
the
case
of
those who
had
lived a life of
right
conduct
apart
from
philosophy
it
con-
tinued
in
an
illuminated
condition,
attending
their
rvpIvEes
oxvrn
as comets attend
stars.59
The
functions
of
the
three
oX77ara
are
summarized
by
Pro-
lus:
60
TO
v
LV o'V
0vipve5
)/La
Tro
aTNvTv
(=the
soul)
EyKo'/.Lov,
T'O 8E 8VTEpOV yEVEMoEWS;oXiLTV, TO E OcTpE&8eS
oXOovav.
The second
OxVta
was likewise
designated
as
7rvcvWarLKov
and
foisted
by
him
on
Aristotle.61
It
is this second
oxn,ia
that
is
intended
by
Philoponus
who
constantly speaks
of
it
as
7rveVarTtLKOv,
he seat
of
OvUos'
and
rtLOv[ Ja.
Philoponus
recognizes
the
avyoetus
oXrln'a
s
a
higher
o
xna
S
istinct
from
it.62
According
to
Proclus and
Philoponus
the
Sevrepov
x7ira
was
perishable.63
The
destructibility
of the
oxrtIa-7rveatL
was
greatly
disputed.64
There were those who regarded only the rational soul as im-
mortal,
whilst
they
considered
the
oXnpla-nrvEvua
and
the irra-
tional
soul
as
perishable.
Porphyry
65
and
his
"gentler
"
fol-
lowers
allowed
a
dissolution
of
them into
their
original
elements
to be
followed
by
an
avaarotXeoTrt.66
Iamblichus
and his
fol-
6r
Tim.
42
C,
D
rpoa0-tvrra
K
rvpbs
Kal
laroms
Kal
adpos
Kat
y^S.
Procl.
censures
the
commentators
(331
A)
who
failed
to observe
the
dis-
tinction.
6l
Prodl.
in
Tim.
330
C.
67
See
Note
56.
R
Procl.
in
Tim.
330
D.
Cf.
in
Rem
Pub.
II,
p.
300.
Kroll
fails to
understand
the
&er7epov
5X-va,
as his
note,
p.
300,
evinces.
o0
Procl.
in Tim.
330
E.
81Procl.
in Tim.
312
C.
a2
Philoponus
on
De Anima
I, p. 17,
rT6re
roivv
Kal
Tbv
Ov^6v
Kal
rhv
^it-
Ov,Aiav
arorlOeo-Oat
etc.;
cf.
I,
p.
12;
I,
p.
49.
This
first-named
x,/Iua
survives for a while; cf. his argument, p. 17. Like the
6eCrepov ZXrta
of
Proclus,
it
is
composed
of
the elements
(p.
17).
In this
the
soul
endures
its
punishments
in
Hades,
pp.
17-18.
The two
irvevlctara
of
Philoponus
differ
in
nothing
from
those
ascribed
to the
"
Chaldaeans
by
Psellus,
Expos.
Orac.
Chald.
(Migne),
p.
1137.
63
Philoponus
on
De Anima
I,
p.
18;
also Proclus
in
Tim.
312 C.
64
Proclus
in Tim. 311
A fol.
6
See
Note
64.
Procl.
in
Tim.
311
E,
157
D.
324
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THE
OXHMA-IINETMA
AND THE DE
INSOMNIIS.
lowers
reinstated the
imperishability
of
all
three.67
Simplicius
limits the
oX/a-vEi7repa
to the aerial life of the soul and does
not
seem to
regard
it as
necessary
to its
earthly
life.68
The
theory
of
the
5Xrja-7rvevJula
as
not confined
to
Neo-
Platonism.
The
Chaldaic
XAyLa
aught
it.69 Proclus
writes:70
TOi
a7ro
cv
Xoy[wv
()pAp-EVOL
etc.
The
oracles
also
maintained
that
the
soul
in
its descent
gathers particles
of
the
planets
and
the elements.7'
If we can trust
Hierocles,
the
theory
of the
oXVra
was
held
by
the
Pythagoreans
and
promulgated
through
the
XptfuOl.7o
Besides
the
oX-vua-7rvdwp
f the
descending
souls
the Neo-
Platonists
spoke
of various
garments,
XLTrves.72
These
garments
were
elemental
substances and
loosely
were
also
called
oxi-,ara.
Their
laying
aside
73
was
furthered
by
a
philosophic
life and
by
religious
rites.74
Proclus
so
interprets
the
oxXos
of
Tim.
42
C,
D.
However,
this view
was
held
by
thinkers
before
Proclus
75
and
was
not
universally
accepted.76
That
Proclus
refined the
first or
ov?uvEs
oX'lpa after the introduction of the second can
be discerned
from Inst.
Theol.
207-210
where he
makes
it
aKlvrTov,
avXov
and &araOs
contrary
to the
views of
preceding
Neo-Platonists.
He
even
held
that
it was
"sown"
into
the
stars
together
with the
soul
itself.77
Not
only
was a
rvcvpua
scribed
to
the
soul,
but also
to
the
daemons.
The
rvdepa
of
the
daemons
was
a
subject
of
early
dispute.
Plotinus
refers to
it.78
Porphyry
ascribes
the
nrvvupa
a
roa7o8'oE
to them in his lecture on demonology.79 It deter-
7
See
note 66.
e8
Simpl.
in
Physica
VI
4,
p.
966.
"Kroll,
De
Orac.
Chal.,
p.
47.
70
Prol.
in
Tim. 184
C.
nProcl.
in
Tim. 311
B,
331
B.
71a
Comm.
Aur.
Carm.
Mullach
I,
p.
478.
72
Prol.
Inst.
Theol.
209;
cf. in Tim.
35
A;
in
Alcib.,
p.
502;
Macro-
bius,
Somn.
Sc.,
I
11,
12.
79
Procl. in Tim.
330
C.
7
Prodl.
in Tim.
331
B:
els
Trv
d&TrO-KeV
Vi
'
TOL0t6rW
X-dtrwv...
.a-
Trei
L'v
K6al
j
LX\60oq5o0S
s
.
. .
TreXeTTrLKj.
7'
See
note
72.
76
Stob.
Ecl.
I
926.
77
Prodl.
in
Tim.
333
B,
C.
's
Enn. III
5,
6 vrcs
yap
Kal
rivos
i\X7s
/iereXovriv
etc.
78
De
Abst.
II 39
rb
8&Irvevea
/Lv
orL
o-w/aTrLK6V
etc.
325
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AMERICAN
JOURNAL OF
PHILOLOGY.
mined their
character,80
was
"
patibile
"
and in the end
perish-
able.81 Iamblichus accepts the theory of the daemonical
7rvevpa,
but is unable to
define
its
nature
except
by negative
state-
ments.82
So
also
Proclus.83
In
fact,
the
Neo-Platonists
were not
chary
in
assigning
o7jnara.
Porphyry
84
made the
light
of
the
Republic-myth
the
oXVra
f the
world-soul. Proclus
85
gave
an
?X-pa
o
the visible
golds,
Hierocles to
the
ppwes.
Let us
now
consider
how
the
3Xrn,a-7rvEvjVa
ppears
in
Syne-
sius. He designates it promiscuously as
vvevia
and
oX7/pa
with
a
preference
for the
former
appellation
1292 B
(Migne)
raitEL
etc.
Here
transition is
made
from
one
term to
the
other with-
out
change
of
meaning.
That
the Neo-Platonic
3X?pa-7rvevp~a
demonstrated above
is meant is discernible
from his statement
86
that in
irrational animals-Aristotle
ascribed a
7rvEvpa
o all
living
creatures-it is no
longer
the
vehicle,
but
becomes
itself
the chief
function,
the
animals reason.
Compare
also
1293
B
KELVr?7S7rv?VuaTLKT
rvXY
= 7rvEvia) cTirEp
-TKcaOVvs 7r3naa.
Hence
also the
terms
oG/,a
7rpwTrov,
ju1a
OeacrwoLov.
Synesius applies
a
variety
of
names
to it:
bavTaarTLKOV
rVFia
1292
A,
1309
C,
1313
A,
1293
A,
1300
B,
1309
C--rvEvICart7x
trX
1293
A-simply
rvde,a
1289
C,
1292
B,
1296 C
D,
1297
D,
1300
A,
1300
B-D,
1312
B,
1313
B,
1316
B,
1316
B;
Hymn
III
277,
506;
Hymn
IV 252-
cioAXicK,
vuLts
1297
B--aowpaTrLK
ova'a
1297
D--KqpaTro
a/,ua
1297
C--aLqtova
VatLs
1300
A--avraaoTtiK
aJtLs
1305
B,
1300 D-,uEar)
v'ts
1297 C-uie'aov rZua 1289 C, 1312 B.
This
irvfiua
is
brought
down
by
the souls
from
the
spheres:
yv
saveieTrat
87
etc.
1293
B,
orep
avwOEv
-7pavC-avTO
1293
C,
o'
yap
.Lov-v
?
t
Tra'
aCatupas
avayeLV
vOLKE
?JV
KeiOeCVKoVaYv
fVcLV
1297
B,
Kat
Ta'i
o'(catpas
ivapto'r9jva
1297 D.
80De
Abst.
II 38.
81
See
note
79.
82
De
Myst.
V
12
4s
7y&p
7rXws
iTreloOre
&drb
Xrs
etc.
83
Procl.
in
Tim.
321
E.
The demons are
called
a&c,6vowt
vXal.
8
Procl.
in Rem
Pub.
II,
p.
196.
s5Prodl.
in Tim.
301
D,
E,
302
B.
=2
12.92
(
KwaTaala
tv
Yo
rot
XPL
p
V Ot
O
KTLd
TrdpeaT,L
vOVS
oiG
&aTrtv
5XqAa
OeTorTpas
V,XvS
tc.
The
OeorTepa
pvx7
is the
XoyLKh
'lvxj
called
also
by
him
with
a
terminology
differing
from that
of
Aristotle
7rpwrl
,uvXj.
7
saveiteaOat
in
this
application
is Platonic and
Neo-Platonic.
Cf.
Tim.
42
E;
Procl.
in Tim.
321
B,
337
D.
326
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11/14
THE
OXHMA-IINETMA
AND
THE
DE
INSOMNIIS.
327
On
the fact
that the
different
OX6/ara
descend from the dif-
ferent spheres Synesius founds his rejection of a general oniro-
critic
manual
in
1313
A.
A
science
is
possible,
he
says,
of the
human
body,
but
ovX
oTro)S
c=r
ro)v
/avraTctKo v
7rvev/aTros.
With him
as with
the
Neo-Platonists the
7rvdepa
is function-
ally
related to
the
sensorium.
This
appears
from his
descrip-
tion
of
it
1289
C-D
TO
o]avTaac'TKov
rvCevJua
OLv'raTOv
E
-tv
aleOrl-
rjptov.88
In 1292 B
he
writes
of
the
7rvev/la:
AXws
yap
TroO
/eCT-
aLuYxtov
ecTL
aXoyuag
ca
Xoyov
. . Kat
Kotvo9
opo0
ad/loilv.
In
1309
C
he calls
it
7rdvTrOv
TWv
a7roppeovrTOvc L8)XWoK7'aT07r7pov (aVETraroV.
Because of
this
function,
relating
it
to
the
imagination,
he
speaks
of it
as the
cfavTractLKov 7rvEvja
and
qavTaTcrTtKV
Vf'CTLv.
The
7rvvIza
was closer
to the soul
than
to
the
body
and inti-
mately
connected with
it,
acting upon
the
soul
and
being
re-
acted
upon
by
it
for better
or
for
worse;
cf.
1292
B,
1293
A,
1296 B.89
Consequently
soul
and 7vfda form excellent
gauges
of
mutual
conditions;
cf.
1300
A.90
Synesius nowhere employs the term
avyoe&s&&
ith reference
to
it,
yet
it is
indubitable
that
he means the
first
rrvvyua
or
oXr,/a-7ervdv,a
hroughout.
'To
Synesius
it likewise admits
of
purification
and nurture
through
philosophy,
a
clean life and
the rites:
KaOaLpo'Lvov
a
TEXcTOrv
1292
A;
ta
TE
LtXoc-oLs
. .
.
KaL
8Sa
E
rTpLarStaiLT77
KatL
crwopovos
1312
A;
Kara T?)V
E7rLfXr7TLKrV
SV-
vat.Lv
evepyelv
1300
B;
&8aTOV
KcaTa
vcnLv
tiovp
Tr7p KaOapov
1292 B.
Being purified
it
is
capable
of
attracting good spirits
and of
being brought into relation with God:
XaKL
Trj o
vyyEve4 rvVpVa
OEov
1300
B,
C;
avyylvcTaL yap
aVTp
Kal
OeOS
EyKoL'pLoS
O'VTo
odc'
1309
A;
7rapo-rTLv
ro'ppw
eo'
1301
C;
cf.
1305
C.
Moreover,
the
associations
of
dryness
and
moisture with
the
extra-corporeal
Trvev,a
nd its resultant
barometric
rising
or
fall-
ing
to the earth
is Neo-Platonic:
oraXwvTra
Kal
yaLovTra
. .
.
6XKa
ovv
. .
vypoLs
7rvevJLaroL
292
B.
Compare
this with
Porphyry,
De
Ant.
Nymph
11
where the
saying
of
Heraclitus is likewise
quoted,
and with Porphyry's Sent.
?
32,
S&rjKr TO
fapv
TrvEt/.ja
Ka
Evvypov
8
Compare
with this Themistius
on
De
Anima,
p.
87.
8
Cf.
Procl.
in
Rem
Pub.
II,
p.
164.
o0
Cf. Prodl.
in
Rem
Pub.
II,
p.
165.
Proclus
here
makes the
JdXJ/ara
a means
of
posthumous recognition.
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8/11/2019 R.C. Kissling. the Oxhma-PNEUMA of the Neo-Platonists and the de Insomniis of Synesius of Cyrene
13/14
THE
OXHMA-INETMA
AND THE DE
INSOMNIIS.
329
The TOVTO)
must mean the
dS8cov.
How the
rv/evua
an
become
a God or a daemon we do not understand, unless it is to denote
somehow
the
final
life
of
consummation.
If
the
7rvdevp
s
here
taken to
include
the
soul
as
"
pars pro
toto
"
the
commentary
of
Reitzenstein
95
who treats
of the
Eastern
mysticism may
throw
light
on our text:
"Die Seelen
der Menschen werden
zunaechst
8a4LoveO.
EO'
OVTwS
ELS
TOV
TW
OEV
XvopV
ovopevovT. Xopol
8e
v'oOev. o
/uevr
v
rXVavwpoevlv,
SE v a7rXavwv."
Cf.
also
Enn.
I
2,
6.
So
also
Synesius
writes
(1300
A)
Travr
yap
v7rotETrat,
etc.
The signification of
atpatov
is not clear. An old variant reads
rvppoov
Quid?
What
Synesius
means
when
he
says
that
the
atpatov
becomes
a
god
or
daemon
we
do not
understand.
In
1297
B
he
speaks
of
the
wrvdeaas
eiOwXtLK
vcaLs,
nd
in 1309
C
he
calls
it
deAoov.
The
meaning naturally suggested by
the
word
etsoAov
n
relation to
the
future
life
is that
of
"
phantom."
So in
1292 D
CiSOALKa
s
explained
by
rois
yvwoLuEvot
ufavraa-
to',cva.
Porphyry distinguishes
even
in
Hades
the
wrvevpa
rom
the soul's
eZW ov.96
According to him the soul attracts an
e8ZoXov
in
Hades,
because
the
o'XJa-7rvvF,a,
brought
down
from
the
spheres,
abides
with the soul after its dissolution
from the
body. Upon
this
rvevja
the
soul
imprints
its
TrroS
rT7'cavrTaaas,
and thus
fEAKTEraL
TrO
8wXov.
Porphyry
here seems at
pains
to
explain
how
the
soul is
able
to attract an
eZAXov.
In
his
Nymphs'
Cave
97
the
souls
desirous
of
somatic
existence
attract
a moist
arvdv/a,
ondense it
into
a
cloud,
and
through
excessive
moisture become visible. In this passage of Porphyry also their
appearances
result
from
the
action
on the
7rvdfua
(Kara
favTaalav
Xpoovrat
7
rveifvya).
These
appearances
are called
Ei8Xwv
/l,%awt.
Does
Porphyry
here
imply
that the
rvevmuaa
"
colored
according
to the
imagination"
become
eJSXa,
or are
the
appear-
ances
of the
Trvc,uara
ike
those
of
c8&Xa?
Neither
Porphyry
nor Plotinus
98
defines
what he
means
by
eZ&WXov.9
5 Poimandres, p. 81, note 2.
o
Sent. c.
32.
7De Ant.
Nymph.
11.
wEnn. VI
4,
16.
9
The
definition
of
ei'awov
given by
Psellus,
p.
1124,
has
no
authority.
Nicephoros
Gregoras
(Migne,
p.
622)
takes
it from
Psellus,
as
he takes
over
many
suggestions,
and
develops
it
to suit his
purpose.
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