The Unity of the World in Plotinian Philosophy :: Philosophy Philosophical Essays

The Unity of the World in Plotinian Philosophy creep Do classical, contemplative philosophies have anything to teach which is relevant to life present and now? In the case of Plotinus, yes. While Platonic metaphysics is most oftentimes summarized as dualistic, w present(predicate) mavin sensible world stands apart from and in tensity with an intelligible (or mystical) world, in the case of Plotinus this recital is incorrect. He does distinguish mingled with sensibles and sense-experience, on one hand, and intelligibles and intelligible experience, on the other but the cardinal belong together intimately both are located in the same space, and the sensible is related to the intelligible as a buns to its object or a reflection to what it reflects. Plotinus world is one. Given this picture, one rightly wonders at the status of the Plotinian exhortation for the soul to flee all to the Alone. Does not the journey of the soul to its source require a liberty chit beyond of this world to near other? No, Plotinus exhortation should be mute as a reorientation, a reordering within the world here and now, not a rejection of one worldly concern in favor of some other. This can be likened to Aesops fable, The Dog and the Bone, where the dog had the choice betwixt one real and one illusory bone, not two check bones. Similarly, Plotinus world, though it can be perceived dualistically, is ontologically one hence his metaphysics, furthermost from otherworldly, offers a means of understanding life as it is to be lived here and now. My paper takes as the starting point for its argument the traditional interpretation (and classic criticism) of Platonic metaphysics as a two worlds view of reality one world, that which includes this room of people, i.e., the here and now which is characterized by change, disorder, conflict, coming to be and passing out of being, corruption, etc. and another world, located who knows where, but sure enough not identical to what we se e around us at present, the body politic of changelessness and order, ontological perdurance, harmony, unity Platos plain of Truth, the residence of the forms. In light of these two worlds, the Platonic philosophers wisdom, whatever it may be, must be a wisdom not of this world. Indeed, did not Platos Socrates himself say that his life the philosophical life was the art of practising death? Should that Socrates or anyone who professes to be a Platonic philosopher show up at, let us say, the World Congress of