Elements of Theology, Proposition 20

 The essence of soul is beyond all bodies, the intellectual na­ture is beyond all souls, and The One is beyond, all intel­lectual hypostases.

For every body is movable by another, but is not naturally competent to move itself, but by the presence of soul it is moved of itself, lives through soul, and, when soul is present is in a certain respect self-movable, but when it is absent is alter-movable, because any self-mov­able nature which it may have it receives from soul, which is allotted a self-movable essence: since, to what­ever nature soul is present, to this it imparts self-motion. Soul is, however, by a much greater priority that which it imparts by its very being. Hence it is beyond bodies, which become self-movable by participation, because it is essentially self-movable. Again, however, soul which is moved from itself has an order secondary to the im­movable nature, which subsists immovable, in activity or energy. Because of all the natures that are moved, the self-movable essence is the leader; but of all that move, the immovable is the leader. If, therefore, soul, being moved from itself moves other things, it is neces­sary that prior to it there should be that which moves immovably. But intellect moves, being immovable, and energizing always in the same manner. For soul through intellect participates of perpetual thought, just as body through soul possesses the power of moving itself. For if perpetual intellection or thinking was pri­marily in soul, it would be inherent in all souls, in the same manner as the self-motive power. Hence per­petual thinking is not primarily in soul. It is necessary, therefore, that prior to it there should be that which is primarily intelligent: and hence intellect is prior to souls.

Moreover, The One is prior to intellect. For intel­lect, though it is immovable, yet is not The One; for it thinks itself, and energizes about itself. And of The One indeed all beings, in whatever way they may exist, participate; but all beings do not participate of intellect. For those beings to whom intellect is present by partici­pation necessarily participate of knowledge; because intellectual knowledge is the principle and first cause of gnostic energy. The One, therefore, is beyond intel­lect, nor is there anything beyond The One: for The One and The Good are the same. But The Good, as has been demonstrated, is the principle of all things.

 

 

COMMENTARY

This one is a mouthful, but it breaks down the entire Neoplatonic cosmology. Taking it term by term, Proclus leads us from material bodies to the nature of the One itself, employing the terms and ideas that he's already taught us. Let's go through it piece by piece. 

For every body is movable by another, but is not naturally competent to move itself, but by the presence of soul it is moved of itself, lives through soul, and, when soul is present is in a certain respect self-movable, but when it is absent is alter-movable, because any self-mov­able nature which it may have it receives from soul, which is allotted a self-movable essence: since, to what­ever nature soul is present, to this it imparts self-motion.

Now we're back to the discussion of motion: the unmovable, the self-motive, and the alter-motive, and here we see how these terms line up with the levels of being. The nature of body is to be moved by another, but it is not naturally able to move itself. Body is therefore the naturally alter-motive. 

Under certain conditions, however, body becomes self-motive in a sense. That condition is precisely the presence of Soul. Soul is naturally self-motive, and its presence allows bodies to be self-motive by participation in Soul. 

Now, it's worth noting that there is some disagreement among the thinkers who followed Plotinus as to the nature of that participation. Some contemporary scholars have suggested that Neoplatonism can be divided, in a way, into an Eastern and a Western school. The Western school is represented especially by Plotinus himself and by his disciple Porphyry. The Eastern is represented by Iamblichus, a student of both Plotinus and Porphyry and sometime rival of the latter. 

For Plotinus and his school, for an embodied soul is similar to a light shining on a wall. The wall become illuminated, but the source of the light is outside, and the light itself remains effectively outside. Proclus's view, derived from Iamblichus, is somewhat different. For the "Eastern School" the living body is truly what it seems-- a body in which soul is really present. 

Gregory Shaw, one of the great living scholars of the Neoplatonic tradition, suggests that this is because Iamblichus and those who followed him were more accepting of the ideas of Aristotle, and more committed to the idea of a harmony ("symphonia") between Plato and Aristotle. For Aristotle, the soul is the cause of the body, in every sense-- including the source of movement within the body (De Anima 415b). But Aristotle's soul isn't outside of the body-- elsewhere, he compares the relationship between body and soul to the relationship between the wax and the candle. The wax is the material substance, the candle the form, nor does it make any sense to talk about one candle inhabiting more than one body of wax. Proclus's education began with a complete reading of Aristotle as a kind of "Outer Mystery;" only once Aristotle's ideas were mastered was he then introduced to the "Inner Mysteries" of Plato. I believe his cosmology as expressed here reflects this. The ensouled body really is ensouled by a form as present to it as the shape of the candle is to the wax. But that isn't the end of it. 

Above Soul is Intellect (nous). Soul moves itself, and, embodied, moves matter. Intellect, however, is immovable. Intellect is "perpetual thought," and is therefore not primarily in souls. We can know this because not all souls participate in thought or intellection (which is higher than thought), any more than all bodies participate in soul. Consider a soulless body, like Aristotle's candle, and then consider a body with the simplest form of soul, such as a plant. The plant does not think, has no sensation, and does not even move. It does, however, feed and reproduce itself. Aristotle tells us (De Anima 415a) that "the nutritive soul is found along with all the others and is the most primitive and widely distributed power of soul, being indeed that one in virtue of which all are said to have life." This is the difference between the plant and the candle. If Intellect were in souls naturally or primarily, then the plant would think and would perceive the forms above thought as readily as a sage. This is not the case, however. Therefore Intellect is prior to Soul, as Soul is prior to Body. 

Prior to Intellect is the One. Here Proclus tells us something interesting, which will come up again later. Everything whatsoever which has any being of any kind participates of the One, but not all beings participate in Soul or Intellect. The power of the One therefore extends as far as to the very last of things, while that of Intellect and Soul are limited. Again, the implications of this are important-- but we'll come to them in due time.