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130-615: Hermeticism , or Hermetism , is a philosophical and religious tradition rooted in the teachings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus , a syncretic figure combining elements of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth . This system encompasses a wide range of esoteric knowledge, including aspects of alchemy , astrology , and theurgy , and has significantly influenced various mystical and occult traditions throughout history. The writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus, often referred to as

260-461: A Byzantine monk, writer, philosopher, politician and historian, wrote many philosophical treatises, such as De omnifaria doctrina . He wrote most of his philosophy during his time as a court politician at Constantinople in the 1030s and 1040s. Gemistos Plethon ( c.  1355  – 1452; Greek: Πλήθων Γεμιστός) remained the preeminent scholar of neoplatonic philosophy in the late Byzantine Empire. He introduced his understanding and insight into

390-476: A Hellenized Jew, translated Judaism into terms of Stoic , Platonic, and Neopythagorean elements, and held that God is "supra rational" and can be reached only through "ecstasy". Philo also held that the oracles of God supply the material of moral and religious knowledge. The earliest Christian philosophers , such as Justin Martyr and Athenagoras of Athens , who attempted to connect Christianity with Platonism, and

520-524: A body, is consumed by his physical nature, and is ignorant of the Supreme Good. Asclepius explains that evil is born from desire which itself is caused by ignorance, the intelligence bestowed by God is what allows some to rid themselves of desire. A focus upon the material life is said to be the only thing that offends God: As processions passing in the road cannot achieve anything themselves yet still obstruct others, so these men merely process through

650-471: A broader range of meanings, often signifying something mysterious, occult , or impenetrable. This evolution reflects the central theme of secrecy within the Hermetic tradition, which emphasizes the importance of protecting sacred knowledge from those who are not prepared to receive it. The Western esoteric tradition has been greatly influenced by Hermeticism. After centuries of falling out of favor, Hermeticism

780-490: A confused and vicious sect." Iamblichus ( c.  245  – c.  325 ) influenced the direction taken by later neoplatonic philosophy. He is perhaps best known for the compendium The Life of Pythagoras , his commentary on Pythagorean philosophy, and his De Mysteriis . In Iamblichus' system, the realm of divinities stretched from the original One down to material nature itself, where soul, in fact, descended into matter and became "embodied" as human beings. The world

910-712: A consequence, God instructed Hermes to create physical bodies to imprison the souls as a form of punishment. The souls were told that their time on Earth would be marked by suffering, but if they lived worthily of their divine origin, they would eventually return to the heavenly realm. If not, they would face repeated reincarnation on Earth. Hermes explains in Book 9 of the Corpus Hermeticum that nous (reason and knowledge) brings forth either good or evil, depending upon whether one receives one's perceptions from God or from demons . God brings forth good, but demons bring forth evil. Among

1040-645: A context more easily understood by Europeans during the time of the Renaissance. In 1614, Isaac Casaubon , a Swiss philologist , analyzed the Greek Hermetic texts for linguistic style. He concluded that the writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus were not the work of an ancient Egyptian priest but in fact dated to the second and third centuries CE. Even in light of Casaubon's linguistic discovery (and typical of many adherents of Hermetic philosophy in Europe during

1170-446: A correspondence between the macrocosm (the universe) and the microcosm (the individual soul). The Emerald Tablet has been extensively commented upon and has significantly influenced medieval and Renaissance alchemy. The technical Hermetica includes works focused on astrology, alchemy, and theurgy—practices that were seen as methods to understand and manipulate the divine forces in the world. These texts were highly influential in

1300-520: A knowledge of both the material and the spiritual world, which rendered the writings attributed to him of great relevance to those who were interested in the interrelationship between the material and the divine. The figure of Hermes Trismegistus can also be found in both Muslim and Baháʼí writings. In those traditions, Hermes Trismegistus has been associated with the prophet Idris (the Biblical Enoch ). Hermes Trismegistus may be associated with

1430-450: A pure form of idealism. The demiurge (the nous ) is the energy, or ergon (does the work), which manifests or organises the material world into perceivability . The image and product of the motionless nous is the world-soul , which, according to Plotinus, is immaterial like the nous . Its relation to the nous is the same as that of the nous to the One. It stands between the nous and

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1560-526: A requisite principle of totality which is also the source of ultimate wisdom. After the Platonic Academy was destroyed in the first century BC, philosophers continued to teach Platonism , but it was not until the early 5th century (c. 410) that a revived academy (which had no connection with the original Academy) was established in Athens by some leading neoplatonists. It persisted until 529 AD when it

1690-408: A soul may be reincarnated into another human or even a different sort of animal. However, Porphyry maintained, instead, that human souls were only reincarnated into other humans. A soul which has returned to the One achieves union with the cosmic universal soul and does not descend again; at least, not in this world period. Certain central tenets of neoplatonism served as a philosophical interim for

1820-499: A strong influence on the perennial philosophy of the Italian Renaissance thinkers Marsilio Ficino and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola , and continues through 19th-century Universalism and modern-day spirituality . Neoplatonism is a modern term. The term neoplatonism has a double function as a historical category. On the one hand, it differentiates the philosophical doctrines of Plotinus and his successors from those of

1950-501: A teacher and founder of the neoplatonic system. Porphyry stated in On the One School of Plato and Aristotle , that Ammonius' view was that the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle were in harmony. Eusebius and Jerome claimed him as a Christian until his death, whereas Porphyry claimed he had renounced Christianity and embraced pagan philosophy. Plotinus ( c.  205  – c.  270 )

2080-460: A transcendent, ineffable God who created the cosmos through a process of emanation resonated with early Christian theologians, who sought to reconcile their faith with classical philosophy . However, Hermeticism’s influence was most pronounced in Gnostic traditions , which shared with Hermeticism an emphasis on esoteric knowledge as the key to salvation . Both movements taught that the soul’s true home

2210-608: A vision of the cosmos and the role of humanity within it, and Asclepius , which discusses theurgy , magic , and the divine spirit residing in all things. Another significant text within the Hermetica is the Emerald Tablet , a concise work that has become central to Western alchemical tradition. Although its exact origins are obscure, the Emerald Tablet encapsulates the Hermetic principle of " as above, so below ", which suggests

2340-447: Is a perfect image of the One and the archetype of all existing things. It is simultaneously both being and thought, idea and ideal world. As image, the nous corresponds perfectly to the One, but as derivative, it is entirely different. What Plotinus understands by the nous is the highest sphere accessible to the human mind , while also being pure intellect itself. Nous is the most critical component of idealism , Neoplatonism being

2470-414: Is above is like to that which is below, and that which is below is like to that which is above. In addition to the principles of prisca theologia and "as above, so below," Hermeticism teaches that the soul's journey back to the divine involves ascending through the seven heavens . These heavens correspond to the seven classical planets and represent stages of spiritual purification and enlightenment. As

2600-598: Is an imperfect copy of the Nous and the Platonic realm of the Forms. The process of Emanation is beyond temporality as time does not exist in the One, the Nous, or the Soul, but only in the sensible world. Despite their distinctions, these four realities are all part of the same unified reality unfolding within the One. The original Being initially emanates, or throws out, the nous (νοῦς), which

2730-512: Is both the creative source of the Universe and the teleological end of all existing things. Although, properly speaking, there is no name appropriate for the first principle, the most adequate names are "the One" or "the Good". The One is so simple that it cannot even be said to exist or to be a being. Rather, the creative principle of all things is beyond being, a notion which is derived from Book VI of

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2860-454: Is both the knower, the known, and the act of knowing, embodying a complete unity. The Platonic realm of the Forms is contained within the Nous and acts as the archetype of the sensible world. From the Nous emanates a lesser reality known as the Soul, which receives information from the Nous and actualizes it. This act of "actualization" is the same as the creation of the sensible world, the realm of multiplicity, time, and space. This sensible realm

2990-571: Is from the early centuries AD) corroborate the view that Thrice-Great Hermes originated in Hellenistic Egypt through syncretism between Greek and Egyptian gods (the Hermetica refer most often to Thoth and Amun). The Hermetic literature among the Egyptians, which was concerned with conjuring spirits and animating statues, inform the oldest Hellenistic writings on Greco- Babylonian astrology and on

3120-570: Is known to us as Hermes Trismegistus on account of being the greatest priest, philosopher, and king. Another explanation, in the Suda (10th century), is that "He was called Trismegistus on account of his praise of the trinity, saying there is one divine nature in the trinity." During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance , the Hermetica enjoyed great prestige and were popular among alchemists. Hermes

3250-507: Is no dualist in the sense of certain sects, such as the Gnostics; in contrast, he admires the beauty and splendour of the world. So long as idea governs matter, or the soul governs the body, the world is fair and good. It is an image – though a shadowy image – of the upper world, and the degrees of better and worse in it are essential to the harmony of the whole. But, in the actual phenomenal world, unity and harmony are replaced by strife or discord;

3380-507: Is often associated with chaos , the formless and potential-filled state that precedes creation. The idea of prima materia has roots in Greco-Roman traditions , particularly in Orphic cosmogony, where it is linked to the cosmic egg , and in the biblical concept of Tehom from Genesis, reflecting a synthesis of classical and Christian thought during the Renaissance. In alchemy, prima materia

3510-430: Is the substance that undergoes transformation through processes such as nigredo , the blackening stage associated with chaos, which ultimately leads to the creation of the philosopher's stone . This transformation symbolizes the magnum opus ('Great Work') of the alchemist, seeking to purify and elevate the material to its perfected state. Renaissance figures like Paracelsus expanded on this concept, connecting it to

3640-510: Is thought not to be the work of a ' pseudo-Aristotle ' though this remains debatable. Hypatia ( c.  360  – 415) was a Greek philosopher and mathematician who served as head of the Platonist school in Alexandria, Egypt, where she taught philosophy, mathematics and astronomy. She was murdered in a Church by a fanatical mob of Coptic Parabalani monks because she had been advising

3770-481: Is thus peopled by a crowd of superhuman beings influencing natural events and possessing and communicating knowledge of the future, and who are all accessible to prayers and offerings. Iamblichus had salvation as his final goal (see henosis ). The embodied soul was to return to divinity by performing certain rites, or theurgy , literally, 'divine-working'. After Plotinus' (around 205–270) and his student Porphyry (around 232–309) Aristotle's (non-biological) works entered

3900-655: Is whom the Egyptians call Theyt ". The most likely interpretation of this passage is as two variants on the same syncretism of Greek Hermes and Egyptian Thoth (or sometimes other gods): the fourth (where Hermes turns out "actually" to have been a "son of the Nile," i.e. a native god) being viewed from the Egyptian perspective, the fifth (who went from Greece to Egypt) being viewed from the Greek-Arcadian perspective. Both of these early references in Cicero (most ancient Trismegistus material

4030-439: Is widely considered the father of Neoplatonism. Much of our biographical information about him comes from Porphyry's preface to his edition of Plotinus' Enneads . While he was himself influenced by the teachings of classical Greek , Persian , and Indian philosophy and Egyptian theology , his metaphysical writings later inspired numerous Pagan , Jewish , Christian , Gnostic , and Islamic metaphysicians and mystics over

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4160-550: The Asclepius , a treatise from the same period, mainly surviving in a Latin translation. This specific historical form of Hermetic philosophy is sometimes more narrowly referred to as Hermetism, to distinguish it from other philosophies inspired by Hermetic writings of different periods and natures. The broader term, Hermeticism, may refer to a wide variety of philosophical systems drawing on Hermetic writings or other subject matter associated with Hermes. Notably, alchemy often went by

4290-559: The Corpus Hermeticum are generally dated by modern scholars to the beginning of the second century or earlier. These writings focus on the oneness and goodness of God, the purification of the soul, and the relationship between mind and spirit. Their predominant literary form is the dialogue , where Hermes Trismegistus instructs a perplexed disciple on various teachings of hidden wisdom. In fifth-century Macedonia , Joannes Stobaeus compiled an extensive Anthology of Greek poetical, rhetorical, historical, and philosophical literature. Among

4420-534: The Hermetica , were produced over a period spanning many centuries ( c.  300 BCE – 1200 CE ) and may be very different in content and scope. One particular form of Hermetic teaching is the religio-philosophical system found in a specific subgroup of Hermetic writings known as the 'religio-philosophical' Hermetica . The most famous of these are the Corpus Hermeticum , a collection of seventeen Greek treatises written between approximately 100 and 300 CE, and

4550-552: The Republic , when, in the course of his famous analogy of the Sun , Plato says that the Good is beyond being (ἐπέκεινα τῆς οὐσίας) in power and dignity. In Plotinus' model of reality, the One is the cause of the rest of reality, which takes the form of two subsequent " hypostases " or substances: Nous and Soul ( psyché ). Although neoplatonists after Plotinus adhered to his cosmological scheme in its most general outline, later developments in

4680-404: The 'technical' Hermetica , such as the Emerald Tablet . Throughout its history, Hermeticism was closely associated with the idea of a primeval, divine wisdom revealed only to the most ancient of sages, such as Hermes Trismegistus. During the Renaissance, this evolved into the concept of prisca theologia or "ancient theology", which asserted that a single, true theology was given by God to

4810-623: The Chaldean Oracles , and late Orphic and Pythagorean literature. These doctrines were "characterized by a resistance to the dominance of either pure rationality or doctrinal faith." Plutarch 's mention of Hermes Trismegistus dates back to the first century CE, indicating the early recognition of this figure in Greek and Roman thought. Other significant figures of the time, such as Tertullian , Iamblichus , and Porphyry , were also familiar with Hermetic writings, which influenced their own philosophical and religious ideas. The texts now known as

4940-566: The Christian theologian Augustine of Hippo on his journey from dualistic Manichaeism to Christianity. As a Manichaen, Augustine had held that evil has substantial being and that God is made of matter; when he became a neoplatonist, he changed his views on these things. As a neoplatonist, and later a Christian, Augustine believed that evil is a privation of good and that God is not material. When writing his treatise 'On True Religion' several years after his 387 baptism, Augustine's Christianity

5070-552: The Corpus Hermeticum . Moreover, Cudworth noted Casaubon's failure to acknowledge the codification of these treatises as a late formulation of a pre-existing oral tradition. According to Cudworth, the texts must be viewed as a terminus ad quem and not a terminus a quo . Lost Greek texts, and many of the surviving vulgate books, contained discussions of alchemy clothed in philosophical metaphor. Hermes Trismegistus The wisdom attributed to this figure in antiquity combined

5200-682: The Eastern Christian Church as an independent tradition and was reintroduced to the West by Pletho ( c.  1355  – 1452/1454), an avowed pagan and opponent of the Byzantine Church, inasmuch as the latter, under Western scholastic influence, relied heavily upon Aristotelian methodology. Pletho's Platonic revival, following the Council of Florence (1438–1439), largely accounts for the renewed interest in Platonic philosophy which accompanied

5330-714: The Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth . Greeks in the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt recognized the equivalence of Hermes and Thoth through the interpretatio graeca . Consequently, the two gods were worshiped as one, in what had been the Temple of Thoth in Khemenu, which was known in the Hellenistic period as Hermopolis . Hermes, the Greek god of interpretive communication,

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5460-587: The Middle Ages , Neoplatonic ideas were studied and discussed by Christian , Jewish , and Muslim thinkers. In the Islamic cultural sphere, Neoplatonic texts were available in Arabic and Persian translations, and notable philosophers such as al-Farabi , Solomon ibn Gabirol ( Avicebron ), Avicenna ( Ibn Sina ), and Maimonides incorporated Neoplatonic elements into their own thinking. Christian philosopher and theologian Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) had direct access to

5590-554: The Renaissance . "Of all the students of Greek in Renaissance Italy, the best-known are the neoplatonists who studied in and around Florence" (Hole). Neoplatonism was not just a revival of Plato's ideas, it is all based on Plotinus' created synthesis, which incorporated the works and teachings of Plato, Aristotle, Pythagoras, and other Greek philosophers. The Renaissance in Italy was the revival of classic antiquity, and this started at

5720-511: The curriculum of Platonic thought. Porphyry's introduction ( Isagoge ) to Aristotle's Categoria was important as an introduction to logic , and the study of Aristotle became an introduction to the study of Plato in the late Platonism of Athens and Alexandria . The commentaries of this group seek to harmonise Plato, Aristotle, and, often, the Stoics . Some works of neoplatonism were attributed to Plato or Aristotle. De Mundo , for instance,

5850-482: The 16th and 17th centuries), Thomas Browne in his Religio Medici (1643) confidently stated: "The severe schools shall never laugh me out of the philosophy of Hermes, that this visible world is but a portrait of the invisible." In 1678, flaws in Casaubon's dating were discerned by Ralph Cudworth , who argued that Casaubon's allegation of forgery could only be applied to three of the seventeen treatises contained within

5980-688: The Chinese cultural hero Fuxi were actually the Biblical patriarch Enoch . Various critical editions of the Hermetica have been published in modern academia, such as Hermetica by Brian Copenhaver . Antoine Faivre , in The Eternal Hermes (1995), has pointed out that Hermes Trismegistus has a place in the Islamic tradition, although the name Hermes does not appear in the Qur'an . Hagiographers and chroniclers of

6110-665: The Christian Gnostics of Alexandria , especially Valentinus and the followers of Basilides , also mirrored elements of Neoplatonism, Ammonius Saccas (died c.  240–245 AD ) was a teacher of Plotinus. Through Ammonius Saccas, Plotinus may have been influenced by Indian thought. The similarities between Neoplatonism and Indian philosophy , particularly Samkhya , have led several authors to suggest an Indian influence in its founding, particularly on Ammonius Saccas. Both Christians (see Eusebius , Jerome , and Origen ) and Pagans (see Porphyry and Plotinus) claimed him

6240-543: The German theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher as an early thinker who took Plato's philosophy to be separate from that of his neoplatonic interpreters. However, others have argued that the differentiation of Plato from neoplatonism was the result of a protracted historical development that preceded Schleiermacher's scholarly work on Plato. Neoplatonism started with Plotinus in the 3rd century AD. Three distinct phases in classical neoplatonism after Plotinus can be distinguished:

6370-443: The Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth , emerged as a symbol of this syncretism . Hermes Trismegistus was revered as a divine sage and is credited with a vast corpus of writings known as the Hermetica , which expound on various aspects of theology, cosmology, and spiritual practice. Hermetism developed alongside other significant religious and philosophical movements such as early Christianity, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism ,

6500-427: The Hermetic writings as remnants of an ancient wisdom that predated and influenced all religious traditions, including Christianity . It was during this period that the association of Hermes Trismegistus with biblical figures like Moses , or as part of a lineage including Enoch and Noah , was more explicitly developed by these scholars to harmonize Hermetic thought with biblical narratives. This blending of traditions

6630-599: The Hermetic writings must postdate the advent of Christianity, the whole of Renaissance Hermeticism collapsed. As to their actual authorship: ... they were certainly not written in remotest antiquity by an all wise Egyptian priest, as the Renaissance believed, but by various unknown authors, all probably Greeks, and they contain popular Greek philosophy of the period, a mixture of Platonism and Stoicism , combined with some Jewish and probably some Persian influences. The French figurist Jesuit missionary to China Joachim Bouvet thought that Hermes Trismegistus, Zoroaster and

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6760-513: The Logos interior to God from the Logos related to the world by creation and salvation. For Augustine, the Logos " took on flesh " in Christ, in whom the Logos was present as in no other man. He strongly influenced early medieval Christian philosophy . Some early Christians, influenced by neoplatonism, identified the neoplatonic One, or God, with Yahweh . The most influential of these would be Origen ,

6890-462: The Lollard-Familist traditions. The term 'Hermetic' derives from hermeticus , a Latin adjective that first emerged in the medieval period , derived from the name of the Greek god Hermes , to describe the esoteric writings and practices associated with Hermes Trismegistus . This term became widely used in reference to the Hermetica , a body of texts considered to contain secret wisdom on

7020-455: The Middle Ages most Plotinus' insights will be presented as authored by Proclus. The Enneads of Plotinus are the primary and classical document of neoplatonism. As a form of mysticism , it contains theoretical and practical parts. The theoretical parts deal with the high origin of the human soul , showing how it has departed from its first estate. The practical parts show the way by which

7150-457: The One after death. After bodily death, the soul takes up a level in the afterlife corresponding with the level at which it lived during its earthly life. The neoplatonists believed in the principle of reincarnation . Although the most pure and holy souls would dwell in the highest regions, the impure soul would undergo a purification, before descending again, to be reincarnated into a new body, perhaps into animal form. Plotinus believed that

7280-424: The One, from which they emanated. The neoplatonists believed in the pre-existence, and immortality of the soul. The human soul consists of a lower irrational soul and a higher rational soul ( mind ), both of which can be regarded as different powers of the one soul. It was widely held that the soul possesses a "vehicle" ( okhêma ), accounting for the human soul's immortality and allowing for its return to

7410-518: The Ptolemaic Kingdom. Cicero enumerates several deities referred to as "Hermes": a "fourth Mercury (Hermes) was the son of the Nile, whose name may not be spoken by the Egyptians"; and "the fifth, who is worshiped by the people of Pheneus [in Arcadia ], is said to have killed Argus Panoptes , and for this reason to have fled to Egypt, and to have given the Egyptians their laws and alphabet: he it

7540-431: The Renaissance" (Hole). In 1462, Cosimo I de' Medici, patron of arts, who had an interest in humanism and Platonism, provided Ficino with all 36 of Plato's dialogues in Greek for him to translate. Between 1462 and 1469, Ficino translated these works into Latin, making them widely accessible, as only a minority of people could read Greek. And, between 1484 and 1492, he translated the works of Plotinus, making them available for

7670-450: The Temple of Esna , "Thoth the great, the great, the great." Many Christian writers, including Lactantius , Augustine , Marsilio Ficino , Campanella , and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola , as well as Giordano Bruno , considered Hermes Trismegistus to be a wise pagan prophet who foresaw the coming of Christianity . They believed in the existence of a prisca theologia , a single, true theology that threads through all religions. It

7800-597: The Uncompounded Reality . Neoplatonism Neoplatonism is a version of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion . The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a series of thinkers. Among the common ideas it maintains is monism , the doctrine that all of reality can be derived from a single principle, "the One". Neoplatonism began with Ammonius Saccas and his student Plotinus ( c.  204/5–271 AD) and stretched to

7930-598: The Universe, having an "other" necessity, as a harmonizing factor. Later neoplatonic philosophers, especially Iamblichus, added hundreds of intermediate beings such as gods , angels , demons , and other beings as mediators between the One and humanity. The neoplatonist gods are omni-perfect beings and do not display the usual amoral behaviour associated with their representations in the myths. Neoplatonists did not believe in an independent existence of evil . They compared it to darkness, which does not exist in itself but only as

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8060-441: The absence of light. So, too, evil is simply the absence of good. Things are good insofar as they exist; they are evil only insofar as they are imperfect, lacking some good which they should have. Neoplatonists believed human perfection and happiness were attainable in this world, without awaiting an afterlife . Perfection and happiness—seen as synonymous—could be achieved through philosophical contemplation . All people return to

8190-520: The alchemical procedure to make the Philosopher's Stone . This required a mixture of materials to be placed in a glass vessel which was sealed by fusing the neck closed, a procedure known as the Seal of Hermes. The vessel was then heated for 30 to 40 days. During the Renaissance , it was accepted that Hermes Trismegistus was a contemporary of Moses . However, after Isaac Casaubon 's demonstration in 1614 that

8320-454: The anthology of Stobaeus . The transmission and interpretation of the Hermetica played a crucial role in its influence on Western thought. During the Renaissance, these texts were rediscovered and translated into Latin, leading to a revival of interest in Hermetic philosophy. The translations by Marsilio Ficino and Lodovico Lazzarelli were particularly significant, as they introduced Hermetic ideas to Renaissance scholars and contributed to

8450-534: The belief that a single, true theology exists, which is present in all religions and was revealed by God to humanity in antiquity. Early Christian theologians, including Church Fathers such as Lactantius and Augustine , referenced Hermes Trismegistus , sometimes portraying him as a wise pagan prophet whose teachings could complement Christian doctrine. During the Renaissance , scholars such as Marsilio Ficino and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola sought to integrate Hermetic teachings into Christian theology , viewing

8580-404: The centuries. Plotinus taught that there is a supreme, totally transcendent "One", containing no division, multiplicity, nor distinction; likewise, it is beyond all categories of being and non-being. The concept of "being" is derived by us from the objects of human experience and is an attribute of such objects, but the infinite, transcendent One is beyond all such objects and, therefore, is beyond

8710-458: The concepts which we can derive from them. The One "cannot be any existing thing" and cannot be merely the sum of all such things (compare the Stoic doctrine of disbelief in non-material existence) but "is prior to all existents". Porphyry (c. 233 – c. 309) wrote widely on astrology, religion, philosophy, and musical theory. He produced a biography of his teacher, Plotinus. He is important in

8840-511: The cosmos were all created by God. Thus, God ('the All') creates itself, and is both transcendent (as the creator of the cosmos) and immanent (as the created cosmos). These ideas are closely related to the cosmo-theological views of the Stoics . In Hermeticism, prima materia is a key concept in the alchemical tradition, representing the raw, undifferentiated substance from which all things originate. It

8970-693: The creation of nous and received from God man's authority over all creation. Man then rose up above the spheres' paths to better view creation. He then showed the form of the All to Nature. Nature fell in love with the All, and man, seeing his reflection in water, fell in love with Nature and wished to dwell in it. Immediately, man became one with Nature and became a slave to its limitations, such as sex and sleep . In this way, man became speechless (having lost "the Word") and he became " double ", being mortal in body yet immortal in spirit , and having authority over all creation yet subject to destiny. The alternative account of

9100-453: The development of early modern esotericism. Renaissance thinkers like Giovanni Pico della Mirandola and Giordano Bruno saw in Hermeticism a source of ancient wisdom that could be harmonized with Christian teachings and classical philosophy. The Hermetic emphasis on the divine nature of humanity and the potential for spiritual ascent resonated with the Renaissance ideal of human dignity and

9230-630: The development of the Western esoteric tradition , contributing to the knowledge base of medieval alchemists and astrologers, as well as to the broader tradition of occultism. Other important original Hermetic texts include Isis the Prophetess to Her Son Horus , which consists of a long dialogue between Isis and Horus on the fall of man and other matters; the Definitions of Hermes Trismegistus to Asclepius ; and many fragments, which are chiefly preserved in

9360-440: The dialogues of Plato. The particular characteristic of Proclus' system is his insertion of a level of individual ones, called henads , between the One itself and the divine Intellect, which is the second principle. The henads are beyond being, like the One itself, but they stand at the head of chains of causation ( seirai or taxeis ) and in some manner give to these chains their particular character. They are also identified with

9490-404: The earliest humans and that traces of it could still be found in various ancient systems of thought. This idea, popular among Renaissance thinkers like Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463–1494), eventually developed into the notion that divine truth could be found across different religious and philosophical traditions, a concept that came to be known as the perennial philosophy . In this context,

9620-508: The effects of creation. Islamic philosophers used the framework of Islamic mysticism in their interpretation of Neoplatonic writings and concepts. In the Middle Ages, neoplatonist ideas influenced Jewish thinkers, such as the Kabbalists Isaac the Blind , Azriel of Gerona and Nachmanides and the earlier Jewish neoplatonic philosopher Solomon ibn Gabirol ( Avicebron ), who modified it in

9750-429: The elements and the broader Hermetic belief in the unity of matter and spirit. The significance of prima materia in Hermeticism lies in its representation of the potential for both material and spiritual transformation, embodying the Hermetic principle of " as above, so below ", where the macrocosm and microcosm reflect each other in the alchemical process. Hermeticists adhere to the doctrine of prisca theologia ,

9880-546: The epithet "thrice great" are in the Legatio of Athenagoras of Athens and in a fragment from Philo of Byblos , c.  AD 64 –141. However, in a later work, Copenhaver reports that this epithet is first found in the minutes of a meeting of the council of the Ibis cult , held in 172 BC near Memphis in Egypt. Hart explains that the epithet is derived from an epithet of Thoth found at

10010-460: The evils brought forth by demons are: "adultery, murder, violence to one's father, sacrilege, ungodliness, strangling, suicide from a cliff and all such other demonic actions". The word "good" is used very strictly. It is restricted to references to God. It is only God (in the sense of the nous, not in the sense of the All) who is completely free of evil. Men are prevented from being good because man, having

10140-462: The fall of man, as preserved in Isis the Prophetess to Her Son Horus , describes a process in which God, after creating the universe and various deities, fashioned human souls from a mysterious substance and assigned them to dwell in the astral region. These souls were then tasked with creating life on Earth. However, the souls became prideful and sought equality with the highest gods, which displeased God. As

10270-537: The fall of the Byzantine empire, who were considered the "librarians of the world", because of their great collection of classical manuscripts and the number of humanist scholars that resided in Constantinople (Hole). Neoplatonism in the Renaissance combined the ideas of Christianity and a new awareness of the writings of Plato. Marsilio Ficino (1433–1499) was "chiefly responsible for packaging and presenting Plato to

10400-539: The first centuries of the Islamic Hijrah quickly identified Hermes Trismegistus with Idris, the Islamic prophet of surahs 19.57 and 21.85, whom Muslims also identified with Enoch (cf. Genesis 5.18–24). According to the account of the Persian astrologer Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi (787–886), Idris/Hermes was termed "Thrice-Wise" Hermes Trismegistus because he had a threefold origin. The first Hermes, comparable to Thoth ,

10530-501: The first time to the West. Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463–1494) was another neoplatonist during the Italian Renaissance. He could speak and write Latin and Greek, and had knowledge on Hebrew and Arabic. The pope banned his works because they were viewed as heretical – unlike Ficino, who managed to stay on the right side of the church. The efforts of Ficino and Pico to introduce neoplatonic and Hermetic doctrines into

10660-497: The followers of Gnosticism had corrupted the original teachings of Plato and often argued against likes of Valentinus who, according to Plotinus, had given rise to doctrines of dogmatic theology with ideas such as that the Spirit of Christ was brought forth by a conscious god after the fall from Pleroma . According to Plotinus, The One is not a conscious god with intent, nor a godhead , nor a conditioned existing entity of any kind, rather

10790-513: The foundational literature of the Hermetic tradition. These writings were composed over several centuries, primarily during the Hellenistic, Roman, and early Christian periods, roughly between 200 BCE and 300 CE. The Hermetica is traditionally divided into two categories: the philosophical or theological Hermetica, and the technical Hermetica, which covers alchemy , astrology , and other forms of occult science. The most famous and influential of

10920-505: The historical Plato . On the other, the term makes an assumption about the novelty of Plotinus's interpretation of Plato. In the nearly six centuries from Plato's time to Plotinus', there had been an uninterrupted tradition of interpreting Plato which had begun with Aristotle and with the immediate successors of Plato's Academy and continued on through a period of Platonism which is now referred to as middle Platonism . The term neoplatonism implies that Plotinus' interpretation of Plato

11050-464: The history of mathematics because of his commentary on Euclid's Elements , which Pappus used when he wrote his own commentary. Porphyry is also known as an opponent of Christianity and as a defender of paganism ; of his Adversus Christianos ( Against the Christians ) in 15 books, only fragments remain. He famously said, "The gods have proclaimed Christ to have been most pious, but the Christians are

11180-457: The intelligible world; but it also embraces innumerable individual souls; and these can either allow themselves to be informed by the nous , or turn aside from the nous and choose the phenomenal world and lose themselves in the realm of the senses and the finite. The soul, as a moving essence, generates the corporeal or phenomenal world. This world ought to be so pervaded by the soul that its various parts should remain in perfect harmony. Plotinus

11310-463: The knowledge of his teacher and predecessors in order to inspire the next generation. Whether neoplatonism is a meaningful or useful historical category is itself a central question concerning the history of the interpretation of Plato. For much of the history of Platonism, it was commonly accepted that the doctrines of the neoplatonists were essentially the same as those of Plato. The Renaissance Neoplatonist Marsilio Ficino , for instance, thought that

11440-543: The light of their own monotheism. The works of Pseudo-Dionysius were primarily instrumental in the flowering of western medieval mysticism , most notably the German mystic Meister Eckhart (c. 1260 – c. 1328). Neoplatonism also influenced Latin scholasticism , for example through the reception and translation of Neoplatonic conception by Eriugena . Aquinas, for example, have some Neoplatonic elements in his philosophical conceptions that he adapts within an Aristotelian vocabulary. Neoplatonism ostensibly survived in

11570-553: The major figures of the Bible and the Quran." The star-worshipping sect known as the Sabians of Harran also believed that their doctrine descended from Hermes Trismegistus. There are least twenty Arabic Hermetica extant. While some of these Arabic Hermetic writings were translated from Greek or Middle-Persian , some were originally written in Arabic. Hermetic fragments are also found in

11700-555: The monotheistic constraints of Islam. The translations of the works which extrapolate the tenets of God in neoplatonism present no major modification from their original Greek sources, showing the doctrinal shift towards monotheism . Islamic neoplatonism adapted the concepts of the One and the First Principle to Islamic theology, attributing the First Principle to God. God is a transcendent being, omnipresent and inalterable to

11830-432: The name of "the Hermetic art" or "the Hermetic philosophy". The most famous use of the term in this broader sense is in the concept of Renaissance Hermeticism, which refers to the early modern philosophies inspired by the translations of the Corpus Hermeticum by Marsilio Ficino (1433–1499) and Lodovico Lazzarelli (1447–1500), as well as by Paracelsus ' (1494–1541) introduction of a new medical philosophy drawing upon

11960-711: The nature of the divine, the cosmos, and the human soul. In English, the word 'Hermetic' appeared in the 17th century. One of the earliest instances in English literature is found in John Everard 's translation of The Pymander of Hermes , published in 1650. The term was used in reference to "Hermetic writers" such as Robert Fludd . The synonymous term 'Hermetical' is found in Sir Thomas Browne’s Religio Medici (1643), where "Hermetical Philosophers" are mentioned, referring to scholars and alchemists who engaged in

12090-403: The neoplatonic interpretation of Plato was an authentic and accurate representation of Plato's philosophy. Although it is unclear precisely when scholars began to disassociate the philosophy of the historical Plato from the philosophy of his neoplatonic interpreters, they had clearly begun to do so at least as early as the first decade of the nineteenth century. Contemporary scholars often identify

12220-424: The neoplatonist Stephanus of Alexandria brought this Alexandrian tradition to Constantinople, where it would remain influential, albeit as a form of secular education. The university maintained an active philosophical tradition of Platonism and Aristotelianism , with the former being the longest unbroken Platonic school, running for close to two millennia until the fifteenth century Michael Psellos (1018–1078),

12350-416: The newly developed practice of alchemy . In a parallel tradition, Hermetic philosophy rationalized and systematized religious cult practices and offered the adept a means of personal ascension from the constraints of physical being. This latter tradition has led to the confusion of Hermeticism with Gnosticism , which was developing contemporaneously. Fowden asserts that the first datable occurrences of

12480-432: The phenomenal world, and it is permeated and illuminated by the former, but it is also in contact with the latter. The nous/spirit is indivisible; the world-soul may preserve its unity and remain in the nous , but, at the same time, it has the power of uniting with the corporeal world and thus being disintegrated. It therefore occupies an intermediate position. As a single world-soul, it belongs in essence and destination to

12610-446: The philosophical Hermetica is the Corpus Hermeticum , a collection of seventeen treatises that articulate the core doctrines of Hermeticism. These treatises are primarily dialogues in which Hermes Trismegistus imparts esoteric wisdom to a disciple, exploring themes such as the nature of the divine, the cosmos, the soul, and the path to spiritual enlightenment. Key texts within the Corpus Hermeticum include Poimandres , which presents

12740-482: The prefect of Egypt Orestes during his feud with Cyril , Alexandria's dynastic archbishop. The extent of Cyril's personal involvement in her murder remains a matter of scholarly debate. Proclus Lycaeus (February 8, 412 – April 17, 485) was a Greek neoplatonist philosopher, one of the last major Greek philosophers (see Damascius ). He set forth one of the most elaborate, complex, and fully developed neoplatonic systems, providing also an allegorical way of reading

12870-454: The preserved excerpts are significant numbers of discourses and dialogues attributed to Hermes Trismegistus. Hermeticism had a significant impact on early Christian thought, particularly in the development of Christian mysticism and esoteric interpretations of scripture. Some early Church Fathers , such as Lactantius , viewed Hermes Trismegistus as a wise pagan prophet whose teachings were compatible with Christianity . The Hermetic idea of

13000-621: The prominence of neoplatonic influences in the historical Muslim world was availability of neoplatonic texts: Arabic translations and paraphrases of neoplatonic works were readily available to Islamic scholars greatly due to the availability of the Greek copies, in part, because Muslims conquered some of the more important centres of the Byzantine Christian civilization in Egypt and Syria. Various Persian and Arabic scholars, including Avicenna (Ibn Sina), Ibn Arabi , al-Kindi , al-Farabi , and al-Himsi , adapted neoplatonism to conform to

13130-491: The pupil of Ammonius Saccas; and the sixth-century author known as Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite , whose works were translated by John Scotus in the ninth century for the West. Both authors had a lasting influence on Eastern Orthodox and Western Christianity , and the development of contemplative and mystical practices and theology. Neoplatonism also had links with Gnosticism, which Plotinus rebuked in his ninth tractate of

13260-426: The pursuit of knowledge. Throughout history, the Hermetica has been subject to various interpretations, ranging from philosophical and mystical readings to more practical applications in alchemy and magic. The esoteric nature of these texts has allowed them to be adapted to different cultural and intellectual contexts, ensuring their enduring influence across centuries. In the religio-philosophical Hermetica ,

13390-409: The result is a conflict, a becoming and vanishing, an illusive existence. And the reason for this state of things is that bodies rest on a substratum of matter. Matter is the indeterminate: that with no qualities. If destitute of form and idea, it is evil; as capable of form, it is neutral. Evil here is understood as a parasite, having no-existence of its own (parahypostasis), an unavoidable outcome of

13520-662: The second Enneads : "Against Those That Affirm The Creator of The Cosmos and The Cosmos Itself to Be Evil" (generally known as "Against The Gnostics"). Because their belief was grounded in Platonic thought, the neoplatonists rejected Gnosticism's vilification of Plato's demiurge , the creator of the material world or cosmos discussed in the Timaeus . Neoplatonism has been referred to as orthodox Platonic philosophy by scholars like John D. Turner ; this reference may be due, in part, to Plotinus' attempt to refute certain interpretations of Platonic philosophy, through his Enneads. Plotinus believed

13650-575: The seven heavens spin, and from them spring forth creatures without speech. Earth is then separated from water, and animals (other than man) are brought forth. Then God orders the elements into the seven heavens (often held to be the spheres of Mercury , Venus , Mars , Jupiter , Saturn , the Sun, and the Moon , which travel in circles and govern destiny ). The God then created androgynous man, in God's own image, and handed over his creation. Man carefully observed

13780-484: The sixth century. After Plotinus there were three distinct periods in the history of neoplatonism: the work of his student Porphyry (third to early fourth century); that of Iamblichus (third to fourth century); and the period in the fifth and sixth centuries, when the academies in Alexandria and Athens flourished. Neoplatonism had an enduring influence on the subsequent history of Western philosophy and religion. In

13910-509: The soul may again return to the Eternal and Supreme. The system can be divided between the invisible world and the phenomenal world, the former containing the transcendent , absolute One from which emanates an eternal, perfect, essence ( nous , or intellect), which, in turn, produces the world-soul . For Plotinus, the first principle of reality is "the One", an utterly simple, ineffable, beyond being and non-being, unknowable subsistence which

14040-466: The soul toward its ultimate goal of reunification with the divine. A creation story is told by God to Hermes in the first book of the Corpus Hermeticum . It begins when God, by an act of will, creates the primary matter that is to constitute the cosmos . From primary matter God separates the four elements (earth, air, fire, and water). " The Word (Logos) " then leaps forth from the materializing four elements, which were unintelligent. Nous then makes

14170-460: The soul transcends each heavenly sphere, it sheds the material influences and attachments associated with that level, progressively aligning itself with the divine order. This process symbolizes the soul's return to its divine origin, ultimately seeking unity with The One—the source of all existence. The concept of the seven heavens underscores the Hermetic belief in the potential for spiritual transformation through divine knowledge and practice, guiding

14300-452: The stars, before we hasten to the One alone? Rebirth appears central to the practice of hermetic philosophy. The process would begin with a candidate separating themselves from the world before they rid themselves of material vices; they are then reborn as someone completely different from who they were before. A few primarily Hermetic occult orders were founded in the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance. In England, it grew interwoven with

14430-413: The study of the natural world through the lens of Hermetic wisdom. The phrase "hermetically sealed" originates from alchemical practices and refers to an airtight sealing method used in laboratories. This term became a metaphor for the safeguarding of esoteric knowledge, representing the idea that such wisdom should be kept hidden from the uninitiated. Over time, the word 'Hermetic' evolved to encompass

14560-553: The term 'Hermetic' gradually lost its specificity, eventually becoming synonymous with the divine knowledge of the ancient Egyptians , particularly as related to alchemy and magic , a view that was later popularized by nineteenth- and twentieth-century occultists. In Late Antiquity , Hermetism originated in the cultural and religious melting pot of Hellenistic Egypt , a period marked by the fusion of Greek, Egyptian, and other Near Eastern religious and philosophical traditions. The central figure of Hermes Trismegistus , who embodies both

14690-408: The tradition also departed substantively from Plotinus' teachings in regards to significant philosophical issues, such as the nature of evil. From the One emanated different levels of lesser realities known as "Hypostases." At the highest level of reality exists "the One" from which emanates the Nous or the mind. It is the first principle after the One and contains all knowledge in a unified form. It

14820-408: The traditional Greek gods, so one henad might be Apollo and be the cause of all things apollonian, while another might be Helios and be the cause of all sunny things. The henads serve both to protect the One itself from any hint of multiplicity and to draw up the rest of the universe towards the One, by being a connecting, intermediate stage between absolute unity and determinate multiplicity. In

14950-462: The ultimate reality is called by many names, such as God, Lord, Father, Mind ( Nous ), the Creator, the All, the One, etc. In the Hermetic view, God is both the all ( Greek : to pan ) and the creator of the all: all created things pre-exist in God and God is the nature of the cosmos (being both the substance from which it proceeds and the governing principle which orders it), yet the things themselves and

15080-440: The universe, led by the pleasures of the body. One must create, one must do something positive in one's life, because God is a generative power. Not creating anything leaves a person "sterile" (i.e., unable to accomplish anything). Reincarnation is mentioned in Hermetic texts. Hermes Trismegistus asked: O son, how many bodies have we to pass through, how many bands of demons, through how many series of repetitions and cycles of

15210-667: The work of his student Porphyry ; that of Iamblichus and his school in Syria; and the period in the 5th and 6th centuries, when the Academies in Alexandria and Athens flourished. Neoplatonism synthesized ideas from various philosophical and religious cultural spheres. The most important forerunners from Greek philosophy were the Middle Platonists , such as Plutarch , and the Neopythagoreans , especially Numenius of Apamea . Philo ,

15340-502: The works of Muslim alchemists such as Jabir ibn Hayyan (died c.  806 –816, cited an early version of the Emerald Tablet in his Kitāb Usṭuqus al-uss ) and Ibn Umayl ( c.  900  – c.  960 , quoted and commented upon Hermetic sayings throughout his work, among them also a commentary on the Emerald Tablet ). Bahá'u'lláh , founder of the Baháʼí Faith , identifies Idris with Hermes in his Tablet on

15470-470: The works of Proclus , Simplicius of Cilicia , and Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite , and he knew about other Neoplatonists, such as Plotinus and Porphyry, through second-hand sources. The German mystic Meister Eckhart ( c.  1260  – c.  1328 ) was also influenced by Neoplatonism, propagating a contemplative way of life which points to the Godhead beyond the nameable God. Neoplatonism also had

15600-596: The works of neoplatonism during the failed attempt to reconcile the East–West Schism at the Council of Florence . At Florence, Plethon met Cosimo de' Medici and influenced the latter's decision to found a new Platonic Academy there. Cosimo subsequently appointed as head Marsilio Ficino, who proceeded to translate all Plato's works, the Enneads of Plotinus, and various other neoplatonist works into Latin. The major reason for

15730-569: Was a "civilizing hero", an initiator into the mysteries of the divine science and wisdom that animate the world; he carved the principles of this sacred science in hieroglyphs . The second Hermes, in Babylon , was the initiator of Pythagoras . The third Hermes was the first teacher of alchemy . "A faceless prophet," writes the Islamicist Pierre Lory , "Hermes possesses no concrete or salient characteristics, differing in this regard from most of

15860-477: Was also strongly associated with astrology, for example by the influential Islamic astrologer Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi (787–886). The "Hermetic tradition" consequently refers to alchemy, magic, astrology, and related subjects. The texts are usually divided into two categories: the philosophical and the technical hermetica. The former deals mainly with philosophy , and the latter with practical magic, potions, and alchemy. The expression " hermetically sealed " comes from

15990-418: Was combined with Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom. The Egyptian priest and polymath Imhotep had been deified long after his death and therefore assimilated to Thoth in the classical and Hellenistic periods. The renowned scribe Amenhotep and a wise man named Teôs were coequal deities of wisdom, science, and medicine; and, thus, they were placed alongside Imhotep in shrines dedicated to Thoth–Hermes during

16120-456: Was finally closed by Justinian I because of active paganism of its professors. Other schools continued in Constantinople , Antioch , Alexandria and Gaza which were the centers of Justinian's empire. After the closure of the neoplatonic academy, neoplatonic and/or secular philosophical studies continued in publicly funded schools in Alexandria and Gaza. In the early seventh century,

16250-427: Was given by God to man in antiquity and passed through a series of prophets, which included Zoroaster and Plato . In order to demonstrate the verity of the prisca theologia, Christians appropriated the Hermetic teachings for their own purposes. By this account, Hermes Trismegistus was either a contemporary of Moses , or the third in a line of men named Hermes, i.e. Enoch , Noah , and the Egyptian priest king who

16380-404: Was in the divine realm and that the material world was a place of exile, albeit with a more positive view in Hermeticism. The Hermetic tradition of ascension through knowledge and purification paralleled Gnostic teachings about the soul’s journey back to the divine source, linking the two esoteric traditions. The Hermetica is a collection of texts attributed to Hermes Trismegistus , and it forms

16510-520: Was part of a broader intellectual effort to reconcile pagan and Christian wisdom during this period. "As above, so below" is a popular modern paraphrase of the second verse of the Emerald Tablet (a compact and cryptic text attributed to Hermes Trismegistus and first attested in a late eight or early ninth century Arabic source), as it appears in its most widely divulged medieval Latin translation: Quod est superius est sicut quod inferius, et quod inferius est sicut quod est superius. That which

16640-414: Was reintroduced to the West when, in 1460, a man named Leonardo di Pistoia brought the Corpus Hermeticum to Pistoia . He was one of many agents sent out by Pistoia's ruler, Cosimo de' Medici , to scour European monasteries for lost ancient writings. The work of such writers as Giovanni Pico della Mirandola , who attempted to reconcile Jewish kabbalah and Christian mysticism , brought Hermeticism into

16770-441: Was so distinct from those of his predecessors that it should be thought to introduce a new period in the history of Platonism. Some contemporary scholars, however, have taken issue with this assumption and have doubted that neoplatonism constitutes a useful label. They claim that merely marginal differences separate Plotinus' teachings from those of his immediate predecessors. As a pupil of philosopher Ammonius Saccas , Plotinus used

16900-486: Was still tempered by neoplatonism. The term logos was interpreted variously in neoplatonism. Plotinus refers to Thales in interpreting logos as the principle of meditation, the interrelationship between the hypostases (Soul, Spirit (nous) and the 'One'). St. John introduces a relation between Logos and the Son, Christ , whereas Paul calls it 'Son', 'Image', and 'Form'. Victorinus subsequently differentiated

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