In his treatise Against the Gnostics, II 9[33], Plotinus claims that those who challenge the perfection of the celestial bodies cannot be virtuous, least of all can be the self-proclaimed elite of the mankind as in the Gnostics’ narrative. Not only the heavenly bodies are perfect, as their movement in circle shows: they also instance the highest ‘virtue’. What on earth can this mean? II 9[33] is the only treatise of the Enneads where the heavens are described in such terms. This article contends that Plotinus establishes a connection between ‘virtue’ and the celestial bodies in order to refute incisively the astrological beliefs of that kind of would-be Platonists that are the Gnostics in his eyes. He also includes the celestial order in his vision of the structure of reality and of the mankind’s role within the visible world.

The Celestial Bodies in II 9 [33], 13. Implications of Plotinus' Criticism of Gnostic Astrology.

Giulia Guidara
2019-01-01

Abstract

In his treatise Against the Gnostics, II 9[33], Plotinus claims that those who challenge the perfection of the celestial bodies cannot be virtuous, least of all can be the self-proclaimed elite of the mankind as in the Gnostics’ narrative. Not only the heavenly bodies are perfect, as their movement in circle shows: they also instance the highest ‘virtue’. What on earth can this mean? II 9[33] is the only treatise of the Enneads where the heavens are described in such terms. This article contends that Plotinus establishes a connection between ‘virtue’ and the celestial bodies in order to refute incisively the astrological beliefs of that kind of would-be Platonists that are the Gnostics in his eyes. He also includes the celestial order in his vision of the structure of reality and of the mankind’s role within the visible world.
2019
Guidara, Giulia
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11568/1082543
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