Neoplatonic Theory of Virtues

Neoplatonic Virtue: Christ, Typhon, and the Chaos at the Center of the WorldIn this session of the Neoplatonic Virtue course, we continued reading Marinus’ Life of Proclus and…

Neoplatonic Virtue: The Education of ProclusIn this session, we continue our reading of Marinus’ Life of Proclus, following the philosopher’s education step by step. We trace: Proclus’ natural…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Fate, Daimon, and the Life of ProclusIn this session of the Neoplatonic Virtue course, we weave together myth, astrology, and biography. We begin with questions about…

Proclus Rising: The Philosopher's Natal ChartJoin me for a special livestreamed class where we explore the natal chart of the late Neoplatonist philosopher Proclus, reconstructed from a mysterious…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Iamblichus' Curriculum and Proclus' Philosophical NatureIn this session of the Neoplatonic Virtue course, we explore Iamblichus’ curriculum for reading Plato as preserved in the Anonymous Prolegomena…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Astrology, the Daimon, and the Higher SelfIn this session, we conclude our reading of Book IX of De Mysteriis, where Iamblichus explores the role of the…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Daimon, Narrative and AstrologyIn this session of the Neoplatonic Virtue course, we begin with Plato’s Myth of Er, exploring the soul’s choice before birth and how…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Material Sacrifice and Divine FriendshipIn this class, we delve into Iamblichus’ critique of the idea that sacrifice can be explained purely through natural sympathy — a…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Beyond Sympathy: Plotinus, Iamblichus, and the Hidden Power of RitualIn this session of the Neoplatonic Virtue course, we conclude our reading of De Mysteriis II.11 and…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Plato, Iamblichus, and Divine MadnessIn this class, we return to the Platonic texts that form the background for Plotinus and Iamblichus, focusing especially on the Phaedrus…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Contemplation and TheurgyIn this session of our Neoplatonic Virtue course, we first finish Porphyry’s Sententiae 32 by wrapping up our discussion of purification: How does the…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Grades of Virtue and Purificatory Virtue In this session, we explore Porphyry’s account of the four classes of virtue and their connection to different types of…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Porphyry on Contemplation and Paradigms of VirtueIn this second session on Porphyry’s Sentence 32, we explore the Neoplatonic hierarchy of virtues in greater depth, focusing on…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Porphyry on Political and Purificatory VirtueIn this 90-minute seminar, we begin reading Sentence 32 of Porphyry’s Sentences, a text that distills and systematizes Plotinus’ teachings on…

Neoplatonic Virtue: On the Daimon and the Soul’s AscentIn this class, we complete our reading of Plotinus’ treatise On Our Allotted Guardian Spirit (Ennead III.4), focusing on the…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Daimonic TensionYitzchok Lowy and I go through chapters 3,4 and 5 of Plotinus' On Our Allotted Daimon, which discuss PLotinus' variable theory of daimones, where there…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Plotinus on the Soul's Cosmic RoleYitzchok Lowy and I discuss chapters 1 and 2 of Ennead III.4 "On Our Allotted Spirit". In these chapters Plotinus sets…

Neoplatonic Virtues: Sources on DaimonesYitzchok Lowy and I discuss the non-social virtues mentioned in the Life of Plotinus and how Porphyry's biography presents a few aspects of the…

Neoplatonic Virtue: The Self in Alcibiades I and in Plotinus' LifeYitzchok Lowy and I recap Plotinus' thought on contemplation, turning towards nous and identifying with your higher self…

Plotinus on Virtue: Becoming GodYitzchok Lowy and I discuss the last chapters on Plotinus' On Virtue, in which the shift of perspective from the person who seeks to…

Plotinus on Virtue: Turning towards NousYitzchok and I discuss chapter IV of Plotinus' on Virtue and its background in Plato's Republic. Plotinus here inquires whether purificaiton is sufficient…

Plotinus On Virtue: Virtue and PurificationYitzchok Lowy and I finish chapter 2 and read through chapter 3 of Plotinus' on Virtue, reviewing the connection between virtue and purity…

The Neoplatonic Theory of the Virtues: IntroductionYitzchok Lowy and I start a new course on the Neoplatonic Theory of the Virtues. I present the syllabus, discuss translation issues,…

Neoplatonic Virtue: Virtue and MeasurementYitzchok Lowy and I finish going over the first chapter of Plotinus' on Virtue and start the second, in which the question of the…