Neoplatonic Virtue: Proclus the Hierophant
In this class, we complete Proclus’ account of the political virtues and turn to the purificatory virtues. We look at how sympathia (fellow feeling) operates as both a cosmic and interpersonal principle, and how Proclus balanced care for orphans, students, and even slaves with his philosophical ideals.
From there, we trace his movement toward purification: abstaining from marriage and reproduction, combining prayer and medicine in ritual practice, and undertaking diverse purifying observances. Proclus saw himself not just as a philosopher but as a hierophant of the whole world, mediating between the human and the divine through sympathy, prayer, and ritual.
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Transcript
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