The Essential Plotinus (Hackett Classics)

This is a very fine selection from the Enneads, in a lucid, quite readable translation. Far more accurate than McKenna's paraphrase, it is also much more euphonious than Armstrong's Loeb translation. I have used this text with an undergraduate reading group; we read one of the selected Enneads (or two of the shorter ones) per week over the course of half a semester. It was a great success. The Enneads here are arranged in a logical order, leading students deeper and deeper into the metaphysics. There is a clear introduction to each treatise; and, what I like most about this edition, a group of related readings (from Plato, Aristotle, the presocratics and Stoics) keyed to the Plotinus readings. The edition also comes with a helpful glossary, defining Plotinian terms and crossreferencing them to the selected Enneads, and a 20-page introduction to Plotinus's thought. Taken all together, it is a (nearly) complete self-contained course in Plotinus, either for private study or in a group. I have only a few criticisms. The selections concentrate on the distinction among the three hypostases and their natures. It can thus get a little repetitive: after reading Intelligence, Ideas and Being (V.9), The Good or the One (VI.9) and The Three Primal Hypostases (V.1), one does begin to feel that the same ideas are being hammered into one's head again and again (though Plotinus can be a bit like that...). It would have been interesting, for variety's sake, to have a little more on such subjects as providence, the nature of evil, free will etc. To supplement the text, I had my students read Pierre Hadot's wonderful "Plotinus or the Simplicity of Vision," which avoids getting too much into the complexity of the metaphysics, stressing the transformative and ethical sides of Plotinus's philosophy; and Dillon & Gerson's "Neoplatonic Philosophy," which has (less finely translated) substantial excerpts from Plotinus on evil, providence etc., and continues on through to Proclus. But having said that, I still think that this is the book to start with for anyone who wants to discover for him or herself the beauty and subtlety of Plotinus's philosophy.

Plotinus, the philosopher. Interesting, how Plotinus takes the writings of Plato, the Stoics, Parmenides and fragments of Heraclitus, Anaxagoras, Empedocles and Aristotle and pieces it all together in what he perceives as a clearer model. It's amazing how Plotinus and his predecessors knew all this. How did they? Now on much of their logic, there is validity, but in their assessment of what exactly happens at death and what created the human mind, soul and being is nothing short of human speculation, both valid expressions and those obviously erroneous. Now the feeling I get from reading this book, that is, the psychology of Plotinus, is that of a both very learned individual with much profundity and yet with a pompous officiality of the "philosopher," sort of like the Martin Heidegger of German philosophy - the Mr. "knowledge" and official doctorate of educated impressiveness. I mean, did any of these philosophers die and come back from the other realm to relate in such accurate detail the accounts of Beinghood, the soul and the origin of life? And yet, Plotinus, in many instances, writes as "proof" from what he is interpreting, expounding and elaborating on. You really have to read this book with a grain of salt. I can't help thinking of Swedenborg and Hildegard von Bingen, the metaphysical visionaries of philosophical insight in the Christian mystic venue of origins and spiritual realms of life, although, these mystics do not appear as the pompous philosophical Plotinus type, but much more as the William Blake side of the coin as visionaries of ambiguity, as opposed to Plato, who although discounting myths for reason, wrote the accounts of Phaedo and Phaedrus, the amazing stories of spiritual life in the heavens and their subsequent returns. Such stories influenced our friend here, Plotinus. And so with this in mind, the book itself has many limitations, but it is truly an interesting and enlightening read despite all its declared "proofs" of authenticity. And it relays an outstanding view on facilities of reason, intelligence, Beinghood, unity, diversity, multiplicity, oneness, and so forth. The only thing is sometimes Plotinus speaks rather clearly and beautifully and at other times obscurely and wordy like the German Immanuel Kant in his constant repetition of words over and over again defining themselves in Aristotelian terms of definitive over emphasis. In this book, Plotinus outlays the three hypostasis, the "One," the "Intelligence," and the "Soul." The One transcends essence, existence, beyond number and name, denied of all multiplicity, the first and everything's goal. The Intelligence is undivided Being from which proceeds the Soul which is the maker of the cosmos through Nature. The Soul consists of a multiplicities that are the pilots of earthy life. Beauty consists of an idea of symmetry of diversity in unity, that is an idea we have of multiplicity that is unified symmetrically, which we perceive in form and interpret as

The base of Plotinus' philosophical system begins with what he calls The One, which is all things and no things... absolute unity, completely indivisible and set beyond existence. From The One emanates the less perfect universal Intellect from which the universal Soul emanates also less perfect, from which individual souls emanate. Plotinus postulates that every man is conflicted between a desire for individuality and a stronger, but poorly guided, yearning to return to the absolute unity of the one. He outlines that all beautiful things are more or less reflections of the Unity that all souls seek, but we are easily distracted by the reflections, blinded by the bodily, and led astray. he offers a cosmological view of the universe as it extends from the One and a partial guide to returning oneself to the One, although it is a journey he himself has not been able to complete. Partially philosophic and partially a beautiful spiritual account, The Enneads are essential reading for anyone wanting to fully understand western philosophy; to see a crucial development on Platonic ideas and to see his influence in later philosophy/theology such as the works of Thomas Acquinas. It is so valuable its own right as a well written and thoughtful attempt to express something very familiar but unwordable that runs through the human psyche. The Elmer O'Brien translation is a good introductory text for anyone wishing to become acquinted with, but not deeply familiar with the works of Plotinus. He presents a sort of "best of the treatises" arranged in a way that he finds most accesible to the reader. For the more devoted scholar, the multitude of Loeb copies will both be more accurate, more complete, more comprehensive and offer the oppurtunity to read the greek text directly, which offers many insights that can't be conveyed into a perspicacious english text. As an introductory read, however, the O'Brien far outweighs the McKenna translation in accuracy and conveys a tone somewhat more akin to the actual writings of Plotinus.

Few people today read Plotinus whose work ranked with Plato's and Aristotle's in Antiquity. Indeed a knowledge of this difficult and esoteric philosopher's thought is a must for understanding western philosophy through Spinoza. Unfortunately, MacKenna's edition-- the standard in English-- is lacking for many reasons (looseness and excessive liberty in translation for one). O'Brien avoids these pitfalls. This is a beautiful translation of a well-chosen representation of texts. Start with "On Beauty" for an easy introduction to a mystic tradition now largely forgotten. Make no mistake about it, however, Plotinus is difficult, albeit rewarding, to read under any circumstances (I almost suspect it is a proof of insanity to claim to comprehend fully "The Three Primal Hypostasis"). Luckily O'Brien has done several things to help the reader. Aside from a beautiful translation ably annotated, he supplies a useful introduction and an appendix of texts from Plato, Aristotle and the Stoics that Plotinus creatively appropriated and reinterpreted in a highly original way. O'Brien thoughtfully directs the reader's attention to the appropriate passage[s] in Plotinus. Read this book and you will begin to understand how the teaching of this esoteric Neo-Platonist was once a serious rival to Christianity. I highly recommend this book.