(Now “middleness”[670] we define not as that mean which in opposites is seen to be equally remote from the extremes, as, for instance, in colours, tawny or dusky, and warm in the case of hot and cold, and the like, but that which unifies and links together what is separate; for instance the sort of thing that Empedocles[671] means by Harmony when from it he altogether eliminates Strife. And now what does Helios link together, and of what is he the middle? I assert then that he is midway between the visible gods who surround the universe and the immaterial and intelligible gods who surround the Good—for the intelligible and divine substance is as it were multiplied without external influence and without addition. For that the intellectual and wholly beautiful substance of King Helios is middle in the sense of being unmixed with extremes, complete in itself, and distinct from the whole number of the gods, visible and invisible, both those perceptible by sense and those which are intelligible only, I have already declared, and also in what sense we must conceive of his middleness. But if I must also describe these things one by one, in order that we may discern with our intelligence how his intermediary nature, in its various forms, is related both to the highest and the lowest, even though it is not easy to recount it all, yet let me try to say what can be said.)
Ἓν παντελῶς τὸ νοητὸν ἀεὶ προüπάρχον, τὰ[672] δὲ πάντα ὁμοῦ συνειληφὸς ἐν τῷ ἑνί. τί δέ; οὐχὶ καὶ ὁ σύμπας κόσμος ἕν ἐστι ζῷον ὅλον δι᾽ ὅλου ψυχῆς καὶ νοῦ πλῆρες, τέλειον ἐκ μερῶν τελείων;[673] ταύτης οὖν τῆς διπλῆς ἑνοειδοῦς τελειότητος· φημὶ δὲ τῆς ἐν τῷ νοητῷ πάντα ἐν ἑνὶ συνεχούσης, καὶ τῆς περὶ τὸν κόσμον [C] εἰς μίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν φύσιν τελείαν συναγομένης ἑνώσεως· ἡ τοῦ βασιλέως Ἡλίου μέση τελειότης ἑνοειδής ἐστιν, ἐν τοῖς νοεροῖς ἱδρυμένη θεοῖς. ἀλλὰ δὴ τὸ μετὰ τοῦτο συνοχή τίς ἐστιν ἐν τῷ νοητῷ τῶν θεῶν κόσμῳ πάντα πρὸς τὸ ἓν συντάττουσα. τί δέ; οὐχὶ καὶ περὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν φαίνεται κύκλῳ πορευομένη τοῦ πέμπτου σώματος οὐσία,[674] ἣ πάντα συνέχει τὰ μέρη καὶ σφίγγει πρὸς αὑτὰ συνέχουσα τὸ φύσει σκεδαστὸν αὐτῶν καὶ ἀπορρέον ἀπ᾽ ἀλλήλων; δύο δὴ ταύτας τὰς[675] οὐσίας συνοχῆς αἰτίας, τὴν μὲν ἐν τοῖς νοητοῖς, [D] τὴν δὲ ἐν τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς φαινομένην ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἥλιος εἰς ταὐτὸ συνάπτει, τῆς μὲν μιμούμενος τὴν συνεκτικὴν δύναμιν ἐν τοῖς νοεροῖς, ἅτε ἐξ αὐτῆς προελθών, τῆς δὲ τελευταίας προκατάρχων, ἣ περὶ τὸν ἐμφανῆ θεωρεῖται κόσμον. μή ποτε οὖν καὶ τὸ [pg 380] αὐθυπόστατον πρῶτον μὲν ἐν τοῖς νοητοῖς ὑπάρχον, τελευταῖον δ᾽ [140] ἐν τοῖς κατ᾽ οὐρανὸν φαινομένοις μέσην ἔχει τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως οὐσίαν αὐθυπόστατον Ἡλίου, ἀφ᾽ ἧς κάτεισιν οἰσίας πρωτουργοῦ εἰς τὸν ἐμφανῆ κόσμον ἡ περιλάμπουσα τὰ σύμπαντα αὐγή; πάλιν δὲ κατ᾽ ἄλλο σκοποῦντι εἷς μὲν ὁ τῶν ὅλων δημιουργός, πολλοὶ δὲ οἱ κατ᾽ οὐρανὸν περιπολοῦντες δημιουργικοὶ θεοί. μέσην ἄρα καὶ τούτων τὴν ἀφ᾽ Ἡλίου καθήκουσαν εἰς τὸν κόσμον δημιουργίαν θετέον. [B] ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ γόνιμον τῆς ζωῆς πολὺ μὲν καὶ ὑπέρπληρες ἐν τῷ νοητῷ, φαίνεται δὲ ζωῆς γονίμου καὶ ὁ κόσμος ὢν πλήρης. πρόδηλον οὖν ὅτι καὶ τὸ γόνιμον τοῦ βασιλέως Ἡλίου τῆς ζωῆς μέσον ἐστὶν ἀμφοῖν, ἐπεὶ τούτῳ μαρτυρεῖ καὶ τὰ φαινόμενα· τὰ μὲν γὰρ τελειοῖ τῶν εἰδῶν, τὰ δὲ ἐργάζεται, τὰ δὲ κοσμεῖ, τὰ δὲ ἀνεγείρει, καὶ ἓν οὐδέν ἐστιν, ὃ δίχα τῆς ἀφ᾽ Ἡλίου δημιουργικῆς δυνάμεως εἰς φῶς πρόεισι [C] καὶ γένεσιν. ἔτι πρὸς τούτοις εἰ τὴν ἐν τοῖς νοητοῖς ἄχραντον καὶ καθαρὰν ἄυλον οὐσίαν νοήσαιμεν, οὐδενὸς ἔξωθεν αὐτῇ προσιόντος οὐδὲ ἐνυπάρχοντος ἀλλοτρίου, πλήρη δὲ τῆς οἰκείας ἀχράντου καθαρότητος, τήν τε ἐν τῷ [pg 382] κόσμῳ περὶ τὸ κύκλῳ φερόμενον σῶμα πρὸς πάντα ἀμιγῆ τὰ στοιχεῖα λίαν εἰλικρινῆ καὶ καθαρὰν φύσιν ἀχράντου καὶ δαιμονίου σώματος, ἑυρήσομεν καὶ τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως [D] Ἡλίου λαμπρὰν καὶ ἀκήρατον οὐσίαν ἀμφοῖν μέσην, τῆς τε ἐν τοῖς νοητοῖς ἀύλου καθαρότητος καὶ τῆς ἐν τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς ἀχράντου καὶ ἀμιγοῦς πρὸς γένεσιν καὶ φθορὰν καθαρᾶς εἰλικρινείας. μέγιστον δὲ τούτου τεκμήριον, ὅτι μηδὲ τὸ φῶς, ὃ μάλιστα ἐκεῖθεν ἐπὶ γῆν φέρεται, συμμίγνυταί τινι μηδὲ ἀναδέχεται ῥύπον καὶ μίασμα, μένει δὲ πάντως ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς οὖσιν ἄχραντον καὶ ἀμόλυντον καὶ ἀπαθές.
(Wholly one is the intelligible world, pre-existent from all time, and it combines all things together in the One. Again is not our whole world also one complete living organism, wholly throughout the whole of it full of soul and intelligence, “perfect, with all its parts perfect”? Midway then between this uniform two-fold perfection—I mean that one kind of unity holds together in one all that exists in the intelligible world, while the other kind of unity unites in the visible world all things into one and the same perfect nature—between these, I say, is the uniform perfection of King Helios, established among the intellectual gods. There is, however, next in order, a sort of binding force in the intelligible world of the gods, which orders all things into one. Again is there not visible in the heavens also, travelling in its orbit, the nature of the Fifth Substance, which links and compresses[676] together all the parts, holding together things that by nature are prone to scatter and to fall away from one another? These existences, therefore, which are two causes of connection, one in the intelligible world, while the other appears in the world of sense-perception, King Helios combines into one, imitating the synthetic power of the former among the intellectual gods, seeing that he proceeds from it, and subsisting prior to the latter which is seen in the visible world. Then must not the unconditioned also, which exists primarily in the intelligible world, and finally among the visible bodies in the heavens, possess midway between these two the unconditioned substance of King Helios, and from that primary creative substance do not the rays of his light, illumining all things, descend to the visible world? Again, to take another point of view, the creator of the whole is one, but many are the creative gods[677] who revolve in the heavens. Midmost therefore of these also we must place the creative activity which descends into the world from Helios. But also the power of generating life is abundant and overflowing in the intelligible world; and our world also appears to be full of generative life. It is therefore evident that the life-generating power of King Helios also is midway between both the worlds: and the phenomena of our world also bear witness to this. For some forms he perfects, others he makes, or adorns, or wakes to life, and there is no single thing which, apart from the creative power derived from Helios, can come to light and to birth. And further, besides this, if we should comprehend the pure and undefiled and immaterial substance[678] among the intelligible gods—to which nothing external is added, nor has any alien thing a place therein, but it is filled with its own unstained purity—and if we should comprehend also the pure and unmixed nature of unstained and divine substance, whose elements are wholly unmixed, and which, in the visible universe, surrounds the substance that revolves,[679] here also we should discover the radiant and stainless substance of King Helios, midway between the two; that is to say, midway between the immaterial purity that exists among the intelligible gods, and that perfect purity, unstained and free from birth and death, that exists in the world which we can perceive. And the greatest proof of this is that not even the light which comes down nearest to the earth from the sun is mixed with anything, nor does it admit dirt and defilement, but remains wholly pure and without stain and free from external influences among all existing things.)
Ἔτι δὲ προσεκτέον τοῖς ἀύλοις εἴδεσι καὶ νοητοῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς, ὅσα περὶ τὴν ὕλην ἐστὶν [141] ἢ περὶ τὸ ὑποκείμενον. ἀναφανήσεται πάλιν ἐνταῦθα μέσον τὸ νοερὸν τῶν περὶ τὸν μέγαν Ἥλιον εἰδῶν, ὑφ᾽ ὧν καὶ τὰ περὶ τὴν ὕλην εἴδη βοηθεῖται μήποτε ἂν δυνηθέντα μήτε εἶναι μήτε σώζεσθαι μὴ παρ᾽ ἐκείνου πρὸς τὴν οὐσίαν συνεργούμενα. τί γάρ; οὐχ οὗτος ἐστι τῆς διακρίσεως τῶν εἰδῶν καὶ συγκρίσεως τῆς ὕλης αἴτιος, οὐ νοεῖν ἡμῖν αὑτὸν μόνον παρέχων, ἁλλὰ καὶ ὁρᾶν ὄμμασιν; ἡ γάρ τοι τῶν [pg 384] ἀκτίνων εἰς πάντα τὸν κόσμον διανομὴ καὶ ἡ τοῦ φωτὸς ἕνωσις [B] τὴν δημιουργικὴν ἐνδείκνυται διάκρισιν τῆς ποιήσεως.
(But we must go on to consider the immaterial and intelligible forms,[680] and also those visible forms which are united with matter or the substratum. Here again, the intellectual will be found to be midmost among the forms that surround mighty Helios, by which forms in their turn the material forms are aided; for they never could have existed or been preserved, had they not been brought, by his aid, into connection with being. For consider: is not he the cause of the separation of the forms, and of the combination of matter, in that he not only permits us to comprehend his very self, but also to behold him with our eyes? For the distribution of his rays over the whole universe, and the unifying power of his light, prove him to be the master workman who gives an individual existence to everything that is created.)
Πολλῶν δὲ ὄντων ἔτι περὶ τὴν οὐσίαν τοῦ θεοῦ τῶν φαινομένων ἀγαθῶν, ἃ δὴ ὅτι μέσος ἐστὶ τῶν τε νοητῶν καὶ τῶν ἐγκοσμίων θεῶν παρίστησιν, ἐπὶ τὴν τελευταίαν αὐτοῦ μετίωμεν ἐμφανῆ λῆξιν. πρώτη μὲν οὖν ἐστιν αὐτοῦ τῶν περὶ τὸν τελευταῖον κόσμον ἡ τῶν ἡλιακῶν ἀγγέλων οἷον ἐν παραδείγματι τὴν ἰδέαν καὶ τὴν ὑπόστασιν ἔχουσα· μετὰ ταύτην δὲ ἡ τῶν αἰσθητῶν γεννητική, [C] ἧς τὸ μὲν τιμιώτερον οὐρανοῦ καὶ ἀστέρων ἔχει τὴν αἰτίαν, τὸ δὲ ὑποδεέστερον ἐπιτροπεύει τὴν γένεσιν, ἐξ ἀιδίου περιέχον αὐτῆς ἐν ἑαυτῷ τὴν ἀγέννητον αἰτίαν. ἅπαντα μὲν οὖν τὰ περὶ τὴν οὐσίαν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦδε διελθεῖν οὐδὲ εἴ τῳ δοίη νοῆσαι αὐτὰ[681] ὁ θεὸς οὗτος δυνατόν, ὅπου καὶ τὰ πάντα περιλαβεῖν τῷ νῷ ἔμοιγε φαίνεται ἀδύνατον.
(Now though there are many more blessings connected with the substance of the god and apparent to us, which show that he is midway between the intelligible and the mundane gods[682] let us proceed to his last visible province. His first province then in the last of the worlds is, as though by way of a pattern, to give form and personality to the sun's angels.[683] Next is his province of generating the world of sense-perception, of which the more honourable part contains the cause of the heavens and the heavenly bodies, while the inferior part guides this our world of becoming, and from eternity contains in itself the uncreated cause of that world. Now to describe all the properties of the substance of this god, even though the god himself should grant one to comprehend them, is impossible, seeing that even to grasp them all with the mind is, in my opinion, beyond our power.)
Ἐπεὶ δὲ πολλὰ διεληλύθαμεν, ἐπιθετέον ὥσπερ σφραγῖδα τῷ λόγῳ τῷδε μέλλοντας ἐφ᾽ ἕτερα μεταβαίνειν οὐκ ἐλάττονος [D] τῆς θεωρίας δεόμενα. τίς οὖν ἡ σφραγὶς καὶ οἷον ἐν κεφαλαίῳ τὰ πάντα περιλαμβάνουσα ἡ περὶ τῆς οὐσίας τοῦ θεοῦ νόησις, αὐτὸς ἡμῖν ἐπὶ νοῦν θείη βουλομένοις ἐν βραχεῖ συνελεῖν τήν τε αἰτίαν, ἀφ᾽ ἧς προῆλθε, [pg 386] καὶ αὐτὸς ὅστις ἐστί, τίνων τε ἀποπληροῖ τὸν ἐμφανῆ κόσμον. ῥητέον οὖν ὡς ἐξ ἑνὸς μὲν προῆλθε τοῦ θεοῦ εἷς ἀφ᾽ ἑνὸς τοῦ νοητοῦ κόσμου βασιλεὺς Ἥλιος, [142] τῶν νοερῶν θεῶν μέσος ἐν μέσοις τεταγμένος κατὰ παντοίαν μεσότητα, τὴν ὁμόφρονα καὶ φίλην καὶ τὰ διεστῶτα συνάγουσαν, εἰς ἕνωσιν ἄγων τὰ τελευταῖα τοῖς πρώτοις, τελειότητος καὶ συνοχῆς καὶ γονίμου ζωῆς καὶ τῆς ἑνοειδοῦς οὐσίας τὰ μέσα ἔχων ἐν ἑαυτῷ, τῷ τε αἰσθητῷ κόσμῳ παντοίων ἀγαθῶν προηγούμενος,[684] οὐ μόνον δι᾽ ἧς αὐτὸς αὐγῆς περιλάμπει κοσμῶν καὶ φαιδρύνων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν οὐσίαν τῶν ἡλιακῶν ἀγγέλων[685] ἑαυτῷ συνυποστήσας καὶ τὴν ἀγέννητον αἰτίαν [B] τῶν γινομένων περιέχων, ἔτι τε πρὸ ταύτης τῶν ἀιδίων σωμάτων τὴν ἀγήρω καὶ μόνιμον τῆς ζωῆς αἰτίαν.
(But since I have already described many of them, I must set a seal, as it were, on this discourse, now that I am about to pass to other subjects that demand no less investigation. What then that seal is, and what is the knowledge of the god's substance that embraces all these questions, and as it were sums them up under one head, may he himself suggest to my mind, since I desire to describe in a brief summary both the cause from which he proceeded, and his own nature, and those blessings with which he fills the visible world. This then we must declare, that King Helios is One and proceeds from one god, even from the intelligible world which is itself One; and that he is midmost of the intellectual gods, stationed in their midst by every kind of mediateness that is harmonious and friendly, and that joins what is sundered; and that he brings together into one the last and the first, having in his own person the means of completeness, of connection, of generative life and of uniform being: and that for the world which we can perceive he initiates blessings of all sorts, not only by means of the light with which he illumines it, adorning it and giving it its splendour, but also because he calls into existence, along with himself, the substance of the Sun's angels; and that finally in himself he comprehends the ungenerated cause of things generated, and further, and prior to this, the ageless and abiding cause of the life of the imperishable bodies.[686])
Ἃ μὲν οὖν περὶ τῆς οὐσίας ἐχρῆν εἰπεῖν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦδε, καίτοι τῶν πλείστων παραλειφθέντων, εἴρηται ὅμως οὐκ ὀλίγα· ἐπεὶ δὲ τὸ τῶν δυνάμεων αὐτοῦ πλῆθος καὶ τὸ τῶν ἐνεργειῶν κάλλος τοσοῦτόν ἐστιν, ὥστε εἶναι τῶν περὶ τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτοῦ θεωρουμένων ὑπερβολήν, ἐπεὶ καὶ πέφυκε τὰ θεῖα προϊόντα εἰς τὸ ἐμφανὲς πληθύνεσθαι διὰ τὸ περιὸν καὶ γόνιμον τῆς ζωῆς, ὅρα τί δράσομεν, [C] οἳ [pg 388] πρὸς ἀχανὲς πέλαγος ἀποδυόμεθα, μόγις καὶ ἀγαπητῶς ἐκ πολλοῦ τοῦ πρόσθεν ἀναπαυόμενοι λόγου. τολμητέον δ᾽ ὅμως τῷ θεῷ θαρροῦντα καὶ πειρατέον ἅψασθαι τοῦ λόγου.