the six enneads-第198章

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he　Good…　while　Intellectual…Principle　is　an　Activity　already　defined　Therein；　both　are　of　radiant　beauty　and；　because　they　come　Thence　and　lead　Thither；　they　are　sought　after　by　the　soul…sought；　that　is；　as　things　congenial　though　not　veritably　good　while　yet；　as　belonging　to　that　order　not　to　be　rejected；　the　related；　if　not　good；　is　shunned　in　spite　of　that　relationship；　and　even　remote　and　ignobler　things　may　at　times　prove　attractive。　　　　　The　intense　love　called　forth　by　Life　and　Intellectual…Principle　is　due　not　to　what　they　are　but　to　the　consideration　of　their　nature　as　something　apart；　received　from　above　themselves。　　　　　Material　forms；　containing　light　incorporated　in　them；　need　still　a　light　apart　from　them　that　their　own　light　may　be　manifest；　just　so　the　Beings　of　that　sphere；　all　lightsome；　need　another　and　a　lordlier　light　or　even　they　would　not　be　visible　to　themselves　and　beyond。　　　　　22。　That　light　known；　then　indeed　we　are　stirred　towards　those　Beings　in　longing　and　rejoicing　over　the　radiance　about　them；　just　as　earthly　love　is　not　for　the　material　form　but　for　the　Beauty　manifested　upon　it。　Every　one　of　those　Beings　exists　for　itself　but　becomes　an　object　of　desire　by　the　colour　cast　upon　it　from　The　Good；　source　of　those　graces　and　of　the　love　they　evoke。　The　soul　taking　that　outflow　from　the　divine　is　stirred；　seized　with　a　Bacchic　passion；　goaded　by　these　goads；　it　becomes　Love。　Before　that；　even　Intellectual…Principle　with　all　its　loveliness　did　not　stir　the　soul；　for　that　beauty　is　dead　until　it　take　the　light　of　The　Good；　and　the　soul　lies　supine；　cold　to　all；　unquickened　even　to　Intellectual…Principle　there　before　it。　But　when　there　enters　into　it　a　glow　from　the　divine；　it　gathers　strength；　awakens；　spreads　true　wings；　and　however　urged　by　its　nearer　environing；　speeds　its　buoyant　way　elsewhere；　to　something　greater　to　its　memory：　so　long　as　there　exists　anything　loftier　than　the　near；　its　very　nature　bears　it　upwards；　lifted　by　the　giver　of　that　love。　Beyond　Intellectual…Principle　it　passes　but　beyond　The　Good　it　cannot；　for　nothing　stands　above　That。　Let　it　remain　in　Intellectual…Principle　and　it　sees　the　lovely　and　august；　but　it　is　not　there　possessed　of　all　it　sought；　the　face　it　sees　is　beautiful　no　doubt　but　not　of　power　to　hold　its　gaze　because　lacking　in　the　radiant　grace　which　is　the　bloom　upon　beauty。　　　　　Even　here　we　have　to　recognise　that　beauty　is　that　which　irradiates　symmetry　rather　than　symmetry　itself　and　is　that　which　truly　calls　out　our　love。　　　　　Why　else　is　there　more　of　the　glory　of　beauty　upon　the　living　and　only　some　faint　trace　of　it　upon　the　dead；　though　the　face　yet　retains　all　its　fulness　and　symmetry？　Why　are　the　most　living　portraits　the　most　beautiful；　even　though　the　others　happen　to　be　more　symmetric？　Why　is　the　living　ugly　more　attractive　than　the　sculptured　handsome？　It　is　that　the　one　is　more　nearly　what　we　are　looking　for；　and　this　because　there　is　soul　there；　because　there　is　more　of　the　Idea　of　The　Good；　because　there　is　some　glow　of　the　light　of　The　Good　and　this　illumination　awakens　and　lifts　the　soul　and　all　that　goes　with　it　so　that　the　whole　man　is　won　over　to　goodness；　and　in　the　fullest　measure　stirred　to　life。　　　　　23。　That　which　soul　must　quest；　that　which　sheds　its　light　upon　Intellectual…Principle；　leaving　its　mark　wherever　it　falls；　surely　we　need　not　wonder　that　it　be　of　power　to　draw　to　itself；　calling　back　from　every　wandering　to　rest　before　it。　From　it　came　all；　and　so　there　is　nothing　mightier；　all　is　feeble　before　it。　Of　all　things　the　best；　must　it　not　be　The　Good？　If　by　The　Good　we　mean　the　principle　most　wholly　self…sufficing；　utterly　without　need　of　any　other；　what　can　it　be　but　this？　Before　all　the　rest；　it　was　what　it　was；　when　evil　had　yet　no　place　in　things。　　　　　If　evil　is　a　Later；　there　found　where　there　is　no　trace　of　This…　among　the　very　ultimates；　so　that　on　the　downward　side　evil　has　no　beyond…　then　to　This　evil　stands　full　contrary　with　no　linking　intermediate：　This　therefore　is　The　Good：　either　good　there　is　none；　or　if　there　must　be；　This　and　no　other　is　it。　　　　　And　to　deny　the　good　would　be　to　deny　evil　also；　there　can　then　be　no　difference　in　objects　coming　up　for　choice：　but　that　is　untenable。　　　　　To　This　looks　all　else　that　passes　for　good；　This；　to　nothing。　　　　　What　then　does　it　effect　out　of　its　greatness？　　　　　It　has　produced　Intellectual…Principle；　it　has　produced　Life；　the　souls　which　Intellectual…Principle　sends　forth　and　everything　else　that　partakes　of　Reason；　of　Intellectual…Principle　or　of　Life。　Source　and　spring　of　so　much；　how　describe　its　goodness　and　greatness？　　　　　But　what　does　it　effect　now？　　　　　Even　now　it　is　preserver　of　what　it　produced；　by　it　the　Intellectual　Beings　have　their　Intellection　and　the　living　their　life；　it　breathes　Intellect　in　breathes　Life　in　and；　where　life　is　impossible；　existence。　　　　　24。　But　ourselves…　how　does　it　touch　us？　　　　　We　may　recall　what　we　have　said　of　the　nature　of　the　light　shining　from　it　into　Intellectual…Principle　and　so　by　participation　into　the　soul。　But　for　the　moment　let　us　leave　that　aside　and　put　another　question：　　　　　Does　The　Good　hold　that　nature　and　name　because　some　outside　thing　finds　it　desirable？　May　we　put　it　that　a　thing　desirable　to　one　is　good　to　that　one　and　that　what　is　desirable　to　all　is　to　be　recognised　as　The　Good？　　　　　No　doubt　this　universal　questing　would　make　the　goodness　evident　but　still　there　must　be　in　the　nature　something　to　earn　that　name。　　　　　Further；　is　the　questing　determined　by　the　hope　of　some　acquisition　or　by　sheer　delight？　If　there　is　acquisition；　what　is　it？　If　it　is　a　matter　of　delight；　why　here　rather　than　in　something　else？　　　　　The　question　comes　to　this：　Is　goodness　in　the　appropriate　or　in　something　apart；　and　is　The　Good　good　as　regards　itself　also　or　good　only　as　possessed？　　　　　Any　good　is　such；　necessarily；　not　for　itself　but　for　something　outside。　　　　　But　to　what　nature　is　This　good？　There　is　a　nature　to　which　nothing　is　good。　　　　　And　we　must　not　overlook　what　some　surly　critic　will　surely　bring　up　against　us：　　　　　What's　all　this：　you　scatter　praises　here；　there　and　everywhere：　Life　is　good；　Intellectual…Principle　is　good：　and　yet　The　Good　is　above　them；　how　then　can　Intellectual…Principle　itself　be　good？　Or　what　do　we　gain　by　seeing　the　Ideas　themselves　if　we　see　only　a　particular　Idea　and　nothing　else　＇nothing　〃substantial〃＇？　If　we　are　happy　here　we　may　be　deceived　into　thinking　life　a　good　when　it　is　merely　pleasant；　but　suppose　our　lot　unhappy；　why　should　we　speak　of　good？　Is　mere　personal　existence　good？　What　profit　is　there　in　it？　What　is　the　advantage　in　existence　over　utter　non…existence…　unless　goodness　is　to　be　founded　upon　our　love　of　self？　It　is　the　deception　rooted　in　the　nature　of　things　and　our　dread　of　dissolution　that　lead　to　all　the　〃goods〃　of　your　positing。　　　　　25。　It　is　in　view；　probably；　of　this　difficulty　that　Plato；　in　the　Philebus；　makes　pleasure　an　element　in　the　Term；　the　good　is　not　defined　as　a　simplex　or　set　in　Intellectual…Principle　alone；　while　he　rightly　refrains　from　identifying　the　good　with　the　pleasant；　yet　he　does　not　allow　Intellectual…Principle；　foreign　to　pleasure；　to　be　The　Good；　since　he　sees　no　attractive　power　in　it。　He　may　also　have　had　in　mind　that　the　good；　to　answer　to　its　name；　must　be　a　thing　of　delight　and　that　an　object　of　pursuit　must　at　least　hold　some　pleasure　for　those　that　acquire　and　possess　it；　so　that　where　there　is　no　joy　the　good　too　is　absent；　further　that　pleasure；　implying　pursuit；　cannot　pertain　to　the　First　and　that　therefore　good　cannot。　　　　　All　this　was　very　well；　there　the　enquiry　was　not　as　to　the　Primal　Good　but　as　to　ours；　the　good　dealt　with　in　that　passage　pertains　to　very　different　beings　and　therefore　is　a　different　good；　it　is　a　good　falling　short　of　that　higher；　it　is　a　mingled　thing；　we　are　to　understand　that　good　does　not　hold　place　in　the　One　and　Alone　whose　being　is　too　great　and　different　for　that。　　　　　The　good　must；　no　doubt；　be　a　thing　pursued；　not；　however；　good　because　it　is　pursued　but　pursued　because　it　is　good。　　　　　The　solution；　it　would　seem；　lies　in　priority：　　　　　To　the　lowest　of　things　the　good　is　its　immediate　higher；　each　step　represents