The ancients took the sun and Apollo to be the same God; and those who understand the beauty and wisdom of analogy or proportion do tell us, that as the body is to the soul, the sight to the mind, and light to truth, so is the sun with reference to Apollo; affirming the sun to be the offspring proceeding perpetually from Apollo, who is eternal and who continually bringeth him forth

Plutarch, Moralia

Plotinus on why the soul is not material:
"For fire and air and water and earth are in themselves soulless; in the case of any one of these to which soul is present, this enjoys a borrowed life, and there are no other bodies apart from these. And those who take the view that there are other elements in addition to these [i.e., the atomists] have asserted that those are bodies, not souls, and so not possessing life. But if, when none of them possesses life, the conjunction of them creates life, that is an absurdity; whereas if each of them were to have life, even one would be sufficient. But it is quite impossible for a composition of bodies to generate life, and for things devoid of thinking to generate intellect. Moreover, they [i.e., the Stoics] are not also going to claim that these bodies are mixed together in any random way. So, therefore, there should be something that orders them and constitutes the cause of their mixture so that this could assume the role of soul."

Plotinus, Enneads 4.7.2

"For there exists a certain Intelligible which you must perceive by the flower of the mind. For if you should incline your mind toward it and perceive it as perceiving a specific thing, you would not perceive it. For it is the power of strength, visible all around, flashing with intellectual divisions. Therefore, you must not perceive that Intelligible violently but with the flame of mind completely extended which measures all things, except that Intelligible. You must not perceive it intently, but keeping the pure eye of your soul turned away, you should extend an empty mind toward the Intelligible in order to comprehend it, since it exists outside of (your) mind."

The Chaldean Oracles fr. 1

On how and why to study Aristotle:
"But since we do not order and beautify our characters in the manner of irrational animals and in a vulgar way, but through syllogistic argumentation and demonstrative proof, it is right that logic should come before ethics, natural science, mathematics, and theology. ... Now it is plainly apparent that the useful knowledge that can be derived from [the philosophy of Aristotle] is that there is a single first principle of everything, infinite in power, unlimited, incorporeal, uncircumscribed, naturally desired by everything, the good itself. ... Now we say that there are five disciplines that lead us towards the summit of philosophy, namely logic, physics, ethics, mathematics, and theology. Logic is the starting-point, and after it comes ethics, after ethics physics, after physics mathematics, and after mathematics theology. And this is reasonable, since what is completely material must come before what is material in some respects and immaterial in others. After this we must proceed to what is completely immaterial, following the ordinance of the blessed Plotinus, which states the young should be instructed in mathematics so as to become accustomed to incorporeal nature."

Olympiodorus, Introduction to Logic 1.9

Reproduction between men and women is a divine thing and a sort of quasi-immortality:
"All of us are pregnant, Socrates, in body and in soul, and, as soon as we come to a certain age, we naturally desire to give birth. Now no one can possibly give birth in anything ugly; only in something beautiful. That's because when a man and woman come together in order to give birth, this is a godly affair. Pregnancy, reproduction — this is an immortal thing for a mortal animal to do, and it cannot occur in anything that is out of harmony, but ugliness is out of harmony with all that is godly. Beauty, however, is in harmony with the divine. Therefore the goddess who presides at childbirth — she's called Moira or Eilithuia — is really Beauty."

Plato, Symposium 206cd

"Given below are the seven stones which people must have as phylacteries (‘protective amulets’) for the sake of healing. For they are salutary and powerful.

The first is the stone called chrysolith, belonging to Leo (and the Sun).
The second is the stone called aphroselēnos (selenite), belonging to Cancer (and the Moon).
The third is the stone called hematite, belonging to Aries (and Mars).
The fourth is the stone called keraunios (heliotrope?), belonging to Sagittarius (and Jupiter).
The fifth is the stone called mēdos (identification unclear), belonging to Taurus (and Venus).
The sixth is the stone called arabicus (identification unclear), belonging to Virgo (and Mercury).
The seventh is the stone called ostracitis (hornfels?), belonging to Capricorn (and Saturn).

You must seek these so that, through the whole time of your life, you may be under divine protection and so you will forever be healthy and safe."

On Stones, Their Kinds and Their Engravings

On why there must be many gods:
"Now that the One is God follows from its identity with the Good ... the Good being the 'whence' and the 'whither' of all things. Thus if a plurality of gods exist they must have the character of unity. But it is evident that such a plurality in fact exists, inasmuch as every originative cause introduces its proper manifold, which resembles it and is akin to it."

Proclus, Elements of Theology 113

"A God, then, is simple and true in word and deed. He doesn't change himself or deceive others by images, words, or signs, whether in visions or in dreams."

Plato, Republic 382e

"Mortal men you lead to work as you tend to their lives.
The race of mortal men delights in you,
No one escapes your sight as you look down from on high,
When from your eyelids you shake off sweet sleep,
When there is joy for every mortal,
For every reptile, for animals, for birds,
For the broods the sea contains.
All blessings that come from work are your gift."

Orphic Hymns 78.6-13 "To Dawn"

An inconsistent application of rational standards is a sign of a weak mind which prefers talking to acting:

"Philosophy teaches us to act, not to speak; it exacts of every man that he should live according to his own standards, that his life should not be out of harmony with his words, and that, further, his inner life should be of one hue and not out of harmony with all his activities. This, I say, is the highest duty and the highest proof of wisdom, —that deed and word should be in accord, that a man should be equal to himself under all conditions, and always the same. ... You should lay hold, once for all, upon a single norm to live by, and should regulate your whole life according to this norm. Some men restrict themselves at home, but strut with swelling port before the public; such discordance is a fault, and it indicates a wavering mind which cannot yet keep its balance."

Seneca, Letters 20

Platonic Meditation: Dialectic and Contemplation

"[Dialectic] is actually the capacity to say what each thing is, and in what way it differs from other things, and what it has in common with them... Then, it remains still ... no longer busying itself with many things, but having become one [with its objects], it just looks." Plotinus, Enneads 1.3.4

Dialectic
In the Platonic tradition, "meditation" can be broken into two main components: dialectic and contemplation.

Dialectic uses reason to bring the mind up to a point of knowing. Reason is the nobility of the soul and an important spiritual tool; reason is not antithetical to spirituality. Indeed, rationality, at the individual level, corresponds to the Philosopher King at the political level and to Jupiter among the Gods.

The dialectical method consists of considering a proposition from multiple angles with the aim of arriving at a precise definition. Crucially, the object of this definition, if it is accurate, has a real existence and can be accessed by the mind.

For example, you might think about the nature of the soul, or what justice really is, or what Beauty Itself is.

The God Mercury (Hermes) is our guide through the dialectic process.

Contemplation
Our modern conception of meditation derives primarily from Hinduism and Buddhism. What we now tend to think of as "meditation" is akin to what in the Platonic tradition is called contemplation. It is a state of beholding and receptivity. For this reason, it usually follows and, so to speak, crowns dialectic meditation, since the soul will have been elevated to a purer state of knowing by dialectic from which it can now receive the rewards of its effort.

It is important to practice dialectic and contemplation within the context of devotion to the gods. Before you start, always ask that the gods guide you and grant you success.

- CWT Admin

I had two major goals for this channel:
1. Increase awareness of Europe's inherited wisdom tradition as the Western analog of the Upanishads.
2. Help to point our community in the right direction.

After four years of running this channel, I think I have accomplished both. I feel that now is the time for me to refocus on being a private student of the tradition, and so I will be taking an indefinite break from posting until the time is right to return. The chat room will remain open for the time being.

- CWT Admin

📖BOOK RELEASE
"A viable non-Christian European spirituality has long been lacking. The steady decline of Christianity since the 16th century has coincided on one hand with the technological, economic, and political ascent of Europe and the United States, but on the other, with social breakdown, moral erosion, and atheism. While some urge a return to the Church and others look East, we believe the answers lie in Athens and Rome. The Western classical corpus—for Europe what the Upanishads are for India—undergirds and guides our civilization, and we risk losing our way forever if we continue to abandon it. From the wisdom of Plato and Homer to the teleological science of Aristotle and Hippocrates, our inheritance is profound and by no means limited to Christianity—the cave has been with us longer than the cross."

We are pleased to release Volume One of The Flower of the Mind. A treasury of timeless ethical writings, this book is for those seeking an alternative or supplemental spirituality rooted in tradition.