jan 1, 281 - Plotinus (204 – 270 CE)

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History: Plotinus lived during the 3rd century CE, a period of deep political instability and cultural transformation in the Roman Empire — often referred to as the "Crisis of the Third Century". The empire faced constant invasions, economic collapse, and internal fragmentation. Amid this turmoil, intellectual life turned inward, seeking stability not in politics, but in spiritual truth and metaphysical unity.

Ideas: Plotinus is considered the founder of Neoplatonism, a major philosophical movement that shaped late antiquity and early Christian thought. His central idea is the hierarchical structure of reality, which consists of:

-The One (το Ἕν) – the source of all existence, beyond being and thought, utterly simple and perfect.

-Nous (Divine Mind) – the realm of perfect forms and pure thought, emanating from the One.

-Soul (Psyche) – the source of individual souls and the living cosmos, which descends into the material world.

Everything flows (or emanates) from the One, not by will but by necessity — like light radiating from the sun. The human soul, though currently entangled in the material world, longs to return to its divine source.

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