AMMONIUS AND PLOTINUS
In the case of real historical situations, and on considering the conservative nature of human cultures everywhere, such thorough obliteration of local traditions is well-nigh unthinkable. On the other hand, had Brehier wanted to pursue this issue a little further, his momentary one-sentence hunch about an Egyptian cultural backlash against the Hellenizers would have been realistic and on target.

Ammonius and Plotinus

Ammonius Saccas (ca. 175-242 C.E.), or Ammonius the Porter, is acknowledged as being now the most shadowy figure in the chronicles of Hellenic philosophy. He left no written work, and most of what we can still infer about his philosophy must be gleaned from the teachings of his students, Plotinus and Origen the Christian. Actually, we depend for information about Plotinus on the later writings of Porphyry, and concerning Origen on Eusebius and Hierocles.3

Posterity has remembered Ammonius as a theodidaktos; that is, as one who was taught by God. So, apparently he had never studied formally under a recognized Greek teacher of philosophy. 4 Whenever he commented on the writings of earlier Greek philosophers he seemed to have followed the biddings of his own mind.

We know from Porphyry that his teacher Plotinus (205-270 C.E.) had been Ammonius' most devoted and famous student and had developed a similar habit of commenting on philosophical works.5 As a result of knowing this, all references in the Enneads to the writings of earlier Greek philosophers can be read in conflicting ways. Those who presuppose that Plotinus was foremostly a Platonist, generally see his primary dependence on Greek philosophy. On the other hand,

3For a treatment of this question see E. R. Dodds, "Numenius and Ammonius" and subsequent conference discussions in E. R. Dodds et al., Les Sources de Plotin, in Entretiens sur L 'Antiquite Qassique, Book 5 (Geneva, 1966), pp. 3-61.

4Dean Inge, in Grace H. Turnbull, The Essence of Plotinus (Westport, Conn., 1934), p. 2.

5Porphyry, "Life of Plotinus," par. 14, in Plotinus, vol. 1, trans. A. H. Armstrong (Cambridge, Mass., 1978).

those who approach him without this presupposition will discover that, even if all references to Greek philosophers were removed from Plotinus' fifty-four treatises, they would still teach the same ontology.

Ammonius probably would have been amused about the credit given to him by Hieroc1es, in a text by Photius, to the effect that "Ammonius reconciled the doctrines of Plato and Aristotle."6

Indeed while approaching this teacher of Plotinus, as we shall attempt, from his home background of Egyptian theology, we easily can see how Ammonius could have generated all his commentaries without himself becoming overly indebted to the ontologies of either Plato or Aristotle.

"Ammonius bypassed the doctrines of Plato and Aristotle" probably would have been more correct.

The fact is, no one knows exactly how much he actually learned from these Greek masters. It could have been little, or it could have been a little more.

In light of the dependence of Platonic and Aristotelian philosophy on ancient Egyptian ontology, demonstrated earlier, it no longer matters as much as it did at the outset of this study.

The "reconciling doctrine" which Ammonius taught was older than the teachings of Plato and Aristotle, even older than those of Thales and Anaximander. It was Egyptian orthodox emanationalism, ancient enough to have nourished Greek philosophy in its infancy, with almost two millennia to spare.

Why, then, should anyone who has seriously reviewed Greek philosophies still be surprised to find how nicely an Egyptian intellect could harmonize them with his native Egyptian common sense!
Ammonius remained true to the long-established tradition of Egyptian priests: he left no writings.

Beyond that, his students were obligated to him by some vow of secrecy not to publish their mentor's lectures.

Porphyry of Tyre (233-304 C.E.), who for a time became Plotinus' editor and biographer, accused Erennius and Origen of having broken that agreement. Supposedly these men published Ammonius' teachings under two titles: "On the Spirits" (Origen) and "That the King is the Only Maker. ,,7

6See Inge, in Turnbull, The Essence of Plotinus.

7Plotinus, trans. Armstrong, p. 10.

The first could have been a general theological treatise on gods in relation to the All-God, whereas the second could have been a takeoff on the enduring Egyptian question about a monarch's identity with the creative godhead, the Heliopolitan Ennead.

This possibility makes unnecessary Armstrong's severe judgment-to the effect that the second of these titles amounts to a "fulsome piece of court flattery. "

An identification of divine Creator and King was clearly developed in Memphite theology, as it was also explicit in Akhenaton's haughty exc1usivism.

Unfortunately, the Ammonian works themselves are lost, and a discussion of them beyond this paragraph therefore would be a waste of time.

In an essay, "Ammonius der Lehrer des Origenes," Willy Theiler followed Fritz Heinemann (in Hermes 61 [1926]: Ift) in believing that much of Ammonius' philosophy is still extant in written form.8 He postulated a line of succession that began with Ammonius Saccas and led through Origen to Plutarch, and thence to Hierocles.

We then are advised to look for the lost teachings of the founder of Neoplatonism among the legacy of Hierocles, of two centuries later (pp. 2ft). Theiler thus proceeded to reconstruct for us an Ammonius Saccas who conveniently matches the profile of a typical Greek Platonist.

But then, unfortunately, this reconstruction of Ammonius, based on quotes from the two century younger Hierocles, left the betterknown founder of Neoplatonism, Plotinus, stranded "like an island in the stream of Platonic tradition, " as Theiler himself observed (p. 42).

Such speculative tracing of Ammonian texts, over several generations of students and teachers and across a major religious fault line, indeed seems farfetched, too farfetched for comfort.

I personally remain convinced that a historical refocusing on Ammonius Saccas, in the absence of the philosopher's own writings, will fare better by first having a closer look at the bequest of Plotinus.

One may object that Plotinus himself published nothing and that his editor, Porphyry, is a generation removed from Ammonius. In that regard we may note that the relationship between Plotinus and his editor seems fairly well documented. And as far as Plotinus himself

AMMONIUS AND PLOTINUS

8Willy Theiler, Forschungen zum Neuplatonismus (Berlin, 1966).

Beyond that, Plotinus began his studies a year after Origen had left, about 232, and he therefore benefitted from Ammonius' more mature years.

We are told by Porphyry that, on coming to Alexandria, Plotinus listened in on the lectures of all prominent philosophers who could be found in that city at the time. He was summarily disappointed by all.

Only after listening to Ammonius the "Porter," somewhere along the periphery of the Alexandrian establishment, was Plotinus' enthusiasm for philosophical learning rekindled.

When Plotinus, an Egyptian, finally found this teacher, a fellow Egyptian by all indications, he remained his faithful student for eleven years. Such a long span of time suggests that the student was determined to learn nothing short of the teacher's total ontology.

The Enneads of Plotinus therefore still appear to be the best
window through which one may see a reflection of the mind of Ammonius.

And, in turn, the philosophies of both men are still best understood as mirrors that, in the twilight of antiquity, reflected the ancient theology of their homeland civilization.

It now appears as though the Greek philosophical tradition, in itself, for both men has been never more than a convenient modus operandi for intellectual and intercultural discourse.

It is significant that Porphyry of Tyre was unable to elicit from his Egyptian master, Plotinus, any information "about his race or his parents or his native country."

And it is indeed remarkable how Porphyry, the man who thought of himself as one of Plotinus' closest friends, was kept completely in the dark about his teacher's family and religio-ethnic background. Yet, in spite of Plotinus' silence about these matters, the profile of his relationship with Porphyry emerges surprisingly clear.

Porphyry was the industrious student who succeeded in prodding his master into doing more systematic writing. In turn, Plotinus responded by letting Porphyry take the lead as his personal editor. Their friendship therefore primarily was a pragmatic one.

Porphyry had a superior command of the Greek language and Plotinus, whose native language and thought structure were Egyptian, depended on someone like him. That pragmatic friendship endured to the end, even

As an Egyptian who sought the company of colonial Greek philosophers in Alexandria, from somewhere along the sidelines, Plotinus was dedicated to his mission as a bridge builder between the two cultures.

He accepted the challenge to communicate more effectively nearer to the apex of Greek high society. To that effect his Greek students needed to be assured about his Hellenic authenticity and compatibility.

On that account he also was obliged to quote occasionally from prestigious Greek philosophers. He knew quite well that haughty Hellenic minds easily would lose interest in him had they seen through, all the way down, to his deep Egyptian religio-ethnic roots.

In other words, Plotinus, whose status as a teacher rested on the pretence of Hellenic authenticity and competence, had nothing to gain, and much to lose, by chatting about his Egyptian background. On the other hand, given what else we know about the kind and saintly nature of Plotinus, it is almost impossible to imagine that he himself was emotionally cut off from his Egyptian family.

Rather, we may assume safely that, aside from protecting his intercultural role, Plotinus also regarded it as his duty to protect his Egyptian kin from his own Greek friends. They needed to be protected from the local stigma that would have resulted from the presence of gawking foreign tourists, of tourists from the outer empire.

In addition, it even is conceivable that a proud Egyptian family had severed its ties with their son when the latter began to associate with the Greek intruders at Alexandria.

Nevertheless, secrets about ethnicity, home, and family are not as impenetrable as studious men of the type of Porphyry have reckoned them to be. Such family secrets are standard material for gossip among common folk everywhere.

Accordingly, a certain Eunapius told someone that the birthplace of Plotinus was Lyco or Lycopolis. Two towns at the time were known by that name, one in Upper Egypt and another in the Delta.

Perhaps more than any commentary thus far published on Ammonius and Plotinus, this discussion focuses on the manner in which both men have appeared and operated along the periphery of Alexandria's academic community. An analogy from Western

Very few among them are equally conversant in the dominant civilization and in their home culture, and all must apply relational double standards.

A rather obvious clue about the background of Ammonius Saccas has been consistently overlooked by earlier commentators-his name. Ammonius was a common Egyptian name at the time, and this fact testifies to the persistence of New Kingdom Amun religion.

The man Ammonius had been ded;cated, as a child, to the Egyptian hidden godhead Ammon. This means that the boy grew up under parents who, at least, explained to the curious boy the meaning of his name or who, at most, were able to explain to him portions of orthodox Egyptian theology as well.

Thus, after taking into account the strong rational-mystic impulse Ammonius was able to impart to Plotinus, it appears on average that this shadowy founder of Neoplatonism somehow had been reared in accordance with devout Egyptian patterns of piety.

It remains doubtful that these patterns were Christian, even though Eusebius has quoted Porphyry to that effect. 9
In any case, Plotinus, an Egyptian boy of the next generation, became disillusioned with the leading Greek philosophers at Alexandria.

In the native pietism of Ammonius the searching mind of Plotinus discovered a comprehensive view of the world that preserved his Egyptian cultural identity. And over against the background of his own daring impiety toward Greek scholasticism he worked out a replica of that world-view for himself.

A consistent theological emanationalism, and nothing short of that, was the home ideology Ammonius imparted to this student. And in response Plotinus devoted eleven years of his life to studying Egyptian wisdom under Ammonius, as well as its rationalization in relation to Greek colonial philosophy.

The affection that Plotinus, an Egyptian, had for the philosophical wisdom of Ammonius, a fellow Egyptian, seems to have been rooted

9See footnote in Plotinus, trans. Armstrong, pp. lOf.

But such a narrow comparative approach works only until new similarities are discovered elsewhere, in ancient sources that hitherto were deemed outside the family tree of the Greek philosophical school.

When such sources turn out to be in a favorable geographical position, and are precedents as well, then the possibility of other historical indebtedness no longer can be ignored.

Early friends of Plotinus, grudgingly, had to acknowledge his debt to certain predecessors. Porphyry, his principal biographer, is invoked as first witness for the prosecution:

In writing he (Plotinus) is concise and full of thought. He puts things shortly and abounds more in ideas than in words; he generally expresses himself in a tone of rapt inspiration, and states what he himself really feels about the matter and not what has been handed down by tradition.

His writings, however, are full of concealed Stoic and Peripatetic doctrines. Aristotle's Meta
physics, in particular, is concentrated in them. . . .

In the meetings of the school he used to have the commentaries read, perhaps of Severus, perhaps of Cronius or Numenius or Gaius or Atticus, and among the Peripatetics of Aspasius, Alex_nder, Adrastus, and others that were available.

But he did not just speak straight out of these books but took a distinctive personal line in his consideration, and brought the mind of Ammonius to bear on the investigations in hand.ll

Not so much the indebtedness of Plotinus to his antecedents, but more so the independence of his mind, is highlighted in this eulogy by Porphyry.

lOS0 for inslance Paul Henry, "The Place of Plotinus in the History of Thought," in Plotinus: The Enneads, trans. Stephen MacKenna (New York, 1962) pp. xxxv-lxx.

llPorphyry, "Life of Plotinus, " par. 14, in Plotinus, trans. Armstrong, vol. 1.

Feel free to contribute to this thread also. I'm looking for Greco-Roman quotes about ancient Egyptian customs and traditions.

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Originally posted by ausar:

Feel free to contribute to this thread also. I'm looking for Greco-Roman quotes about ancient Egyptian customs and traditions.

http://www.egyptsearch.com/forums/Forum8/HTML/001925.html

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The only problem with many of these quotes is that they rely themselves on second hand translations.We need more first hand translations of the texts to validate information. I only use the Greco-Roman quotes as anthropological material,and their observatrions can be validated with temple reliefs and ancient Egyptian texts.

You ever heard of Shenute,Kovert? He was a Coptic monastic priest located in modern day Sohag that talks mainly about Christianity but unconsciounsly documents many survivals. As do later Coptic homilies[Lifes of Saints].

Have you ever heard of these texts?

I believe the various forms of nonorthodox Islam and Christianity such as Sufism and "Gnostic" are derivations of the "personal piety" that was so evident during the New Kingdom. Of course like "gnostic", "personal piety" is an misleading, inaccurate term but that's what most scholars term this development.

It's a shame Winifred Blackman did not complete her book on the various Christian and Islamic saints and their sects with comparisons with AE, Hellenstic mysteries, and gnostic sects.

quote:

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Originally posted by ausar:

The only problem with many of these quotes is that they rely themselves on second hand translations.We need more first hand translations of the texts to validate information. I only use the Greco-Roman quotes as anthropological material,and their observatrions can be validated with temple reliefs and ancient Egyptian texts.

You ever heard of Shenute,Kovert? He was a Coptic monastic priest located in modern day Sohag that talks mainly about Christianity but unconsciounsly documents many survivals. As do later Coptic homilies[Lifes of Saints].

Have you ever heard of these texts?

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Winifried Blackman did complete some material about modern Sufi and Coptic saint,but the following was very incomplete. In the foreword of Fellahin of Upper Egypt Winifried S. Blackman there is mention of a publising of what reserch Blackman into text form. The reissue of Fellahin of Upper Egypt was in 2000 and its been about 5 years know.

Besides Blackman another book I stumbled upon happens to cover a similar topic. Here is the following book:

Biegman, Nicolaas. Egypt: Moulids, Saints, Sufis. 1st ed. London: Gary Swartz and Kegan Paul International; 1990. 175 pages.
Note: CPR Collection.
A study on the spiritual devotions of the Islamic, Christian and Jewish mystics of Egypt. (Colour photos).

Also another text written in Upper Egypt[not sure if its an authorative indigenous source],but it offers insight into the Late Period in Egypt:

PAPHNUTIUS: Histories of the Monks of Upper Egypt and the Life of Onnophrius Onnophrius
new revised edition Translation and introduction by Tim Vivian

ISBN 087907 540 6

The person who was said to have brought Sufism to Luxor[Southern Upper Egypt] was a man named Abul'l al-Hagag

His annual moulid bears resemblence to the Opet festival.

What do you think of the above insinuation that Plotinus (considered the founder of Neoplatonism, if not one of the most profound of them) was of mixed native egyptian and immigrant greek descent. That Plotinus passed as a full blooded greek for acceptance into elite Alexandrian circles?

Thanks for posting this but its not rare for Egyptians during this period to Hellenize to become more accepted into the mainstream Hellenistic culture. Still there were certain quarters of the cities where Egyptians lived in Alexandria like Rhakotis. Some medical schools in Alexandria had Egyptian influence,but I believe that many of the more elite Alexandrian Greeks probably saw some Egyptians as barbarians. However, this never stopped intermarriage between ethnic Egyptians and Greeks.

Intermarriage between Greeks and Egyptians was quite common in Alexandria and other parts of Egypt. See Alan K. Bowman's book Egypt After the Pharaohs for more details about this.

As far as Ammonius I am not certain. From what I read sometimes children born from unions of Greeks and Egyptians often gave their children Egyptian names. Most taught their children Egyptian also.[see Alan K. Bowman's Egypt After the Pharaohs]

Two very important pieces of indigenous Egyptian literature around this period is The Oracle of the Potter and The Demotic Chronicle which also talk about indigenous pharaohs in parts of southern Upper Egypt which revolted against the Ptolomies.

If possible, let me read your observations on the Corpus Hermeticum supposedly a rendition in Greek of Ancient Egyptian gnosis. Also what was the impact of the Hermetic writings on Medieval European thought? I ask only because a while back I read a text by Frances Yeates titled "Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition".

2.During the 13th century, according to Okasha El Daly there was a school of Egyptians dedicated to producing religious works in Coptic, Greek and Arabic. Therefore it must not be assumed that the AE culture was died out or was abandoned, there are some scholars such as David Frankfurter that propose the Egyptians syncretised their ancient heritage with Hellenic and/or Arabic culure along with the Islamic and Christian faith. So just because a work may be in greek or arabic or have judeo-christian symbolism doesn't necessarily mean it is less egyptian than an old kingdom work with mdr ntr and pharaonic symbolism. I believe Hellenic, Coptic Christian and Islamic Egypt as being continous with dynastic Egypt. Check my medieval arab thread.

3.If you get a chance pick up the Wisdom of Egypt. One chapter claims that for many centuries the hermetic works were held in much higher prestige than the writings of greeks such as Plato, there were extensively studied in universities by students like Isaac newton. Thus one can argue they had a powerful influence on european academia. It is unclear their relationship with secret societies such as the Freemasons and the like. It can be argued that those groups are holdovers from the greek mystery religions but remember there was also an AE influence at work there too. Stephen A Hoeller claims the Roscruscians have their origins from the Cathars and from some sect based in Morocco.

4. Bruno was briefly mentioned in Isis in the Graeco-Roman world. From what I remember his idea of infinite worlds seemed very intriguing. Was he not burned alive by the Catholic Church for being a heretic. I believed he might have been influencd by "gnostic" literature and possibly remnants of an Isiac sect.

5.Plotinus works were written and edited by his student Porphry and from what excerpts authors have quoted from Porphry, it seemed Plotinus ridiculed and attacked "gnostic" schools. I don't see it any different than Protestants critizing Catholics or Sunni vs a Shia.

6. Augustine was a Manichee early in his life and though he eventually became more orthodox Elaine Pagels claims his perspective was still influenced by the manichees and other unorthodox forms of christianity.

7.Still anything that constituted a threat to the orthodox whether islamic or christian were considered and treated as a threat and you lucked out if you were merely exiled or excommunicated. Many people got massacred and priceless books and artifacts were destroyed.

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Originally posted by lamin:
To: Covert

If possible, let me read your observations on the Corpus Hermeticum supposedly a rendition in Greek of Ancient Egyptian gnosis. Also what was the impact of the Hermetic writings on Medieval European thought? I ask only because a while back I read a text by Frances Yeates titled "Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition".

And is there an intellectual thread linking Plotinus with Augustine and the subsequent medieval theological tradition in the West?

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