On the Divine Names and the Mystical Theology — trans. C. E. Rolt
The translator’s English as printed (C. E. Rolt). The original-language text is not held; names are romanised as the translator printed them.
This transcendent NE activity is called Unknowing. For when we trace out the lines of difference which separate it from other things or which separate one part of it from another mnowledge, in fz an n._or..atist includes, the power of_se ine—<Phis” from strata e are no lines of difference to trace, and there is no “This” or “That.” Or rather, to put it differently, “This” and “That,” being now transcended, are simply one and same thing. While the human spirit is yet imond it. At this stage it still feels itself as “this” still perceives the Super-Essence as “That.” But when it begins to enter on the stage of spiritual Réflection (to use the technical term borrowed by Dionysius from the Mysteries) it penetrates the Super-Essence and darkly perceives that There the distinction ultimately vanishes. It sees a point where “this is) transhouned: into That rand “ Phat” 1s wholly “this.” And, indeed, already “That” begins to pour Itself totally into “this” through the act whereby “this” has plunged itself into “That.”
Thus the ultimate goal of the “ego” now seen afar by Unknowing and attainable, perhaps, hereafter, is to be merged. And yet it will never be lost. Even the last dizzy leap into Absorption will be performed in a true sense by the soul itself and within the soul itself. The statement of Dionysius that in the Super-Essence all things are “fused and yet distinct,” when combined with the doctrine of human immortality, means nothing else. For it means that the immortality of the human soul is of an individual kind; and so the self, in one sense, persists even while, in another sense, it is merged. This is the most astounding paradox of all! And Dionysius states the apparent contradiction without seeking to explain it simply because, here as elsewhere, he is not much concerned with theory but is merely struggling to express in words an overwhelming spiritual experience. The explanation, however (if such it may be called) can easily be deduced from his theory of existence and of personality.
This transcendent … activity is called Unknowing. For when we trace out the lines of difference which separate it from other things, or which separate one part of it from another, … knowledge … includes the power of … “This” from … there are no lines of difference to trace, and there is no “This” or “That.” Or rather, to put it differently, “This” and “That,” being now transcended, are simply one and the same thing. While the human spirit is yet … it. At this stage it still feels itself as “this,” and still perceives the Super-Essence as “That.”
But when it begins to enter on the stage of spiritual Réflection (to use the technical term borrowed by Dionysius from the Mysteries), it penetrates the Super-Essence and darkly perceives that There the distinction ultimately vanishes. It sees a point where “this” is transformed into “That” and “That” is wholly “this.” And indeed “That” already begins to pour Itself totally into “this” through the act by which “this” has plunged itself into “That.”
So the ultimate goal of the “ego,” now seen afar by Unknowing and attainable, perhaps, hereafter, is to be merged. And yet it will never be lost. Even the last dizzy leap into Absorption will be performed, in a true sense, by the soul itself and within the soul itself. The statement of Dionysius that in the Super-Essence all things are “fused and yet distinct,” when combined with the doctrine of human immortality, means nothing else. For it means that the immortality of the human soul is of an individual kind; and so the self in one sense persists, even while in another sense it is merged.
This is the most astounding paradox of all! And Dionysius states the apparent contradiction without trying to explain it, simply because here, as elsewhere, he is not much concerned with theory, but is merely struggling to put into words an overwhelming spiritual experience. The explanation, however (if it may be called that), can easily be deduced from his theory of existence and of personality.