The Works of Dionysius the Areopagite — trans. John Parker
The text is shown on its own: no facing layer is held for this issue.
purification to the pure however pure ; and it being accomplished from the very Godhead by most exalted causes, for all the sacred Mind^by a superessential hiddenness, is in a manner more clear, and exhibits and distributes itself, in a higher degree, to the highest powers around It ; but with regard to the second, or us, the lowest mental powers, as each is distant from, as regards the Divine likeness, so It contracts its brilliant illumination to the single unknowable of its own hiddenness. And it illuminates the second, severally, through the first ; and, if one must speak briefly, it is firstly brought from hiddenness to manifestation through the first powers. This, then, the Theologian was taught by the Angel who was leading him to Liglit — that puri- \ fication, and all the supremely Divine operations.
53 Dio7iys{us the Areopagite illuminating through the first Beings, are distributed to all the rest, according to the relation of each for the deifying participations. Wherefore he reasonably attributed to the Seraphim, after God, the characteristic of purification by fire. There is nothing, then, absurd, if the Seraphim is said to purify the Prophet For, as God purifies all, by being cause of every purification, yea, rather (for I use a familiar illustration) just as our Hierarch, when purifying or enlightening through his Leitourgoi or Priests, is said himself to purify and enlighten, since the Orders consecrated through him attribute to him their own proper sacred operations ; so also the Angel who effected the purification of the Theologian attributes his own purifying science and power to God, indeed, as Cause, but to the Seraphim as first-operating Hierarch ; as any one might say with Angelic reverence, whilst teaching one who was being purified by him, " There is a preeminent Source, and Essence, and Worker, and Cause of the cleansing wrought upon you from me, He Who brings both the first Beings into Being, and holds them together by their fixity around Himself, and keeps them without change and without fall, moving them to the first participations of His own Providential energies (for this. He Who taught me these things used to say, shews the mission of the Seraphim), but as Hierarch and Leader after God, the Marshal of the most exalted Beings, from whom I was taught to purify after the example of God — this is he, who cleanses thee through me, through whom the Cause and Creator on the Heavenly Hierarchy.
he Seraphim), but as Hierarch and Leader after God, the Marshal of the most exalted Beings, from whom I was taught to purify after the example of God — this is he, who cleanses thee through me, through whom the Cause and Creator on the Heavenly Hierarchy. 53 of all cleansing brought forth His own provident energies from the Hidden even to us." These things, then, he taught me, and I impart them to thee. Let it be a part of thy intellectual and discriminating skill, either, to acquit each of the causes assigned from objection, and to honour this before the other as having likelihood and good reason, and perhaps, the truth ; or, to find out from yourself something more allied to the real truth, or to learn from another ; (God, of course, giving expression, and Angels supplying it ;) and to reveal to us,' the friends of Angels, a view more luminous if it should be so, and to me specially welcome.
CAPUT XIV.
What the traditional number of the Angels sig?iifies.
This also is worthy, in my opinion, of intellectual attention, that the tradition of the Oracles concerning the Angels affirms that they are thousand thousands, and myriad myriads, accumulating and multiplying, to themselves, the supreme limits of our numbers, and, through these, shewing clearly, that the ranks of the Heavenly Beings cannot be numbered by us. For many are the blessed hosts of the supermundane minds, surpassing the weak and contracted measurement of our material number, and being definitely known by their own supermundane and heavenly intelligence and science alone, which is given to them in profusion by the supremely Divine and Omniscient P>amer of Wisdom, and essentiating
54 Dionysius the Areopagite
Cause and connecting Force, and encompassing
Term of all created things together J.
CAPUT XV.
What are the morphic likenesses of the Angelic Powers ? 7vhat the fiery ? what the anthroinorphic ? 7vhat are the eyes ? what the nostrils ? what the ears ? what the mouths 1 what the touch ? what the eyelids ? what the eyebrows 1 what the priJ7ie ? what the teeth ? what the shoulders 1 what the elbows and the hands 1 what the heai't ? what the breasts 1 what the back ? what the feet 1 what the wings ? what the nakedness ? what the robe ? what the shining raiment "i what the sacerdotal? what the girdles ? what the rods ? what the spears ? what the battle - axes ? zvhat the measuring iifies ? 7vhat the winds ? what the clouds ? what the brass 1 what the electron ? what the choirs ? what the clappi7ig of hands ? what the colours of different stones ? what what the rods ? what the spears ? what the battle - axes ? zvhat the measuring iifies ? 7vhat the winds ? what the clouds ? what the brass 1 what the electron ? what the choirs ? what the clappi7ig of hands ? what the colours of different stones ? what the appearance of the lion? what the appearance of the ox? what the appearance of the eagle ? what the horses ? what the varieties of coloured horses? what the rivers? what the chariots ? what the wheels ? what the so-called joy of the Angels?
Section I.
Come, then, let us at last, if you please, rest our mental vision from the strain of lofty contemplation, befitting Angels, and descend to the divided and manifold breadth of the many-shaped variety of the Angelic forms, and then return analytically from the
J Dan. vii, lo.
on the Heavenly Hierarchy. 55 same, as from images, to the simplicity of the Heavenly Minds. But let this first be made plain to you, that the explanations of the sacredly depicted likenesses represent the same ranks of the Heavenly. Beings as sometimes ruling, and, at other times, as being ruled ; and the last, ruling, and the first, being ruled ; and the same, as has been said, having first, and middle, and last powers — without introducing anything absurd into the description, according to the following method of explanation. For if indeed we were to say that some are ruled by those above them, and then that they rule the same, and that those above, whilst ruling those below, are ruled by those same who are being ruled, the thing would manifestly be absurd, and mixed with all sorts of confusion. But if we say that the same rule and are ruled, but no longer the self-same, or from the self-same, but that each same is ruled by those before, and rules those below, one might say appropriately that the Divinely pictured presentations in the Oracles may sometimes attribute, properly and truly, the very same, both to first, and middle, and last powers. Now the straining elevation to things above, and their being drawn unswervingly around each other, as being guardians of their own proper powers, and that they participate in the providential faculty to provide for those below them by mutual communication, befit truly all the Heavenly Beings, although some, pre-eminently and wholly, as we have often said, and others partially and subordinately.
56 Dionysiiis the Areopagite
Section II.