Henosis () is the classical Greek word for mystical "oneness", "union" or "unity". In Neoplatonism, henosis is unification with what is fundamental in reality: the One (), the Source, or Monism. The Neoplatonic concept has precedents in the Greek mystery religions as well as parallels in Eastern philosophy. It is further developed in the Corpus Hermeticum, in Christian theology, Islamic Mysticism, soteriology and mysticism, and is an important factor in the historical development of monotheism during Late Antiquity.
Etymology
The term is relatively common in classical texts, and has the meaning of "union" or "unity".
Process of unification
Henosis, or primordial unity, is rational and deterministic, emanating from
indeterminism an uncaused cause. Each individual as a microcosm reflects the gradual ordering of the universe referred to as the macrocosm. In mimicking the demiurge (
Nous), one unites with The One or Monad. Thus the process of unification, of "The Being" and "The One", is called henosis, the culmination of which is
Apotheosis.
Plotinus
Henosis for Plotinus (204/5–270 CE) was defined in his works as a reversing of the ontological process of consciousness via
meditation (or
contemplation) toward no thought (
nous or
demiurge) and no division (dyad) within the individual (being). As is specified in the writings of
Plotinus on
Henology, one can reach a
tabula rasa, a blank state where the individual may grasp or merge with The One. This absolute simplicity means that the nous or the person is then dissolved, completely absorbed back into the Monad.
Within the Enneads of Plotinus, the Monad can be referred to as the Good above the demiurge.[Neoplatonism and Gnosticism By Richard T. Wallis, Jay Bregman, International Society for Neoplatonic Studies [1]][John M. Dillon, "Pleroma and Noetic Cosmos: A Comparative Study" in Neoplatonism and Gnosticism (1992), R.T. Wallis, ed., State Univ. of New York Press, , 2006 edition:
[2]] The Monad or dunamis (force) is of one singular expression (the will or the one is the good), all is contained in the Monad and the Monad is all and in all (panentheism). All division is reconciled in the one, the final stage before reaching singularity, and what is called duality (dyad) is completely reconciled in the Monad, Source or One (see monism). As the source or substance of all things, the Monad is all encompassing. As infinite and indeterminate, all is reconciled in the dynamis or one. It is the demiurge or second emanation that is the nous in Plotinus. It is the demiurge (creator, action, energy) or nous that "perceives," and therefore causes the force (potential or One) to manifest as energy, or the dyad called the material world. Nous as being, being and perception (intellect) manifest what is called soul (Anima mundi).[Neoplatonism and Gnosticism By Richard T. Wallis, Jay Bregman, International Society for Neoplatonic Studies [3]]
Plotinus words his teachings to reconcile not only Plato with Aristotle, but also various world religions that he had personal contact with during his various travels. Plotinus' works have an ascetic character in that they reject matter as an illusion (non-existent). Matter was strictly treated as immanent, with matter as essential to its being, having no true or transcendental character or essence, substance or ousia. This approach is called philosophical Idealism.
Phases
Plotinus' phases of "mystical union with the One" as given by Mazur (2021):
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Phase 1, Catharsis: self-purification ( aphairesis) from any contamination with multiplicity (of any thought, knowledge, or mental activity); "removing" Being itself ( Enneads III.8.10)
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Phase 2, Mystical self-reversion: "The intellect ... must ‘withdraw backwards’ and surrender itself to what lies behind it" ( Enneads III.8.9)
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Phase 3, Self-realization: luminous vision of one's own self
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Phase 3.2, Self-unification: to "become one from many" ( Enneads VI.9.3)
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Phase 4, Ego death: discussed in the Enneads VI.9
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Phase 5, Union with the One
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Phase 5.2, Desubjectification
Passages in the Enneads describing the different stages of mystical union with the One can be found in I.6, IV.8, VI.9, III.8, V.3, V.5, V.8, and VI.7-8.
Iamblichus of Chalcis
Within the works of Iamblichus of Chalcis (c. 245 – c. 325 AD), the process of achieving
henosis—union with the divine—is not accomplished through contemplation alone, as in the teachings of
Plotinus, but through the ritual practice of
theurgy. By reenacting the creative ordering of the cosmos, the initiate mimics the actions of the
demiurge and aligns themselves with the divine order. These rituals, drawn in part from the mystery religions, serve to unite the inner and outer aspects of the self, restoring harmony and opening the way to divine union. Central to this process is the assumption of divine forms—a kind of divine embodiment—through which the practitioner ritually identifies with higher beings or intelligences. Through these embodied enactments, the soul ascends the hierarchy of being and is gradually reintegrated into the divine source, culminating in henosis.
See also
Notes
Sources
External links
