Heinrich Dörrie / Matthias Baltes / Christian Pietsch: Die philosophische Lehre des Platonismus [4]

Volume seven deals with Plato’s theology, establishing the goal, center and as it were the keystone of theocentric Platonic philosophy. The following subjects are dealt with systematically: in the first volume of the set doxographical information on Plato’s theology (182-183), Platonists‘ discussions of other theologies (184-187), Platonic definitions of the deity (188), the problem of recognizing and talking about God (189-192), characteristics of the gods (193-194), types or categories of gods (195-199), the highest God (200-204), place and dealings of the gods (205-206). The second volume of the set is linked to theology with a »downward« spiral of intermediate beings (demons, nymphs, angels, heroes) (207-213). It concludes with the levels of soul (214-230) which are examined in their diverse forms and studied on the basis of the impact and their methods of approaching the divine.