Guthrie: Tratado 30 (III, 8) – Of Nature, Contemplation and Unity.

A. OF NATURE.

INTRODUCTION: AS A JOKE, IT MAY BE SAID THAT EVEN PLANTS ASPIRE TO CONTEMPLATION.

ENUMERATION OF THE LOWER FORMS OF CONTEMPLATION.

NATURE ACTS ON MATTER NOT MECHANICALLY BUT BY ITS POTENCY.

NATURE IS IMMOVABLE AS A FORM, BUT NOT AS COMPOUND OF MATTER AND FORM.

BOTH NATURE AND REASON ARE CONTEMPLATION; WHILE UNIVERSAL REASON IS BOTH SOUL AND NATURE.

THE REASON OF NATURE IS THE RESULT OF AN ‘ IMMOVABLE CONTEMPLATION.

NATURE’S CONFESSION THAT HER MOTHER IS UNIVERSAL REASON, AND HER FATHER THE FORMAL REASONS.

DESCRIPTION OF NATURE AS A WEAKER CONTEMPLATION.

IT IS MEN WHO ARE TOO WEAK FOR CONTEMPLATION THAT SEEK A REFUGE IN ACTION.

B. CONTEMPLATION.

THE PROCESSION OF THE WORLD-SOUL.

PRACTICE IS ONLY A PREPARATION FOR CONTEMPLATION.

THIS CONTEMPLATION IS THE GOAL OF ALL KINDS AND GRADES OF EXISTENCE.

EVEN LOWER FORMS OF BEGETTING ARE DUE TO SEMINAL REASONS.

C. OF UNITY.

THE DIFFERENT GRADES OF THOUGHT AND LIFE.

LIKE A CIRCLE, INTELLIGENCE IS INSEPARABLY SINGLE AND MANIFOLD.

TO THE INTELLIGENCE THAT SIMULTANEOUSLY IS THE INTELLIGIBLE THERE MUST BE A SUPREME.

THE BEGETTER OF INTELLIGENCE MUST BE SIMPLER THAN IT, AND IS REACHED NOT BY INTELLIGENT REASONING BUT A SIMPLE INTUITION.

THE SUPREME IS THE POTENTIALITY OF ALL THINGS, ABOVE ALL ACTUALIZATION.

THE SUPREME AS A SPRING OF WATER.

THE SUPREME AS THE TREE OF THE UNIVERSE.

IF UNITY PASSED INTO THE MANIFOLD, THE UNIVERSE WOULD BE DESTROYED.

THIS IS THE BASIS OF THE RETURN TO UNITY.

THE SUPREME IS NOT INTELLIGENCE. WHICH ASPIRES TO THE FORM OF THE GOOD.

THE GOOD AS SUPREME NEITHER NEEDS NOR POSSESSES INTELLECTION.