Logos and logoi in the Plotinian Henology

Abstract

Plotinus takes from the Stoics not only the terms lagos and logoi. but also the categorical architecture of the sensible world which he translates into a platonic context. When they do not correspond to the common sense of "discourse", "doctrine", "rational facul~". or even the "mathematical proportion". the term logos in the Enneadspresents a sense that is close to the corresponding stoic notion and evento the Aristotelian notion. As in Aristotle, in Plotinus, logosremits to the rational content orto an "essence". But considered from a platonic perspective, the rational content -the essence- supposes a Form of which it depends, manifests and makes present. The logoirepresents, on one side, the expression of the Forms in the rational discourse, and corresoond, son the other, to active principies that make appear in thc sensible world those images of the models that are Forms. In this context. Jogosis the set of logoi that assure the possibility of reasoning and the production and organization of the sensible world. In a precise way, lagos corresponds to the movement from lntelligence to the rational and productive soul, at all levels: Hypostasis soul, World Soul, particular souls.