Ficino / Shepherd Friend to Mankind Marsilio Ficino 1433-1499

1. Auflage 2012
ISBN: 978-0-85683-184-3
Verlag: Shepheard Walwyn (Publishers) Ltd
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 6 - ePub Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 398 Seiten

Eighteen essays re examine Ficino's life and work focusing on three essential aspects: his significance in his own times, his spreading influence throughout Europe and over subsequent centuries in many areas of thought and creativity, and his enduring relevance today. Translation of his major works from Latin enables a new generation to rediscover and share Ficino's vision of human potential.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Ficino, Marsilio

Shepherd, Michael

Leseproben

Introduction
It is not for small things but for great that God created men, who, knowing the great, are not satisfied with small things. Indeed, it is for the limitless alone that He created men, who are the only beings on earth to have re-discovered their infinite nature and who are not fully satisfied by anything limited however great that thing may be.* THIS passage, tucked away in a letter to one of his friends, offers the perfect introduction to Marsilio Ficino for those unfamiliar with his writings. It indicates why the 500th anniversary of his lifetime should be cause for celebration; and reason for his rediscovery as one of the great and timeless ‘friends of mankind’. For he is one of those rare beings who seem to be born with the welfare of the whole human race as their prime concern; and he expresses this with love, authority, scholarship, poetic imagination and sublime eloquence. Re-reading that quotation, we can perhaps begin to imagine – difficult historical exercise though this is – what it was like for men and women of his own time to hear such inspiring, expansive words for the first time. Their tone is not obviously Judaic, Greek, Roman, Christian or Islamic; yet it harmonises the transcendent teachings of all these traditions, and restates their universal message in a fresh and invigorating way; and with all the authority of personal experience. It was writings such as this, from his villa at Careggi overlooking Florence – and personal contact too, for Ficino delivered sermons as a priest, gave lectures, supervised an academy, wrote letters and is said to have been loved by young and old in his day for his conversation – which helped to awaken those surging energies, in many fields of human interest and discovery, which we so marvel at and call the Renaissance. The last half-century has yielded a considerable scholarly literature concerning Ficino (a guide to further reading will be found at the back of this volume), which has established his historical significance: first as translator of Plato and other philosophers from Greek; as highly influential commentator on these; as harmoniser of classical ‘paganism’ and Christianity; and whose writings led to the adoption of the belief in the immortality of the soul as Christian dogma; but beyond that, as a voice in his own right, a teacher of mankind, no less. His influence can be traced – in England and in the idealistic New World as much as anywhere – through the succeeding centuries, as theologian and philosopher (though himself believing these two terms ultimately to be one), and poetic voice of transcendent love, human and divine; inspiring poets and artists with a new, many-layered language of imagination; and providing the new sciences with psychology – literally, the knowledge of the soul. For those who wish to discover the golden thread of our Western tradition – which ultimately must be the tradition of truth itself – Ficino is an excellent point of entry. The image which fits him well is that of the hourglass: in the upper cup, the whole of the cultural inheritance of the Mediterranean from Egypt, Israel, Persia and beyond, Greece, Rome, Byzantium and Islam; and from medieval Europe itself. Then at the narrow neck of the hourglass, Ficino himself, filtering and discriminating grain by grain all this – word and truth, wisdom and speculation. And in the cup below, the fine tilth of culture which his work provided, a seed-bed for the work of others to come. Following up the authors cited and references in his letters, for instance (the easiest starting point, as he himself intended), can take one deep into this Western tradition and the unimaginable riches of the finest thought and the greatest minds. This invitation to live a greater life was received with eager enthusiasm throughout Europe even during his lifetime, by kings, prelates, scholars and artists. But what of the present day? Has Marsilio Ficino anything to say to us today worth listening to? Can he still inspire us to believe ourselves greater than our thoughts? It may come as a surprise to some readers that for a quarter of a century now, in the New World, Ficino has provided an inspiration and method for practising psychotherapists, and a spiritual guide in everyday living; notably in the books of Dr Thomas Moore. It is a merry thought that in America – named after the nephew of one of Ficino’s friends and correspondents – Ficino’s name is more widely known than in Europe at this time. To return to this question of Ficino for today: the answer lies with the reader. Here is a test: on reading that quotation which heads this introduction, is there a warm response – whether ‘That’s true’ or ‘That’s what I’d like to believe’? If there is that warmth, it suggests two things in particular: that it was written from personal experience, not just from convenient idealist theory; and more, that our response proves that we ourselves already know this greatness, this unbounded nature, within ourselves. It is reminding us of what we are. As Ficino says elsewhere, we are essentially that which is greatest within us – which he calls the soul. All his writings are an invitation to all mankind, to live as that greater self; to think and act and love universally, as heirs of the whole Creation; and to find joy in this. His essential message is both profound and practical: the joy, the freedom, of seeking answers to all questions from the viewpoint of the unity of all things. As Ficino himself says, only the unlimited truly satisfies us. This book of celebratory essays is written by some of those who have rediscovered Marsilio Ficino and have come to love him as a teacher and a friend; so its structure is relaxed and personal. But it aims to celebrate three aspects of Ficino’s value over five hundred years, as suggested above: his inspiration in his own times; his extending influence in subsequent centuries and in many directions; and most of all, his continuing practical relevance today. The essays follow this order. Two mental images of the one Ficino may emerge from these essays; and they affect the mind in different ways. One is of Ficino the embodiment: the person, the actuality. As with his patron Cosimo de’ Medici, he appears on the scene at a crucial time; realises what needs to be done; does it; and then leaves the stage of history, his role fulfilled. The other image – almost an imageless image – is of Ficino the shared mind: the writings, the conversations we will never hear, the Ficino who lives on, to be rediscovered and to influence new generations in new ways. Adrian Bertoluzzi, who is currently working on a biography of Marsilio Ficino, provides here an account of Ficino the embodiment: the main events of his life, and the role he played in those vibrant and turbulent times. From the sober details of a quiet life emerges the quintessence of the Renaissance and of Ficino’s significance: one man in his microcosm studying the macrocosm, the whole Creation; the individual seeking the universal. One virtue which the younger generation seems to be carrying into the new millennium is that of compassion – both for the planet and for its inhabitants. Compassion cannot be manufactured; it arises naturally out of observation and heartfelt understanding, and may then move toward contemplation, action or creative work. Clement Salaman in the second essay focusses on Ficino’s compassion, and shows how this compassion spread into all these areas so effectively. One, Two, Three: Plato’s and Plotinus’ search for the One unity; the Eastern principle of non-dualism or advaita (or in Western theology, non-contradiction); and the Christian mystery of the Trinity: each of these presents a method and a challenge to the thinking of theologians, philosophers, mystics and anyone who takes up this adventure in thought. Arthur Farndell, a student of Ficino’s philosophy and of advaita, assembles Ficino’s most inspiring statements on unity, setting them out by theme and context, and translating some passages into English for the first time. The names of Pico della Mirandola and Poliziano (Politian as he was often known in Britain) have both been celebrated over subsequent centuries as stars, young lions of the Renaissance – more so than Ficino; yet there is no modern biography of either at the moment of writing, and their letters – including those to Ficino himself, with all their inherent fascination – mostly await translation. Linda Proud brings these two young men out of the wings to share the spotlight along with Ficino as they did in their own times, giving a sense of the ferment of discussion and new ideas which must have gone on in Florence and beyond; played out against the turbulent backdrop of the times and the personal risks of murderous politics and the bonfires of heresy which attended new thinking. Indeed, both men died young, and some suspected poisoning. What emerges from this account is that ardent love of enquiry and truth which was their bond of friendship, and which must have been that much more intense at the time of the ‘new learning’. With men of stature such as Marsilio Ficino it is easy, in the half-light of hindsight, to underestimate or overestimate them; to adulate them or to cut them down to our size. This is understandable. An effective philosopher will inspire equally in society, action, devotion and knowledge; and speak truth in different ‘voices’ according to his audience. This is so...