Asclepigenia of Athens Quotes
Asclepigenia of Athens was a fifth-century Greek Neoplatonist philosopher and the daughter of Plutarch of Athens, the head of the Athenian Neoplatonic Academy. Marinus's Life of Proclus identifies her as one of his teacher's principal instructors in the theurgic arts of late Neoplatonism, in which the soul is held to ascend toward the divine through carefully structured ritual and meditative practice. The quotes below are attributed to Asclepigenia of Athens, organized by topic.
Asclepigenia of Athens on God
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Attributed to Asclepigenia of Athens:
“Theurgy is not magic; it is the practical arm of philosophy.”
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Attributed to Asclepigenia of Athens:
“What is reasoned must at last be enacted; the rite is reasoning by the body.”
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Attributed to Asclepigenia of Athens:
“I learned from my father what the schools could teach; the rest I learned from the gods.”
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Attributed to Asclepigenia of Athens:
“The soul ascends because the divine descends to meet it.”
Asclepigenia of Athens on Knowledge
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Attributed to Asclepigenia of Athens:
“What the Academy preserves in books, the household preserves in life.”