the six enneads-第236章

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queness　and　not　in　any　sense　of　being　under　compulsion；　compulsion　did　not　co…exist　with　the　Supreme　but　has　place　only　among　secondaries　and　even　there　can　exercise　no　tyranny；　this　uniqueness　is　not　from　outside。　　　　　This；　then；　it　is；　This　and　no　other；　simply　what　it　must　be；　it　has　not　〃happened〃　but　is　what　by　a　necessity　prior　to　all　necessities　it　must　be。　We　cannot　think　of　it　as　a　chance　existence；　it　is　not　what　it　chanced　to　be　but　what　it　must　be…　and　yet　without　a　〃Must。〃　　　　　All　the　rest　waits　for　the　appearing　of　the　king　to　hail　him　for　himself；　not　a　being　of　accident　and　happening　but　authentically　king；　authentically　Principle；　The　Good　authentically；　not　a　being　that　acts　in　conformity　with　goodness…　and　so；　recognisably；　a　secondary…　but　the　total　unity　that　he　is；　no　moulding　upon　goodness　but　the　very　Good　itself。　　　　　Even　Being　is　exempt　from　happening：　of　course；　anything　happening　happens　to　Being；　but　Being　itself　has　not　happened　nor　is　the　manner　of　its　Being　a　thing　of　happening；　of　derivation；　it　is　the　very　nature　of　Being　to　be；　how　then　can　we　think　that　this　happening　can　attach　to　the　Transcendent　of　Being；　That　in　whose　power　lay　the　very　engendering　of　Being？　　　　　Certainly　this　Transcendent　never　happened　to　be　what　it　is；　it　is　so；　just　as　Being　exists　in　complete　identity　with　its　own　essential　nature　and　that　of　Intellectual…Principle。　Certainly　that　which　has　never　passed　outside　of　its　own　orbit；　unbendingly　what　it　is；　its　own　unchangeably；　is　that　which　may　most　strictly　be　said　to　possess　its　own　being：　what　then　are　we　to　say　when　we　mount　and　contemplate　that　which　stands　yet　higher；　can　we　conceivably　say　〃Thus；　as　we　see　it；　thus　has　it　happened　to　be〃？　Neither　thus　nor　in　any　mode　did　it　happen　to　be；　there　is　no　happening；　there　is　only　a　〃Thus　and　No　Otherwise　than　Thus。〃　And　even　〃Thus〃　is　false；　it　would　imply　limit；　a　defined　form：　to　know　This　is　to　be　able　to　reject　both　the　〃Thus〃　and　the　〃Not…Thus；〃　either　of　which　classes　among　Beings　to　which　alone　Manner　of　Being　can　attach。　　　　　A　〃Thus〃　is　something　that　attaches　to　everything　in　the　world　of　things：　standing　before　the　indefinable　you　may　name　any　of　these　sequents　but　you　must　say　This　is　none　of　them：　at　most　it　is　to　be　conceived　as　the　total　power　towards　things；　supremely　self…concentred；　being　what　it　wills　to　be　or　rather　projecting　into　existence　what　it　wills；　itself　higher　than　all　will；　will　a　thing　beneath　it。　In　a　word　it　neither　willed　its　own　〃Thus〃…　as　something　to　conform　to…　nor　did　any　other　make　it　〃Thus。〃　　　　　10。　The　upholder　of　Happening　must　be　asked　how　this　false　happening　can　be　supposed　to　have　come　about；　taking　it　that　it　did；　and　haw　the　happening；　then；　is　not　universally　prevalent。　If　there　is　to　be　a　natural　scheme　at　all；　it　must　be　admitted　that　this　happening　does　not　and　cannot　exist：　for　if　we　attribute　to　chance　the　Principle　which　is　to　eliminate　chance　from　all　the　rest；　how　can　there　ever　be　anything　independent　of　chance？　And　this　Nature　does　take　away　the　chanced　from　the　rest；　bringing　in　form　and　limit　and　shape。　In　the　case　of　things　thus　conformed　to　reason　the　cause　cannot　be　identified　with　chance　but　must　lie　in　that　very　reason；　chance　must　be　kept　for　what　occurs　apart　from　choice　and　sequence　and　is　purely　concurrent。　When　we　come　to　the　source　of　all　reason；　order　and　limit；　how　can　we　attribute　the　reality　there　to　chance？　Chance　is　no　doubt　master　of　many　things　but　is　not　master　of　Intellectual…Principle；　of　reason；　of　order；　so　as　to　bring　them　into　being。　How　could　chance；　recognised　as　the　very　opposite　of　reason；　be　its　Author？　And　if　it　does　not　produce　Intellectual…Principle；　then　certainly　not　that　which　precedes　and　surpasses　that　Principle。　Chance；　besides；　has　no　means　of　producing；　has　no　being　at　all；　and；　assuredly；　none　in　the　Eternal。　　　　　Since　there　is　nothing　before　Him　who　is　the　First；　we　must　call　a　halt；　there　is　nothing　to　say；　we　may　enquire　into　the　origin　of　his　sequents　but　not　of　Himself　who　has　no　origin。　　　　　But　perhaps；　never　having　come　to　be　but　being　as　He　is；　He　is　still　not　master　of　his　own　essence：　not　master　of　his　essence　but　being　as　He　is；　not　self…originating　but　acting　out　of　his　nature　as　He　finds　it；　must　He　not　be　of　necessity　what　He　is；　inhibited　from　being　otherwise？　　　　　No：　What　He　is；　He　is　not　because　He　could　not　be　otherwise　but　because　so　is　best。　Not　everything　has　power　to　move　towards　the　better　though　nothing　is　prevented　by　any　external　from　moving　towards　the　worse。　But　that　the　Supreme　has　not　so　moved　is　its　own　doing：　there　has　been　no　inhibition；　it　has　not　moved　simply　because　it　is　That　which　does　not　move；　in　this　stability　the　inability　to　degenerate　is　not　powerlessness；　here　permanence　is　very　Act；　a　self…determination。　This　absence　of　declination　comports　the　fulness　of　power；　it　is　not　the　yielding　of　a　being　held　and　controlled　but　the　Act　of　one　who　is　necessity；　law；　to　all。　　　　　Does　this　indicate　a　Necessity　which　has　brought　itself　into　existence？　No：　there　has　been　no　coming　into　being　in　any　degree；　This　is　that　by　which　being　is　brought　to　all　the　rest；　its　sequents。　Above　all　origins；　This　can　owe　being　neither　to　an　extern　nor　to　itself。　　　　　11。　But　this　Unoriginating；　what　is　it？　　　　　We　can　but　withdraw；　silent；　hopeless；　and　search　no　further。　What　can　we　look　for　when　we　have　reached　the　furthest？　Every　enquiry　aims　at　a　first　and；　that　attained；　rests。　　　　　Besides；　we　must　remember　that　all　questioning　deals　with　the　nature　of　a　thing；　its　quality；　its　cause　or　its　essential　being。　In　this　case　the　being…　in　so　far　as　we　can　use　the　word…　is　knowable　only　by　its　sequents：　the　question　as　to　cause　asks　for　a　principle　beyond；　but　the　principle　of　all　has　no　principle；　the　question　as　to　quality　would　be　looking　for　an　attribute　in　that　which　has　none：　the　question　as　to　nature　shows　only　that　we　must　ask　nothing　about　it　but　merely　take　it　into　the　mind　if　we　may；　with　the　knowledge　gained　that　nothing　can　be　permissibly　connected　with　it。　　　　　The　difficulty　this　Principle　presents　to　our　mind　in　so　far　as　we　can　approach　to　conception　of　it　may　be　exhibited　thus：　　　　　We　begin　by　posing　space；　a　place；　a　Chaos；　into　this　existing　container；　real　or　fancied；　we　introduce　God　and　proceed　to　enquire：　we　ask；　for　example；　whence　and　how　He　comes　to　be　there：　we　investigate　the　presence　and　quality　of　this　new…comer　projected　into　the　midst　of　things　here　from　some　height　or　depth。　But　the　difficulty　disappears　if　we　eliminate　all　space　before　we　attempt　to　conceive　God：　He　must　not　be　set　in　anything　either　as　enthroned　in　eternal　immanence　or　as　having　made　some　entry　into　things：　He　is　to　be　conceived　as　existing　alone；　in　that　existence　which　the　necessity　of　discussion　forces　us　to　attribute　to　Him；　with　space　and　all　the　rest　as　later　than　Him…　space　latest　of　all。　Thus　we　conceive　as　far　as　we　may；　the　spaceless；　we　abolish　the　notion　of　any　environment：　we　circumscribe　Him　within　no　limit；　we　attribute　no　extension　to　Him；　He　has　no　quality　since　no　shape；　even　shape　Intellectual；　He　holds　no　relationship　but　exists　in　and　for　Himself　before　anything　is。　　　　　How　can　we　th