Plotino - Tratado 28,5 (IV, 4, 5) — A memória em sua relação à união da alma e do corpo (5)

5. ¿Entonces, nos preguntaremos, es esa potencia la que hace pasar los inteligibles al acto? Digamos que si realmente no llegamos a contemplarlos, los conocemos por la memoria, y si los contemplamos en sí mismos, lo hacemos a la manera del mundo inteligible. La facultad de que ahora nos servimos se despierta al mismo tiempo que sus objetos y tiene, además, la visión de los objetos de que hablamos. Para dar a conocer los inteligibles no tenemos que valernos de conjeturas, ni de silogismos que tomen sus premisas de otra parte; sino que, ya incluso aquí, y como yo digo, podemos hablar de los seres inteligibles en razón a la facultad que los contempla en su propio mundo. Porque, cuando despertamos en nosotros esa facultad, es el mundo inteligible el que se ofrece a nuestra contemplación; de tal modo que la facultad se despierta con los seres inteligibles, y nosotros mismos, cual si estuviésemos elevados sobre ese mundo, lanzamos nuestra mirada desde un lugar privilegiado, viendo así lo que otros no colocados en este lugar son incapaces de ver.

Se muestra, pues, aquí razonablemente que la memoria comienza para el alma cuando ésta se encuentra en el cielo, esto es, luego de haber abandonado los lugares inteligibles. No tiene nada de sorprendente que, una vez en el cielo, procedente de los lugares del mundo inteligible, el alma conserve el recuerdo de las cosas de aquí y de todo lo que ya se ha dicho; ni lo tiene tampoco que reconozca muchas de las almas que antes había conocido, dado que estas almas cuentan necesariamente con cuerpos que, en su forma, son semejantes a los que ya habían tenido. Aunque estas almas hayan cambiado su cuerpo por otro de forma esférica, no dejarán de ser reconocidas por sus mismos caracteres y sus costumbres particulares. Esto no es nada extraño, porque, a pesar de que estas almas hayan podido desprenderse de sus pasiones, nada impide que conserven sus caracteres. Otro modo de reconocimiento es la misma posibilidad de dialogar.

Pero, ¿cómo serán los recuerdos cuando las almas han descendido del mundo inteligible? Despertarán también su memoria, aunque en un grado menor que para las otras almas, porque tendrán otras muchas cosas de que recordarse. Las habrá hecho completamente olvidadizas el largo tiempo de permanencia (fuera del cielo). Más, ¿qué será de sus recuerdos una vez que caigan en el mundo sensible, donde tienen lugar los nacimientos? No es necesario en modo alguno que caigan hasta el fondo del mundo, porque, si realmente se han puesto en movimiento, también pueden detenerse en su avance. Nada impide, desde luego, que se despojen nuevamente de sus cuerpos antes de que lleguen al límite extremo en el mundo de la generación.

V. La puissance qui constitue la mémoire fait-elle passer à l’état d’actes les notions que nous avons des intelligibles? Si ces notions ne sont pas des intuitions, c’est par la mémoire qu’elles passent à l’état d’actes (10); si ce sont des intuitions, c’est par la puissance qui nous les a données là-haut. Cette puissance s’éveille en nous toutes les fois que nous nous élevons aux choses intelligibles, et elle voit ce dont nous parlons (11). Ce n’est pas en effet par l’imagination ni par le raisonnement, obligé de tirer lui-même ses principes d’ailleurs, que nous nous représentons les intelligibles : c’est par la faculté que nous avons de les contempler, faculté qui nous permet d’en parler même ici-bas. Nous les voyons donc en éveillant en nous ici-bas la même puissance que nous devons éveiller en nous quand nous sommes dans le monde intelligible. Nous ressemblons à un homme qui, gravissant le sommet d’un rocher, apercevrait par son regard des objets invisibles pour ceux qui ne sont pas montés avec lui. Puisque la raison nous démontre ainsi clairement que la mémoire ne se manifeste dans l’âme que lorsque celle-ci descend du monde intelligible dans le ciel, il n’est pas étonnant que, lorsqu’elle s’est élevée d’ici-bas au ciel et qu’elle s’y est arrêtée, elle se rappelle un grand nombre des choses d’ici-bas, de celles dont nous avons déjà parlé (12), et qu’elle reconnaisse beaucoup d’âmes qu’elle a connues antérieurement, puisque ces dernières doivent nécessairement être jointes à des corps qui ont des figures semblables. Si ces âmes changent la figure de leurs corps et les rendent sphériques, elles sont encore reconnaissables par leurs mœurs et leur caractère propre. Cela n’a rien d’incroyable: car, en admettant que ces âmes se soient purifiées de toutes leurs passions, rien n’empêche qu’elles n’aient conservé leur caractère. Si elles peuvent s’entretenir les unes avec les autres, elles ont encore là un moyen de se reconnaître.

Qu’arrive-t-il quand les âmes descendent du monde intelligible dans le ciel? — Elles recouvrent alors la mémoire, mais elles la possèdent à un degré moindre que les âmes qui se sont toujours occupées des mêmes objets. Elles ont d’ailleurs d’autres choses à se rappeler, et un long espace de temps leur a fait oublier bien des actes.

Mais si, après être descendues dans le monde sensible, elles tombent [du ciel] dans la génération, quel sera le temps où elles se souviendront? — Il n’est pas nécessaire que les âmes [qui s’éloignent du monde intelligible] tombent dans les plus basses régions. Il peut arriver que dans leur mouvement elles s’arrêtent après être descendues quelque peu du monde intelligible, et rien ne les empêche de remonter là-haut avant qu’elles se soient abaissées aux régions inférieures de la génération.

INTELLIGIBLE ENTITIES RETURN, NOT BY MEMORY, BUT BY FURTHER VISION.

5. Are our notions of intellectual entities actualized by the potentiality which constitutes memory? If these notions be not intuitions, it is by memory that they become actualized; if they are intuitions, it is by the potentiality which has given them to us on high. This power awakes in us every time that we rise to intelligible things, in it is that which sees what we later talk about. We do not perceive intelligible entities by imagination or reasoning, which itself is forced to draw its principles from elsewhere; it is by our faculty of contemplation, which alone enables us to speak of them while we are here below. We see them by awaking in ourselves here below the same potentiality which we are to arouse when we are in the intelligible world. We resemble a man who, climbing the peak of a rock, should, by his glance, discover objects invisible for those who have not climbed with him.

WHEN SOULS DESCEND FROM THE INTELLIGIBLE TO THE HEAVENS, THEY RECOGNIZE EACH OTHER.

Reasonable arguments therefore clearly demonstrate that memory manifests in the soul only when she has descended from the intelligible world into the (earthly) heavens. Likewise, it would not surprise us if, when she had risen from here below to the heavens, and had dwelt there, she should remember a great number of things from here below, of which we have already spoken, and that she would recognize many souls which she had known earlier, since these latter must necessarily be joined to bodies with similar countenances. Even though the souls should change the shapes of their bodies, making them spherical, they would still be recognizable by their habits and individual character. There is nothing incredible in this, for in admitting that these souls have purified themselves from all these passions, nothing hinders them from preserving their character. Besides, if they can converse with each other, they have this as an additional means of recognizing each other.

TRAINING HERE BELOW WILL HELP THE SOULS TO REMEMBER WHEN BEYOND.

What happens when souls descend from the intelligible world into the (earthly) heavens? They then recover memory, but they possess it in a degree less than the souls who have always occupied themselves with the same objects. Besides, they have many other things to remember, and a long space of time has made them forget many actions.

FALL INTO GENERATION MAY BE PARTIAL; AND MAY BE RECOVERED FROM, BEFORE RUIN.

But if, after having descended into the sense-world they fall (from the heavens) into generation, what will be the time when they will remember? It is not necessary that the souls (which depart from the intelligible world) should fall into the lowest regions. It is possible that, after having descended only a little from the intelligible world their movement may be arrested, and nothing hinders them from returning on high before they have become degraded in the lower regions of generation.

5. But this power which determines memory is it also the principle by which the Supreme becomes effective in us?

At any time when we have not been in direct vision of that sphere, memory is the source of its activity within us; when we have possessed that vision, its presence is due to the principle by which we enjoyed it: this principle awakens where it wakens; and it alone has vision in that order; for this is no matter to be brought to us by way of analogy, or by the syllogistic reasoning whose grounds lie elsewhere; the power which, even here, we possess of discoursing upon the Intellectual Beings is vested, as we show, in that principle which alone is capable of their contemplation. That, we must awaken, so to speak, and thus attain the vision of the Supreme, as one, standing on some lofty height and lifting his eyes, sees what to those that have not mounted with him is invisible.

Memory, by this account, commences after the soul has left the higher spheres; it is first known in the celestial period.

A soul that has descended from the Intellectual region to the celestial and there comes to rest, may very well be understood to recognize many other souls known in its former state supposing that, as we have said, it retains recollection of much that it knew here. This recognition would be natural if the bodies with which those souls are vested in the celestial must reproduce the former appearance; supposing the spherical form [of the stars inhabited by souls in the mid-realm] means a change of appearance, recognition would go by character, by the distinctive quality of personality: this is not fantastic; conditions changing need not mean a change of character. If the souls have mutual conversation, this too would mean recognition.

But those whose descent from the Intellectual is complete, how is it with them?

They will recall their memories, of the same things, but with less force than those still in the celestial, since they have had other experiences to remember, and the lapse of time will have utterly obliterated much of what was formerly present to them.

But what way of remembering the Supreme is left if the souls have turned to the sense-known kosmos, and are to fall into this sphere of process?

They need not fall to the ultimate depth: their downward movement may be checked at some one moment of the way; and as long as they have not touched the lowest of the region of process [the point at which non-being begins] there is nothing to prevent them rising once more.