Plotinus

Plotinus (205-70), Greek philosopher, was born at Lycopolis, in Egypt. His antecedents are unknown, as he would never name his parents, so impressed was he that he owed them nothing for bringing him into the world, which, from his standpoint, was a cruelty. He went to Alexandria when twenty years old, and studied philosophy under famous masters. He accompanied the Emperor Gordian to Mesopotamia when he was approaching forty, intending to study the Persian and Indian doctrines; but the assassination of Gordian, who proposed to invade Persia, frustrated his desire, and he escaped to Antioch and thence to Rome, where lie taught what is known as the Alexandrian philosophy, attracting many pupils, among them being Porphyry and Longinus. His system is the Neo-Platonic and Eclectic, being a revival of Plato's, and teaches the cultivation of thought, the avoidance of selfish passions, and the seeking of truth above all. After his death at the age of sixty-five, Porphyry collected his works. His last words were: "The divine in me is about to join that which is divine in the universe."