Plotinus
The founder of Neoplatonism, he developed a complex metaphysical system based on the One, Intellect, and Soul.
Most quoted
"Withdraw into yourself and look. And if you do not find yourself beautiful yet, act as does the sculptor of a statue that is to be made beautiful: he cuts away here, he smoothes there, he makes this line lighter, this other purer, until he fills his statue with a lovely face. So too must you. Cut away all that is superfluous, straighten all that is crooked, bring light to all that is dark, labor to make all that is brilliant, and never cease chiseling your statue until the divine splendor of virtue shines out on you, until you see temperance enthroned in its holy sanctuary."
— from Ennead I.6.9, 270
"Withdraw into yourself and look. And if you do not find yourself beautiful yet, act as does the creator of a statue that is to be made beautiful: he cuts away here, he smoothes there, he makes this line lighter, this other purer, until a lovely face has grown upon his work."
— from Enneads I.6.9
"This is the life of gods and of the godlike and blessed among men, liberation from the alien that besets us here, a life taking no pleasure in the things of earth, a flight of the alone to the Alone."
— from Enneads VI.9.11
All quotes by Plotinus (148)
The Intellect is the first emanation from the One.
The soul is immortal and divine.
The sensible world is a shadow of the intelligible world.
To know oneself is to know God.
The Good is beyond all predicates.
The soul is a stranger in the body.
The universe is a single, interconnected whole.
Virtue is the purification of the soul.
The One is the cause of all things, but is not caused by anything.
The soul is a mirror reflecting the Intellect.
True knowledge is knowledge of the intelligible world.
The wise man lives in accordance with nature.
The soul's ascent is a return to its true home.
The body is a prison for the soul.
All things participate in the Good.
The One is simple and indivisible.
The Intellect is the realm of the Forms.
The soul is a part of the divine.
The sensible world is a fleeting illusion.
To be truly free is to be free from the body.