On the Divine Names

Dionysius the Areopagite

On the Divine Names

Dionysius the Areopagite

Περὶ θείων ὀνομάτων

On the Divine Names (De divinis nominibus) is the chief theological treatise of the Christian Neoplatonist writing under the name Dionysius the Areopagite, probably in the late fifth or early sixth century. Addressed to Timothy, it unfolds the names predicated of God — Good, Light, Beauty, Love, Being, Life, Wisdom, Power, Justice, and the rest — through thirteen chapters, grounding each name in Scripture and in the tradition of Hierotheus. Its account of divine procession, participation, and the beautiful-and-good became foundational for Byzantine and medieval Latin theology, and it is among the authorities Aquinas cites most. Schola presents the Greek text with the Latin translation of Balthasar Corderius and the English translation of John Parker (1897).


CAPUT I. Quis libri finis, et quae e divinis nominibus prodita tandem esse, et ex rebus sensibilibus non posse cognosci

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Καὶ μὴν, εἰ κρείττων ἐστὶ παντὸς λόγου καὶ πάσης γνώσεως, καὶ ὑπὲρ νοῦν καθόλου καὶ οὐσίαν ἵδρυται, πάντων μὲν οὖσα περιληπτικὴ, καὶ συναπτικὴ, καὶ συλληπτικὴ, καὶ προληπτικὴ, πᾶσι δὲ αὐτῆς καθόλου ἄληπτος, καὶ οὔτε αἴσθησις αὐτῆς ἐστιν, οὔτε φαντασία, οὔτε δόξα, οὔτε ὄνομα, οὔτε λόγος, οὔτε ἐπαφὴ, οὔτε ἐπιστήμη, πῶς ὁ περὶ θείων ὀνομάτων ἡμῖν διαπραγματευθήσεται λόγος, ἀκλήτου καὶ ὑπερωνύμου τῆς ὑπερουσίου θεότητος ἀποδεικνυμένης;

Ἀλλ' ὅπερ ἔφημεν, ἡνίκα τὰς θεολογικὰς ὑποτυπώσεις ἐξετιθέμεθα, τὸ ἓν, τὸ ἄγνωστον, τὸ ὑπερούσιον, αὐτοτάγαθον, ὅπερ ἐστὶ, τὴν τριαδικὴν ἑνάδα φημὶ, τὴν ὁμόθεον, καὶ ὁμοάγαθον, οὔτε εἰπεῖν, οὔτε ἐννοῆσαι δυνατόν· ἀλλὰ καὶ αἱ τῶν ἁγίων δυνάμεων ἀγγελοπρεπεῖς ἑνώσεις, ἃς εἴτε ἐπιβολὰς, εἴτε παραδοχὰς χρὴ φάναι τῆς ὑπεραγνώστου καὶ ὑπερφανοῦς ἀγαθότητος, ἄρρητοί τε εἰσι καὶ ἄγνωστοι, καὶ μόνοις αὐτοῖς ἐνυπάρχουσι τοῖς ὑπὲρ γνῶσιν ἀγγελικὴν ἠξιωμένοις αὐτῶν ἀγγέλοις. Ταύταις οἱ θεοειδεῖς ἀγγελομιμήτως, ὡς ἐφικτὸν, ἑνούμενοι νόες (ἐπειδὴ κατὰ πάσης νοερᾶς ἐνεργείας ἀπόπαυσιν ἡ τοιάδε γίνεται τῶν ἐκθεουμένων νοῶν πρὸς τὸ ὑπέρθεον φῶς ἕνωσις) ὑμνοῦσιν αὐτὸ κυριώτατα διὰ τῆς πάντων τῶν ὄντων ἀφαιρέσεως, τοῦτο ἀληθῶς καὶ ὑπεργοῦς ἐλλαμφθέντες ἐκ τῆς πρὸς αὐτὸ μακαριωτάτης ἐνώσεως, ὅτι πάντων μὲν ἐστι τῶν ὄντων αἴτιον, αὐτὸ δὲ οὐδὲν, ὡς πάντων ὑπερουσίως ἐξηρημένον. Τὴν μὲν οὖν ὑπερουσιότητα τὴν θεαρχικὴν, ὅ τι ποτὲ ἐστιν ἡ τῆς ὑπεραγαθότητος ὑπερύπαρξις, οὔτε ὡς λόγον, ἢ δύναμιν, οὔτε ὡς νοῦν, ἢ ζωὴν, ἢ οὐσίαν ὑμνῆσαι θεμιτὸν οὐδενὶ τῶν ὅσοι τῆς ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν ἀλήθειαν ἀληθείας εἰσὶν ἐρασταί· ἀλλ' ὡς πάσης ἕξεως, κινήσεως, ζωῆς, φαντασίας, δόξης, ὀνόματος, λόγου, διανοίας, νοήσεως, οὐσίας, στάσεως, ἱδρύσεως, ἑνώσεως, πέρατος, ἀπειρίας, ἁπάντων ὅσα ὄντα ἐστὶν, ὑπεροχικῶς ἀφηρημένην. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ ὡς ἀγαθότητος ὕπαρξις, αὐτῷ τῷ εἶναι, πάντων ἐστὶ τῶν ὄντων αἰτία, τὴν ἀγαθαρχικὴν τῆς θεαρχίας πρόνοιαν, ἐκ πάντων τῶν αἰτιατῶν ὑμνητέον· ἐπεὶ καὶ περὶ αὐτὴν πάντα, καὶ αὐτῆς ἕνεκα, καὶ αὐτή ἐστι πρὸ πάντων, καὶ τὰ πάντα ἐν αὐτῇ συνέστηκε καὶ τῷ εἶναι ταύτην, ἡ τῶν ὅλων παραγωγὴ καὶ ὑπόστασις, καὶ αὐτῆς πάντα ἐφίεται· τὰ μὲν νοερὰ καὶ λογικὰ, γνωστικῶς· τὰ δὲ ὑφειμένα τούτων, αἰσθητικῶς· καὶ τὰ ἄλλα κατὰ ζωτικὴν κίνησιν, ἢ οὐσιώδη καὶ ἑκτικὴν ἐπιτηδειότητα.

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CAPUT II. unio et distinctio.

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CAPUT III. Quae sit vis orationis, et de beato Hierotheo, de religione et conscriptione theologica.

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CAPUT IV. De bono, luce, pulchro, amore, exstasi, zelo; et quod malum neque ens sit, neque ex entibus, neque in entibus.

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CAPUT V. De ente, in quo etiam de exemplaribus.

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CAPUT VI. De vita.

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CAPUT VII. De sapientia, mente, ratione, veritate, fide.

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CAPUT VIII. De potentia, justitia, salute, redemptione; ubi etiam de inaequalitate.

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CAPUT IX. De magno, parvo, eodem, alio, simili, dissimili, statu, motu, aequalitate.

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CAPUT X. De omnitenente, antiquo dierum; in quo etiam de aevo seu aeternitate et tempore.

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CAPUT XI. De pace, quidque sibi velit ipsum per se esse, quae sit per se vita, quae vis ipsa per se, et quae illa coordinat atque conciliat, et quinam sint ejus effectus.

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CAPUT XII. De Sancto sanctorum, Rege regum, Domino dominantium, Deo deorum.

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CAPUT XIII. De perfecto et uno.

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