WORDS TO THE READER

THAT THIS BOOK IS ALLEGORICAL AND ANAGOGICAL RATHER THAN DOGMATIC

original: "allegoricum & anagogicum." Ficino warns the reader that the text should not be read as a literal scientific or legalistic document. "Allegorical" means the text has a hidden symbolic meaning, while "anagogical" Anagogical|From the Greek 'anagoge', meaning a "leading up." In theology and philosophy, it refers to an interpretation that shifts the focus from literal events to the spiritual ascent of the soul toward the Divine. refers to its power to lift the soul to higher truths.

CHAPTER ONE

A decorative initial "P" is set into the text to mark the beginning of the first chapter. A Pythagorean precept... original: "Pythagoricum preceptum." Pythagoras was an ancient Greek philosopher whom Ficino regarded as a foundational figure in the "ancient theology" that led to Plato. The "precept" likely refers to the practice of veiling sacred truths in silence or symbols to protect them from those who might misunderstand or misuse them.