On the Sun and Light

things that will be and things that have been. No one has revealed my veil. The fruit I have borne is the Sun. Where it appears that the Sun is the offspring, the flower, and the fruit of Minerva The Roman goddess of wisdom, here equated with the Greek Athena—that is, of the divine intelligence. The ancient theologians, as Proclus A major Neoplatonic philosopher (412–485 AD) who wrote extensively on the theology of Plato bears witness, used to say that Justice, the Queen of all, proceeds from the midst of the Sun's throne through all things, directing everything. It is as if the Sun itself were the moderator of all. Iamblichus A Syrian Neoplatonist philosopher (c. 245–325 AD) who integrated Egyptian and Chaldean wisdom into Greek philosophy recounts the opinion of the Egyptians thus: Whatever good we have, we have from the Sun: namely, either from him alone, or if also from others, it is indeed either perfected by the Sun or comes from the Sun through those others. Likewise, the Sun is the master of all elemental powers. The Moon, by the power of the Sun, is the mistress of generation. Therefore, Abumasar original: "Abumasar" - referring to Abu Ma'shar (787–886 AD), a leading Persian astrologer in the Islamic world says that life is infused into all things through the Sun and the Moon. Moses considers the Sun the master of celestial things by day, and the Moon by night, as if she were a nocturnal Sun. All have placed the Sun as the master in the middle of the world, although for different reasons. The Chaldeans Ancient Mesopotamian people renowned for their astronomical and astrological observations indeed placed him in the middle of the planets. The Egyptians, however, placed him between the two "fives" of the world. Truly, above this planet are five others; below this are the Moon and the four elements. They believed he was positioned closer to the earth than to the firmament The sphere of the fixed stars by providence, so that by his glowing spirit, the vast moisture of the Moon, the air, and the water, as well as the thick matter of earthly things, might be nourished. The very prosperity In an astrological sense, "prosperity" refers to the favorable positioning or "dignity" of the planets of the planets declared him the center for another reason: which indeed requires their arrangement in relation to the Sun to be of such a kind in which