Iamblichus' Life of Pythagoras

They minutely notice the motes that are scattered in the sunbeams of his genius, but they feel not its invigorating warmth; they see not its dazzling radiance.

Of this very extraordinary man there is a life extant by Eunapius, the substance of which I have given in my History of the Restoration of the Platonic Theology, and to which I refer the English reader. At present, I shall only select from that work the following biographical particulars respecting our Iamblichus: He was descended from a family equally illustrious, fortunate, and rich. His country was Chalcis, a city of Syria, which was called Cœle. He associated with Anatolius, who was second to Porphyry, but he far excelled him in his attainments and ascended to the very summit of philosophy. But after he had been for some time connected with Anatolius, and most probably found him insufficient to satisfy the vast desires of his soul, he applied himself to Porphyry, to whom (says Eunapius) he was in nothing inferior, except in the structure and power of composition. For his writings were not so elegant and graceful as those of Porphyry; they were neither agreeable, nor clear; nor free from impurity of diction. And though they were not entirely involved in obscurity and perfectly faulty, yet as Plato formerly said of Xenocrates, he did not sacrifice to the Mercurial Graces. An allusion to the eloquence and charm traditionally associated with Mercury. Hence, he is far from detaining the reader with delight who merely regards his diction; but will rather avert and dull his attention, and frustrate his expectation. However, though the surface of his conceptions is not covered with the flowers of elocution, yet the depth of them is admirable, and his genius is truly sublime. And admitting his style to abound in general with those defects which have been noticed by the critics, yet it appears to me that the decision of the anonymous Greek writer respecting his Answer to the Epistle of Porphyry There is a Greek and Latin edition of this admirable work by Gale, under the title of Iamblichus De Mysteriis (On the Mysteries). is more or less...