Proclus: Commentary on Plato's Timaeus: Volume 6, Book 5: Proclus on the Gods of Generation and the Creation of Humans Commentary on Plato's Timaeus

Proclus' commentary on the dialogue Timaeus by Plato (d.347 BC), written in the fifth century AD, is arguably the most important commentary on a text of Plato, offering unparalleled insights into eight centuries of Platonic interpretation. It has had an enormous influence on subsequent Plato scholarship. This edition nevertheless offers the first new translation of the work for nearly two centuries, building on significant recent advances in scholarship by Neoplatonic commentators. It will provide an invaluable record of early interpretations of Plato's dialogue, while also presenting Proclus' own views on the meaning and significance of Platonic philosophy. The book presents Proclus' unrepentant account of a multitude of divinities involved with the creation of mortal life, the supreme creator's delegation to them of the creation of human life, and the manner in which they took the immortal life principle from him and wove it together with our mortal parts to produce human beings.

Introduction to Book 5; The integrity and structure of Book 5; The sources of Book 5; The names Sublunary Gods; The address of the Father; Preparation of individual souls; Souls learn law and fate; The sowing; The transfer of creative responsibilities; Bodily creation; The soul's problem when joined to body; The remaining topic: life in the body; Conclusion; Works cited; Analytical table of content; Translation.

Harold Tarrant is Professor Emeritus of Classics at the University of Newcastle, New South Wales. His recent publications include The Platonic Alcibiades I: The Dialogue and its Ancient Reception (Cambridge, 2015) and The Neoplatonic Socrates (2014).