Taylor - Eleusianian and Bacchic Mysteries.pdf - Platonic Philosophy

^">w182 Eleusinian andble benefit to our sensible life, no symbol canmore aptly represent the unparalleled advantages arising from the evolution and procession of intellect with its divine nature intoa corporeal life, than the good resulting fromagriculture and corn :for whatever of horridand dismal can be conceived in night, supposing it to be perpetually destitute of thefriendly illuminations of the moon and stars,such, and infinitely more dreadful, would bethe condition of an earthly nature, if deprived of the beneficent irradiations [icpoooc]and supervening benefits of the divinerlife.And thismuch for an explanation of theEleusinian Mysteries, or the history of Ceresand Proserpina ;in which it must be remembered that as this fable, according to theexcellent observation of Sallust already adduced, is of the mixed kind, though thedescent of the soul was doubtless principallyalluded to by these sacred rites, yet theylikewise occultly signified, agreeable to thenature of the fable, the descending of divinity