Ennead

See also: ennead

English

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ἐννεάς (Enneás), itself a calque of Egyptian psḏt (“nine, nineness, ennead”), from psḏw (“nine”).

Ennead

(Egyptian mythology) The collection of nine gods worshipped at Heliopolis and taking part in the Heliopolitan creation myth, together representing the sum of all the elements of the created world: Atum, Shu, Tefnut, Nut, Geb, Osiris, Isis, Set, and Nephthys.

collection of nine gods worshipped at Heliopolis

See ennead.

Ennead (plural Enneads)

(philosophy) One of the six parts of the writings of the Greek-speaking philosopher Plotinus (c. 204–205 – 270), each containing nine treatises, compiled by his student Porphyry (c. 234 – c. 305).
- 1662, Henry More, “An Appendix to the Defence of the Philosophick Cabbala”, in A Collection of Several Philosophical Writings of Dr Henry More, Fellow of Christ’s Colledge in Cambridge. […], 2nd edition, London: Printed by James Flesher, for William Morden […], OCLC 1001052319, chapter VIII, paragraph 3, page 137:
  Which Darkneſs is a fourth Property of the Moſaick Matter, and on which Plotinus inſiſts pretty copiouſly in this ſecond Ennead, and contends we can have no other notion of it, […]
- 1941 April, F[rederick] C[harles] Copleston, “The Architecture of the Intelligible Universe in the Philosophy of Plotinus. An Analytical and Historical Study. By A. H. Armstrong. Pp. xii + 126. (Cambridge University Press, 1940. 7s. 6d.) [book review]”, in Christopher Dawson, editor, The Dublin Review, volume 208, number 417, London: Burns Oates & Washbourne, OCLC 320505649, page 263:
  [W]e find side by side in the Enneads the positive and negative conceptions of the One.

one of the six parts of the writings of Plotinus