Oration on the Dignity of Man

One of the most important representatives of Renaissance philosophy, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola’s Oration on the Dignity of Man (De hominis dignitate) was presented as a public discourse in 1486 but never published in his lifetime; Pico died in 1494, two years before its initial publication.

In his oration, Pico investigates mankind, finding that pure reason is the highest level that man can reach. Alone among creatures, man has a part of every other creature. This freedom enables man to raise or lower himself. The higher levels of being are better than the lower levels of being. Freedom sets man apart from the other creatures, and even higher beings can be envious of man for his freedom.

Pico contends that humans can improve themselves through the moral sciences. By following higher ideals, humans can rise. These ideals include charity, intelligence, and justice. Acting with charity or justice requires intelligence.

When man acts well, he rises. When man acts poorly, he falls. Man can thus become like a plant or animal. A plant is a low form, which only lies in place and consumes. An animal lacks reason. When man stays still or responds without reason, he becomes like a lower creature.

Each person has inner conflicts within himself, dragging him down. Such conflicts produce the passions. Additionally, each man often reasons incorrectly. By limiting his passions, both positive and negative, and improving his reasoning, man can prepare himself for religious accomplishment.

Pico cites Christian, Hebrew, Greek, and other sources on cleanliness, allowing one to study philosophy and theology, to reach the highest levels of being. Various authorities teach that one must pass through a set of stages, from cleanliness through increasingly relevant forms of study. Finally one reaches peace. Pure contemplation is depicted as the ideal.

One can reach a state of peace through thought. Peace raises one, while violence lowers one. When earthly people reach peace, they rise up to meet their divine counterpart.

Pico describes a union between the earthly and the divine. The earthly must become peaceful to rise up to a higher level.

Pico has 900 theses on various topics. These include physics, metaphysics, mathematics, and magic. He introduces new ideas in each of these fields, and brings together the ideas of sources from different cultures. He claims to solve the most important problems of the day.

Philosophy is like a battle, Pico contends; scholars compete, becoming more knowledgeable through success or failure. He has studied diverse schools and teachers, unlike most of his contemporaries, who followed only one school or teacher. Pico devoted himself to his studies, instead of concerning himself over money or the opinions of others. He claims that philosophy should be pursued only for the sake of truth, not for money.

Further, Pico has studied numbers. He considers numbers among the most important methods of thought, as did Plato and other philosophers. In this, they do not refer to ordinary calculations as merchants would perform, but rather to more arcane numerical arts.

According to Pico, through his study of numbers, he has become capable of resolving dozens of the most pressing scientific questions of his age. He claims to have risen above the other philosophers of the time, such that he could present a new philosophy for subsequent generations.

Magic, Pico says, can be light or dark. The light magic is like religion, art, or science. Scholars have gone to great lengths to study magic. Magic can unite the higher and the lower. However, among some people, magic has a poor reputation. Dark magic can have ruinous consequences. The new philosophy consists of Pico’s 900 theses.

Pico states that secret teachings have been passed down through the centuries. Hebrew scholars had an oral tradition, the Cabal, which became a repository of volumes. Pico claims to have read the volumes. He sees secret teachings, whether from philosophical or theological schools, as confirming Christianity.

Some critics claim that Pico is too young to acquire knowledge, let alone to produce new knowledge. He replies that merit, not age, should determine a philosophical battle. Other critics assert that he has taken on too large a task. Pico states that his 900 theses represent what he has to argue, not an excess. Any fewer arguments would be insufficient. He could present even more arguments, on more topics, however he considers this the appropriate amount.

After presenting an overview of his studies, Pico declares his readiness for the disputations.

In the Oration on the Dignity of Man, Pico describes man as the most fortunate creature:

Most esteemed Fathers, I have read in the ancient writings of the Arabians that Abdala the Saracen on being asked what, on this stage, so to say, of the world, seemed to him most evocative of wonder, replied that there was nothing to be seen more marvelous than man (Paragraph 1).

Pico acknowledges previous reasoning on the uniqueness of man, such as humans mediating among the animals, living between the heavens above and the earth below, and uniting time itself through sense and intellect. Pico believes that man holds the most admirable position because he can appreciate the wonder of creation.

Pico describes the creation of heavenly creatures above and lowly creatures below, filling all space. Instead of a separate place, the creator gave man a part of every other place. While animals have to reside within their limits, man can decide where to reside. Man can descend to the level of animals, or rise up again to the higher levels. Freedom sets man apart.

Pico writes that man becomes what he chooses: “If vegetative, he will become a plant; if sensual, he will become brutish; if rational, he will reveal himself a heavenly being” (Paragraph 7). According to Greek, Hebrew, and Islamic sources, men who act like lower creatures transform into such creatures, and Pico agrees:

[F]or it is not the bark that makes the tree, but its insensitive and unresponsive nature; nor the hide which makes the beast of burden, but its brute and sensual soul; nor the orbicular form which makes the heavens, but their harmonious order (Paragraph 8).

A man who acts lowly is a plant, while a man who only responds to senses is a beast. A philosopher is a creature of heaven:

If, finally, a pure contemplator, unmindful of the body, wholly withdrawn into the inner chambers of the mind, here indeed is neither a creature of earth nor a heavenly creature, but some higher divinity, clothed in human flesh (Paragraph 8).

Because man is born free, he should aspire to higher levels, not fall to lower ones. Pico argues for striving to get beyond this world. In order to do this, he argues for emulating angels and acting with charity, intelligence, and justice. To act with justice or love, one must have knowledge. Pico therefore turns to traditional authorities for knowledge:

Let us ask the Apostle Paul, that vessel of election, in what activity he saw the armies of the Cherubim engaged when he was rapt into the third heaven. He will answer, according to the interpretation of Dionysius, that he saw them first being purified, then illuminated, and finally made perfect (Paragraph 13).

Pico argues that people should likewise purify themselves, limiting passion and reason, and knowing only the divine.

Referring to Jacob from the Old Testament for balance, the appetite and power pollute man such that he should not aspire to the angelic without first cleansing himself of these problems. Through moral philosophy, people can then rise to higher levels of being.

According to Job, peace is necessary for divine life. According to Empedocles, peace raises one higher, while violence drags one down. Pico writes that theology can bring peace to inner discord.

Achieving peace and unity represents the “friendship” that Pythagoreans consider the point of philosophy. The divine would then be at one with earth, as in a wedding.

Pico next cites Moses, saying that the unclean should cleanse themselves, and study philosophy and then theology.

Ancient Greeks also had stages of theological training for initiates. People would want to transcend the problems of this world:

If, by moral philosophy, the power of our passions shall have been restrained by proper controls so that they achieve harmonious accord; and if, by dialectic, our reason shall have progressed by an ordered advance, then, smitten by the frenzy of the Muses, we shall hear the heavenly harmony with the inward ears of the spirit (Paragraph 19).

Moral philosophy prescribes avoiding excess and knowing oneself. Then, theology becomes possible.

Pico explains that he studied philosophy because of its position in enabling theology. Contemporaries criticized philosophy as practically worthless, and not profitable. Pico argues that philosophy should not be profitable, and instead be pursued only for the truth. Any other method would not be philosophical. To this end, he dedicated himself solely to studying: “Philosophy has taught me to rely on my own convictions rather than on the judgements of others and to concern myself less with whether I am well thought of than whether what I do or say is evil” (Paragraph 27).

Pico notes that his anticipated audience would approve of his message, while numerous critics disapprove. Critics include those skeptical of any virtuous undertaking, and those skeptical of someone so young addressing 900 such serious topics to a sizable audience of respected people.

Pico defends himself against the allegation that philosophizing is wrong by reference to his audience and famous past philosophers already practicing philosophy. Philosophy has historically depended on contests to strengthen the mind.

In response to the complaint that he is not capable of addressing these weighty topics, Pico argues that any man can, including youth, as merit rather than age should determine the contest. Furthermore, in philosophical contests, defeat means greater learning, and thus counts as a victory.

Addressing the large number of topics, Pico argues that more is better, and that he would be better applauded for succeeding, or at least for trying. Rather than adhering to one source, Pico has studied widely. Each scholar or school of thought has its unique points.

Because teachings got passed through the civilizations, centuries went by without a thorough reexamination. Pico aims for new insights, rather than merely repeating historical insights, as numerous other philosophers have done.

For generations, people presumed a harmony between Plato and Aristotle. Pico examines these two philosophers, claiming to have studied their commonalities, and says that he has developed ideas in physics and metaphysics. Pico also introduces a philosophy of numbers, resurrected from previous philosophers. Plato, Aristotle, and other philosophers have considered numbers the most important part of thought.

Pico also considers magic, which he divides into dark and light types. Evil magic brings harm, while good magic is a high virtue that informs the earthly world from the divine. Magic acts as an intermediary between lower and higher levels of being.

Next, Pico describes the mysteries of the Hebrews. In addition to the five books, he claims that Moses received more information about the law. The message could only be passed down orally, to initiates. “Cabala” refers to the reception of this secret message. After the Hebrews left captivity and reestablished a nation, scribes convened and wrote down secret volumes. Pico writes that he acquired and read the cabalistic texts, and found in them the Christian religion.

Next, Pico discusses ancient poetry. Pythagoras based his philosophy on the poems of Orpheus. Pico writes that the poems disguise truth in broad terms, so that he had to uncover it, with difficulty: “I have wanted to make clear in disputation, not only that I know a great many things, but also that I know a great many things which others do not know” (Paragraph 51).