Feiqi Nuo Humanistic Study

Ficino is the one of the most important thinkers in Renaissance. His humanism gives Neoplatonism full perspective, and helps us to discover the golden thead of the Western tradition, which is the vein of Truth itself. The image which fits him well is that of the hourglass: in the upper cup, the whole of the cultural inheritance of Egypt, Israel, Persia, Greece, Rome, Byzantium and Islam; and from medieval Europe itself. In the middle, the narrow neck of the hourglass is Ficino himself, filtering and discriminating grain by grain all this–word and truth, wisdom and speculation. And in the cup bellow, the fine tilth of culture which his work provided, a seedbed for the work of others to come. Following up the authors cited and references in his works and letters, can take one deep into the Western tradition and the unimaginable riches of the finest thought and the greatest minds. Being different from Plato, who separated the world of Ideas and human’s senses, Ficino considered man must embark on the senses to reach the One–God. Using Platonic love, which emanates from God, Ficino not only combined the world of Ideas with the Christian God, but also made human and God reach a consensus. Human become the representative of God in the world. Then, as the essential in the middle of human and God, the immortal rational soul plays the role of media in the cycle of love. Hence humanist’s ideal “Universal man” comes forth. Man is a “Microcosm”. Rebirth in the image of “Laughter”, human achieve comprehensive development with the potential of all aspects, from mind to body, from family regulation to state rule, and in field of Science and Technology and of literary and artistic creation.