3. If intelligible essence be essential essence; if it be immutable;
if it never evade itself; if it admit of no generation; and be not
in any place, the result is, that by virtue of its nature, it ever
remains within itself, has no parts distant from each other, located
in different places; that it does not issue from itself, which would
lead it to inhere in different subjects, or at least to inhere in one
subject, and, consequently, no longer to dwell in itself, and no longer
to remain impassible; for if it inhered in something different from
itself, it would be exposed to suffering (passion, or, experience).
As, however, this is impossible, it can not inhere in anything other
than itself. Therefore, since it never departs from itself, as it
is never divided, as it exists within several things simultaneously
without undergoing any change, as it exists within itself one and
simultaneously entire, it must, while existing in several things,
remain everywhere identical; that is, be everywhere entire both in
itself, and out of itself. Consequently, it does not (exist) within any
determinate thing, but the other things participate in it, so far as
they are capable of approaching it, and so far as they do approach it
in the measure in which they are capable.
THAT ENTIRE BEING IS PRESENT EVERYWHERE IS THE ONLY SOLUTION OF THE
PUZZLE.
Consequently, it will be necessary either to reject the propositions
set forth above, that is, the principles which have been established,
and deny the existence of the intelligible entities; or, as this is
impossible, to recognize the truth of what has been advanced from the
very beginning (of this discussion): the Essence which is one and
identical is indivisible, and exists as single everywhere. It is not
distant from any of the other things; and, nevertheless, (to be near
them) it has no need of spreading, of letting certain portions of its
essence flow.[4] It remains entire in itself, and though it produce
something inferior, it does not, on that account, abandon itself, and
does not extend itself hither and yon in other things; otherwise, it
would be on one side, while the things it produces would be on the
other, and it would occupy a place, finding itself separated therefrom.
As to these (produced things), each of them is either a whole or a
part. If it be a part, it will not preserve the nature of the all, as
we have already said; if, however, it be all, we shall have to divide
it in as many parts as that in which it subsists--or, it will have to
be granted that the identical essence can simultaneously be everywhere
entire. This is a demonstration drawn from the matter itself, which
contains nothing external to the being that we are examining, and
which does not borrow anything from any other nature.