Apollo · Lexicon · Diotimos

From the book

Marsilio Ficino’s Platonic Theology, Volume I

Marsilio Ficino · Diotimos Editions · 2026

Orientation

At a Glance

The wordApollo is a divine name used at different levels of the reported cosmology.
In the Platonic TheologyIn the explicitly Pythagorean interlude, Apollo names unity beyond any particular unified thing.
In this editionThe proposed connections of Apollo’s name with simplicity and separation from the many are attributed wordplay, not an independently established etymology.
A place to readA particular Phoebus is assigned to Gemini, distinct from the universal Apollo.

Meaning

Apollo is a divine name used at different levels of the reported cosmology. Universalis Apollo identifies unity itself in the Pythagorean exposition; the particular Phoebus in the zodiac list has a different, restricted role.

Use in the book

In the explicitly Pythagorean interlude, Apollo names unity beyond any particular unified thing. One mind still combines mind with oneness; Ficino's ascent passes beyond it to the One without qualification. He reports a wordplay relating Apollo to simplicity and separation from multiplicity, and then identifies the first One with the first Good. This is an attributed philosophical interpretation of a divine name rather than an independently established etymology. The passage's Greek is editorially regularized according to Ficino's Latin glosses, as the apparatus explains. Apollo also appears as the ruler whose musical command orders the chorus of Muses, and later as the splendor of an invisible sun around which Muses and Bacchuses revel. These meanings must be distinguished from the “particular Phoebus” assigned to Gemini in the zodiacal list. The name's level and function vary with context.

Further passage references. IV.1.43; IV.1.51–IV.1.522; IV.1.95; apparatus

Places to read

IV.1.43A particular Phoebus is assigned to Gemini, distinct from the universal Apollo.
IV.1.51Universal Apollo names the One beyond a mind that is merely one, and is identified with the Good.
IV.1.95Apollo becomes the splendour of the invisible sun around which the Bacchuses and Muses revel.

Translation in this edition

The proposed connections of Apollo’s name with simplicity and separation from the many are attributed wordplay, not an independently established etymology. The supplied Greek and Latin glosses belong to the edition’s treatment; they should not silently be made proof of historical derivation.

Apollo / cithara / contemperare

Apollo / cithara / contemperare. Printed forms: Apollinis; cithara; contemperas; resonante.

Apollo, lyre, and bringing into harmony. The attributed hymn gives musical form to the claim that divine ordering includes the whole sphere. References: II.9.22. See Apollo.

Apollo / simplex et semotus

Apollo / simplex et semotus. Printed forms: semotum a multitudine; simplicem; universalem Apollinem.

Apollo interpreted through simplicity and removal from plurality. The offered Greek wordplays are Ficino's attributed Pythagorean interpretation, not independently established etymologies. References: IV.1.51. See Apollo.

florere / virescere

florere / virescere. Printed forms: virescunt.

To grow green or flourish. The Apollo hymn’s flourishing belongs to the image of universal life and harmonious care, not a separate botanical argument. References: II.9.22. See Apollo.

Apollo simplicity and the good (Greek quotation)

Ἀπόλλωνα · ἁπλοῦν · ἀπὸ πολλῶν · τἀγαθόν

These expressions belong to the Pythagorean wordplay reported by Ficino: Apollo is connected with simplicity and separation from multiplicity, and with the good itself. His accompanying Latin gloss controls the use here. The associations are not presented as modern historical etymologies, and the paragraph remains within the explicitly marked Pythagorean excursion.

Place. IV.1.51. See Apollo.

Apollo (cosmic names)

Apollo (Apollinem, universalem Apollinem). In the Pythagorean ascent, the universal Apollo names the unqualified One; in the later image, the nine Muses and Bacchuses revel around Apollo as the splendor of the invisible sun. This universal role differs from the particular Phoebus in Gemini. IV.1.51–IV.1.522; IV.1.95. See Apollo; Bacchus and the Muses; Zodiac.

Phoebus (cosmic names)

Phoebus (Phoebus particularis). A particular divine soul assigned to the heart of Gemini in Ficino's reported Pythagorean catalogue. IV.1.43. See Zodiac; Apollo.

Orpheus and the Orphics (authorities and cited works)

Orpheus and the Orphics. Supply divine names, hymnic descriptions, and mythological interpretations throughout the argument: infinite end, necessity, divine sight, cosmic order, and the paired powers of souls. These are Ficino's presented attributions. II.4.8; II.7.11; II.9.18–222 3 4 5; II.10.7; II.13.21–242 3 4; IV.1.94–952; IV.2.12. See End and limit; Apollo; Bacchus and the Muses; Proteus.

Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans (authorities and cited works)

Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans. Provide compact numerical descriptions of the five grades, soul as self-moving number, and the explicitly marked twelvefold excursion. Apollo's name is interpreted through attributed wordplay. I.2.7; III.1.1–52 3 4 5, III.1.23; IV.1.40–522 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13. See Number; Unity and multiplicity; Twelve; Apollo.