Editing Enneads (section)

==Contents==
Porphyry edited the writings of Plotinus in fifty-four [[treatise]]s, which vary greatly in length and number of chapters, mostly because he split original texts and joined others together to match this very number. Then, he proceeded to set the fifty-four treatises in groups of nine (Greek. ''ennea'') or ''Enneads''. He also collected ''The Enneads'' into three volumes. The first volume contained the first three ''Enneads'' (I, II, III), the second volume has the ''Fourth'' (IV) and the ''Fifth'' (V) ''Enneads'', and the last volume was devoted to the remaining ''Ennead''. After correcting and naming each treatise, Porphyry wrote a biography of his master, ''Life of Plotinus'', intended to be an introduction to the ''Enneads''.

Porphyry's edition does not follow the chronological order in which ''Enneads'' were written (see ''Chronological listing'' below), but responds to a plan of study which leads the learner from subjects related to his own affairs to subjects concerning the uttermost principles of the [[universe]].

Although not exclusively, Porphyry writes in chapters 24–26 of the ''Life of Plotinus'' that the ''First Ennead'' deals with human or ethical topics, the ''Second'' and ''Third Enneads'' are mostly devoted to [[cosmological]] subjects or [[reality|physical reality]]. The ''Fourth'' concerns the [[Soul]], the ''Fifth'' [[knowledge]] and intelligible reality, and finally the ''Sixth'' covers [[Existence|being]] and what is above it, [[Neoplatonism#The One|the One]] or first principle of all.