important unless based personal internal motivation ptolemy 's ''epistle flora'' describes general asceticism based moral inclination individual concepts monad many gnostic systems god known ''monad'' one god high source pleroma region light various emanations god called ons according hippolytus view inspired pythagoreans called first thing came existence ''monad'' begat dyad begat numbers begat point begetting lines etc sethian cosmogony
Humanities Theology Gnosticism