with the One through contemplation of the spirit. But to the Neoplatonist, even though there was only one God at the end of the chain of being, there was nothing wrong with participating in various pagan cults and emperor worship. The different deities could easily be seen as emanations of the One, and thus as aspects of the divine that were worthy of worship. This had the side effect of avoiding conflict with the imperial authorities. In many ways, Neoplatonism was similar to Buddhism, though with