How did contemplation lead to mystical union with the One for Plotinus?

For Plotinus, the path to mystical union with the One is a process of philosophical conversion that requires rigorous intellectual and moral self-discipline. This ascent is not a physical journey but an awakening to a higher state of awareness, achieved by turning away from the desires and concerns of the body and the material world.1

Contemplation serves as the mechanism for this return. Plotinus taught that all reality is constituted by a double movement of outgoing and return; as beings turn back toward their superior in a movement of contemplative desire, they are established in their own reality. For the human soul, this involves rising through the levels of being—from the material world to the Soul, and then to Intellect.12

When an individual’s conversion is complete and they have become Intellect, they can experience a mystical union with the One. In this state, the individual transcends their normal nature and experiences the One’s presence through the pure love of Intellect for the Good. This union is immediate and beyond language or thought, as the One is absolutely simple and transcends all human definitions.12