Hermetists and Hermeticists John Dee John Dee was a noted mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, occultist, and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I. He also devoted much of his life to the study of alchemy, divination, and Hermetic philosophy . Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley, born Edward Alexander Crowley , (October 12, 1875 – December 1, 1947), was an English occultist, writer, mountaineer, poet, spy and yogi. He was an influential member of several occult organizations, including the Golden Dawn, the A∴A∴, and Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.), and is best known today for his occult writings, · Israel Regardie Israel Regardie, born Francis Israel Regudy was one of the 20th century's most significant[citation needed] occultists and a renewer of occult literature Thābit ibn Qurra Al-Ṣābiʾ Thābit ibn Qurra al-Ḥarrānī was an Arab astronomer, mathematician and physician who was known as Thebit in Latin · Paracelsus Paracelsus was a Medieval physician, botanist, alchemist, astrologer, and general occultist. Born Phillip von Hohenheim, he later took up the name Theophrastus Philippus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim, and still later took the title Paracelsus, meaning "equal to or greater than Celsus", a Roman encyclopedist, Aulus Cornelius Celsus Giordano Bruno Giordano Bruno, born Filippo Bruno , was an Italian philosopher best-known as a proponent of heliocentrism and the infinity of the universe. In addition to his cosmological writings, he also wrote extensive works on the art of memory, a loosely-organized group of mnemonic techniques and principles. He is often considered an early martyr for modern · Manly P. Hall · Samuel MacGregor Mathers · William Westcott Franz Bardon

This box:

Alchemy (Arabic Arabic is a Central Semitic language, thus related to and classified alongside other Semitic languages such as Hebrew and Syriac. In terms of speakers, Arabic is the largest member of the Semitic language family. It is spoken by more than 280 million people as a first language and by 250 million more as a second language. Most native speakers live:al-kimia) (Hebrew 1United States Census 2000 PHC-T-37. Ability to Speak English by Language Spoken at Home: 2000. Table 1a:אלכימיה al-himia) is both a philosophy Most academic subjects have a philosophy, for example the philosophy of science, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of logic, the philosophy of law, and the philosophy of history. In addition, a range of academic subjects have emerged to deal with areas which would have historically been the subject of philosophy. These include and a practice with an aim of achieving ultimate wisdom Wisdom is an ideal that has been celebrated since antiquity as the knowledge needed to live a good life. What this means exactly depends on the various wisdom schools and traditions claiming to help foster it. In general, these schools have emphasized various combinations of the following: knowledge, understanding, experience, discretion, and as well as immortality As immortality is the negation of mortality—not dying or not being subject to death—it has been a subject of fascination to humanity since at least the beginning of history. The Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the first literary works, dating back at least to the 22nd century BC, is primarily a quest of a hero seeking to become immortal. What form, involving the improvement of the alchemist as well as the making of several substances described as possessing unusual properties. The practical aspect of alchemy generated the basics of modern inorganic chemistry Inorganic chemistry is the branch of chemistry concerned with the properties and behavior of inorganic compounds. This field covers all chemical compounds except the myriad organic compounds , which are the subjects of organic chemistry. The distinction between the two disciplines is far from absolute, and there is much overlap, most importantly, namely concerning procedures, equipment and the identification and use of many current substances.

The fundamental ideas of alchemy are said to have arisen in the ancient Persian Empire The Persian Empire was a series of successive Iranian or Iraniate empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the original Persian homeland, and beyond in Western Asia, South Asia, Central Asia and the Caucasus. The first Persian Empire formed under the Median Empire after defeating and ending the Assyrian Empire with the help of Babylonians.[1] Alchemy has been practiced in Mesopotamia Widely considered as the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer, Akkadian, Babylonian and Assyrian empires. In the Iron Age, it was ruled by the Neo-Assyrian Empire and Neo-Babylonian Empire, and later conquered by the Achaemenid Empire. It mostly remained under Persian rule until the 7th century Islamic conquest of the, Egypt Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern state of Egypt. The civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and it developed over the next three millennia. Its history, Persia Iran (Persian: ايران [ʔiˈɾɒn] ), officially the Islamic Republic of Iran and formerly known internationally as Persia until 1935, is a country in Central Eurasia, located on the northeastern shore of the Persian Gulf, northwestern shore of the Gulf of Oman, and the southern shore of the Caspian Sea. Both "Persia" and "Iran& (today's Iran Iran (Persian: ايران [ʔiˈɾɒn] ), officially the Islamic Republic of Iran and formerly known internationally as Persia until 1935, is a country in Central Eurasia, located on the northeastern shore of the Persian Gulf, northwestern shore of the Gulf of Oman, and the southern shore of the Caspian Sea. Both "Persia" and "Iran&), India India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal on the east, India has a coastline of 7,517, China Chinese alchemy is a part of the larger tradition of Taoism, which centers on the tradition of body-spirit cultivation that developed through the Chinese understandings of medicine and the body. These Chinese traditions were developed into a system of energy practices. Chinese alchemy focuses mainly on the purification of one's spirit and body in, Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south. The characters which make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which, Korea Korea is a civilization, formerly unified nation, and geographic area currently composed of two sovereign states located on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. It borders China to the northwest, and Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the east by the Korea Strait and in Classical Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome collectively known as the Greco-Roman world Greece The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca. 1100 BC and the Dorian invasion, to 146 BC and the Roman conquest of Greece after the Battle of Corinth. It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the foundation of Western civilization and shaped cultures throughout and Rome Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea, it became one of the largest empires in the ancient world, in the Muslim civilizations The Islamic Golden Age, also sometimes known as the Islamic Renaissance, is traditionally dated from the 7th to 13th centuries C.E., but has been extended to the 15th and 16th centuries by more recent scholarship. During this period, artists, engineers, scholars, poets, philosophers, geographers and traders in the Islamic world contributed to the, and then in Europe Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast. Europe is washed upon to the north by the Arctic Ocean and up to the 20th century—in a complex network A social network is a social structure made of nodes that are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as values, visions, ideas, financial exchange, friendship, sexual relationships, kinship, dislike, conflict or trade of schools and philosophical systems spanning at least 2500 years.

Contents

Etymology

Main article: Chemistry (etymology) In the history of science, the etymology of the word chemistry is a debatable issue. It is agreed that the word “alchemy” is a European one, derived from Arabic, but the origin of the root word, chem, is uncertain. Words similar to it have been found in most ancient languages, with different meanings, but conceivably somehow related to alchemy

Alchemy, generally, derives from the Old French Old French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories which span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from around 900 to 1300. It was then known as the langue d'oïl to distinguish it from the langue d'oc (Occitan language, also then called Provençal), whose territory bordered that of alkemie; from the Arabic Arabic is a Central Semitic language, thus related to and classified alongside other Semitic languages such as Hebrew and Syriac. In terms of speakers, Arabic is the largest member of the Semitic language family. It is spoken by more than 280 million people as a first language and by 250 million more as a second language. Most native speakers live al-kimia: "the art of transformation." Some scholars[who?] believe the Arabs borrowed the word chimia ("χημεία") from Greek Greek , an Indo-European language native to the southern Balkan peninsula, is the language of the Greeks. It forms an independent branch within Indo-European. It has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical Ancient Greek literature for transmutation.[2] Others, such as Mahdihassan,[3] argue that its origins are Chinese Chinese or the Sinitic language (汉语/漢語, pinyin: Hànyǔ; 华语/華語, Huáyǔ; or 中文, Zhōngwén) is a language family consisting of languages mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages. About.

During the seventeenth century the change of name from Alchemy to chemistry took place, with the work of Robert Boyle Robert Boyle was a natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, inventor, and gentleman scientist, also noted for his writings in theology. He is best known for the formulation of Boyle's law. Although his research and personal philosophy clearly has its roots in the alchemical tradition, he is largely regarded today as the first modern chemist, and, sometimes known as "The father of Chemistry"[citation needed], who in his book "The Skeptical Chymist" attacked Paracelsus Paracelsus was a Medieval physician, botanist, alchemist, astrologer, and general occultist. Born Phillip von Hohenheim, he later took up the name Theophrastus Philippus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim, and still later took the title Paracelsus, meaning "equal to or greater than Celsus", a Roman encyclopedist, Aulus Cornelius Celsus and the old Aristotelian Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. He wrote on many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology and zoology concepts of the elements Many philosophies and worldviews have used a set of archetypal classical elements, most developed sets of the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. There are several approaches , the most frequently occurring theories of classical elements are and laid down the foundations of modern chemistry.

Alchemy as a philosophical and spiritual discipline

"Renel the Alchemist", by Sir William Douglas, 1853

Alchemy became known as the spagyric art after Greek words meaning to separate and to join together in the 16th century, the word probably being coined by Paracelsus. Compare this with one of the dictums of Alchemy in Latin: SOLVE ET COAGULA — Separate, and Join Together (or dissolve and coagulate).

The best-known goals of the alchemists were the transmutation of common metals into gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (Latin: aurum) and an atomic number of 79. It has been a highly sought-after precious metal in jewelry, in sculpture, and for ornamentation since the beginning of recorded history. The metal occurs as nuggets or grains in rocks, in veins and in alluvial deposits. Gold is dense, soft, shiny and the most (called chrysopoeia In alchemy, the term chrysopoeia means transmutation into gold , although it is also symbolically used to indicate the philosopher's stone as the completion of the Great Work) or silver Silver is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal. The metal occurs naturally in its pure, free form (native silver), as an alloy with gold (electrum) and other metals, (less well known is plant alchemy, or "spagyric Spagyric , is a name given to the production of herbal medicines using alchemical procedures. These procedures involve fermentation, distillation and the extraction of mineral components from the ash of the plant. These processes were in use in medieval alchemy generally for the separation and purification of metals from ores (see Calcination),"); the creation of a "panacea The panacea , named after the Greek goddess of healing, Panacea, also known as panchrest, was supposed to be a remedy that would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely. It was sought by the alchemists as a connection to the elixir of life and the philosopher's stone, a mythical substance which would enable the transmutation of common", or the elixir of life The elixir of life, from Arabic: الإكسير, also known as the elixir of immortality or Dancing Water or Persian: Aab-e-Hayaat آب حیات and sometimes equated with the philosopher's stone, is a legendary potion, or drink, that grants the drinker eternal life or eternal youth. Many practitioners of alchemy pursued it. The elixir of life was, a remedy that supposedly would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely; and the discovery of a universal solvent Alkahest is a hypothetical universal solvent, having the power to dissolve every other substance, including gold. It was much sought after by alchemists for what they thought would be its invaluable medicinal qualities. The name is believed to have been invented by Paracelsus (1493–1541) from Switzerland, who modelled it on similar words taken.[4] Although these were not the only uses for the discipline, they were the ones most documented and well known. Certain Hermetic schools argue that the transmutation of lead into gold is analogical for the transmutation of the physical body (Saturn or lead) into Solar energy (gold) with the goal of attaining immortality.[5] This is described as Internal Alchemy. Starting with the Middle Ages The Middle Ages of European history are a period in history which lasted for roughly a millennium, commonly dated from the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century to the beginning of the Early Modern Period in the 16th century, marked by the division of Western Christianity in the Reformation, the rise of humanism in the Italian, Arabic Alchemy and chemistry in Islam refers to the study of both traditional alchemy and early practical chemistry by Muslim scientists in the medieval Islamic world. The word alchemy itself was derived from the Arabic word الكيمياء al-kimia and European alchemists invested much effort in the search for the "philosopher's stone The philosopher's stone , reputed to be hard as stone and malleable as wax, is a legendary alchemical tool, supposedly capable of turning base metals into gold; it was also sometimes believed to be an elixir of life, useful for rejuvenation and possibly for achieving immortality. For a long time, it was the most sought-after goal in Western", a legendary substance that was believed to be an essential ingredient for either or both of those goals. Alchemists were alternately persecuted or supported through the centuries. For example in 1317 Pope John 22nd issued a Bull against alchemical counterfeiting, and the Cistercians banned the practice amongst their members. In 1403 Henry 4th of England banned the practice of Alchemy. In the late 14th century Piers the Ploughman and Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer was an English author, poet, philosopher, bureaucrat, courtier and diplomat. Although he wrote many works, he is best remembered for his unfinished frame narrative The Canterbury Tales. Sometimes called the father of English literature, Chaucer is credited by some scholars as the first author to demonstrate the artistic legitimacy both painted unflattering pictures of Alchemists as thieves and liars. By contrast, Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II , Holy Roman Emperor as Rudolf II (1576-1612), King of Hungary as Rudolf (1572-1608), King of Bohemia as Rudolf II (1575-1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria as Rudolf V (1576-1608). He was a member of the Habsburg family, in the late 16th century, sponsored various alchemists in their work at his court in Prague.

Some people[who?] suppose that Alchemists made mundane contributions to the "chemical" industries of the day—ore testing and refining, metalworking, production of gunpowder, ink, dyes, paints, cosmetics, leather tanning Tanning is the process of making leather, which does not easily decompose, from the skins of animals, which do. Often this uses tannin, an acidic chemical compound. Coloring may occur during tanning, ceramics, glass manufacture, preparation of extracts, liquors, and so on (it seems that the preparation of aqua vitae, the "water of life", was a fairly popular "experiment" among European alchemists). In reality, although Alchemists contributed distillation Distillation is a method of separating mixtures based on differences in their volatilities in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction to Western Europe, they did little for any known industry. Goldsmiths knew long before Alchemists appeared how to tell what was good gold or fake, and industrial technology grew by the work of the artisans themselves, rather than any Alchemical helpers.

Several early alchemists, such as Zosimos of Panopolis, are recorded as viewing alchemy as a spiritual discipline, and in the Middle Ages, metaphysical aspects increasingly came to be viewed as the true foundation of the art. Organic and inorganic chemical substances, physical states, and molecular material processes as mere metaphors for spiritual entities, spiritual states and ultimately, transformations. In this sense, the literal meanings of 'Alchemical Formulas' were a blind, hiding their true spiritual philosophy, which being at odds with the Medieval Christian Church was a necessity that could have otherwise led them to the "stake and rack" of the Inquisition under charges of heresy.[6] Thus, both the transmutation of common metals into gold and the universal panacea symbolized evolution from an imperfect, diseased, corruptible and ephemeral state towards a perfect, healthy, incorruptible and everlasting state; and the philosopher's stone then represented a mystic key that would make this evolution possible. Applied to the alchemist himself, the twin goal symbolized his evolution from ignorance to enlightenment, and the stone represented a hidden spiritual truth or power that would lead to that goal. In texts that are written according to this view, the cryptic alchemical symbols, diagrams, and textual imagery of late alchemical works typically contain multiple layers of meanings, allegories, and references to other equally cryptic works; and must be laboriously "decoded" in order to discover their true meaning.

In his Alchemical Catechism, Paracelsus clearly denotes that his usage of the metals was a symbol:

Q. When the Philosophers speak of gold and silver, from which they extract their matter, are we to suppose that they refer to the vulgar gold and silver? A. By no means; vulgar silver and gold are dead, while those of the Philosophers are full of life.[7]

Psychology

Alchemical symbolism has been occasionally used by psychologists and philosophers. Carl Jung reexamined alchemical symbolism and theory and began to show the inner meaning of alchemical work as a spiritual path.[8][9] Alchemical philosophy, symbols and methods have enjoyed something of a renaissance in post-modern contexts.[citation needed]

Jung saw alchemy as a Western proto-psychology dedicated to the achievement of individuation.[10] In his interpretation, alchemy was the vessel by which Gnosticism survived its various purges into the Renaissance,[11], a concept also followed by others such as Stephan A. Hoeller. In this sense, Jung viewed alchemy as comparable to a Yoga of the East, and more adequate to the Western mind than Eastern religions and philosophies. The practice of Alchemy seemed to change the mind and spirit of the Alchemist. Conversely, spontaneous changes on the mind of Western people undergoing any important stage in individuation seems to produce, on occasion, imagery known to Alchemy and relevant to the person's situation.[12]

His interpretation of Chinese alchemical texts in terms of his analytical psychology also served the function of comparing Eastern and Western alchemical imagery and core concepts and hence its possible inner sources (archetypes).[13][14]

Magnum opus

Main article: Magnum opus

The Great Work; mystic interpretation of its four stages:[15]

After the 15th century, many writers tended to compress citrinitas into rubedo and consider only three stages.[16]

However, it is in citrinitas that the Chemical Wedding takes place, generating the Philosophical Mercury without which the Philosopher's Stone, triumph of the Work, could never be accomplished.

Within the Magnum Opus, was the creation of the Sanctum Moleculae, that is the 'Sacred Masses' that were derived from the Sacrum Particulae, that is the 'Sacred Particles', needed to complete the process of achieving the Magnum Opus.

Alchemy as a subject of historical research

The history of alchemy has become a vigorous academic field. As the obscure hermetic language of the alchemists is gradually being "deciphered", historians are becoming more aware of the intellectual connections between that discipline and other facets of Western cultural history, such as the sociology and psychology of the intellectual communities, kabbalism, spiritualism, Rosicrucianism, and other mystic movements, cryptography, witchcraft, and the evolution of science and philosophy.

History

In an historical sense, Alchemy is the pursuit of transforming common metals into valuable gold.

Main article: Alchemy in history

The origins of Western alchemy are traceable back to ancient Egypt.[17] The Leyden papyrus X and the Stockholm papyrus along with the Greek magical papyri comprise the first "book" on alchemy still existent. Greek and Indian philosophers theorized that there were only four classical elements (rather than today's 117 chemical elements, a useful analogy is with the highly similar states of matter); Earth, Fire, Water, and Air. The Greek philosophers, in order to prove their point, burned a log: The log was the earth, the flames burning it was fire, the smoke being released was air, and the smoldering soot at the bottom was bubbling water. Because of this, the belief that these four "elements" were at the heart of everything soon spread, only later being replaced in the Middle Ages by Geber's theory of seven elements, which was then replaced by the modern theory of chemical elements during the early modern period.

Extract and symbol key from a 17th century book on alchemy. The symbols used have a one-to-one correspondence with symbols used in astrology at the time.

Alchemy encompasses several philosophical traditions spanning four millennia and three continents. These traditions' general penchant for cryptic and symbolic language makes it hard to trace their mutual influences and "genetic" relationships. Alchemy starts becoming much clearer in the 8th century with the works of the Islamic alchemist, Jabir ibn Hayyan (known as "Geber" in Europe), who introduced a methodical and experimental approach to scientific research based in the laboratory, in contrast to the ancient Greek and Egyptian alchemists whose works were mainly allegorical.[18]

Other famous alchemists include Wei Boyang in Chinese alchemy; Calid and Rhazes in Islamic alchemy; Nagarjuna in Indian alchemy; and Albertus Magnus and pseudo-Geber in European alchemy; as well as the anonymous author of the Mutus Liber, published in France in the late 17th century, and which was a 'wordless book' that claimed to be a guide to making the philosopher's stone, using a series of 15 symbols and illustrations. The philosopher's stone was an object that was thought to be able to amplify one's power in alchemy and, if possible, grant the user ageless immortality, unless he fell victim to burnings or drowning; the common belief was that fire and water were the two greater elements that were implemented into the creation of the stone.

In the case of the Chinese and European alchemists, there was a difference between the two. The European alchemists tried to transmute lead into gold, and, no matter how futile or toxic the element, would continue trying until it was royally outlawed later into the century. The Chinese, however, paid no heed to the philosopher's stone or transmutation of lead to gold; they focused more on medicine for the greater good. During Enlightenment, these "elixirs" were a strong cure for sicknesses, unless it was a test medicine. Most tests were generally fatal, but stabilized elixirs served great purposes. On the other hand, the Islamic alchemists were interested in alchemy for a variety of reasons, whether it was for the transmutation of metals or artificial creation of life, or for practical uses such as Islamic medicine or the chemical industries.

A tentative outline is as follows:

  1. Egyptian alchemy [5000 BCE – 400 BC], beginning of alchemy
  2. Indian alchemy [1200 BC – Present][19], related to Indian metallurgy; Nagarjuna was an important alchemist
  3. Greek alchemy [332 BCE – 642 AD], studied at the Library of Alexandria Stockholm papyrus
  4. Chinese alchemy [142 AD], Wei Boyang writes The Kinship of the Three
  5. Islamic alchemy [700 – 1400], Muslims were at the forefront of Alchemy and Chemistry in the period of the Islamic Golden Age or Islamic Renaissance.
  6. Islamic chemistry [800 – Present], Alkindus and Avicenna refute transmutation, Rhazes refutes four classical elements, and Tusi discovers conservation of mass
  7. European alchemy [1300 – Present], Saint Albertus Magnus builds on Arabic alchemy
  8. European chemistry [1661 – Present], Boyle writes The Sceptical Chymist, Lavoisier writes Elements of Chemistry, and Dalton publishes his Atomic Theory

Modern connections to alchemy

Islamic alchemy was a forerunner of modern scientific chemistry. Alchemists used many of the same laboratory tools that are used today. These tools were not usually sturdy or in good condition, especially during the medieval period of Europe. Many transmutation attempts failed when alchemists unwittingly made unstable chemicals. This was made worse by the unsafe conditions.

Up to the 16th century, alchemy was considered serious science in Europe; for instance, Isaac Newton devoted considerably more of his writing to the study of alchemy (see Isaac Newton's occult studies) than he did to either optics or physics, for which he is famous. Other eminent alchemists of the Western world are Roger Bacon, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Tycho Brahe, Thomas Browne, and Parmigianino. The decline of alchemy began in the 18th century with the birth of modern chemistry, which provided a more precise and reliable framework for matter transmutations and medicine, within a new grand design of the universe based on rational materialism.

Alchemy in traditional medicine

Traditional medicines involve transmutation by alchemy, using pharmacological or a combination of pharmacological and spiritual techniques. In Chinese medicine the alchemical traditions of pao zhi will transform the nature of the temperature, taste, body part accessed or toxicity. In Ayurveda the samskaras are used to transform heavy metals and toxic herbs in a way that removes their toxicity. These processes are actively used to the present day.[20]

Nuclear transmutation

Main article: Nuclear transmutation Main article: Synthesis of noble metals

In 1919, Ernest Rutherford used artificial disintegration to convert nitrogen into oxygen.[21] From then on, this sort of scientific transmutation has been routinely performed in many nuclear physics-related laboratories and facilities, like particle accelerators, nuclear power stations and nuclear weapons as a by-product of fission and other physical processes.

In Literature

A play by Ben Jonson, The Alchemist, is a satirical and sceptical take on the subject

Part 2 of Goethe's Faust, is full of alchemical symbolism.[22]

According to Hermetic Fictions: Alchemy and Irony in the Novel (Keele University Press, 1995), by David Meakin, alchemy is also featured in such novels as those by William Godwin, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Emile Zola, Jules Verne, Marcel Proust, Thomas Mann, Hermann Hesse, James Joyce, Gustav Meyrink, Lindsay Clarke, Marguerite Yourcenar, Umberto Eco, Michel Butor, Paulo Coelho and Amanda Quick.

In popular culture

The subject of alchemy is extensively used in many cartoons and comic books, often in the form of superpowers. In Fullmetal Alchemist, alchemy and transmutation are treated as sciences, mixed with magic but fully understandable and utilizable with proper knowledge. Fullmetal Alchemist also refers to equivalency or equivalent exchange for alchemy to work. In Buso Renkin, alchemy is used primarily as a means for superpowers, however it holds little resemblance to "actual" alchemy.

Alchemy is also used in many video games:

>In World of Warcraft, Alchemy is a profession the player's character can learn in order to create special potions or flasks to be used for adding to the character's statistics for a set period of time, usually in preparation for big battles as in the case of instances/dungeons.

>In Secret of Evermore, the only video game from Square's North American division, alchemy takes the place of the normal magic system. The main character receives alchemic formulas instead of spells and by combining a wide variety of ingredients (such as wax, oil, limestone, and dry ice) a reaction will take place such as fireballs, healing, or shields.

>The Atelier and Mana Khemia series from GUST also heavily emphasize on alchemy. The games feature hundreds of ingredient and recipes that players need to find or derive themselves. Additionally, all weapons and certain items must be made, or synthesized, and they are not sold in shops, which therefore makes alchemy essential in character growth.

>The adventure game Zork Nemesis features a slightly stylised (to fit the fictional world of Zork) vision of alchemy, and uses knowledge of the processes as clues to solving puzzles.

>The Plot of the 2003 Core Design video game Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness draws heavily from Alchemic lore and legend.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, as the name would suggest, has as a central theme a magical stone (called the Philosopher's Stone) that is supposed to grant ever-lasting life and be able to turn anything to gold. For the American publication, the name was changed to "Sorcerer's Stone," but the parallels between the book's magical stone and the alchemists' philosophers stone are still unmistakable.

The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, discusses one boy's quest to fulfill his destiny, and on the way he is aided by an alchemist.

Another novel called The Alchemist by Donna Boyd explains the life of an immortal Egyptian going about life from Ancient Egypt to modern civilization.

The Alchemyst: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott centers on twins, Sophie and Josh Newman, who are guided through their prophesied quest by Nicholas Flamel, a well-known alchemist in the 14th century.

Short story by H. P. Lovecraft [1908] (1986). "The Alchemist". in S. T. Joshi (ed.). Dagon and Other Macabre Tales (9th corrected printing ed.). Sauk City, WI: Arkham House. ISBN 0-87054-039-4.

Alchemy also serves as one of the themes in White Wolf's Promethean: The Created role-playing game, using the humours, classical metals, and the ideas of refinement and the Magnum Opus as central ideas.

In Star Wars, the Sith have their own variation called Sith Alchemy, which calls upon the use of their magic to create hideous, unnatural beasts of the dark side, summon forth monsters called Sithspawn, strengthen their weapons, and various acts of corporeal necromancy. Darth Plagueis used this science to discover a technique similar to the real-world Elixir of life.

California band Thrice created a four EP set named the Alchemy Index which centers around each of the four elements involved in the alchemical process.

In Venture Bros. a member of the Order of the Triad is The Alchemist, a character who is seeking the philosopher's stone.

In contemporary art

In the twentieth century alchemy was a profoundly important source of inspiration for the Surrealist artist Max Ernst, who used the symbolism of alchemy to inform and guide his work. M.E. Warlick wrote his Max Ernst and Alchemy describing this relationship in detail.

Contemporary artists use alchemy as inspiring subject matter, like Odd Nerdrum, whose interest has been noted by Richard Vine, and the painter Michael Pearce [23], whose interest in alchemy dominates his work. His works Fama [24] and The Aviator's Dream [25] particularly express alchemical ideas in a painted allegory.

See also

Other alchemical pages

Alchemy and psychoanalysis

Other resources

Related and alternative philosophies

Substances of the alchemists

Scientific connections

Notes

  1. ^ E. J. Holmyard, Alchemical Equipment in "A History of Technologyy ed. E. Singer et al." vol. II (Oxford, 1957), p. 731.
  2. ^ Walter W. Skeat (1892). Principles of English Etymology. Oxford: Clarendon Press. http://books.google.com/books?id=M7kCAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA286&dq=arabs+kimia+greeks&lr=&as_brr=3&as_pt=ALLTYPES&ei=Z0dYSdmvD5rqkQSF0dz4Bw#PPA287,M1.
  3. ^ Mahdihassan S. "Alchemy, Chinese versus Greek, an etymological approach: a rejoinder"
  4. ^ Alchemy at Dictionary.com
  5. ^ The True Nature of Hermetic Alchemy
  6. ^ Blavatsky, H.P. (1888). The Secret Doctrine. ii. Theosophical Publishing Company. 238. ISBN 978-1557000026. http://www.phx-ult-lodge.org/SDVolume2.htm.
  7. ^ Paracelsus. "Alchemical Catechism". http://www.sacred-texts.com/alc/tschoudy.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
  8. ^ Jung, C. G. (1944). Psychology and Alchemy (2nd ed. 1968 Collected Works Vol. 12 ISBN 0-691-01831-6). London: Routledge.
  9. ^ Jung, C. G., & Hinkle, B. M. (1912). Psychology of the Unconscious : a study of the transformations and symbolisms of the libido, a contribution to the history of the evolution of thought. London: Kegan Paul Trench Trubner. (revised in 1952 as Symbols of Transformation, Collected Works Vol.5 ISBN 0-691-01815-4)
  10. ^ Jung, C. G. (1944). Psychology and Alchemy (2nd ed. 1968 Collected Works Vol. 12 ISBN 0-691-01831-6). London: Routledge.
  11. ^ Jung, C. G., & Jaffe A. (1962). Memories, Dreams, Reflections. London: Collins. This is Jung's autobiography, recorded and edited by Aniela Jaffe, ISBN 0-679-72395-1
  12. ^ Jung, C. G. - Psychology and Alchemy; Symbols of Transformation
  13. ^ C.-G. Jung Preface to Richard Wilhelm's translation of the I Ching
  14. ^ C.-G. Jung Preface to the translation of The Secret of The Golden Flower
  15. ^ The-Four-Stages-of-Alchemical-Work
  16. ^ Meyrink und das theomorphische Menschenbild
  17. ^ Neumann, Erich. The origins and history of consciousness, with a foreword by C.G. Jung. Translated from the German by R.F.C. Hull. New York : Pantheon Books, 1954. Confer p.255, footnote 76: "Since Alchemy actually originated in Egypt, it is not improbable that esoteric interpretations of the Osiris myth are among the foundations of the art ..."
  18. ^ Kraus, Paul, Jâbir ibn Hayyân, Contribution à l'histoire des idées scientifiques dans l'Islam. I. Le corpus des écrits jâbiriens. II. Jâbir et la science grecque,. Cairo (1942-1943). Repr. By Fuat Sezgin, (Natural Sciences in Islam. 67-68), Frankfurt. 2002:

    “To form an idea of the historical place of Jabir’s alchemy and to tackle the problem of its sources, it is advisable to compare it with what remains to us of the alchemical literature in the Greek language. One knows in which miserable state this literature reached us. Collected by Byzantine scientists from the tenth century, the corpus of the Greek alchemists is a cluster of incoherent fragments, going back to all the times since the third century until the end of the Middle Ages.”

    “The efforts of Berthelot and Ruelle to put a little order in this mass of literature led only to poor results, and the later researchers, among them in particular Mrs. Hammer-Jensen, Tannery, Lagercrantz , von Lippmann, Reitzenstein, Ruska, Bidez, Festugiere and others, could make clear only few points of detail…

    The study of the Greek alchemists is not very encouraging. An even surface examination of the Greek texts shows that a very small part only was organized according to true experiments of laboratory: even the supposedly technical writings, in the state where we find them today, are unintelligible nonsense which refuses any interpretation.

    It is different with Jabir’s alchemy. The relatively clear description of the processes and the alchemical apparatuses, the methodical classification of the substances, mark an experimental spirit which is extremely far away from the weird and odd esotericism of the Greek texts. The theory on which Jabir supports his operations is one of clearness and of an impressive unity. More than with the other Arab authors, one notes with him a balance between theoretical teaching and practical teaching, between the `ilm and the `amal. In vain one would seek in the Greek texts a work as systematic as that which is presented for example in the Book of Seventy.”

    (cf. Ahmad Y Hassan. "A Critical Reassessment of the Geber Problem: Part Three". http://www.history-science-technology.com/Geber/Geber%203.htm. Retrieved on 2008-08-09. )
  19. ^ "The oldest Indian writings, the Vedas (Hindu sacred scriptures), contain the same hints of alchemy" - Multhauf, Robert P. & Gilbert, Robert Andrew (2008). Alchemy. Encyclopædia Britannica (2008).
  20. ^ Junius, Manfred M; The Practical Handbook of Plant Alchemy: An Herbalist's Guide to Preparing Medicinal Essences, Tinctures, and Elixirs; Healing Arts Press 1985
  21. ^ [|Amsco School Publications]. "Reviewing Physics: The Physical Setting" (in English). Amsco School Publications. http://www.stmary.ws/physics/amsco_review_and_glencoe/chapter05.pdf. ""The first artificial transmutation of one element to another was performed by Rutherford in 1919. Rutherford bombarded nitrogen with energetic alpha particles that were moving fast enough to overcome the electric repulsion between themselves and the target nuclei. The alpha particles collided with, and were absorbed by, the nitrogen nuclei, and protons were ejected. In the process oxygen and hydrogen nuclei were created."
  22. ^ see Alice Raphael: Goethe and the Philosopher's Stone, symbolical patterns in 'The Parable' and the second part of 'Faust', London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1965
  23. ^ Cal Lutheran | Department of Art - Faculty
  24. ^ The Gilded Raven Blog + » fama
  25. ^ The Gilded Raven Blog + » Storm / The Aviator’s Dream

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Alchemy

Categories: Alchemy | Arabic words and phrases | Defunct occupations | Hermeticism

 

The above information uses material from Wikipedia and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Some facts may not have been fully verified for accuracy. [Disclaimers]
This page was last archived by our server on Tue Jul 7 21:36:35 2009. [ refresh local cache ]
Displaying this page or its contents does not use any Wikimedia Foundation's resources.
The owners of this site proudly support the Wikimedia Foundation.

[Hide]▼
'Alchemy' News
Beth Schreibman-Gehring, Foody Alchemist - Examiner.com
news.google.com
Beth Schreibman-Gehring, Foody Alchemist

Examiner.com

Alchemists transform existing formulas into a different product. According to Wikapedia (less well known is plant alchemy , or "spagyric"); the creation of ...
Google News Search: Alchemy,
Sun Jul 12 06:32:48 2009
'Alchemy' Images
alchemy jpg
rockmagazyn.com
alchemy jpg
302px x 300px | 15.50kB

[source page]

Alchemy to jeden z najlepszych albumow koncertowych wszechczasow i zarazem pierwszy wydany przez Dire Straits Same najprzedniejsze hity we wspania ych rozbudowanych cz sto

Yahoo Images Search: Alchemy,
Thu Jul 16 13:13:16 2009
'Alchemy' Blogs
Elements of Alchemy (Malocchio) Chapter 8: Malocchio - Candlelight ...
candlelightstories.com
Elements of Alchemy (Malocchio) Chapter 8: Malocchio - Candlelight ...

(CandlelightStories.com)

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 17:29:13 GM

Stories, movies, games, books, audio, news and opinion.

Google Blogs Search: Alchemy,
Thu Jul 9 05:53:15 2009
'Alchemy' Answers
What is alchemy and how was it discovered?
Q. Now for the real question: (a) Who founded alchemy? (b) Where was it founded? (c) Is alchemy being used right now? I got all these questions after watching the anime "Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood". It was interesting how they did the process. Are they anybody working as alchemists right now? Please answer.
Asked by tsubasa reservoir c - Sat Apr 25 12:35:24 2009 - - 1 Answers - 0 Comments
Yahoo Answers Search: Alchemy,
Thu Jul 2 04:30:10 2009
[Hide]▲