To learn alchemy, the practitioner must first understand its principles. To do so, we must look at the content of the ancient texts that served as the foundation for alchemy. One such text being the Emerald Tablet, which was said to hold the entirety of the philosophy and practice of alchemy. With this we can understand the foundation of the system of reasoning that the alchemists had.
In the Theatrum Chemicum translation of the Emerald Tablet, the second line states, “Whatever is below is similar to that which is above. Through this the marvels of the work of one thing are procured and perfected.” Although it’s short, within this excerpt is the entirety of alchemical philosophy:
To start, the heavens, as referred to by numerous religions, is the above: it was the sky and the swath of stars overhead; it contained the sun, the moon, and the planets. The above is the realm of God / the gods, and it is also the internal expression of the soul, residing in each of us.
On the other hand, the below is the earth—the mortal world.
The above and the below correspond; they are in union with each other. However, while the two are perceived as two separate aspects, they are, in fact, one.
Together, the above and the below accomplish the “one thing”. Alchemists believed that all things were created from one thing by one thing. This “one thing” is what was known by alchemists as the Prima Materia, the first matter, in which there was one, unchangeable reality behind the ever-changing material world. It is regarded as the source of everything, and alchemists, in their studies, were constantly searching for this Prima Materia.
In addition, the “one thing” was believed to simultaneously express itself as three things (a trinity). Similar to other practices, alchemy has its own trinity, its own set of three principles:
Alchemy is a practice that has its origins in Egypt, as evidenced from the word in itself. The Arabic prefix Al, meaning ‘the’, combined with the word khemia, derived from khem, the name for the land of Egypt, gives us the translation of the term ‘alchemy’: “The art of Egypt”.
From Egypt, alchemy was a gift from the Kemetic god Thoth (’Djehuty’), who thus is seen as its founder. Thoth brought to man sciences and mathematics; he presided over scribes and knowledge.
As the Hellenics, or Greeks, traveled into Egypt, they associated many of the Kemetic deities with their own. For example, the Hellenic god Hermes became synonymous with Thoth. Through this relation between Thoth and Hermes, Hermes was also perceived as the founder of alchemy. Thus, alchemy is commonly referred to as the Hermetic art, or the arts of Hermes. Additionally, he is also referred to as Hermes Trismegistus, ‘Thrice-great Hermes’.
From Egypt, the practice of alchemy gradually spread north until finally reaching the European countries. Alchemy also had a presence in eastern countries, taking on a similar, but different, form there.
Furthermore, alchemy is a two-sided subject; it is a practice that is both spiritual and physical. It encompassed astrology, mysticism, spiritualism, and physics.
Throughout history there have been three main goals of an alchemist:
I. To transmute ordinary metals into gold.
II. To make the soul progress from its ordinary state to one of spiritual perfection.
III. To create a substance known as the Philosopher’s Stone, using raw materials and the assistance of the divine.
Alchemy was composed of both of science and spiritual principle; if an alchemist could transmute, or “purify”, base metals into gold, then, they believed, they could achieve spiritual purity.
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