![]() ![]() When you imagine the origins of Alchemy, there’s a fair chance that your mind dances with images of Renaissance-era scientists toiling away in dimly-lit workshops. These principals and spiritual questions form the foundation upon which Alchemy stands and understanding them is a crucial component in the story of Enlightenment thinking, Witchcraft, and much more. But, unlike these later sciences, you absolutely cannot separate the chemical processes in Alchemy from the esoteric principles at its heart. ![]() In this way, you could think of Alchemy as a predecessor to Chemistry, Biology, and Western Science in general. The methods that early alchemists used to transmute base metals into gold would go on to become the foundations of early scientific techniques. And, while the purest forms of gold are the least durable, they can easily be combined with other metals to craft strong alloys. It’s far stronger than one would expect from such a malleable metal. Gold doesn’t degrade or rust in the same way other metals do. There are other important material factors as well. Considering the fluid nature of the concepts at the bedrock of alchemical thought generally, it makes perfect sense that such a moldable metal would emerge as the central material in Alchemy training. Gold is among the most malleable of the metals. But there are chemical reasons to pursue gold post-transmutation as well. Gold has always been prized for its illustrious qualities and its aesthetic purity over other metals. This concept of purity is actually the reason that gold became such a central focus to alchemical thought in the first place. These include, but are not limited to changing base metals into more “pure” ones, like gold. To this day, Alchemy training uses processes that are rooted in ancient techniques. While this is a central focus in Alchemical thought and procedure, the reasons behind this attempted transmutation are more complicated than profit alone. Many who have heard of Alchemy were introduced by way of the concept of turning an ordinary metals, such as lead or iron, into gold. This brings to mind the most common cultural perception, apart from Harry Potter perhaps, of Alchemy in the Western world. The ultimate goal of Alchemy is to change an element, either within the practitioner or within the universe, from a less desirable state to a more desirable one. The alchemical process is rooted in understanding and working with the fluid nature of both the universe and oneself. So what does any of this have to do with Alchemy? And what do Alchemists do? Because all of the universe is in a constant state of change, so must our understanding of it be continually evolving. Where does your body end and the chair you’re sitting on begin? Turns out, that’s a trickier question to answer than it may seem at first glance.īy extension, this means that the physical laws we believe to govern the cosmos are also ever-shifting. Contemporary science would even argue that the barriers between material objects are flimsy at best. Everything is becoming, nothing is being. All matter is in a constant state of flux. In the material, physical world in which we spend the vast majority of our lives, nothing is fixed. ![]() And this brings us to our first important, alchemical distinction. ![]() By fixed, I’m referring to something with finite properties. ![]()
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