Page 29 - Compound of Compounds

After the deprivation of moisture, caused by the philosophical sublimation, the
volatile became fixed, the soft hard, the aqueous earthy, according to Geber. It is the
metamorphosis of nature, the change of water into fire, according to the Turba. Again,
it is the change of cold and moist constitutions into bilious, dry constitutions, according
to doctors. Aristotle stated that the spirit adopted a body and Alphidius that the liquid
has become viscous. The occult became manifest, said Rudianus in the Liber Trium
Verborum. We now understand the philosophers’ claims that: “Our Magnum Opus is
none other that a permutation of natures, an evolution of the elements.” It is quite
evident that by this deprivation of humidity the stone desiccates, the volatile becomes
fixed, the spirit becomes corporeal, the liquid becomes solid, fire changes into water,
and air changes into earth. Consequently, we changed the true natures following a
certain order, we turned the four elements in a circle, we permuted their natures. May
God be blessed forever and ever! Amen.

With God’s permission, let us now address the second operation, which is the
whitening of our pure earth. Thus take two parts of fixed earth or Crow’s Head; grind
it subtly and with prudence in an exceedingly clean mortar, add to it one part of the
philosophical Water that you are familiar with (it is the water you put aside). Apply
yourself to their union, by gradually imbibing with water the dry earth, until it drinks
the water to satiety; ground and mixed so thoroughly that the union of body, soul and
water be made perfect and intimate. This done, put the whole into a matrass,
hermetically sealed, so that nothing might escape and place it on its little even bed,
lukewarm, that warmth sustained so that by sweating it sheds the absorbed liquid from
its bowels. Leave it thus for eight days, until the earth partially whitens. Then take the
Stone, pulverize it and reimbibe it with Virgin’s Milk, stirring until it quenches its thirst;
return it into the phial over its little lukewarm bed so that it may desiccate by sweating,
as above. Repeat this operation four times in the same order: imbibition of the earth
with water until perfect union, desiccation, calcination. Thence the earth of our very
precious stone will be sufficiently cooked. By the following order of operations :
coction, pulverization, imbibition by water, desiccation, calcination, you have
sufficiently purified the Crow’s Head, the black and fetid earth, and conducted it to
whiteness by the power of fire, of heat and of the whitening water. Gather the white
earth and put it aside with care, for it is a precious gift; it is the white foliate earth,
white Sulphur, white Magnesia, etc. Morien refers to it in his statement: “Let this earth
putrefy with its water, so that it may purify, and you will complete the Magistery, God
willing.” Likewise, Hermes stated that Azoth cleanses Laton and removes all of its
impurities.

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