12 Part Series with Prof Evans Lansing Smith

"Perhaps the oldest and most enduring of all myths is the Nekyia: the descent to and return from the underworld. There are innumerable iterations of the myth from nearly all cultures, manifesting in literature, art, music, psychology, philosophy, film, and graphic media. The myth catalyzes the revelation of the archetypal iconography of the imagination leading to a radical transformation of consciousness. This series focuses alchemical narratives in foundational works of the hermetic tradition."

Date and time
Sun, 21 Jan 2024 20:00 - Sun, 22 Dec 2024 21:30 GMT

Location
Online



https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/alchemy-i...orgprofile

"The true secret of the philosophers' stone; or, Jewel of Alchymy wherein the process of making the great Elixir is discovered; by which base metals may be turned into pure gold; containing the most excellent and profitable instructions in the hermetic art; discovering that valuable and secret medicine of the philosophers, to make men healthy, wise, and happy."


Text:
https://sacred-texts.com/grim/magus/ma116.htm

Video with reading of abridged text and lots of illustrations:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KprCEgXaSHo

In his Curiosities of Literatutre.

"Mrs. Thomas, the Corinna of Dryden, in her Life, has recorded one of the delusions of alchymy. An infatuated lover of this delusive art met with one who tended to have the power of transmuting lead to gold; that is, in their language, the imperfect metals to the perfect one. The hermetic philosopher required only the materials, and time, to perform his golden operations. He was taken to the country residence of his patroness. A long laboratory was built, and that his labours might not be impeded by any disturbance, no one was permitted to enter into it. His door was contrived to turn on a pivot; so that, unseen and unseeing. his meals were conveyed to him without distracting the sublime meditations of the sage."

https://knarf.english.upenn.edu/EtAlia/disraeli.html

"As a practising Christian priest, Hermann Beckh was profoundly aware that the mystery of substance – its transmutation in the cosmos and the human being – was a mystical fact to be approached with the greatest reverence, requiring at once ever-deepening scholarship and meditation. He viewed chemistry as a worthy but materialistic science devoid of spirit, while the fullness of spiritual-physical nature could be approached by what he preferred to call ‘chymistry’ or ‘alchymy’, thereby taking in millennia of spiritual tradition. In consequence, Beckh’s Alchymy, The Mystery of the Material World is not limited to the conventional workings of Western alchemy, nor to what can be found in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation – although he does unveil hidden riches there."

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alchymy-Mystery...1912230356

"Chemical Wedding is a powerful and mysterious song written by Bruce Dickinson, the legendary vocalist of Iron Maiden. Released in 1998 as the title track of his solo album, it delves into the realms of occultism, alchemy, and mysticism. The song’s meaning goes beyond surface-level interpretation, inviting listeners to embark on a journey through esoteric symbolism."

https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-beh...dickinson/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chemic...son_album)

Whole album here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjK8G5mz29s

Despite Image Searches I haven't been able to source this one.

Attached Files

Thumbnail(s)
   

An excerpt from ‘Trailokyanath Mukhopadhyay: Tales of Early Magic Realism in Bengali’, translated by Sucheta Dasgupta.

"Bottger was born in Prussia, which is presently part of the German nation, 217 years ago in CE 1682. He apprenticed at a hospital at the age of twelve. As a child, he had a fascination for the study of chemistry. In those days, chemistry and alchemy were one and the same subject. Bottger used all his leisure hours in alchemic research. In plain English, this meant he experimented with the reaction of iron, copper, etc., with various compounds to see if they could be converted to gold. These tests he carried on non-stop for several years on end. Seeing his sharpness and extraordinary knowledge, the owner of the hospital began sponsoring his laboratory work. After some years had passed, Bottger announced that he had discovered the means to prepare gold."


https://scroll.in/article/1058818/magic-...literature

No paywall as such but a contribution pop-up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otK4rdhSVrc

https://www.acslab.com/wellness/blue-lot...s-products

"Yin Mountain offers translations of three female Daoist poets from the Tang dynasty, a period often hailed as the “golden age” of classical Chinese poetry. While names like Du Fu, Li Bo (Li Bai), Wang Wei, and Hanshan are familiar in translated poetry from this era, the contributions of female poets, particularly those deeply rooted in Daoist principles, remain largely unexplored. The poetry of Li Ye, Xue Tao, and Yu Xuanji, influenced by Daoism, naturalism, mysticism, love, and everyday life experiences, weaves plain yet poignant language with vivid imagery."

https://www.buddhistdoor.net/features/bo...ist-women/

https://www.amazon.com/Yin-Mountain-Immo...1645471128

Now available in English.

"For the first time, the divine work is presented in its entirety by authors with extensive experience in alchemy. The book Alchemy - the Divine Work conveys alchemy's history, philosophy and practice, and instructs the reader on how to become an alchemical master. Through this, one becomes a divine co-creator in both one's own refining process as well as that of the entire creation, like a true philosopher - a true lover of wisdom."



https://www.amazon.com/Alchemy-Concernin...9198104535