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Ancient alchemists were wise in coding their texts with words that can be so easily mistaken for their elementary counterparts (sulfur, mercury, salt, etc.). Even today many fall short of the authentic alchemical experiments described in these old manuscripts due to this confusion. Of all of the multifaceted words found within alchemy, it seems that none are more commonly misunderstood than Mercury. In the alchemical perspective, Mercury was considered the spirit of any given material. Paracelsus explained it simply as such, saying: "For Mercury is the spirit, sulfur is the soul, and salt is the body." [1] Exploration of the word spirit, featured in the article Truth of the Matter, helped to define spirit as the mind - an inherent power of consciousness. It is the part of any given material that organizes the Logos, which inherently exists within consciousness - our alchemical sulfur. To the Greeks, Logos was considered to be a divine dialogue that God had within himself. This dialogue, in effect, was the beginnings of the creation of matter and our known reality. "In beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word." John 1:1 It is found then that Mercury is intimately tied to Sulfur - Consciousness and the mind acting as one to manifest nature. Frater Albertus pointed to this relationship, noting: "Sulfur, that is, the alchemical sulfur, is usually found in its oily form adhering to the Mercury."[2] Made for one another, alchemists viewed these two aspects - Sulfur and Mercury- as lovers, intimately bound together in union. These principles embodied archetypical patterns of masculinity & femininity, existing in a natural state of union unless separated by art. Manfred M. Junius wrote: "Mercury... Represents the feminine and passive principle. Sulfur is the...masculine or active principle."[3] These general archetypes of masculine and feminine inspired alchemists to use words that were synonymous with these terms, once again further coding the alchemical principles of Mercury & Sulfur. Junius, describing these literary synonyms saying: "Mercury is occasionally called the Moon, the Lunar, or Diana, Sulfur is the Sun, the Solar, Apollo, the original potency, the formative principle, the active, the principle of the "invisible fire" and also of love."[4] These principles, being so closely tied, made it difficult at times for alchemists to distinguish between one or the other, and many times these principles were considered to be two sides of the same coin. The image of two snakes, wrapped in a circle, biting each others tails served as a symbol to describe this and helped paint a picture of the motion going on within the realm of consciousness.  Recognition of the affinity that the principles of Mercury and Sulfur have towards each other, gave rise to another crucial observation: Sulfur coagulates Mercury. When brought together, the union of Sulfur and Mercury has the power to create salt, or a body. Francis Bacon starts out his essay- Experiments Touching Sulfur and Mercury- by saying: "There bee two Great Families of Things; You may terme them by severall Names; Sulphureous and Mercureall, which are the Chymists Words: (as for their Sal, which is their Third Principle, it is a Compound of the other two;) Inflammable, and Not Inflammable; Mature and Crude; Oily and Watry." Sulfur and Mercury - consciousness and Mind - existing together, naturally gave birth to the third principle - Salt. Sulfur is the soul, the consciousness in matter. Consciousness being the actuating cause of an individual life. The Spirit is the mind, an inherent power of consciousness - this is our sulfur and mercury bound together - consciousness and mind. Consciousness, using the power of the mind, organizes and embodies thoughts, giving concrete reality to these thoughts, which have no concrete existence - it births Salt. This in turn makes all forms of matter, a matter of Soul and Spirit. Paracelsus defines this precisely, explaining in his book Concerning the Nature of Things: "It should be known that the life of things is none other than a spiritual thing. On this account there is nothing corporeal but has latent within itself a spirit and life, which as just now said, is none other than a spiritual thing. But not only the lives which move and act, as men, animals, worms in the earth, birds under the sky, fishes in the sea, but also all corporeal and substantial things. For here we should know that God, at the beginning of the creation of all things, created no body whatever without its own spirit, which spirit contains after an occult manner within itself. For what is the body without the spirit? Absolutely nothing. So it is that the spirit holds concealed within itself the virtue and power of the thing, and not the body." Confirmed to us by Paracelsus, all matter, and the alchemical Salt, are a manifestation of Spirit. All things have been made real by and through the Spirit, and the Spirit is made real by the Soul, Our Sulfur. This Spirit is our Mercury, the Mercury of the 3 principles. The mind of matter. Mercury is the bridge or the medium through which invisible and immaterial consciousness can be placed within and reside in matter. Applying the knowledge that Sulfur and mercury in union together gave rise to the third principle, Salt, alchemists employed these philosophical understandings in pursuit and finalization of every alchemists Magum Opus, the confection of the philosophers stone. In Search of the stone, alchemists often referred to Mercury as Argent Vive. Another code word further mystifying the materials they were harnessing in their laboratories. Under this pseudonym -Argent Vive - Mercury was recognized in its metallic form as quicksilver. It's union with the masculine metallic seed/Sulfur, would in time coagulate into a Salt if incubated properly. Copulation between the masculine and feminine gave birth to a new form of metallic matter, a red powder - the famed philosophers stone. At times, alchemists would also refer to quicksilver as Our Mercury, as if to show their own intimate philosophical understanding of the secrets hidden within this amazing and luminous liquid metal - this water which does not wet the hands. Prefacing mercury with the word Our pointed to the relationship the alchemists had with this matter. It showed possession, and a depth of understanding - One of knowing a material, inside and out, for its true nature and not just its surface level appearances. Much like how referring to a specific person as my wife or my husband shows others your intimate connection and understanding with that person, alchemists too had Our Mercury and Our Gold. References to this relationship that Mercury facilitated between the soul and the body are prevalent amongst Greek and roman mythology as well. The name Mercury originally comes to us from the God Mercury that existed within the roman pantheon. Often considered one of the most favorited gods, Mercury was known as the son of Maia and Jupiter (Maia and Zues). It is believed that the name Mercury comes from a Proto-Indo-European root - merĝ- which stands for "boundary or border." In Greek mythology Mercury was known as Hermes and similar to the etymological meaning of Mercury in the roman language, Hermes gets his name from the Greek word Herma which meant a heap of stones, or a boundary marker. In the mythical stories of Ancient Greece and Rome, Mercury/Hermes was known as a messenger between the realm of immortal gods and the realm of mortal man. Mercury bridged this gap between creator and created - God and Man. He resided within the gap between the two and facilitated contact between their borders. He was the boundary marker. Mercury's mother Maia is also of particular interest in these stories, and helps illuminate much of the nature that is attributed to Mercury. Maia was one of the seven Pleiades, all of which were considered sea-nymphs and daughters of the Titan Atlas, who was associated with the Moon. This watery nature of his sea-nymph mother and the lunar nature of her father Atlas seem to have been passed along to Mercury/Hermes. Also of interest, is the linguistic similarity that Mercury's mother Maia has to the Vedic god of Illusion, Maya. Taking into consideration the fact that earthly matter and reality is an embodiment of thoughts - imagination taken as reality - produced by the Spirit/Mind, a thread connecting illusion to Mercury begins to be revealed. Mercury/Hermes was recognized as a trickster god, outwitting other gods for the satisfaction of mankind. This makes the thread between Mercury and illusion become even more apparent. What more is an illusion than a fancy trick? And certainly it can be seen that the Mind can play tricks on us all. Mind, being of course synonymous with Mercury, the connection of illusion thickens. In ancient symbology, water embodies the moon, the feminine and the mercurial nature; alchemical mercury often being called Luna, or the feminine. Alchemy also considered Mercury to be composed of the elements air and water, And when found within any given material (plant, animal, mineral, metal) it was recognized by its watery consistency and Airy volatile nature. Mercury was always any humidity, moisture, or fluid found within different materials. For plants it was their inherent water, and liquor if fermented, in minerals and metals it was their acetones, and in animals it was their blood and semen. Physically, Mercury was always a liquid substance. In many ancient traditions there is a great sea that separates the realm of immortality from the realm of mortality - Men from Gods. The ancient Egyptians spoke of this ocean as the "sea of death", a place that no mortal man could venture past and return from. In Greek/Roman mythology Mercury/Hermes was known to be a conductor of souls between these two abodes, helping to ferry individuals into the afterlife. Mercury himself was seen as this medium, this water/sea, spreading far and deep between the two lands of mortality and immortality. Mercury was, and is, always the water, in all facets of study. The messenger and communicator standing between these two lands. Mercury bridged the gap between what appeared to be two separate worlds. The Presence of Mercury, Mind, or Spirit, unified and made what appears to be separate, whole, placing soul into Body - Mind into matter - immortal into mortal. [1] Concerning the Nature of Things: Book One - Concerning the Generation of natural Things
[2] The Alchemists Handbook [3] Spagyrics [4] Spagyrics Alchemy had a unique and beneficial perspective in understanding the nature of reality. One that is of great value to us today. Especially in regards to our evolution - individually and collectively.
Incorporating a theory of what was known as the 3 principles was fundamental in creating a foundation for the pursuit of alchemical works. This theory split all forms of matter into a trinity so that everything consisted of these three essentials. They were known as the soul, spirit, and body - or in alchemical terms the sulfur, mercury, and salt. We have these divisions with us today, and many people recognize themselves as having a spirit or a soul. But ask someone to define what these immaterial substances are and they will most likely fumble with their words. In looking to help myself define these words so as to be resolved in my answer - if ever asked - I discovered some rather interesting information that helped to shed light on my understanding of nature, reality, and alchemical works. Practicality and application of alchemy and it's constituent theories and understandings became apparent as I explored the answers to these questions. With integration of this new found knowledge my world was truly transformed by the art of alchemy, which in essence can be seen as the transmutative flow of life itself. It's easy for a person, with their mind and intelligence, to recognize that there is an immaterial backing to their being. This we might call our spirit, or our soul. In alchemical view, it was also crucial to recognize that not only moving, thinking, animate life was composed of an immaterial counter part, but that the inanimate rocks and plants also contained these substances of soul and spirit. Many of the alchemical works have made this knowing tangible through experimentation. The alchemist could separate any substance, plant or stone, to reveal three basic materials, which came to be labeled the salt, sulfur, or mercury of that material in use. The separation of these principles helped the alchemists of old to conceptualize this understanding - that all matter originated from one source and was comprised of the same basic building blocks. The source was the Prima Materia, the first matter of all. The building blocks were the 3 principles, and the four elements which won't be elaborated on in this article. To understand the alchemical sulfur, mercury, and salt you must first understand what a soul, a spirit, and a body really are. The terms sulfur, mercury, and salt are just code words used to describe the body, soul, and spirit any given substance. In the past, alchemy and it's practitioners were seen to have gone through their fair share of persecution and discrimination. Many ancient manuscripts used coded language to hide the true meanings of valuable information. Information that might be used to condemn a practicing alchemist or grant power to the greedy. For now, this is history, and what matters most, here and now, is defining and resolving our understandings of the spirit, the soul, and the body. First it is best to explore the body and define it so a foundation can be built to help grasp the spirit and the soul and their relationship to the body. The body was known in alchemy as the Salt - but let's stick with the word body and explore it's definition. (Please read the following carefully and slowly.) Salt: The Body We all have a body. We can see it, touch it, feel it; Our body is our material vessel. It is the tool we utilize to interact with our world. The houser of our mind, our thoughts, emotions, and memories. We all know the body. It's simple for us to intellectually grasp an understanding of the body. Not only our own, but the bodies of other life forms or objects. We all seem to known it, but I wondered what was the best way to define it. I then did what any other person would do to get a definition of a word - I looked it up in the dictionary. Here is how our dictionary defines the word Body: Body: A material structure that embodies or gives concrete reality to something abstract. That definition seems straight forward, but it actually threw me off. Especially the second half that states: "gives concrete reality to something abstract." I then decided to dissect this definition of it's larger words to simplify the message at hand. I started by splitting the definition into two halves First half: "a material structure that embodies or...." Second half: "gives concrete reality to something abstract." Starting with the second half I defined the larger words. Concrete: Solid. Reality: The state of things as they actually exist. Abstract: Existing in thought or as an idea, but not having a physical or concrete existence. This intrigued me. By picking apart the definition I began to see what was hiding behind these words. The second half of the original definition for Body was telling me that the body "gives a concrete reality to something that has no 'physical or concrete existence.'" The definition was essentially telling me a lie by stating that something that doesn't exist (abstract) actually exists (reality). A lie is defined as: "an intentional untruth", and that is exactly what we have here. My own dictionary was telling me the body was a lie. But let's explore the first half of the definition to further illuminate what a body might actually be. The major words of the first half of the definition for Body are: Material: The matter from which a thing is or can be created. Structure: construct or arrange according to a plan; give a pattern or organization to. Embodies: To give visible form to an idea, quality, or feeling. These words shed substantial amounts of light on to the true nature of the body. These definitions are telling us that the body organizes (structure) something (material) to make an idea visible (embodies). What is the matter being structured to achieve this illusion - one of making something appear to exist that actually has 'no concrete reality?' The definition of embodies spells it out clearly: "To give visible form to an idea..." What is an idea? Many dictionaries use a simple definition of 'a thought' - so an idea is a thought. With that in mind, we can see then that the body is actually an organization of thought to give a concrete reality to something that does not actually exist. That is our true definition for Body - hiding behind our own English words the entire time. Since the alchemical term Salt and body are synonymous we can then also apply our new definition of the body to the alchemical salt. The salt associated to the 3 principles of all matter. The body, which basically defines the existence of all forms of matter, and the majority of objective reality is being painted as an illusion with use of that definition. Physicality is an illusion - That sounds a lot like eastern philosophy, and can even correlate to certain understandings in quantum theory. Our definition for Body gains ground as authentic as the definitions of spirit and soul are also dissected. Mercury: The Spirit In alchemical works the spirit of a given material was known as the Mercury. Staying with our theme of using common language instead of alchemical code let's define spirit. Spirit: The nonphysical part of a person that is the seat of emotions and character; the mind and ego. The second half of this definition says it most plainly, telling us that the spirit is the mind and the ego. The first half helps us to build a more holistic image to understand the mind and the ego. The most interesting word to me in the first half of the definition of spirit was character, so I looked it up to define it. Character: the aggregate of features and traits that form the individual nature of some person or thing. With previous understanding of the ego, I found similarities to its definition with the definition of character, so I also looked to define ego and make those similarities more apparent. Ego: the individual self of a person; a person as thinking, feeling, willing, and distinguishing itself from the selves of others and from objects of its thought. - that which identifies with thought, feelings, and desires as self. Essentially, identification with thoughts and feelings gives rise to individuality or character. The mechanics of this function are found within the mind, which the spirit was defined as. Getting to the bottom of spirit is also then getting to the bottom of mind. To define mind... Mind: the element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, thoughts, and feelings; the faculty of consciousness. If spirit is our mind, and our mind is what enables us to experience the world and ourselves, what then are we? What is the self that the mind is helping us experience? Are we our thoughts? No. We are not our feelings either. The mind is not our source, and the definition of mind is telling us this. We identify with our thoughts, which also hold our memories, and this identification gives rise to character or individuality. It makes us believe an untruth - that we are our thoughts and emotions, that we are the part that thinks. But we are not our thoughts, or our emotions, we are not our individual selves that we thought - at least not entirely. The first half of the definition of mind is telling us that the mind is just an element that enables us to be aware of our world and thoughts. But the mind itself is plainly defined as a "faculty of consciousness." What does it mean to be a faculty of consciousness? Faculty is defined as: An inherent mental or physical power Spirit is the mind and The mind is an inherent power of consciousness. Consciousness inherently has the power to think. Consciousness is responsible for the mind. The mind is then responsible for the creation of thought. The mind identifies with that thought, organizes it, and embodies it's ideas to create conceptually a concrete reality, even though those realities don't actually exist (other than in the mind). Sulfur: The Soul This leaves us to define our final word that we set out to understand. Soul. The alchemical sulfur was the soul of any given material. (Read more on the alchemical sulfur.) What is the soul? The Soul is: The actuating cause of an individual life. In the previous study of the definition for spirit, the answer to what the actuating cause was is presented to us. - Consciousness - The mind is an inherent power of consciousness. Consciousness is the actuating cause for an individual life. That answer holds true for all individual lives and for all forms of existence. All matter was known to be composed of these 3 basic principles -soul, spirit, and body- so all of existence knows consciousness as the actuating cause of its individual life. Every rock, plant, animal, star, atom, galaxy, etc. Consciousness is the true Prima Materia of the alchemists. The seed from which all forms grow and are rooted in. It is the spark of life. Life can be defined as: a corresponding state, existence, or principle of existence conceived of as belonging to the soul. Life and existence belong to the soul, and the soul is consciousness. Consciousness is life, and in all life is consciousness. Consciousness is the Key. This is the fundamental truth that alchemy was built upon. Any subsequent experimentation is merely just an exploration of this singular truth, or validation of that truth through any physical or spiritual alchemical practice. The understanding of this fact automatically granted the understanding of the truth of all things and gave true alchemists a fantastic power - The power to be - living freely as and in eternity. Standardization of definition In looking to explore and understand the 3 principles of alchemy, I read through many alchemical texts - ancient and modern. The majority of the texts seem to agree that Sulfur is the Soul, Mercury is the Spirit, and Salt is the Body. These texts seemed to be written as if to assume that the student reading them already had prior knowledge of what a soul, spirit, and body are. Feeling that it is never safe to assume, it felt appropriate to seek out fully defining these terms. To summarize and define the body, soul, and spirit: Body: Organization of thought to give a concrete reality to something that does not actually exist. Spirit: The mind - an inherent power of consciousness Soul: Consciousness - the actuating cause of life I encourage others to contemplate on the implications this presumes on the nature of reality. |
AuthorAvery is the lead Alchemist at Kymia Arts and routinely shares information on general alchemy topics as well as our methods and products. Archives
January 2018
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