Alchemy questions by Kibric

[Kibric]

Questions for alchemists

From your experience as an alchemist.

- What stone holds the highest value or virtue to humans.
Stones from the animal kingdom, the mineral kingdom, or the vegatable kingdom?

- What shortcut variation of the alchemical process do you think is best?
E.g. Mary the prophetess mixing red gumm and white gumm for blackness in an hour.

- Is earth a closed system like a alchemical vessel?
What type of vessel?

- Is a vapourous humid fire a strong upward heat causing a flying motion of vapour or a light atmospheric heat stirring evaporation? Somewhere inbetween?

- What vessel is best for the alchemical process?
E.g concave base to create dry space between liquid.
Twofold vessel, threefold.

- What author uses the least amount of decknames and codes? The most honest one.

- Is blackness a ravens head or is it more like burnt blood?
E.g Gloria finis? mundis? Illen a cluf

- Can the sulphur within mercury burn or does its liquid nature preserve it from the fire?

- Whats the most important piece of advise you could give someone about fixing or mortifiying mercury?
E.g " extract the dry core of mercury"- Gualdas

- Is the work lonely?

- What author gives you hope you can achieve aswell?

Alchemy is not a competition. There are contray opinions on most of these questions from authors themselves.

Thanks.

 

[Michael Sternbach]

Questions for alchemists

Hi Kibric, this sounds like fun...

Alright, I'm game (not necessarily fair game, though ).

From your experience as an alchemist.

- What stone holds the highest value or virtue to humans.
Stones from the animal kingdom, the mineral kingdom, or the vegatable kingdom?

From the mineral kingdom (or it could be from the stellar kingdom).

- What shortcut variation of the alchemical process do you think is best?
E.g. Mary the prophetess mixing red gumm and white gumm for blackness in an hour.

The Dry Way (but not starting the process in the first place would make it even shorter).

- Is earth a closed system like a alchemical vessel?
What type of vessel?

No, Earth isn't a closed system at all. She's closely connected to the solar system, the galaxy, and so on.

But if I had to choose a type of vessel to represent her best, it would have to be a circulatory one, anyway.

- Is a vapourous humid fire a strong upward heat causing a flying motion of vapour or a light atmospheric heat stirring evaporation? Somewhere inbetween?

I will pass on this one.

- What vessel is best for the alchemical process?
E.g concave base to create dry space between liquid.
Twofold vessel, threefold.

That depends on the path you follow and the particular stage you're at. All in all, my all-time fave is this one, though:

​

- What author uses the least amount of decknames and codes? The most honest one.

Shockingly, I would say Geber! And some of his contemporaries too. The European Medieval alchemists, overall.

- Is blackness a ravens head or is it more like burnt blood?
E.g Gloria finis? mundis? Illen a cluf

It's more like burnt rubber.

- Can the sulphur within mercury burn or does its liquid nature preserve it from the fire?

Smoke on the water, a fire in the sky.

- Whats the most important piece of advise you could give someone about fixing or mortifiying mercury?
E.g " extract the dry core of mercury"- Gualdas

Don't let it fly away!

- Is the work lonely?

It could be. Or you could share it with your wife, friend, dog, or housekeeper. At the end of the day, it's up to you.

- What author gives you hope you can achieve aswell?

Jo'anna.

Alchemy is not a competition.

Reading this forum, you could easily get the impression that it is one, though!

There are contray opinions on most of these questions from authors themselves.

Truth always seems dipolar before crossing the abyss. <shrug>

Thanks.

My pleasure.

 

[Andro]

These are my personal views on some of the questions:

Earth is closer to a closed system. And it's not a "she". It's like a toroidal bubble, containing the different planes around the Axis Mundi, the World Engine and the luminaries, etc., all enclosed within.

The best way is to Lucid Dream the perfected Stone and wake up with it on your pillow.

All paths are lonely, but it doesn't mean we have to walk them alone.

Alchemy is not a competition.

Reading this forum, you could easily get the impression that it is one, though!

Don't judge a cover by its book

 

[Kibric]

Thanks for your interesting answers Micheal.
I have never seen that vessel set up before. It neat.

I agree the european medieval alchemists have less code than Indian or Taoist sources, maybe its because we are more familar with european culture like they were.

Jo'anna.

Who?

The best way is to Lucid Dream the perfected Stone and wake up with it on your pillow

Yes its an ideal way. Like the rose from nothing, but you can also create ants from nothing and wake up covered in them.

Thanks for your interesting answers also Andro.
Manifestation is something I won't practise anymore, if you can do it, then physically making the PS is like a forset fire making a box of matches.

Whether earth is a closed system or not seems to strike a cord with everyone.

 

[Andro]

Jo'anna.

Who?

 

[tAlc]

Questions for alchemists

- Is earth a closed system like a alchemical vessel?
What type of vessel?

I view earth as a closed system. I see matter as vibration and frequency and a form of energy therefore, everything around me naturally gives me a sense of ''openness''. The Earth is fixed into position in the cosmos through equilibrium. Earth does not have the same thing going on in its planet like Saturn or Jupiter does, Earth's produce is very explicitly different. Relating this to the alchemical vessel, the alchemical vessel has a specific design to it, like man and woman's seed, like an acorn from an oak tree, these things have very specific designs and in this regard, earth and the alchemical vessel are closed systems (in this regard).

Whats the most important piece of advise you could give someone about fixing or mortifiying mercury?
E.g " extract the dry core of mercury"- Gualdas

As Above So Below, As Within So Without
Solve et Coagula
The work is not chemistry. The Work is alive, like an organism, so treat it appropriately. (this is my advice, not a grandstanding statement)

Some questions that I didn't answer, are ones I can't and I won't try to. Before I went on my year leave I found myself stupidly answering questions like this when I didn't have experience to support my answers. I was falling too much into my own philosophical ideas without taking a grain of salt for some of the thoughts I was producing. Don't want to repeat that stupidity of mine again.

Also, Kibric is asking these questions to Alchemists, but I assume he means also seekers as well. None of us replying to this post are alchemist, and I think its fair for me to say this because I think if not all then most of us have admitted to not being an alchemist at some point.

 

[Michael Sternbach]

Thanks for your interesting answers Micheal.

Thank you too, Kibric. It's fun topics like this that loosen up the sometimes tense atmosphere on AF.

I agree the european medieval alchemists have less code than Indian or Taoist sources, maybe its because we are more familar with european culture like they were.

The European Medieval alchemists were expressing themselves more clearly than their Arab predecessors and more modern European successors, respectively, as well. Even though there is obviously a degree of purposeful omission and convolution in their writings, when they mentioned "gold" or "mercury", that's quite literally what they were talking about, IMO.

Manifestation is something I won't practise anymore, if you can do it, then physically making the PS is like a forset fire making a box of matches.

Or a Bic lighter, for that matter.

Whether earth is a closed system or not seems to strike a cord with everyone.

I would further specify, the Earth (more properly, the Earth/Moon system, or the terrestrial sphere enclosed by the lunar orbit) is in fact a microcosm in itself - and yet it exists in constant exchange with the larger cosmos that surrounds it. Much like Man does, on another level.

 

[Kibric]

Some questions that I didn't answer, are ones I can't and I won't try to. Before I went on my year leave I found myself stupidly answering questions like this when I didn't have experience to support my answers. I was falling too much into my own philosophical ideas without taking a grain of salt for some of the thoughts I was producing. Don't want to repeat that stupidity of mine again.

Massive amounts of respect for saying that.
The questions are about your experience, there isn't really a right answer for them.

Seekers, alchemists, hobbiests? Only your 1st hand experience matters, titles are meaningless.

Thanks Ta

 

[GeberSixStone]

- Is blackness a ravens head or is it more like burnt blood?

The first experiment I conducted to find blackness was with Potassium Nitrate. It looked like dark black feathers on top of the the Water and potassium nitrate mix. Fun side note: at room temperature the potassium nitrate drops out of the Water and floats on top and when you touch it, it doesn't wet your hands.