THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE: THE TERM ALCHEMY: AND GRAIL ROMANCES: FAMOUS QUOTES

The Philosophers Stone is an ancient symbol of the perfected and regenerated man whose divine nature shines forth through a chain of purified and unfolded vehicles. As the rough diamond is dull and lifeless when first removed from the black carbon, so the spiritual nature of man in its "fallen" state reveals little, if any, of its inherent luminosity. Just as in the hand of the skillful lapidary the shapeless stone is transformed into a scintillating gem from whose facets pour streams of varicolored fire, so upon the lathe of the Divine Lapidary the soul of man is ground and polished until it reflects the glory of its creator from every atom. The perfecting of the Diamond Soul through philosophical-alchemical art was the concealed object of Hermetic Rosicrucianism. Albert Mackey sees a correspondence between the Philosophers Stone and the Masonic Temple, for both represent the realization and accomplishment of the ideal. In philosophy the Stone of the Wise Man is "supreme and unalterable Reason. To find the Absolute in the Infinite, in the Indefinite, and in the Finite, this is the Magnum Opus, the Great Work of the Sages, which Hermes called the Work of the Sun." (See Morals and Dogma - Abert Pike [ Grand Commander Thirty-Third Degree For The Southern Jurisdiction Of The Untited States ]- Published In 1871.) He who possesses the Philosophers Stone possesses Truth, the greatest of all treasures, and is therefore rich beyond the calculation of man; he is immortal because Reason takes no account of death and he is healed of Ignorance--the most loathsome of all diseases. The Hermetic Stone is Divine Power, which all men seek but which is found only by such as exchange for it that temporal power which must pass away. To the mystic, the Philosophers Stone is perfect love, which transmutes all that is base and "raises" all that is dead. Author Unknown

Parsifal and the Holy Grail
Artist Augustus Knapp

In the great temple on Mount Salvat stands Parsifal, the third and last king of the Holy Grail, holding aloft the scintillating green Grail Cup and the sacred spear. From the tip of the spear trickles an endless stream of blood. Before Parsifal kneels Kundry (Kundalini), the temptress, who, released from the spell of the evil Klingsor, adores the sacred relics of the Passion. Of the Grail Mysteries, Hargrave Jennings writes: "The council of the Knights or Brothers of the Holy Grail, or Graël, was a reflex of the sacred bond sanctified by sacraments which held the majestic and mystic Rosicrucians together. These were really the guardians of the greater mysteries. In this sense of the mysterious and the sacred, the 'garter' of the 'Most noble the Order of the Garter' -- the first of chivalry -- is not a 'garter' at all, but the 'Garder', or 'Keeper,' the sacredest and holiest guardian of the supernatural chastity of none other than the most exalted feminine personality (of course in the abstract and miraculous sense), the very foundation of Christianity - the 'Cestus' or girdle of the blessed and immaculate Virgin Mary, the Queen of Heaven, with her victorious foot, for all the ages past and to come, trampling upon the Dragon, in her celestial purity, as the 'Mother of Christ'". (See Phallicism in Secret Teachings.) The key to the Grail Mysteries will be apparent if in the sacred spear is recognized the pineal gland with its peculiar pointlike projection and in the Holy Grail the pituitary body containing the mysterious Water of Life. Mount Salvat is the human body; the domed temple upon its summit, the brain; and the castle of Klingsor in the dark valley below, the animal nature which lures the knights (brain energies) into the garden of illusion and perversion. Parsifal, as the purified candidate, becomes the Master of the holy relics and of the sacred science for which they stand; Kundry, having fulfilled the purpose of her existence, dies at the foot of the altar with the immortal words: "I serve!" Author Unknown

The science of alchemy I like very well, and indeed, 'tis the philosophy of the ancients. I like it not only for the profits it brings in melting metals, in decocting, preparing, extracting and distilling herbs, roots; I like it also for the sake of the allegory and secret signification, which is exceedingly fine, touching the resurrection of the dead at the last day.
- Martin Luther's Table talk

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The matter lies before the eyes of all; everybody sees it, touches it, loves it, but knows it not. It is glorious and vile, precious and of small account, and is found everywhere... But, to be brief, our Matter has as many names as there are things in this world; that is why the foolish know it not.
- The Golden Tract

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I had discovered, early in my researches, that their doctrine was no mere
chemical fantasy, but a philosophy they applied to the world, to the elements,
and to man himself.
- W.B. Yeats, Rosa Alchemica
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It is erroneous to confuse alchemy with chemistry. Modem chemistry is a science
dealing only with the outward manifestations of matter. It never produces anything
new. One can mix, compose and decompose two or three chemical substances
any number of times, and make them reappear in different forms, but in the end
there is no increase in substance; there is only the combination of the substances
used at the outset. Alchemy neither composes nor mixes: it increases and activates
that which already exists in a latent state. Therefore alchemy can be more accurately
compared with botany or agriculture than with chemistry. In fact, the growth of a plant,
a tree or an animal is an alchemical process taking place in the alchemical laboratory
of nature and conducted by the Great Alchemist, the active power of God in nature.
- Franz Hartmann
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Transmute yourselves from dead stones into living philosophical stones.
- Gerhardt Dorn
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Scholasticism with its subtle argumentation,
Theology with its ambiguous phraseology,
Astrology, so vast and so complex,
are all children's games when compared with alchemy.
- Albert Poisson
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These are not fables. You will touch with your hands, you will see with your own
eyes, the Azoth, the Mercury of Philosophers, which alone will suffice to obtain for you
our Stone. . . . Darkness will appear on the face of the Abyss; Night, Saturn and the
Antimony of the Sages will appear; blackness, and the raven's head of the alchemists,
and all the colors of the world, will appear at the hour of conjunction; the rainbow also,
and the peacock's tail. Finally, after the matter has passed from ashen-colored to white
and yellow, you will see the Philosopher's Stone, our King and Dominator Supreme,
issue forth from his glassy sepulcher to mount his bed or his throne in his glorified body. . .
diaphanous as crystal; compact and most weighty, as easily fusible by fire as resin,
as flowing as wax and more so than quicksilver . . . the color of saffron when powdered,
but red as rubies when in an integral mass...
- H. Khunrath Amphitheatrum
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The alchemical tradition assumes that every physical art or science is a
body of knowledge which exists only because it is ensouled by invisible
powers and processes. Physical chemistry, as it is practiced in the modern
world, is concerned principally with pharmaceutical or industrial research
projects. It is confined within the boundaries of an all-pervading materialism,
which binds labor to the advancement of physical objectives.
- Manly P. Hall, from Meditation Symbols in Eastern and Western Mysticism
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The alchemical operation consisted essentially in separating the prima
materia, the so-called chaos, into the active principle, the soul, and the passive
principle, the body, which were then reunited in personified form in the
coniunctio or 'chymical marriage'... the ritual cohabitation of Sol and Luna.
- C.G. Jung Mysterium Coniunctionis
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Crave wisdom of God, the sense to understand,
Else meddle not herewith, nor take it in hand.
For it will cost thee much wordly wealth;
But trust not to other, but do it thyself.
Learn, therefore, first to cleanse, purify and sublime,
To dissolve, congeal, distill and sometime
To conjoin and separate, and how to do all,
That when you think to rise, thou do not fall,
Trust to thyself and not to another;
I can say no more to thee if thou were my brother.
- Simon Forman, 1597
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One becomes two, two becomes three, and by means of the third and fourth
achieves unity; thus two are but one....
Invert nature and you will find that what you seek...
Join the male and the female, and you will find what is sought...
- Maria the Jewess, 300 A.D.
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Once I had this beautiful book in my possession, I did nothing but study it
night and day, learning very well all the operations it described, but not knowing
with what material it should be started. This caused me great sorrow, kept me in
solitude, and made me sigh incessantly. My wife Perenelle, whom I loved like
myself was greatly astonished at this, so I showed her this beautiful book, with
which, the moment she saw it, she fell as much in love as I, taking extreme pleasure
in contemplating the beautiful covers, engravings, images, and portraits, of which
figures she understood as little as I did. Nevertheless, it was for me a great
consolation to talk about it with her, and to consider what could be done in order
to find out their meaning.
- Nicolas Flamel (supposedly 14th century) Book of the Hieroglyphic figures, 1612.
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Alchemy is the art of manipulating life, and consciousness in matter, to help it
evolve, or to solve problems of inner disharmonies.
- Jean Dubuis
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King Calid: Give me yet the explanation upon this thing.
Morienus: Why should I use many words unto you? For this thing is extracted
from thee, and thou art its ore; in thee they find it, and, to speak more plainly,
from thee they take it; and when thou hast experienced this, the love and delight
of it will be increased in thee. And thou shalt know that this thing subsists truly
and beyond all doubt.
King Calid: Have you at any time known any other Stone that may be likened
unto this Stone, by whose effect and power this self same thing might be
perpetrated?
Morienus: I have not known any Stone which might be likened to this Stone,
or which may have the effect of it. For in this Stone the Four Elements are
contained, and it is likened to the world and the composition of the world.
- De Transmutatione Metallica, in the section entitled The Interrogations of King Calid,
and the Answers of Morienus in MS Sloane 3697.

Quote From “ Siddhartha” Written By Hermann Hesse – 1922

These are near the last pages [P. 140 to P. 146] as follows:

“Are you not also a seeker of the right path?” [Govinda speaking]

There was a smile in Siddhartha’s old eyes as he said: “Do you call yourself a seeker, 0 venerable one, you who are already advanced in years and wear the robe of Gotama’s monks” [The Buddha Gotama]

I am indeed old,” said Govinda, “but I have never ceased seeking. I will never cease seeking. That seems to be my destiny. It seems to me that you also have sought. Will you talk to me a little about it, friend?”

Siddhartha said: “What could I say to you that would be of value, except that perhaps you seek too much, that as a result of your seeking you cannot find.”

“How is that?” asked Govinda.

“When someone is seeking,” said Siddhartha, “it happens quite easily that he only sees the thing that he is seeking; that he is unable to find anything, unable to absorb anything, because he is only thinking of the thing he is seeking, because he has a goal, because he is obsessed with his goal. Seeking means: to have a goal; but finding means: to be free, to be receptive, to have no goal. You, 0 worthy one, are perhaps indeed a seeker, for in striving towards your goal, you do not see many things that are under your nose.”

“I do not yet quite understand,” said Govinda. “How do you mean?”

Siddhartha said: “Once, 0 worthy one, many years ago, you came to this river and found a man sleeping there. You sat beside him to guard him while he slept, but you do not recognize the sleeping man, Govinda.”

Astonished and like one bewitched the monk gazed at the ferryman.

^“Are you Siddhartha?” he asked in a timid voice.

I did not recognize you this time, too. I am very pleased to see you again, Siddhartha, very pleased. You have changed very much, my friend. And have you become a ferryman now?”

Siddhartha laughed warmly. “Yes I have become a ferryman. Many people have to change a great deal and wear all sorts of clothes. I am one of those, my friend. You are very welcome, Govinda, and I invite to stay the night in my hut.”

Govinda stayed the night in the hut and slept in the bed that had once beenVasudeva’s. He asked the friend of his youth many questions and Siddhartha had a great deal to tell him about his life.

When it was time for Govinda to depart the following morning, he said with some hesitation: “Before I go on my way, Siddhartha, I should like to ask you one more question. Have you a doctrine, belief or knowledge which you uphold, which helps you to live and do right?”

Siddhartha said: "You know, my friend, that even as a young man, when we lived with the ascetics in the forest, I came to distrust doctrines and teachers and to turn my back on them. I am still of the same turn of mind although I have, since that time, had many teachers. A beautiful courtesan was my teacher for a long time, and a rich merchant and a dice player. On one occasion, one of the Buddha’s wandering monks was my teacher. He halted in his pilgrimage to sit beside me when I fell asleep in the forest. I also learned something from him and I am grateful to him, very grateful. But most of all, I have learned from this river and from my predecessor, Vasudeva. He was a simple man; he was not a thinker; but he realized the essential as well as Gotama. He was a holy man, a saint.”

Govinda said: “It seems to me, Siddhartha, that you still like to jest a little. I believe you and know that you have not followed any teacher, but have you not yourself, if not a doctrine, certain thoughts? Have you not discovered certain knowledge yourself that has helped you to live? It would give me great pleasure if you would tell me something about this.”

Siddhartha said: “Yes, I have had thoughts and knowledge here and there. Sometimes, for an hour or for a day, I have become aware of knowledge, just as one feels life in one’s heart. I have had many thoughts, but it would be difficult for me to tell you about them. But this is one thought that has impressed me, Govinda. Wisdom is not communicable. The wisdom which a wise man tries to communicate always sounds foolish.”

“Are you jesting?” asked Govinda.

“No, I am telling you what I have discovered. Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it. I suspected this when I was still a youth and it is was this that drove me away from teachers. There is one thought that I have had, Gorvinda, which you will again think is a jest or folly: that is, in every truth the opposite is equally true. For example, a truth can only be expressed and enveloped in words if it is one-sided. Everything that is thought and expressed in words is one-sided, only half the truth; it all lacks totality, completeness, unity. When the Illustrious Buddha taught about the world, he had to divide it into Samsara and Nirvana, into illusion and truth, into suffering and salvation. One cannot do otherwise, there is no other method for those who teach. But the world itself, being in and around us, is never one-sided. Never is a man or a deed wholly Samsara or wholly Nirvana; never is a man wholly a saint or a sinner. This only seems so because we suffer the illusion that time is something real. Time is not real, Govinda. I have realized this repeatedly. And if time is not real, then the dividing line that seems to lie between this world and eternity, between suffering and bliss, between good and evil, is also an illusion.”

“How is that?” asked Govinda, puzzled.

“Listen, my friend! I am a sinner and you are a sinner, but someday the sinner will be Brahman again, will someday attain Nirvana, will someday become a Buddha. Now this ‘someday’ is Illusion; it is only a comparison. The sinner is not on the way to a Buddha-like state; he is not evolving, although our thinking cannot conceive things otherwise. No, the potential Buddha already exists in the sinner; his future is already there. The potential hidden Buddha must be recognized in him, in you, in everybody. The world, Govinda, is not imperfect or slowly evolving along a long path to perfection. No, it is perfect at every moment: every sin already carries grace within it, all small children are potential old men, all sucklings have death within them, all dying people – eternal life. It is not possible for one person to see how far another is on the way; the Buddha exists in the robber and the dice player; the Buddha exists in the Brahman. During deep meditation it is possible to dispel time, to see simultaneously all the past, present and future, and then everything is good, everything is perfect, everything is Brahman. Therefore, it seems to me that everything that exists is good—death as well as life, sin as well as holiness, wisdom as well as folly. Everything is necessary, everything needs only my agreement, my assent, my loving understanding; then all is well with me and nothing can harm me. I learned through my body and soul that it was necessary for me to sin, that I needed lust, that I had to strive for property and experience, nausea and the depths of despair in order to learn not to resist them, in order to learn to love the world, and no longer compare it with some kind of desired imaginary world, some imaginary vision of perfection, but to leave it as it is, to love it and be glad to belong to it.

These, Govinda, are some of the thoughts that ate in my mind.”

Siddhartha bent down, lifted a stone from the ground and held it in his hand. “This,” he said, handling it, “ is a stone, and within a certain length of time it will perhaps be soil and from the soil it will become plant, animal or man. Previously I should have said: This stone is just a stone; it has no value, it belongs to the world of Maya, but perhaps because within the cycle of change it can also become man and spirit, it is also of importance. That is what I should have thought. But now I think: This stone is stone; it is also animal, God and Buddha. I do not respect and love it because it was one thing and will become something else, but because it has already long been everything and always is everything. I love it just because it is a stone, because today and now it appears to me a stone. I see value and meaning in each one of its fine markings and cavities, in the yellow, in the gray, in the hardness and the sound of it when I knock it, in the dryness or dampness of its surface. There are stones that feel like oil or soap, that look like leaves or sand, and each one is different and worships Om in it'sown way; each one is Brahman. At the same time it is very much stone, oily or soapy, and that is just what pleases me and seems wonderful and worthy of worship. But I will say no mote about it. Words do not express thoughts very well. They always become a little different immediately they are expressed, a little distorted, a little foolish. And yet it also pleases me and seems right that what is of value and wisdom to one man seems nonsense to another.”

Govinda had listened in silence.

“Why did you tell me about the stone?” he asked hesitatingly after a pause.

“I did so unintentionally. But perhaps it illustrates that I just love the stone and the river and all these things that we see and from which we can learn. I can love a stone, Govinda, and a tree or a piece of bark. These are things and one can love things. But one cannot love words. Therefore teachings are of no use to me; they have no hardness, no softness, nor colors, no corners, no smell, no taste—they have nothing but words. Perhaps that is what prevents you from finding peace, perhaps there are too many words, for even salvation and virtue. Samsara and Nirvana are only words, Govinda. Nirvana is not a thing; there is only the word Nirvana.”