What is Alchemy?

Alchemy is a complex subject. Many wish to categorize it simply as a barbaric predecessor of modern chemistry, but the truth is far more complex. Alchemy throughout the ages was not merely a form of metallurgy or chemical experimentation, but a quest for spiritual and physical perfection. The quest of the Alchemist was to purify one's soul through the fires of prayer, ritual and meditation, just as one would purify metals through the raging fires of the furnace.

The beginnings of Alchemy, like all mystical traditions, are lost in the sands of time. We know that metallurgy itself was in practice well before the earliest recorded histories, and that the ancients regarded such practices with a mystical reverence. Some specifically deem Egypt to be the motherland of Alchemy, due to an etymological connection. The word Khem, in Egyptian means "black", but is also the Egyptian name for the land of the Nile, referencing the black, mineral-rich soil found along the Nile River's banks after its yearly flooding. Therefore, the word Alchemy could very well be an English derivative of the Arabic definite article al ("the") combined with Khemia ("land of the black earth").

Wherever it might have come from originally, it was practiced throughout most of the ancient world in one form or another. Whether one was near a Temple complex in Egypt, a Chinese Emperor's court, or a Greek city-state, an alchemist was not far away.

Mystical Melting Pot

After Rome had conquered most of the known world and had ceased their own internal squabbles, the Emperor Octavian (later Augustus) began what was to be known as the Pax Romana (Roman Peace). During this time period, trade between previously unconnected areas began booming, and with the movement of goods also came the movement of mystical practices. Greek Philosophy intermingled with Chaldean Astrology and Egyptian Ritual Magic. Persian dieties migrated to temples in Rome and Gaul. This massive melting pot brought forth what would later be called the Hermetic movement.

The term Hermetic came from Hermes Trismegistus (Hermes the Thrice-Greatest), the name attributed to a character in mystical, philosophical, and alchemical writings found in Egypt and dating back to the times of the early Roman Empire. Some identified the Thrice Greatest as the Egyptian God of magic, writing and wisdom, Thoth (Hermes to the Greeks), whilst others believed him to be a person (or group of people) who taught the secrets of magic to those worthy.

The Western Roman Empire eventually succumbed to barbarian invasion by the end of the Fifth Century C.E., and the Muslim Empire eventually swallowed what was once Roman territory. Many Muslims, however, were fascinated by philosophy, astrology, magic and alchemy. Due to this fascination, many magical and alchemical texts once thought lost to the Western World eventually reappeared as they slowly filtered their way back into Europe by way of both Muslim-controlled Spain, and Italian merchant ships travelling to and from parts of the Southeastern Mediterranean.

By the time of the Renaissance, Hermeticism and Alchemy were both widespread and rapidly evolving.

Plant Alchemy

Plant alchemy, or spagyrics, was the practice of extracting the essences of plants and herbs through alchemical methods, and then using said essences to create medicines, potions, and/or healing ointments. This tied in very closely with astrology, so far as that every plant, to the Medieval alchemist, corresponded to a specific planet in the solar system. Therefore, if an alchemist wished to make a potion to say, help attract love, he would use herbs such as foxglove, mugwort or vervain, since those herbs were considered "sacred to (i.e. corresponding to) the planet Venus." Mineral alchemy would also fall neatly into the astrological fold, with metals such as iron and lead being considered sacred to the planets Mars and Saturn, respectively.

Turning Lead Into Gold

Alchemists believed that all things created on this earth were made of a single, tiny essence called the prima materia (first material). Through the manipulation of said prima materia, one could change the nature of any substance. Many alchemists also believed that metals ripened in the earth very similarly to plants, and that the final stage of metalic evolution was gold, after slowly going through various stages of transformations deep in the belly of the earth. Therefore, the alchemists reasoned, by attempting to change lead into gold through their art, they were not in fact practicing sorcery or black magic (most Medieval and Renaissance alchemists were staunch Christians), but changing things as nature changed them, merely speeding up the process.

Many began to travel the path of alchemy specifically due to this belief, hoping to acquire wealth, power, and renown through its practice. They sought the legendary Philosopher's Stone, a magical substance that would change base metals into gold, or grant the posesser immortality, or grant magical powers, or all of the above (the legends tended to vary a bit). Many instead found merely scorched fingers and dirty furnaces. However, along with the physical alchemy that was being practiced, a mystical and philosophical alchemy was being cultivated as well, one that even the Psychoanalyst Karl Jung would devote considerable time studying and writing about.

Spiritual Alchemy

Practiced alongside physical alchemy was a philosophical and spiritual doctrine of personal evolution and transformation. Its adherents strove to transform both their bodies and souls into pure, untainted representations of divinity. They attempted to attune themselves to the essences of the four elements (Earth, Wind, Fire, Water) as well as to the powers of the "Seven Holy Planets" (Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, Sun and Moon), and they did this through intense study, experimentation, prayer and ritual. Through the application of alchemical principles and Hermetic wisdom, it was believed that the alchemist would become a master of both this world and the next.

The World's Most Famous Alchemist

Oddly enough, the most famous alchemist of all times is also considered to be one of the most famous Scientists of all time. Sir Isaac Newton, to whom we owe Newton's Law of Universal Gravition, was obsessed with the study of alchemy, and dedicated decades of his life to both its study and practice.