A Compendious yet Complete Philosophical Handbook

...the other is volatile and fleeting, which exists in the form of a very subtle and fleeting salt that floats everywhere in the air; it is drawn to itself by the lower things original Latin: inferioribus. and is called the Salt of Nature original symbol: $\ominus$. In alchemy, this represents the stabilizing principle. or the Mercurial Spirit original Latin: Spiritus Mercurialis..

9. The most remote matter original Latin: Materia remotissima. This refers to the primal, undifferentiated substance from which the four elements were created., by which the four elements are understood, can be interpreted as applying to all things in the world, by which many are deceived. For the four elements are not the seed of our work, but rather the vehicle original German: Fuhrmann, literally "carter" or "driver." The elements carry the "seed" but are not the active ingredient themselves..

10. The Philosophers A term used by alchemists to refer to themselves and the masters of the "Hermetic Philosophy." have no more than one way. And even though they mention long and short, dry and moist paths, it all comes down to one and the same thing.

11. No author alone sets down the entire process.

12. Most Philosophers therefore hide and cover everything with riddles, parables, allegories, ambiguous words, and interpretations, because they are always concerned that someone might understand it too quickly and easily.

13. Whoever understands one true Philosopher certainly understands them all.

14. Basilius Basilius Valentinus, a legendary 15th-century alchemist known for his writings on antimony and the "Twelve Keys." and other Philosophers say: It is easier to make gold than to destroy it.

15. The main purpose and ultimate goal original Latin: Finis ultimus. of the Hermetic art Alchemy, named after the legendary founder Hermes Trismegistus., however, is not the making of gold, as the ill-informed and those who love gold imagine. Rather, the beautiful...