On the Secrets of the Adepts

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...all these things differed not only in name, but also in material, preparation, and use. Thus, in place of the one liquid I was seeking, the Alkahest Alkahest: A hypothetical universal solvent sought by alchemists, believed to be capable of reducing any body to its first matter., I found in Paracelsus Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, known as Paracelsus (1493–1541), a Swiss physician and alchemist who revolutionized medicine by using chemicals and minerals. many solvents menstrua: In alchemy, liquids used to dissolve solids or extract their medicinal properties.. I had already learned, following Paracelsus, how to prepare and distinguish the multiple medical uses of them all into Essences Essentias: The refined, "spiritualized" core of a substance, purified of its dross., Magisteries Magisteria: Preparations where the substance is transformed but retains its full medicinal power., Stars Astra: The celestial or vital influences inherent in a physical substance., Secrets Arcana: Hidden, highly potent medicinal virtues in nature., and those things he calls "lesser" Medicines Medicamina: Basic medicinal preparations..

In this way, what was most difficult for others to understand in Paracelsus became clearer to me than all the rest; and so, I attained the end sooner than the beginning The author suggests he mastered the complex classification of results (the "end") before he had truly mastered the foundational practical principles (the "beginning").. However, the joy that grew from this was shorter than expected. For, after many experiments were tried in vain, I was taught that these Paracelsian solvents menstrua contain something secret and unknown within them, which was by no means to be understood literally. For that reason, I began to examine them more exactly; and while [comparing] their qualities with the nature of the Alkahestic Alkahestici: Pertaining to the Alkahest, the universal solvent. liquid...