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Complete Works Of The Complete Works Of PHILIPPUS THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS The Coelum Philosophorum, Or Book Of Vexations by PHILIPPUS THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS The Book Concerning The Tincture Of The Philosophers by PHILIPPUS THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS The Treasure Of Treasures For Alchemists by PHILIPPUS THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS The Aurora Of The Philosophers by PHILIPPUS THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS Alchemical Catechism by PHILIPPUS THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS ~ 1 ~ THE COELUM PHILOSOPHORUM, OR BOOK OF VEXATIONS; By PHILIPPUS THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS. THE SCIENCE AND NATURE OF ALCHEMY, AND WHAT OPINION SHOULD BE FORMED THEREOF. Regulated by the Seven Rules or Fundamental Canons according to the seven commonly known Metals; & containing a Preface with certain Treatises and Appendices. THE PREFACE OF THEOPHRASTUS PARACELSUS TO ALL ALCHEMISTS AND READERS OF THIS BOOK. YOU who are skilled in acquainted with this art, it Alchemy, and as many would be altogether others as promise yourselves superfluous to recur to these great riches or chiefly desire same subjects in the present to make gold and silver, book, although the use of which Alchemy in different such signs, names, and ways promises and teaches; characters at the proper time equally, too, you who is by no means without willingly undergo toil and advantage. vexations, and wish not to But herein will be noticed be freed from them, until another way of treating you have attained your Alchemy different from the rewards, and the fulfillment previous method, and of the promises made to deduced by Seven Canons you; experience teaches this from the sevenfold series of every day, that out of the metals. This, indeed, will thousands of you not even not give scope for a one accomplishes his desire. pompous parade of words, Is this a failure of Nature or but, nevertheless, in the of Art? I say, no; but it is consideration of those rather the fault of fate, or Canons everything which of the unskillfulness of the should be separated from operator. Alchemy will be treated at Since, therefore, the sufficient length, and, characters of the sign of the moreover, many secrets of stars and planets of heaven, other things are herein together with the other contained. Hence, too, result names, inverted words, certain marvelous receipts, materials, and speculations and new instruments are thoroughly operations which frequently well known to such as are differ from the writings and ~ 2 ~ opinions of ancient operators good may be able freely to and natural philosophers, but appear in its own brightness. have been discovered and For example, the mountain, confirmed by full proof and the sand, the earth, or the experimentation. stone in which a metal has Moreover, in this Art nothing grown is such concealment. is more true than this, Each one of the visible though it be little known metals is a concealment of and gains small confidence. the other six metals. All the fault and cause of By the element of fire all difficulty in Alchemy, that is imperfect is destroyed whereby very many persons and taken away, as, for are reduced to poverty, and instance, the five metals, others labor in vain, is Mercury, Jupiter, Mars, wholly and solely lack of Venus, and Saturn.1 On the skill in the operator, and the other hand, the perfect defect or excess of materials, metals, Sol and Luna, are whether in quantity or not consumed in that same quality, whence it ensues fire. They remain in the fire: that, in the course of and at the same time, out of operation, things are wasted the other imperfect ones or reduced to nothing. If the which are destroyed, they true process shall have been assume their own body and found, the substance itself become visible to the eyes. while transmuting How, and by what method, approaches daily more and this comes about can be more towards perfection. The gathered from the Seven straight road is easy, but it is Canons. Hence it may be found by very few. learnt what are the nature Sometimes it may happen and property of each metal, that a speculative artist may, what it effects with the by his own eccentricity, other metals, and what are think out for himself some its powers in commixture new method in Alchemy, be with them. the consequence anything or But this should be noted in nothing. He need do naught the very first place: that in order to reduce something these Seven Canons cannot into nothing, and again bring be perfectly understood by back something out of every cursory reader at a nothing. Yet this proverb of first glance or a single the incredulous is not wholly reading. An inferior false. Destruction perfects intelligence does not easily that which is good; for the perceive occult and abstruse good cannot appear on subjects. Each one of these account of that which Canons demands no slight conceals it. The good is least discussion. Many persons, good whilst it is thus puffed up with pride, fancy concealed. The concealment they can easily comprehend must be removed that so the all which this book ~ 3 ~ comprises. Thus they set their own, and that therefore down its contents as useless they can afford to despise and futile, thinking they what is here contained. have something far better of THE COELUM PHILOSOPHORUM. PART I. THE SEVEN CANONS OF THE METALS. THE FIRST CANON. CONCERNING THE NATURE AND PROPERTIES OF MERCURY.2 All things are concealed in or congelated or coagulated all. One of them all is the by natural cold. These concealer of the rest – their congelations, through their corporeal vessel, external, weakness, are unable to visible, and movable. All obtain in Mercury, and liquefactions are manifested therefore, on that account, in that vessel. For the vessel he altogether contemns is a living and corporeal them. Hence one may gather spirit, and so all coagulations that elementary powers, in or congelations enclosed in it, their process of destruction, when prevented from can add nothing to, nor take flowing and surrounded, are away anything from, not therewith content. No celestial powers (which are name can be found for this called Quintessence or its liquefaction, by which it elements), nor have they may be designated; still less any capacity for operating. can it be found for its origin. Celestial and infernal powers And since no heat is so do not obey the four strong as to be equalized elements, whether they be therewith, it should be dry, moist, hot, or cold. No compared to the fire of one of them has the faculty Gehenna. A liquefaction of of acting against a this kind has no sort of Quintessence; but each one connection with others made contains within itself its own by the heat of natural fire, powers and means of action.3 ~ 4 ~ THE SECOND CANON. CONCERNING THE NATURE AND PROPERTIES OF JUPITER. In that which is manifest misery of their punishment. (that is to say, the body of For this cause an infernal spirit is accounted as nothing. Jupiter the other six ) For more remote objects are corporeal metals are on that account held more spiritually concealed, but one cheaply and occupy a lower more deeply and more place, since according to the tenaciously than another. propriety of its position each Jupiter has nothing of a object turns out better, or is Quintessence in his transmuted. This can be composition, but is of the proved by various examples. nature of the four elements. The more remote, therefore, On this account this Jupiter is found to be from liquefaction is brought about Mars and Venus, and the by the application of a nearer Sol and Luna, the moderate fire, and, in like more "goldness" or manner, he is coagulated by "silveriness", if I may so say, moderate cold. He has it contains in its body, and affinity with the the greater, stronger, more liquefactions of all the other visible, more tangible, more metals. For the more like he amiable, more acceptable, is to some other nature, the more distinguished, and more more easily he is united true it is found than in some thereto by conjunction. For remote body. Again, the the operation of those nearly more remote a thing is, of allied is easier and more the less account is it natural than of those which esteemed in all the respects are remote. The remote body aforesaid, since what is does not press upon the present is always preferred other. At the same time, it is before what is absent. In not feared, though it may be proportion as the nearer is very powerful. Hence it clear the more remote is happens that men do not occult. This, therefore, is a aspire to the superior orders point which you, as an of creation, because they are Alchemist, must seriously far distant from them, and debate with yourself, how do not see their glory. In like you can relegate Jupiter to a manner, they do not much remote and abstruse place, fear those of an inferior which Sol and Luna occupy, order, because they are and how, in turn, you can remote, and none of the summon Sol and Luna from living knows their condition remote positions to a near or has experienced the place, where Jupiter is ~ 5 ~ corporeally posited; so that, separate the one pure from in the same way, Sol and the other. This is nothing Luna also may really be else but the process of present there corporeally permutation, set in order by before your eyes. For the perfect alchemical labor. Note transmutation of metals that Jupiter has much gold from imperfection to and not a little silver. Let perfection there are several Saturn and Luna be imposed practical receipts.
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