The Aurora of the Philosophers, chapters 11–17

CHAP. XI.

Of the true and perfect particular Arcanum of Arsenick, for the white Tincture.

SOme have written that Arsenick is compounded of Mercury and Sulphur; others of earth and water; and most [say tis] of the nature of Sulphur; But whatever matter tis of, the nature thereof is such, as to transmute Copper into whiteness; Also it may be brought to that perfection of preparation, that it may truly and perfectly tinge. But not by that way which evil Sophisters teach, as are Geber in the summ of perfection, Albertus Magnus, Aristotle the Chymist, in the book of the perfect Magistery, Rasis, and Polydorus; for those writers, be they never so many, do either err, or write false things out of envy, and propose receipts, because they are even ignorant of the truth. Arsenick contains in it self three natural spirits, the first [is] Volatile, adustible, Corrosive and penetrating all mettals. This spirit whitens Venus, and after some dayes makes it spongious; The which artifice pertains only to those who exercise the Caustick Art. The second spirit is Chrystalline and sweet; The third is a tinging spirit, separated from the others aforesaid. The true Philosophers have searched after [or found] these three natural proprieties in Arsenick for the perfect projection of the Wise men; But the Barbers who exercise Chyrurgery, do desire that sweet and Chrystalline nature separated from the Tinging spirit, for to use in the cure of wounds, and for Bubo's, Carbuncles, Anthrax and such other filthy Ulcers, not cureable but by a mild artifice or remedy. But [as for] that Tinging spirit, except the pure thereof be separated from the impure, the fix from the Volatile; and the secret tincture from the combustible, [it] will not at all answer your desire in projection upon Mercury, Venus, or any other imperfect mettall. All the Philosophers have hidden this Arcanum, as a most excellent Mysterie; This tinging spirit, separated from the other two, as above, thou shalt conjoyn to the spirit of Lune, and digest them together for the space of thirty two dayes, or untill they have put on a new body; After that (at the fortieth natural day) it shall be kindled into inflammation by the heat of the ☉︎. the spirit appears in a bright whiteness, and is endued with a perfect Tingeing Arcanum: Then tis at length fit for projection, viz. One part thereof upon sixteen parts of an imperfect body, according to the acuity or sharpness of the preparation; From thence [then] appears shining Lune [or Silver] and as excellent as what comes out of the bowels of the earth.

CHAP. XII.

Of the Arcanum of Vitriol, and the Red Tincture to be thence extracted.

VItriol is a very Noble Mineral, amongst the rest, [was] alwayes of very much admiration with the Philosophers, because the most high God hath adorned it with wonderfull endowments. They have vailed over its Arcanum with aenigmaticall figures, as thus, viz. Thou shalt vifit the inward parts of the earth, and shalt find by rectification the occult stone, a true medicine; By the earth they understood the Vitriol it self; and by the Inward part of the Earth, its sweetness and redness; because in the occult part of the Vitriol, a subtile, noble, and most fragrant juice and pure oil lyes hid. The manner of drawing it forth is not at all to be attempted by Calcination or distillation; for it must not at all be deprived of its greeness; for assoon as ever tis rob'd thereof, the Arcanum of it also is gone, and so necessarily it must want its vertues. Verily tis to observed here in this place, that not only the Minerals, but also the Vegetables themselves and such like, that outwardly shew a viridity or greeness, contain an Oil within them as red as blood, the which is their Arcanum. Thence tis evident that their ridiculous distillations of the Apothecaries, are vain and foolish and of no moment, because they do not at all know how to bring forth the bloodlike redness of the Vegetables. Nature it self being wise, turns the waters of all Vegetables into a Citrine Colour, and from thence (afterwards) into a most red Oil like blood; Now the cause of its coming to pass so slowly on, is the too much headlongness of the ignorant distilling operators, whereby the Viridity is absumed; They have not learned to corroborate Nature in its virtues, whereby the noble virour [or greeness] ought to be rectified into a redness, per se: For example sake, White wine digests it self into a Citrine colour; and in success of time the Green colour of the Grapes themselves is turnned per se into a red, lying hid under the Sky Colour. The greeness therefore of the Vegetables and Minerals being lost by the sluggishness of the Operators, the essence of them, and the spirit of the Oil, and most noble balsome of Arcana's is also lost.

CHAP. XIII.

Of the Process of Vitriol for [or to] the red Tincture.

VItriol contains in it self many dirty and viscous [or slimy] imperfections; therefore its greeness must be often extracted with water, and rectified until it hath put off all the Impurities of the earth; All which rectifications being finished, there must be much care taken that the matter lie not open to the Sun; because it will turn the greeness thereof into a paleness, and together therewith swallow up the Arcanum: Let it be kept (covered over) in a stove, that no defilement come thereto; [then] afterwards let it be digested in a glass shut for the space of some moneths, or so long untill there appears various colours, and the highest redness. But yet you must not think that (by that process) the redness is sufficiently fixed, but must be farther purged from the Interiour accidental defilements of the earth, and that on this wise. Tis to be rectified with Acetum untill the earthly defilment be wholly removed, and the feces separated; This now is the true and best rectification of its Tincture, of which the blessed Oil is to be extracted; From it [then] being diligently shut in a glass and an Alembick speedily set thereon, and the joints done with bitumen [or luted] that the spirits exhale not, in the distillation of its Oil, the spirit is to be drawn forth with a sweet and gentle fire. This Oil is much more delectable and sweet then any dispensatory Aromatical balsome whatsoever, and is void of all other acrediny or sharpness; Now in the bottom of the Cucurbite there will reside a certain most white earth, bright aud shining like Snow, the which keep charily from all dust and filth. That same earth is wholly separated from its redness; From thence [now] follows the greatest Arcanum, viz. a Super-celestial marriage of the soul most highly purified and washed by the blood of the Lamb, with its own bright, lustrous, and purified body; This is the true super-celestial matrimony whereby the life is prolonged even to [its] last appointed time after this manner; therefore the soul and spirit of Vitriol (which are its blood) are coupled with their own purified body that they may be eternally inseparable; Take therefore this our foliated earth in a glass phial; pour thereto its Oil by little & little; the body will in a moment receive and embrace its soul, for as much as the body is most earnestly affected with the desire after its soul, and the soul doth most perfectly delight in the Embracements of the body; This conjunction therefore of them being put into a furnace of secrets, continue it there for fourty dayes, which being over, thou shalt have a most absolute oil of a wonderfull perfection; wherewith Mercury, and all the other imperfect mettals are turned into Gold. Now wee'l speak a word or two of the multiplication thereof. [viz.] Take corporal Mercury, the proportion of two parts, the which wet over with three parts of the like weight of the said Oil, and let them remain together for forty dayes. By this proportion of weight, and by this order, the multiplication may be made to Infinity.

CHAP. XIV.

Of the Secrets and Arcana's of Antimony as to the red Tincture, for transmutation.

ANtimony is a true Bathe for Gold; But the Philosophers have called it their Examinator and Stilanx, or

The Poets say that in that bath Vulcan wash't Phoebus, and purged him from all filth and imperfection; Tis born of a most pure and most Noble Mercury aud Sulphur, under a Vitrioline stock or kind, in a mettalline form and splendour; Some of the Philosophers have called it the white lead of the wise men, or simply Lead. Take therefore Antimony, and that the very best, as much as thou wilt; this ♀︎ being dissolved into its own Aq. fort. let be cast out into Cold water, adding a very little Crocus ♂︎: that it may fall into a sediment at the bottome of the Vessell; for otherwise it will not put off its feces; Now then after tis thus dissolved, it will acquire a most high fairness; Put it into a Glass fenced all about with a most compact Lute, or into a stone Bocia, or bolt-head, and let be admixed thereto of calcined Tutia, sublimed to the perfect degree of the fire, and diligently beware of Liquefaction, because it breaks the glasses by the overmuch heat; from one pound of this Antimony is a perfect sublimation to be had in the space of two dayes. This sublimate being put in a phial that a third part may touch the water, and the Vessell Luted, that the spirits fly not away, let it be hang'd over a Tripode of secrets, and let the work be urged at first with a gentle fire, like to the heat of the Sun in the midst of Summer; then at length on the tenth day let it be a little augmented. For by too much heat the glasses break, and sometimes also, the furnace leaps a pieces. Whiles the Vapour ascends, various colours appear. Let the fire be moderated and governed so long, untill the matter be seen red; Afterwards let it be dissolved in most sharp Vinegar, and cast away the feces; Let the Vinegar be abstracted and let [it] be again dissolved in common distilled water, which must be again abstracted, and the sediment be distilled with a most vehement fire, in a glass most accurately shut; [then] the whole body of the Antimony will ascend into a most red Oil, resembling the colour of a Ruby, and will flow down drop by drop into the receiver, of a most fragrant Odour, and most sweet Savour. This is the highest Arcanum of the Philosophers in Antimony; the which most [of them] make [or place] amongst the Arcana's of Oils. Then lastly, let the Oil of Sol be made after this manner; Take of the purest Sol, as much as you will, the which you must dissolve in rectified spirit of Wine; Let the spirit be sometimes abstracted therefrom, and be again so often dissolved; Let the last Solution be kept with the spirit of wine, and circulated for a moneth; Afterwards let the the Volatile gold be distilled, and the spirit of Wine by an Alembick three or four times, that it may fall down into the Receiver, and be brought into its highest essence: To half an ounce of that dissolved gold, let one Ounce of the oil of Antimony be added. This Oil doth presently embrace the other, in the heat of a B. So that it doth not easily let it go from it self, although the spirit of Wine be abstracted; By this way shalt thou have the highest mystery of Nature, and an Arcanum which cant be equalled by any thing in the nature of things. These two Oils thus united after the manner thus spoken of, are to be shut up in a Phial, and hanged up in a Tripode for a Philosophical moneth and to be cherished with a most gentle fire; Although if the fire be tempered after a due proportion, this work will be finished in one and thirty dayes, and brought unto perfection, whereby Mercury and all other Imperfect mettals do acquire the perfection of Gold.

CHAP. XV.

Of the Projection to be made by the Ministry and Arcanum of Antitimony.

THere can be no weight assigned in this work of projection although the Tincture it self may be drawn from some subject by [or in] a certain and sure proportion, and fit instruments; for that medicine doth tinge sometimes thirty or fourty, sometimes sixty, eighty and an hundred parts of imperfect mettal; so that the chiefest knack or art in this business is about the mundation or cleaning of the medicine, and in the industry of the operator; also according to the greater [or lesser] cleaness and purity of the Imperfect body used hereabouts. For example, One Venus is purer then another ♀︎: from whence it comes to pass that a determinate weight in projection cannot be had. This only is worth the noting, that if it chanceth that the Operator hath taken too much tincture, he may correct this error by the addition of [more] imperfect mettal. But if there be too much of the subject whereby the virtues of the Tincture are rendred too weak, this fault may be remedied easily by the Cineritium or Test, or by Cementations, or by ablutions with Crude Antimony; as to this part [of work] there's nothing that may hinder the Operator; only he's to set that before himself, which is omitted by all the Philosophers, and of purpose concealed by some; viz. in projections, the revivification of imperfect bodies is necessary, that is, the Animation (or as I may so call it) the spiritualization [of them] concerning which some have said, that their mettals ate not the vulgar, because they live and have a soul.

The Animation is thus done.

TAke Venus, reduce it into thin Plates, as much as you will, ten, twenty, or forty pound; let them be incrustrated or smeared over with a pulse made only of Arsenick and calcined Tartar, and let them be calcined in their Vessel for the space of four and twenty hours; then at length let the Venus be beaten into powder, be washed and cleansed exceeding well. Let the Calcination be repeated, [together] with the ablutions three or four times; By this way it becomes purged and cleansed from its gross viridity and its unclean Sulphur; Verily yon must beware of the Calcinations that are made with common Sulphur; for it doth wholly deprave all the good is in a mettal, and renders that which is evil worse. [Now] to ten Marks—of that putged Venus let be added one of pure Lune; But that by the projection of the medicine the work may be the sooner accelerated and hastned, and that it may the more easily penetrate the imperfect body, and expell all such parts as are contrary to the natute of Lune, that very thing may be easily done by the medium of a perfect ferment; For the work is defiled by an unclean Sulphur, so that there will be [as twere] a cloud stretched over the superficies of that which is transmuted, or the mettal will be mixed with some of the Offals or Scoria's of the Sulphur, and be cast away with them. But verily, if you would project, of the red stone, for the red transmutation, it must first fall [or be projected] upon Gold, and afterward upon Lune, or upon any other purged mettal, as we have declared above; [then,] from thence doth come most perfect Gold.

CHAP. XVI.

Of the Vniversal matter of the stone of the Philosophers.

AFter the mortification of Vegetables [they] by the concurrence of two Minerals, as Sulphur and Salt, are transmuted into a Mineral nature, so that at length they become perfect minerals; for in the Mineral holes and dens and wide fields of the earth, are found Vegetables which in long success of time, and by the continued heat of Sulphur, do pu[…] off the Vegetable nature, and put on a Mineral; And that doth chiefly happen, where the appropriate nutriment is taken away from these Vegetables, whereby they are afterwards constrained to take their nourishment from the Sulphurs and Salts of the earth, so long, untill that which was afore a Vegetable, do pass into a perfect Mineral; And thus out of this Mineral condition a certain perfect Mettallick essence doth sometimes arise, and that by the progress of one degree into another: But to return to the stone of the Philosophers, the matter whereof (as some have mentioned) is a most difficult matter of all others to be found out, and abstruse for the understanding; Now the way and the most certain rule of the finding out of this as well as of all other things, what they contain, or are able to do, is a most diligent examination of their Root and Sperm, whereby knowledge is attained; for the accomplishment of which, the consideration of principles is very necessary; as also by what way, and medium nature doth at first go from imperfection to the end of perfection; For the consideration whereof, tis chiefly requisite, most certainly to know, that all things created by nature do consist of three principles, viz. of natural Sulphur, Mercury, and Salt, mixt into one, [so] that in some things they are Volatile, in other things fixt: As often as a corporal Salt is throughly mixt with a spiritual Mercury and Animated Sulphur into one body, then doth nature begin to work in subterranean places, (which serves for its vessels,) by a separating fire, by which the gross and impure Sulphur is separated from the pure, and the Earth from the Salt, and the cloudiness from the Mercury, those purer parts being reserved) the which parts nature doth again decoct together into a pure Geogamick—body. The which Operation is accounted [of] by the Magi, as a Mixtion and conjunction by the Union of the three, viz. body, soul, and spirit. This Union being compleated, from thence doth result a pure Mercury, the which if it flows through the subterrean passages and Veins thereof, and mess with a Caheick—Sulphur, the Mercury is Coagulated by this [Sulphur] according to the condition of the Sulphur. But notwithstanding, tis as yet volatile, and scarce decocted into a mettall for the space of an hundred years. Thence arose this so much common an opinion, that Mercury and Sulphur are the matter of mettals, the which is also evident by the Relation of the Miners. Yet common Mercury and common Sulphur are not the matter of mettals, but the Mercury and Sulphur of the Philosophers are incorporated and innate in perfect mettals, and in the forms of them, that they never fly from the fire, nor are depraved by the force of the corruption of the Elements. Verily by the dissolution of that same natural mixtion our Mercury is tamed or subjected, as all the Philosophers speak; Under [or from] this form of words, comes Mercury to be extracted out of perfect bodies, and [out of] the virtues [and puissance] of the earthly planets. The which Hermes affirms in these words, The ☉︎ and ☽︎ (saith he) are the roots of this art. The Son of Hamuel saith that the stone of the Philosophers is a Coagulated water, viz. in Sol and Lune; from whence tis evidently cleer, that the matter of the stone is nothing else but ☉︎ & ☽︎: this is also hereby confirmed, in that every like thing generates and brings forth its like; And we know that there are no more but two stones, white and red; there are alfo two matters of the stone, Sol and Lune coupled together in a proper Matrimony, both natural and artificial; And as we see, that either man or woman cannot generate without the seed of both; in like manner, our Man ☉︎ and his Woman ☽︎ cannot conceive, or frame onght for generation without both their Seeds and Spermes; Thence have the Philosophers gathered, that a third thing is necessary, viz. the Animated seed of both, of man and woman, without the which they have judged all their whole work to be vain and foolish: Now such a Sperm is [their] Mercury the which by a natural conjunction of both bodies of ☉︎ and ☽︎, receives their nature into it self in Union; and then at length and not before is the work fitted for congress, ingress and Generation by the manly and feminine virtue and power. On this account the Philosophers took occasion to say, that Mercury is composed of body, soul, and spirit, and that it hath assumed the nature & property of all the Elements—Therefore from a most powerfull ingenuity and discretion or understanding they have affirmed their stone to be animal, the which also they have called their Adam, who carryes his inv[…]sible Eve hidden in his own body, from that moment of time wherein they were united by the power of the most high God, the framer of all the creatures; for which cause it may deservedly be said, that the Mercury of the Philosophers is nothing else but their most abstruse compounded Mercury, and not that common ☿︎: Therefore have they discretly told the wise, that there is in Mercury whatsoever the wise men seek. Almadir the Philosopher saith, we do extract our Mercury out of one perfect body, and two perfect natural conditions incorporated together; the which [☿︎] indeed doth thrust forth its perfection outwardly, whereby tis able to resist the fire, and that its intrinsecal imperfection may be defended by the extrinsecal perfections; By this place of the most witty Philosopher, is the Adamical matter understood, the Limbus of the Microcosm, the homogeneal, Only matter of all the Philosophers, whose sayings also (which we have afore mentioned) are meerly golden, and to be had in most high esteem, because they contain nothing superfluous, or invalid; Briefly therefore the matter of the Philosophers stone is nothing else but a fiery and perfect Mercury, extracted by—Nature and Art, that is the artificially prepared and true Hermaphrodite Adam, and Microcosm, That most wise Mercurius the wisest of the Philosophers affirming the same, hath called the stone an Orphan: Therefore our Mercury is that very same that contains in it self the perfections, forces and virtues of the Sun, and which runs through the Streets and houses of all the Planets, and in its regeneration hath acquired or gotten the virtue of things above and beneath; to the marriage also of which [things viz. above and below] it is compared, as is evident from the whiteness and redness wound or heaped up together therein.

CHAP. XVII.

Of the Preparation of the matter of the Philosophers stone.

THis is that which nature doth most chiefly require, viz. that its own Philosophick man be brought into a Mercurial substance, that it may spring forth into the Philosophick stone. Moreover you are to note, that those common preparations of Geber, Albertus Magnus, Th. Aquinas, Rupescisca, Polidorus, and such like, are nothing else but some particular Solutions, Sublimations and Calcinations, not at all pertaining to our Universal [work] which [work] doth want only the most secret fire of the Philosophers; Therefore the fire and Azoth may suffice thee; [And whereas] the Philosophers do make mention of some preparations, as of putrefaction, destillation, sublimation, calcination, coagulation, dealbation, rubification, ceration, fixation, &c. you are to understand, that in their Universal [work] Nature it self doth accomplish all the operations in the said matter, and not the workman, [and that] only in a Philosophical Vessel, and with a such like fire, not a common fire. The white and the red do proceed out of one root, without any medium. Tis dissolved by it self, coupled by it self, albifyes, and rubifyes; is made saffrony and black by it self, marries itself, and conceives in it self: Tis therefore to be decocted, to be baked, to be fused, it ascends, and descends. All which Operations, are indeed [but] one Operation made by the fire alone; But yet some of the Philosophers have by a most high-graduated essence of Wine, dissolved the body of Sol, have made it Volatile, so as to ascend by an Alembick, subposing that this is the Volatile, true Philosophick matter, whereas it is not; And although it be no contemptible Arcanum, to bring this perfect mettalline body into a Volatile and spiritual Substance, yet notwithstanding they err in the Separation of the Elements; the which process of [those] Monks, viz. Lully, Richard the Englishman, Rupescisea, and others, is erroneous; By which [process] they supposed to separate gold by this way into a subtile, spiritual, and elementary power, each one a part; [and] afterwards by circulation and rectification to couple them again into one, but in vain; for verily, although one Element may after a sort be separated from another, yet nevertheless every element, after this manner separated, may again be sepatated into another element, the which parts cannot at all (afterwards) either, by pellicanick circulation or destillation, return into one again, but they always remain a Certain Volatile matter, and Aurum Potabile as they call it; The cause why they could never arrive to their intention, is this; because nature is not in the least willing to be thus distracted or separated, by humane disjunctions, as by terrene [things] glasses and instruments. She her self alone, knows her own operations, and the weights of the Elements, the separations, rectifications and copulations of which she accomplisheth, without the help of any Operator or Manual artifice; Only the matter is to be contained in the secret fire, and in its occult Vessel; The Separation therefore of the Elements is impossible [to be done] by man; which separation should it have some appearance, yet notwithstanding is not true, whatsoever is spoken thereof by Raimund Lully, and his English golden noble Work, which he is falsly supposed to have framed. For Nature it self hath in her self her proper Separater (which doth again conjoyn what it separates) without the help of man, and doth best know all [her Trade] and the proportion of every element, and not man; whatever such erroneous Scriblers do (in their frivolous and false receipts) boast of this their volatile Gold. This [then] is the opinion [or mind] of the Philosophers, that when they have put their matter into the more secret fire, it be all about cherished with its [own] moderate Philosophical heat, that [so] beginning to pass through corruption it may grow black: This operation they call putrefaction, and the blackness they name the head of the Crow: They call the ascension and descension thereof distillation, ascension and descension; they call the exsiccation, coagulation; and the dealbation, calcination: And because it is fluid and soft in the heat, they have made mention of Ceration; when it hath ceased to ascend and remain liquid in the bottom, then they say fixation is present.

After this manner therefore, the Appellations and terms of the Philosophical operations are to be understood, and no otherwise.