From Darkness to Light in Alchemy

Hey everyone, I hope you are all doing well and you had a day that brought some interesting experiences into your life! In this article I would like to talk about alchemy and hope you are able to expand your knowledge a bit.

Already the well-known founder of alchemy or hermetics Hermes Trismegistos, who is also considered the author of the cryptic emerald tablets which are also known as Tabula Smaragdina, once described his path from darkness to the light which is formative in alchemy. According to his writings, Hermes Trismegistos lived in the darkness for a long time and wandered day after day to search for the wisdom and he dealt for a long time with what the difference between light or darkness was and in alchemy this path is also generally regarded as a way of enlightenment or wisdom. This cycle of day and night, which is closely connected with the sun and the moon, is also referred to in inner alchemy as the way in which it is about bringing the human to a higher state and according to philosophy, nature is not completed and it is the task of the alchemist to do this and in this context it was about finding ways with which this goal can be achieved. The connection between light and darkness is also connected with the principle of duality and in pretty much all countries in which alchemy has been practised this understanding of these flowing transitions was of the utmost importance and without one, the other would not exist and the cycle would have problems to exist. There were different stages in which it is about separating matter and this can also be considered as a spirit which must first be separated from physical existence and after this it is the goal to add it back to the substance and this can also be linked with the well-known Latin sentence solve et coagula which means dissolve and coagulate. This path of enlightenment was sometimes associated in Western alchemy with the light bringer Lucifer, which has its origin in Roman mythology and the light is already hidden in the darkness and it is the task of the alchemist to discover and liberate it. These wisdoms are also often to be regarded as a metaphor for the practical work in which it was about bringing substances or materials into a better state and this can refer to the transformation of noble metals into gold or the production of the mystical philosopher's stone.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you could learn something new about alchemy! I captured these pictures with my Camera Sony Alpha 6000 plus 55-210 mm lens.