[!] A golden scroll would find itself everywhere, delivered by men in cloaks.
The Filius Philosophorum
The World exists and has always in curious ways, linked to the mind so that only the most observant can witness.
The World serves as a direct conduit to access the greater power which too many are oblivious of, for reality as it seems is simply a projection of one’s mind.
It is through The Mind’s Eye that we perceive, and it is through The Mind’s Eye that our thoughts course.
Locked away, behind The Four Shackles lies The Spirit.
The Filius Philosophorum is the key.
And The Spirit is the only goal.
This is the MAGNUM OPUS.
The mind is without a doubt the most important thing in one’s life, or even the greater extensions of descendent existence as a whole, due to it leading towards The Spirit. The Spirit is the magickal body and form of thought, the ultimate goal which even the greater powers of this world struggle to possess. It is impervious to nigh everything, and with it, one is capable of shaping reality as they please.
Tales of The Spirit date back to before men could even write, and were passed along by word of mouth down generations, before eventually being scrawled upon walls in ancient times, and then written in tablets and scrolls of utmost holiness. The Spirit is the pinnacle thing, the purest form that once was before all. And as many were told, and still believe, The World, and all that is, originates from one source. Some call it GOD, others call it the Demiurge, the Philosopher’s Stone, and some even find it to be the equivalent of The Seven Skies, or Heaven. It is transcendence, and enlightenment; insight to a time when all was one and whole, and sin had not yet been thought.
It is through the esoteric processes of the mind, enacted in tandem with THE material philosophy, that one can reach The Spirit. There are four shackles which have four locks, each with a different key. And behind every door, there are immeasurable truths and vast swathes of gold, but with such in one’s hand, it would be to great detriment that they act impetuously.
The four shackles are TRACTUS, ALBENTES, CITRINITAS, and RUBENTIS.
I. TRACTUS
For TRACTUS to begin, matter must be subjected to calcination, putrefaction, or decomposition.
TRACTUS is the blackening; the trial by fire before the purity (distillation).
Done so by the fire of alchemists, and in turn, the fire of The Spirit, one’s soul itself may be calcined.
It is the first step towards reaching The Whole.
By fire we are purged.
When the material alchemist works HIS craft, they find themselves repeating the same process, over and over, endlessly, for each reagent they process, and for each concoction made. This is because, as all things do, ALCHEMY follows a sacred code of laws which were set in place when GOD created all. And they cannot be broken. Even subconsciously, one may experience the path towards The Spirit, and many see this simply as the fluctuation of their life. But it is not - it is The Spirit telling them that something must change, and so it disrupts life as it was, throws it into disorderly pandemonium and reduces it to blackened ash. Such is TRACTUS.
When the material alchemist performs the burning, grinding, and destruction of herbs, they are enacting TRACTUS, unknowingly or not. It is eternal, as is The Spirit. So in order for an alchemist to move on, they must be destroyed, their mind must be pushed beyond its limit, and their life must be reduced to ash. And then in that gaping abyss, there should only be acceptance. One who resorts back to the same old comforts and addictions will never find their way past this point.
Let the ashes settle for there to be purification, and the separation between sin and symbol.
II. ALBENTES
Once one’s sin has been primed for cleansing in the blazing fire of the alchemist, the ashes will turn black.
But then, in ALBENTES, the soul will be purified, removed of sin and foreign corruption - so once more, the ashes would fade to white.
This is the settling purification, the distilled soul vying to remain pure and untouched from taint.
ALBENTES (the whitening) is the first proper sign of progress toward The Whole, for as everything does, it too abides by the natural laws.
In ashes we are released.
The ashes of distilled and calcined matter will inevitably be stricken white after some matter of time has passed, for such is the natural cleansing of the soul within alchemy. When one goes through ALBENTES, they mustn’t stagnate, and instead open themselves up for communication with The Spirit. They must return to how they once were before the first influence, they must seek thought beyond the material concepts which bind them and define who they are. This is the reformation of things after the intense chaos which is TRACTUS.
All sin would be cleansed in ALBENTES, removed from the blackened ash and tar that plagued them. And in the shining brilliance they might begin to see glimpses of the greater truths, of The Whole, of The Spirit and how it is all connected with the material realm. Then one must look even further beyond this, and continue to pursue permanence in this state because anything else would lead on a downward spiral back into sin and oblivion.
Find peace in constant cleansing, but prepare for greater ascension when the soul has been righted.
III. CITRINITAS
CITRINITAS is the separation of the soul between mortal and immortal, peasant and king.
One cannot enter HIS kingdom dressed in rags; the gates are hidden to those who have not elevated themselves to the height which is The Spirit.
This is the enlightenment, and ascension beyond what we can see, and feel, and hear.
CITRINITAS is the act of adorning the holy halo, in all its opulence. It is the yellowing.
Through enlightenment we are wizened.
At this point in the alchemist’s journey, they will find themselves being overcome by the most intense of emotions until there are none more to be felt. It is paramount that they pay great attention to each subtle thing that happens, for it is The Spirit convening with the soul. They will begin to notice peculiar things, left and right and all throughout their day, and then the sense of dreadful knowing will approach. The sense that something in The World is amiss. Perhaps it would be the corruption of society, or the sins which men, and elves, and dwarves alike all find themselves bound to.
It is pivotal that during this stage, one takes the time to teach others of the profound revelation which is ALCHEMY, and The Filius Philosophorum - lest they wish for sacred knowledge to fall short and be lost once more within the textbooks of yore. For this is the phase which the wizened hermit finds themself falling into, and the only way to progress is to teach, and spread the wisdom in good will with the hope of curing The World. Of course, The World and its people may not be cured at all but on their own accords.
The alchemist would find themselves plagued with the knowing of The World and its truest functions and systems. They would become intimate with its intricacies. Many at this point fall stagnant, or choose to worship The World falsely. Fear the false gods.
IV. RUBENTIS
RUBENTIS is the Philosopher’s Stone.
It is the act of becoming WHOLE; one with the SINGULARITY, one with THE SPIRIT.
RUBENTIS is the final stage, where dirt is made gold, and all is made one.
This is the reddening, the result of the magnum opus where as matter is brought back to The Spirit, so too is the soul made whole again, like fitting pieces to a puzzle.
From silver we are made gold.
The final step of the material alchemist’s process would be to take the pure, cleansed product and add it to a base, before mixing it. The base is The Spirit, the singularity, whereas, the pure product is the soul. And ALL must undergo this procedure and be made into the simplest form which there is. For GOD existed before everything, and was whole and pure, but that purity was diluted and then buried when The World and everything else was created.
RUBENTIS is the act of transcending the mortal shackles and joining The Spirit, but it is a process which would go unspoken. Through word and symbolic sacrament, the final steps may be taken to ascend to this level. The Soul leaves the body, for it is not the body which defines a person, but rather their soul, or the greater version of it which is The Spirit. And once ALL is said and done, only a peaceful purity would remain, and GOD would be made once more.
This is The Philosopher’s Stone, the act of reddening, the magnum opus, or the great work, enlightenment, heaven; it is all which the mortal people of this world seek to attain, and it is the result of The Filius Philosophorum.
The Law
I. He who speaks the vaunted tongue must not do so in vain.
II. He who practices the vaunted art must not do so in vain.
III. He who teaches the vaunted art must not do so in vain.
IV. The World is not to be worshipped.
V. The Void is not to be worshipped.
VI. Creation must not be worshipped.
This is the MAGNUM OPUS.