We explored The Philosophers Stone 1.st of March 2018.
Here we will share with you the knowledge base existing together as well as what we gained from our exploration.

The philosophers stone has been sought and searched for through centuries. People have tried to find it as a substance or searched for the recipe with the secrets of how to make it.
The powers of the Philosophers Stone
It is supposed to turn metals into silver or gold, it is supposed to give you health, to prolong your life and to reveal the secrets of nature. Some even said it would give immortality.

It was said it could make a perpetual burning lamp, transform simple crystals or stones to precious gemstones or diamonds. It could create flexible glass, revive dead plants and even create a miniature clone as an artificial made smaller copy of man; the homunculus (Small man).

Only the promise of giving spiritual revitalization, a prolonged life and improved health would be something everybody would like to have.

Because of this people have searched it either motivated by spiritual quest, their last hope of rescue or simply from personal greed.

Alchemist
The old name for Egypt was Khemt meaning black. From the black soil given to the land by the river Nile after its annual inundation (flooding).
The word alchemy actually comes from the Arabic al-kimiya, meaning “The black“. Al is the Arabic definite article but also the Hebrew word for God. Scholars in the early centuries often knew languages like Hebrew, Greek, Arabic and Latin. So it could also translate “Gods black” meaning “The hidden celestial art”. People using it for egoistic purposes were by the same reason said to work with the black arts or black magic. It could also simply be “The Egyptian wisdom / secrets / knowledge”. In Egypt the black soil was opposed to the red desert, it was the potential for growth as opposed to the killing heat of the desert. In this perspective alchemy can be understood as the art of connecting with the black dark unconscious realms with the potential for the growth of the soul towards mastery of life.

Black is not only negative
We see how the apparently same word and work can be negative when the motivation is egoistic greed and positive when it is unselfish spiritual quest for the benefit of all. Just think about how the opposite ends of the circle meet. The story about Job in the Bible is a good example telling that the devil can do nothing without the acceptance from God; the negative is just a means of the positive.
The dark side of the earth is created by it-self shadowing the sun, creating an illusion of darkness. A darkness that only exist from the perspective from the earth. But the darkness also let you see into the deep unconscious it shows you the huge universe that is blinded by light of the sun. The positive side of the dark or black shows the hidden or waster perspective. The journey of the mystic or searcher for mastery in life is to bring light or awareness into the hidden or darker realms expanding the circle of presence.

In modern times we have moved away from the hidden subtle aspects into the material objective aspects of reality. With this alchemy turned into chemistry which also got its name from Khemt (The black soil of Egypt).
Chemistry as the scientific follower of alchemy took the personal subjective experience and the inner journey of the alchemist and sacrificed it for pure objectivity.
On its way to where it is today chemistry was still connected to life, what was called “vitalism” understanding life is something by itself. For a long time we spoke about organic and inorganic chemistry. Today the academic world think that dead matter created life and the term “organic” has become redundant.
We have reached the end state. Going deeper into matter we return to energy, energy fields and vitality.  The future will bring us upwards again, recognising the unique powers of life as well as the awareness lying dormant in the material aspects of reality.
Alchemy was also the mother and father of pharmacology, metallurgy as well as homeopathy.

Vitriol
Alchemist used the anagram VITRIOL; Visita Interiora Terra Rectificando Invenies Ocultum Lapidem; Visit the interior or inner earth with purification you will find the hidden (concealed/secret) stone.
The hidden stone was another names for the philosophers stone. It was also called “The powder” or “The tincture” as in the powder or tincture above all others. Other names was “Lapis Noster” (our stone),  ‘The white Stone”,  and some also called it “The Vitriol”. This anagram shows what we just said about going into the dark or unconscious realms, to expand our awareness to find “Our stone”.

Sulphur, Mercury and Salt
The alchemist recommended uniting Sulphur and Mercury to make the Salt that would be the Philosophers Stone. To understand this we need to know that Sulphur, Mercury and Salt are not referring to the elements but to qualities in nature.
Sulphur is fire, combustion, energy and spirit, while Mercury is balancing, emotional, mutual and soul. Together they should manifest into the temple of man, our body that is manifesting our achievements on the journey of our soul. Your body is the end result of the work of your soul and spirit. On your journey for the inner truth the body reflects what you have been able to manifest, the end result of achievements and challenges but individually as well as in your connection with the expanded circle of family and genetic pool of ancestors.

The Stone is a symbol of stability and the Philosopher is a searcher for truth. Truth is a question of your ability to combine wisdom and love. Your degree of truth is dependent on the balance between love and wisdom. Omraam Michael Aivanhov has a nice picture of this; If love and wisdom are represented with the two sides of a coin, truth is the size of the coin. Lots of love alone with little wisdom does not give much truth, neither does lots of wisdom alone without love.

Love and wisdom are the masculine and feminine principles in us. The quest for the Philosophers Stone is a quest for the unity of our female and male nature, the quest for anima and animus from a Jungian perspective. This work was sometimes been called the alchemical wedding, the union of the red and green lion, or sun and moon as well as union of queen and king. Uniting Sulphur and Mercury to get Salt is a symbol of this unification of the male and female nature within yourself.

In the Middle Ages till the start of the Age of Enlightenment with the scientific approach, people were still in touch with a more personal and experience based approach to nature. Alchemists still used their inner perception, the effect the experiment had on their soul. This is what we also do in our exploration. You can read more about it here; holonistic knowledge.
The quest for the Philosopher’s Stone actually led alchemists to examine chemical reactions and the changes in metals when heated and cooled down as well as exploring numerous substances from nature.

Magnus Opus
It was said that the Philosophers Stone was everywhere, ordinary, common and unnoticed, so they were looking everywhere.
Only a few knew the quest was internal, even if the external world could be a means to get in touch with it.
The spiritual alchemist knew that it was all about the inner development and they called it The great work or Opus Magnus.
Opus Magnus was described in four stages:

• nigredo (blackening)  –  representing earth and the elimination of the dead parts
• albedo (whitening) – representing water and purification
• citrinitas (yellowing) – representing air and the illumination
• rubedo (reddening) – representing fire and the inspiration

These four steps go back to early Greek philosophy with deep roots from the inner Egyptian knowledge.

Later the 4 stages got elaborated upon and differentiated into 12 and even 14 stages. George Ripley (c. 1415–1490) said to have written the Ripley Scroll describes the 12 stages and Samuel Norton (1548–1621) elaborated 14 stages.

The famous scientist Sir Isaac Newton was an enthusiastic alchemist and wrote 169 books about the subject. They were never published because converting metals into gold or silver was considered a serious crime in his time.

From our holonistic exploration we opened ourselves to the Philosopher Stone as having its own energy field, archetype, soul or awareness of its own.
The experience let us not only understand but experience the presence and influence of the stone on our whole economy.

We could feel the stones ability to let go of the old, the dead parts and giving new life and revitalization. Giving us a new start with increased autonomy to follow the inner will. It felt like the autonomy of the sun, the ability to initiate and at the same time be centred. Being a master in your own life giving freely of your self as the sun gives us light, warmth and life.
It made us aware of the play between the sun and the earth as reflected in our higher and lower self. How the sun gradually transforms the earth and everything upon it in the same way as the higher spirit transform the soul gradually manifesting the changes into the body. A process that is healing, prolonging life, giving clarity and awareness that reviles what formerly was hidden or secret.
Changing what is negative to a positive potential. Changing grey stones to diamonds, or simple metals to gold in our soul. Manifesting the virtues, competencies and qualities that were acquired to such an extent or degree that they always stay with us. Incorruptible and indestructible like to gold that will not rust or the hard stability of diamonds.
The philosophers stone had an uplifting, inspiring verticality about it, lifting us up to connect with the sphere of the sun representing the gold of the solar system. The awareness that streams forward from the sun is a transformative awareness that creates virtues in us, the gold of the soul, the abilities that never leaves us, that are stable gifts like the stable nature of stone. Virtues are also the means of transformation. If you have truth, wisdom, love, justice, purity or virtue you can transform any challenge or situation in your life.

To reach to this level of awareness we need to find a balance between the masculine and feminine sides of our soul as wisdom and love gives truth. Lifting yourself to the sun from the earth you need to cross the sphere of the moon. Uniting moon and sun or anima and animus is the wedding of the queen and the king.

The Ripley scroll has a beautiful drawing of the process (see below) of getting the Philosophers Stone. We see the sun giving drops or small flames of light above and the earth being lifted up by feathers, making the crude more subtle to create the golden state of the searcher or master. The crucible of the alchemist, the pear shaped glass was known as the Philosophers`Egg or Hermes, here fully hatched.  The drawing is called the bird of Hermes.

When you have acquired the Philosophers Stone you have learned to turn everything into Gold, you have learned how to transform all crudeness in your life to your own virtue.

If you have unconditional detached love you will never experience hate or isolation. If you have wisdom you will never experience confusion. If you have purity nothing is impure and filled with justice nothing is experienced as unjust etc.
This is the gold or silver the Philosophers Stone creates. This is why it is everywhere and why it give health and prolonged life. When we reach the awareness of the beings in the sun (Malachim) it will also give us eternal life.
We realized all the myths of the Philosophers Stone were exact descriptions of real phenomena that at that time in history needed to be concealed in symbolic language.

Exploring the Philosophers Stone was a precious experience.