"The Universal Mind, before referred to as the true and only source of Life, is pure and perfect, enduring and beautiful, the principle of principles, the Truth of truths, the Law of laws, the Life of lives, and he who has awakened to the Consciousness of being in harmony with this principle, one with this Mind, merged in this Eternal Source possesses the Philosopher's Stone—the true Elixir of Life. Such a one is in the highest sense of the term an Alchemist, knowing how to transmute the baser metals of the 'animal nature' into pure nature of Spirit."
— Alchemy and the Alchemists, Part 2 by R. Swinburne Clymer
The Alchemist Now that he dreams, seeing his pride dissolve, his poor dream, He sees how brief the law is, and maybe, at last, seeks less of the superfluous, trusts in God without dreams. Oh, to know everything — that desire of the crucible! And yet, here he is at the bottom of the crucible... ...already, he no longer desires anything. For having glimpsed the abyss he suddenly understood that his effort was in vain! And Death for him is the birth of Life!
The Role of the Alchemist: Co-Creator with The Creator
“The alchemist must first study the cycles and processes of nature in order to look beyond the surface and understand its qualities and properties. In this way, these processes can be emulated, accelerated and refined in the alchemist’s own opus. This should also be done with devotion where prayer and work go hand in hand. The tradition is at the same time an ancient art and a progressive science that requires self-knowledge. There is a correspondence between the outer and the inner, the above and the below. Everything originates from a primordial matter. A substance can be transformed or transmuted into another when its external and temporal form is broken down and its essence is revealed, purified and united with another principle. Such transformations are constantly occurring through the cycles of birth, life, death and rebirth on both macrocosmic and microcosmic levels. By his work, therefore, the alchemist becomes a co-creator of the process of creation’s refinement, as a true philosopher in love with wisdom.” - Alchemy – the divine work
