Following the Light of Nature

"Rosarius says: "I advise no one to approach this Art unless he knows the principle and the regimen of Nature: if he be acquainted with these, little is wanting to him except one thing, nor need he put himself to a great expense, since the stone is one, the medicine is one, the vessel one, the rule one, the disposition one." — The Golden Tract: Concerning the Stone of the Philosophers

the alchemists personified Nature as a wise feminine guide, revered the lumen naturae or inner light of natural wisdom, read the “Book of Nature” as scripture, and strove to work with Nature as faithful partners rather than tyrants.

Natura – the teacher, the light-bearer, the mother, the living book, and the beloved collaborator in the Great Work.

Following the Light of Nature

The alchemist following the light of nature

Observing nature, studying nature Following nature Experimenting with nature, attempting to accelerate nature to its fulfillment

Nature as the supreme teacher and guide

nature reveals the universal principles governing all creation.

Atalanta Fugiens, Emblem 42

“Nature, Reason, Experience, and reading must be the guide, staff, Spectacles, and Lamp to him that is employed in Chymical affairs.”

Nature (the guide herself), Reason (the staff), Experience (the spectacles), and Reading (the lamp).

• Nature, Reason, Experience, and reading = guide, staff, Spectacles, and Lamp

https://furnaceandfugue.org/atalanta-fugiens/emblem42.html

Epigram 42

Pursuing art, let Nature be your guide, Tracing her steps your feet will not backslide: Let reason be your staff, experience add Strength to your sight, discerning good from bad: In darkness reading will as light direct, That ambiguities you may detect.

Nature is Not Mute

“Nature is not mute; it is man who is deaf” - TM. “Opening the Doors of Creativity“ This is in response to Sartre’s “Nature is mute” statement.

The Alchemist is one who studies and follows nature The Secrets of Nature

What is Nature?

a living, intelligent force that animates all matter.

all matter is alive and animated with spirit.

The earth is a single living organism

Nature is always Natural - not artificial, it grows from within….

“the earth is a single living organism, fertilized and impregnated by the celestial spirit of the sun, stars, and planets.” - The Alchemical Vision of Living Nature

“Nature” is the entire realm of existence that unfolds according to divine patterns and laws. It is simultaneously visible and invisible, manifest and hidden, active and passive. “Nature” is the created cosmos, alive with divine breath, composed of elements, essences, spirits, and principles that interact through correspondence and analogy. It is the matrix within which transformation and realization happen—Nature is living, vibrant, ever-changing, and yet eternally rooted in divine truth.

teleology = the study of the purpose and goal of a thing

nature is evolutionary, always striving toward higher forms Nature has a telos - it is moving towards something metals ripening toward gold deep within the earth.

YOU, the human being, are an expression of Nature.

living organisms, and indeed all matter, unfold developmentally, striving inherently towards their perfected, essential nature. This meant that even base metals were believed to grow and develop within the earth, ripening naturally towards the ultimate form of gold.

understanding of the divine, where God is not separate from creation but actively indwells and guides its processes. For the alchemist, this meant that studying Nature was not just a scientific pursuit but a direct engagement with the divine in its immanent form.

Studying & Following Nature

Nature as the supreme teacher – an almost sentient guide whose processes must be observed and respected. To go against Nature was folly, for Nature herself was the “highest school” of wisdom. As Paracelsus warned, “Who else is the enemy of Nature but he who mistakes himself for more intelligent than Nature, though it is the highest school for all of us?” – Paracelsus

Alchemy is fundamentally about transformation—of matter and of self. Studying and following Nature deeply is crucial because Nature embodies the universal processes of transformation, growth, purification, death, and rebirth. By closely observing and imitating these processes, the alchemist aligns with Nature’s underlying patterns.

Through careful study, the alchemist learns how to accelerate, enhance, or perfect natural processes (e.g., transmutation, fermentation, distillation), working alongside Nature’s inherent momentum towards perfection. The alchemist is Nature’s disciple, amplifying her hidden potential and ultimately guiding matter (and spirit) to its perfected state.

Nature holds the keys to transformation and perfection.

Alchemists see their work as assisting nature in achieving its potential, as seen in the concept of the Magnum Opus, the great work.

By observing natural processes, such as the growth of plants or the ripening of metals, alchemists sought to replicate and accelerate these transformations.

Studying nature is vital in alchemy to uncover secrets of transformation, essential for both material (e.g., transmuting metals) and spiritual goals (e.g., enlightenment).

She reveals the Divine Pattern: Every natural process reflects the cosmic blueprint—the same principles governing planetary movements also govern plant growth and mineral formation.

She teaches authentic transformation: Unlike forced or artificial change, Nature shows how genuine metamorphosis occurs through patience, proper timing, and respect for inherent potential.

She embodies the marriage of opposites: In Nature, the alchemist witnesses the perpetual dance of solve et coagula—dissolution and crystallization, death and rebirth, chaos and order.

The alchemist studies nature not just to manipulate it, but to learn from its processes, to mirror its transformations within their own being, and to achieve personal perfection.

The material transformation in the flask served as a literal and symbolic guide for the alchemist's own journey of spiritual and psychological refinement. This unique fusion of objective observation and subjective experience made alchemy a distinctive "science of the soul" that integrated inner and outer worlds.

“follow Nature, follow Nature”, advising that only by understanding Nature’s operations can one achieve “something advantageous and great” in the Art 

"You have no doubt read that our Magi, Philosophers and Kings, write and say to all, 'follow Nature, follow Nature'. It is from there that you must infer that all those who want to produce something advantageous and great in this science, must above all have full knowledge of the origin and foundation of all the metals, of their birth, production and differences, of their sympathy and antipathy, that is, their loves and hates.” - Allegory from Grasshof, 'The Open Ark or Casket of the Small Peasant'., https://www.alchemywebsite.com/Text_Allegory_Grasshof.html#:~:text=,is%2C their loves and hates

The Hermetic Alchemist as Natural Philosopher

The alchemist, magician, or wizard—especially in Hermetic tradition—is a Natural Philosopher, one who sees Nature as both subject of study and doorway to spiritual knowledge. Unlike modern science, which often fragments and reduces, the Hermetic alchemist practices philosophy that unifies material study with spiritual insight.

alchemists regarded themselves not as manipulators of inert matter, but as diligent students and collaborators with Nature. Their work was deeply rooted in the perception of Nature as an unfolding, dynamic process characterized by its inherent power of transformation. They held the belief that all matter was alive and animated with spirit, and that the Earth itself functioned as a single living organism, continuously fertilized by celestial influences from the sun, stars, and planets. This vitalistic, organic cosmology stands in stark contrast to the mechanistic worldview that would later define much of scientific thought.

The Book of Nature

Nature’s book is the alchemist’s primary scripture, and reading it correctly is their central discipline.

Be A Diligent Imitator of Nature

"But if destiny calls you, and you are a diligent imitator of nature, all things will succeed according to your desire. With divine assistance and guidance, nature — the servant of infinite majesty — will most readily assist you in your labors. Therefore, follow that teacher; imitate her; carefully investigate the causes, material, motion, and goals of the work. And whatever happily succeeds for you, direct it all to the glory of the triune essence and for the benefit of your neighbor."

• Saturnia regna S.M.I.S.P. in aurea saecula conversa, c. 1779 by Huginus a Barma

Lady Alchymeia: The Earthly Daughter of Sophia, Divine Wisdom

the Alchemical Queen

While Sophia represents divine wisdom, the personification of understanding and gnosis itself, Nature (Natura) is often seen as Sophia’s earthly counterpart or daughter—the embodied manifestation of divine wisdom within matter.

Natura is often depicted as feminine, a wise guide or goddess-like presence who reveals herself through the cycles, transformations, and harmonies of the natural world.

Sophia is transcendent wisdom; Natura is immanent wisdom—both intimately connected yet distinct roles in alchemy’s symbolic language.

“The Feminine image of Divine Wisdom or the Holy Spirit is the presiding image of alchemy. Sometimes she is named Anima-Mundi, sometimes Sophia, Sapientia or Lady Alchymeia.” - Anne Baring: Sophia or Divine Wisdom

Alchemists are kabbalists know her as the Shekinah, the indwelling divinity and divine ground of the phenomenal world.

For alchemists, Nature and Sophia are intertwined, with Sophia representing the hidden wisdom within nature.

Nature to the Alchemists

Nature, in alchemical understanding, is the living embodiment of divine order, the manifest aspect of a hidden divine principle. She is simultaneously veiled and unveiled, and the alchemist’s task is to perceive beneath the surface of matter to reveal her mysteries.

Nature is understood through analogy, symbol, and living metaphor. Plants, minerals, celestial movements, and bodily processes all reflect the macrocosmic pattern of divine unfolding. Nature is the prima materia herself, the raw substance to be transmuted, as well as the wise teacher who shows the way.

Nature: The Mirror of Truth

Nature is described as “the mirror of truth” and teacher of all beings: “Nature is the mirror of truth… and the light of the invisible. The generous nature of this world teaches all the beings.” – Definitions of Hermes Trismegistus. https://wayofhermes.com/definitions/dh-8-with-quoted-footnotes/#:~:text=5,(115

The Art as the Servant of Nature

Alchemists often depict Art (the alchemist’s work) as the dutiful servant or apprentice of Nature. As Michael Maier wrote in Atalanta Fugiens: “Art, therefore, and Nature do mutually join hands… Nevertheless, Nature is always the Mistress and art the Handmaid.” – Michael Maier, Atalanta Fugiens (1618) 

Mutus Liber (“Silent Book,” 1677), Plate 1

A sleeping alchemist outdoors under starry skies, visited by angelic and natural forces. Nature herself (as stars, dew, sun, moon) instructs him through symbolic dreams.

The Light of Nature: Lumen Naturae

“In us there is the Light of Nature, and that Light is God.” – Paracelsus

Embedded even in the deepest layers of matter and separation is the Lumen Naturae, the Light of Nature….

“The Light of Nature” is that subtle illumination which reveals the hidden laws, correspondences, and rhythms permeating all creation. It is not simply reason or intellect, but the guiding intuition by which the alchemist discerns Nature’s inner workings. This light is akin to a gentle lamp illuminating darkness, guiding the adept through subtle hints, symbolic resonance, and intuitive leaps. It is the silent voice of the universe herself, whispering secrets in the language of analogy, symbol, and harmony.

"The light of nature" is the insight and wisdom gained from observing and studying nature directly, using reason and experience, rather than relying on traditional texts and the ideas and beliefs and dogmas of others.

Nature herself shines with an intelligible light that the seeker must learn to perceive: “Nature is a light, and by looking at Nature in her own light we will understand her. Visible Nature may be seen in her visible light; invisible Nature may become visible if we acquire the power to perceive her invisible light.” – Paracelsus .

Nature’s outward forms are illuminated by an inner radiance, and the alchemist’s imagination (if properly enlightened) can penetrate the surface to glimpse the hidden truth.

an inherent, hidden wisdom or luminosity residing within nature itself, fundamentally distinct from external, revealed divine light.

The "Light of Nature" (Lumen Naturae) was central to Paracelsus's philosophy, standing as one of "the two lights"—the Light of Nature and the Light of the Holy Spirit. This divine illumination is not mere intellectual understanding, but the inner radiance that allows the alchemist to perceive the hidden signatures and correspondences within creation itself.

The Light of Nature is Nature's own intelligence made manifest—the same logos that guides the growth of plants, the crystallization of minerals, and the movements of celestial bodies. When the alchemist attunes to this light, they become Nature's conscious collaborator rather than her conqueror.

Paracelsus considered the lumen naturae to be the "Holy Spirit of God the Father," through whom all worldly knowledge is bestowed and discovered. This perspective elevates natural knowledge to a form of divine revelation, implying that the alchemist's empirical observation and rational inquiry into the material world are inherently sacred acts, a "reading" of God's immanent presence and intelligence within creation.

Vision into the Secrets of Nature

The Polish alchemist Sendivogius, in his Novum Lumen Chymicum (“New Chemical Light”), describes how the adept gains a kind of vision to see Nature’s hidden workings: “To cause things hidden in the shadow to appear, and to take away the shadow from them, this is permitted to the intelligent philosopher by God through nature… All these things happen, and the eyes of the common men do not see them, but the eyes of the understanding and of the imagination perceive them with true and truest vision.” – Michael Sendivogius 

Following the Footsteps

Nature is a woman leaving footprints that the seeker (alchemist) must carefully follow. She symbolizes fertility, receptivity, growth, and transformation. Her femininity underscores the generative, creative, nurturing aspects of reality.

To follow Nature’s steps is not only to understand but to cooperate, aligning the alchemist’s will with her subtle rhythms. In this dance, the alchemist becomes not conqueror but partner, working within her laws rather than imposing upon her.

The Alchemist as Master Gardener

Connected closely to this idea is the image of the alchemist as a master gardener. Like a gardener, the alchemist doesn’t force growth artificially; rather, he or she carefully nurtures, nourishes, removes obstacles, provides ideal conditions, and gently assists Nature’s inherent tendency to flourish. Alchemy is gardening on a cosmic, metaphysical scale—tending the garden of creation and cultivating spiritual fruit within the alchemist’s own soul.

Alchemy often uses agricultural metaphors, and can be seen as “celestial agriculture”.

The alchemist, like a gardener, nurtures and cultivates materials to bring them to perfection, mirroring the process of planting seeds, watering, and harvesting.

This is evident in alchemical texts where the process is described in terms of growth and ripening, such as in The Crowning of Nature, where natural processes are depicted as evolving toward perfection, with the alchemist facilitating this transformation.

alchemy was considered the "cultivation of a natural process," rather than an attempt to force or manipulate it. This approach positions alchemy not merely as a nascent stage of chemistry, but as a distinct epistemological and ontological framework where the material and spiritual realms were inseparable. The alchemist’s laboratory flask, frequently referred to as an "artificial womb," served as a microcosm where all natural processes—including gestation, fermentation, and regeneration—were reflected, thereby blurring the distinctions between inner and outer worlds, and between the alchemist and Nature. This profound integration of subjective and objective realities provided a comprehensive "science of the cosmos" that encompassed physical, philosophical, and theological dimensions. This holistic engagement meant that the physical practice of alchemy was intimately linked to a spiritual practice aimed at purifying the soul. The ethical stance inherent in this approach positions the alchemist as a steward of nature, engaging in a collaborative partnership rather than an extractive or controlling one. This highlights a paradigm where human intervention was seen as assisting, not conquering, natural processes,

Just as a gardener doesn't create the plant but provides optimal conditions for its inherent growth, the alchemist facilitates nature's intrinsic drive towards perfection, mirroring the alchemist's role as a "midwife".

A garden is a perfect alchemical laboratory where the gardener, much like the alchemist, works collaboratively with the fundamental natural elements: earth, water, wind, and sun. The ultimate aim of this "gardening" is to transform something ordinary, even seemingly base or ugly, into something rare and beautiful, akin to changing "lead into gold".

The Alchemist in the Laboratory, Participating in the Sacred Act of Creation

The alchemist doe not merely imitating nature; they in a profound sense, re-enact or acceleratr the very processes of cosmic genesis within a controlled, miniature environment. The concept of the "sacred marriage of heaven and earth" is mirrored in the union of alchemical principles within the retort. This positions the alchemist as a co-creator with Nature, actively participating in the ongoing divine act of creation, transforming the laboratory into a sacred space where the fundamental forces and principles of the cosmos are brought to bear on matter.

The Crowning of Nature

The alchemical concept of “The Crowning of Nature” refers to the fulfillment or apotheosis of Nature. It symbolizes the ultimate goal of the Great Work: to complete Nature’s evolution, to crown and glorify her potential through the perfected stone (lapis philosophorum).

nature’s perfection or apotheosis.

“Crowning” Nature means bringing forth the latent divine perfection within matter itself, enabling Nature to reach her destined state of harmony, completion, and spiritualized beauty.

Alchemy's ultimate purpos is not to dominate Nature, but to assist her in reaching her highest expression. The alchemist becomes Nature's midwife, helping birth the perfected forms that she carries as potential. This is the true meaning of the Philosopher's Stone: Nature's own perfection made manifest through conscious collaboration.

"it is not possible to participate in the Great Work of Nature without experiencing a self-transformation"

The alchemist’s Art was thus a handmaiden to Nature’s own artifice, accelerating and completing what Nature left unfinished. Medieval alchemists, following Aristotle, observed that metals in the earth slowly “ripen” from base to noble over long ages. They aimed to help Nature do in months what might take eons underground. As one commentary on the Splendor Solis puts it: “Natural ‘greening’ ripens things at the proper time, but one must assist nature by using the art of alchemy to speed up the process.” 

Nature Conquers Nature: Liberating the Spirit from Nature’s Forms

"Nature rejoices in nature, nature conquers nature, nature rules over nature"

In order to bring nature to its fulfillment you must deeply become it, you must merge with it. You must conquer it, but not as the modern man tries to do, through force and through separation, but rather through surrender, understanding, inner union…..

This Sophia figure represents the "hidden wisdom of nature" that directs the alchemical process, even when the work appears to go "contra naturam" (against nature) by challenging ingrained habits or conventional understanding. Alchemists believed their opus assisted in liberating the spirit concealed within nature's forms.

This pervasive identification of Nature with Sophia and the Alchemical Queen represents a profound re-sacralization of the material world, elevating matter to a sacred status and portraying it as the realm where the divine feminine is "imprisoned" and requires "rescuing" through the alchemist's work.

Discourse 42.

The chances, which may happen to travelers, are innumerable, especially if they take a journey on foot by night through slippery and dangerous places; to which four things are requisite as chiefly necessary, not to speak of the victuals provided, and a strong body: In the first place, a companion or guide not ignorant of the ways, through which he must pass: For if one ignorant man guide another, the same thing happens to them as to blind men, if they do not both fall headlong into a ditch, yet into errors and mistakes: Secondly, a Staff, by which the slipperiness and peril of the way, lest it be detrimental to a man, may be avoided: Thirdly, sound eyes, for such journeys are most dangerous to the blind or dim sighted: Fourthly, a lamp or lighted torch, that the diversities and differences of the ways may be discerned. After the same manner if a man expose himself to a most difficult journey in pursuit of the Philosophic medicine, he will, besides charge and strength of body, desire four things exactly parallel and correspondent to those aforesaid, to wit, Nature, Reason, experience, and reading: whereof if any one be wanting, the rest will do little or no good at all: For by these, as by four wheels, the Philosophic chariot moves, to which one of the wheels cannot be wanting, if it be left, it avails nothing. Nature presupposes natural bodies and Spirits, as subjects first ministered by nature, upon which art must afterwards act, preparing, purifying, and fitting it, that thereof may be made that, which art promises for the end: So a Potter takes water and earth, a Glassmaker ashes and Sand, a Smith iron, copper, tin, lead, Silver or gold, a Tanner raw hides, and so other men other things: Such respect also has the operator of Chymistry to his materials: Their materials are to them very well known even the first day, he, when he begins, continues for the most part ignorant of his for many years, I will not say, during his whole life. Nature does indeed point at the matters, but there are many things, which obscure the impression of nature, that it cannot be known. The first intention therefore is, seriously to contemplate how nature proceeds in her operations to the end that the natural subjects of Chymistry may without defect or superfluity be had: Wherefore Nature must be the guide and companion of so great a journey, whose footsteps must be traced. Secondly, reason must be as a staff to keep the steps and feet steady and firm, that they may not slip or waver, For without the exercise of reason a man will be apt to fall into errors, and therefore say the Philosophers; Whatsoever you hear, consult with reason, whether it can be so, or no: For no man is forced to believe or perform things impossible, except he be of weak memory, dull genius, and foolish imagination to impose upon himself accepting things false for true, and rejecting true for false: They say also that they care not for words, whatsoever may be spoken, but only for things, what may be understood; And that words are for things, and not things for words: As for example, Suppose a man say that glass is made malleable by the Philosophical tincture; Why Shall not I believe it, if provided reason dictates it? Thirdly, Experience will be as Spectacles, by which things may be seen at a distance; These are optic instruments, invented and made by art, to help and amend the weakness of mens eyes. Much like to these are experiments about the mineral matter of every kind tried, seen or truly heard, which the more they are in memory, the more will a man of reason draw from thence, and compare them among and with other things, that he may perceive, what is true, what not. Fourthly, Reading does as it were kindle a clear lamp in the understanding, without which there will be every where darkness and thick clouds. But the reading of good authors ought to be often repeated, otherwise it will not be at all effectual. Hereupon Bacasser in Turba says: He therefore, that is of an even temper, and exercises patience without regret, will attain to this art as by a direct line, but he, that thinks himself able sooner to reap benefit from our books, is deceived, and it had been better not to have looked therein, than ever to have touched them: And so on