The Philosopher Stone strikes me as the first "ideal" concept for early scientists. Just liie know we study the "ideal transistor" or "ideal capacitor" in electronics, which of course are just abstract concepts that don't exist in real life but help us measure a device's efficacy by comparison. Very interesting stuff.

Many many years ago I had a friend who was an analytical chemist who was also interested in esoterica. He got into reading some of the (translations of) old alchemical texts. He found there was a mixed bag of works, and the earlier works and many of the later works were in a sort of private code which you could translate into modern chemistry any assay chemist would understand. It just was not written in modern chemical terms, and they lacked an atomic theory so they spoke of transmutation and not a separation. For instance, if you look at the parts of the vein of mineral they esteemed, the weathered portions nearer to the surface were most esteemed, and anybody with a modern understanding of mineralogy and the weathering of mineral veins would understand why. There is nothing magical here, just the explanations in terms of the understandings of the particular alchemical author. So there was no uniform language for explaining things like you would find today, so you had to translate each author a bit differently from another author--each was explaining his own understanding of how the alchemical processes worked. After all, they did in fact know how to refine gold in great antiquity. Also, a lot of the imperfect science of alchemy got corrupted later by the gentlemen of the more for me now school, and there was also a lot of spiritual mumbo jumbo that got accreted on the works describing the works of ordinary working chemists of the day. There was also some guile in there. So the working alchemist might store his gold tied up in fulminate of mercury. To get the gold out of it when needed he would very gently roast it and the mercury would distill (sublimate) off and leave the gold behind. A thief who broke into his lab would be a bit too hasty roasting the fulminate and get an explosion and a cloud of mercury vapor in his face resulting in madness at the very least and a slow miserable death otherwise. Hence, do not mess with wizards. You will also learn that the most esteemed source of nitrate for their nitric acid was pig manure, which also figured large in the manufacture of gunpowder.

@rebeccamartin2399

Жыл бұрын

Very cool, thx for sharing that.😊👍

@halweilbrenner9926

Жыл бұрын

Red phosphorus?

It's wonderful to find someone who's fascinated by this stuff while also being deeply skeptical of it.

20 videos in 2 days. Your works on the topic are absolutely gripping, and the references along the way are much appreciated. Cheers

Dr. Sledge has the Midas touch because everything he releases is alchemical gold.

I’m not sure Jung meant that they were consciously trying to be spiritual, but that their understanding of physical and spiritual were less separate than our own and thus would naturally overlap. But obviously I cannot speak for Jung or the alchemists. Regardless your videos are great, keep it up!

Never get tired of lectures on alchemy, especially by you Dr. Sledge

Feels good to hear someone talking about true alchemy and not the 19th century 'spiritual alchemy'. N talking about the 'spirit', 'mercury' , 'sulfur' is all code. We live in the age of information. The info is out there if anyone is interested in learning what the codes mean, pray for knowledge/answers, and if one is true in the heart, you will be guided. So mote it be 🙏 amen P.s. the philosophers stone is a physical substance, but its not an actual stone. If you know, you know.

It is perhaps a subtle implication (and perhaps others have already commented on this; I can’t read all the comments before trying to express this thought)… The subtle implication is that the original alchemists were hampered by a less informed, less sophisticated, understanding of the physical world and the lack of standardized language or measurement techniques, but otherwise working diligently and rigorously and empirically to achieve their goals. I suspect that in 1,000 years time, our descendants may have the same opinions or assessments of our modern efforts related to quantum mechanics, particle accelerators, etc. Where Aristotle and his contemporaries modeled the world as being composed of 4 events, we have the Standard Model (fermions and bosons). Nils Bohr said it best: no models are true or real, but some models are more useful or more convenient than others. I try to apply this notion to all notions. Everything I “know” is predicated on a subtle internal model of reality I have learned (or been taught) in tiny steps. One model of this is that my neural pathways have become hardwired to immediate apprehend signals according to my previous or preconceived experiences and expectations effectively bypassing the true raw perception; I’m no longer experiencing the world as it is; I am experiencing the world through a layer of cognitive abstractions. It’s a fast and efficient mechanism for survival and participation in the daily activities proscribed by the culture in which I seem to live, but… … it can be an impediment to epiphany, revelation, or enlightenment (“sure, I’d like a mint”) So, thanks for the reminder. By contemplating the beliefs of other cultures past or present, I hope to more consciously regard my own as simply convenient or useful models, maps, or menus, rather than absolute truths or “reality”; I strive to remain a devout “maybe-ist”

@scottbockelman310

Жыл бұрын

@@davidhays2846 I see I've fnorded the attention of the fnords. ;-> Keep the lasagna flying!

@scottbockelman310

Жыл бұрын

@@davidhays2846 I’m still trying to open my third nostril or at least decide what my nose smells like or how my ears sound.

Love when you cover alchemical topics!! do more please

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

Oh yes, many, many more incoming!

@user-dd3gs2cv2w

Жыл бұрын

The beautiful thing about alchemy for me is not the results but tapping into the correct mental zone they were thinking from. Ive put at least 150 hrs in listening to seriously dorky stuff but I can say its changed my way of thinking

I had never seen the material explanation for the sulphur-mercury theory. Seems so strange to us now but once we reconstruct their experiments it seems very intuitive. Great lecture as always, Professor!

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

Yeah it really makes a ton of empirical sense

@Alizudo

Жыл бұрын

I would pay money to see these experiments replicated and reconstructed

Love your videos! I'm studying everything I can on alchemy for a fantasy novel I'm writing, so this helps a lot!

@drphosferrous

Жыл бұрын

@@arnolddalby5552 what have you discovered about the strange properties of bismuth?

@johnfenwick3083

Жыл бұрын

@@arnolddalby5552 And it's properties? What - if anything - does it do?

@abrahamjaleel9463

Жыл бұрын

@@arnolddalby5552 is this real?

@dovahfruit9503

Жыл бұрын

@@arnolddalby5552 chug it

As always, I am in awe of the depth of your knowledge and how you are able to explain such a dense and often baroque body of philosophical work in such an engaging way. Thank you.

Even if there is an anachronism in projecting Jungian Psychologized spiritualism, or New Age movements onto Alchemical beliefs, I do not think it is quite right to say they were solely concerned with proto-chemistry. Their chemistry theory and assumptions about the nature of the world feels very Platonic/Neo-platonic and I can see where people are coming from when they say there is a Hermeticism influence on it beyond a certain point. I don't think they'd have perceived a separation between science and metaphysics/spiritual exploration, and you could argue the very nature of their assumptions about reality, ontology, etc evinces a kind of "classical spiritualism" not really seen as hip today, but never the less present in their project.

@IpsissimusPrime

Жыл бұрын

There's a great small volume titled " Alchemy: Science of the Cosmos, Science of the Soul" by Titus Burckhardt which is a wonderful entry into this issue for those interested. Reprints available.

@douglasbalduino850

Жыл бұрын

You are very correct. This academic reductionism to alchemy fowarded by lawrence principe and his friends is funny to say the least. An amusing attempt to say " tHeY wErE tRyInG tO MaKe ChEmIsTrY". Which as you pointed out is not entirely true. The lines of science and spirituality/metaphysics were blurred, or rather, there were no lines. And it wasnt because they had no knowledge of proper science as we do today. Instead, they understood the lack of separation between things. A unified vision of being, a hermetic view indeed. It is hilarious to think that academicians read Zosimos and say "yep, chemistry all the way".

Alchemy is so interesting, it's one of the few things that still feels magical.

@rickwrites2612

Жыл бұрын

Then Don't watch bcus he is saying it was literally just wn attempt to understand chemistry and that the spiritual stuff was projected on it later. Depressing.

@henrikljungstrand2036

Жыл бұрын

You don't think computers and smartphones are magical then? I do! Or magnetic induction of electricity. Or photosynthesis. Or body self healing. Or homeopathy (which works in reality beyond placebo, despite all pseudoscientific mockery). Or manifesting the life you want through "law of attraction" i.e. clear thoughts, strong desires, careful words, skillful actions. Reality IS magical to the core.

I think this has been my outmost favorite video on your channel. So deep and clear!! Thank you so much!!

14:33 Whenever this Brabant Thaler was shown in a previous episode, I went online to find out more about it. I didn’t find much, but I DID see it was for sale, so I bought it. It’s a very cool coin, and the gold tint is far more apparent in person than the images can do justice.

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

That's really cool - I thought about getting it and when I decided to - it was gone. Glad you got it!

@Animalis_Mundana

Жыл бұрын

Very cool!

Never thought of the etymology of "hermetically sealed" before😯

@QuasarEE

9 ай бұрын

Looking up the etymology of "hermetic" when I was a teen is probably the earliest thing I did that could constitute research into the mystic or occult. Of course I didn't know it was going to take me there in advance. 😆

I've always assumed the stone was an allegory for innovation/technology. Adore this channel. Thank you, Esoterica.

@deadlevel2720

Жыл бұрын

Right, the precipitation of knowledge or wisdom. Guess that's a modern view in the West, although it seems to correlate to Eastern "alchemical" ideas. It's such a mystical symbol, it's really versatile in the range of projections it supports. All things to all actors

@ReptilianXHologram

Жыл бұрын

The Stone is a physical/material thing and also an allegory at the same time. "The SECRET of HERMETIC SCIENCE OR PHILOSOPHY is as its name indicates : SOUL-KNOWLEDGE. Hermetic Science does not relate to material things, but uses Alchemical symbols as a blind for SPIRITUAL REALITIES. It is an Alchemy of the MIND and SOUL, a SPIRITUAL ALCHEMY. Thus is JACOB BEHMEN an Adept of Hermetic Philosophy, but not an Adept in Physical Alchemy. In His Philosophy the Philosopher's Stone is a Symbol for Divine Illumination, and the Mastery, or Great Work, relates to the Regeneration of the Soul. A study of the Works of Jacob Behmen" -- Introductory section to the Splendor Solis page 10

@ShamanNoodles

Жыл бұрын

@@ReptilianXHologram Yeah, me too. I usually sprinkle some on my French fries to give em a good kick. Sort of a zesty taste, with a small salty flavor.

Such a dazzling distillation of things I have been reading about, trying to make sense of, for years!

This channel is the kind of thing I've been hoping to find for over 10 years!! Keep it up!

Most of the philosopher's stone was technically realized with particle accelerators. Also, if you have ever seen photos of Enrico Fermi, sweaty, shirtless, and covered in graphite dust as he was in Chicago building the first nuclear reactor in secret, you have to admit it has the "look" of alchemy.

@uncannyvalley2350

Жыл бұрын

Try metallurgy, and astrology The things the Church exterminated without prejudice

@johnorsomeone4609

Жыл бұрын

The problem remains that even “technically”, the cost to transform lead into gold far (and wildly so) exceeds the value of what is produced. Now imagine traveling back in time to those ancient alchemists and telling them that while their goal was “technically” possible, they had a fundamental misunderstanding of nearly everything about it, and would need to start from scratch. And again, the success of their goal cost more than it yielded. That’s *exactly* why I sit on my couch. Because of alchemists.

@Tetarkall

11 ай бұрын

@@uncannyvalley2350 Doesn’t the church have an Observatory named Lucifer? The church most certainly is not the same organization it was.

Missed you dear Dr. Sledge! Great stuff, as always, thank you. :)

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

Great to hear from, friend!

When your favorite KZreadr makes a reference to your favorite band.... priceless

The problem with esoteric writing is that early writers thought and wrote metaphorically and analogically. Later readers and interpreters grew increasingly literal minded until today we are so literal in thinking that we can hardly understand what the original authors were saying. Not all that glitters has 79 protons. Alchemy is not chemistry though its literal interpretation inspired chemists like Sir Isaac.

@flamezombie1

Жыл бұрын

Yes, as a tech writer, that skill set and even concept is a relatively new one. Often the impetus was on the reader to figure it out, not on the writer to make it easy to understand. You can see this in sword fighting treatises a lot, too, most of what I study from these periods.

@drjohndee4322

Жыл бұрын

No different then modern science. If you read a modern quantum physics books, you will get equations, words, pictures that only physicist and some scientist understand. No normal people will understand the manual !

@FulcanelliTrismegistus

2 ай бұрын

Exactly. But, people were also literal thinkers back in the day too. Example: people looking for an actual cup (holy grail) when that too was a metaphor.

@kimwelch4652

2 ай бұрын

@@FulcanelliTrismegistus There's back in the day and then there's back in the day. The ancient Greeks started the literal trend. By the the time of Helena of Constantinople everybody expected their religious artifacts to be physically real. Of course, the idea of the Holy Grail didn't really exist until the 12th century anyway, and it took centuries before anyone bother to look for it.

My second listening. Incredible presentation & summarizing. Wow! TY! I toast you Dr. Sledge 🥃

Magnificent episode, really enjoyed it. I've always been curious about the concepts and history around the philosophers' stone and here it was, in a nutshell a lot of info about it, in such a short time. Thanks a lot Dr.

Dude, you HAD me with that D&D .05e joke. That was an 11/10.

Amazing that such a thing has been known for such a long time. How could anyone resist using such power.

Liked for "Good Hermetic Fun" in the future PLEASE!!!!

DR SLEDGE YOUR INTRO ALWAYS GETS ME HYPE

Dr. Sledge, I absolutely love your lectures. I listen to your videos everyday at work and I just want to thank you for your extensive research. Keep crushing it, Ben Pilarczyk

If a philosopher, famous or not, owns a stone-perhaps as a pet, or maybe just as a trinket on shelf-does that not make a philosopher’s stone? ;)

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

well then.....I guess I have it :)

@angelawossname

Жыл бұрын

That would mean that everyone would have one of they owned a stone, then drank half a bottle of whiskey or punched a few cones. Unless you are talking about real philosophers. But that's not as much fun.

@clockworkgnome

Жыл бұрын

@@angelawossname Perhaps the non accredited philosophers have the lesser silver making stones? Hmm? I would be in the later category if that were the case

@angelawossname

Жыл бұрын

I would be totally fine with a silver making stone. As long as it doesn't make quick silver. If you expose yourself to enough of that you'll be mad enough that you won't need the whiskey or the cones.

@arete7884

Жыл бұрын

A pet stone a fine and mighty addition to any alchemists armory to reach divine

Have you considered a speaking tour? The occult practices of the early American industrialists would be a topic that interests me. Thanks for everything!

The only serious video on youtube about alchemy without mambojambo. Thanks for sharing and for all the hours of research.

Thank you for that insightful and educational video. I have interested in alchemy for a long time but never knew exactly what it was about, now I have (at least) a clearer understanding of it. Here is a like and comment to help your channel grow and get you the recognition you deserve.

I just recently discovered your channel and am loving it! I find your mix of scholarly knowledge and sense of humour refreshing. Thanks for doing this!

I really enjoy the obscure ancient/historical artwork you display, it's always stuff i've never seen before. also, I notice you're using much fewer edits, looks great!

The comments say 1 day ago and I just got notified 15s ago!🤔

@BuddhaMelffyQueen

Жыл бұрын

They are patreon members. They pay to see his videos first and they're kind of the reason we're able to watch Justin. Awesome people if you ask me.

@KissingEmbers

Жыл бұрын

@@BuddhaMelffyQueen makes sense lol. Sometimes I don't think of the most likely answers. 😄 edit: And thankyou to the peeps who donate to the peeps who feed my mind.

I can picture alchemists bragging about how dummy thicc their hermetic vessels are. People never change.

Just wanted to say that I absolutely love your commentary and sense of humor. So glad YT recommended your channel to me!

I'm so glad I found this channel by accident it's become such an important part of my morning with coffee

It seems as if this video was made for me. I spoke to someone about this topic today, and this video was also uploaded.

The purpose of the 'philosopher’s tone' is to inspire the science of the topic. I believe it was highly compelling for aspiring little alchemists to read about it and go explore. It was a successful concept, that eventually led to our modern chemistry and physics. Well done ancient philosophers.😊

"Don't feed mercury to babies" is a fair warning I was absolutely not prepared to hear at any point of my life. I love it.

Thank you for your time!

I’ve been anticipating this one! Your videos always make me excited to learn. Thank you!

The substance of this great work you've produced is just exuberant.

This is my absolute favorite channel on esotericism. THANK YOU ❤

Wow, I've never heard anyone explain so clearly in one place exactly what observations led to alchemical theory. Great stuff!

@ESOTERICA I love you for the Lateralus reference. :)

i would be so interested to see you do a video about esoteric knowledge in mormonism!!! really interesting topic there is so much information out there

It is said on other side of tree of life -Qliphoth that through complete initiation and inner alchemy you build and shape your soul into a black diamond ,the philosopher stone adamas ater

Doc, once again your research & delivery on another awesome mysterious topic was stellar! Definitely going to subscribe to your Patreon!

🙏🏻♥️ Thank you for excellent channel. This is by far one of my favorites.

Easily the best video on Alchemy I've seen in quite some time. So glad to support this humble channel of yours. Also, nice Tool reference. That entire album, I would argue, is an excellent homage to Alchemical research.

I don't know about other countries but here in Sweden some alchemical symbols (the signs of the planets and their associated metals) are still used as a kind of romantic thing in out metallurgical industry! It's not commonly known outside the metals industry but it's something I love and always look out for. The most notable example is certainly the Volvo logotype using the mars symbol to represent iron/steel, but it also occurs in "kommunvapen" and many other logos for industrial companies and books/art/etc representing practical metallurgy rather than alchemy.

So terrific to have an analysis from the standpoint of history.

So fascinating well presented. Thankyou! 😀

Sweet!!!! I've been anxiously awaiting this one 👍👍👍

incredible video!

It is an understatement to call you one of the most important figures on this platform. So many wicked people use these topics and their elusive nature against people. I cant explain it. But growing up in an area that told me as a child my parents were literally going to burn in hell for not attending the Church of Christ specifically. My veil was instantly removed. And I had no where to turn in an internetless time. And no real library. You sir. You are helping many many people. Sorry for the rant. Much love Brother. I hope all is well.

@BuddhaMelffyQueen

Жыл бұрын

I agree, I had to go WAY out of my way to get knowledge that this man has in droves. And I was young during a time we had the internet but I had no idea how to find anything. I basically did all the research myself for years until Esoterica, Religion for Breakfast, and Lets Talk Religion popped up on my radar.

@ofconsciousness

Жыл бұрын

I only found this channel about a week ago and I've already felt some effects of psychological healing in my life. Religious trauma is real, and information is power. His work truly is impactful and profound.

@PyWPS

Жыл бұрын

@@BuddhaMelffyQueen Give a look at Seekers of Unity it is also part of the bundle. Something a bit more crazy (religious and non academic) is The Morgue, he explains Jungian psychology like no one

@kellysouter4381

Жыл бұрын

Religious freedom and the right to self-determination are extremely important. If you can't experiment how can you discover where do you belong.

@emilioalvarez8107

Жыл бұрын

Saying in a way that does not say enything.

THE BEST RESEARCHED KNOWLEDGE....THANK YOU ASTRO PREP FUTUREKEY PRODUCTIONS

FASCINATING !!!!!! Thank you.

AMAZING video! This one was another level

Brilliant presentation, very interesting and thought provoking! ♥️

More fantastic content Dr. Sledge!! Ty ty.

So happy I joined ur patron dr Justin

Thank you Doctor! Very cool information delivered very well indeed!!! I appreciate you and yours

I love this subject! Thanks man!

Thank you so much for your fascinating and inspiring videos!

You quoted Tool’s song Lateralus. “Black and White are, all I see. In my infancy. Red then yellow came to be.” Awesome! I knew you were a good dude. I don’t trust anyone that doesn’t like Tool 😁 Big hello from Midtown Memphis.

@beauwhitlock5034

Жыл бұрын

@@princeofcupspoc9073 their live shows are amazing. And yes, the drummer Danny is especially in to the Crowley stuff.

Awesome stuff, Dr Sledge!

Man bro I freaking love your show and hello from Saint Louis

You do great work. Thank you for your work.

Thank you for this great video. I’m intrigued by the many illustrations. I would love to see a video that further explores the symbolism alchemists used to convey their ideas. For example, I really enjoyed the explanation behind the green lion devouring the sun.

brillant work. Keep going

Wow! I’m so happy that KZread got this recommendation right. I’m two mins in and already subscribed. Hugs💕✨

Thank you for your great work.

One of the most entertaining episodes; from smiling, to chuckles, guffaws, to outright laughter! Priceless. I thought how fun it would have been to give an alchemist a growing crystals kit! Thanks & Cheers from Seattle 🍻 Alex

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

Or just a high school chemistry textbook

This was great. thank you.

29:06 I was thinking it as you listed it.

This was great. Thank you.

It is fascinating that planets that produce gold are older ones because the core is hitting more complex atoms together. And people try to make it since they discovered it somewhere in the dirt.

Interesting that the idea of the Philosopher's Stone still persists in science fiction today. Nanites. They are a substance that is "stone", as in solid, but can act like a liquid or gas. They are commonly depicted as being able to take any shape, transmute materials into other things, heal the body to degrees of immortality, and allow for telepathic communication. It's the magical super substance that is both a tool and an intelligence at the same time.

I was actually just reading about this, and then you did a video about it!

I'm really looking forward to seeing you cover the philosophical interpretation of this!

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

I mean as much as there is one to do, this episode kinda did it.

this guy is amazing. love his videos

This was a great video on the Philosopher’s Stone. And I am studying alchemy.

I should've paid more attention in my high school chemistry class........ (Fantastic video as always! I jest but you actually explain these really complex things in such an accessible way, I have to give you massive props.)

Awesome. Thanks

been waiting for this!

excellent - thank you...

I thought a chemical marriage was what happened in Vegas 😂

Oh yes. Been waiting for this one :-)

@TheEsotericaChannel

Жыл бұрын

I hope so!

Oh, I so love this! Thank you thank you thank you! Can I ask for more?!

Just subbed keep up the good work

Thanks!

This is a great upload, thanks so muc. Subbed.

Historical alchemy definitely needs to be taught in the history of science

@VicMikesvideodiary

Жыл бұрын

But this isn't it. Alchemy isn't about metal transformation and never was. That's part of the cabal language.

@uncannyvalley2350

Жыл бұрын

Otherwise known as early metallurgy. Blacksmiths shared the same immunity from persecution as Magi and Architects Hence Freemasonry and its ties to Astrology