Reprinted from Issue 25 of The Stone, March-April, 1998

"The purpose of The Philosophers of Nature is to serve humanity through the open dissemination of information that genuinely contributes to its evolution, with a particular focus on the Western esoteric tradition, Alchemy and Qabala." -- from the Mission Statement

Recently I was involved with a group of people who were learning how to build successful teams in the workplace. During these seminars, we compiled lists of characteristics for the best and the worst experiences we have had participating in teams. These teams could have been in the workplace, in church groups, non-profit associations, sports or any sort of group endeavor. Characteristics of the best experiences included clear goals and ethical values, and the absence of these were noted in the negative experiences.

The Philosophers of Nature has a clear set of ethical values and goals, which are interrelated and cohesive. This ‘yardstick’ helps provide guidance to the officers to make certain that our choices are in alignment with our stated objectives.

In the past week, I received two emails, which raise delicate issues for our association. The answers to these arise from my own understanding of the ethical values and purpose that the officers of the association have established. I would like to present these topics here, since I think that they are worthy of contemplation by each person in their oratory, against the yardstick of their own personal code of ethics.

The first point to make is that both emails were sent by people of absolute sincerity, who are stating that certain actions of the association are in conflict with their own beliefs for what is best. The purpose of writing about these messages here is not to win an argument, but rather to stimulate the thinking of the reader to arrive at their own understanding and balance.

The first email came just hours after I had authorized Adam McLean to publish portions of transcripts from the Philosophers of Nature seminar which took place in Winfield, IL, in October 1992. A well-known publisher and author, McLean has organized a large and successful Internet-based information resource for all aspects of alchemy. (http://www.levity.com/alchemy). The authorized selections consisted of the lectures given by Jean Dubuis and Patrice Malézé on a variety of topics, some on general esotericism and the ‘Becoming of Man’, as well as topics on practical spagyrics and metallic alchemy. In the latter, practical works with antimony, the butter of antimony, and mercury were referenced. These substances are dangerous and can not be used in the laboratory without a measure of risk. Before the selected transcripts were published, I examined the text and added various explanatory details to make the selections more useful for the readers. While Jean and Partice both pointed out safety issues at appropriate places in their lectures, often I would add emphasis to these. The index to these pages on the Internet is at http://www.levity.com/alchemy/pon-indx.html. I have added an additional article on safety as a result of the email sent with concerns. Note: These seminar notes are now available on the PON site.

The email that I received pointed out several issues, and had a tone of alarm. There was a concern that butter of antimony and mercury are dangerous, and that publishing about dangerous materials could invite the authorities to close the association down, if we drew unnecessary attention to ourselves in this manner. The suggestion was made that Adam’s Internet resource should limit itself to the ‘theoretical and scholarly work rather than the practical matters that you and I involve ourselves with’. A follow-up email underlined his concerns that open publication on practical alchemy could precipitate repression by the government. Additionally, the writer expressed concern that open publication would attract more members to the association, and dilute the ‘active, intelligent, hard-working members with pure souls’ with more ‘cranks’ with ‘deviant, evil souls’.

The second email was from a writer, whose native language is, perhaps, Spanish or Italian. It represents the concerns of a group of ‘lovers of the Art’ who are deeply concerned that The Philosophers of Nature sells courses on Alchemy, Qabala and Esotericism as if we ‘sold potatoes, carrots or bread’. Further, they point out that it appears that the traditional methods of transmission are not respected, such as transmission of teacher to disciple (or better still, to the pair Nicholas and Perenelle) by mouth to ear, of the need to personally overcome the challenges of the Alchemical way, and of the disinterest of the teacher in money. In respect to the latter, they point out that the cost is truly not expensive, but that by taking money, we receive compensation for a knowledge that does not belong to us. "The Philosophers' Stone for $100!!!" is the tonality of our advertising, they point out, and unless we transmit the preparation of the unique and trinite Matter and the uncovered secret of the Alkahest we do not give what we advertise. Yet, if we do give them, then we kill the essence of our Science.

You can understand that a careful response must be made in both cases, since, first of all, these are offered in the spirit of fraternity by "lovers of the Art", and secondly, because the sincerity is absolute. In both cases, a question, or series of questions is asked, and despite the expressed concerns, a willingness to accept that they have not perfectly understood our motives is stated.

I have chosen to express openly my answers here in a public forum because these are ethical and philosophical issues that have I have frequently contemplated, and I think that I am not unique in that respect. I think that the issues are one where we must strive to attain a measure of ‘balance’ rather than choose an absolute position. It is necessary that the tone of my responses is highly personal, and for that reason, I will remind you that my interpretations of the missions and value of the association are not privileged in any way by the role that I presently fill as President. More important is the point of balance that you find personally.

One point of balance is "openness vs. secrecy"; another similar one is the issue of "respect for traditional values of transmission of the teachings". "Openness vs. safety (of the practitioner, of the association)" is yet another.

Regarding "openness vs. secrecy": I spent many years in societies that had traditions of secrecy. The secrecy applied to technical matters for personal development along esoteric lines, as well as the exact nature of teachings that were in ‘higher degrees’ which were not discussed with those in ‘lower degrees’, let alone the ‘uninitiated’. Aspects of ritual work were also held as private. Due to my personal interest in Alchemy, I met many practitioners, some of whom became teachers, or initiators of sorts, and I received certain information that was clearly stated as ‘private’. I have received visits from people who claimed to know ‘the way’ and was admonished not to teach what I had received in the way of ‘clues’ until I knew the way perfectly on my own and had accomplished the final success. After my success, it was said, I would not be inclined to teach it. I was told that I received only a few clues since I actively taught classes on the subject.

After my initial meetings with Jean Dubuis, which lead to seminars in the USA and the opportunity for us to share our personal values and aspirations, I ceased to devote any further time to teaching in a ‘secretive’ setting. Over a period of several years, I had worked with about 200 students who were initiates above a certain degree in an esoteric school. I made this choice because I had changed my personal ‘point of balance’ regarding openness vs. secrecy and instead chose to devote my available time to furthering the mission of The Philosophers of Nature.

Among the observations that I have made during and since that time of reevaluation of my personal values are the following: In France, under the influence of Jean Dubuis and the now-defunct LPN France, there was a valuable program of research conducted in the areas of esotericism, Qabala, Spagyrics and Alchemy. In the USA, attempts to do the same failed, largely for reasons of wider geographic dispersion of the interested people than exists in France, smaller membership by a large factor, and a tendency toward secrecy. While the first two factors can be overcome somewhat by email, periodic seminars, and coordination of research information, a tendency toward secrecy is more difficult to overcome.

There has been a long-standing tradition of secrecy in Alchemy. This brings us to a related ‘balance point’: "Respect for the traditional means of transmission of the sacred science". The available literature clearly underlines the tradition of secrecy in the Alchemical Art. The picture of the adept as a member of a secret order who conveys knowledge by word of mouth to the tried and tested neophyte is indelibly written in the historical record. The legitimate schools of the Art required the adept to find a successor before their own demise, and to convey to them ‘under the guise of philosophy’ the workings of Nature. One only has to read the stories of the time in order to understand the impulses for such secrecy. Do you remember the powerful and oppressive church, which destroyed those who would undermine its tenuous hold on the hearts and souls of the faithful? Think of the persecution of Galileo and the Albigensian ‘heresy’. There are the kings who tortured and imprisoned alchemists and others to derive from them increased personal power and to control the flow of ‘strategic’ information that could benefit and empower rivals. Couple this with the seemingly eternal willingness of the worst of people to exploit the ignorance of their fellow man to feed their own greed and lust for power. The case for secrecy can not be clearer, it would seem. In our own time, some of these influences are diminished, depending on the country in which we reside, while other restrictive influences have grown. One of the strategies of the Church to ward off the threat of Alchemy, in centuries past, was to dilute the available literature with misinformation. Today, there is no shortage of information on Alchemy, which ranges from useless to harmful. The lack, today as always, is in clear and precise information of value. The Philosophers of Nature seeks to make such valuable information available.

As to the suggestion that Adam's site remain devoted to the "theoretical and scholarly work rather than the practical matters that you and I involve ourselves with", I recall a turning point in my youth. Long in search of practical information concerning Alchemy, I had haunted large libraries in my quest. One day on a whim I visited a smaller university library, where among the dry husks of scholarly works on Alchemy, I found Praxis Spagyrica Philosophica [1] by Frater Albertus, where it had been placed as a gift. This book opened new doors of inquiry to me, alerting me that there was a school for practical alchemy in the United States which had operated for almost twenty years without my knowledge. This led me to my first teacher, Albert Riedel. It is in the hopes that some seeker may find the first signs that they are not alone in their search for practical information that I have agreed to publish information on Adam McLean's well-traveled site. The fruits of this research by Jean Dubuis and others was not conceived to lay in the dark shelves of some private archives.

But, what if the useful information was held only by a ‘select few’. Worse yet, what if the means to find the ‘tried and true’ aspirant were disrupted, and the legitimate information and principles of the Art were lost to humanity? The primary means in the old days for finding the worthy neophyte included the fraternal system, as well as the ‘traveling adept’. In the former case, the graded ‘mystery schools’ were a means to ‘sift’ the students progressively, to expose them little by little to theoretical principles, and progressively to practical experimentation. The method was, from most indications, effective. In reading the masterful work of Christopher McIntosh on the methods of the Golden Rosicrucians [2], one sees evidence of this means of education. Still, the decline of all such human associations as they become progressively poisoned by contact with the ills of the humanity, which they intend to serve, seems inevitable. While a number of these schools exist, their legitimacy must always be questioned (I refer to the legitimacy of spiritual intent rather than that of an ‘unbroken charter’ from ancient times, since the latter does not guarantee the former.)

Frater Albertus (Richard Albert Riedel) was, arguably, the greatest 20^th century influence on the renaissance of laboratory alchemy in the United States and English-speaking countries. I was one of the last students of Albertus, and know many of the people who were his associates for one or two decades. One of my dearest friends was an associate of Albertus for more than 35 years. Together they had been students of practical alchemy in the early 1940’s at AMORC’s Rose-Croix University, and they remained in contact until death separated them. In time, I met a number of the people who were in these early classes, and then some who were in the beginning classes that Albertus started around 1960-1962. The majority of the individuals who were involved in these two classes expressed the necessity of secrecy. In one sense, it was based on the traditional values of the school which had brought these people together in the 1940’s, and the values were perpetuated by Albertus in his own teaching programs. Still, Albertus had taken an important step which is not to be overlooked: while the majority of his initial students came from the ranks of a specific esoteric school, over the next two decades, he reached out more and more to the people whose sole qualification was a sincere interest, without pre-qualification by some membership in such schools.

I consider it useless to speculate on whether or not the secrecy was legitimate (i.e., necessary) in the former cases. It is, I think, necessary to re-evaluate the legitimacy of secrecy today as it applies to the work of The Philosophers of Nature. This question can be answered best by the sincere student themselves: "What if the information now published by The Philosophers of Nature was only available to members of a specific esoteric school, and, what if you were not a member of that school?" Would you feel that humanity had been robbed of something of value? What if officers of The Philosophers of Nature would only send lessons to certain individuals after they had passed certain preliminary tests gauged to judge their preparedness, and then would send them the papers under an oath of secrecy? While we can agree with the admonishment not to ‘cast pearls before swine’, I think that it is impractical to judge that all people are ‘swine’ until proven otherwise. There are clear indications in our advertising and in the preliminary lessons which clarify what the PON is (and is not), and those who are not attracted to our purposes find little hope of ‘finding earthly riches’ in exchange for the price of the lessons and membership.

It is true, as one email said, that this knowledge does not belong to any individual – it is the heritage of the seeker on the path. I will go so far as to maintain that the role of the traditional fraternal school has come under reasonable skepticism by the discerning seeker, since the claims of legitimacy are not always demonstrated in the practice of those schools. There is no question that legitimate ones exist, but their membership is never large, and the door to the portal is protected. The position explained by Jean Dubuis is quite significant: that the lessons can not make an alchemist, but that they can help prepare one to approach the Inner Order, and genuine initiation, which is achieved through solely through the efforts of the seeker. It would be a mistake to consider the PON or any other mundane organization as the "Inner Order"; to do so is to misunderstand the true nature of that attunement: no ‘outer’ initiation can take the place of interior illumination.

A related issue is that of ‘printed matter’ versus the ‘mouth to ear’ teaching from adept to neophyte. This is still a legitimate methodology, and, in my mind, it is a preferred method. The benefit is that the person who transmits the information is able to assess the individual and their preparedness, and to tailor the nature of the information, and the means through which it is expressed, so that it best suits the recipient. Still, without a common language, communication is not possible. One only has to look to the curriculum of the secret schools which taught in this manner, in addition to class work for small groups, to see that they used texts such as ‘The Golden Chain of Homer’, the works of Paracelsus, Hollandus, and others to develop a common language. [3] Certainly, keys for opening these ‘closed’ books were given orally to the best-suited recipients. There is no reason to think that these means have been abandoned today, even within our association. In addition to the ‘one on one’ method, there is another method little understood, which can be used effectively by a teacher who has the capability to teach in this manner. It consists of a ‘multi-level, multi-channel’ teaching, which can be done orally during a lecture, for example, or at times in written teachings. I first recognized this in lectures about 15 years ago, when it was clear that several levels of understanding were being addressed at the same time, which would be equally effective for a number of people, each of whom could derive information at a level appropriate to themselves. This is a method of teaching from the ‘heart’ where the ‘brain’ is a resource subject to the impulse of the highest level of good which is awakened in the teacher.

Similarly, many individual technical problems are answered one on one by email, phone, letter or conversation, which are relevant only to the person who is actively working on a specific problem. Such does constitute a ‘mouth to ear’ teaching, and the quality of the response depends on the preparedness of the one who responds to the need. Our public gatherings permit each of us to seek a number of responses to a need for assistance, from numerous members, and it is one of the greatest benefits of active participation in these events. Still, the best solution is to receive, through all possible means of assistance, the ability to open the communications with the ‘Inner Master’, so that one can have a trusted and constant source for assistance in every need. The purpose of The Philosophers of Nature is to provide access to the outer means that will lead one to the interior means of genuine initiation.

Another traditional ethical value has been expressed variously as "thou shall not sell the gift of God", and "you can not serve God and Mammon". One of the writers expressed a concern that we sell (though not expensively) courses on sacred sciences. I will not belabor the facts that other societies charge small amounts for ‘initiation fees’ in their temples, or that some sort of membership fee is assessed to offset the costs of administration, postage and printing, or their physical operations, since we can not know whether these schools are ‘legitimate’ and it is not our business to be concerned with them. I will only say that to my knowledge, no lecturer or writer or officer of our association has received any financial compensation for their work. For the last four years, I can say that without any reservation, and I do not suspect that it has been done differently before that time. It is true that fees are collected for membership, and the members receive six copies per year of a newsletter; it is also true that we collect fees for the printed lessons, and that the costs have been reduced to make them even more affordable than previously. It is true that the excess fees are used to defray costs for office equipment, use of office space in a private residence, and for extensive postage and, infrequently, for travel to further the work of the association. "The gift of God" is not relevant to postage, printing costs, and similar things – it is relevant to revealed knowledge and what we might call ‘occult skills’ necessary to conduct the Work for the benefit of others. For such, no material compensation is offered since it would be meaningless. No officer receives wages or compensation, since their efforts must bring their own rewards. All officers earn their living from their full time employment, and devote some part of their personal time to the interests of the association.

And so, on to another ‘point of balance’ which is delicate and deserving of deep consideration. "Openness vs. safety". What knowledge of any value bears no risk? As we seek to know ourselves and the workings of Nature, we risk destruction along with enlightenment. Any ‘earth-shaking’ revelation brings the possibility of new construction to our lives, but also the necessity of de-constructing former points of view that are not in harmony with our new understanding.

Similarly, in practical alchemy, when one takes the first steps to master the art in the vegetable kingdom, one bears risks when one does anything. Distillation of alcohol from wine brings risk of fire, and in most cases, it means that one has broken some law instituted by the government for the protection of its citizens. Concentration of the salts of plant ashes creates alkaline salts that can be dangerous, corroding the skin, or creating blindness if splashed in the eyes in a liquid form. Many of the essential oils of plants in concentrated form can damage the skin. The work with plants can be very instructive so that one can learn about the workings of Nature, and derive benefits from their use. One has only to find the widely available and wonderful book of Manfred Junius, The Practical Handbook of Plant Alchemy [4], to begin practical work. But, alas, not every possible danger is expressed! He doesn’t explain that you can cut yourself on broken glass at every point where glassware is mentioned! He does not tell you not to eat or rub into your eyes the concentrated plant substances that he clearly tells you how to produce!

Granted, the work in the mineral kingdom is infinitely more dangerous than in the plant kingdom. This has been, and remains, one reason why the plant work is taught before the work in minerals and metals. Other reasons include accessibility of the materials, the lesser cost of materials and equipment, and the means to learn the principles and techniques in a more easily understood and accessible realm. Still, plant works are not without some risk. For the most part, they are little more than one encounters while cooking in the kitchen.

In the mineral/metallic kingdoms, one encounters, depending on the chosen path, dangerous mineral acids, increased risk of explosion, and some of the most toxic substances one can imagine. Worse yet, one encounters precious little guidance that is clearly stated. In historical texts, there are many blinds which are dangerous at worst, and which can lead to decades of wasted time and frustration at least. The Philosophers of Nature has published course material, and held public seminars, which include information on metallic alchemy. It is true that we have encountered some risk as a result. Our ‘point of balance’ is to determine how to do so responsibly. We have seldom published on the paths of ‘animated mercury’ except in classes that are several years into our Mineral Alchemy series. These are only sold to people who have received all of the two-year long Spagyrics course and the preceding courses in Alchemy. One or two times we have published in our newsletter on the subjects, and then only with severe warnings on the dangers. Presumably, if one points out the dangers in experimentation and does so in a progressive sense, then we can not say that the readers are uninformed about the risks. In that case, we would expect that only foolish people would take risks that they clearly cannot manage. I believe that one can never adequately protect the foolish from themselves, or society from the foolish.

The nature of risk to the association is also an issue. If we were a ‘secret’ society and undiscovered to the public, we would still bear the internal threats of dissention, polarization and misuse of power and position. As a public society, we bear more risk, as does every business, association or sports team. The internal threats are compounded by the voices of critics and by active enemies. The more attention an association has, the more it will receive praise and support, and conversely criticism and other attacks. There is no insurance against these except to cease operation entirely. The ‘point of balance’ is to determine how we present our association to the public. Last year we went on television (the Ancient Mysteries series) to try and represent modern-day alchemy as a rational pursuit, one that is balanced and which does not threaten to undermine the values of modern society. I think that we had some success in that, judging by the amount of positive correspondence.

In the Wall Street Journal, on February 19, 1998, an article "The Mystic Mathematician" reviews a Michael White’s Isaac Newton. The book points out that after Newton’s private papers were examined in 1942, Newton was understood to be "not the first of the age of reason," but "the last of the magicians". A dilemma was born: perhaps the greatest scientist known to the world was an alchemist, and it was precisely his investigations into the Royal Art that permitted him to make his greatest insights into Nature. The reviewer states that perhaps Newton "achieved the greatest alchemical trick of all: transmuting the dross of the occult into the gold of modern science". We know that this genius applied the same logical scrutiny and scientific method to his alchemical investigations that he did to his more ‘acceptable’ scientific pursuits.

All of us have access, should we want it, to most of the papers that Newton had: those of Philalethes, Monte-Snyders, Flamel, and so on. I can imagine that Newton would have found the works of Jean Dubuis of interest had they been available to him. He would have had fewer technical problems to solve, more information on safety (Newton suffered from mercury poisoning), and the benefit of more than 200 years of progress and understanding. Of course, it is not possible to send this little packet of information back in the past to Newton. Still, today, we have grander possibilities for humanity than Newton ever imagined. Newton never lost sleep at night over the terrors of global warfare with nuclear and biological weapons, yet he never had the Internet to support his research, and the possibility of simulating his calculations with a powerful computer. Today we do have these possibilities, both the terrors of mass destruction and the possibilities for the triumph of humanity over its lower nature. I believe that The Philosophers of Nature, as it carries out its mission, provides a service to a suffering humanity. We can hope that its officers and members will always choose do so responsibly, maintaining a balance of the opposites.

In closing, I will make another point, but not dwell on it for long. I have received many ‘secrets’ over time, and most are not worth knowing. (Therefore, 'secrets' tend to be safe with me.) The things that I consider worth knowing are not secret – they are instead, spiritual truths. These can be received by any person at any time without binding themselves to oaths spoken in earthly temples. They are easily recognized by the individual who has received them, since they are as fresh as the air, as pure as the sun light, and can never be taken from you by any man or government. They are generally revealed progressively, through the agency of the experiences of life, and while often these are amplified and underlined by the ‘words of the ancient sages’ they are solely the property of humanity at large, are in fact his heritage, and not the property of any school or teacher. These can be written about and spoken about openly, yet they exist at a level far above the words which can only approximate them. These truths are only received by the student who has prepared for the (Inner) Master to appear. They are worth more than a thousand alchemical recipes, book after book of magical rituals, and an arm-long list of initiatic titles and memberships combined. They cost nothing, and are given freely, but are often realized after great expense of tears, which one never regrets paying.

Some would condemn us, saying that if we convey the truths of Alchemy, we profane the Divine Science, and that if we do not, we are advertising falsely. With the warmest of fraternal greetings, I will pose a paradox. One law of Nature well understood is worth a thousand recipes with no understanding, for even if the recipes ‘work’, the alchemist has not evolved. Paradoxically, experimentation with the recipes may provide the basis for the realization of the law. It is not against the law to point the way to the Temple of Light, but we must let each one have the Joy of Realization in absolute freedom, without Guru, without Master, without Priest, for each is the 'son of their deeds'.

Ora et Labora!

Footnotes:

1. Published 1966 by Paracelsus Research Society, and now out of print. Albertus' Alchemist's Handbook is still readily available, published by Samuel Weiser. It is not well known, but many of the sections of the book, including the lists of symbols and certain works which are quoted were directly taken from the AMORC classes in which Riedel was a student during the 1940's.
2. From the thesis, The Rosicrucian Revival and the German Counter-Enlightenment, submitted by for degree of D. Phil., by Christopher McIntosh, Christ Church, Oxford, June, 1989. I believe this has been published in some form, perhaps with a different title.
3. For one example, look to Albertus' Alchemists Handbook, where he reprints an outline of the curriculum of a branch of a Rosicrucian Order in Germany. There are other indications of the same methodology.
4. The Practical Handbook of Plant Alchemy, by Manfred Junius. Inner Traditions, 1985, 1993. ISBN: 0-89281-485-3.

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