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143-603: The term Undine first appears in the alchemical writings of Paracelsus , a Renaissance alchemist and physician. It derives from the Latin word unda , meaning "wave", and first appears in Paracelsus' A Book on Nymphs, Sylphs, Pygmies, and Salamanders, and on the Other Spirits , published posthumously in 1566. Ondine is an alternative spelling, and has become a female given name. Paracelsus believed that each of

286-426: A Rapture -like removal of all righteous believers before the end. A " Day of Resurrection " of the dead ( yawm al-qiyāmah ), will be announced by a trumpet blast. Resurrection will be followed by a "Day of Judgment" ( yawm ad-din ) where all human beings who have ever lived will be held accountable for their deeds by being judged by God. Depending on the verdict of the judgement, they will be sent for eternity to either

429-478: A near-death experience – that after the death of the physical body, at the end of each physical lifetime and after the life review period (which occurs before the silver cord is broken), a judgment occurs, more akin to a Final Review or End Report over one's life , where the life of the subject is fully evaluated and scrutinized. This judgment is seen as being mentioned in Hebrews 9 :27, which states that "it

572-440: A "superior version" was published by American churchman Thomas Tracy in 1839 and reprinted in 1824, 1840, 1844, and 1845; he estimates that by 1966 almost a hundred English versions had been printed, including adaptations for children. Edgar Allan Poe was profoundly influenced by Fouqué's tale, according to Pollin, which may have come about through Poe's broad reading of Walter Scott and Samuel Taylor Coleridge : Scott had derived

715-922: A Water Spirit by the name of Undine who is contracted to the Queen of the Heart Kingdom. There is also a Fire Spirit, Salamander, who used to be partnered with Fana of the Eye of the Midnight Sun before she was released from her enchantment. Salamander then transferred to Captain Fuegoleon of the Crimson Lion Kings. One of the main characters, Yuno, a member of the Golden Dawn, has the Wind Spirit Sylph, who he names Bell. Currently there

858-514: A basic set of laboratory techniques , theories, and terms, some of which are still in use today. They did not abandon the Ancient Greek philosophical idea that everything is composed of four elements , and they tended to guard their work in secrecy, often making use of cyphers and cryptic symbolism. In Europe, the 12th-century translations of medieval Islamic works on science and the rediscovery of Aristotelian philosophy gave birth to

1001-408: A collection of deities that are each said to represent and protect a specific body part or region. Although those who practised Neidan prioritized meditation over external alchemical strategies, many of the same elixirs and constituents from previous Daoist alchemical schools of thought continued to be utilized in tandem with meditation. Eternal life remained a consideration for Neidan alchemists, as it

1144-528: A distant future as they acquire a superior grade of consciousness and altruism . At the present period, the process of human evolution is conducted by means of successive rebirths in the physical world and the salvation is seen as being mentioned in Revelation 3 :12 ( KJV ), which states "Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God and he shall go no more out ". However, this western esoteric tradition states – like those who have had

1287-426: A fisherman six months later. On meeting Ondine again on the day of his wedding to Bertha, Hans tells her that "all the things my body once did by itself, it does now only by special order   ... A single moment of inattention and I forget to breathe". Hans and Ondine kiss, and he dies. Critics have pointed out that medical texts on the syndrome frequently misinterpret Ondine as a vengeful or malevolent character; in

1430-510: A flourishing tradition of Latin alchemy. This late medieval tradition of alchemy would go on to play a significant role in the development of early modern science (particularly chemistry and medicine ). Modern discussions of alchemy are generally split into an examination of its exoteric practical applications and its esoteric spiritual aspects, despite criticisms by scholars such as Eric J. Holmyard and Marie-Louise von Franz that they should be understood as complementary. The former

1573-588: A highly influential work. In Sanskrit, rasa translates to "mercury", and Nāgārjuna Siddha was said to have developed a method of converting mercury into gold. Scholarship on Indian alchemy is in the publication of The Alchemical Body by David Gordon White. A modern bibliography on Indian alchemical studies has been written by White. The contents of 39 Sanskrit alchemical treatises have been analysed in detail in G. Jan Meulenbeld 's History of Indian Medical Literature . The discussion of these works in HIML gives

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1716-612: A huge monster, an image of Anglo-Saxon origin. The damned often include figures of high rank, wearing crowns, mitres, and often the Papal tiara during the lengthy periods when there were antipopes , or in Protestant depictions. There may be detailed depictions of the torments of the damned. The most famous Renaissance depiction is Michelangelo Buonarroti 's The Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel . Included in this fresco

1859-593: A human, although it likely also borrows from the 17th-century Rosicrucian novel Comte de Gabalis . Ondine was the title of one of the poems in Aloysius Bertrand 's collection Gaspard de la Nuit of 1842. This poem inspired the first movement of Maurice Ravel 's 1908 piano suite Gaspard de la nuit . The character of Mélisande from Maurice Maeterlinck 's symbolist play Pelléas et Mélisande has been seen as an Undine figure. Debussy , Sibelius , Fauré , and Schoenberg all wrote music adaptions of

2002-490: A more obvious connection to medicine. The philosopher's stone of European alchemists can be compared to the Grand Elixir of Immortality sought by Chinese alchemists. In the hermetic view, these two goals were not unconnected, and the philosopher's stone was often equated with the universal panacea ; therefore, the two traditions may have had more in common than initially appears. As early as 317 AD, Ge Hong documented

2145-465: A new form of alchemy. Neidan emphasized appeasing the inner gods that inhabit the human body by practising alchemy with compounds found in the body, rather than the mixing of natural resources that was emphasized in early Dao alchemy. For example, saliva was often considered nourishment for the inner gods and did not require any conscious alchemical reaction to produce. The inner gods were not thought of as physical presences occupying each person, but rather

2288-431: A summary of the contents of each work, their special features, and where possible the evidence concerning their dating. Chapter 13 of HIML, Various works on rasaśāstra and ratnaśāstra (or Various works on alchemy and gems ) gives brief details of a further 655 (six hundred and fifty-five) treatises. In some cases Meulenbeld gives notes on the contents and authorship of these works; in other cases references are made only to

2431-467: A view held by Paracelsus according to his Liber de Nymphis . These spirits are like unto human beings, but not endowed with immortal souls . But Undines ("water women", "water people") in particular are able to consort with humans more than the spirits of other elements, and are most capable of entering into marriage with a human male, thus earning a kernel of the immortality. The children born to her will be imparted with human souls as well. For this reason,

2574-693: A white throne, surrounded by the Theotokos (Virgin Mary), John the Baptist , the Apostles , saints and angels . Beneath the throne the scene is divided in half with the "mansions of the righteous" ( John 14:2 ), i.e., those who have been saved , to Jesus' right (the viewer's left), and the torments of those who have been damned to his left. Separating the two is the river of fire which proceeds from Jesus' left foot. For more detail, see below. The theme of

2717-651: A wide variety of topics including optics , comparative linguistics , and medicine, composed his Great Work ( Latin : Opus Majus ) for Pope Clement IV as part of a project towards rebuilding the medieval university curriculum to include the new learning of his time. While alchemy was not more important to him than other sciences and he did not produce allegorical works on the topic, he did consider it and astrology to be important parts of both natural philosophy and theology and his contributions advanced alchemy's connections to soteriology and Christian theology. Bacon's writings integrated morality, salvation, alchemy, and

2860-535: Is a common theme in medieval and renaissance religious iconography. Like most early iconographic innovations, its origins stem from Byzantine art , although it was a less common subject than in the West during the Middle Ages. In Western Christianity, it is often the subject depicted in medieval cathedrals and churches, either outside on the central tympanum of the entrance or inside on the (rear) west wall, so that

3003-602: Is a concept found across the Abrahamic religions and the Frashokereti of Zoroastrianism . Christianity considers the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to entail the final judgment by God of all people who have ever lived, resulting in the saving of some and the damning of others. Some Christian denominations believe most people will be saved , some believe most people will be damned , and some believe

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3146-629: Is also known as Ondine's curse. Ondine, the eponymous heroine of Giraudoux's play, tells her future husband Hans, whom she has just met, that "I shall be the shoes of your feet   ... I shall be the breath of your lungs". Ondine makes a pact with her uncle, the King of the Ondines, that if Hans ever deceives her he will die. After their honeymoon Hans is reunited with his first love, the Princess Bertha, and Ondine leaves him, only to be captured by

3289-678: Is an immortal soul . Marriage with a human shortens their lives on Earth, but earns them an immortal human soul, a view which was professed by Paracelsus. The offspring of a union between an undine and a man are humans with a soul, but also with some kind of aquatic characteristic, called a watermark. Moses Binswanger, the protagonist in Hansjörg Schneider 's Das Wasserzeichen (1997), has a cleft in his throat, for instance, which must be periodically submerged in water to prevent it from becoming painful. The ancient Greek philosopher Empedocles ( c.  490 – c.  430 BC )

3432-468: Is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment ". Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772) had a revelation that the church has gone through a series of Last Judgments. First, during Noah's Flood, then Moses on Mount Sinai, Jesus' crucifixion, and finally in 1757, which is the final Last Judgment. These occur in a realm outside earth and heaven, and are spiritual in nature. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) teaches that

3575-541: Is as important a spiritual practice as Shangqing meditation. While Hongjing did not deny the power of alchemical elixirs to grant immortality or provide divine protection, he ultimately found the Scripture of the Nine Elixirs to be ambiguous and spiritually unfulfilling, aiming to implement more accessible practising techniques. In the early 700s, Neidan (also known as internal alchemy) was adopted by Daoists as

3718-460: Is called a Deesis group in Orthodoxy). Saint Michael is often shown, either weighing the deceased on scales or directing matters, and there might be a large crowd of saints, angels, and the saved around the central group. At the bottom of the composition a crowd of the deceased are shown, often with some rising from their graves. These are being sorted and directed by angels into the saved and

3861-542: Is first attested in a number of pseudepigraphical texts written in Greco-Roman Egypt during the first few centuries AD. Greek-speaking alchemists often referred to their craft as "the Art" (τέχνη) or "Knowledge" (ἐπιστήμη), and it was often characterised as mystic (μυστική), sacred (ἱɛρά), or divine (θɛíα). Alchemists attempted to purify, mature, and perfect certain materials. Common aims were chrysopoeia ,

4004-457: Is generally understood to form the basis for Western alchemical philosophy and practice, called the hermetic philosophy by its early practitioners. These writings were collected in the first centuries of the common era. The dawn of Western alchemy is sometimes associated with that of metallurgy , extending back to 3500 BC. Many writings were lost when the Roman emperor Diocletian ordered

4147-530: Is his self-portrait, as St. Bartholomew 's flayed skin. The image in Eastern Orthodox icons has a similar composition, but usually less space is devoted to hell, and there are often a larger number of scenes; the Orthodox readiness to label figures with inscriptions often allows more complex compositions. There is more often a large group of saints around Christ (which may include animals), and

4290-614: Is mentioned in the VOCALOID song " Kochira, Koufuku Anshin Iinkai desu ( こちら、幸福安心委員会です ) " by Utata-P. In 1972 the American rock Band Blue Oyster Cult's debut album, the song "Workshop of Telescopes" mentions Undine "By silverfish imperatrix, whose incorrupted eye Sees through the charms of doctors and their wives, By salamander, drake, and the power that was Undine." The band is known for its references to alchemy in other songs. In

4433-687: Is narrated from the first-person perspective of the water nymph itself. Japanese pianist Yukie Nishimura composed a piece of piano music titled Undine in late 1980s. The composer Carl Reinecke wrote the "Sonata Undine" for flute and piano, opus 167, first published in 1882. In an issue of DC Comics "The Super Friends" (issue #14 published 1978), the heroes battle a group of people calling themselves "The Elementals". When The Elementals are defeated, they reveal that they are elemental spirits who have possessed humans, in an attempt to become heroes to do good and earn souls. The Elementals call themselves Gnome, Sylph, Salamander, and Undine. Undine ( ウンディーネ )

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4576-596: Is no Earth Spirit that has been revealed, but the manga is ongoing. Species 8472, introduced in Star Trek: Voyager , became known as the Undine in Star Trek Online . The main protagonist of the 2015 webcomic Sleepless Domain is named Undine Wells , and is a magical girl with the ability to control water. She is a member of Team Alchemical, a group of magical girls collectively themed around

4719-621: Is one of the six articles of faith . The trials and tribulations associated with it are detailed in both the Quran and the hadith , (sayings of Muhammad ), from whence they are elaborated on in the creeds, Quranic commentaries ( tafsịrs ), and theological writing, eschatological manuals, whose authors include al-Ghazali , Ibn Kathir , Ibn Majah , Muhammad al-Bukhari , and Ibn Khuzaymah . According to some Islamic teachings, there are two categories of heaven: those who go directly to it and those who enter it after enduring some torment in hell; Also,

4862-584: Is pursued by historians of the physical sciences , who examine the subject in terms of early chemistry , medicine , and charlatanism , and the philosophical and religious contexts in which these events occurred. The latter interests historians of esotericism , psychologists , and some philosophers and spiritualists . The subject has also made an ongoing impact on literature and the arts. The word alchemy comes from old French alquemie , alkimie , used in Medieval Latin as alchymia . This name

5005-627: Is quite peculiar to them, which in Sanskrit is called Rasāyana and in Persian Rasavātam . It means the art of obtaining/manipulating Rasa : nectar, mercury, and juice. This art was restricted to certain operations, metals, drugs, compounds, and medicines, many of which have mercury as their core element. Its principles restored the health of those who were ill beyond hope and gave back youth to fading old age. The goals of alchemy in India included

5148-485: Is shown as a snake, it attempts to bite Adam on the heel but, as he is protected by Christ, is unsuccessful. Belief in Judgment Day ( Arabic : یوم القيامة , romanized :  Yawm al-qiyāmah , lit.   'Day of Resurrection' or Arabic : یوم الدین , romanized :  Yawm ad-din , lit.   'Day of Judgement') is considered a fundamental tenet of faith by all Muslims. It

5291-600: Is sometimes referred to as a 'day of judgement', but it is not conceptualized as the Day of Judgement. Some rabbis hold that there will be a future day following the resurrection of the dead . Others hold that the final accounting and judgment happens when one dies. Still others hold that the Last Judgment applies to only the gentiles , not the Jewish People . The Babylonian Talmud has a lengthy passage describing

5434-498: Is still an open question whether these three strands share a common origin, or to what extent they influenced each other. The start of Western alchemy may generally be traced to ancient and Hellenistic Egypt , where the city of Alexandria was a center of alchemical knowledge, and retained its pre-eminence through most of the Greek and Roman periods. Following the work of André-Jean Festugière, modern scholars see alchemical practice in

5577-667: The Indian subcontinent ; and Western alchemy, which occurred around the Mediterranean and whose center shifted over the millennia from Greco-Roman Egypt to the Islamic world , and finally medieval Europe . Chinese alchemy was closely connected to Taoism and Indian alchemy with the Dharmic faiths . In contrast, Western alchemy developed its philosophical system mostly independent of but influenced by various Western religions . It

5720-412: The classical elements of alchemical tradition; her teammates' names also allude to other elemental spirits from Paracelsus' writings. The 2015 video game Undertale (and its alternate universe sequel, Deltarune ) contains a character named Undyne, a fish-like woman who is likely named after the undine. In 2017 Ryan Jude Novelline created a gown that he displayed at New York Comic Con based on

5863-481: The hetoimasia or "empty throne", containing a cross, is usually shown below Christ, often guarded by archangels; figures representing Adam and Eve may kneel below it or below Christ. A distinctive feature of the Orthodox composition, especially in Russian icons, is a large band leading like a chute from the feet of Christ down to hell; this may resemble a striped snake or be a "river of Fire" coloured flame red. If it

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6006-568: The resurrection of the dead and "our 'mortal body' will come to life again." The Catholic Church teaches that at the time of the Last Judgment Christ will come in His glory , and all the angels with him, and in his presence the truth of each one's deeds will be laid bare, and each person who has ever lived will be judged with perfect justice. The believers who are judged worthy as well as those ignorant of Christ's teaching who followed

6149-559: The works of mercy is frequent in the pictorial tradition of Christian art. Before the Last Judgment, all will be resurrected. Those who were in purgatory will have already been purged, meaning they would have already been released into heaven, and so like those in heaven and hell will resurrect with their bodies, followed by the Last Judgment. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church : 1038 The resurrection of all

6292-609: The 13th century, Albertus Magnus and Roger Bacon were the most notable of these, their work summarizing and explaining the newly imported alchemical knowledge in Aristotelian terms. Albertus Magnus, a Dominican friar , is known to have written works such as the Book of Minerals where he observed and commented on the operations and theories of alchemical authorities like Hermes Trismegistus , pseudo-Democritus and unnamed alchemists of his time. Albertus critically compared these to

6435-508: The 1993 video game Secret of Mana , Undine is the first spirit the player encounters. In the Japanese manga Aria and its numerous anime adaptations, gondola operators are referred to as "Prima Undine". In the 2002 video game Touhou Koumakyou: The Embodiment of Scarlet Devil , a spell card called Water Sign "Princess Undine" is used by Patchouli Knowledge. Another Japanese manga and anime series, Black Clover by Yuki Tabata, depicts

6578-402: The 2nd to 5th centuries mention the transmutation of base metals to gold. According to some scholars Greek alchemy may have influenced Indian alchemy but there are no hard evidences to back this claim. The 11th-century Persian chemist and physician Abū Rayhān Bīrūnī , who visited Gujarat as part of the court of Mahmud of Ghazni , reported that they have a science similar to alchemy which

6721-571: The Book of the Master Who Embraces Spontaneous Nature (317 AD), Hong argued that alchemical solutions such as elixirs were preferable to traditional medicinal treatment due to the spiritual protection they could provide. In the centuries following Ge Hong's death, the emphasis placed on alchemy as a spiritual practice among Chinese Daoists was reduced. In 499 AD, Tao Hongjing refuted Hong's statement that alchemy

6864-601: The Catholic concept of purgatory , sinful Muslims will stay in hell until purified of their sins. According to the scholar Al-Subki (and others), "God will take out of the Fire everyone who has said the testimony" (i.e. the shāhada testimony made by all Muslims, "There is no deity but The God") "and none will remain to save those who rejected or worshipped other than God." While early Muslims debated whether scripture on Judgement day should be interpreted literally or figuratively,

7007-513: The Christian imagery of death and resurrection employed in the alchemical texts of Petrus Bonus , John of Rupescissa , and in works written in the name of Raymond Lull and Arnold of Villanova. Nicolas Flamel is a well-known alchemist to the point where he had many pseudepigraphic imitators. Although the historical Flamel existed, the writings and legends assigned to him only appeared in 1612. Day of Judgment The Last Judgment

7150-560: The Classical planets, Isis , Osiris , Jason , and many others. The central figure in the mythology of alchemy is Hermes Trismegistus (or Thrice-Great Hermes). His name is derived from the god Thoth and his Greek counterpart Hermes . Hermes and his caduceus or serpent-staff, were among alchemy's principal symbols. According to Clement of Alexandria , he wrote what were called the "forty-two books of Hermes", covering all fields of knowledge. The Hermetica of Thrice-Great Hermes

7293-640: The Composition of Alchemy") from an Arabic work attributed to Khalid ibn Yazid . Although European craftsmen and technicians pre-existed, Robert notes in his preface that alchemy (here still referring to the elixir rather than to the art itself) was unknown in Latin Europe at the time of his writing. The translation of Arabic texts concerning numerous disciplines including alchemy flourished in 12th-century Toledo, Spain , through contributors like Gerard of Cremona and Adelard of Bath . Translations of

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7436-538: The Greek term. The first was proposed by Zosimos of Panopolis (3rd–4th centuries), who derived it from the name of a book, the Khemeu. Hermann Diels argued in 1914 that it rather derived from χύμα, used to describe metallic objects formed by casting. Others trace its roots to the Egyptian name kēme (hieroglyphic 𓆎𓅓𓏏𓊖 khmi ), meaning 'black earth', which refers to the fertile and auriferous soil of

7579-618: The Greek texts a work as systematic as that which is presented, for example, in the Book of Seventy . Islamic philosophers also made great contributions to alchemical hermeticism. The most influential author in this regard was arguably Jabir. Jabir's ultimate goal was Takwin , the artificial creation of life in the alchemical laboratory, up to, and including, human life. He analysed each Aristotelian element in terms of four basic qualities of hotness , coldness , dryness , and moistness . According to Jabir, in each metal two of these qualities were interior and two were exterior. For example, lead

7722-402: The Greek texts shows that a very small part only was organized according to true experiments of laboratory: even the supposedly technical writings, in the state where we find them today, are unintelligible nonsense which refuses any interpretation. It is different with Jabir's alchemy. The relatively clear description of the processes and the alchemical apparati, the methodical classification of

7865-468: The Greek were mostly qualitative aspects of matter, not quantitative, as our modern elements are; "...True alchemy never regarded earth, air, water, and fire as corporeal or chemical substances in the present-day sense of the word. The four elements are simply the primary, and most general, qualities by means of which the amorphous and purely quantitative substance of all bodies first reveals itself in differentiated form." Later alchemists extensively developed

8008-504: The Jewess , Pseudo-Democritus , and Agathodaimon , but very little is known about any of these authors. The most complete of their works, The Four Books of Pseudo-Democritus , were probably written in the first century AD. Recent scholarship tends to emphasize the testimony of Zosimus, who traced the alchemical arts back to Egyptian metallurgical and ceremonial practices. It has also been argued that early alchemical writers borrowed

8151-646: The Judgment, the Righteous will go to their eternal reward in heaven and the Accursed will depart to hell (see Matthew 25 )." The "issue of this judgment shall be a permanent separation of the evil and the good, the righteous and the wicked" (see The Sheep and the Goats ). Moreover, in "the final judgment every one of our thoughts, words, and deeds will be known and judged" and individuals will be justified on

8294-643: The Last Judgement is found in the funeral and memorial hymnody of the Church, and is a major theme in the services during Great Lent . The second Sunday before the beginning of Great Lent is dedicated to the Last Judgement. It is also found in the hymns of the Octoechos used on Saturdays throughout the year. There were many renditions of the Last Judgment completed by Greek painters living in Crete which

8437-416: The Last Judgement set by Klontzas. Their works were The Last Judgment (Kavertzas) and The Last Judgment (Moskos) . Both paintings resemble Klontas' Last Judgement painting. Lutherans do not believe in any sort of earthly millennial kingdom of Christ either before or after his second coming on the last day. On the last day, all the dead will be resurrected. Their souls will then be reunited with

8580-536: The Last Judgment is believed by a great part of Christian mainstream churches; some members of Esoteric Christian traditions like the Essenes , Rosicrucians , the Spiritualist movement , and some liberals instead believe in a form of universal salvation . Max Heindel , a Danish-American astrologer and mystic, taught that when the Day of Christ comes, marking the end of the current fifth or Aryan epoch,

8723-525: The Last Judgment is left to the mercy of God and is not declared. The theme of the Last Judgment is important in Orthodoxy. Traditionally, an Orthodox church will have a fresco or mosaic of the Last Judgment on the back (western) wall so that the faithful, as they leave the services, are reminded that they will be judged by what they do during earthly life. The icon of the Last Judgment traditionally depicts Christ Pantokrator , enthroned in glory on

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8866-428: The Middle Ages. The efforts of Berthelot and Ruelle to put a little order in this mass of literature led only to poor results, and the later researchers, among them in particular Mrs. Hammer-Jensen, Tannery, Lagercrantz, von Lippmann, Reitzenstein, Ruska, Bidez, Festugière and others, could make clear only few points of detail .... The study of the Greek alchemists is not very encouraging. An even surface examination of

9009-806: The Nile valley, as opposed to red desert sand. According to the Egyptologist Wallis Budge , the Arabic word al-kīmiya ʾ actually means "the Egyptian [science]", borrowing from the Coptic word for "Egypt", kēme (or its equivalent in the Mediaeval Bohairic dialect of Coptic, khēme ). This Coptic word derives from Demotic kmỉ , itself from ancient Egyptian kmt . The ancient Egyptian word referred to both

9152-544: The Persian texts written by Muslim scholars. Researchers have found evidence that Chinese alchemists and philosophers discovered complex mathematical phenomena that were shared with Arab alchemists during the medieval period. Discovered in BC China, the "magic square of three" was propagated to followers of Abū Mūsā Jābir ibn Ḥayyān at some point over the proceeding several hundred years. Other commonalities shared between

9295-592: The Roman Empire as originating from the Egyptian goldsmith's art, Greek philosophy and different religious traditions. Tracing the origins of the alchemical art in Egypt is complicated by the pseudepigraphic nature of texts from the Greek alchemical corpus. The treatises of Zosimos of Panopolis , the earliest historically attested author ( fl. c. 300 AD), can help in situating the other authors. Zosimus based his work on that of older alchemical authors, such as Mary

9438-448: The Taoist heavens, the ensuing deaths encouraged people to eschew this method of alchemy in favour of external sources (the aforementioned Tai Chi Chuan, mastering of the qi , etc.) Chinese alchemy was introduced to the West by Obed Simon Johnson . The introduction of alchemy to Latin Europe may be dated to 11 February 1144, with the completion of Robert of Chester 's translation of the Liber de compositione alchemiae ("Book on

9581-457: The Undines (also called Nymphs) yearn to marry a human husband. If a man has an Undine/Nymph for a wife, he must be careful not to offend her in the presence of water, or she will return to her element. This motif of the husband's calumny causing Undine's departure also occurs in Fouquet's novella (and Hoffmann's opera). Undine's husband Huldbrand had been forewarned not to do so, but he rekindles his unfaithful relationship with Bertalda, he commits

9724-484: The basis of their faith in Jesus , although " our works will not escape God's examination." Belief in the Last Judgment (often linked with the general judgment ) is held firmly in Catholicism . Immediately upon death each person undergoes the particular judgment , and depending upon one's behavior on earth, goes to heaven , purgatory , or hell . Those in purgatory will always reach heaven, but those in hell will be there eternally. The Last Judgment will occur after

9867-420: The burning of alchemical books after suppressing a revolt in Alexandria (AD 292). Few original Egyptian documents on alchemy have survived, most notable among them the Stockholm papyrus and the Leyden papyrus X . Dating from AD 250–300, they contained recipes for dyeing and making artificial gemstones, cleaning and fabricating pearls, and manufacturing of imitation gold and silver. These writings lack

10010-409: The character of the White Lady of Avenel ( The Monastery , 1820) from Undine , and a passage by Coleridge on Undine was reprinted in Tracy's 1839 edition. French composer Claude Debussy included a piece called "Ondine" in his collection of piano preludes written in 1913 (Preludes, Book 2, No. 8). A poem by Seamus Heaney titled "Undine" appears in his 1969 collection Door into the Dark. The poem

10153-446: The collection Das dreißigste Jahr (1961), in which Undine "is neither a human nor a water spirit, but an idea". Fouqué's Undine also exerted an influence on Hans Christian Andersen 's " The Little Mermaid " (1837), and H.D. plays on this identification in her autobiographical novel HERmione (1927). Burton Pollin notes the popularity of the tale in the English-speaking world: translations in English appeared in 1818 and 1830, and

10296-452: The concept of soul sleep into Orthodox thought about life after death, it has never been a part of traditional Orthodox teaching, and it contradicts the Orthodox understanding of the intercession of the Saints . Eastern Orthodoxy teaches that salvation is bestowed by God as a free gift of divine grace , which cannot be earned, and by which forgiveness of sins is available to all. However,

10439-654: The congregation attending church saw the image on either entering or leaving. In the 15th century it also appeared as the central section of a triptych on altarpieces , with the side panels showing heaven and hell, as in the Beaune Altarpiece or a triptych by Hans Memling . The usual composition has Christ seated high in the centre, flanked by angels, the Virgin Mary , and John the Evangelist who are supplicating on behalf of those being judged (in what

10582-613: The country and the colour "black" (Egypt was the "black Land", by contrast with the "red Land", the surrounding desert). Alchemy encompasses several philosophical traditions spanning some four millennia and three continents. These traditions' general penchant for cryptic and symbolic language makes it hard to trace their mutual influences and genetic relationships. One can distinguish at least three major strands, which appear to be mostly independent, at least in their earlier stages: Chinese alchemy , centered in China; Indian alchemy , centered on

10725-462: The creation of a divine body (Sanskrit divya-deham ) and immortality while still embodied (Sanskrit jīvan-mukti ). Sanskrit alchemical texts include much material on the manipulation of mercury and sulphur, that are homologized with the semen of the god Śiva and the menstrual blood of the goddess Devī. Some early alchemical writings seem to have their origins in the Kaula tantric schools associated to

10868-405: The damned. Almost always the saved are on the viewer's left (so on the right hand of Christ), and the damned on the right. The saved are led up to heaven , often shown as a fortified gateway , while the damned are handed over to devils who herd them down into hell on the right; the composition therefore has a circular pattern of movement. Often the damned disappear into a Hellmouth , the mouth of

11011-475: The dead, "of both the just and the unjust" (Acts 24:15), will precede the Last Judgment. This will be "the hour when all who are in the tombs will hear [the Son of man's] voice and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment" (Jn 5:28–29) Then Christ will come "in his glory, and all the angels with him... . Before him will be gathered all

11154-511: The deeds done by each person are believed to affect how he will be judged, following the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats. How forgiveness is to be balanced against behavior is not well-defined in scripture, judgment in the matter being solely Christ's. Similarly, although Orthodoxy teaches that sole salvation is obtained only through Christ and his Church, the fate of those outside the Church at

11297-409: The demons "the guardians of places" ( οἱ κατὰ τόπον ἔφοροι , hoi katà tópon éphoroi ) and those who offered them sacrifices "priests" ( ἱερέα , hieréa ), it is fairly clear that he was referring to the gods of Egypt and their priests. While critical of the kind of alchemy he associated with the Egyptian priests and their followers, Zosimos nonetheless saw the tradition's recent past as rooted in

11440-411: The dictates of conscience will go to everlasting bliss, and those who are judged unworthy will go to everlasting condemnation. A decisive factor in the Last Judgment will be the question, were the corporal works of mercy practiced or not during one's lifetime. They rate as important acts of charity. Therefore, and according to the biblical sources (Mt 25:31–46), the conjunction of the Last Judgment and

11583-436: The element's physical properties. The elemental system used in medieval alchemy also originated with Jabir. His original system consisted of seven elements, which included the five classical elements ( aether , air , earth , fire , and water ) in addition to two chemical elements representing the metals: sulphur , "the stone which burns", which characterized the principle of combustibility, and mercury , which contained

11726-509: The false promises of transmutation made by pseudo-alchemists. Roman Catholic Inquisitor General Nicholas Eymerich 's Directorium Inquisitorum , written in 1376, associated alchemy with the performance of demonic rituals, which Eymerich differentiated from magic performed in accordance with scripture. This did not, however, lead to any change in the Inquisition's monitoring or prosecution of alchemists. In 1404, Henry IV of England banned

11869-573: The first, or particular judgment, is that experienced by each individual at the time of his or her death, at which time God will decide where one is to spend the time until the Second Coming of Christ (see Hades in Christianity ). This judgment is generally believed to occur on the fortieth day after death. The second, General or Final Judgment will occur after the Second Coming. Although in modern times some have attempted to introduce

12012-470: The form of a message in a dream between the swan song. According to Paracelsus, the Undine will still receive her place on the Day of Judgment , i.e., she will still preserve the immortal soul she earned through marriage. David Gallagher argues that, although they had Paracelsus as a source, 19th and 20th-century German authors found inspiration for their many versions of undine in classical literature, particularly Ovid 's Metamorphoses , especially given

12155-564: The four classical elements — earth , water , air and fire —is inhabited by different categories of elemental spirits , liminal creatures that share our world: gnomes , undines, sylphs and salamanders respectively. According to Paracelsus (as paraphrased by occultist Manly P. Hall ), the spiritual inhabitants of the elements are "invisible, spiritual counterparts of visible Nature   ... many resembling human beings in shape, and inhabiting worlds of their own, unknown to man because his undeveloped senses were incapable of functioning beyond

12298-926: The future Judgement Day. The doctrine and iconographic depiction of the Last Judgment are drawn from many passages from the apocalyptic sections of the Bible, but most notably from Jesus' teaching of the strait gate in the Gospel of Matthew and in the Gospel of Luke . In Christianity, there are three main beliefs about who will be saved (go to heaven) and who will be damned (go to hell) on Judgment Day. All three beliefs are based on biblical interpretation and Christian tradition. Some Christians who believe in universal salvation say most people and angels will go to heaven on Judgment Day. Some Christians who believe in double predestination say most people and angels will go to hell on Judgment Day. Other Christians who disbelieve in universal salvation and double predestination say

12441-480: The good each person has done or failed to do during his earthly life. 1040 The Last Judgment will come when Christ returns in glory. Only the Father knows the day and the hour; only he determines the moment of its coming. Then through his Son Jesus Christ he will pronounce the final word on all history. We shall know the ultimate meaning of the whole work of creation and of the entire economy of salvation and understand

12584-539: The human race will have to pass a final examination or last judgment, where, as in the Days of Noah , the chosen ones or pioneers, the sheep , will be separated from the goats or stragglers, by being carried forward into the next evolutionary period, inheriting the ethereal conditions of the New Galilee in the making. Nevertheless, it is emphasized that all beings of the human evolution will ultimately be saved in

12727-437: The idealized principle of metallic properties. Shortly thereafter, this evolved into eight elements, with the Arabic concept of the three metallic principles: sulphur giving flammability or combustion, mercury giving volatility and stability, and salt giving solidity. The atomic theory of corpuscularianism , where all physical bodies possess an inner and outer layer of minute particles or corpuscles, also has its origins in

12870-467: The influx of alchemical thought. The 11th-century St Anselm put forth the opinion that faith and rationalism were compatible and encouraged rationalism in a Christian context. In the early 12th century, Peter Abelard followed Anselm's work, laying down the foundation for acceptance of Aristotelian thought before the first works of Aristotle had reached the West. In the early 13th century, Robert Grosseteste used Abelard's methods of analysis and added

13013-596: The insult, and she splashes away beneath the Danube. Paracelsus also emphasizes that even if the sylph/undine has returned to water, the marriage still remains valid, and she cannot be presumed to be dead, another theme exploited by Fouquet's novella: thus, as her husband's transgression necessitates her departure into the watery world, she makes the insistence on her husband that his vow of fidelity still remains in place, and breaking it would have deadly consequence. And she continues to remind to her husband to remain faithful, in

13156-399: The intents of their hearts. Records that have been kept in heaven and on earth will also be used to judge people. Jesus Christ will act as the advocate for people who had faith in him and such people will enter God's presence based on Jesus' merits as opposed to their own. After the final judgment, an individual is assigned to one of the three degrees of glory . In art, the Last Judgment

13299-510: The last day. Anglican and Methodist theology holds that "there is an intermediate state between death and the resurrection of the dead , in which the soul does not sleep in unconsciousness, but exists in happiness or misery till the resurrection, when it shall be reunited to the body and receive its final reward." This space, termed Hades , is divided into Paradise (the Bosom of Abraham ) and Gehenna "but with an impassable gulf between

13442-505: The last judgment for each individual occurs after that individual has been resurrected. People will be judged by Jesus Christ. Jesus' twelve apostles will help judge the twelve tribes of Israel and the twelve Nephite disciples from the Book of Mormon will help to judge the Nephite and Lamanite people. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that people will be judged by their words, their works, their thoughts, and

13585-410: The late 7th and early 8th centuries through Syriac translations and scholarship. In the late ninth and early tenth centuries, the Arabic works attributed to Jābir ibn Hayyān (Latinized as "Geber" or "Geberus") introduced a new approach to alchemy. Paul Kraus , who wrote the standard reference work on Jabir, put it as follows: To form an idea of the historical place of Jabir's alchemy and to tackle

13728-460: The limitations of the grosser elements". Undines are almost invariably depicted as being female, which is consistent with the ancient Greek idea that water is a female element. They are usually found in forest pools and waterfalls, and their beautiful singing voices are sometimes heard over the sound of water. The group contains many species, including nereides , limnads , naiades , mermaids and potamides . What undines lack, compared to humans,

13871-594: The marvelous ways by which his Providence led everything towards its final end. The Last Judgment will reveal that God's justice triumphs over all the injustices committed by his creatures and that God's love is stronger than death. (Cf. Song 8:6) The Eastern Orthodox and Catholic teachings of the Last Judgment differ only on the exact nature of the in-between state of purgatory / Abraham's Bosom . These differences may only be apparent and not actual due to differing theological terminology and evolving tradition. The Eastern Orthodox Church teaches that there are two judgments:

14014-747: The mystical aspects of this concept. Alchemy coexisted alongside emerging Christianity . Lactantius believed Hermes Trismegistus had prophesied its birth. St Augustine later affirmed this in the 4th and 5th centuries, but also condemned Trismegistus for idolatry. Examples of Pagan, Christian, and Jewish alchemists can be found during this period. Most of the Greco-Roman alchemists preceding Zosimos are known only by pseudonyms, such as Moses , Isis, Cleopatra , Democritus , and Ostanes . Others authors such as Komarios, and Chymes , we only know through fragments of text. After AD 400, Greek alchemical writers occupied themselves solely in commenting on

14157-463: The mystical, philosophical elements of alchemy, but do contain the works of Bolus of Mendes (or Pseudo-Democritus ), which aligned these recipes with theoretical knowledge of astrology and the classical elements . Between the time of Bolus and Zosimos, the change took place that transformed this metallurgy into a Hermetic art. Alexandria acted as a melting pot for philosophies of Pythagoreanism , Platonism , Stoicism and Gnosticism which formed

14300-486: The nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep at his right hand, but the goats at the left... . And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" (Mt 25:31, 32, 46). 1039 In the presence of Christ, who is Truth itself, the truth of each man's relationship with God will be laid bare (Cf. Jn 12:49). The Last Judgment will reveal even to its furthest consequences

14443-523: The number of the saved and of the damned is unknown . The concept of the Last Judgment is found in all the canonical gospels , particularly in the Gospel of Matthew . The Christian tradition is also followed by Islam , where it is mentioned in many chapters of the Quran , according to some interpretations. The Last Judgment has inspired numerous artistic depictions, including painting, sculpture and evangelical work. In Judaism , beliefs vary. Rosh HaShanah

14586-620: The number of the saved and of the damned on Judgment Day is unknown. Article IV – Of the Resurrection of Christ in Anglicanism's Articles of Religion and Article III – Of the Resurrection of Christ of Methodism's Articles of Religion state that: Christ did truly rise again from death, and took again his body, with flesh, bones, and all things appertaining to the perfection of Man's nature; wherewith he ascended into Heaven, and there sitteth, until he return to judge all Men at

14729-404: The origin of alchemy's character. An important example of alchemy's roots in Greek philosophy, originated by Empedocles and developed by Aristotle, was that all things in the universe were formed from only four elements: earth , air , water , and fire . According to Aristotle, each element had a sphere to which it belonged and to which it would return if left undisturbed. The four elements of

14872-449: The people of hell are of two categories: those who stay there temporarily and those who stay there forever. Like Christianity, Islamic eschatology has a time of tribulation preceding Judgement Day where strange and terrible events will serve as portents; there will be a second coming of Jesus (but in different roles); battles with an AntiChrist (Al-Masīḥ ad-Dajjāl, literally "Deceitful Messiah" ) and struggles with Gog and Magog ; and

15015-471: The play, Ondine is not responsible for the curse and tries to save Hans. The subdivisions and elaborations [of nature spirits]   ... by Paracelsus, the Rosicrucians, and the modern theosophists are no doubt amplifications of that popular belief in the existence of a race, neither divine nor human, but very like to human beings, who existed on a "plane" different from that of humans, though occupying

15158-479: The play. The 1939 play Ondine by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux is also based upon Fouqué's novella, as is Ondine , a ballet by composer Hans Werner Henze and choreographer Frederick Ashton with Margot Fonteyn as Undine. Austrian author Ingeborg Bachmann , a friend of Henze's who collaborated with him frequently, attended the premiere of the ballet in London, and published her short story "Undine geht" in

15301-481: The practice of multiplying metals by the passing of the Gold and Silver Act 1403 ( 5 Hen. 4 . c. 4) (although it was possible to buy a licence to attempt to make gold alchemically, and a number were granted by Henry VI and Edward IV). These critiques and regulations centered more around pseudo-alchemical charlatanism than the actual study of alchemy, which continued with an increasingly Christian tone. The 14th century saw

15444-413: The precedent set by Klontzas. Theodore Poulakis added the last judgment to his rendition of Klontzas' In Thee Rejoiceth . The painter incorporated the Last Judgement into one of Klontzas' earlier works entitled In Thee Rejoiceth . Poulakis paid homage to the father of the Last Judgement style. Leos Moskos and Francheskos Kavertzas also followed the outline for the stylistic representation of

15587-451: The problem of its sources, it is advisable to compare it with what remains to us of the alchemical literature in the Greek language . One knows in which miserable state this literature reached us. Collected by Byzantine scientists from the tenth century, the corpus of the Greek alchemists is a cluster of incoherent fragments, going back to all the times since the third century until the end of

15730-614: The prolongation of life. His correspondence with Clement highlighted this, noting the importance of alchemy to the papacy. Like the Greeks before him, Bacon acknowledged the division of alchemy into practical and theoretical spheres. He noted that the theoretical lay outside the scope of Aristotle, the natural philosophers, and all Latin writers of his time. The practical confirmed the theoretical, and Bacon advocated its uses in natural science and medicine. In later European legend, he became an archmage. In particular, along with Albertus Magnus, he

15873-477: The reward of paradise ( Jannah ) or the punishment of hell ( Jahannam ). In this process, the souls will traverse over hellfire via the bridge of sirat . For sinners, the bridge will be thinner than hair and sharper than the sharpest sword, impossible to walk on without falling below to arrive at their fiery destination, while the righteous will proceed across the bridge to paradise ( Jannah ). Not everyone consigned to hell will remain there. Somewhat like

16016-416: The rites of the Egyptian temples. Zosimos of Panopolis asserted that alchemy dated back to Pharaonic Egypt where it was the domain of the priestly class, though there is little to no evidence for his assertion. Alchemical writers used Classical figures from Greek, Roman, and Egyptian mythology to illuminate their works and allegorize alchemical transmutation. These included the pantheon of gods related to

16159-427: The same bodies they had before dying. The bodies will then be changed, those of the wicked to a state of everlasting shame and torment, those of the righteous to an everlasting state of celestial glory. After the resurrection of all the dead, and the change of those still living, all nations shall be gathered before Christ, and he will separate the righteous from the wicked. Christ will publicly judge all people by

16302-587: The same space which   ... resembles the theory of these mystics in its main outlines, and was probably what suggested it to them. Alchemy Alchemy (from the Arabic word al-kīmīā , الكیمیاء ) is an ancient branch of natural philosophy , a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practised in China , India , the Muslim world , and Europe . In its Western form, alchemy

16445-419: The school of thought that prevailed ( Ashʿarī ) "affirmed that such things as the individual records of deeds (including the paper, pen, and ink with which they are inscribed), the bridge, the balance, and the pond are realities to be understood in a concrete and literal sense." In Jainism , there is no day of judgement as such. Jains believe, however, that as the 5th era comes to an end, evil will increase and

16588-493: The story of Undine. The eponymous Undine Barge Club of Philadelphia is an amateur rowing club on Boathouse Row in Philadelphia. Undine is the title and the main character of a 2020 German movie directed by Christian Petzold . Congenital central hypoventilation syndrome, a rare medical condition in which those affected lack autonomic control of their breathing and are hence at risk of suffocation while sleeping,

16731-590: The study and development of Greek alchemy in the Byzantine period. The 2nd millennium BC text Vedas describe a connection between eternal life and gold. A considerable knowledge of metallurgy has been exhibited in a third-century AD text called Arthashastra which provides ingredients of explosives (Agniyoga) and salts extracted from fertile soils and plant remains (Yavakshara) such as saltpetre/ nitre , perfume making (different qualities of perfumes are mentioned), granulated (refined) Sugar. Buddhist texts from

16874-408: The substances, mark an experimental spirit which is extremely far away from the weird and odd esotericism of the Greek texts. The theory on which Jabir supports his operations is one of clearness and of an impressive unity. More than with the other Arab authors, one notes with him a balance between theoretical teaching and practical teaching, between the 'ilm and the amal . In vain one would seek in

17017-559: The teachings of the personality of Matsyendranath . Other early writings are found in the Jaina medical treatise Kalyāṇakārakam of Ugrāditya, written in South India in the early 9th century. Two famous early Indian alchemical authors were Nāgārjuna Siddha and Nityanātha Siddha. Nāgārjuna Siddha was a Buddhist monk. His book, Rasendramangalam , is an example of Indian alchemy and medicine. Nityanātha Siddha wrote Rasaratnākara , also

17160-488: The technique to purify the human soul ). They believed in the four elements and the four qualities as described above, and they had a strong tradition of cloaking their written ideas in a labyrinth of coded jargon set with traps to mislead the uninitiated. Finally, the alchemists practised their art: they actively experimented with chemicals and made observations and theories about how the universe operated. Their entire philosophy revolved around their belief that man's soul

17303-401: The testimony of their faith – the good works of the righteous in evidence of their faith, and the evil works of the wicked in evidence of their unbelief. He will judge in righteousness in the presence of all and men and angels, and his final judgment will be just damnation to everlasting punishment for the wicked and a gracious gift of life everlasting to the righteous. Although

17446-573: The time included the Turba Philosophorum , and the works of Avicenna and Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi . These brought with them many new words to the European vocabulary for which there was no previous Latin equivalent. Alcohol, carboy , elixir , and athanor are examples. Meanwhile, theologian contemporaries of the translators made strides towards the reconciliation of faith and experimental rationalism, thereby priming Europe for

17589-444: The transformation of many of their undines into springs: Hyrie (book VII) and Egeria (book XV) are two such characters. Later writers embellished Paracelsus' undine classification by developing it into a water nymph in its own right. The romance Undine by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué , published in 1811, is based on a passage in Paracelsus' Book on Nymphs in which he relates how an undine can acquire an immortal soul by marrying

17732-465: The transmutation of " base metals " (e.g., lead ) into " noble metals " (particularly gold ); the creation of an elixir of immortality ; and the creation of panaceas able to cure any disease. The perfection of the human body and soul was thought to result from the alchemical magnum opus ("Great Work"). The concept of creating the philosophers' stone was variously connected with all of these projects. Islamic and European alchemists developed

17875-406: The two alchemical schools of thought include discrete naming for ingredients and heavy influence from the natural elements. The silk road provided a clear path for the exchange of goods, ideas, ingredients, religion, and many other aspects of life with which alchemy is intertwined. Whereas European alchemy eventually centered on the transmutation of base metals into noble metals, Chinese alchemy had

18018-525: The two". Souls remain in Hades until the Last Judgment and "Christians may also improve in holiness after death during the middle state before the final judgment". Anglican and Methodist theology holds that at the time of the Last Day , "Jesus will return and that He will 'judge both the quick [the living] and the dead'," and "all [will] be bodily resurrected and stand before Christ as our Judge. After

18161-532: The unpublished manuscripts of these titles. A great deal remains to be discovered about Indian alchemical literature. The content of the Sanskrit alchemical corpus has not yet (2014) been adequately integrated into the wider general history of alchemy. After the fall of the Roman Empire , the focus of alchemical development moved to the Islamic World. Much more is known about Islamic alchemy because it

18304-415: The unusual clarity with which they were described. By the end of the 13th century, alchemy had developed into a fairly structured system of belief. Adepts believed in the macrocosm-microcosm theories of Hermes, that is to say, they believed that processes that affect minerals and other substances could have an effect on the human body (for example, if one could learn the secret of purifying gold, one could use

18447-858: The use of gunpowder spread to Japan, the Mongols , the Muslim world, and Europe. Gunpowder was used by the Mongols against the Hungarians in 1241, and in Europe by the 14th century. Chinese alchemy was closely connected to Taoist forms of traditional Chinese medicine , such as Acupuncture and Moxibustion . In the early Song dynasty , followers of this Taoist idea (chiefly the elite and upper class) would ingest mercuric sulfide , which, though tolerable in low levels, led many to suicide. Thinking that this consequential death would lead to freedom and access to

18590-514: The use of metals, minerals, and elixirs in early Chinese medicine. Hong identified three ancient Chinese documents, titled Scripture of Great Clarity, Scripture of the Nine Elixirs , and Scripture of the Golden Liquor, as texts containing fundamental alchemical information. He also described alchemy, along with meditation, as the sole spiritual practices that could allow one to gain immortality or to transcend. In his work Inner Chapters of

18733-417: The use of observation, experimentation, and conclusions when conducting scientific investigations. Grosseteste also did much work to reconcile Platonic and Aristotelian thinking. Through much of the 12th and 13th centuries, alchemical knowledge in Europe remained centered on translations, and new Latin contributions were not made. The efforts of the translators were succeeded by that of the encyclopaedists. In

18876-502: The vocabulary of Greek philosophical schools but did not implement any of its doctrines in a systematic way. Zosimos of Panopolis wrote in the Final Abstinence (also known as the "Final Count"). Zosimos explains that the ancient practice of "tinctures" (the technical Greek name for the alchemical arts) had been taken over by certain "demons" who taught the art only to those who offered them sacrifices. Since Zosimos also called

19019-439: The work of Jabir. From the 9th to 14th centuries, alchemical theories faced criticism from a variety of practical Muslim chemists, including Alkindus , Abū al-Rayhān al-Bīrūnī , Avicenna and Ibn Khaldun . In particular, they wrote refutations against the idea of the transmutation of metals . From the 14th century onwards, many materials and practices originally belonging to Indian alchemy ( Rasayana ) were assimilated in

19162-549: The works of these predecessors. By the middle of the 7th century alchemy was almost an entirely mystical discipline. It was at that time that Khalid Ibn Yazid sparked its migration from Alexandria to the Islamic world, facilitating the translation and preservation of Greek alchemical texts in the 8th and 9th centuries. Greek alchemy was preserved in medieval Byzantine manuscripts after the fall of Egypt , and yet historians have only relatively recently begun to pay attention to

19305-428: The writings of Aristotle and Avicenna, where they concerned the transmutation of metals. From the time shortly after his death through to the 15th century, more than 28 alchemical tracts were misattributed to him, a common practice giving rise to his reputation as an accomplished alchemist. Likewise, alchemical texts have been attributed to Albert's student Thomas Aquinas . Roger Bacon, a Franciscan friar who wrote on

19448-489: Was believed that one would become immortal if an inner god were to be immortalized within them through spiritual fulfilment. Black powder may have been an important invention of Chinese alchemists. It is said that the Chinese invented gunpowder while trying to find a potion for eternal life. Described in 9th-century texts and used in fireworks in China by the 10th century, it was used in cannons by 1290. From China,

19591-419: Was better documented: indeed, most of the earlier writings that have come down through the years were preserved as Arabic translations. The word alchemy itself was derived from the Arabic word al-kīmiyā (الكيمياء). The early Islamic world was a melting pot for alchemy. Platonic and Aristotelian thought, which had already been somewhat appropriated into hermetical science, continued to be assimilated during

19734-440: Was credited with the forging of a brazen head capable of answering its owner's questions. Soon after Bacon, the influential work of Pseudo-Geber (sometimes identified as Paul of Taranto ) appeared. His Summa Perfectionis remained a staple summary of alchemical practice and theory through the medieval and renaissance periods. It was notable for its inclusion of practical chemical operations alongside sulphur-mercury theory, and

19877-563: Was divided within himself after the fall of Adam. By purifying the two parts of man's soul, man could be reunited with God. In the 14th century, alchemy became more accessible to Europeans outside the confines of Latin-speaking churchmen and scholars. Alchemical discourse shifted from scholarly philosophical debate to an exposed social commentary on the alchemists themselves. Dante , Piers Plowman , and Chaucer all painted unflattering pictures of alchemists as thieves and liars. Pope John XXII 's 1317 edict, Spondent quas non-exhibent forbade

20020-419: Was externally cold and dry, while gold was hot and moist. Thus, Jabir theorized, by rearranging the qualities of one metal, a different metal would result. By this reasoning, the search for the philosopher's stone was introduced to Western alchemy. Jabir developed an elaborate numerology whereby the root letters of a substance's name in Arabic, when treated with various transformations, held correspondences to

20163-553: Was held by the Venetian Empire. Most of the works of art were influenced by Venetian painting but were considered to be painted in the Maniera Greca . Georgios Klontzas painted many triptychs featuring the Last Judgment some include The Last Judgment , The Last Judgement Triptych , and The Triptych of the Last Judgement . Klontzas was the forerunner of a new painting style. Other Greek painters followed

20306-529: Was itself adopted from the Arabic word al-kīmiyā ( الكيمياء ). The Arabic al-kīmiyā in turn was a borrowing of the Late Greek term khēmeía ( χημεία ), also spelled khumeia ( χυμεία ) and khēmía ( χημία ), with al- being the Arabic definite article 'the'. Together this association can be interpreted as 'the process of transmutation by which to fuse or reunite with the divine or original form'. Several etymologies have been proposed for

20449-552: Was the first to propose that the four classical elements were sufficient to explain everything present in the world. Paracelsus's view of elemental spirits may have grown out of the folklore that very human-like race of spirits existing in a different "plane" from humans, according to Celticist Henry Jenner . Thus in the " astral plane " (or "Chaos", in Paracelsian jargon) for each of the four elements, earth, air/wind, fire, and water, there resided four types of spiritual beings,

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