The Philosopher's Stone
"This magical wisdom and strength thus sleeps, but, by a mere suggestion, is roused into activity and becomes more living, the more the outer man of flesh and darkness is repressed."--Van Helmont
16th century alchemist
"Thou hast forgotten what thy fathers taught thee about it--or rather thou hast never known...it is too loud for thee!"
--Robert Fludd
Alchemist and Rosicrucian
What exactly were these two gentlemen referring to? Knowledge of dynamic accounting procedures? Insight into the secrets of dressing for success? Where to get the best prime rib in town?
Hardly. These intense fellows were referring to the Philosopher's Stone, that legendary stuff that purportedly turned base metals into gold. The term has been bandied about for centuries, ever shrouded in mystery, sought by some, scoffed at by most, but never forgotten.
The Philosopher's Stone was a symbol. It represented the final outcome of man's inner transformation, of the conversion of the base metal of his outer character to the golden properties of his higher self.
"Why then," you might ask, "was it necessary for these alchemists, gnostics, Rosicrucians, Qaballists, and the like, to make up these tall tales about turning stuff into gold? Why didn't they just come right out and say what they meant?"
Well the reason was twofold. First of all, you have to consider the times. Back in the 15th or 16th century, if you were involved in esoteric studies--were in fact discovering knowledge and power unheard of, undreamt of by your fellow man--the last thing you were going to do was to start shooting your mouth off about it. There was the wrath of the church to consider; heretics didn't live long, and didn't have such a good time of it while they did. Then you had the rest of the ignorant mob to worry about. People very often tend to fear what they don't understand, and then go about the task of ridding themselves of whatever it is so they won't have to be afraid of it anymore. The last thing you wanted to seem was threatening or vaguely...well, satanic. Not that you did, but you couldn't be too careful. Anyone or anything could pass for Satan back in those days, people were being burnt left and right. Best to keep a low profile.
Even today, in our modern, supposedly enlightened age of reason, of science and technology, people's concepts of hidden knowledge and esoteric teachings have a decidedly negative bias. The whole meaning of the word "occult" has come to be regarded as something to do with witches and demons and who knows what else, when, in fact, all it really means is "secret."
What determines the outcome of any occult study is the intention of the individual. Both Black Magic and White Magic utilize the same forces in nature. It is the question of whether the magician is using those forces for selfish reasons, to benefit him or herself, or for selfless reasons, to benefit mankind, that must be answered before we can start attributing positive or negative qualities to anyone involved in the occult arts. "For it is the motive, and the motive alone," states Madame Blavatsky, "which makes any exercise of power become black, malignant, or white, beneficent Magic."
To me it seems obvious that occultism, or Theosophy, is the logical extention of honest, forthright spiritual inquiry. Any thinking individual will want to know