"Alchemy" is an ancient 'protoscientific' tradition, according to modern understanding, of Greco-Egyptian origin.  It was subsequently popularized by medieval polymaths.  The root appears to be Coptic and pertain to the knowledge of the "black land" (or Egypt).  In contrast to the "red land" or the lifeless desert beyond the Nile, the science of the black land focused on life and life-giving properties of nature. 

An aspect of hermeticism, alchemy was an investigation into the natural world and comprised a sizeable portion, alongside astrology, what was then called "natural philosophy."   Coincidentally, alchemy is where we get the word "chemistry", just as astrology was linked to the hip of astronomy.  We have often read accounts of how Sir Isaac Newton was equally interested in alchemy as he was gravitational forces and calculus.  Why was one of the greatest figures of the so-called "Enlightenment" so preoccupied with what we take to be the Occult?  Moreover, why are modern scientists who presumptuously believe that they know more deeply than he the truths of the world so eager to bury that other part of his legacy?

This section does not judge the truthfulness or accuracy of protoscience, but documents pre-modern views of Nature prior to the "disenchantment" of the world (in the words of Max Weber).  It also interfaces my own experiments in botany, herbalism, micro-ecology, permaculture, organic farming alongside these ancient books that the modern world has long discarded.   Life itself is a mystery, never to be fully grasped, and the inimitably pious Ancient Egyptians recognized that much-- even if they were blind to the true source of life.

Regarding the natural world, this section also examines the writings and reported sayings of ancient Christians and those they "despoiled" (in the words of St. Augustine) of such knowledge.   While Augustine in this context was speaking of philosophy and the liberal arts, I consider knowledge of the natural world to be a similarly important treasury for Christian meditation.

The aim overall is to recover a sense of Creation as opposed to the abstract and morally neutral term "Universe."  By doing so, I hope to point to a Supernatural Transcendence above and beyond as a source for the aesthetic categories of awe, beauty, and the sublime. 

If there is wonder here below, what else awaits us above?

[MORE TO COME!]