Sorcerer's Stone: A Beginner's Guide to Alchemy

«My initiation into the art of alchemy took place when I was a graduate student at the University of Vienna.» — el arranque de la introducción: Hauck sitúa su iniciación en la biblioteca de la Universidad de Viena, entre manuscritos latinos y alemanes

«But it was not the fancy typestyles that grabbed my attention. It was the deeply meaningful pictures that fascinated me.» — lo que lo retuvo, dice, no fue la tipografía de los impresos sino sus imágenes

«It was obvious that the alchemists were connected to their subject matter in ways a modern chemist could never hope to understand. Alchemy was obviously a lot more than just a precursor to chemistry.» — la tesis de partida del libro: que la alquimia excede a la química y que el vínculo del alquimista con su materia es de otra clase que el del químico moderno

«He confessed his family were members of the Solificati and considered themselves sorcerers not chemists. But his primary interest was applied alchemy and laboratory work and not "witches' work." He said he had apprenticed in southern France in the Silent Tradition of alchemy.» — lo que le declaró el alquimista con quien lo pusieron en contacto en Viena: familia de los Solificati, que se tenían por hechiceros y no por químicos, interés en la alquimia aplicada y aprendizaje en la Silent Tradition del sur de Francia. La voz es del interlocutor, referida por Hauck

«Alchemists of that tradition worked with "rejected" substances like dirt, sea foam, dew, brackish water, and urine.» — las materias que Hauck adjudica a esa tradición: las sustancias despreciadas

«The guiding concept was that these three levels of reality— physical, mental, and spiritual—were the tools of the alchemist» — el concepto rector de su aprendizaje: los tres planos —físico, mental y espiritual— como herramientas del alquimista. El tramo se corta en el salto de plana y sigue *using all three simultaneously in the work*, es decir, la maestría consistiría en usarlos a la vez

«It not only made my mind more fluid, alive, and aware of deeper forces at work behind everything, but it freed my spirit from the shackles of my own ego.» — el efecto que Hauck adjudica a esa técnica, en primera persona

«I had to learn to let the truth work through me and not from me. A subtle difference perhaps, but it was not until I became transparent to the principles that they took root and started to grow and come alive within me. Any plans, schemes, fantasies of power or fame, or just old fashioned pride would immediately short circuit the entire process.» — la condición que enuncia para practicarla: transparencia a los principios, con el orgullo o la fantasía de poder como cortocircuito del proceso

«Alchemy only works— as the alchemists keep telling us— if the principles are “living.” The Sorcerer’s Stone of the Solificati is worthless unless it is alive.» — la condición de vida que pone a la práctica, y de la que sale el título del libro: la Piedra del Hechicero de los Solificati no sirve si no está viva

«In other words, you cannot change the world with dead words from a dead part of you. Alchemy spreads though the process of seeding and multiplication, like any other life form.» — cómo entiende la propagación de la alquimia: por siembra y multiplicación, como una forma de vida

«The writhing blob of matter was known as the First Matter, and it represented months of hard work roasting, pulverizing, dissolving and breaking down materials said to contain the mysterious essence.» — la Primera Materia con que abre el capítulo 1: meses de tostar, pulverizar y disolver materiales que se tenían por portadores de la esencia

«believed that once they had isolated enough First Matter, they could purify it and produce the magical Philosopher’s Stone that would in turn perfect anything. Of course, just how to accumulate and purify the First Matter was the greatest secret in alchemy.» — el objetivo que adjudica a los alquimistas —purificar esa materia hasta la Piedra Filosofal— y el secreto que, dice, nunca se explicitó: cómo acumularla y purificarla

«The alchemists believed the life force was like a subtle substance that could be separated from living things and used to impart health to others or even give life to inanimate objects. Many famous alchemists claimed to have created little beings (called the homunculi) by infusing the life force into flasks of chemical compounds.» — la doctrina de la fuerza vital separable, y la creación de homúnculos que, según Hauck, muchos alquimistas se adjudicaron

«One ill-fated British alchemist used to demonstrate the affinity of mercury for gold by sticking his big toe in a saucer of mercury while holding a gold coin in his mouth. Within a half-hour, the coin was coated with a silvery layer of mercury that had traveled through his blood. Unfortunately, he was only able to perform the feat a few times before he died of mercury poisoning.» — la anécdota con que ilustra el riesgo del oficio: el alquimista británico que demostraba la afinidad del mercurio por el oro con el dedo gordo del pie. Hauck no lo nombra

«This tub was known as the “digester,” in which materials were allowed to rot and break down by an alchemical operation called Putrefaction.» — el digestor del laboratorio, donde la materia se dejaba pudrir bajo la operación que llama Putrefacción

«This is where the alchemist recorded the results of his experiments, using not only measurements and the written word but bizarre diagrams and drawings of eerie creatures and mythological figures intended to capture the experience on as many levels of interpretation as possible.» — por qué, según Hauck, el cuaderno del alquimista lleva diagramas y criaturas además de medidas: para capturar la experiencia en tantos niveles de interpretación como se pueda

«Distillation purified even the foulest liquid and also concentrated the strength of whatever essences were present. Not only could one make alcoholic spirits and essential oils using distillation but also produce specific herbal tinctures and elixirs as well.» — lo que adjudica a la destilación en ese laboratorio: purificación, concentración de esencias y producción de tinturas y elixires

«This tent or tabernacle formed a private meditation space for the alchemist, and as much work was done within this sacred tabernacle as was carried on in the laboratory. Alchemists spent many hours in solitary contemplation, attempting to purify and focus their minds.» — el tabernáculo del laboratorio: Hauck sostiene que se trabajaba tanto en ese espacio de meditación como en la mesa

«Hidden somewhere in the meditation area of the laboratory could usually be found the alchemist’s incubator. This insulated, copper-clad wooden box was perhaps the most sacred spot in the lab. The sealed container, kept warm by the fermenting matter within, was where the alchemist directed his thoughts and visualizations.» — la incubadora: caja de madera forrada de cobre y caliente por la propia fermentación, donde el alquimista dirigía pensamientos y visualizaciones

«However, if anyone other than the alchemist touched or even looked upon this box, all was lost. In the beginning, the subject of the alchemist’s work was easily corrupted by another’s impure thoughts, which is why the alchemist always kept his work secret – even from other alchemists.» — de dónde saca Hauck el secreto del oficio: la materia sería corruptible por el pensamiento impuro ajeno, y de ahí que el alquimista ocultara su trabajo incluso a otros alquimistas

«To alchemists, consciousness is a force of nature that can be harnessed and purified through prayer and meditation and then added to the experiment just like a chemical ingredient. This esoteric part of the experiment is absolutely necessary and explains why many alchemical experiments cannot be duplicated in a chemical laboratory.» — la afirmación central del capítulo 1: la consciencia como fuerza de la naturaleza que se añade al experimento igual que un reactivo, y la razón que da de que muchos experimentos alquímicos no se repitan en un laboratorio químico

«Chemistry operates by rearranging atoms like so many billiard balls – a methodology much too crude for the alchemist. From the alchemist’s viewpoint, chemistry is an artificial science that deals only with the external forms in which the elements manifest.» — cómo distingue química de alquimia: reordenar átomos como bolas de billar sería, dice, demasiado tosco, y la química se ocuparía solo de las formas externas de los elementos

«In other words, the alchemist’s attitude has a lot to do with the outcome of the experiment. This idea is very similar to the Observer Effect, a proven tenet of quantum physics, in which the expectations of the experimenter have been shown to influence the outcome of experiments in nuclear physics.» — la analogía con que Hauck justifica el peso de la actitud del operador: la compara con el efecto del observador de la física cuántica

«Yet somehow, the alchemists knew that consciousness was the tool through which man could access that invisible level underneath our everyday reality.» — lo que adjudica al saber de los alquimistas: la consciencia como instrumento de acceso al nivel invisible de la realidad

«The key to this whole magical process was the conscious connection or “correspondence” the alchemist was able to forge between his own mind and the “mind of nature” as expressed in the experiment.» — cómo define la *correspondencia*: el vínculo consciente que el alquimista forjaría entre su mente y la *mente de la naturaleza* manifiesta en el experimento

«The alchemist’s idea of the “mind of nature” was very similar to our modern notion of evolution. Over time, nature seems to be perfecting itself.» — el paralelo que traza entre esa noción y la evolución moderna: la naturaleza se estaría perfeccionando con el tiempo

«In the words of the modern French alchemist, Jean Dubuis: “Alchemy is the art of manipulating life, and consciousness in matter, to help it evolve, or to solve problems of inner disharmonies.”» — la definición que Hauck toma del alquimista francés contemporáneo Jean Dubuis; la formulación es de Dubuis, no suya

«The alchemists believe that everything carries the energetic seed or pattern of its own perfection, and it was the job of the alchemist» — la semilla de perfección que adjudica a toda cosa. El tramo se corta en el salto de plana y sigue *to resurrect these essences of perfection that are trapped in matter*: la tarea sería resucitar esas esencias atrapadas en la materia

«In the alchemical view, matter is alive and the metals grow naturally in the earth's interior furnace by alchemical processes that act on the First Matter.» — la doctrina del crecimiento de los metales en el horno interior de la tierra, que él enuncia como visión alquímica

«The alchemist's task, therefore, is to speed up nature's work by perfecting the metals in the laboratory.» — de ahí deriva la tarea: acelerar en el laboratorio lo que la naturaleza haría sola

«What makes humans different from ordinary matter is that we can consciously participate in our own process of perfection. In fact, we all participate in alchemy whether we know it or not.» — la diferencia que pone entre el humano y el resto de la materia: participar conscientemente del propio perfeccionamiento, se sepa o no

«According to this deeper tradition, the gold of alchemy is hastened perfection in the highest sense – the divinization of matter and of human beings.» — cómo lee el oro alquímico: no metal, sino perfección acelerada y divinización de la materia y del hombre

«So, in the final analysis, alchemy is an art that can only be practiced by those who are in possession of the artist’s tools – the inspired presence and purified imagination necessary for creative» — el límite que pone a su propia definición: sin presencia inspirada e imaginación purificada, el arte no se practica. El tramo se corta en el salto de plana y cierra con *transformation*

«Only the person in whom the creative force has awakened can in turn awaken it from its slumber in matter and cause new forms to be generated.» — y el corolario: quien no tenga despierta la fuerza creadora produciría, dice, un aborto alquímico aunque siga bien el procedimiento

«The alchemists believed the Emerald Tablet was an artifact brought to Egypt by mysterious visitors over 12,000 years ago. The tablet contains the essence of alchemical philosophy and has been credited as the source of both alchemy and the scientific method.» — lo que adjudica a la creencia de los alquimistas sobre el origen de la Tabla Esmeralda —traída a Egipto por visitantes hace más de doce mil años— y la doble paternidad que se le atribuye, la de la alquimia y la del método científico

«Nearly every medieval alchemist had a copy of it hanging on his laboratory wall and constantly referred to the secret formula it contained.» — el uso que le adjudica en el laboratorio medieval: copia colgada del muro y consulta constante

«“The Emerald Tablet,” said noted Jungian author Dr. Edward Edinger, “is the cryptic epitome of the alchemical opus, a recipe for the second creation of the world.”» — la valoración que cita del junguiano Edward Edinger; la formulación es de Edinger

«Esoteric scholar John Matthews wrote: “Whatever one chooses to believe about it, there is no getting away from the fact that the Emerald Tablet is one of the most profound and important documents to have come down to us. It has been said more than once that it contains the sum of all knowledge – for those able to understand it.”» — la de John Matthews, a quien presenta como estudioso esotérico; también es voz ajena citada por Hauck

«Explorers of consciousness Terence McKenna believed that the Emerald Tablet contained “a formula for a holographic matrix” that is mirrored in the human mind and offers our species its only hope for future survival.» — y la de Terence McKenna, que leía la Tabla como fórmula de una matriz holográfica; Hauck la refiere sin suscribirla en esos términos

«The Emerald Tablet is organized in seven rubrics or paragraphs. They are called rubrics (from the Latin rubeo, meaning “red”) because, in the Latin translations, the first letter of each paragraph was highlighted in red ink.» — de dónde saca el nombre de las rúbricas: del latín *rubeo*, por la inicial en tinta roja de cada párrafo en las traducciones latinas

«ISBN: 1481179144 ISBN-13: 9781481179140» — los dos ISBN que imprime la propia edición

«© 2013 Dennis William Hauck All Rights Reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission.» — la titularidad y la reserva de derechos; de aquí sale la atribución declarada

«Introduction ..................................................................3 Chapter 1: What Is Alchemy? ......................................6 Chapter 2: The Golden Thread .....................................23 Chapter 3: The Principles of Alchemy ......................... 48 Chapter 4: The Kitchen Alchemist ............................... 74 Chapter 5: The Ladder of the Planets» — el arranque del índice. Los folios que imprime —Introduction 3, capítulo 1 en 6, capítulo 2 en 23, capítulo 3 en 48, capítulo 4 en 74, capítulo 5 en 96— no son los de este troceo, donde esos mismos arranques caen en las planas 3, 5, 18, 38, 59 y 78: el índice conserva la paginación de otra edición

«Appendix 1: Glossary of Alchemy ...............................267 Appendix 2: Resources .................................................291 About the Author ...» — el cierre del índice, con el glosario, los recursos y la nota de autor. Los títulos del índice y los del cuerpo no coinciden en tres casos: el índice dice *The Ladder of the Planets*, *Moon’s Reflection* y *Sun’s Brilliance* donde el cuerpo imprime *Climbing the Ladder of the Planets*, *The Moon’s Reflection* y *The Sun’s Brilliance*; la divergencia se consigna sin armonizar

«SORCERER’S STONE A Beginner’s Guide to Alchemy by Dennis William Hauck Crucible Books P.O. Box 22309 Sacramento, CA 95822-0309 USA www.Crucible.org» — la portada del troceo, con el sello, el apartado postal de Sacramento y el sitio que la edición declara; de aquí sale el productor `imprimio`

«Second edition 2013. First published in paperback by Citadel Press 2004.» — la nota de edición: segunda de 2013 y primera en rústica de Citadel Press en 2004; de aquí sale el año de la ficha

«Alchemical Psychology is a look at ancient alchemical recipes for living in the modern world. Thom Cavalli. Jeremy Tarcher 2002. ISBN 1-58542-140-5. 364 pp.» — la primera entrada de la bibliografía recomendada del apéndice 2, con el formato que sigue todo el listado: reseña de una línea, autor, sello, año, ISBN y paginación

«Anatomy of the Psyche: Alchemical Symbolism in Psychotherapy is an in-depth description of the Seven Operations in psychological terms. Edward Edinger. Open Court Publishing 1991; ISBN: 0812690095. 260 pp.» — el libro de Edward Edinger que recomienda para las siete operaciones en clave psicológica; a Edinger ya lo había citado en el capítulo 1

«Emerald Tablet: Alchemy for Personal Transformation is the definitive history of the Emerald Tablet and the application of its principles to alchemy and personal transformation. Dennis William Hauck. Penguin Arkana 1999. ISBN 0-14-019571-8. 452 pp.» — la entrada en que recomienda su propio libro anterior sobre la Tabla Esmeralda, que en el corpus tiene ficha propia como `hauck-emerald-tablet`

«Secret of the Golden Flower is a Taoist alchemy treatise with wonderful commentary by C.G. Jung; these are ancient instructions for making the elixir of perfect health. Wilhelm Reich. Harcourt Brace 1988. ISBN 0156799804. 149 pp.» — el tratado taoísta que recomienda; el troceo adjudica la edición a *Wilhelm Reich* donde la traducción con comentario de Jung es de Richard Wilhelm (sic)

«Alchemy Guild is the official website of the non-profit International Alchemy Guild with members in 23 countries. Members have access to a huge archive of original alchemy manuscripts.» — el gremio del que la solapa dice que Hauck es consejero, listado aquí entre los recursos de internet

«Alchemy Lab is dedicated to personal transformation and has been described as “one of the most stunning web archives ever” by the London Times. (www.AlchemyLab.com)» — el sitio que el volumen cita a lo largo del texto para tablas y listas, con el elogio de prensa que le adjudica

«Dennis William Hauck is an author, consultant, and lecturer working to facilitate personal and institutional transformation through the application of the ancient principles of alchemy. He writes and lectures on the universal principles of physical, psychological, and spiritual perfection to a wide variety of audiences that range from scientists and business leaders to religious and New Age groups.» — la nota *About the Author* que cierra el volumen; es voz editorial sobre el autor, no del cuerpo del libro

«Hauck's interest in alchemy began while he was still in graduate school at the University of Vienna, and was initiated into the craft by a practicing alchemist living in nearby Prague. Hauck has since translated a number of important alchemy manuscripts dating back to the fourteenth century and has published seven books on the subject.» — los datos biográficos que da esa misma nota: Viena, la iniciación en Praga y las traducciones de manuscritos

«His Sorcerer’s Stone: A Beginner’s Guide to Alchemy (Penguin Citadel 2004; Athanor 2013) is an entertaining introduction to practical and spiritual alchemy.» — cómo describe la propia nota este volumen. Los sellos que da —*Penguin Citadel 2004; Athanor 2013*— no coinciden con la página de derechos, que imprime Crucible Books y Citadel Press; las dos versiones se consignan sin armonizar

«Hauck has contributed to a dozen anthologies, such as Awaken to a Dream (Watermark 1991), Magic of Our Universe (Camelot 1999), Alchemy: the Great Secret (Andrea Aromatico, Abrams 2001), Nine Windows to Wholeness: Jungian Sandplay (Sanity Press 2002), Tarot Court Cards Archetypes (Kate Warwick-Smith, Inner Traditions 2003), and Alchemical Healing (Nicki Scully, Bear & Co. 2003).» — las antologías en que la nota dice que ha colaborado

«Hauck’s books have been featured in USA Today, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, New York Post, Boston Globe, Seattle Times, Harper’s, Magical Blend, Lingua Franca, and hundreds of other periodicals. He has been interviewed on nearly four hundred radio and TV programs, including "NPR's Morning Edition," "A&E Unexplained," "Sally Jessy Raphael," "Geraldo," “The O’Reilly Factor,” "Extra," "America's Talking," and "CNN Reports."» — la lista de medios que la nota le adjudica

«Dennis William Hauck holds lectures and workshops throughout the world on the various aspects of practical, mental, and spiritual alchemy. He is an instructor in alchemy and is on the Board of Governors of the International Alchemy Guild. He is a professional member of the American Mathematical Association (AMA), the Association for Transpersonal Psychology (ATP), the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology (ACEP), and the Center for Research Into Science (CRIS).» — las membresías y cargos que la nota declara, incluida la del gremio internacional de alquimia

«Crucible Catalog carries lab supplies, chemicals, herbs, jewelry, and many esoteric and Hermetic items of interest to alchemists.» — el catálogo del propio sello editor del volumen, listado entre los recursos de internet