In last week’s post, we talked about the general theory of alchemy – solve et coagula – and how it relates to the vegetable kingdom in the form of spagyric alchemy. We covered a number of different theoretical frameworks for how alchemical separation can be effected, but stopped short of actually delving into the specifics of the process. In this post, we will dive deeper into the selection of ingredients for alchemical preparations.
Because alchemy is the art of elevating substances to their purest and most perfected state, the selection of ingredients is paramount. The higher the quality of the initial ingredients, the easier it is to purify and perfect them. In this sense, the work of an alchemical preparation begins well before the actual laboratory work, in the ritualized gathering of ingredients.
Here, alchemy has many parallels with Solomonic magic. Solomonic grimoires detail how a vast array of tools should be ritualistically prepared and consecrated, before the core magical operation can begin.1 It is in the gathering and preparation of ingredients that alchemy straddles the line between science and magic. Astrology and ritual become as important as laboratory procedure.
The first step is to decide which herbs we want to work with.
Formulas vs. Simples
There are, by and large, two approaches to herbal medicine: those utilizing formulas composed of several herbs acting in concert, and those utilizing simples wherein a single herb acts alone.
Both approaches have their advantages, and both are at least somewhat attested in historical sources on alchemy. A good herbal formula can bring together complementary actions of different herbs, for example an anticatarrhal herb – to reduce mucus production in the respiratory tract – paired with an expectorant to help clear existing mucus from the lungs. A well-crafted formula can also pair herbs that amplify each other’s desirable actions while balancing out each other’s undesirable actions, to create an effective medicine with minimal side effects. However, the creation of effective formulas is a sophisticated science that requires years of careful study to master. Most herbal formulas that you find in print simply throw together a bunch of herbs with similar actions, under the assumption that more is somehow better.
In contrast, herbal simples are preparations from a single herb. They have clearly predictable actions, and help us deeply understand the properties and effects of a particular herb. They also don’t necessitate a large apothecary to prepare – where a formula might require a half a dozen herbs from different sources, the ingredients for a simple can often be grown or gathered locally. I would rather know a small number of herbal allies deeply, than be superficially acquainted with a huge variety.
This latter approach is also the dominant one in alchemical texts. Because the whole exercise is to purify the essence of a plant, beginning with a single plant facilitates that purification. Consider the following passage from Roger Bacon’s The Root of the World:
For the pure substance is of one simple essence, void of all heterogeneity; but that which is impure and unclean, consists of heterogene parts, is not simple, but compounded (to wit of pure and impure) and apt to putrefy and corrupt. Therefore let nothing enter into your composition, which is alien or foreign to the matter, as all impurity is; for nothing goes to the composition of our stone, that proceedeth not from it neither in part nor in whole. If any strange or foreign thing be mixed with it, it is immediately corrupted, and by that corruption your work becomes frustrated.
So let us proceed under the latter model: working with a single herb at a time to form a single alchemical preparation.
Fresh vs. Dried Herbs
Nearly every modern alchemical book recommends preparing tinctures and essences from dried herbs, rather than fresh. For many, this seems to be a matter of convenience, but Frater Albertus in The Alchemist’s Handbook specifically explains it as follows:
Fresh herbs should firstly be dried in a warm place where there is adequate circulation of air. If fresh, undried herbs are used in our work, it will be found that they contain much water which is of no value to us.2
I’m baffled by this suggestion.
A fresh herb has a very different character than a dried herb, because any compound that is more volatile than water will necessarily be lost in the drying process. This can be clearly seen with lemon balm (melissa officinalis). Fresh lemon balm has a bright, distinctive, citrusy fragrance. An infusion of dried lemon balm is almost totally lacking in this – it instead has a grassy, vegetable scent. Given that so much of alchemy is about capturing the subtle and vital essence of a plant, letting it dry first seems entirely at odds with our goals.
M. Johannus Isaac Hollandus seems to concur, in his treatise on the creation of the vegetable stone, even going to far as to say we should avoid crushing the plant at all:
Know then that if the plants were crushed, part of the three spirits would fly away, namely, the greenness or color, and part of the air or taste, and part of the natural warmth, since these three spirits are so volatile that they do not permit any pounding or crushing. You would therefore lose the major part of them, and afterward your work would be spoiled. You would only treat a dead Corpus, deprived of its soul and life, because the plant is mortified by crushing it. Try it: pound a green plant very small in a mortar. It will quickly lose its green color and natural moisture, since the whole house where the pounding is done is filled with the smell of the plant. The smell, however, no longer comes back after the nature of the plant has been broken…3
It seems much preferable to work from fresh herbs, where possible, and instead correct for the excess water through the choice of an appropriate menstruum.
The timing of and methods for gathering herbs are also important. Herbs tend to be highest in essential oils on warm, sunny days, and should ideally be gathered at this time. Hollandus echoes this idea, recommending that herbs be gathered whole (leaves, flowers, roots, and seeds) on a clear day when the sun is shining strongest, then quickly cleaned “without washing them or adding any moisture.”4
Depending on the elemental or astrological rulership of the herb in question, other specific considerations of timing may be taken into account: the phase or mansion of the moon, the day and hour of the planetary ruler, or astrological aspects of the ruling planet.
So for our work let’s say: while dried herbs are an option, it is preferable to work from whole, fresh herbs whenever possible. They should be gathered when astrological considerations are favorable, and gently brushed clean before being used.
The Menstruum
Both alchemical tinctures and essences begin by combining the herbs in question with an appropriate menstruum. As previously mentioned, this menstruum should embody the Mercury principle of the vegetable kingdom, which can be found in ethyl alcohol (ethanol). There are two further considerations worth discussing here: concentration and source.
In terms of concentration, we can turn to medical herbalism for clarity. There are some chemical compounds which are soluble primarily in alcohol, while others are soluble primarily in water. Thus, when tincturing an herb, a mix of water and alcohol is desirable for optimal extraction. Here we need to take into account whether we are using fresh or dried herbs. For dried herbs, a 100-proof mix of water and alcohol is excellent. For fresh herbs, a higher concentration of alcohol (up to pure ethanol) is preferred, the water content being supplied by the herbs themselves.
Alchemical texts often discuss using the rectified spirit of wine. This is created by starting with a strong red wine, and distilling it repeatedly (usually seven times) under controlled heat to achieve a spirit that is close to pure ethanol.5
This spirit, distilled from wine, was viewed as superior to all other forms of ethyl alcohol. Why was wine considered ideal? The clearest explanation I have found is again from Hollandus, in his Opus Vegetabile:
I am well aware, however, that among all insensitive spirits none is as noble and efficacious as the excellent spirit of the noble vine, because God Almighty has provided from the beginning of time that the noble grape should grow on it, later to be changed into God’s blood and body. Consequently, the wise know well that the spirit of wine surpasses all other spirits.6
In other words, wine is used for the Eucharist, in which it is viewed as being transmuted into the literal blood of Christ. A plant material capable of being transmuted into God, must clearly have some inherent elevation above its peers, which we can use to our advantage. Even when distilled, alcohol derived from wine retains some imprint of this potential for Divine unity.
It seems likely this explanation is at least somewhat constructed; alchemists were working with spirits of wine before the rise of Christianity. However, we will still prefer working with a rectified spirit of wine, or barring that with brandy, for reasons of fidelity to tradition.
So we can establish a preference among menstruums, in order of suitability for our alchemical work.
For fresh herbs:
- Pure rectified spirit of wine
- Everclear, or another grain spirit of very high proof
- Any other distilled spirit, the higher proof the better
For dried herbs:
- A mix of equal parts rectified spirit of wine and distilled water
- Brandy, between 80 and 100 proof
- Any other distilled spirit, between 80 and 100 proof
In alchemy, as in any transformative art, the work begins long before the laboratory process. The gathering of ingredients, the selection of an appropriate menstruum, and the alignment of these choices with both practical and philosophical considerations, all contribute to the integrity of the final product. Whether we work with fresh or dried herbs, whether we distill our own spirit of wine or use an alternative, every decision shapes the potency and purity of our spagyric preparations.
By choosing a single plant and preserving its essence with care, we ensure that the alchemical process remains true to its purpose: to elevate and refine, crafting an unadulterated herbal medicine.
This post is part of a three part series. You can find the next part here.
- In some cases even detailing the ritualistic preparation of the tools to create the tools for magic. And the tools to create those. As far back as you care to take the process. ↩︎
- Albertus, F. (2022). The Alchemist’s Handbook. Weiser Books. ↩︎
- Hollandus, M. How to Make the Vegetable Stone or Quintam Essentiam for All Green Plants, Seeds, Roots, and the Like, from Which the Cloud-Water Goes Over First ↩︎
- Ibid. ↩︎
- Heliophilus, in Alchemy Rising: The Green Book describes a process that additionally involves the separation of Sulphur and Salt from wine, which are later added back to the rectified spirit. This seems misguided to me. The entire reason external ethanol can be added to a plant preparation is because it is universal across the vegetable kingdom. Retaining the Sulfur or Salt of the wine adulterates your rectified spirit with a character foreign to the herb being prepared. ↩︎
- Hollandus, M. Opus Vegetabile. ↩︎
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