Alchemy

In Paracelsus’ study of alchemy he decided that the three core substances were mercury, salt, and sulphur. He connected these three substances to religious and occult teachings. Mercury represented unpredictability and fluidity, sulphur represented combustibility, and salt represented…

personal legends. However, while Santiago does go on to locate the Alchemist and achieve his goal of finding the treasure, the Englishman seems to be cast aside in the thick of things. He needs to find the alchemist in order to complete his study of alchemy and understand how to turn metal into gold, but while Santiago goes galloping into the desert with the Alchemist to fulfil his dreams, the Englishman remains stuck at the oasis and is never heard from again for the duration of the novel.…

Mystical Bedlam MADNESS, ANXIETY, AND HEALING IN SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY ENGLAND: the all-encompassing report of the works of Richard Napier during his time of practice from 1597 to 1634. The purpose of the book is to describe the manner in which mental disorders were viewed and experienced during the era and its effects throughout Europe. The author, Michael Macdonald argues that magical and religious beliefs had strong results on the mental world of common folk because of their protruding…

chemistry stories and scientific explanations went right over my head. The book covers every aspect of science that I could think of. So much of what I learned while reading this book involved much more than just chemistry. I learned about history, alchemy, astrohistory, math, geology, and mythology. At times it seemed as if I was reading a textbook, with how much information there was. I was surprised at the fact that I never got bored while reading the book. There was always some new…

capital punishment was established as punishment for a crime as far back as the Ancient Laws of China. In 16th century BC Egypt the first death sentence was recorded when a member of non-nobility was ordered to take his own life after being accused of alchemy (Randa, 1997). Britain has influenced America’s death penalty more than any other country and it was actually introduced to the new world by the first European settlers in the 17th century. The first recorded execution was in the…

One problem the Englishman did was he only learned from books. “Somethings need to be experienced to be truly internalized” (N.A., N.D, para. 3). The Englishman tried to learn alchemy only from books, but he never actually tried to attempt it in real life. Like when someone is learning how to make a cake, they can not become the best baker by just reading the recipe they need to attempt to make the cake, or when someone is trying…

Chapter Six, "Combining Words and Deeds Angelic Imprecations in the Book of Secrets," continues on with Jewish mystical tradition; only this time, the focus is placed on a Jewish magical witchcraft text the Book of Secrets or the Book of Raziel. Janowitz rightfully compares it with the Greek Magical Papyri (PGM), as it has many practical spells--ranging everything from healing the sick, divining the future, influencing kings in your favor, binding yourself to a "great woman", and speaking with…

The current field of research into the cause of the downfall of the knightly class generally agrees that it was primarily a result of the introduction of gunpowder weaponry, but some recent scholarship suggests otherwise. Up through the present, historians have believed that the gunpowder revolution in military technology predominantly caused the knightly class in Europe to disappear, because unlike previous ranged weapons developments, firearms took no skill to operate and had the power to…

How can anyone be more effective with less effort by learning how to identify and leverage the 80/20 principle? Strange as it may sound but it is interesting to know that 80 percent of all our results in business and in life stem from a mere 20 percent of our efforts. The 80/20 principle is one of the great secrets of highly effective people and organizations. The principle aims to show the fundamentally unbalanced way in which the world works. Originally pointed out by the Italian economist…

Powerful women don’t fare well in histories when looked at through the lens of a patriarchal society. It speaks volumes that Visenya Targaryen is still respected by the Maesters as both a Warrior and a Queen and not dismissed because she’s “on her moonblood.” The Conquest was not a solo project, yet her brother got the credit in the stories while his sisters got hills in Kings Landing named after them. She was a founding mother that helped set the stage for everyone that followed her. She is…