“The domain of individual destiny is controlled by an interplay of many cosmic forces, mainly benign; but in the present world society, due to mankind’s misunderstanding of both earthly and heavenly purposes, these forces have been turned to other uses, frequently chaotic and disintegrating.” ~ Count St. Germain; alchemist, painter, philosopher, essayist, poet, diplomat, philanthropist, musician.
When most of us hear the word ‘Alchemy’ we picture an old sage in ancient times leaning against a hot pot stirring and stirring and creating mysterious fumes while wearing a large robe, mainly stirring and stirring to create some elixir or to turn lead into gold. But that is just the superficial part of the science of Alchemy; because, in fact, Alchemy started the sciences we have today–i.e. chemistry, psychology, botany, geology, physics, anatomy, physiology, etc. etc. Let us have in mind not just ‘Alchemy’ but ‘Mental Alchemy,’ because the human mind is all in the Alchemy of the true sage, because the human mind hides mysterious and fascinating energies to transmute the lead of the ego of simple man into the gold of the god-man. So there is the study of who we are, and I do not mean our names or cultures, nationalities or the identities we create for ourselves; however, I mean the study of who we are beyond this waking thought we experience every day and this body made of flesh and bone. To be more precise, is the study and discovery of our true Inner Self, which some may call Spiritual Self or Divine Energy; hence, it is about the energy and essence that makes us and sustains our life, which connects us to one another and to all nature, precisely all nature from the dust on the earth and the insect on it to the planets and stars in the vast dark above us.
The roots of Alchemy date back to ancient Egypt, and perhaps even before that, and a mysterious manuscript called ‘The Emerald Tablets.’ Alchemy arrived in Spain during the Arabian occupation by the Moors and then spread to the rest of Europe. Alchemy reigned as the supreme science in Europe for about 1,700 years. In fact, many of the cathedrals of the Middle Ages carry alchemical symbols and secret formulae.
This is a coin minted from alchemical gold showing the symbol of lead (the ignorant, waking mind of the simple man) going up to heaven to transmute into gold (the mind of the god-man or the superior, spiritual intellect in man).
Only a very few adepts knew of the essential agent, the sublime heat of the soul, which fuses the emotions, consumes the prison of leaden form and allows entry into the higher world. Carl Jung made alchemical methods part of modern psychology when he talks about the subconscious mind in man (the Infinite Intelligence in man).
But, you see, reader, the true science of Alchemy is the science of the spirit in man; therefore, because is about the spirit and so it does not have anything to do with machinations of men or material temples or churches built by men, religions of the world do not have a claim on this higher science. Because the spiritual, the divine in man, the gold in man must not be confused with the crude, the ignorant dogmas and ideas in the simple man, the lead which is of the lower man. 
As people grow throughout life, they start to imitate one another, consciously and subconsciously, mimicking the personalities and identities which they see fit and which brings pleasure to his daily lives. Because of their new adopted views in religion, society, nationality, culture, etc., and due to becoming fearful followers and not leaders of their own lives, most dwell in a sense of unreality as they become victims of themselves under the ideas and interpretations of others, and subsequently they persist in identifying themselves as vile sinners dependent of some human leader and a divine god up in the skies to deliver them to some promised land. People thus become victims and go throughout life blind to their fortunes and believing in some divine blessing or curse falling upon them, and they are never masters of their destinies but humble servants of their own egos; that is, enslaved to their wild imaginations and ego-created fears.
This fear and ignorance transforms their thoughts and feelings into hell on earth; however, the purpose of all thought and feeling is to give us the beautiful form of wise and individual experience, to thus shape our self-confidence and unique personas into higher intellects, higher personas in the spiritual and mental realms. So we Alchemists, true and wise Alchemists today and always, understand this and embrace this in our hearts; because we recognize that thoughts and feelings are exposed to sadness and misery as well as higher intelligence and wisdom, and in order to have only the latter we need to lead and not follow, have a free mind and accept who we are beyond all idea and form. By stopping to watch TV, by not falling into the shopping and commercial trap, by not following society and religion, by not choosing an identity based on friends and family, by not imitating others, by watching the food-energy we put in our bodies, etc. etc., this can be accomplished.
So, life is not meant for us to embrace mediocrity and be content with following the herd, and it is not meant for us to massacre our higher purpose by living in the fear and anxiety all TV, society, religion, nationality, culture creates; but it is meant for us to be unique in all aspects and raise above all feelings of fear and anxiety. Every human being has mighty energies and capacities, from the homeless person living under the bridge to the spiritual Alchemist who feels one with all, and so this is why we are born and given thoughts and feelings inside a physical form; and, even though most people do not really understand and embrace that fact in their behaviors, we must accept what we do not see and hear in our heads, we must realize that we all have the capacities to be Alchemists and lead our own lives, the capacities to turn crude lead into divine gold, because no society, religion, father or mother, friend or acquaintance, can do it for you, can better your life.
- Asa Rodriguez - 