Source Text
Mahaprajnaparamitashastra of Nagarjuna, was translated into Chinese by Kumarajiva over three centuries before the zenith of Arab alchemy which occurred during the life of Jabir ibin Hayyan, aka Geber around 760 CE. The discourse of Nagarjuna lists among the siddhi (miraculous powers) the transmutation of stone into gold and gold into stone.
Circulation of the Light: “The work on the circulation of the light depends entirely on the backward-flowing movement, so that the thoughts are gathered together. …When the light circulates, the energies of the whole body appear before its throne. …You have only to make the light circulate: that is the deepest and most wonderful secret. The light is easy to move, but difficult to fix. If it is made to circulate long enough, then
it crystallizes itself; that is the natural spirit-body. In carrying out this fundamental principle you need to seek for no other methods, but must only concentrate your thoughts on it. When the light is made to move in a circle, all the energies of heaven and earth, of the light and the dark, are crystallized.
“…When one begins to apply this magic it is as if, in the middle of being, there were non-being. When in the course of time the work is completed, and beyond the body there is a body, it is as if, in the middle of non-being, there is being. …There develops the seed pearl. It is as if man and woman embraced and a conception took place. Then one must be quite still and wait. The circulation of the light is the epoch of fire.
The decision must be carried out with a collected heart, and not seeking success; success will then come of itself.
“…As soon as the heart stirs, there develops breath-energy. Breath-energy is originally transformed activity of the heart. …Since heart and breath are mutually dependent, the circulation of the light must be united with the rhythm of breathing. …Although the breath that flows in and out through the nose is not the true breath, the flowing in and out of the true breath takes place in connection with it.”[14]
This philosopher’s stone created by artful diligence in the kitchen was to be crushed “into a marvelous powder, a gold
dust which ‘spread mistily like wind driven by rain’ through the five organs. The universal medicine freed its owner from all worldly miseries. New teeth would grow, dark hair would cover the old man’s baldness, and his sick wife would regain perfect health.”[15]
“But this symbol of the fiery bolt, in exactly the same form, is the normal attribute of a certain aspect of Buddhahood, known as the BuddhaVajradhara, ‘Bearing the Bolt,’ who stands for that Supreme Illumination of which the Buddhas who appear in time and space are but the visible manifestations. Such a bolt may appear in the Buddha’s hand or engraved upon his chest, where it signifies ‘the weapon or substance of adamantean truth and reality, compared with which all other substances are fragile.’ The Sanskrit term vajra means both ‘thunderbolt’ and ‘diamond.’ As a diamond cannot be cut by other stones, so do all things fall before the bolt; they belong to the merely phenomenal sphere and can offer no resistance.
Negredo is the dark stage, the natural process of decay and putrefaction; the color is black. The old alchemists called it the raven’s head. It is not enjoyable and involves negative feelings unrelated to the happenings of daily life. Negredo imbues moods of depression, futility, failure, apathy, abandonment and the loss of clarity. The conscious operator knows this is the symptom heralding the decay of the first matter (old worldview).
AI Summary
Better Living Through Alchemy by Lynn Osburn presents key insights from the Zen tradition. The 10 passages above capture the essential teachings.
Core Themes:
- [To be expanded]
Key Passages: Highlights 1, 3, and 10 are particularly representative.
This entry was generated from Readwise highlights. Expand with additional context as appropriate.