THE NEW GOLDEN DAWN FLYING ROLL II Issued by the Thelemic Order and Temple of the Golden Dawn Copyright (c) 1990 e.v. CONCERNING ALKHEMI The Immortal Science of the Sages Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Today, in this technological age of man, Alkhemi is looked upon as mere rubbish of the past, a dark and fanciful cloud upon the sky of history. Yet this is not the case at all; and this I shall endeavor to demonstrate to you through words of practical significance and wisdom, since Alkhemi is in fact the True Science of every wise and practical man who lives upon the face of the earth. Alkhemi is comparable to the Sun of the Ages, which ever remains perfectly poised in the infinite sky. It is not the fault of the Sun if men cannot see it; it is due to their own lack of vision. Yet the Sun ever shines bright for those who have eyes to see; and in seeing the Sun men become enlightened. Now as the Eternal Sun gives light and life unto all men, so does the Immortal Science of Alkhemi give wisdom and power unto all men who desire knowledge and immortality. By understanding and exercising the principles of the Alkhemical Art, a man is able to obtain whatsoever he needs for the attainment of his universal destiny. The aim of Alkhemi is to accomplish the Great Work, which is to obtain the Lapis Philosophorum, or Philosopher's Stone, which transmutes all base things into the living gold of the Sun. In practical terms this means that by exercising the principles of the Royal Art of Alkhemi a man can perform and accomplish his True Will, or achieve his chosen destiny, which operation naturally transforms all things, internal and external, into splendid images of that One Will. In spiritual terms this means that by performing the Royal Art of Alkhemi a man can realize and understand his True Self; and when a man ascertains the pure nature of his True Self he is then able to see that Eternal Self in all things. When you see the Light of the Sun, you then see all things in that Light. The laboratory wherein to perform and accomplish the Great Work is naturally the Body of Man. His instruments are his own physical, psychological and psychical elements of existence. The man himself is the base metal which he will operate upon and transform into the perfect gold of spiritual light and wisdom. Through utmost devotion and unswerving application the man will achieve his True Will by working upon his own body, mind, and soul in such a manner as to mingle and unite them into a single object of utmost perfection and living sublimity, that is, the Immortal Stone of the Sages. Now since a man's body is his own and not another's in any practical sense, it is a simple fact of Nature that only that man can work upon himself to accomplish the Great Work. It is the responsibilty of each person to do his own True Will, to realize his own True Self. No person can do the work for us; we must all do it by our own efforts. The Art of Alkhemi is a personal science, a sublime and effective system of Self-initiation. Only you, as a single individual, can calculate and traverse your way up the Great Mountain of Hermetic Attainment. It is entirely a matter of your own application and devotion. All essential guidance is within you, in the inmost centre of your heart where your own Holy Guardian Angel, or Inner Self, resides. To depend upon any other thing than your own Holy Guardian Angel to accomplish the Great Work of the Sages is to insult your Angel who is with you to instruct you and guide you in your quest for immortality and universal sovereignty. All essential wisdom by which to achieve the Great Work is to be ascertained only within you; nowhere else will you find the Truth. By performing the Royal Science of Alkhemi a man can become a veritable god of immortal life, a cosmic being of universal significance and superconscious existence. And when a man achieves the immortal life of his own inner god, he influences a thousand or more men thereby. For we are all internally connected with each other in the Collective Unconscious of the human race. Our actions affect not only our personal lives, but also the lives of all other people. When an Alchemist achieves the Great Work of realizing his True Self, by the execution of his True Will, he inevitably uplifts all of humanity one more step upward upon the ladder of spiritual progress and cosmic evolution. Thus if many men were to perform and accomplish the Great Work, the whole world would become inspired and fortified with spiritual light and wisdom, and a New Heaven and a New Earth would reign supreme. Now as there are innumerable rays of light which shine forth from the Ageless Sun, so are there innumerable forms of the Great Work for the innumerable individuals of the world. In other words, every man and every woman has their own Great Work which they must accomplish. All these are one in essence, but divided in expression for the chance of union. It may be one man's True Will to be a writer, another a poet, and another an artist. And just as there are innumerable Great Works to accomplish in the world, so are there innumerable Holy Guardian Angels to guide all individuals in the world. No man is really souless; all men are under the dominance of their Angels, whether unconsciously or consciously. Your Holy Guardian Angel is within you to instruct and inspire you with divine knowledge and celestial wisdom for you to perform and accomplish the Great Work, the Supreme Goal of Alkhemi. You will first accomplish the divine task of obtaining the Stone of the Philosophers within you, and then will you transform all things into the perfect gold of your True Self and your True Will, which is the attainment of the Summum Bonum, True Wisdom, and Perfect Happiness. Love is the law, love under will. Fra.'. Aureae Aurora (Sir David Cherubim)