NOy, wherein I will confirme my woordes, without concealing ought, or keeping backe any thing, saue that which is not conuenient to bee vttered or named. We say then that the great work contained in it foure masteries (as the Philosophers before vs haue affirmed) that is to say, to dissolue, to congeale, to make white and red. And these foure quantities are partakers, whereof two of them are partakers betweene themselues, and so likewise are the other two. And either of these double quãtities hath another quantity partaker, which is a greater quantity partaker after these two. I vnderstand by these quantities, the quantitie of the natures, and weight of the medicines which are orderly dissolued and congealed, wherin neither addition nor diminution haue any place. But these two, to wit, solution and congelation, shal be in one operation, and shall make but one worke, and that before composition: but after composition, their works shall bee diuers. And this solution and congelation which wee haue spoken of, are the solution of the bodie, and the congelation of the Spirite, and they are two, yet haue but one operation. For the Spirites are not congealed, except the bodies bee dissolued, as likewise the bodies is not dissolued, vnlesse the spirit be cõgealed: & when the soule & the body are ioyned togither, either of them worketh in his companion made like vnto him: as for example, when water is put to earth, it striueth to dissolue the earth by the moisture, vertue and propertie which it hath, making it more subtile then it was before, and bringing it to be like it selfe: for the water was more subtile then the earth: and thus doth the soule worke in the bodie, and after the same manner is the water thickened with the earth, and becommeth like vnto the earth in thicknesse, for the earth is more thicke then the water. And thou must knowe that betweene the solution of the bodie, and congelation of the spirit, there is no distance of time or diuerse work, as though one should be without the other, as there is no difference of time in the coniunction of the earth, and water, that one might be knowne & discerned from the other in their operations: but they haue both one instant, and one fact, and one and the same worke conteineth them both at once before composition: I say before composition, least he that shall read this booke, and heare the names of resolution and congelation, shoulde suppose it to be the composition which the Philosophers entreat of, for so he should sowly erre in his worke and iudgement: because composition in this worke or masterie, is a coniunction or marriage of the congealed spirit, with the dissolued bodie, and this conjunction or passion is vpon the fire. For heate is his nourishment, and the soule forsaketh not the bodie, neither is it otherwise knit vnto it, then by the alteration of both from their owne vertue and properties, and after the conuersion of their natures: and this is the solution and congelation, which the Philosophers first spake of; which neuerthelesse they haue hidden in their subtile discourses with darke & obscure words, that so they might alienate and estrange the mind of the reader frõ the true vnderstanding thereof: whereof thou maist take this for an example. Annoynt the leafe with poyson, and ye shall approue thereby the beginning of the worke and mastery of the same. And againe, labour the strong bodies with one solution, til either of them be turned to his subtilitie. So likewise in these folowing, except ye conuert the bodies into such subtilitie that they may bee impalbable, yee shall not find that ye looke for: and if you haue not ground them, returne backe to worke till they bee ground, and made subtill: which if you do, you shall haue your wish. And many other such sayings haue they of the same matter. The which none that euer proued this Art could vnderstand, til he hath had a plaine demonstration thereof, the former doubt being remoued. And in like maner haue they spoken of that cõposition, which is after solution & congelation. And afterward they haue said, that Cõposition is not perfect without marriage, and putrifaction: yet againe they teach solution, congelation, diuision, mariage, putrifaction, and composition, because composition is the beginning, and verie life of the thing. For vnlesse there were composition, the thing should neuer be brought to passe. Diuision is a separatiõ of the parts of the cõpound, & so separation hath bin his coniunction. I tell you againe, that the spirit wil not dwel with the body, nor be in it, nor by any meanes abide with it vntill the body be made subtil & thin as the spirit is. But when it is attenuate and subtill, and hath cast off his thicknes, & put on thinnes, hath forsaken his grosnesse & corpority, & is become spirituall, then shall he be mingled with the subtill spirits, & imbibed in them, so that both shall become one and the same, & they shall not be seuered, like as water put to water cannot be diuided. Suppose that of two like quantities, that are in solution and congelation, the larger is the soule, the lesser is the body: adde afterward to the quantitie which is the soule, that quãtity which is in the body, & it shall participate with the first quantity in vertue only: then worke them as we haue wrought them, and so thou shalt obtaine thy desire, and Euclide his line shall bee verified vnto thee. Afterwarde take his quantity, and know his waight, and giue him as much moysture as he will drink, the weight of which moysture we haue not here determined. Then againe worke them with an operation vnlike the former, first imbibing and subliming it, and this operation is that which they call Albification, and they name it Yarit, that is, Siluer, and and white Leade. And when thou hast made this compounde white, adde to him so much of the Spirit, as maketh halfe of the whole, and set it to working, till it waxe redde, and then it shall be of the colour Alsulfir, which is verie red, and the Philosophers haue likened it to golde, the effect hereof, leadeth thee to that which Aristotle saide to his Disciple Arda: wee call the claye when it is white, Yarit, that is Siluer: and when it is red, wee name it Temeynch, that is Golde. Whitenesse is that which tincteth Copper, and maketh it Yarit, and that is rednesse, which tincteth Yarit, that is siluer, & maketh it Temeynch, that is Gold. He therefore that is able to dissolue these bodies, to subtiliate thẽ, to make them white and red, and (as I haue said) to compound them by imbibing, and conuert them to the same, shall without all doubt attaine the masterie, and performe the worke whereof I haue spoken vnto thee.
CHAP. II.
Of the things and instruments necessarie and fit for this worke.
IT behoueth thee to knowe the vessels in this masterie, to wit Aludela, which the Philosophers haue called Church-yards, or Cribbles: because in them the parts are diuided, and cleansed, and in them is the matter of the masterie made compleat, perfect, and depured. And euery one of these must haue a Furnace fit for it, and let either of them haue a similitude and figure agreeable to the worke. Mezleme, and many other Philosophers, haue named all these things in their bookes, teaching the maner and forme thereof. And thou must know, that herein the Philosophers agree togither in their wrytings, concealing it by signes, and making many books thereof, & instruments which are necessarie in these foure foresaid things. As for the instruments, they are two in number. One is a Cucurbit, with his Alembick: the other is Aludel, that is well made. There are also foure things necessarie to these: that is to say, Bodies, Soules, Spirites, and Waters: of these foure dooth the masterie, and minerall worke consist. These are made plaine in the Philosophers Bookes, I haue therefore omitted them in mine, and onely touched those things, which they passed ouer with silence: which he shall easily discerne, that is but of indifferent iudgement. And this booke I haue not made for the ignorant and vnlearned, but for the wise and prudent.
CHAP. III.
Of the nature of things appertaining to this worke.
KNow thou that the Philosophers haue giuen them diuerse names: for some haue called them Mynes, some Animal, some Herball, and some by the name of Natures, that is Natural: some other haue called them by certaine other names at their pleasures, as seemed good vnto them. Thou must also know, that their Medicines are neere to Natures, according as the Philosophers haue said in their bookes, that Nature commeth nigh to nature, and Nature is like to nature, and Nature is ioyned to nature, and Nature is drowned in nature, and Nature maketh nature white, & Nature doth make nature red, and generation is retained with generation, & generation conquereth with generation.
CHAP. IIII.
Of Decoction, and the effect thereof.
KNow thou that the Philosophers haue named Decoction in their Bookes, saying, that they make Decoction in thinges: and that is it that engendreth them, and changeth them from their substances and colours, into other substãces and colours. If thou transgresse not, I tell thee in this booke, thou shalt proceed rightly. Consider brother, the seed of the earth, wheron men liue, how the heate of the Sunne worketh in it, till it be ripe, when men and other creatures feede vpon it, and that afterwarde Nature worketh on it by her heate within man, conuerting it into his flesh and blood. For like hereto is our operation of the masterie: the seed whereof (as the learned haue sayde) is such, that his perfection and proceeding consisteth in the fire, which is the cause of his life and death, without somwhat comming betweene, and his spiritualtie, which are not mingled but with the fire. Thus haue I tolde thee the truth, as I haue seene and done it.