The Elixir of Life

Throughout the millennia of human history, perhaps the most sought after treasure has been the key to Eternal life: the continuance of life without passing through death.

                                                                                         History of the Elixir

The Elixir of life

Most ancient cultures spoke about a draught that would prolong life indefinitely, or even bring a dead being back to life, even more glorious than before. In fact, alchemy was already flourishing during the 3^rd or 4^th Centuries B.C. in Asia and the Middle East. In fact, the word elixir originates from the Arab term Al eksir اکسیر, meaning panacea, or Al iksir, meaning composite or mixture.

The Chinese were probably the first to have a written record of the elixir of life, written around 650A.D. by the Chinese alchemist Tan Chen Yae Ch’eh and entitled “The Great Secrets of Alchemy”. The elixir was so revered that there is a list of Chinese emperors who died from its use, beginning with the Ming Dynasty emperor Jiajing, whose demise was caused by an overdose of mercury—one of the major ingredients in most recipes.

Indian legend has it that just a drop of Amrita (the elixir of life) was sufficient for the imbiber to gain immortality. Earliest mention of the elixir in India took place at around the same time as its use in China. It is unknown as to whether the Chinese passed the idea down to the Indians or vice versa. As with the Chinese, the elixir was also known to be an active ingredient, working with the philosopher’s stone, in the process of creating gold from common, but both cultures were more interested in the healing and continuation of life aspects of the elixir.

The elixir came to life in Europe during the later years of the medieval era. The Comte de St. Germaine (who was reputed to be several hundred years old) and Nicholas Flamel were both accredited with being alchemists who had created the elixir. It was also called the Universal Tincture.

The elixir continues to fascinate mankind even today, and several recipes have survived the ravages of time. I would like to present one that originally comes from Germany and was translated from German to Italian to English. IF you decide to try it, be very careful to follow the instructions exactly, and to then try it out on something other than yourself—like a dead plant, perhaps.

The Recipe

Take 50 pounds of pure zinc argentite also called Bismuth’s mineral, completely without quartz; the whiter and more silvery the latter is, the more universal spirit it has. Break it up into little pieces; put them into a wooden barrel at night, when the moon is almost full, out in the open air, so that the stars can work on it. In this way, the mineral will be heavily saturated with the universal spirit, taken from the air and the moon. Near the end of the lunar cycle, place the mineral in well-closed wooden or clay pots, so that it can’t be touched by sunlight or air, which would contaminate it and completely eliminate its curative powers.

Take several pounds of the saturated mineral and place it in a number stills that have been surrounded by glass or soil that will render them fire-resistant; close these containers with four layers of canvas and bladder that have been coated with: beaten albumen, rye flour, red lead that has been mixed with a little bit of minced slaked lime; mix and when the lutum has dried, distil over well-regulated heat for 12 hours, slowly for the first 3 hours, then a little higher for the next 3, and then very high for the last 3 hours, after which a deliciously sweet white water will emerge.

This water, aka Aqua Alba Suavis Dulcis Spiritus vini philosophicus, will need to be filtered 3 times, very gently, into a gourd, which will make it even sweeter and completely pure, transparent, and clean. Marvelous and nearly miraculous things can be made with this heavenly, magnetic water, which has the pleasant, strong aroma of violets.

Take a pound of this universal mineral water, placing it in an ampoule with a glass stopper, the opening upwards. One third of the ampoule must be left empty. Place the ampoule in front of a window, leave without disturbing for four weeks. You will see it increase, become heavier and fill the entire ampoule.

Universal Tincture or Elixir of Life

The discoverer of this particular recipe has said regarding its usefulness: “It is a bath in which the king and queen wash and cleanse themselves, appearing a thousand times more splendid and lovely than they were naturally… If you take a dried weed, or flowers or a small lemon tree, completely dried and withered and place it in the [tincture], with the roots still attached, in a large bowl for 8 days, this little tree will return to life, verdant and growing flowers, as though it had been planted.

“If you put the [thus resuscitated] plant, flowers or tree into the soil outside, they will no longer wither for many years, flowering continuously and bearing fruit twice a year.”

He also said of its spiritual quality, “It is truly a great wonder of nature to recognize the magnetic forces in this manner and see how the astral spirits have such a great harmony and relationship with the mineral spirits. During the period in which the ampoule rests in the air in front of the window you will be highly amazed to see a marvelous reflection of fluctuating solar rays; it’s as though the rays were strongly and violently attracted by the ampoule.”

This recipe is also one of the main ingredients required for preparing the Philosopher’s stone, the base for transforming common metals into gold.