The Alchemist

Professor of Alchemy

Throughout history, countless alchemists have lost their money and their health in the pursuit of the Philosopher’s Stone — the master catalyst that could turn lead into gold. Mandrake Academy’s professor of alchemy can help you avoid their costly mistakes.

Key Symbols

• High in the Tower of Mandrake Academy, the professor of alchemy is at work on a series of experiments. In this case, he’s blending the contents of two vials — one red, and one blue. The mixture embodies the union of opposites, such as fire and water, air and earth, male and female, and active and reactive.

• The alchemist wears glasses, which represent his scientific vision.

• His glasses double as safety goggles to protect and preserve his eyesight.

• The lab is equipped with a wide range of scientific tools. Each piece has a specialized purpose, but all of the equipment is in place for a single objective: transformation.

• Alchemy is a science, but it’s also an art — and this is a card of balance, harmony, and creative solutions to age-old problems.

• Ultimately, the alchemist’s task is to refine and transform ordinary base matter into a purer, more noble material. His work on the physical plane is a metaphor for spiritual development.

• Historically, alchemists kept stuffed crocodiles in the laboratories. It’s not clear if this alchemist’s crocodile is a stuffed animal, or merely resting in suspended animation.

• The alchemist’s back is turned away from an open window. While it’s true that there’s nothing to shield him from a raging storm outside, the air around him is electric and filled with the tingling sensation of discovery and achievement. There’s an element of risk, but it carries the promise of possibility. At any moment, the alchemist could be struck down by a bolt from the blue, or enlightened by a cosmic flash of power and inspiration.

• The alchemist’s walls are painted with a Greek-inspired motif that hint at his connection to the founder of alchemy — Hermes Trismegistos, or Hermes the Thrice-Great. Hermes was once thought to have been an Egyptian during the time of Moses. Now he’s regarded as a personification of the Greek god Hermes, the Roman god Mercury, and Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom.

• The motif incorporates the arrow-like symbol for Sagittarius, the sign of higher thought, higher education, philosophy, and exploration.

• The motif also includes the Hebrew letter Samekh, which means prop or tent pole. In this case, it suggests that education and exploration are the corner posts of scientific discovery.

Practical Magic

Alchemy is a convoluted science, but you can start your study with a few basic concepts: the three principles, the four elements, and the seven planets.

The Three Principles

Alchemists believe in three basic principles of creation:

1. Sulphur, the active, masculine principle, is hot, dry, and fiery. It’s the father of all matter.

2. Mercury, the receptive, feminine principle, is cold and watery. It’s the mother of all things.

3. Salt, the harmonizing principle, is the child of sulphur and mercury. It symbolizes creation and manifestation.

The Four Elements

The three principles are closely related to the four elements of fire, water, air, and earth.

Early alchemists used to explain that fire acted on air to produce sulphur, air acted on water to produce mercury, and water acted on earth to produce salt. Because earth didn’t have anything left to act on, it served as a nurse or womb for the other three principles.

The Seven Planets

Traditionally, alchemists believed that the heavens, the zodiac, the fixed stars, and the planets were the first things the elements created.

They ascribed special significance to the planets. They thought of the planets as celestial beings and expressions of the divine, and the related the planets to the days of the week, metals, and the characteristics of human personality.

The Seven Planets

The Alchemist’s Spread

This three-card spread taps into alchemical symbolism.

1. Sulphur. This card represents your drive to create and your desire to start new projects.

2. Mercury. This card illustrates your willingness to nurture and develop new projects in their early stages.

3. Salt. This card describes your ability to take ideas from start to finish, and to transform your visions into reality.

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