This important survey of alchemical symbols and doctrines sets forth the mysterious worldview and teachings of the practitioners of the "royal art." One of the leading exponents of the Hermetic tradition, Julius Evola demonstrates the singularity of subject matter that lies behind the words of all adepts in all ages, showing how alchemy--often misunderstood as primitive chemistry or a mere template for the Jungian process of "individuation"--is nothing less than a universal secret science of human and natural transformation.
First published in 1931 in Italian. This is the first English translation.

Draws from a host of sources in the Western esoteric tradition--works on theurgy, magic, and gnosticism from neoplatonic, Arab, and medieval sources.

<p><b>The Hermetic Tradition</b> <br /><i>Symbols &amp; Teachings of the Royal Art</i> </p><p><i>Foreword by H. T. Hansen <br />Translator's Note <br />Preface</i> <br /><b>Part 1: The Symbols and Teachings</b> <br />Introduction to Part One: The Tree, the Serpent, and the Titans <br />1. The Plurality and Duality of Civilization <br />2. Living Nature <br />3. The Hermetic Knowledge <br />4. &quot;One the All&quot; and the Dragon Ouroboros <br />5. The Hermetic Presence <br />6. Creation and Myth <br />7. &quot;Woman,&quot; &quot;Water,&quot; &quot;Mercury,&quot; and &quot;Poison <br />8. The Separation: Sun and Moon <br />9. Frozen and Flowing Waters <br />10. Salt and the Cross <br />11. The Four Elements and Sulfur <br />12. Soul, Spirit, and Body <br />13. The &quot;Four&quot; in Man <br />14. The Planets <br />15. The Centers of Life <br />16. The Seven, the Operations, and the Mirror <br />17. Gold in the Art <br />18. Shadow, Ashes, and Remains <br />19. Philosophical Incest <br />20. The Tomb and Thirst <br />21. The Field and the Seed <br />23. The Sword and the Rose <br />24. Stem, Virus, and Iron <br /><b>Part 2: The Hermetic Royal Art</b> <br />Introduction to Part 2: The Reality of Palingenesis <br />25. The Separation <br />26. Death and the Black Work <br />27. The Trial of the Void <br />28. The Flight of the Dragon <br />29. The Dry Path and the Wet Path <br />30. Hermetic Asceticism <br />31. The Path of the Breath and the Path of the Blood <br />32. The Heart and the Light <br />33. Denudations and Eclipses <br />34. The Thirst for God and the Corrosive Waters <br />35. The Path of Venus and the Radical Path <br />36. The Hermetic Fires <br />37. The White Work: Rebirth <br />38. The Coniunctio in White <br />39. The Eternal Vigil <br />40. The Body of Light and Production of Silver <br />41. Birth into Life and Immortality <br />42. The Red Work: Return to Earth <br />43. The Alchemical Colors and Multiplication <br />44. The Planetary Hierarchy <br />45. Knowledge of the Red and the Triunity <br />46. Prophetic Knowledge <br />47. The Four Stages of Power <br />48. Metallic Transmutation <br />49. Correspondences, Times, and Rites <br />50. Silence and the Tradition <br />51. The Invisible Masters <br /><i>Index</p>