The Wizard
(This is an excerpt from a University Of Metaphysical Sciences course at www.umsonline.org, please feel free to visit the school website)
The
Adept and Wizard in the pagan sphere would be modeled after the form of
Hermes Trismegistus, Orpheus, or Pythagoras with a combination of any of
the gods and adepts that came before these ones. The whole idea was to release
the hidden god from within oneself whether this god was called Orpheus,
Dionysos, Persephone or Adonis. The Adept would need to know the extensive
Greek and Roman lore, songs, initiations and elaborate rituals of the mystery
religions. They would be known as magicians, poets, and philosophers. Higher
thought and science were one with mysticism. The shamanic powers of Orpheus
or Dionysos were said to be transmitted to the initiate; these included
enchantment, taming of animals and men, healing by sound and light, and
the ability to transverse the spiritual and astral realms. The Orphic, like
the Christian Gnostic, would compose their own songs of teaching to add
to the Orphic corpus as their “graduation,” the proof they have
traveled with the spirits and have attained the view of Orpheus as their
supreme example and teacher.
Historically, by the medieval period, the concept of Wizard would include
these teachings, largely based on these figures, especially Hermes Trismegistus
the thrice born sage, with a mix of the Nordic ideas we have already covered.
With the addition of alchemy, Tarot, certain Arabic and Hebrew magical practices,
Goetic and Angelic Solomonic magic, and medical herbalism, the medieval
and renaissance Wizard's entire corpus can be known. The Wizard was expected
to command, like Orpheus, the elemental, physical, and spiritual creatures
of creation with his invocation and force of magical will. This composite
personality of the Wizard is demonstrated in literature by Shakespeare's
Prospero, JRR Tolkien's Gandalf the White, and JK Rowling's Sirius Black.
With the thought of Hermes-Thoth Trismegistus, the Wizard claimed a lineage
from Atlantis and Egypt which provided insight and power to his or her works.
Medieval Alchemy was developed from the Moorish influence in Spain and Europe.
The Moors brought Egyptian and Arabic mathematics and al-chemie from Egypt.
"Al-Kimia" means black earth, Kemet, the part of Egypt where the
study of immortality comes from. In Alchemy, one draws the philosopher's
stone from the black earth of the base elements or produces gold from the
base metals. Alchemy was a combination of chemistry and magic for self evolution
beyond the confines of ordinary existence. Alchemists could create a potion,
called by the code A.M.R.I.T.A. that cures all sickness and confers immortality.
Egypt was home to the very first alchemists and scientific chemists, but
the medical herbal traditions from the entire globe were incorporated into
the Wizard's panacea by the Renaissance. The alchemist was able to transmute
base metals to gold, a process strangely common in many world cultures.
Texts on the subject exist all over Europe, Asia, Egypt, Arabia, Nepal and
Tibet. The traditional medieval pattern of the creation of the Philosopher's
Stone usually has a seven or nine part process, which was literally performed
in an alchemical vase and as inner meditation.
The following are the elemental conditions while preparing the Philosopher's
Stone: They are nigredo (the darkness), solve (division),
purifactio (purification by fire), coagula (unification),
lumens (circulation of the light), lapis philosphorum
(philosopher's stone) and homo novus deus (the new divine being).
Sometimes there is an intermediate stage of union of opposites between lumens
and lapis philosphorum called hermaphroditus coelesti, the celestial
hermaphrodite. The final and ninth stage of alchemy, homo novus deus, is
only traditionally expressed in two texts and never directly, one of which
is the Emerald Tablet Of Thoth-Mercury. The work of alchemists laid the
foundation for what we know as chemistry today. In medieval times alchemy
was considered the work of witches and wizards; although many very famous
physicians and royal advisors were alchemists, such as John Dee, the advisor
to Queen Elizabeth in Shakespearean Britain.
As time went on and persecution of magical practices became prevalent, it
became dangerous to one’s life to proclaim their magical workings.
People who practiced alchemy were very secretive about their work. Even
the scientist Isaac Newton, creator of Calculus and expander of physics,
thought it fit to warn his students to keep their work secret.