Chapter 7

Magic Squares have always had an influence on Alchemy.

ALCHEMY

The objective of the alchemist is to achieve a complete transformation, over cycles of time, from the nigredo ( the melancholy of darkness) to the albedo (the golden light of the sun, enlightenment). The ultimate goal was for man to transcend his material-based personality and change his patterns in order to overcome his imperfect self and attain a higher level of perfection. Illumination receives a great assist from the dream world and its archetypes. Archetypes represent an image or experience at a profound level that puts the dreamer in contact with the collective universe. Archetypes have their own specific energy and can impart tremendous wisdom to the dreamer. By pushing out desires and wants one can release the energy locked away in the psyche. Transformation corresponds to an awakened consciousness, a consciousness that desires to participate and is better equipped to recognize patterns of behavior as destructive obstacles. Knowing one's pattern of obstacles in order to transform ourselves and break free of these patterns symbolizes a rebirth or sense of renewal. The Sun represents the soul, a regenerated and redeemed ego, illumination. The number 7 symbolizes a higher consciousness and requires graduating seven stages for complete transformation. The ladder with seven steps is symbolic of the path to self realization. The number seven had a sacred status in many mythologies: the seven planetary spheres, the seven archangels, the seven archons, the seven colors of the rainbow, the seven notes of music, the seven days of the week, the seven metals of the Alchemist, and more. The number seven used to be spelled “seaven”, a reference to the sea and to salt, which is the crystal of the sea and earth. Salt is both fire and water, two of the Earths four elements and is known as the great uniter, salt is also symbolic of the albedo, or illumination.

Alchemy is sometimes thought of as transforming lead into gold. Others think of alchemy as a pursuit for the philosopher's stone. In Renaissance Europe, Alchemy was undergoing a resurgence as Cornelius Agrippa wrote his great book on The Philosophies of Occultism , Albrecht Durer produced his masterpiece Melancholia I which featured a Magic Square of order 4, and the Cabbala was undergoing a resurgence. But a work by St. Thomas Aquinas called the Splendor Solis was influential in the (dream) symbolism in relation to the process of psychological transformation. Archetypes can play an essential role in man's development and are a useful tool in dream analysis; archetypes concerning numbers and magic squares have been present throughout the history of man. The pattern of nine can be seen in mid-Stone Age caves in France (von Franz, Number and Time , p. 161) although it is not known what the meaning is of this wall carving .

Alchemy incorporated the use of Magic Squares as one of a number of correspondences with the planetary spheres. A correspondence was something that is symbolic and can invoke the spirit of an entity and when used in combination with other symbols become tools for the alchemist. Each of the seven planetary spheres was assigned a Magic Square, a metal, a color, a stone, an animal, and an element (fire, water, wood, earth). It was believed that each heavenly sphere had its specific influence on humankind and man could establish some order of these influences using these magic squares. These magical correspondences were the basis for ritual magic also known as alchemy.

THE MAGICAL CORRESPONDENCES FOR THE ODD MAGIC SQUARES   

 
SATURN                MARS                   VENUS                              MOON              PLANET
LEAD                    IRON                    COPPER                            SILVER             METAL
EARTH                  FIRE                     METAL                             YIN/FEMALE        ELEMENT
BLACK                  RED                      GREEN                              WHITE              COLOR
ONYX                   RUBY                    EMERALD                           CRYSTAL          STONE
CROCODILE          HORSE                   DOVE                                DOG                ANIMAL
5, 15, 45              13, 65, 325           25, 175, 1,225                 41, 369, 3,321     NUMBERS