Customer Reviews

Esoteric Keys of Alchemy

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Well it is a very good book if you have taken BOTA curriculum. It basically resumes one of the courses "The Great Work" which you may get to it after 10 years of studying... in what takes 13 year or more to finished with all the curriculum. It goes into more detail in some areas and is very useful to finish understanding the cryptic language that the course was wrote with. Even though they talked about Paracelsus and other great alchemical test they don't give out the complete secret behind the Iron Curtain ... you will need to figure it out by yourself.

But it is a most to everyone that is trying to understand the Course by BOTA "The Great Work" This is essential to try to become the Stone.

I purchased this book when it first hit the streets without knowing exactly where this material was derived from. I was at first disappointed that I already possessed very similar material via the B.O.T.A. 'Great Work' course and that this book only contained the introductory chapters...

But upon closer examination, I realized that it contained some material not found in the Great Work and that even the material that was similar was often worded differently providing a fresh perspective on some of the more difficult passages.

Recently, a new, more complete presentation of this material has surfaced Hermetic Alchemy: Science and Practice - The Golden Dawn Alchemy Series 2 which contains the more advanced aspects of Case's 'Hermetic Alchemy', i.e. the Alchemical Process, the Twelve Stages of the Great Work, and practical instruction. This additional material is Paul Foster Case at his best - articulating the esoteric aspects of Spiritual Alchemy in the clear and concise manner we have all become accustomed to expect from him. This is arguably Paul Case's Magnum Opus.

The thing I've always liked about Paul Case (and Dion Fortune) was the way they laid out principles...and a certain amount of mechanics to give direction to your usages. Paul Case addresses the evolution of the race mind in a way that no one else has ever come near, in my opinion. These materials are not to be taken lightly by either novice or the erudite among our community of seekers. They are to be used like the teaching stories of the Sufi. They are to be read over and over so they can speak to the different bodies...and last, but never least, they are to be applied. You will be richly rewarded for the effort.

Paul Foster Case, a well known american occultist founder of the B.O.T.A and former member of the Golden Dawn presents us with this almost master piece.
He sheds his Mercury Light (wisdom) on the somewhat hazy and obscure subject which is alchemy.
He traces the origin of the name, and co-relates this system with that of yoga system, showing striking features common in both tradition, which bringings us to the conclusion that alchemy, truly is a spiritual system of overcoming our vices and exalting them into a perfect metal of virtues.
There are a couple of obscure texts, which Mr Case explain them in a plain and easy way.
As I mention, this is merely a introduction, and a good one.
I just wanted that he could have written about the other two remaining elements, those of air and earth, there are some minor error of spelling, but nothing to complain about, the work itself overshadows this minor mistakes of Ishtar Publishing.
I suggest you to read it from cover to cover, without jumping chapter, as they make the base for the following chapter.
Thanks for making this occult classic (at least for me it is) available.
Fraternally in L.V.X

This is a very useful alchemical treatise incorporating Paul Foster Case's unique emphasis on applying it's principles to one's own spiritual and physical development. It would earn five stars except for an editorial mix-up of the planetary symbols in the table on page 12, being the transposition of the symbols for Jupiter and Mars. Hopefully, most students of the Western Mystery Tradition will note this and pencil in the corrections. Overall, though, a very informative and meticulously reasoned discourse.