Green Hermeticism: Alchemy and Ecology »

Hermeticism or alchemy is the sacred science of nature by which human beings in all times and places have sought to unite Heaven and Earth-divinity, cosmos, earth, and humanity-for the sake of the world. Dedicated to healing and harmony, it has accompanied each religious epoch and every revelation from India and China to the Abrahamic West. In a sense, it is the primal cosmological revelation: the common element in all spiritual traditions. Nevertheless, in the revival of spiritual traditions and practices, Hermeticism and alchemy-like Nature herself-have been largely ignored. Green Hermeticism proposes that it is time to explore not only our ancient masters' "inner" sciences, but also their sciences of Nature.

With this in mind, a series of gatherings was held at the Abode of the Message in Upstate New York to unfold the contemporary meaning of Hermeticism. Green Hermeticism is a partial record of what went on. Peter Lamborn Wilson explores many aspects and possibilities-symbolic, imaginal, and practical-opened up by the idea of Green Hermeticism; Christopher Bamford provides a broad historical and metaphysical overview of the tradition from the Ancient Mysteries to the present day; while Kevin Townley teaches the preparation of herbal elixirs, demonstrating that cosmology and philosophy can become a truly healing path for the Earth. Green Hermeticism is necessary reading for anyone seeking a spiritual and cultural path for the healing of our current ecological and cultural moment.

Editor's Preface and Acknowledgments     VII
Introductory Words of Welcome   Pir Zia Inayat-Khan     1
The Disciples at Sais: A Sacred Theory of Earth   Peter Lamborn Wilson     9
One the All: Alchemy as Sacred Ecology   Christopher Bamford     29
Green Hermeticism   Peter Lamborn Wilson     47
Quilting Green Hermeticism: A Tissue of Texts and Tracings   Christopher Bamford     107
The Manufacture and Use of Planetary Tinctures   Kevin Townley     195
Bibliography     203
About the Contributors     207