Library

introduction

The Art of Alchemy has been practiced for thousands of years, and countless books have been written on the subject. The question is: "Which of these books will be able to guide us on the path of Alchemy?"

From remote antiquity, and through successive intervals in the higher spheres of mind, the tradition of an Art has circulated; but so dark and enigmatical as to evade vulgar apprehension entirely and baffle the most acute.
(Atwood, 1850, A Suggestive Inquiry...)

Legend has it, that Hermetic Philosophy and Alchemy were practiced since ancient time, by the Lemurians at first and was later carried into India. Some dare trace it aeons back, even to what in Hindu time units would be the beginning of the present Kalpa. Fragments of books under authorship of the great R?macandra having survived to this very day. Through the rise and fall of many races, alchemy found its way through history in lighter and darker periods, having one of its golden ages 125.000 years ago in Lemuria, practised by the lesser Gods and the most advanced men of that race. Before Lemuria sank beneath the waters of the Pacific, it was carried into India, where it has been practised until today. The Altlanteans however also practised the Art. They carried it into Northern Africa with the submersion of Atlantis.

The Egyptians were the heir of this knowledge. With the fall of Indian culture in one of the more recent equinoctial cycles of evolution, the best of the race travelled westward and met the custodians of the Atlantean knowledge, and the knowledge of the two races was combined. Than finally, in the present cycle, when intellectual darkness settled towards the beginning of our current era, and through the subsequent rule and censorship of the church, Arabia became the custodian of the Lamp of hidden Wisdom. In addition to the writings in stone that were left by the Egyptians, Arabian manuscripts probably provide the most 'original' of sources, and the Inner Garden group gratefully draws upon that heritage, most notably with regard to the Inner Work. Today the true nature of the Alchemical tradition is known by few. A steady stream of books is becoming available on the subject today, but one will often find they excell in superficiality or romantic superstitions.

Alchemical and hermetic texts generally require thorough reading, contemplative reading and re-reading. This is expressed by the motto "Ora, Lege, Lege, Lege, Relege, Labora et Invenies" in the mysterious "Mutus Liber", 1677. Often a hardcopy is better suited for study and lends itself better for contemplative reading, than digital files. In that light the Inner Garden keeps a list of Alchemical books that is available for circulation within the group. Below is a list of hardcopies. A list of softcopies (pdf) is available for members. The rating mentioned for books in our library of hardcopies gives a subjective impression of the value of a book.