Quick overview of Simple Spagyric Technique

The following is a simple rundown for creating Spagyric tinctures and Elixirs, from the manuscript 'Book of the Blossoming Flower." I wrote it so that there would be a baseline, unobfuscated understanding of how to make Spagyric products with extremely basic tools. I posted something similar earlier, but without explaining much as far as how the steps relate to the classic alchemical progression. So, here we are!

Making a Spagyric Tincture

1.Take up your plant, and on the Day/Hour corresponding to the energy you wish to refine (Planet, Element, or Sign.) Chop the plant into fine pieces on your cutting board, beginning the Mortificatio stage. Sunrise on the Day corresponding to a planet is best-for astrological forces. I had success capturing the Astrological powers by beginning the work when the Sign is in the Ascendant, preferably during an Elemental Tide that corresponds to the Triplicity the Sign is associated with. For Elemental powers, I have found that beginning the work during an Elemental Tide for the force is efficacious. 

2. Place the chopped plant matter (unrefined Salt) into the mortar, and grind it down with the pestle-continuing the Mortification of the Plant. 

3. Place the unrefined Salt into the mason jar (which will serve as our Alchemical Vessel.)  Cover the Salt, with an inch of liquid to spare, with the pure grain Alcohol. (I have been told-by one far more knowledgeable than I-that Grappa works better for this. I have been unable to obtain Grappa to test this for myself, and I know that this way works. So here you go. If you can get Grappa-an Italian grape-based liquer-please do so and put it to work!) Be sure that at least half of the mason jar is left empty of all but air. Seal the jar, so that nothing may enter or exit it.

4. Cover the mason jar in black cloth or Aluminum foil, and leave it somewhere outside where it will not be messed with for one week; I believe it is important to subject the potion to the natural heating and cooling of the environment for the Sublimatio phase. Waiting longer than a week (a month) will give you a stronger tincture-it is more important, in my opinion, to get your Garden set up and working at this point than to concern yourself with having the Most powerful substances. Better to have something on hand when it is needed, then to have something in a Jar that is unprepared, and be unable to help someone. One week is enough for them to work, and work well. We’ll get the Garden set up first, and then concern ourselves with refining more powerful medicines with which to treat ourselves and our kin.

5.The Sublimatio phase will occur within the hermetically sealed alchemical vessel at this point. During the week, as the potion heats, the subtle Mercury will rise from the gross Mercury, carrying with it the Sulfur, and then recombine with the gross Mercury (the Alcohol) -in more rarified form-as it cools. This will happen in a continuous cycle, and so we have begun to separate the fixed from the flying, the Eagle from the Toad.

6. Now, after the week has passed, remove the covering and open the mason jar. You will see that the gross mercury has darkened in color-this is a sign that the Sulfur of the plant has been extracted into the Mercury. Using a funnel and a coffee filter (fine lab filters are, of course, preferable, but coffee filters work well and are readily available), pour the potion into a container, leaving the Salt behind in the filter. The liquid Mercury remaining is your Tincture.

7. Place the Tincture into your retort, and, on a low heat, distill the spirit into a Receiving flask. Re-combine the liquids and repeat six times, for a total of Seven. Perform the distillations at the appropriate hour. As the Spirit flies, it becomes more refined, and it’s efficacy is increased.

The key to making this medicine powerful is to use your awareness and involve yourself in the Process. Meditate upon the steps of the process as they occur, and use the images that appear within your mind’s eye to create Alchemical Emblem’s of your own. If you wish to perform the refining process of Spagery on your own energies, perform the Sign of the Enterer, creating a link between yourself and the plant, before beginning the Mortificatio phase. Do not perform the Sign of Silence until after the process is complete. Strive to feel the changes occurring to your energies as you alter the plant’s energy and refine it. Take time each day as the plant undergoes Sublimatio to meditate upon the process, and strive to feel that same circulation within your own energy body. Perform the Sign of Silence after the process is complete, and seal the medicine within one of your dark glass bottles (glass, because it is non-reactive, and dark so that the external energies don’t affect the purity of the Tincture.)

Making Spagyric Oils

The process for making Oils is the same as the process for making Tinctures; one simply substitutes a quality cold-pressed olive oil for the Alcohol. However, Oils will take at least a month in Sublimatio before they are ready, as the olive oil does not have the penetrative quality of the alcohol and needs more time to draw out the Sulphur and Mercury of the plant.

Making Spagyric Elixirs

The process used for making Elixirs begins with process for creating tinctures. We will re-create that process, and add the new elements at step 7 below.

1.Take up your plant, and on the Day/Hour corresponding to the energy you wish to refine (Planet, Element, or Sign.) Chop the plant into fine pieces on your cutting board, beginning the Mortificatio stage. Sunrise on the Day corresponding to a planet is best-for astrological forces. I prefer to capture and refine the Astrological powers by beginning the work when the Sign is in the Ascendant, preferably during an Elemental Tide that corresponds to the Triplicity the Sign is associated with. For Elemental powers, I have found that beginning the work during an Elemental Tide for the force is efficacious. 

2. Place the chopped plant matter (unrefined Salt) into the mortar, and grind it with the pestle until it’s form is uniform-continuing the Mortification of the Plant. 

3. Place the unrefined Salt into the mason jar (which will serve as our Alchemical Vessel.)  Cover the Salt, with an inch of liquid above it‘s topmost part, with the pure grain Alcohol. (I have been told-by one far more knowledgeable than I-that Grappa works better for this. I have been unable to obtain Grappa to test this for myself, and I know that this way works. So here you go. If you can get Grappa-an Italian grape-based liquer-please do so and put it to work!) Be sure that at least half of the mason jar is left empty of all but air. Seal the jar, so that nothing may enter or exit it.

4. Cover the mason jar in Aluminum foil, and leave it somewhere outside where it will not be messed with for one week; I believe it is important to subject the potion to the natural heating and cooling of the environment for the Sublimatio phase. Waiting longer than a week (a month) will give you a stronger tincture-it is more important, in my opinion, to get your Garden set up and working at this point than to concern yourself with having the Most powerful substances. Better to have something on hand when it is needed, then to have something in a Jar that is unprepared, and be unable to help someone. One week is enough for them to work, and work well. We’ll get the Garden set up first, and then concern ourselves with refining more powerful medicines with which to treat ourselves and our kin.

5.The Sublimatio phase will occur within the hermetically sealed alchemical vessel at this point. During the week, as the potion heats the subtle Mercury will rise from the gross Mercury, carrying with it the Sulfur, and then recombine with the gross Mercury (the Alcohol) as it cools, which has extracted the Sulfur from the plant matter. This will happen in a continuous cycle, and so we have begun to separate the fixed from the flying, the Eagle from the Toad.

6. Now, after the week has passed, remove the covering and open the mason jar. You will see that the gross mercury has darkened in color-this is a sign that the Sulfur of the plant has been extracted into the mercury. Using a funnel and a coffee filter (fine lab filters are, of course, preferable, but coffee filters work well and are readily available), pour the potion into a container, leaving the Salt behind in the filter. Seal this Tincture and place it close by.

7. Take up that Salt and place it into the metal crucible. We are going to begin the Calcination process, during which Fire is applied to the Salts to refine them as much as possible. Using the Torch ( I recommend placing the metal crucible in a bowl filled with sand, so that excess heat is dispersed safely), burn the Salts until they are dry, black, and charred. Use tongs to lift the crucible, and pour the black Salts into the Mortar. Grind them down into a fine black ash with the pestle, and then return them to the crucible. Burn the Salts again, heating them until they begin to turn greyish-white. Return the to the Mortar, and grind them down. Repeat this process until you end up with a light-gray to white colored Salt. This is the Salt’s consecration by fire. You will find that Calcination greatly decreases the amount of Salt you have. It is efficacious to use a second plant of the exact same type, and calcinate it as well, to give you a greater store of the Salt to work with.

8. Now, we will purify the Salts with Water, using a technique called Leeching. This is the Solutio step in the Spagyric process. Take a small amount of Distilled water (you can distill tap water or spring water yourself, using your Retort, to remove most of the impurities. Pure rain water, caught before it touches the ground so that it is both Virginal and Pregnant with the Solar Sulfur works best) and dissolve the Salts into it. Stir for a couple of minutes, and then, taking up the funnel and coffee filter again, pour the combination into a shallow dish. What ever Salt is left in the funnel is insoluble in water, and is referred to in Spagery as the Caput Mortuum, the Death’s Head. Discard this truly dead matter. Place this dish where it will get some sun-and be otherwise undisturbed-and let it evaporate. Subtle heat may be applied to speed the process. As the water evaporates, the purified Salt body will appear. This is the Coagulation phase, when the water gives up it’s life for the Salt. This salt will be white, and should be ground once more in the mortar so that it is fine, if it is not fine already. 

9. This final step is the Conjunctio phase, where the refined and purified Sulphur, Mercury, and Salt of the plant are recombined…reborn-and re-incarnated. Take up the tincture, and slowly dissolve the Salt into it, until they are once again One body. This is a holy moment, creating a holy thing, and should be treated as such. 

10. The Elixir should be stored in a sealed, glass container, marked with it’s source plant and planetary/elementary/astrological symbol,  and treated with reverence.