Tree ofLife*
Take ten or at most twenty drops in a glass of preferably distilled water on the day ruled by the planet of the plant in the hour following sunrise. If this is not possible, then take it in any of the other three planetary hours occurring that day. As before, you may consecrate it prior to consumption with Qabalistic or astrological rituals, as you would do for a talisman.
Because the Ens is an initiatic product, it will have an effect on the subtle or astral body of the user. Note carefully your dreams in your notebook, as well as the phases of the Moon and any other psychic or coincidental occurrences that may happen.
This Universal Fire is what sets both our personal and planetary energy, or Secret Fire, into action on various levels. This is the kundalini energy of yoga that is carried in the vital energy of the air, or prana. This is the only energy that can initiate into the spiritual realms.
Those with Qabalistic training or experience in ritual magic will see a similarity in the idea presented here with the elemental attributes of the so-called magic circle. The Universal Fire (also known as Ruach in Hebrew and Spiritus in Latin) is the vital life energy carried in the air (spring, the east), from which we extract the vital principle or experience it as fire (summer, the south) by means of water (autumn, the west) and capture it in the physical medium of the earthly herb (winter, the north).
For those not wishing to create all seven of the Ens at once, take the following into consideration when picking a plant for your first time: you may pick a plant based upon its planetary sign, such as one for a quality that you are deficient in. (Qabalists take note, as spagyric tinctures can be used to facilitate specific rituals and Paths.)
A Moon Ens will open up the psychic world (Yetzirah and Yesod in particular). It may also be used with pathworkings involving the Moon, the 32nd, 30th, 28th, and 25th Paths on the Tree of Life (see the diagram on the opposite page).
• An Ens of lady's mantle (Alchernilla vulgaris) will open up Venus (Netzach) and give information regarding plant alchemy, hence its official name Alchernilla.
• An Ens of eyebright will assist in awakening intuition and inner communion. It may even give glimpses of the World of Archetypes and the Higher Mind (Briatic World). It may also be used in rituals and pathworkings involving the Sun.
• An Ens of Saturn, particularly horsetail, may be used in the 32nd Path and opening of Saturn and may even give glimpses of the Archetypal World and Eternity itself. This is a very powerful product and should be the first we make to clean our psychic channels and open ourselves to increased levels of energy and consciousness.
In his biography of Paracelsus, Franz Hartmann quotes an unknown manuscript, allegedly in private possession, in which Paracelsus described the creation of the Melissa Ens and its virtues:
But the Primum Ens Melissae is prepared in the following manner: Take half a pound of pure carbonate of potash, and expose it to the air until it is dissolved (by attracting water from the atmosphere). Filter the fluid, and put as many fresh leaves of the plant into it as it will hold, so that the fluid will cover the leaves. Let it stand in a well-closed glass and in a moderately warm place for twenty-four hours. The fluid may then be removed from the leaves, and the latter thrown away. On top of this fluid absolute alcohol is poured, so that it will cover the former to the height of one or two inches, and it is left to remain for one or two days, or until the alcohol becomes of an intensely green color. This alcohol is then to be taken away and preserved, and fresh alcohol is put upon the alkaline fluid, and the operation is repeated until all the coloring matter is absorbed by the alcohol. This alcoholic fluid is now to be distilled, and the alcohol evaporated until it becomes of the thickness of a syrup, which is the Primum Ens Melissae; but the alcohol that has been distilled away and the liquid potash may be used again. The liquid potash must be of great concentration and the alcohol of great strength, else they would become mixed, and the experiment would not succeed.'
Tree ofLife*
According to one modern manuscript on alchemy, a similar experiment using a different method of extraction produced a milder and less violent reaction in the hens it was given to, while increasing their egg weight and production.
While this is not being related to encourage extended use of the tincture, it is from stories such as these that we know of the legendary healing and rejuvenating qualities of alchemical products.
• Alchemical initiation is defined as personal, interior, and progressive changes in consciousness that may be manifested externally as increasingly powerful transmutations and an increase in life energy.
• Qabalistic cosmology as expressed in the Tree of Life can assist in understanding the pattern and purpose of alchemical initiations.
• These initiations progress from the densest psychic realms of the Moon to the subtlest of Saturn, into Unity itself.
• The four elements and the Quintessence exist in the material world and also form substrata of each of the planetary levels, as expressed by the spheres on the Tree of Life.
• Spagyric products help clear the psychic channels (or nadis in yoga and meridians in acupuncture).
• The etheric matrix is the "Secret Fire" of the material world, the serpent of kundalini. Through progressive cleansing of the etheric channels, the Secret Fire is naturally brought into conscious operation.
• A dream notebook is essential in understanding our inner experiences.
1. Create an Ens for each of the seven ancient planets.
2. Draw the polygon or geometric shape for each of the seven ancient planets and place the corresponding planetary symbol in the center. Draw them in black on white or in their planetary colors on white. They can also be drawn in their complementary color on their primary background. For example, the color for Mars is red, so the pentagon or pentagram with the symbol for Mars would be drawn in green on a red surface. These polygons can be found in Israel Regardie's The Golden Dawn, John Michael Greer's Circles of Power, and Jean Dubuis's Fundamentals of Esotericism.
Meditate on the principal planet using the drawing you have made. As you progress, visualize the images in color as you have made them. When meditating, visualize the image at the nape of your neck, where the head sits on the spinal column. Hold the image as if you were looking back through your skull at it, and imagine it as a brilliant, glowing "etheric tattoo." Do this meditation particularly during the appropriate planetary hour for each of the polygons.
Using the method outlined above, visualize the polygon with its planetary symbol in the center at the nape of your neck as you fall asleep. This will induce dreaming and lucid dreaming. Write down your experiences in your notebook.
Meditate on the nature of initiation and how a permanent change in your consciousness in one or more specific areas would benefit you. Consider what you need to do to facilitate that change.
Meditate on the nature of the Philosopher's Stone, what it means to you, and what you are doing to "fix" or incarnate those ideals in your daily life. Carry a small picture or drawing of the "Stone" and remind yourself of these ideals and your commitment at regular times each day.