light of nature

Paracelsus: The Philosophical Adept

Paracelsus knew that understanding does not arise from intellectual reasoning alone. He thus invented a kind of intermediary, someone to convey the knowledge inherent in nature to the interested researcher. This was embodied in his concept of a “Philosophical Adept”, a figure who can mediate between the ego and the “Sidereal Body”. Following his question of how can we find out what the secrets of the herbs, trees, and stones mean (quoted in Part II, page 15), Paracelsus answers:

Now it is the provenance of the Philosophical Adept to investigate what is in the herbs, to know all concealed things, all secrets, the arcana of nature, what is found in every herb, seed, spice, etc. If we now wish to learn and discover what is of heaven and the firmament in the Earthly Body, or what the elements are in themselves, then we must learn this from the Philosophical Adept.

Nuhn aber zu erforschen, was in Kreuttern ist, darzu gehört Philosophia Adepta, diesselbig weis alle verborgene ding, alle heimligkeit, alle Arcana der Natur, was in einem jeglichen Kraut, Sahmen, Wurtzen, etc. befunden ist. Wollen wir nuhn lernen und erfahren, was himmlisch, dz ist Firmamentisch ist, in den irdischen Corporibus, oder was Elementisch in ihnene ist, so mussen wir dz lernen von dem Philosophia Adepta.

And

…Now it is necessary that we know what the Philosophical Adept is so that we can learn from him. It is known that he is intangible, invisible, immune and is yet with us and lives with[in] us, in all forms. As Christ says “I am with you to the end of the world” but no one sees him, no one grasps him yet he is still with us, so too is the Philosophical Adept with[in] us.

…Nun ist von nöhten, das wir wissen, was der Philosophus Adeptus sei, damit wir von ihm lernen. So wissendt, er is ungreifflich, unsichtbar, unentpfindlich, und ist bei uns, und wohnen bei uns, in aller gestallt, wie Christus spricht: Ich bin bei euch bis zu endt der Welt. Und aber niemands sicht ihn, niemands greifft ihn, noch ist er bei uns. Also ist auch der Philosophia Adepta bei uns.[1]

Further,

But now man also has a supraelemental body in him, this is the Sidereal Body. One should let himself learn about this Sidereal Body and not about the flesh and blood in which there is nothing but earthly desires…[2]

Nun hatt aber der mensch ein Uberelementisch Leib auch in ihm, dz ist das Corpus Sydereum, dasselbig Corpus soll er lassen lernen, und nit Fleisch und Blutt, in dem nichts ist, dann irdische Begirden…

Lastly,

One should not learn how to find what the Philosophical Adept knows with the spirit that is flesh and blood, rather one should learn through the Sidereal Body, so that all supraelemental things will be revealed. Nothing is so secret that it cannot be revealed, and the same goes for the Sidereal Body through the Philosophical Adept.

Der Mensch soll nit mit dem Geist lernen, d’Fleisch und Blut ist, was die Philosophiam Adeptam antrifft: sondern er soll lernen durch sein Sydereum Corpus, als dann so werden ihm offenbaret alle Uberelementische ding: und nichts ist so heimlichs, das nicht geoffenbaret werde, demselbigen Sydereo Corpori, von dem Philosopho Adepto.[3]

What is a down-to-earth example of this odd Philosophical Adept? I think it may refer to an ego turned inward which has humbled itself to serve the Self. Someone who conscientiously follows and sees meaning in their dreams may be called a modern adept. For example, such a person studies (in) the light of nature as Jung describes in the following quote.

The lumen naturae is the natural spirit, whose strange and significant workings we can observe in the manifestations of the unconscious now that psychological research has come to realize that the unconscious is not just a”subconscious” appendage or the dustbin of consciousness, but is largely an autonomous psychic system for compensating the biases and aberrations of the conscious attitude, for the most part functionally, though it sometimes corrects them by force.[4]

Paracelsus devotes several pages[5] to a “celestial Philosophical Adept” (the “eternal” counterpart to the Philosphical Adept described above) but he says that he cannot describe this entity since it is celestial, not mortal.

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[1]Paracelsus, Astronomia Magna…, Liber Primus: “Probatio in scientiam Philosophia Adeptae, (Huser X, Olms V), p. 173.

[2] The “Sidereal Body” is another name for the astral or subtle body. See J. Jacobi, Paracelsus: selected writings, Bollingen, Princeton, 1963, p. 234.

[3] Paracelsus, ibid., p. 174.

[4] C. G: Jung, Paracelsus, p. 184-5.

[5] Paracelsus, Astronomia Magna…Philosophia Sagax, Huser X (Olms V), p. 304f.