ˇ¶Rosa Alchemicaˇ·


 I

    It is noen years since I met, for t time, Mices, and for t time and t time udents; and nessed ragic end, and endured trange experiences, ings elligible, and driven me almost to taking t of St. Dominic. I  publistle s, someters from believers in t timidity, for t believe so evident sympat tist, s in any age. I  trine  a po to ts and to man  t to fas of common metals merely as part of an universal transmutation of all to some divine and imperisance; and to make my little book a fanciful reverie over transmutation of life into art, and a cry of measureless desire for a world made wholly of essences.

    I ting dreaming of en, in my s of Dublin; a ors  famous t in tics of ty and tions; and ed   last accomplise doctrine. traits, of more orical tistic interest, apestry, full of t out all ory and activity untoucy and peace; and noe and precise t it seemed more like a t t turous faces of my Francesca, I kneasy  o rule and custom; y and  error at sleepless destiny and o go to my booksamped ricate ornament, and of a carefully ce in ton in t I terness and  satiety. I  me all gods because I believed in none, and experienced every pleasure because I gave myself to none, but , individual, indissoluble, a mirror of poliseel: I looked in triumpion at t as t of jeo my mind, for ting out all t  of as affluent a beauty as t I t as I  in so many ots, t it o rob life of every bitterness except tterness  of deat ime after time, filled me e sorro Madonna y, turous faces singing in t, ties y, to despair, belonged to a divine ter dream of a limitless energy I could never kno perfect moment I c of content.

    I  me t t, transmutation of t into a , ed not, it urned to my last purc of alcus o t tood trine, t all beings, divided from t deep  a multitude, are  for destruction ed to myself tinus, in o t, and to ts furnace, and  be dissolved before tance, material gold or immaterial ecstasy, aal essences, but ained no miraculous ecstasy. As I t of tains and looked out into t seemed to my troubled fancy t all ttle points of ligs, urning lead into gold, o ecstasy, bodies into souls, to God; and at t labour my mortality greters in our age  elaborate spiritual beauty w souls weigh so many dreams.

 II

    My reverie  t tors, and s do all tly, lest ttle curious, I resolved to go to taking one of ticks from tlepiece, began to descend tairs. ts appeared to be out, for tir in t because my needs  in life so little, to come and go as ten leaving me alone for iness and silence of a remulous lips and roug as to do fifteen years before, somet. ly come to Ireland, o see me on a matter of importance: indeed, tter of importance for  up before me our student years in Paris, and remembering tic pole fear mingled  t intrusion, as I led taircase, ories and quoting Greek, in simpler days, before mens minds, subtilized and complicated by tic movement in art and literature, began to tremble on tion.

    I felt t my  t of t need  beings slowly sain, glimmering like many?

    coloured flame, fell bet, in a  understand, t some singular and unexpected t to  over to tlepiece, and finding t a little c, upon tside, ed cana, s, s side and poured out its contents, I began to gats into tly to collect my ts and partly  ual reverence ed  es, t you are still fond of  incense, and I can sook t of my  ts in a little  do t to to ask you somets, s s odour  it from an old man in Syria,  laid tals upon t of C in til  tiny.  into t of a small silk bag, and set t t ream of smoke, t spread out over til it ons banyan tree. It filled me, as incense often does,  sleepiness, so t I started  question han answer.

    urned oter in t, and tiate of your Order of t consent in Paris,  I  last faso my desire, am I likely to consent?

    You ly since tand you better t t a you, and if you do not t t, you ude, and of  forget le and noise of titude in time; or seek a mystical union itude  o someone I could not see.

    For a moment to darken, as it used to do o perform some singular experiment, and in to gloense colour. I cast off t ure intellect; and I said: Even if I grant t I need a spiritual belief and some form of  to Calvary? ly ronation, and as o struggle again  t of to dim t of to blot out ttle gleams upon ture? frames and on ties, and to turn to a  left to glimmer and gloe colour . I o a profound dream?like reverie in ance. And yet tion and in a refined understanding, t alk  trumpet of t, less divinities ual bodies in ts and romance ers, and under ties, he smoke of incense.

    ty made ties, and t it can unmake t ling  robes, and iculate voices  ty, rembling of their lips.

    ood up and begun to o and fro, and tle o , as t t an end in to us; to us, t  you  ill  orm, and  yourself an existence rice, ed in a smile, as tars  to pass a a spell over men t tried to unpeople ts t  reign alone, but sal is a god; and tly se under a te doves. In t of my dream I saroked t effort o tear me in termination: You o an indefinite  a man is a great man just in so far as  everyt precision like a mirror. I seemed to be perfectly master of myself, and  on, but more rapidly: I command you to leave me at once, for your ideas and pasies are but t creep like maggots into civilizations o minds  to rise and strike , ide of green and blue and bronze featruggled ant voice saying: Our master Avicenna ten t all life proceeds out of corruption. ttering feately, and I kne I ruggled for  last. I o t seemed to fill t me aant voice cry ant cry, to numberless pieces; and titude of pale orange gentle faces bending above me, and tering  ten t ted out of tide of flame, and felt my memories, my s, my o be myself, melting ao rise tood, in some ain t, eacernal moment, in t lifting of an arm, in a little circlet of riful t ceased to be, and, range moods, melanc seemed,  of many o t Deaty o t Loneliness udes desire  ceasing. All t o come and dality or tears,  suddenly fallen from tainty of vision into tainty of dream, and become a drop of molten gold falling y, t elaborate ars, and all about me a melancant  to find myself leaning upon table and supporting my o side in tant corner it o, and Mices cing. I  need ans come to a great distance, for o build our temple betitude by titude of men.

 III

    I did not speak as ed streets, for my mind y of familiar ts and experiences; it seemed to  of te  naked upon a ss urning, and I unes; or begin to contemplate, , errors, desires and ambitions, alien to my orderly and careful life; and t t t some great imponderable being  t ly ae fait tolerance for t personalities, ain obscure sects, because I also  fixed s and principles dissolving before a pos melancation t I tremble lest it wake again and drive me from my new?found peace.

    to t y terminus, it seemed to me I  s eternity, but eternity ed and Mices   no me o my excited mind more like a mask t t  in er, and t it laug ter or less t Mices at all: Mices is dead; dead for ten, for ty years per repeating to myself. I fell at last into a feverisime to time tle tos slated roofs s, or still lake gleaming in t. I oo pre?occupied to ask ice ickets Mices aken, but I kneion of t ly I knerees o tattered beggars flying  o, t . tely I sa, its dull grey broken into ches and lines.

    train o go, and set out, buttoning our coats about us, for tter and violent. Mices , seeming anxious to leave me to my ts; and as  promontory, I realized ion  and of feelings, if indeed some mysterious c taken place in tance of my mind, for t of a teeming, fantastic inner life; and ed to a square ancient?looking s lee, set out on ted and almost deserted pier, and said it emple of tasy t t covering it e foam,  as part of some indefinite and passionate life,  to plunge to a nig astic terror, but t t still lay ened to t unimaginable fanaticisms, t hose grey leaping waves.

    e  a fely a c in an overset barrel, close to a place  of inkers carts. I sa een, as ts say, for t knoers, go doo co  to ts I could tering be afraid, I said, t te t you?

    I and mine,   or e al spirits, and ime  to Artemis, or some oto some ney, unless indeed ties, t it rus for battle. Aengus,  up once more temples of grey stone. t only tle, for till pass in every   ttles in every  t build temples again till tyrdoms and victories, and per long?foretold battle in the Black Pig.

    Keeping close to t  about to escape tened every moment to lift us off our feet, o tes opened it  of many salt ed stair to a little room surrounded , but only of fruit, for I must submit to a tempered fast before t a book on trine and meto spend er daylig me, promising to return an  exive alcal body under a s of  controlled numberless legions of spirits; of Alfarabi, s into e t rance as ransformed o to live still in Arabia among tics but alcics, and because, I tle doubt, of tion to one god of ter number and of ted sense of beauty,  I did notice a complete set of facsimiles of tical ings of illiam Blake, and probably because of titudes t tion and ed also many poets and prose ers of every age, but only ttle est  tion to us, as a somet ts.

    Presently I ap at ttle fruit upon table. I judged t s  I  of t for pleasure, instead of less ement of tion and a t for beauty. I asked ion concerning t getting no ans a s I must a initiation in silence. en, s bronze box on table, ligook aes and ts. So soon as I urned to t t tails over t a background, on  stars, as to affirm t t of te colours, and in gold, ting against it, but in vain, as ered points of t to tals. tten upon vellum, and in beautiful clear letters, interspersed ures and illuminations, after the Splendor Soils.

    t cer described udents, of Celtic descent, gave tely to tudy of alcery of tery of tery of t of Salt and Mercury.  seemed a succession of accidents, but rivance of preternatural poalked toget came to t alcillation of tents of til to put off tal and put on tal. An oling among tick, and, sitting close to took up t o an Order,  in trine, apparitions came and  among taugeries. t on to expound so muce ted to kno tset and at considerable lengt reality of our ts, rine from rines rose. If you imagine, it said, t is at once possessed by a  of its deat said, from many gods. Eros augo fas to sleeping minds; and Ate forms from o sleeping blood; and  if you po cil you  tiest demons, but t if your imagination e, t if you made, by a strong imagining, a dove cro flutter over your s soft cooing  dreams of immortal love gatal sleep; and all divinities alike ations t all minds are continually giving birto suco   on, you o make ting out a lip, s of life, or breaking tions of a body  tiful s, as it  of existence, folding up into a timeless ecstasy, drifting  eyes, into a sleepy stillness. to t men called t c as tist could call t of tist, or if t of t ss voice and its gestures pour t upon t events  descending like a faint sigo mens minds and ts and tions until  s of leaves. t of tained symbols of form, and sound, and colour, and ttribution to divinities and demons, so t tiate migy or any demon, and be as pos of tears and of laughter.

 IV

    A couple of er Sunset Mices returned and told me t I eps of an exceedingly antique dance, because before my initiation could be perfected I o join times in a magical dance, for rernity, on  and accidental could be broken, and t set free. I found t teps, ique Greek dances, and er of many curious Gaelic steps, I soon ume s s, but by its crimson colour a more passionate life t into my tle c into tsman, old me to open a small door opposite to tered. I put my o t t I did so terious glamour, made me fall again into a dream, in er of a little Eastern s and still t I kneried me on t at last flung me into a corner tle laug all t, for ies iful tistery at Ravenna, but of a less severe beauty; t colour of eacy,  ed lamp before every divinity. I passed on, marvelling exceedingly s could ed all ty in so remote a place, and o believe in a material alc of so much smoke of ever?changing colour.

    I stopped before a door, on  ions of terrible faces. t seemed to eps, for a voice cried: Is tible Fire at an end? and immediately Mices ans gold banor. t circular room, and among men and  ttle of gods and angels, tes urned from te s, out of love for a God of y and sorroed ter, eacies, it seemed, of t out ake my place and dance, and as I turned from to tone, and t a pale C on a pale cross es told t to trouble y itudinous feet. t, tracing upon tals t copied tals in to truments tern, for I  te, until all to . After a little I ood under a pillar cil gradually I sank into a als of t rose, raordinary beauty. Still faint and cloud?like, to dance, and as took a more and more definite s I o distinguisiful Grecian faces and august Egyptian faces, and noo name a divinity by taff in tering over al foot danced by te foot of an immortal; and in troubled eyes t looked into untroubled sness of uttermost desire as t lengter unreckonable  love of times, but only for a moment, I sa solitary figure  torc among t like a dream anding born from a deeper fountain t, t it o ies is altoget, and  of al . So t if a man love nobly e pity, unspeakable trust, unending sympat jealousy, sudden red, and unappeasable desire; but unveiled love  to me from to t can be spared out of to to t t of tance of our s; and before I could anserious  seemed like took Alc, neiting nor refusing, into t. I al august  is betar and star, and  breaters; and as ed over us and round us, covering us a of to pass, and tempests to awake and perishe folds of our robes and in her heavy hair.

    Suddenly I remembered t   dropped a black petal, or sood   I danced han human, and who was drinking up my soul as an ox drinks up a wayside pool; and I fell, and darkness passed over me.

    I a I  on t no great distance,  me on tings. turned faces looking to my imagination like  noticed before; and outside tes lying at a little distance and beside  boumult of angry men and o my feet, I  quickly to Mices, and tried to s of ried to lift  ly; and to t o give, and I ran to t open and came out upon a passage , and found in to an empty kitcs t to tc into a small yard, and from teps ers edge,  of t lately refaced e, so t it  clear of sea , I found it so slippery  I o climb up on to toemple of till sing, but somely, and sa t t as I looked, a little croones from ime a storm stered te. ood ceen, pointed to me, and screamed out sometened, for all turned to  pullers of t t ation and lamentation, ten t to be ringing in the air over my head.

    ts even noion and lamentation, and s mastery over my  and my intellect, seems about to claim a perfect mastery; but I carry t my neck, and o my  and say:  our doors deceiving our intellects lety and flattering our s y, and  but in t rages  otimes is still, and I am at peace.