Mercurius Or The Marriage Of Heaven Earth

In 1952 a country clergyman called Smith begins his tortuous quest for the Holy Grail of alchemy - the Philosophers' Stone which transmutes base metal to gold and confers immortality. As he pits himself against the bizarre perils of the Great Work, it becomes clear that his arcane transformations are as much spiritual as chemical. Gradually the shadow of alchemy falls over those around him; a young girl whose sudden pregnancy is a local scandal; Janet, trapped in a barren marriage; and Robert who pursues his own quest for the legendary blue glass of Chartres. Thirty years later, Eileen comes to live in Smith's vicarage. In the medieval cellar she unearths a hidden manuscript and begins to read of secret fire and mysterious prime matter, a green lion and a raven's head, a fatal conjunction of king and queen, a descent into Blackness and putrefaction. As she penetrates farther into the alchemical labyrinth, she is haunted both by her own history and by that of her neighbours, the menacing Mrs Zetterberg and the disfigured Pluto - and, finally, by the enigma of Smith himself. In separate but interwoven accounts, Smith and Eileen strive towards the one thing necessary for the Work's success - the great Secret guarded by the paradoxical Mercurius, who leads them to the zero point where Heaven is wedded to Earth and the miraculous Stone appears at the intersection of time and eternity. By reconstructing a highly sophisticated but almost forgotten world-view, Mercurius restores to us our own spiritual heritage which, rooted in the alchemists' dark retorts, will perhaps flower in the light of the future.

Novel about a clergyman seeking a magical alchemist's stone in 1952, and a woman in 1982 who learns of it's secret.

The noble quest for the Holy Grail lay at the very heart of the Order of the Knights Templar. What could have inspired a brotherhood of warrior-monks to search the four corners of the world for such a thing? Forget, for a moment, all those clever Christianised diversions involving secret genealogies, clandestine inter-breeding and blood royal. It's true; all Grail romances speak of a woman who guards the sacred vessel. Some claim the Grail preserves a royal house; a few hint that the vessel itself is a woman. But the Grail has many other attributes. If you read the tales carefully you'll find that whoever possesses it can scry the future. It was explicitly spoken of as an actual artefact that can bestow limitless wealth and immortality. If you dig deep enough you'll discover the Grail existed long before the Christians and their holy wars. Alexander the Great conquered the East looking for it. Indeed, the Grail is a mystical object so ancient, some stories claim it was uncovered when the Persians founded the great city of Persepolis. That's the Holy Grail the Knights Templar travelled near and far to find. On the borders of the Forest of Keak a mighty host of Templar warriors is assembling. At their head is a ruthless warlord who has devoted his life to the Quest. Garamond de Lusignon once had the Grail within his reach but it was snatched away from under his nose by a band of audacious thieves. It's taken him twenty years to track them down and in all that time the fire of his rage has never diminished. He knows exactly where it's concealed and who kept it from him. Eager for revenge, as much as to claim the Prize, Garamond sends his lieutenant to the Castle of Montsalvasch. He offers an ultimatum to the noblemen who rule the forest. Surrender the Grail or suffer the consequences of a holy war. Give up the Treasure or every living soul within the forest will be branded a heretic and put to the sword.

The figure of the alchemical Mercurius features ubiquitously and radically in Jung’s later works, but despite this, there has been little research concerning Mercurius in Jungian studies to date. In this book, Mathew Mather explores the figure of the alchemical Mercurius and contextualises and clarifies its significance in Jung’s life and works. Placing the alchemical Mercurius as a central concern reveals a Jungian interpretation in which the grail legend, alchemy and precessional astrology, as three thematic threads, converge. In such a treatment, Jung’s belief in the dawning of a new platonic month emerges as a central consideration and an esoteric perspective on Jung’s life and works is brought more fully to light, constructing a life-myth interpretation. The book is comprised of three parts: Aurea Catena: locating the figure of the alchemical Mercurius within the Western esoteric tradition Daimonic Encounter: the relevance of this figure in Jung’s personal life Magnum Opus: Jung’s portrayal of this figure in key texts such as Synchronicity, Aion, Mysterium Coniunctionis; and Emma Jung and von Franz’s The Grail Legend. The Alchemical Mercurius is a unique contribution to analytical psychology, substantially revealing ‘esoteric Jung’ and providing valuable perspectives on the theme of his myth for our times. The book will appeal to researchers and academics in the field of analytical psychology as well as postgraduate students.

Is there any place for the ancient myths of our ancestors in modern times? Could their shadowy presence in our common imagination be more influential than we realise? Across the globe many societies still believe in an Otherworld of spirits, gods and daimons, which the West has banished to the unconscious mind and now only visits in dreams. Yet this visionary tradition continues to subvert the rational universe, erupting out of the shadows in times of intense religious and philosophical transition. In his dazzling history of the imagination, Patrick Harpur links together fields as far apart as Greek philosophy and depth psychology, Renaissance magic and tribal ritual, Romantic poetry and the ecstasy of the shaman, to trace how myths have been used to make sense of the world. He uncovers that tradition which alchemists imagined as a Golden Chain of initiates, who passed their mysterious 'secret fire' down through the ages. As this inspiring book shows, the secret of this perennial wisdom is of an imaginative insight: a simple way of seeing that re-enchants our existence and restores us to our own true selves.

For more than 50 years John Clute has been reviewing science fiction and fantasy. Look at the Evidence is a collection of reviews from a wide variety of sources - including Interzone, the New York Review of Science Fiction, and Science Fiction Weekly - about the most significant literatures of the twenty-first century: science fiction, fantasy and horror: the literatures Clute argues should be recognized as the central modes of fantastika in our times. It covers the period between 1987 and 1992.

What do we mean by the word imagination? Does it just refer to our powers of invention and ingenuity, or might it have a larger visionary scope and purpose? Might it be vital to a vital life? What about the creative process itself: how does it work, in what circumstances does it flourish, and what conditions hinder or repress its activity? These and related themes are explored, often in unexpected and provocative ways, in this inspirational collection of essays, poems and reflections.The book takes its title from the opening essay, The Gist of Arvon, in which John Moat reflects with characteristic humanity, vigour and wit on the wider implications of the original vision and sense of purpose, which he shared with his close friend, the late John Fairfax, when they set up the Arvon Foundation together more than forty years ago.John's piece is followed by those of the contributing authors, who approach the issues from a stimulating variety of perspectives. Thus, amongst other lively contributions, Seamus Heaney writes about the inspirational nature of haunting encounters, Alice Oswald reveals a poet's imagination in full flight across pages from her work-book, Carol Ann Duffy contributes poems she wrote while tutoring at Arvon Centres, and there are freshly written pieces by novelists such as Andrew Miller, Adam Thorpe and Maggie Gee, while Jules Cashford, Linda Proud and Patrick Harpur offer mythological and philosophical insights on the book's themes. The book has a Foreword by Andrew Motion, and reprints a fascinating essay in which Ted Hughes gave thought to the important educational significance of the work done at Arvon's Centres.Through its celebration of the imagination, The Gist seeks to bring encouragement and inspiration to anyone whose pulses are quickened by the urge to live a creative life.