Earlier this month a sixty two year old student of mine wrote a short appreciation of the Emerald Tablet for me. I was amazed at the new perspectives she brought to it. The Emerald Tablet as most of you will know is a one page summary of the most important principles of alchemy.

I learned it by heart when I began my interest in alchemy at age seventeen. I read it, contemplated it and repeated it at least once every day for ten years or so until I finally got what it meant. When I began my studies in mathematics I thought of the consummate genius Newton, who I knew was one of the last famous alchemists. I got hold of his translation and used that too. So when I read the report of my student I had thought about, read about, and contemplated the Emerald Tablet for sixty years. Her take on it was refreshing and contained all kinds of new dots and perspectives to connect.