Alchemy: The Secret of the Golden Flower
The Secret of the Golden Flower is an old Alchemical Chinese text from many hundreds of years ago. A translation by Richard Wilhelm to English is available, with a Jungian approach.
The text is straightforward, but also it is not. What exactly is seed-water? Thought-earth? What I was able to take from the writing were a couple of things:
- It is of big importance to attempt to meditate with eyes half-open. Meaning, neither fully open (straining the eyes and getting distracted) or with the eyes fully closed. I’ve learned over my years of meditation that meditating with the eyes half-open kickstart a process that cleanses the mind & perception. The eyes are closely linked with the mind/thoughts/perception, and when you meditate that way you ‘cleanse’ the eyes, and begin the process of transmuting the stagnant thought-energy into consciousness. In other words, the old is burnt, and the new (and original) is freed. I’ve personally experienced tremendous experiences meditating on the eyes themselves, either by practicing Osho’s mirror candlelight meditation, or by meditating with the eyes half-open.
- By focusing on the breathing (first steps), one should breath more and more quiet, so that each inhale and exhale cannot be heard. Doing this calms the heart (the breathing, the heart, and thoughts are connected), so not only will the thoughts get calm, but the heart will get calm too. From personal experience, eventually the breath can get more and more calm to the point that inhalation and exhalation ceases, and the body is in a sustained state of balance. This is referred to as the breathless stage, and it’s a ‘sign’ inching closer to samadhi.
- As the eyes are cleansed, and light is gathered, it is time to actively use the spiritual light. Meaning, once the stage is set (purification through eyes half-open meditation), and the audience arrives (spiritual light), then the play can start (The Great Work). The Alchemical activities from there are similar to Qi-Gong, or to chakra meditations. But overall the activity is to re-center consciousness into the body — first into the “external” body (such as fingers, arms, back, etc.) by being able to scan the body with ease, and from there, moving into the “internal” body (the energetic body of the chakras/main energy centers). In Qi-Gong, this would be the belly (Lower Dantian), the heart/lungs (Middle Dantian), and third eye/prefrontal cortex (Upper Dantian). The activity, as symbolized by a chemical reaction, is for the light to be gathered in the lower, purified by the middle, and released by the upper. Another way to think this is that the earthly energy is gathered in the belly, it is purified by the heart, and it is released to the aura/universe via third eye (accessing infinite intelligence, or higher consciousness).
If I can summarize the above another way — the first activity of the meditations with eyes half-open get the individual ready for the spiritual work. And then the Qi-Gong meditation is the actual Work — moving from major energy center to the next.
These things I have learned, but I have not had a ton of experience acting upon them. Through my life I’ve alternated between spiritual practic and the physical (career, personal relationships, etc.) My thinking is that life is long, and right now I want to work hard to create a foundation for myself and my family to life comfortably and happy. I take inspiration from Lahiri Mahasaya, as well as Paramahansa Yogananda’s father, who worked during their 20s-30s, and then devoted their time towards spiritual efforts. I pray and hope to do the same.
I hope that the above has been useful in some way. Alchemy & meditation are topics that people of this era will resonate with, and the wonderful invention of the internet allows us to share these spiritual findings. We are fortunate enough to be able to share these things, without having to hide them under symbology. The internet is so vast, that only those who really seek, will find.
Al-Khem The Alchemist
