Alchemical Transformation Series
To Face the Dragon Is to Seize Life Itself
Out of the chaos, a new beginning
An old alchemical saying states, Opponere Draconem est prehendere Vitam.
It means: “To face the Dragon is to seize life itself.”
This in turn means: Walk straight into the chaos of your life, your mind, your identity — burn it to the ground, and remake yourself from the ashes like a phoenix.
The Dragon Within
The dragon is a metaphor for that which frightens us about ourselves, for the shadows lurking within us, for the darkness we reject. The dragon knows truths so bright we can barely squint at them. It knows our hiding places, our deflections, our blind spots. The dragon represents everything our egos fear.
But the dragon also carries the life-giving, life-transformative fire that our souls long for. Alchemists consider the dragon the primordial energy and life force from which true power arises.
No other source of heat can do what the dragon’s fire can do. No other human being, no matter how wise or well-meaning can provide this firepower for us. Only we can walk into the crucible and meet the dragon.
