The Way of Alchemy

In this space, working with techniques of alchemy and manifestation take on a meaning quite different from the approach made popular by “The Secret”. Our approach is not to look out at the world as a separate thing from which happiness can be extracted. Instead, we work to close the gap between you and the world. So that the world which seems outside and indifferent to your joy becomes known instead as intimately involved in shaping your life.

The work begins with deeply listening: going far beyond the first thought of what you think you want; to notice more clearly and deeply what is right for you. Or put another way, to notice what life is naturally flowing toward you, if only you’re paying attention deeply enough to notice.

The next stage of the work is expanding far beyond personal willpower and effort to make something new happen. Just as a gardener relies on sun and soil to grow her seeds, we can learn to work with the creative potency of the world to solidify our intentions into form. And just as a swordsmith works with fire to purify raw ore into steel, we can work with the wisdom of the world that naturally burns away obstacles (both inner and outer).

Invoking the Abundance of Who We Are

The old alchemical traditions tell us that true abundance involves things (relationships, possessions, roles in the world) that are a direct match and expression of who we most truly and deeply are. So your life becomes a mirror: the details of it show what you value. The great exploration becomes inquiring into the origin point of your desires to see if they are a fit for who you are. Or put more simply, "do I desire this thing from a place of self-knowing wisdom?"

An intentional act of "manifesting" intensifies this inquiry, giving it a ritual depth. From the perspective of the alchemical traditions, manifestation is understood as working with the Divine forces of Creation - the Genesis force that sprouts acorns and hangs stars in the sky. And all of this in support of a Divine Order that serves all beings.

Reading the flow of life

The Daoist philosopher Chuang Tzu, writing in the forth century BC, advised people toward a certain stillness and quietness of intention: “to get into the bird-cage without setting off the birds off singing.”

What an image: to come into harmony with life in such a way that desire itself is precise and full-hearted - not loud and bullying in its grasping. Desire with peace and and nectar in it’s heart.

The world offers so many ways of closing the gap between ourselves and what we want. Britney Spears weighed in on the issue in one of her songs: “You want a hot body? You want a Maserati? You better work, bitch”. Of course, it’s common to see life as an implacable force that imposes fortune or misfortune without any regard for what we feel we might want or deserve. If we see the world this way, it only makes sense to approach life as if effort and clenched jaw, crow-bar effort is the only thing that will win the day. In other words, “you better work, bitch”.

"What parts of your life simply fit - with a clean, satisfying feeling that they align with who you are?"

”What feels like it matches, nourishes and expresses some deep part of you?”

"What feels satisfying on the surface, but tense or hollow below?"

"What feels like it provides an opportunity to make a contribution that feels deeply meaningful?"

"What only matters when it can be posted on social media?"