first published in the magazine "Paracelsus" 2/2011, 4/VIII, (side 12-15) Deutsch Español

From Iron to Gold: The Alchemical Carlsmetall of St. Germain

Personal perfection and enlightenment have always been the aim of researching alchemists. The legendary transmutation of base metals into gold was only the outward sign that the inner “lightening“ of the alchemist had proceeded far. The Count of Saint Germain was supposed to have mastered the transmutation of metals and precious stones and is regarded as an alchemist who advanced to “Ascended Master“. Historically proven is at least his laboratory work with Landgrave Carl of Hesse-Kassel and the transmutation from iron into the legendary “Carlsmetall“.

Von Ulrich Arndt

The Count of Saint Germain is famous as an alchemist, freemason, politician and secret diplomat of different royal houses, globetrotter and healer of the 18th century. Many spectacular and colourful reports exist on his life, and even his death remains in the unknown. Rudolf Steiner considered him to be a reincarnation of the high adept, Christian Rosenkreuz, founder of the Order of the Rosicrucians. In the field of esoterics “Saint Germain” is regarded as one of the “Ascended Masters”, consequently as a person who was able to develop his consciousness to such an extent that he now – as a non-physical entity on a higher level of awareness – spiritually supports mankind in its development. It was exactly the subject of transformation and development of awareness upon which his secret alchemical laboratory work with Landgrave Carl of Hesse-Kassel touched – namely around the elevation of iron to gold. In an energetical sense this transmutation corresponds to a transformation of the aggressive Mars energy to which the iron is allocated, into balanced “golden” sun quality. This outward transformation has its equivalent in the interior nature of the alchemist, and here the “iron“ state equals an ego which is just starting to become conscious of itself in a confrontation with the environment. This “iron ego“ is now to be developed and perfected into a harmonious personality with higher mental and spiritual qualities – namely into the “sun“ and “gold quality“. Outward sign of this alchemical way which Saint Germain and Landgrave Carl walked together between 1779 and 1784 was the legendary luminous gold-coloured “Carlsmetall”.

Landgrave Carl and Alchemy

Landgrave Carl of Hesse-Kassel, Danish governor for Schleswig-Holstein, resided in Gottdorf Castle in Schles-wig, at Louisenlund, which acted as summer residence and which still today harbours the peculiar, allegorical garden with symbols of freemasonry and alchemy symbols and which at one time accommodated the “alchemists’ tower”. It accommodated a large congregation room of the freemasons whose lodge Carl was a member of. In its cellar, however, the Count of Saint German established his alchemical laboratory. Some quite practical results of the alchemical laboratory there were new methods for dying, and improving of fabrics, leather, and metals, for which the Ott Manufacture in Eckernförde was taken over by the count and was extended.

The real work, however, was the “inner alchemy“ into which the Landgrave was introduced by Saint Germain. The aim of the true alchemist has not been the making of gold from base metals like lead or iron, but rather the finding of the ultimate universal remedy – the remedy which transforms body, spirit and soul in equal parts: everything heavy, dark and sick in the human being – symbolized by the “dark” lead or iron – is to be “lighted up”, “enlightened” by the alchemical elixir of life, and turned into health, symbolically into the “light god”. This transformation or “transmutation is nothing else but the “Great Work“ of alchemy in the human being. Frater Albertus, the well known alchemist of the 20th century, puts this into modern language, “Alchemy is nothing else but a step-by-step elevation of the state of vibrations”. A transformation of the base metal into real gold was only outward proof for an alchemist that the transformation is also possible inside a person, and that he has reached this inner quality.

A scholar of alchemy always had to find the next steps of this development towards the ”gold“ by himself, and had to bring it into harmony with the internal development – and it is exactly this which Landgrave Carl reports in a letter: “He (Saint Germain) entrusted him with all his knowledge of the nature of things, but only the rudiments, and he then let me search the means for reaching the purpose by myself and he was immensely happy about my progress. This is what he did in connection with metal and stones. The colours he really taught me, as well as some other very important knowledge.”

The Carlsmetall possessed a gold-like brilliance which, however, turned dark after a certain time – which was the reason why he and his alchemical work with Saint Germain were ridiculed by outsiders. In case both had intended a complete transmutation from iron into gold – which is unknown to us – this had in actual fact failed. With respect to the “inner alchemy“, however, this could mean that although Landgrave Carl had far advanced the necessary inner development, he had not yet completed it at that time.

Inner Alchemy: Development of the Sun Quality

After the death (or disappearing or “ascent“) of Saint Germain in 1784, Landgrave Carl developed very fast into one of the leading enlightenment philosophers and freemasons in Europe. He founded several lodges, protected Jewish Masonic lodges against persecution and even obtained a secured public legal status for the Masonic order in Denmark. His enlightened way of thinking showed itself in quite a practical way, too: he had poor people treated free of charge with plant remedies according to recipes of Saint German, and paid for the physician. As one of the first princes, he abolished serfdom on his estate of Gereby, - today’s Karlsburg – in 1790. This is remarkable as only shortly before this, in France, serfdom had been abolished for the first time ever, as a result of the revolution of 1789. In Prussia, the abolition only took place in 1887, and in many German countries nothing even changed with regard to the serfdom of the peasants. Had Landgrave Carl finally been able to complete his inner path of development – “from iron to gold” – after all?

The Alchemical Essence, “Carlsmetall“

These extraordinary alchemical endeavours of Landgrave Carl of Hesse-Kassel, with the support of Saint Germain, were now the cause for gaining the “essence of the Carlsmetall”: an alchemical essence, truly manufactured according to the laboratory methods of Paracelsus, of iron and gold. This Carlsmetall essence supports the inner alchemical path “from iron to gold“, namely the development of an ego only little conscious of itself into a holistically developed spiritual ego.

Landgrave Carl of Hesse

Precondition for producing such an essence of High Alchemy at all was the rediscovery of the “secret solvent“ like the so-called “philosophical Mercury” and the “secret salt fire” in the year 2000. Only with the aid of this is it possible to dissolve metals like gold, silver, iron and platinum, and the hardest precious stones like diamonds, rubies, emeralds and amethysts. Here, these special solvents do not only ”liquefy“ metals and precious stones – strong acids like the aqua regia could do this, too, - they also act energetically, they dissolve the connection between body, spirit and soul of the substances – called sal, sulphur, and mercurius – and by the art in the laboratory these will be joined together again on a higher energetic and spiritual level. This way, since 2000, the famous gold essence, “Aurum Potabile“ and other metals, precious stones and flowers were created. During the making of the Carlsmetall essence, the fiery aggressiveness is taken away from the pugnacious iron and is transformed into the all-around glowing and fiery gleam of the gold.

According to the alchemical chakra teachings, the iron is assigned to the solar plexus chakra. In the solar plexus chakra everything foreign is integrated into one’s own self. It thus regulates the processing and connection from outward, and the subconscious inner, to one “ego”. In a similar way, its harmonization also ensures more favourable processing and uptake of energies from the nutrition. A harmonious function of the solar plexus chakra lends the person helpfulness and level-headedness in coping with others. It strengthens the self-esteem and willpower, and the power of determination. If it is connected with the sun quality of the gold, higher levels of awareness can also be integrated into the “ego”. As alchemical essence, the “Carlsmetall“ therefore stimulates several chakras at the same time: solar plexus, third eye chakra, and crown chakra, as well as root chakra and the foot chakra in order not to lose grounding in all this spiritualization. All this together levels for the human the path for a personality and consciousness development from “the dark to the light”, to the “gold-and-sun quality”.

Nach der alchemistischen Chakra-Lehre wird dem Eisen das Solarplexus-Chakra zugeordnet. Im Solarplexus-Chakra wird alles Fremde in das eigene Sein integriert. Es reguliert also die Verarbeitung und Verbindung von Äußerem und unbewussten Inneren zu einem „Ich“. In ähnlicher Weise sorgt seine Harmonisierung auch für eine bessere Verarbeitung und Aufnahme der Energien aus der Nahrung. Eine harmonische Funktion des Solarplexus-Chakras verleiht der Person Hilfsbereitschaft und Besonnenheit im Umgang mit anderen. Es stärkt das Selbstwertgefühl und die Willens- und Entschlusskraft. Wird es mit der Sonnen-Qualität des Goldes verbunden, können auch höhere Bewusstseinsebenen in das „Ich“ integriert werden. Als alchemistische Essenz regt das „Carlsmetall“ daher mehrere Chakras gleichzeitig an: Solarplexus-, Stirn- und Kronen-Chakra, aber auch Wurzel-Chakra und das Fuß-Chakra, um bei aller Vergeistigung die Erdung nicht zu verlieren. Als dies zusammen ebnet dem Menschen den Weg für eine Persönlichkeits- und Bewusstseinsentwicklung vom „Dunklen zum Licht“, zur „Gold- und Sonnen-Qualität“.