Diotimos Library · Esotericism & Spirituality Collection · Bilingual Edition
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Latin Page · Branch 159 of 204
On Sulphur · Passage 5
Source reference
- Latin witness
- 1616 · sequence pages 62–63
Latin
Alchimista resumpto animo, Domine, inquit, Esuriens semper de pane, ita ego semper de Lapide Philosophorum cogito.
Vox: Et quare maledicis sulphuri?
Alchimista: Domine credidi illud esse primam materiam Lapidis Philosophorum; ideo in illo laborando per aliquot annos multa consumpsi, et non potui istum Lapidem invenire.
Vox: Amice ego quidem sulphur novi verum et principale subiectum Lapidis Philosophorum, sed te non nosco, neque de tuo labore et proposito quicquam scio. Iniuste maledicis sulphuri: quia illud est in durissimis carceribus, non potest unicuique adesse; quandoquidem hic ligatis pedibus, in tenebrosissimo carcere positum est, nec egreditur, nisi quo illud deportant custodes eius.
Alchimista: Et quare est incarceratum?
Vox: Quia omnibus Alchimistis obediens esse voluit, et facere quicquid ipsi volebant, contra voluntatem matris suae, quae illi interdixerat, ut solummodo iis qui illam noverunt obediret; propterea tradidit illud in carceres, et iussit ligare pedes eius custodesque constituit illi, ut sine illorum scitu et voluntate nusquam ire possit.
English
Alchemist: Sir, as a hungry person always thinks of bread, so I always think of the philosophers' stone.
Voice: And why do you curse sulphur?
Alchemist: Sir, I believed it was the first matter of the philosophers' stone. I therefore spent much over several years working upon it, but could not find this stone.
Voice: Friend, I indeed know sulphur, the true and principal subject of the philosophers' stone. But I do not know you, or anything about your labour and intention. You curse sulphur unjustly. It is in the harshest imprisonment and cannot attend to everyone. Its feet are bound here in the darkest prison, and it does not leave except where its guards carry it.
Alchemist: Why is it imprisoned?
Voice: Because it wished to obey all alchemists and do whatever they wanted, against its mother's will. She had forbidden it to obey anyone except those who knew her. She therefore committed it to prison, ordered its feet bound and appointed guards over it, so that it could go nowhere without their knowledge and consent.
Socrates
Reading A New Light of Alchemy · On Sulphur · On Sulphur · Passage 5
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Socrates will begin with this book and its sources.About This Reading Edition
The complete supplied Latin–English edition of the Twelve Treatises, Epilogue, Enigma, Parable, Dialogue of Mercury and Treatise of Sulphur, with original preliminaries, John French’s historical English address and its separately labelled modernisation, 101 annotations and the complete study apparatus.
Historical Text and Translation
The Twelve Treatises and their concluding texts follow the selected 1606 Herzog August Bibliothek witness. The Dialogue uses the 1607 Cologne printing; the author’s preface and Alsted epigram use Frankfurt 1611. Sulphur uses the 1616 Munich and Rome witnesses. John French’s 1650 address is separately identified as historical English reception.
About Diotimos Editions
This historical edition credits Diotimos Editions as its English translator.
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The historical Latin texts and John French’s 1650 English address are in the public domain. The new translation, modernisation and editorial apparatus were prepared with AI assistance for Diotimos Editions in 2026 and are published with the site owner’s authorization.