Organ and ape

Meaning

Nature’s organ and ape comparisons ridicule two forms of presumption. The heavens are not an organ that the alchemist can play with his fingers to supply influence at will; manual art is not equal to Nature merely because it imitates her like an ape. The images criticise assumed control and superficial copying, not music or animals as such. English “organ” preserves the keyboard image, while “ape” preserves the pointed likeness without making it a technical name for an operator. The surrounding argument still permits a properly instructed helper: the rejected claim is that artificial handling can independently produce heavenly formative power.