This symbol, often
referred to as the synthesis of alchemy or the Hermetic
Seal, hearkens back
to ancient pythagorean philosophy, wherein the square, circle, the and the
triangle are the emblems of the material body, the soul, and the spirit,
the three elements believed to be necessary for alchemical transformation.
Alchemically,
they are Mercury, Salt, and Sulphur. In Atalanta Fugiens, the alchemical
text illustrated below, it is written, "Make of man and woman a circle; thence
a square; thence a triangle; form a circle, and you will have the Philosopher's
Stone," a hidden geometrical formula for creating an octave and a golden
rectangle.
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