The Alchemist’s Initiation

an Online Course

10 weeks, beginning October 15, 2011

Many of the people who’ve written to me after reading On Becoming an Alchemist have expressed a delighted sense of self-recognition. Until then, they hadn’t known what to call their individualistic approach to spirituality. They are happy to discover that it has a name.

Before long, though, delight gives way to perplexity. If you learned that the name for what you are was “Buddhist” or “Christian Scientist” or even “pagan,” the next steps would be pretty obvious. You could find like-minded people by joining a church or an organization, which would also provide you with rituals, rules, a teacher or leader, and a clear path to follow. Not so with alchemy. As far as you can tell, there’s nowhere to sign up. Nobody seems to be in charge of it. What in the world are you supposed to do next?

If you’re like most alchemists, your next step is to read some more. You buy or borrow half a dozen books with “alchemy” in the title and find that they have a lot to say about sulfur, mercury and salt. What that has to do with you and your spiritual life is unclear. How it would lead to the ability to do magic is even less clear.

You’re not alone in your frustration. Over the past four or five centuries, western alchemy has increasingly become something people read about as opposed to something people do. This is the difficulty that The Alchemist’s Initiation, will address.

Initiation means “catching on.” It’s hard (though not impossible) to get initiated from books, because reading mostly engages the intellect, while initiation engages the whole person: sense perception, feeling, memory, intuition and, most importantly, the will. Picking up where On Becoming an Alchemist left off, The Alchemist’s Initiation will explore how to go about transforming yourself at these deeper levels.

What will happen in the course

We’ll begin by exploring various methods of initiation, including:

Then we’ll delve more deeply into the seven phases (calcination, dissolution, etc) described in On Becoming an Alchemist. In the book, I said that these phases arise spontaneously, and in no particular order. While that’s how it usually works, there is also a way to precipitate the various phases on purpose, so as to work with them intensively and at a time of your own choosing. That’s what we’ll be doing in the course.

Methods of instruction will include readings, group discussions, games and exercises, as well as assignments of various tasks to be accomplished by magic.

How Online Instruction Works

The course will take place in a private online forum (password-protected and invisible to search engines, so our secrets are safe.) Because it is accessible 24/7, you can sign on whenever you find it convenient. Formal lessons and assignments will be posted at the beginning of each week, and I’ll be signing on daily to respond to questions and read what participants are posting. Because all assignments are optional, the time and energy you commit and the intensity of the experience you have will be up to you.

SCHEDULE

Formal instruction begins October 15 and ends January 6. There will be no lessons during the weeks of Thanksgiving and Christmas, though the site will remain accessible during these breaks.

How to Enroll

Email me at cmaccoun@sbcglobal.net, stating your full name and your intention to join the course. I will email you a bill for the tuition, which you can pay by check, credit or debit card, or PayPal account. Upon receiving your payment, I’ll send you your password and instructions on how to access the course.

Tuition: $495.