Inner Light Journal

Book Review
by Gareth Knight

On Becoming an Alchemist by Catherine MacCoun
(Trumpeter – Boston & London 2008)  ISBN 978-1-59030-396-6)

This book will not teach you how to make gold, but if you feel overwhelmed by heavy Qabalah or esoteric jargon then it could be worth its weight in gold to you. From long experience as a ghost writer (in the literary not the esoteric sense) Catherine MacCoun has a lightness of touch that makes this book seem deceptively simple, but do not let that fool you - she has served a fruitful apprenticeship in more than one esoteric school, and the wisdom on display here proves it.
Her book falls into two parts. The first gives general principles of the Great Work and the second is devoted to a series of stages upon it, under traditional alchemical headings of calcination, dissolution, separation, conjunction, fermentation, sublimation and (a somewhat new one!) radiation. However, as the subtitle of the book suggests, A Guide for the Modern Magician, it is not restricted to alchemy in the limited sense of the term. Her idea of alchemy is the practical application of magical philosophy with the spiritual and intellectual safeguards that prevent the student becoming a pretentious crackpot.
The general principles given in the first part of the book cover Unlocking the Secret Codes – that is to say, developing a discerning rather than a superstitious approach to symbols; Separate the Subtle from the Gross, which is the importance of developing your own inner perceptions rather than relying on those of other people; Levity and Gravity - Navigating the Vertical World which is largely what Dion Fortune used to refer to as Rising on the Planes, not only how to do it but to how to react when you get there; and Living Backward which breaks through our usual perceptions of time into a world of personal freedom and magical intuition.
In each of these chapters Catherine MacCoun has given a slightly different take on what the Great Work is trying to accomplish, and she now offers a series of steps towards that goal. These are not necessarily to be taken in logical sequence - life is not that simple – but are simply ways in which – as she somewhat startlingly puts it – “to reincarnate into your own life”. This in other words is to evoke the descent of your own spirit instead of having it hover about up there on cloud nine!
Catherine MacCoun puts all of this across in a style that should prove attractive to beginners, who may not realise quite how felicitously they are being inducted into quite advanced work. And although its chatty ambience may perhaps seem facile to those accustomed to more ponderous tomes – whether or not they deliver the goods – she is one who has learned the rare knack of being able “to ride light in the saddle”.
Also the fact that she is a highly experienced publishing consultant brings an unusual opportunity for any reader who is also an aspiring writer. Her website www.catherinemacccoun.com provides excellent free advice on how best to go about it. And as a former publishing professional myself I can assure you that, in this area as well, she knows what she is talking about!