Where once the mighty hammer upon the anvil beat

Pounding out the hours that all hours be complete,

And once the turning of the sky’s gyration

Moved the metals seven in their gradual gestation,

Now alas the stillpoint folds and the net of stars ensnarl;

All we have are shadows left of the alchimie primordiale. 

Welcome to Alchimie Primordiale: Studies in Primordial Tradition. This site offers essays and other studies on primordialist alchemical themes. The guiding principle of these studies is that there is an ancient - indeed, primordial - tradition of doctrine, method and symbol to be found in the religious and esoteric traditions of the world, albeit obscured and often completely buried under the weight of ages and the accumulations of human folly. Alchemy, east and west, is the nearest expression of this primordial tradition. It is necessary to excavate and decode this primordial content in order to restate it in contemporary terms. In this we take our motto from the lines of T.S. Eliot who wrote: There is only the struggle to discover what has been lost and found and lost again and again. These studies are available in short treatises in PDF format for $2 US per issue. Please see the menu on the right column of this page. 

Contributions from other writers are most welcome. They should be written in clear, uncluttered English and present matters consonant with the guiding principle set out above. To submit contributions or to discuss any aspect of these studies please write to Dr R. Blackhirst at:

blackhirst@gmail.com