Paracelsus: Concerning the Nature of Things

Glossary

• arcanum a mystery or deep secret, or an elixir or secret remedy
• Archeus the vital life force
• basilisks legendary reptiles or serpents
• benedicta garyophyllata an herb
• cachymiae the plural form of a word referring to an imperfect metallic body, or immature ore of metal, that is neither saline nor metal but almost metallic
• civet a catlike mammal that secretes a musk used in perfumes, or the musk itself
• cucurbite a vessel or flask for distillation
• garyophyllon dried flower buds of the clove
• Hermes probably a reference to Hermes Trismegistus, a Greco-Egyptian god and putative author of a Gnostic text
• homunculus an artificial human
• hydromel mead, or honey diluted in water
• imbibition the absorption of a liquid
• Luna probably silver
• marchasite iron sulfide, often called iron pyrite
• mumia anything that serves the transmission of the vital life force—as, for example, a vaccine
• Philosophers’ Stone a legendary alchemical substance thought to be capable of turning base metals, especially lead,...