Discovering Higher Metaphysical Substances

“LIKE ATTRACTS LIKE”

"The whole of alchemy is nothing but an allegorical description of the human factory and its work of transforming base metals (coarse substances) into precious ones (fine substances).”

“…(An Example) By inhaling air we introduce higher 'hydrogens' into ourselves, but if our organism does not know how to extract them out of the particles of air, and retain them, they are exhaled back into the air. If the organism is able to extract and retain them, they remain in it. In this way we all breathe the same air but we extract different substances from it. Some extract more, others less. 

"In order to extract more, it is necessary to have in our organism a certain quantity of corresponding fine substances. Then the fine substances contained in the organism act like a magnet on the fine substances contained in the inhaled air.

“We come again to the old alchemical law: 'In order to make gold, it is first of all necessary to have a certain quantity of real gold.' 'If no gold whatever is possessed, there is no means whatever of making it.'”

— Gurdjieff, In Search of the Miraculous 

QUESTION TO A. I.:

“ Is there an alchemical saying that “like attracts like”? Please explain.”

GEMINI RESPONSE:

Yes, while the exact modern phrase "like attracts like" is more commonly associated with the New Thought movement and the Law of Attraction, the underlying principle is absolutely fundamental to classical alchemy and Hermetic philosophy.

The alchemists would have expressed this concept through different, but related, principles. It was not just a saying for them; it was an observable law of nature and the cosmos that made their entire art possible.

Here is an explanation of how this principle functions in alchemy.

1. The Law of Sympathy and Affinity

The more traditional way to express this idea in alchemy is through the Law of Sympathy or Affinity. Ancient and medieval cosmology, which heavily influenced alchemy, was built on the idea that all things in the universe were interconnected through a web of sympathies (attractions) and antipathies (repulsions).

• Sympathy: Things that shared a similar nature, quality, essence, or "vibration" were believed to have a natural affinity for one another. They were "in tune" and would attract or influence each other.

• Example: Gold, being considered the most perfect, sun-like metal, had a natural sympathy with the Sun itself, with the heart in the human body, and with all things noble and regal. Lead, by contrast, had a sympathy with the planet Saturn and the quality of melancholy. The alchemist worked by understanding and manipulating these sympathies.

2. The Principle of Correspondence: "As Above, So Below"

This is the most famous maxim in all of alchemy, originating from the foundational text, the Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus. It is the ultimate expression of "like attracts like" on a cosmic scale.

• Meaning: It states that the patterns of the heavens (the Macrocosm) are reflected in the patterns of the earthly world and of the human being (the Microcosm). A pattern finds its likeness on every level of reality.

• Application: This means that by working on the "like" substance within themselves (their own soul or "microcosmic" lead), the alchemist could affect a change in the "like" substance outside of themselves (physical lead). The correspondence between the inner and outer worlds is what allows for transformation.

3. The Alchemical Work: Solve et Coagula

The practical process of alchemy, summarized by the motto Solve et Coagula ("Dissolve and Coagulate"), is a direct application of this principle.

1. Solve (Dissolve): The alchemist starts with the Prima Materia (First Matter) and breaks it down, separating the "like" from the "unlike." This means separating the pure from the impure, the subtle from the gross.

2. Coagula (Coagulate): After purification, the alchemist recombines the purified core principles (often called Philosophical Sulfur and Mercury). This final, perfect union is called the "Chemical Wedding." It can only happen because these two principles are now in their most pure, perfected state and share a fundamental likeness. Their affinity for one another is what allows them to merge perfectly to create the Philosopher's Stone.

The entire Great Work is based on the idea that purified, like-natured essences will naturally seek to unite and create a higher, more perfect substance.

In conclusion, while you won't find the simple mantra "like attracts like" used as a famous alchemical motto, the principle it describes is the very bedrock of alchemical theory and practice. It is expressed through the more technical concepts of sympathy, affinity, correspondence, and the union of purified essences. For the alchemist, this was a sacred law woven into the fabric of creation, connecting the stars, the metals, and the human soul.

                                    ______________________________

"But on the fourth way knowledge is still more exact and perfect. A man who follows the fourth way knows quite definitely what substances he needs for his aims and he knows that these substances can be produced within the body by a month of physical suffering, by a week of emotional strain, or by a day of mental exercises— and also, that they can be introduced into the organism from without if it is known how to do it. 

And so, instead of spending a whole day in exercises like the yogi, a week in prayer like the monk, or a month in self-torture like the fakir, he simply prepares and swallows a little pill which contains all the substances he wants and, in this way, without loss of time, he obtains the required results.”

— Gurdjieff, In Search of the Miraculous