Philosophers Stone
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Welcome to Theories of the Third Kind. Welcome to Theories of the Third Kind. My name is Aaron and I am one of your hosts. The other host joining me today is Daniel-san. Hello there. Jesus. Now before we start today's episode, I just want to state that no AI programs were used or harmed in the creation of this episode. The research for this show and all of its work was created solely by humans.

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So today's episode is over the Philosopher's Stone. And how this episode will go today is that we'll talk about what is the Philosopher's Stone and then give you a little bit of back history on alchemy as well as the search of the Philosopher's Stone since they kind of go hand in hand. And then we'll go into strange facts and findings, theories, and of course wrap everything up with our own personal thoughts and theories. So with that being said, let's get into today's episode.

A fabled substance of immense power tantalizes the human imagination with the promise of riches and immortality. Some call it the elixir of life, a gateway to alchemical marvels, the all-encompassing universal solvent, or the embodiment of philosophical wisdom. Is this stone merely a metaphorical journey to spiritual enlightenment and self-discovery?

Or does it conceal a tangible reality, capable of transforming the very essence of matter itself? As whispers of its existence echo through history, we venture into the realm of alchemy, delving into the quest for this elusive stone and pondering whether it holds the key to unlocking humanity's greatest secrets. This is The Philosopher's Stone.

All right. So I have a question to ask you, Dan. Okay. When you hear someone talking about the Philosopher's Stone, what do you automatically think of? Yo, Wizard Harry. That's exactly what I think of. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer or Philosopher's Stone, whichever the American or the UK version.

That's right. I mean, even if you search up the Philosopher's Stone on the internet, Harry Potter is one of the most popular results that come up. However, this Philosopher's Stone was searched for by individuals over the past thousands of years. And for us to start off today's episode, we need to learn exactly what it is and dive into the history of it.

So Dan, can you start this off and tell us what the Philosopher's Stone is? So this Philosopher's Stone is a legendary substance that is believed to have extraordinary powers, such as the ability to turn metal into gold and even cure all diseases and grant eternal life. Oh, and by the way, this stone also is known as the Elixir of Life.

So like I mentioned, for thousands of years, multiple different cultures have sought out this philosopher's stone. Throughout history, rumors circulated about many different individuals possessing it. However, before we get into those rumors, we first need to discuss the history of the stone. The very first mention of the philosopher's stone was all the way back around 3000 BCE in ancient Egypt.

Egyptian texts and hieroglyphics talk about a substance that could transmute base metals into gold and even had the power to grant immortality. They did not call this substance the philosopher's stone, but instead they referred to it as the elixir of life and the elixir of immortality. Also, the ancient Egyptians believed that this was the substance that gave gods their ability to live forever.

Now that right there is the first mention of this substance in history. And as we started to dig deeper into it, we quickly learned that alchemy started to play a key role in this entire story. So alchemy is an ancient practice where alchemists blended elements of science, philosophy, and mysticism.

It involves individuals experimenting with different substances and chemical processes, while also seeking personal growth and enlightenment through their work. The history of alchemy dates back to 300 BCE in Hellenistic Egypt. Now, if you slept during this part of history class and don't know what Hellenistic Egypt is, that is okay, because we're going to explain that to you real quick.

All right, so for us to explain what Hellenistic Egypt is, we first need to tell y'all a little bit about Alexander the Great. So back in 336 BCE, Alexander the Great was 20 years old, and his father, of course, was King Philip II of Macedonia, which, by the way, the locals there pronounced it a completely different way, but for this episode today, we're going to call it Macedonia.

Now, Alexander was next in line to the throne. However, he thought that he wouldn't be king anytime soon. This was due to his father being a strong and effective leader who stabilized and united the kingdom. Now, under King Philip's rule, Macedonia became a significant power in the region, and his successful military campaigns garnered admiration and loyalty from his subjects.

So needless to say, Alexander looked up to his father and he was like, Damn, you bitch ass gonna live forever and I'll never be king. Spoiler alert, that is not the case. So in 336 BCE, King Philip's daughter, she was getting married to King Alexander I of Epirus. Of course, King Philip showed up to be there for his daughter's wedding. However, that's when tragedy struck.

As King Philip was entering the theater to attend his daughter's wedding festivities, a young Macedonian noble named Pausinias ran up to King Philip and stabbed his bitch ass. He said, check yourself, and shanked him a couple of times. Of course, King Philip ended up dying. And at the young age of 20 years old, Alexander the Great became the king of Macedonia. First thing that came to mind.

Was Lincoln. It's like, if you're a leader, I guess just don't go to the theater at all. Something bad is going to happen to you. Yeah. Or don't get in a car, you know, that's a convertible and drive down the road in a parade. You know what? Just stay in, just stay indoors. Just don't show yourself. Lock yourself away.

So shortly after becoming king, Alexander decided to continue his father's military expansion where he wanted to ultimately unite the entire known world under one empire, which aimed to spread Greek culture, language, and ideas. So he wanted to pretty much rule the entire world. Pretty much.

So, after two years of planning, in 334 BCE, at the age of 22, Alexander began his famous military campaign against the Persian Empire. This was the beginning of what would ultimately lead him to create one of the largest empires the world has ever seen.

During a short period of only around 11 years, Alexander was able to expand his empire across three continents, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Now, the exact size of the empire varied over time, you know, due to like the ongoing military campaigns and territorial changes. But at its peak, it included the following areas.

Modern-day Bulgaria, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, India, Libya, Greece, and many more other modern-day countries. So needless to say, his ass almost ruled the entire damn world on the eastern side. So fast forward to June of 323 BCE. Alexander attended a banquet in Babylon.

And afterwards, he started to develop a fever and his tummy started to hurt a little bit. Physicians were called in to try and help him. But a few days later, at the age of 32 years old, Alexander the Great passed away. I bet he had appendicitis. I bet he did and I bet he didn't get surgery for it. That's right. That's where his fever came from. Yep. Damn. Now there have been various speculations and theories regarding the nature of the illness that led to his death.

Some historians believe it might have been the result of a tropical disease or an infection, while others suggest it could have been the consequence of injuries sustained during his many military campaigns. Regardless, his ass died. So it was Alexander the Great's death that leads us back to what we originally were talking about, Hellenistic Egypt.

So when Alexander died, his vast empire, which included Egypt, was divided among his generals. And one of them, Ptolemy, took control over Egypt. Now Ptolemy established what was called the Ptolemaic Kingdom in Egypt and became its first ruler. This dynasty, as it came to be known, ruled for nearly 300 years with all of its rulers being of Greek descent.

Now, despite all the rulers being Greek, they didn't get rid of Egyptian customs and traditions. No, they did not. They embraced that shit. They embraced it so much that they even presented themselves as pharaohs of Egypt. Damn. Cultural appropriation. Um, another thing that these rulers did is that they encouraged Greek settlers to come to Egypt. Not my pharaoh.

Another thing that these rulers did is that they encouraged Greek settlers to come to Egypt. They told them, "Hey, you guys should really come over here. It's super nice. We are building new cities that contain a mix of Greek and Egyptian elements so that you will feel right at home." Surprisingly, this worked and quite a few Greeks ended up moving over to Egypt.

Greek ended up becoming the language of the ruling class and administration, while the traditional Egyptian culture and religion continued to be practiced by the native Egyptians. Now, this blending of the cultures is why this period is called Hellenistic, because, you know, it was influenced by Greek culture. So there you go. Now, another important thing to talk about is Alexandria, which was the capital city of Egypt at the time.

Alexandria became a major center of culture, learning, and trade. It is known for its famous library, which housed a vast collection of scrolls and texts from various cultures, making it one of the most significant libraries in history. Until that bitch burned down. So like we previously mentioned, this Ptolemaic dynasty ruled Egypt for almost 300 years, until the death of Cleopatra in 30 BCE.

However, those short 300 years played an important role for intellectual and scientific advancements. For an example, scholars in Alexandria made significant contributions to various fields, including mathematics, astronomy, and medicine. Also, it was a time of great cultural exchange and innovation. Due to this, there was a fusion of Greek philosophy, Egyptian technology, and religious mysticism.

This ultimately gave rise to alchemy, and these early Greek alchemists sought to discover the, what they called, aqua vitae, aka water of life, and the aqua regia, aka royal water. It was said that these substances could transform and purify materials.

Also, at the same time, other non-Greek alchemists began to explore the concept of a substance that could cure all diseases and grant eternal life. So we fast forward to the medieval period, approximately from the 8th century to the 14th century CE. This was known as the Islamic Golden Age. Now, why was it known as that though?

Well, Islamic scholars started preserving and translating ancient Greek, Roman, Persian, and other classical texts. This led to significant advancements in various fields and a rich exchange of knowledge and ideas, including the development of alchemy.

such as experimental techniques, the classification of substances, and the introduction of new chemical processes. Also, alchemists at the time, Jabir Ibn and Al-Razi, made significant contributions, even including theories on the transmutation of metals and the concept of the elixir of life. So both Jabir and Al-Razi worked on developing this substance that could bring about the perfection of matter. However, they were unsuccessful, supposedly though.

So around the 12th and 13th centuries, a lot of these Arabic texts made their way into European libraries. These texts were then translated into Latin and people started reading them. Eventually, they came across the process of alchemy and the theory that, hey, there's a substance out there that, you know, grants riches and immortality.

This, of course, sparked interest in alchemy and it spread throughout Europe. European alchemists such as Albertus Magnus, Roger Bacon, and Ramon Lewell pursued this philosopher's stone with a passion, seeing as it means to achieve spiritual enlightenment and material wealth. Now, like we mentioned, alchemy and rumors of alchemists possessing the ability to create wealth and good health

This was a rumor and it spread like wildfire. Due to this, some individuals started to think, Oi, this will be a great time for me to scam someone. And that is exactly what some people did. Individuals started going around and making claims that they possessed the secret of transmutation, that they could turn regular metal into gold.

These individuals would charge the person a certain amount of money or just take the metal that they were supposed to turn into gold and they would never come back. So let's say you were just a regular person. I would go up to you and I'd be like, hey,

You hear that rumor that's going around and you'd be like, oh yeah, of course about the alchemist and then having the ability to turn metal into gold. I could be like, yeah, I'm one of those alchemists. Tell you what, give me some of your metal. I'll turn majority of it into gold and I'll keep just a little bit of it. And then you'll be like, oh yeah, yeah, sure. You'd give me all your metal and boom, I just leave. Never come back.

So apparently this scam was rampant and it was becoming so bad that alchemists started to be associated with fraud. Even in some regions, religious authorities started publicly disapproving of alchemy, stating that it was an attempt to interfere with God's divine plan. This led to the persecution of alchemists and even restrictions placed on the practice of alchemy.

Now, I do want to state that the legal status of alchemy varied greatly depending on the historical period and whatever specific location they were in at the time. For an example, alchemy was banned in some places. However, it was enjoyed by royal or aristocratic patronage and others and even prominent figures like Emperor Rudolf II of the Holy Roman Empire. He was known to support alchemy. So, yeah.

A notable example that we have to mention of alchemy being outlawed occurred in 1403 in England. During this time, King Henry IV got word that there were these alchemists out there turning metal into gold and even had the possibility of turning themselves immortal. When he got word of this, he made an announcement, he went in front of everyone and stated,

So that is what King Henry said back in 1403. Well, not exactly, but pretty much that was the message.

So like we previously mentioned, the legal status of the practice varied greatly depending on the historical period and location. Alright, so let's fast forward to the 14th and 17th centuries. In areas where alchemy was legal, the interest in it grew, which of course caused the rumors of the Philosopher's Stone to become even more popular.

Throughout this time, several historical figures were associated with the pursuit of the Philosopher's Stone, either as, you know, alchemists, patrons, or just enthusiasts. One of the most famous names being the French scribe and bookseller, Nicolas Flamel. According to legend, Nicolas discovered the Philosopher's Stone and used its powers to create vast amounts of gold and achieve immortality.

Another popular individual who was a Swiss physician, astrologer, and alchemist, Paracelsus, he believed that the Philosopher's Stone was 100% real. And he actually spent a lot of his time trying to create it. Another popular historical figure during this period was Isaac Newton. Now, even though he's best known for his groundbreaking work in physics and mathematics, Isaac also delved into alchemy.

His manuscripts reveal his interest in the Philosopher's Stone and that he dedicated a considerable amount of time to alchemical studies attempting to discover the Philosopher's Stone and the secrets of transmutation. So like we mentioned, these three historical figures are some of the most well-known in their association with the Philosopher's Stone.

However, there were many others throughout history who contributed to the development and understanding of alchemy and the pursuit of this elusive substance. Now, even though the pursuit of this mysterious substance significantly influenced the development of scientific thought and the experimental practices, as time progressed, the concept of this elusive philosopher's stone gradually became associated in the realm of legend and mythology.

As of today, almost everyone views the Philosopher's Stone as pretty much just a story. That there is no way a person can create a substance that can make them rich beyond their wildest dreams, as well as immortal, right? Well, that is where things begin to get interesting.

Because as we were researching this topic, we came across a ton of interesting strange facts and findings, which we're going to get into right now. So Dan, why don't you tell us about the first one we have? So our first strange fact and finding is about the Latin term Magnus Opus. What the hell is Magnus Opus?

So any and all efforts that were made to create the Philosopher's Stone using alchemy were known as Magnus Opus, which meant the great work. And just a side note, Magnus Opus is usually referred to as the greatest work of an artist, writer, or composer as like their crowning achievement, their greatest work of all. Oh, okay.

Now, the Magnus Opus in alchemy has four stages, which can be traced as far back as the first century. We do gotta say that these stages are not always linear. Also, for each phase, there are physical and psycho-spiritual aspects to them. Which, just a heads up, we will say the spiritual aspects, then the physical aspects of each phase, okay?

So the first stage is called negrado, aka blackening. This stage is associated with death, decay, and the breaking down of the old. It is a time of darkness and confusion. This is when the alchemists must confront their own shadow spiritually. Physically though, this is when it contains the lesser phases of calcination and dissolution within it.

This just means that this is the initial phase where the substance is broken down into its basic parts before being recombined and altered in the later stages. Now the second stage is albedo aka whitening. This stage is associated with purification and rebirth. The alchemist begins to see the light at the end of the tunnel. This is when the alchemist will start to rebuild their life. Now that the substance and the alchemist are rid of all impurities,

Now they can actually be purified in order to become something new. The third stage is citronitis, aka yellowing. Yeah, boy. Jesus Christ. This stage is associated with illumination and understanding. This is where the alchemist begins to understand the meaning of their journey and starts to see the world in a new light. The substance is now rid of all of its impurities and becomes more refined and purer.

Then we have the final stage of this four-stage Magnus Opus, and that is called Rubedo, aka Reddening. This stage is associated with completion and transformation. The alchemist has achieved their goal and has become a new person. The substances, after going through the previous three stages, are now brought together and they are transformed into a new and perfect substance. Meaning this is a time of great joy and celebration because, well…

They achieved their goal. So there you have it. The four stages of Magnus Opus, the great work. So what is that? Just kind of like how they made it? It's pretty much the process of it. So they pretty much describe each step.

But not in super detail, but just like what the name of it is and like what the process is, but not in detail to where you could do it. Exactly. Oh, okay. Well, that's useless. Thanks a lot. Alchemists. I was trying to become immortal, but it's very spiritual. You get to, you break yourself down, rebuild yourself, and now you're a new person and you're rich and you got immortality. Yeah. Something like that. Yeah. Wonder how well that worked out for them.

Alright, so let's go on to our next strange fact and finding, which is about someone we talked about earlier, Nicholas Flamel. Now before we get into that, we're going to take a quick break and we'll be right back.

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And get an inside perspective from the experts closest to the cases. I really appreciate platforms like this that are there for the victims and to give them a voice. Listen now to the Crime Door TV podcast, your home for true crime analysis. All right. Welcome back. So let's go on to our next strange fact and finding, which is about someone we talked about earlier, Nicholas Flamel.

Except we're going to dive a little bit deeper into the backstory of him and his connection with the stone because it's very odd. And by the way, I know some of you may be like, oh, Nicholas VanMail, that's on Harry Potter. Yes, he was on Harry Potter, but Nicholas was a real person, okay, before Harry Potter. So there you go. Just want to clear that up. Anyway, Dan, tell us about Nicholas.

So, Nicolas Flamel was born in France in 1330. He lived and worked in Paris, where he was known for his calligraphy skills and his successful manuscript business. Now, during his lifetime, Nicolas led a quiet and private existence. He was not known for seeking public attention or actively promoting himself as an alchemist or even his discovery of the Philosopher's Stone.

So, after Nicholas' death, rumors started to circulate of his alchemical achievements and his discovery of the Philosopher's Stone. The story goes that Nicholas came across a mysterious book called the Book of Abraham the Jew or Abraham the Mage. This ancient text was said to contain the secret knowledge required to create the Philosopher's Stone.

Now, Nicholas was intrigued by the book's cryptic contents and dedicated years of his life to decoding its complex alchemical symbols and formulas. According to legend, he eventually succeeded in creating the Philosopher's Stone with the help of his wife, Pernella. The couple then used the stone to produce gold and the Elixir of Life, which granted them immense wealth and supposedly an extended lifespan.

Nicolas Flamel's reputation for philanthropy during his lifetime is well documented, and his wealth allowed him to contribute to various charitable causes. For an example, he funded the construction of several buildings, including hospitals, chapels, and even housing for the poor. One of Nicolas' most notable contributions was the construction of the public housing in Paris known as the Flamel Houses.

These buildings were intended to provide affordable housing for the city's poor, and Nicholas specified in his will that the rents should remain low to ensure their continued accessibility. While it is unclear if Nicholas made additional monetary donations after his death, his charitable efforts during his lifetime and the provisions in his will demonstrate his commitment to using his wealth for the betterment of society.

The legacy of his charitable contributions has persisted over the centuries. This led to a lot of individuals believing that there is no way he was working as a manuscript seller and was able to have this much money to give away. Due to this, he must have discovered the Philosopher's Stone.

Yeah, that's what a lot of people believed. Now, some individuals who don't believe it will counter that and state that Nicholas Flamel earned his wealth primarily through his work as a scribe and manuscript seller during the 14th and 15th centuries. As a skilled scribe, he was able to create and copy texts which were in high demand during that time. Manuscripts were valuable commodities.

and Nicholas' expertise in this field allowed him to amass a considerable fortune. Additionally, his marriage to Pernella, a wealthy widow, likely contributed to his financial status. Together, they invested in property and other ventures, further increasing their wealth.

So yeah, some individuals state that Nicholas got his wealth from figuring out the Philosopher's Stone and others state that, hey, it was a combination of his manuscripts being in high demand and him marrying a wealthy widow. Regardless, Nicholas has become a legendary figure in the history of the Philosopher's Stone. However, he did die, so I think he just took the wealth.

Yeah, I think so. Yeah. So there you go. That is the strange fact and finding about Nicholas Flamel. So let's get into our next one that we got. All right. So our next strange fact and finding is about the other individual we talked about earlier, Isaac Newton. And just like our previous one, we're going to dive a little deeper into the backstory of him and his connection with the Philosopher's Stone. Isaac Newton was born in England in 1643.

He is one of the most famous scientists in history and is primarily known for his achievements in physics and mathematics. However, not many people talk about his deep interest in alchemy. During his lifetime, not many people knew about Isaac being interested in alchemy. However, after he died, manuscripts were discovered revealing that he was secretly involved in alchemy.

These alchemy manuscripts reveal that Isaac studied various alchemical texts and authors in search of knowledge about the philosopher's stone. He was particularly interested in transmutation, which of course is the process of converting base metals into noble metals like gold. And also he was interested in the elixir of life, which grants you immortality.

While Isaac never explicitly stated his views on the Philosopher's Stone in a public forum, his manuscripts showed that he dedicated significant time and effort to understanding and uncovering its secrets. He copied, analyzed, and commented on various alchemical texts, attempting to decipher the often cryptic language used by alchemists.

Isaac also believed that alchemy could provide insights into the natural world that were not accessible through the conventional scientific methods of his time. Despite his extensive research, it is unclear whether he had ever successfully created the Philosopher's Stone or achieved any transmutations. However, his bitch ass is famous, so good for him.

So that was Isaac Newton, but now on to our next strange fact of finding, which is about the varying beliefs that surround the Philosopher's Stone. So like we previously discussed, the main belief around this stone is that it was able to turn metal into gold, making you wealthy, as well as turning you immortal. However, there are some other texts that suggest it can do additional things. For an example, there is the universal solvent belief.

This is the belief that the Philosopher's Stone possessed the power of the, and I quote, universal solvent, which could dissolve any substance, no matter how resistant or solid it might be. So badass acid. Pretty much, yeah. Okay. Another belief is the Obsidian Mirror. This is the belief that the Philosopher's Stone was black in color, sort of like Obsidian-like mirror.

When you looked into the stone, the mirror-like qualities allowed you to see your reflection, which had the power to reveal hidden truths. Another belief that some individuals had regarding the stone is that it was used to create homunculi, which are miniature human-like beings. Now, these weird creatures were believed to be artificial life forms with various mystical and alchemical properties.

And by the way, have you seen any of the YouTube videos of people apparently creating these creatures? Not with the Philosopher's Stone, but they take an egg, like a chicken egg, and they fertilize it with human semen, and then they incubate it, and then some creature comes up out of the egg, and it's like a, it looks like a slime ball, but it has a head. I've seen the, where they fertilize the egg to make a

Little baby chick. You haven't seen the one where they make like the weird creature? No. It's obviously fake, but it's very interesting. Anyways, for all you anime nerds out there, like me, if you've seen Full Metal Alchemist, that has the Philosopher's Stone and the process of them creating homunculi. And that's an anime? That's an anime. It's actually a really good one too. Okay. I'm not going to hate on it.

No, you're becoming more of a fan lately. Hey, look, just because I watched Berserk doesn't mean I'm a full anime fan. Okay. Even though that's super, super good. Anyway, so let's get into our next strange fact and finding, which is about secret codes. Why don't you tell us about it, Dan?

Alright, so like we mentioned in the previous Strange Fact and Finding, alchemists often use cryptic symbols and secret codes in their writings to protect their knowledge from falling into the wrong hands. As a result, many alchemical texts are filled with strange imagery and hidden meanings, making them challenging to decipher and understand. For an example, common symbols include a square, which it represents Earth.

a circle representing the cosmos, and a triangle representing fire. These symbols embody the various stages and elements of the alchemical process and were often used in texts. These symbols and codes have only led individuals to speculate even more about the possibility of this substance being real, and hey, people are trying to hide it through these codes.

Yeah, but that is just a theory. And before we get in theory section, we still have some more strange fact and findings to go over. Now, before we get into that, we're going to take a quick break and we'll be right back. All right. Welcome back. Which our last strange fact and finding is about the pursuit of the philosopher's stone being a popular theme in art and literature throughout history. And our first example is the story of the Holy Grail.

So, the legend of the Holy Grail is a medieval story that has undergone numerous retellings and adaptations. The main theme is that the Holy Grail is the cup or chalice used by Jesus Christ during the Last Supper and later used to catch his blood at the crucifixion. It is believed to have powerful spiritual properties and those who find and possess the Grail are said to gain immense wisdom, healing, and sometimes even immortality.

In some versions of the legend, the Holy Grail is not merely a cup, but a stone or a jewel with mystical powers. Due to this, a lot of people have proposed that it was the Philosopher's Stone. Another example of this would be the famous artwork titled The Alchemist by Peter Bruegel.

In this drawing, there is a figure on the right side that gestures out at the scene in front of him, and it draws the viewer's attention to the foolish behavior that is happening in front of this individual on the right side.

This alchemist that is seated in the drawing works in his makeshift lab as he tries to discover the Philosopher's Stone, a material that will turn base metals into gold and silver. He is assisted in his pursuits by fools below him who are shown squeezing air from like a bellow onto coals to heat it up more. The alchemist wife sits behind the fool and displays her empty purse, a sign that her husband has squandered all that they had in his quest for the Philosopher's Stone.

Now, in the back of the drawing, you can see a window, and through it, we see the, you know, outcome of the alchemist's folly, as he and his family are welcomed at the poorhouse. But yeah, we have a photograph of this art piece, and we'll post it up on our website, theoriesofthe3rdkind.com, for anyone that wants to take a look at it.

Another perfect example are the illustrations from the book titled Atalanta Fugians by Michael Mayer, which showcases the mystical nature of alchemy in the Philosopher's Stone. It shows an individual pointing at a circle on a brick wall.

The circle has a triangle on the inside of it with a square on the inside of that and another circle on the inside of that, which contains a male human and a female human on the inside of that. And I know that's kind of hard to understand, but just like the previous image, we'll have this one up on our website, theoriesofthe3rdkind.com for you to take a look at. It is very odd. Really weird looking. Yeah. And there's a guy pointing at certain spots with a...

stick or spear of sorts. They look like small miniature lances. That's exactly what they look like. So in regards to literature, we can't forget this last mention of the Philosopher's Stone, which is what really popularized it in modern culture. This, of course, is J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series,

where the stone is pretty much the central object in the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Or if you purchased the book in the United States, it's called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. In this story, the stone is created by Nicolas Flamel and its powers become pretty much the focus of the book's plot. And yeah, figured, you know, we couldn't leave that out. No, you couldn't leave that out.

Alright, so that right there was our last strange fact and finding. Now let's get into theories and discuss whether this philosopher's stone is real. Is it not real? If so, who has it? Where did it come from? How do you make it? Let's get into that. Dan, why don't you tell us about our first theory? So our first theory is called spiritual symbol. So this theory is that the philosopher's stone is not a real stone, but more of a spiritual symbol that alchemists strive for in alchemy.

If you take the symbol for the Philosopher's Stone, it has what is known as the squared circle in the middle. This contains the four classical elements: air, fire, water, and earth. These elements are represented as the four corners of the square surrounding the circle which represents the fifth element that these elements would create. Within creating this fifth element would show the way to reach beyond the physical world and venture into higher realms.

So pretty much it's just them trying to venture into higher realms of spiritual. I guess probably getting to a different dimension, fourth dimension. Oh, damn. Maybe. I don't know. That's what it kind of sounds like. When you said air, fire, water, earth, I was like, damn, were they conjuring up Captain Planet? They forgot heart. Oh, damn. I guess not. That's what they were missing. Close. Yeah. All right. So let's get into our next theory, which suggests that the philosopher stone was a real stone.

So based on this belief that the stone, hey, it being real, some speculate that it has been lost through time or possibly that the stone has been hidden in a secret location, like in the libraries of the Vatican or underneath the Vatican, or that the people who control the world, you know, the elites, they have found this philosopher's stone and they've kept it for themselves.

Do you think it's just giving them wealth or immortality as well? I mean, you look at some of those Rothschilds and Rockefellers and all that. Those damn guys look to be a thousand years old. This is true. They do look like skin and bones. Yeah. All right. So what's this next theory? So this next theory suggests that the Philosopher's Stone is an actual physical substance or compound that can be created through a series of complex chemical processes.

Alchemists believed that mastering these processes would result in the creation of the stone, which could then be used to transmute base metals into gold and produce the elixir of life. So pretty much it was an alchemical substance that they can create and then when they created it, it would help in the process of turning metals into gold or creating the elixir of life.

And if that really did exist, you know, kings and other rulers would immediately seize that substance or the stone or whatever and ban it completely because it destabilizes their economy and it's going to make people immortal. They're like, eh, we don't want that. They take it, they hide it away. It's been hidden for centuries, just like the chronovisor. I don't know, I feel like if an alchemist, say he was working under the king, he actually created this philosopher's stone

I don't think he would let the king know that he actually succeeded. He would either start using it for himself and then take over. Yeah, fight the king. King stabs him. He's like, it does nothing. Exactly. Like it would be him, what, just taking over Akuteta? There's a rumor that the Philosopher's Stone not only makes you immortal, but it makes you young again.

What about this? What if King Philip II didn't die? He faked his death, took the Philosopher's Stone and made himself immortal and made himself also young again and then said he was his son, Alexander, and then did his whole military conquest because he was a super good military advisor and already started taking over certain areas. I mean, that could be it. Yeah. But this next theory that we got

is probably one of my favorites, and it's called Spiritual Transformation Theory. So some interpretations of the Philosopher's Stone focus on its symbolic and spiritual aspects. Now, according to this theory, the stone represents a metaphor for inner transformation in spiritual enlightenment.

The alchemical processes involved in creating the stone are seen as sort of like allegorical representations of personal growth, purification, and the quest for divine wisdom. So pretty much in your search for this stone, you find immortality by having yourself grow as a person and you get the riches, not of wealth, but of knowledge.

So it's not really like, say, immortality of your physical being, but of your spiritual self, like your soul. Yes. Your soul becomes immortal. Your growth, the wealth is the knowledge your soul gains to take with you to whatever afterlife, next life. Yep. Okay. I like that one. I like that. All right. Tell us about this next one, Dan. All right. So this next one we have is the universal principles theory. This theory is that the philosopher's stone represents the fundamental principles of the universe.

the underlying order that governs all natural phenomena. Alchemists who subscribe to this view believe that understanding the nature of the stone would reveal the secrets of creation and provide a deep understanding of the cosmos. Would that mean that it came from space? I don't understand this. I guess. So everything that controls nature and natural phenomena, if you can...

understand the stone, it would reveal the secrets of creation and the secret of the cosmos. Oh, I guess how like the universe was created, the world was created. If you found the stone, studied it, actually learned about it, it would reveal how everything was created, how the world came to be, I guess. Why the hell would that be put in a stone? And why would it be so small? I don't know. All right. So our next theory is called projection theory.

So some alchemical text suggests that the philosopher's stone is not a substance that can be created, but rather a catalyst that facilitates the transmutation of metals. So in this view, the stone is thought to work by projecting its properties onto the base metal, transforming it into a nobler form. So it's not really a substance, it's just like a

catalyst that helps the transmutation of metals. Hmm. If that was the case, it would have already been discovered. Yeah, it would have already been discovered. Probably everyone would be using it. Everybody would have gold everywhere. Yeah. And Anunnaki wouldn't have needed to come down and make us mine for it. That always did make me think. Yep. All right, Dan, why don't you tell us about this last theory we got? So this last theory is called the seed of metals.

This theory holds that the philosopher's stone is the primal material or the seed from which all metals are derived. So this is the most basic form of all metals that pretty much it starts out as this and then metals are just made from this. I don't know about this theory. I'm not smart enough for it. Like that iron ore that used to be philosopher's stone right there. No. Or the seed. All right, Dan, I'm going to ask you.

Do you believe the Philosopher's Stone exists or a substance exists that does the same thing that the Philosopher's Stone is said to do? Turn base metals into gold and grant you immortality? No. Okay, why do you believe that? I believe it's not real because I think it's

more of a goal that is unachievable. I believe that like they created this idea of the Philosopher's Stone or the Elixir of Life as a unachievable goal that they're always in search for something. It keeps them discovering new things, discovering new lands. The one thing that I started thinking about is Ponce de Leona and his search from Spain, I think it was, for the Fountain of Youth. It just kind of reminds me of this, the Elixir of Life.

It's like they're always in search of something that's unachievable, but it's helping them discover new lands or supposedly new lands and new ideas because alchemy was the basic of... Chemistry. Yeah, chemistry, pharmacology, I think. Yep. All that stuff. So I don't know. I think it's just something that they put just out of reach, the idea of it. Who's they? You think the rulers did it or the individuals who wanted humans to...

pursue knowledge so they're like hey here's some motivation if you pursue this you could get riches and immortality but the people who were pushing that idea knew that the philosopher stone didn't exist so it was kind of like a motivational thing but these people who were looking for it made advancements in chemistry and all that other stuff i think just the alchemists themselves because if they just went for a certain goal that they were able to achieve over and over easily

they wouldn't be able to discover new things. They created this idea of the Philosopher's Stone, the Elixir of Life, to keep their research going. I mean, what happens when you finally reach your goal? Well, shit, now what? Create another one. You create another one. But if you just had one that you're just continuously going for...

Never going to stop. Never going to stop. Never going to give you up. Never going to let you down. I'm sort of in the same belief as you. I think originally this immortality view and this substance wasn't actually a substance, that it was a metaphor for, you know, spiritual growth. You seek this out and you'll gain spiritual immortality.

and riches beyond your wildest dream, but they didn't know it wasn't material riches. They assumed it was material riches. When I say they, I mean the people who did not write the original script. Over time, it got lost in translation. Exactly, lost in translation. Many people assumed it was material wealth.

That, hey, they could be rich with gold and live forever, but they didn't really understand spirituality and the type of belief that was going on when this text was originally wrote out by the ancient Egyptians. That's what I believe. I believe it's just a process for you to grow spiritually and that the Philosopher's Stone doesn't exist.

As much as I want to say it does, I don't think it does. I mean, honestly, a lot of things you look up about alchemy and such, it does go in a lot into the spiritual world. So I could definitely be buying that. Yep. But I'm always open to other theories. So if you or a loved one have found the philosopher's stone and you are immortal and rich beyond your wildest dreams, send us an email. We'd love to hear from you.

Aaron, A-A-R-O-N at Theories of the Third Kind, or you can send it to Dan, D-A-N, at Theories of the Third Kind. We want to know how you got it. And have you ever created any homunculi? And if you have, you might want to stop. All right. Well, with that being said, do you have anything else you want to add to today's episode, Dan? Anything else you want to talk about? Anything at all? This was a very hard topic to kind of research.

It was because you had to go back, understand alchemy and its origins because that's where the Philosopher's Stone came from. Yeah, this one took us a couple weeks to actually kind of get a grasp on. Longer than that. We originally started researching it in what, March? Yeah, in March. And then we've just been off and on researching it and looking into texts and all that stuff.

But in our journey, we were not able to find the Philosopher's Stone. But if anyone else has, like I said, get in contact with us. Definitely. Let us know. All right. Well, with that being said, that is the end of today's episode.

I want to thank you for joining us today. And again, thank you for your support. You are all amazing. Every single one of you. So with that being said, Dan, you want to roll us out? Sure will. It's okay to be out of this world with your thoughts. Because you are not alone.