I Sing the Body Alembic1

by

Amulya Jones

Too long have I lived with people who hate peace!

When I speak of peace, they are for war. Psalm 120:6

The dream of peace was all but lost. Countries and individuals alike seized on the

trespasses of others, mulling over the wrongs done to them. Bitterness entered our hearts.

At the first sign of conflict, we turned to our stockpiles of weapons. Angry forces flew

through the air, feeding on the lower natures of people and fueling the negativity. We still

had not mastered the art of being human. Indeed, it was hard to say whether we had

made any progress at all.

In the cradles of civilization, the wars dragged on. Where fruit and vegetable

markets once stood, there were pools of fetid water and debris. Soldiers patrolled the

streets while car bombs exploded. Babies died frequently from lack of basic medicines.

Children grew up believing that life had always been this way. The neighborhood boys

disappeared for days.

Iman crossed the street, carrying the cake she made for her grandmother. How

strange, she thought, that she was making cakes while people died in the streets. She did

1 alembic: 1. a distilling apparatus, now obsolete 2. anything that transforms, purifies,

or refines.

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not expect to live much longer. The invaders were not versed in history and they did not

know the greatness of her country. The city crumbled to ruins; only memory and ashes

remained.

The world tree shook its limbs. Invisibly, its three pillars upheld the world. The

pillar of severity was strong, but the pillar of mercy was growing weaker each day.

I retreated to my home and cultivated the perfect minimalist sanctuary. I

occupied myself by working, paying debts, and living in absolute simplicity. The sun

rose and set each day, illuminating my assemblages. Yet I feared for the state of the earth

and the crises that befell nature and humanity.

There is not a single blade of grass in the entire world over which a star or planet

does not preside, and over the star one angel is appointed. The Zohar

The booksellers filled the square in front of the Cathedral. Every week Sabina

searched for obscure books. She paused before a book with alchemical symbols on the

cover. The gold leaf was still visible on illustrations of the phases of the Great Work. A

previous owner's notes were written in Spanish in the margins of the pages. As Sabina

held the book in her hands, she felt time and space shift around her, suspended for a

moment. I'll take it, she told the seller.

After studying geography and folklore in college, Sabina left the States, planning

to travel the world indefinitely. As a child she was diagnosed with manic depression

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characterized by delusions of grandeur and metaphysical ideation. The doctors

prescribed lithium. Sabina refused to ingest the heavy metal, and sought her own cures

through a practical study of plants, herbs, homeopathy, and mysticism. She distilled

tinctures to cure her melancholy. In time, these potions helped to shift her mood until she

felt ecstatic in daily life. In her path to enlightenment and inner peace, she chose to be

happy in this moment. Fueled by her blends of elixirs, she maintained a state of extreme

optimism which she channeled into creative and artistic endeavors. She made a living by

making fabric sculptures, or stuffed animals. Although I hadn't seen her in years, she

sent me postcards every few months. She called me one winter morning at sunrise.

Are you awake? she said. I need your help.

With what?

Alchemy. I want you to create potions with me.

What are you talking about?

I can't discuss it over the phone. You need to come to Barcelona.

I'm working on paying back my student loans, I protested.

Defer them. This is more important than that. This is an opportunity to do

something that will transform the planet.

I watched the blue light coming through my window.

Seriously, she said.

It sounds compelling, I said.

I'll buy the ticket. When can you leave?

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 I told Sabina I would think about it and went back to sleep. I dreamed I was on a

plane with a child and read my fortune in the clouds. And as the first daffodils bloomed,

I flew to Barcelona.

Sabina met me at the airport wearing a white dress and a black onyx necklace. As

we rode the train, she chatted about the adventures in her life since we last saw one

another. We walked down the stone streets in the Barri Gotic. Sabina told me that she

was working on some new medicinal formulas.

I'm conducting experiments to transform the human mind, she said. I have

followed alchemical recipes and substituted some of the ingredients for substances more

relevant in modern times. As she opened the door to her apartment, my senses were

flooded by visual and olfactory data. An elaborate system of tubes, decanters, and

alembics crossed a table in the living room. Botany books lay open on the table.

Mortars, pestles, and coffee grinders stood ready to pulverize plant materials. In the

corner of the living room stood a sewing machine. The shelves from floor to ceiling were

filled with the colorful stuffed animals Sabina made; their huge, crazy eyes looked down

at us. The walls of the living room were covered with a panorama of maps of the world.

Sabina led me down the hallway to the spare bedroom. We passed the kitchen,

where cupboards overflowed with bags of herbs and spices. Her calico cat Azafrn

looked up at me from the bed. Sabina explained her concept of alchemy.

Everything is made of the same energy vibrating at different speeds in a

multitude of illusory forms. This world is a play of Shiva and Shakti, form and energy,

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Yin and Yang, the Prima Materia and the Prima Energia. The physical world is

humorous in its heaviness. Matter suffers in the world and it wants to be uplifted. The

goal of the work is to merge dualities and make a bridge between heaven and earth. The

alchemist seeks to free the lost essence, the spirit of the Infinite in all things.

Where did you get this knowledge? I asked.

From the ancient alchemical texts, the formulas that are guarded through codes

and symbols. You can't just read about it, she said. You have to practice it. I

experiment on myself with the potions. I throw all my negative thoughts and bad

memories into the fire of transformation, so all the mental impurities are removed. The

initiate experiences death and resurrection, and the physical body becomes a body of

light.

This project has larger implications than individual transformation. The

alchemical teachings can be used to help the planet, which is in desperate need of

healing. We can refine the elixir to cure the symptoms that cause the sickness of war, by

working first on a personal level and gradually on a global level. The body is the

laboratory; I sing the body alembic. Through the alchemical reactions induced by the

synergy of scents, it is possible to shift the global consciousness of humanity. Once it is

perfected, the potion will be a panacea, a universal medicine that will bring peace to the

world.

She talked about her plans with great enthusiasm until the sky grew dark and the

night sounds of the city began. I wondered if she had ingested too much of some element

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in the course of her experiments. I told her I needed to rest after my journey. I was

weary and also concerned about her mental stability.

In the morning I headed to the kitchen looking for coffee. I used Sabina's French

press to brew a pot and surveyed her laboratory. The shelves of the pantry held jars of

burdock, catnip, chamomile, lavender, peppermint, rosemary, sulfur, valerian, vinegar,

and powders labeled with scientific names. An index card posted on the wall read, Add

the four elements for metamorphosis into Quintessence. In front of me on the table sat

a row of jars labeled: Calcination, Dissolution, Separation, Conjunction, Fermentation,

Distillation, Coagulation. I watched as the liquid in a jar slowly changed from white to

black to an iridescent color. I thought I was hallucinating and went outside to get some

fresh air.

As I walked the streets of Barcelona, a wave of benevolence washed over me and

an infinite beauty descended upon the world. I entered the state of bliss that strikes the

traveler when her vision is suddenly washed clean. Every leaf of every tree resonated its

distinct life force. The people were little buddhas running to and fro, my fellow beings

striving to live. The sounds of various languages transported me down pathways to

distant places and histories. My senses were opened and illuminated as if I was seeing

the world with a clear vision for the first time.

I sat on a bench along the Ramblas, among the flower vendors and rabbit and

canary sellers. A bearded man in a black suit and white shirt stepped out of a cab. Over

his arm swung a small limp white figure.

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 Hello. Can I sit here? he asked with a heavy Galician accent. He placed his

cargo, a live white rabbit, on the bench between us.

What do you have? I asked.

A rabbit, he said.

Where did you get it?

I stole it, he said, to free it from the cage. Do you want it?

I started to decline his gift, but he persisted.

Take it, he said. But I want a trade.

I offered him a beaded hemp bracelet, which he accepted in exchange. I headed

back to the apartment, carrying the white rabbit. Sabina was infusing herbal concoctions.

She gave the rabbit some carrots. She poured green tea for us and assessed my condition

by reading my energy field.

In this moment, you are happy. But underneath that joy is a deeper layer of

bitterness and resignation, she said. All the dross and heaviness you carry, you can

bring up from the bottom and turn into gold. Your mind is your sovereign territory.

Create the world that you want by transforming the inner world first. Sabina prescribed

the potion for me. You can join the alchemical experiments. The potion is almost

perfect, she said.

I thought Sabina was a little bit delusional, but it was the only gig I had in Spain,

so I joined her alchemical enterprise. I assisted her with the basic steps of measuring and

mixing ingredients. She researched plants, herbs, and minerals, made tinctures, and

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sewed stuffed animals. She posted tacks on world maps to track areas of conflict and

warfare. When she meditated, she envisioned a more peaceful world and focused her

energy on those places. She drank the elixirs at night and refined them during the day.

Do you really think the potion will work? I asked her.

Yes, she said. I doubted it once, too. I didn't believe that the texts were

correct. I wanted to destroy my records and forget I ever began this endeavor. I wanted

to return to the simple life I led before. But I am tired of the endless war and the

destruction of humanity, so I proceed with the work.

Every night we passed the same man on her way to the apartment. He stood on

the corner directing passersby. This way, he said, as if he were guiding us through an

elaborate maze rather than an ordinary street corner.

He who sees Me in everything and everything in Me, him shall I never forsake,

nor shall he lose Me. Bhagavad Gita

Sabina wanted to see the Indian guru who was visiting Barcelona, known as the

Divine Mother and the hugging saint. We entered the hall and awaited her arrival.

She came in smiling, dressed in white, touching the outstretched hands of the crowds as

she walked by. As I sat before the stage, I felt the bliss she emanated. I felt her energy

piercing my heart and I had a vision of my heart bursting into flames. I felt certain that

she knew the hearts and minds of every person in the room.

The swami translated her words. Amma bows down to her children, who are the

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embodiments of divine love and the supreme consciousness. We will now chant the

sacred syllable. He intoned OM, and the crowd joined in. The room reverberated with

the sound. Then there was silence, punctuating by occasional cries and chattering of

children.

After the meditation, the swami translated Amma's speech. Even now, there are

dark clouds gathering. Nature is disturbed. There will not be peace on earth until there is

peace within. We have to change ourselves before we can change the world. The internal

change occurs before the external change.

The band played bhajans and the music continued through the night. Amma

embraced person after person for the next 12 hours, without taking a break. At the end of

the night, we walked in a procession past the stage and she doused us with handfuls of

flowers. Sabina and I walked home in a state of bliss. I fell asleep with flower petals on

my pillow.

I awoke in the afternoon to the sound of a tea kettle. I told Sabina I wanted to be

a part of the alchemical trials. The next day, we began the experiments. For forty nights

I drank the potions with Sabina. She poured the liquid and handed me the cup. I drank

the thick and bitter liquid quickly, lay down and closed my eyes. Some days, nothing

seemed to happen. On other days, a flood of images and visions washed over me as the

potions did their work. I took notes of my experiences.

Day 1: I saw a pink web in the sky. Inside each section of the web was a tiny

scene containing golden pyramids and butterflies. I saw the beginning of life on earth. I

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watched dinosaurs roaming the earth and I felt they were my ancestors.

Day 6: I witness the Akashic records. I travel through the history of the world,

reappearing here and there. My memories date back to the beginning of time, because

every atom that exists now was present at the start of creation.

Day 10: I see my mind as a building containing the rooms of human

consciousness. Each room contains a memory, an interaction, an experience. I open

doorways and clear pathways. I take the trash out of my mind and sweep the space

clean. I begin to focus my mind in one direction. I heal the synapses of my brain and

rebuild from the cellular level.

Day 15: I heard music playing and I saw a group of anthropomorphic molecules

dancing in a conga line. They became conscious of me watching them, and turned in

unison to look at me. She thinks she's a separate being again, they said. I wanted to

join their dance, and I went to join hands with them. I expected the physical world to

dissolve as soon as I merged back into the subatomic reality. When I opened my eyes, I

found myself back in my separate body in the world of macro-forms. I was somewhat

disappointed.

Day 19: Opposite forces are battling within me. A part of the spirit never wanted

creation to happen, and struggles against it in constant rebellion. It is not easy to

reconcile the opposites within oneself.

Day 23: Rising up in the sky, I saw a giant transparent person that encompassed

all beings. I saw myself and everyone I knew localized in a part of this being; all of

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creation was connected within the world body.

Day 30: I feel my heart gradually opening. I see the sun inside of me. The

fountain of life pours into me, and it is always flowing. Grace showers down on me. I am

supported and sustained by the universe. I breathe life into the universe and it breathes

life into me. I channel the force of light, and summon angels to work through me. My

work in life is to be happy.

Day 37: Whatever I think or say, I am communicating directly with the one

intelligence behind all phenomena the Knower, the Doer, the Seer.

Day 39: The room was suffused with a heavenly light. I felt that I entered a

nirvanic state. Suddenly there were no names for things, there was no differentiation. A

wave of deep peace and benevolence washed over me. The chemical wedding took place

within me - the union of my opposite halves, the male and female, the yin and the yang.

For a moment we were one again, the cosmos and I.

After the experiments, I felt changed. I was no longer distressed by things in

daily life. Bad feelings of irritability, anger, and fear vanished. In general I felt more

peaceful, calm, and loving toward humanity. I didn't know if I could maintain the

feeling, but Sabina told me I could get an alchemical tune-up anytime.

We watched the news and saw the continuous reports of death and destruction.

Sabina sat on the couch, making stuffed robots. The war mongers are well acquainted

with death. It is life that eludes them. They should really take up a hobby. The devil

makes work for idle hands to do, she said, threading a needle.

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 I went to bed and Sabina stayed up to finish sewing more creatures. Thunder

crashed and Azafrn jumped down from the window ledge, knocking a bottle of the

alchemical elixir to the ground. The bottle broke and spilled onto a pile of stuffed

animals. Sabina rushed to capture the remaining potion and stopped in her tracks.

What a brilliant idea! Sabina picked up the cat and kissed her. She had found

the vehicle for her potion. The next morning Sabina knocked on my door. Are you

awake? I need to tell you something. I woke up and headed for the living room. Sabina

revealed her plan for Phase 2 of the alchemical project.

We have proven through our experiments that the elixir works. We have done

the work of the microcosm, and now we must begin the work of the macrocosm. The

question is how to distribute the potion. The subconscious brain responds to scent before

the cognitive brain, so it's possible to override the programming of the conscious mind

through the sense of smell. The power of scent can transform the hearts of humans, so

that we can live in a world of peace. These creatures are the vehicles to carry the

potion, she gestured at the array of stuffed animals lined up on the shelves behind her.

They will be infused with the elixir. We will start by shipping them around the world to

areas affected by natural disasters. We will produce a critical mass to infiltrate the war

zones. Then we will journey to deliver them to where they are most needed.

I stared at her, speechless. Yet I reasoned that it was too late to back out. I had a

feeling Sabina would attempt her mission whether I helped her or not. Since the elixir

would be transmitted via scent rather than ingested orally, we refined it again. We added

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neroli, bergamot, rose, and other essential oils. We made more bears, turtles, robots, and

alien creatures to carry the potion. We shipped several boxes of medical supplies and 200

stuffed animals to victims of tsunamis and earthquakes. We branched out to war zones,

beginning with Iraq and Afghanistan. After a few weeks Sabina was ready to mobilize.

She packed huge duffel bags with the animals, her menagerie of transformational

vehicles. We'll go to Baghdad. We'll be fine. I've been studying Arabic, she said.

Ye are all parts of one another. The Koran 3: 195

Private Victor Velo patrolled the streets of Baghdad. Joining the army was his

way of escaping southern Indiana. He left behind the churches and bait stores for the

beating sun of Iraq, his new home where he was neither loved nor appreciated. When

they marched in formation, he could not see the faces of his fellow soldiers. He saw a

thousand arms and legs stretching on to infinity, a faceless beast to which he had sold his

soul. He saw no beauty or honor in his mission. He hoped he was on the side of the

good guys, but it was hard to be sure. In the meantime, he followed orders. The desert,

the uniforms, and the heat all seemed part of a bad dream. He wanted to leave the play,

exit the stage, and hoped no one would notice. He would dissolve to dust, a perfect

mixture of particles, and one day rise again.

A voice interrupted his reverie. Time for our shift, buddy. Victor walked to the

gates of the base for another twelve-hour watch. Shortly before curfew, two Iraqi women

accosted him in Arabic. Who asked you to come here? Tell your President we don't

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want any more of his liberation. Take our oil and leave us alone. A group of children

stood with their arms around each other, watching the scene.

The only devils in the world are those running around in our hearts. That is where

the battle should be fought. Gandhi

I had a sense of impending doom and fear when we boarded the plane to Iraq a

few weeks later. What was the point of this peregrination? To enter a war zone of our

own volition, armed with stuffed animals to deliver Sabina's magical panacea potion. I

tried to focus my thoughts in a positive direction. I remembered the Divine Mother,

standing as a beacon of light in the world and sending out streams of love and bliss.

The stone walls of the city glowed red in the afternoon sun. We hailed a taxi. The

next step in our mission was to circulate the creatures in the streets of Baghdad. Sabina

planned to network with sympathetic members of the American military.

Victor walked into the army clinic. An administrator talked on the phone,

dropping convoluted phrases. If memory serves, I recall that you have experienced a

prior dilemma of a similar nature. I must advise you that there is a distinct possibility

that the commanding officer would not consent to ratification of the documents in

question. Before further pursuing that course of action I would recommend a visit to our

other resources...

The other soldiers in the waiting room avoided eye contact. After an hour, an

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army nurse called Victor by number and led him to the office, which consisted of a

curtain pulled around him. She took his blood pressure and pulse. He could hear another

soldier behind the next curtain describing his condition. Every day I think the same

things over and over again. I am afraid of the clouds. I think the sun is angry with me.

The stars are furious and the trees are disappointed in me. The moon taunts me.

Dr. Nettles entered the enclosure carrying a clipboard.

Private Velo. What's the reason you're here today?

Victor tried to describe his malaise in neutral, militarily correct terms. He knew

that he could no longer be a soldier. I am at war with myself. I do not want to wage the

war outside. The doctor prescribed some sedatives and sent him on his way.

In the plaza, Victor saw a large group of children gathered around two women

handing out toys. The children happily accepted the sweet-smelling creatures.

Sabina saw Victor approaching and handed him a brown velvet dog. She told him

about our project. Victor told her that the President was coming to make a speech in a

few days. Sabina saw this as an opportunity for distribution. As his last mission in the

army, Victor agreed to help us.

The crowd of soldiers and civilians gathered to hear the President's speech.

Sabina and I stood on the outskirts of the crowd. An army plane flew overhead as the

President approached the platform. Before he could speak, the aromatic creatures

descended upon the crowd. The children screamed with joy to find the toys falling down

around them. People applauded the President for having such an innovative strategy to

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connect with the people. The alchemical scent permeated the air.

That next day, the soldiers sat watching television in the base. What's happening

in those streets today? Have we tamed the enemy yet? asked the anchorman.

The reporter stood in a Baghdad street that looked strangely calm. It's truly

amazing. I've never seen anything like it. It appears that someone is producing toys that

have a special scent. They are falling from the sky. A sweet smell pervades the streets.

For the past 24 hours there has been no violence reported in the city.

The anchorman was silent for a moment. Curious, he said. Let's check on

stock market prices. Weapons sales have dropped dramatically in reaction to the recent

news. Recent polls indicate that the war is increasingly less popular. More reports to

follow.

The cease fire lasted. The leaders decided that henceforth, they would resolve

their differences in creative ways rather than destructive ways - including dance contests,

plays, music, and collaborative art projects. The soldiers of both sides went back to their

homes. The factories that had produced weapons began to make bombs that dispersed

toys and beautiful scents upon detonation instead of killing people.

Sabina and I continued to send the alchemical creatures around the world and one

by one, other countries began to follow the example of the cease fire. War was, after all,

a waste of valuable resources. Nations found they had a surplus of wealth when they

stopped fighting other nations. People realized that the brutality of war only created a

cycle of barbaric revenge. They shook their heads in disbelief at the folly that deluded

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humanity for so long. After twelve months, all the world leaders met in Geneva. Each

nation released a dove to celebrate the new-found peace. The birds soared over the city.

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