Ep238: Alchemy the Divine Work - Katarina Falkenberg & Tommy Westlund

In this episode I am joined by Katarina Falkenberg & Tommy Westlund, alchemists, practitioners of Western Esotericism, and authors of ‘Alchemy, The Divine Work’.
Katarina and Tommy recount the history of Western alchemy from Egypt, through Ancient Greece, the Islamic golden age, Renaissance Europe, to today and consider critiques of alchemy as mere proto or indeed pseudo-science..
Katarina and Tommy reveal the language of the birds, the hidden language of symbol and intuition used among initiated practitioners. The detail the stages of inner transformation that the alchemist ascends in his quest for spiritual evolution and compares them to the stages of other meditative traditions.
Katarina and Tommy also discuss today’s changing cultural mores around masculinity and femininity and their implications for the metaphors used by the alchemical tradition to express polarity and the union of opposites.
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www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep...
Also available on RUclips, iTunes, & Spotify - search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.
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Topics include:
00:00 - Intro
01:04 - Writing ‘Alchemy, The Divine Work’
05:56 - The language of the birds and hidden language
09:14 - Are alchemical symbols specific to certain cultures?
11:13 - Alchemy vs other esoteric traditions and religions
14:20 - Intuition vs intellectual study
19:39 - People have changed in the last 5 years
21:03 - Me too movement & the pandemic
24:42 - Are masculine-feminine paradigms of polarity still relevant?
29:47 - Polarity is essential to alchemy
30:55 - Tommy’s hopes for masculinity and femininity in culture
35:32 - History of Western alchemy
41:57 - Spiritual alchemy vs metallurgical techniques
46:47 - Proto-science or pseudo-science?
49:17 - The relationship between the outer and the inner
56:56 - Who is attracted to study alchemy?
01:01:24 - The role of experimentation
01:03:44 - Collaboration with the egregore of the tradition
01:05:26 - Katarina and Tommy’s collaboration
01:09:32 - Greek philosophical influence on alchemy
01:11:40 - The first element of creation
01:12:52 - Pythagoras
01:15:44 - Cosmogony and alchemical application
01:18:01 - Metaphilosophy
01:18:47 - The prima materia
01:20:48 - The principle of love
01:22:24 - Gnosticism and alchemy
01:25:04 - The gnostic revolution
01:29:26 - Religious traditions as living metaphors
01:31:00 - Alchemical stages
01:35:44 - The dark nights of the mind and soul
01:41:47 - Blissful stages and beyond
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To find out more about Katarina Falkenberg & Tommy Westlund, visit:
- www.alkemiskaakademin.se/eng/...
For more interviews, videos, and more visit:
- www.guruviking.com
Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James

[@gregorytzar]

Your question about the masculine/feminine polarity symbols of alchemy becoming ineffective in todays culture, and her answer about how polarity is needed as the battery but we would simply evolve a new polarity other than male/female (my words not hers) --- this conversation is on another level. Riveting stuff!

[@GuruViking]

Thanks Greg! 🙏

[@skepparkrans9060]

What a deep conversation with lots of gems. Great questions. Thank you all for this ❤

[@AnthonyMetivierMMM]

Fascinating, especially the egregore concept/effect which I had coincidentally just been writing about.
Interesting too about the separation of goals people have had in different places and different times. 🙏

[@phillipjordan1010]

Is this book going to be hard to find for purchase? I'm not crazy about making orders online. I will only use Amazon because it seems secure. I guess I'm a bit paranoid and primitive. I'm sure Watkins book store would have it. But I'm in the US and cannot easily reach London.

[@bassmonk2920]

I have pretty much have heard all your videos and am grateful for all your efforts. This one is possibly the most boring, you said "Fascinating" only once. It reminded me of just reading the table of content page of a book and the preface with a few technical notes. Don't get me wrong they are legit.Maybe because they are Swedish and over intellectual, I'm Swedish too and perhaps I am boring. (I am reminded of the music of Abba). keep up all the good work and have an auspicious 2024.

[@arkanbarable]

Ouch, yet another deeply delusional "Intuitive" "system" from the murky depth of so called New Age... Entertaining though, thanks for the opportunity GV!

[@Buddhist_Philosopher]

New age delusion.