Alchemy failed because of charlatans that knew nothing of either and science distanced itself from mysticism. |
Did Alchemy fail or did we?
Even from a materialistic approach, there is an epic Alchemical win in the glass of the west portal at Chartres, and it can even be seen! Maybe it was during the Viollet-le-Duc restoration(probably later, don't recall)that samples of the glass from the 12th(I think) century Tree of Jesse window were analyzed, no coloring pigment was found and researchers apparently can't re-create it. It is widely held to be the most beautiful red and blue glass in existence. Henry Adams in
Mont St Michel and Chartres raves about it. It is reportedly of Alchemical manufacture.
As R.A Schwaller (physicist, egyptologist, and alchemist) states: it is dyed in the mass with the volatile spirits of metal. He is also the only person known to have re-created it.
Heisenberg said there is no such thing as objectivity(maybe he said other things too), but we know that, why fight it.
Understandably I see why it is important in certain areas to act as if objectivity existed, but to carry it to the point where we lose our unitive vision and it creates a fundamental schism in our view of the universe so vast that we can say things like explosions at the kitchen tap aren't my problem is folly. (see gasland)