Paracelsus, his Archidoxis comprised in ten books : disclosing the genuine way of making quintessences, arcanums, magisteries, elixirs, &c : together with his books of renovation & restauration, of the tincture of the philsophers, of the manual of the philosophical medicinal stone, of the virtues of the members, of the three principles, and finally his seven books of the degrees and compositions, of receipts and natural things / faithfully and plainly Englished, and published by J.H., Oxon.

CHAP. V. Of Arcanums.

YOu are thus to understand our speaking of Arca∣nums, That they are nothing else but a graduated Quintessence, a Magistery, or first Ens. And first, by the Arcanum of the first Matter, we mean the first Matter, or first Ens of the Limbus of man; likewise the first Matter of the Mercury of Salt, for that is neerest con∣formable. Therefore thou must (according to the pro∣cess of the first Ens) reduce all things into a liquid sub∣stance, and then again Conjoyn it with a Monarchy, as 'twere with the living unreduced body of that thing, and promote or set it to distillation.

As for our Opinion concerning the Arcanum of the Stone, it shall be declared in the following Practick: But by the Arcanum of Mercurius Vitae we mean a Living Fire, so that the Mercury of the Vulgar be Essentifica∣ted

with the Quintessence of Salt, and be vivified with the first Ens of Antimony, as 'twere with a Coelestial Life; but the Arcanum of the Tincture displayes and un∣folds it self, and therefore we here omit it.