fbpx
Wikipedia

Elixir of life

March 30, 2023

The elixir of life, also known as elixir of immortality, is a potion that supposedly grants the drinker eternal life and/or eternal youth. This elixir was also said to cure all diseases. Alchemists in various ages and cultures sought the means of formulating the elixir.

The mythological White Hare from Chinese mythology, making the elixir of life on the Moon

History

Ancient Mesopotamia

An early mention of an elixir of life is found in the Epic of Gilgamesh (from the 2nd millennium BC) in which Gilgamesh comes to fear his own declining years following the death of his beloved companion Enkidu.[1] He seeks out Utnapishtim, a Noah-like figure in Mesopotamian mythology in which he was a servant of the great Alchemist of the rain who later became immortal, to seek out the advice of the King of Herod of the Land of Fire. Gilgamesh is directed by him to find a plant at the bottom of the sea which he does but seeks first to test it on an old man before trying it himself. Unfortunately, it is eaten by a serpent before he can do so.

China

 
Xu Fu's first expedition to the Mount of the immortals. By Utagawa Kuniyoshi.

Many rulers of ancient China sought the fabled elixir to achieve eternal life. During the Qin dynasty, Qin Shi Huang sent Taoist alchemist Xu Fu to the eastern seas with 500 young men and 500 young women to find the elixir in the legendary Penglai Mountain, but returned without finding it. He embarked on a second voyage with 3000 young girls and boys, but none of them ever returned (legend has it that he found Japan instead).[2]

The ancient Chinese believed that ingesting long-lasting mineral substances such as jade, cinnabar, or hematite would confer some of that longevity on the person who consumed them.[3] Gold was considered particularly potent, as it was a non-tarnishing precious metal; the idea of potable or drinkable gold is found in China by the end of the third century BC. The most famous Chinese alchemical book, Danjing yaojue ("Essential Formulas of Alchemical Classics") attributed to Sun Simiao (c. 581 – c. 682 AD),[4][5] a famous medical specialist respectfully called "King of Medicine" by later generations, discusses in detail the creation of elixirs for immortality (including several toxic ingredients such as mercury, sulphur, and arsenates), as well as those for curing certain diseases and the fabrication of precious stones.

Many of these substances, far from contributing to longevity, were actively toxic and resulted in Chinese alchemical elixir poisoning. The Jiajing Emperor in the Ming dynasty died from ingesting a lethal dosage of mercury in the supposed "Elixir of Life" conjured by alchemists.[citation needed]

India

Amrita, the elixir of life, has been described in Hindu scriptures. In the Puranas, that due to the defeat of the devas at the hands of the asuras, both power-seeking races, the preserver deity Vishnu asked the devas to churn the ocean of milk, so that they may retrieve amrita to empower themselves.[6]

Mercury, which was so vital to alchemy everywhere, is first mentioned in the 4th to 3rd century BC Arthashastra, about the same time it is encountered in China and in the West. Evidence of the idea of transmuting base metals to gold appears in 2nd to 5th century AD Buddhist texts, about the same time as in the West.

It is also possible that the alchemy of medicine and immortality came to China from India, or vice versa; in any case, for both cultures, gold-making appears to have been a minor concern, and medicine the major concern. But the elixir of immortality was of little importance in India (which had other avenues to immortality). The Indian elixirs were mineral remedies for specific diseases or, at the most, to promote long life.

Medieval Islamic world

See Al Khidr.

Europe

Main article: Philosopher's stone
 
Dell' elixir vitae, 1624

In European alchemical tradition, the elixir of life is closely related to the creation of the philosopher's stone. According to legend, certain alchemists have gained a reputation as creators of the elixir. These include Nicolas Flamel and St. Germain.

Japan

In the 8th century AD Man'yōshū, 'waters of rejuvenation' (変若水, ochimizu) are said to be in the possession of the moon god Tsukuyomi. Similarities have been noted with a folktale from the Ryukyu Islands, in which the moon god decides to give man the water of life (Miyako: sïlimizï), and serpents the water of death (sïnimizï). However, the person entrusted with carrying the pails down to Earth gets tired and takes a break, and a serpent bathes in the water of life, rendering it unusable. This is said to be why serpents can rejuvenate themselves each year by shedding their skin while men are doomed to die.[7][8]

Names

The Elixir has had hundreds of names (one scholar of Chinese history reportedly found over 1,000 names for it), among them Kimia, Amrit Ras or Amrita, Aab-i-Hayat, Maha Ras, Aab-Haiwan, Dancing Water, Chasma-i-Kausar, Mansarover or the Pool of Nectar, Philosopher's stone, and Soma Ras. The word elixir was not used until the 7th century A.D. and derives from the Arabic name for miracle substances, "al iksir". Some view it as a metaphor for the spirit of God (e.g., Jesus's reference to "the Water of Life" or "the Fountain of Life"). "But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:14) The Scots and the Irish adopted the name for their "liquid gold": the Gaelic name for whiskey is uisce beatha, or water of life.

“Kimia” is from Ancient Greek language and used in old Persian literature, in which it means something that transforms and brings life. Aab-i-Hayat is Persian and means "water of life".[9] "Chashma-i-Kausar" (not "hasma") is the "Fountain of Bounty", which Muslims believe to be located in Paradise. As for the Indian names, "Amrit Ras" means "immortality juice", "Maha Ras" means "great juice", and "Soma Ras" means "juice of Soma". Later, Soma came to mean the Moon. "Ras" later came to mean "sacred mood experienced listening to poetry or music"; there are altogether nine of them. Mansarovar, the "mind lake" is the holy lake at the foot of Mount Kailash in Tibet, close to the source of the Ganges.

In popular culture

Main article: Alchemy in art and entertainment

The elixir of life has been an inspiration, plot feature, or subject of artistic works including animation, comics, films, musical compositions, novels, and video games. Examples include L. Frank Baum's fantasy novel John Dough and the Cherub, the science fiction series Doctor Who, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, House of Anubis, The Puppet Master, the manga Fullmetal Alchemist and Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku, the light novel Baccano!, the movie Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva of the Professor Layton franchise, the horror film As Above, So Below and the series of video-games Touhou Project

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Epic of Gilgamesh: Enkidu". SparkNotes. Retrieved 2022-12-27.
  2. ^ Liu, Hong. The Chinese Overseas. Routledge Library of Modern China. Published by Taylor & Francis, [2006] (2006). ISBN 0-415-33859-X, 9780415338592.
  3. ^ Johnson, Obed Simon. A Study of Chinese Alchemy. Shanghai, Commercial Press, 1928. rpt. New York: Arno Press, 1974. page 63
  4. ^ Glick, T.F., Livesey, S.J., Wallis, F. Medieval Science, Technology And Medicine: An Encyclopedia. Routledge, 2005. p. 20
  5. ^ "Tan chin yao chueh – occultism". britannica.com.
  6. ^ Chaturvedi, B. K. (2006). Vishnu Purana. Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd. p. 25. ISBN 978-81-7182-673-5.
  7. ^ Nelly Naumann (2000). Japanese Prehistory: The Material and Spiritual Culture of the Jōmon Period. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 133. ISBN 978-3-447-04329-8.
  8. ^ Nevsky, Nikolai (April 1971). Masao, Oka (ed.). 月と不死 [Tsuki to fushi] (in Japanese). 平凡社. ISBN 9784582801859. Retrieved 17 December 2018.
  9. ^ I. K. Poonawala. "ĀB ii. Water in Muslim Iranian culture". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 12 February 2012.

Bibliography

  • Heart of the Earth: The Elixir of Earth, second novel in the trilogy by Richard Anderson
  • Al-Khidr, The Green Man
  • Alchemy and Daoism 2020-02-14 at the Wayback Machine
  • Naam or Word, Book Three: Amrit, Nectar or Water of Life
  • Needham, Joseph, Ping-Yu Ho, Gwei-Djen Lu. Science and Civilisation in China, Volume V, Part III. Cambridge at the University Press, 1976.
  • Turner, John D. (transl.). The Interpretation of Knowledge

March 30, 2023
elixir, life, elixir, life, also, known, elixir, immortality, potion, that, supposedly, grants, drinker, eternal, life, eternal, youth, this, elixir, also, said, cure, diseases, alchemists, various, ages, cultures, sought, means, formulating, elixir, mythologi. The elixir of life also known as elixir of immortality is a potion that supposedly grants the drinker eternal life and or eternal youth This elixir was also said to cure all diseases Alchemists in various ages and cultures sought the means of formulating the elixir The mythological White Hare from Chinese mythology making the elixir of life on the Moon Contents 1 History 1 1 Ancient Mesopotamia 1 2 China 1 3 India 1 4 Medieval Islamic world 1 5 Europe 1 6 Japan 2 Names 3 In popular culture 4 See also 5 References 6 BibliographyHistory EditAncient Mesopotamia Edit An early mention of an elixir of life is found in the Epic of Gilgamesh from the 2nd millennium BC in which Gilgamesh comes to fear his own declining years following the death of his beloved companion Enkidu 1 He seeks out Utnapishtim a Noah like figure in Mesopotamian mythology in which he was a servant of the great Alchemist of the rain who later became immortal to seek out the advice of the King of Herod of the Land of Fire Gilgamesh is directed by him to find a plant at the bottom of the sea which he does but seeks first to test it on an old man before trying it himself Unfortunately it is eaten by a serpent before he can do so China Edit Xu Fu s first expedition to the Mount of the immortals By Utagawa Kuniyoshi Many rulers of ancient China sought the fabled elixir to achieve eternal life During the Qin dynasty Qin Shi Huang sent Taoist alchemist Xu Fu to the eastern seas with 500 young men and 500 young women to find the elixir in the legendary Penglai Mountain but returned without finding it He embarked on a second voyage with 3000 young girls and boys but none of them ever returned legend has it that he found Japan instead 2 The ancient Chinese believed that ingesting long lasting mineral substances such as jade cinnabar or hematite would confer some of that longevity on the person who consumed them 3 Gold was considered particularly potent as it was a non tarnishing precious metal the idea of potable or drinkable gold is found in China by the end of the third century BC The most famous Chinese alchemical book Danjing yaojue Essential Formulas of Alchemical Classics attributed to Sun Simiao c 581 c 682 AD 4 5 a famous medical specialist respectfully called King of Medicine by later generations discusses in detail the creation of elixirs for immortality including several toxic ingredients such as mercury sulphur and arsenates as well as those for curing certain diseases and the fabrication of precious stones Many of these substances far from contributing to longevity were actively toxic and resulted in Chinese alchemical elixir poisoning The Jiajing Emperor in the Ming dynasty died from ingesting a lethal dosage of mercury in the supposed Elixir of Life conjured by alchemists citation needed India Edit Amrita the elixir of life has been described in Hindu scriptures In the Puranas that due to the defeat of the devas at the hands of the asuras both power seeking races the preserver deity Vishnu asked the devas to churn the ocean of milk so that they may retrieve amrita to empower themselves 6 Mercury which was so vital to alchemy everywhere is first mentioned in the 4th to 3rd century BC Arthashastra about the same time it is encountered in China and in the West Evidence of the idea of transmuting base metals to gold appears in 2nd to 5th century AD Buddhist texts about the same time as in the West It is also possible that the alchemy of medicine and immortality came to China from India or vice versa in any case for both cultures gold making appears to have been a minor concern and medicine the major concern But the elixir of immortality was of little importance in India which had other avenues to immortality The Indian elixirs were mineral remedies for specific diseases or at the most to promote long life Medieval Islamic world Edit See Al Khidr Europe Edit Main article Philosopher s stone Dell elixir vitae 1624 In European alchemical tradition the elixir of life is closely related to the creation of the philosopher s stone According to legend certain alchemists have gained a reputation as creators of the elixir These include Nicolas Flamel and St Germain Japan Edit In the 8th century AD Man yōshu waters of rejuvenation 変若水 ochimizu are said to be in the possession of the moon god Tsukuyomi Similarities have been noted with a folktale from the Ryukyu Islands in which the moon god decides to give man the water of life Miyako silimizi and serpents the water of death sinimizi However the person entrusted with carrying the pails down to Earth gets tired and takes a break and a serpent bathes in the water of life rendering it unusable This is said to be why serpents can rejuvenate themselves each year by shedding their skin while men are doomed to die 7 8 Names EditThe Elixir has had hundreds of names one scholar of Chinese history reportedly found over 1 000 names for it among them Kimia Amrit Ras or Amrita Aab i Hayat Maha Ras Aab Haiwan Dancing Water Chasma i Kausar Mansarover or the Pool of Nectar Philosopher s stone and Soma Ras The word elixir was not used until the 7th century A D and derives from the Arabic name for miracle substances al iksir Some view it as a metaphor for the spirit of God e g Jesus s reference to the Water of Life or the Fountain of Life But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst Indeed the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life John 4 14 The Scots and the Irish adopted the name for their liquid gold the Gaelic name for whiskey is uisce beatha or water of life Kimia is from Ancient Greek language and used in old Persian literature in which it means something that transforms and brings life Aab i Hayat is Persian and means water of life 9 Chashma i Kausar not hasma is the Fountain of Bounty which Muslims believe to be located in Paradise As for the Indian names Amrit Ras means immortality juice Maha Ras means great juice and Soma Ras means juice of Soma Later Soma came to mean the Moon Ras later came to mean sacred mood experienced listening to poetry or music there are altogether nine of them Mansarovar the mind lake is the holy lake at the foot of Mount Kailash in Tibet close to the source of the Ganges In popular culture EditMain article Alchemy in art and entertainment The elixir of life has been an inspiration plot feature or subject of artistic works including animation comics films musical compositions novels and video games Examples include L Frank Baum s fantasy novel John Dough and the Cherub the science fiction series Doctor Who Harry Potter and the Philosopher s Stone House of Anubis The Puppet Master the manga Fullmetal Alchemist and Hell s Paradise Jigokuraku the light novel Baccano the movie Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva of the Professor Layton franchise the horror film As Above So Below and the series of video games Touhou ProjectSee also EditAether mythology Aether classical element Ageing Al Khidr Ambrosia and Nectar Amrita Cup of Jamshid Death Becomes Her Elixir Fountain of Youth Golden apple Holy Grail Ichor Immortality Jintan Japanese medicine Magu deity Manna Panacea Peaches of Immortality Philosopher s stone Langgan Pill of Immortality Chinese alchemical elixir poisoning Waidan Potion RejuvenationReferences Edit The Epic of Gilgamesh Enkidu SparkNotes Retrieved 2022 12 27 Liu Hong The Chinese Overseas Routledge Library of Modern China Published by Taylor amp Francis 2006 2006 ISBN 0 415 33859 X 9780415338592 Johnson Obed Simon A Study of Chinese Alchemy Shanghai Commercial Press 1928 rpt New York Arno Press 1974 page 63 Glick T F Livesey S J Wallis F Medieval Science Technology And Medicine An Encyclopedia Routledge 2005 p 20 Tan chin yao chueh occultism britannica com Chaturvedi B K 2006 Vishnu Purana Diamond Pocket Books P Ltd p 25 ISBN 978 81 7182 673 5 Nelly Naumann 2000 Japanese Prehistory The Material and Spiritual Culture of the Jōmon Period Otto Harrassowitz Verlag p 133 ISBN 978 3 447 04329 8 Nevsky Nikolai April 1971 Masao Oka ed 月と不死 Tsuki to fushi in Japanese 平凡社 ISBN 9784582801859 Retrieved 17 December 2018 I K Poonawala AB ii Water in Muslim Iranian culture Encyclopaedia Iranica Retrieved 12 February 2012 Bibliography EditHeart of the Earth The Elixir of Earth second novel in the trilogy by Richard Anderson Al Khidr The Green Man Alchemy and Daoism Archived 2020 02 14 at the Wayback Machine Naam or Word Book Three Amrit Nectar or Water of Life Needham Joseph Ping Yu Ho Gwei Djen Lu Science and Civilisation in China Volume V Part III Cambridge at the University Press 1976 Turner John D transl The Interpretation of Knowledge Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Elixir of life amp oldid 1140208805, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.