We are currently seeking submissions for future volumes of Culture and Cosmos.
Volume 19
Teleological and Aesthetic Perfection in the Aurora Consurgens
Karen Parham
Abstract
This paper examines the concept of perfection in relation to the celestial magic described within the alchemical work Aurora Consurgens. This fifteenth-century illuminated manuscript has been erroneously attributed to Thomas Aquinas and was popularised by Carl Gustav Jung. It contains an entire section on 'astronomy', which is one of the keys to wisdom and perfection. Perfection, a multifaceted concept, proves useful in elucidating further philosophical understanding of the various traditions within Western esotericism. By identifying interpretations of this concept within Aurora Consurgens, I hope to demonstrate how this approach can aid in the understanding of both Aurora Consurgens and of alchemy and its relationship to celestial magic in general. This will then provide an opening to identifying concepts that are common to all Western esoteric traditions.
Citation: Karen Parham, 'Teleological and Aesthetic Perfection in the Aurora Consurgens', Celestial Magic, special issue of Culture and Cosmos, Vol. 19, nos. 1 and 2, 2015, pp. 115-27.
