Revelation and Declaration of Basilius Valentinus

taken & rendered corporeal, then you will have a clear, pure & transparent WATER, which is the true spiritual WATER, & the first Mercurial ROOT of Minerals & of Metals, which is the WATER permanent in the FIRE entirely stripped of all earthly & phlegmatic aquosity: It is also this celestial WATER, of which so many Authors have written so amply.

By this SPIRIT of Mercury all Metals are resolved into their first Matter, without any corrosion, like Ice in warm Water; this SPIRIT rejuvenates Man, & all Animals, & prolongs LIFE to old age, it consumes & destroys all excremental things; This SPIRIT is the key of my other keys: That is why I will cry,

Come here all you who are blessed by God, & let you be anointed with this OIL-OF-HEALTH, & let your bodies be embalmed with it, for fear that they be spoiled by corruption or putrefaction; be also refreshed by this entirely celestial WATER, for it banishes excessive & sinful heats:

But know that this spirit of Mercury contains in itself the three principles. It is Mercury, since it is a CELESTIAL-WATER which is the beginning of all things; It is Sulphur, for it is an incombustible OIL, which has its origin from a spiritual sulphur, which is that middle uniting the SPIRIT & the BODY, for it is their SOUL: Finally it is SALT, since it is a BODY, albeit spiritual, & this SALT must be