Seeking Recommendation Seeking recommendation: best book on Paracelsus

[pixel_fortune]

I'd like to read more about Paracelsus, his life and work, but from an occult perspective (writer doesn't have to be a magician, but they have to think alchemy has value, be interested in the ideas themselves)

He himself was incredibly prolific - there's no obviously best place to start - and apparently not an easy read. I'm really just looking for a primer. Esp interested in the idea of the inner firmament.

(I've already read the Frater Acher books that reference him; Holy Heretics and Ingenium)

 

[stalkinghyena]

You might want to try The Life of Paracelsus by Anne M Stoddart. It's the only actual bio I could find that gives any real linear narrative, but it is dated, written in the early 20th century. It does go into his occult practices but I think it overlooks a lot of things. I could tell the author was definitely interested in the subject herself but may have been reserved in her presentation due to the times and her desire to present him as a insurgent pioneer in medicine, which he was. Stoddart seemed personally interested in her subject, so it smacked to me as a bit of hero worship, but I liked the book. Hope that helps.

 

[HoldAll]

I've downloaded two books from annas-archive.org that seemed interesting: One is ""Paracelsus (Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, 1493–1541) - Essential Theoretical Writings" by Andrew Weeks, basically a scholarly reader of 986 pages (which also contains the German original texts, so that's why it's so expansive). The Table of Contents gives no clues as to any obvious occult content but it contains some of his texts on alchemy (which for him is one of the four foundations of medicine).

The other is "Paracelsus: Essential Readings" by Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke which caught my eye because the author has also written about esoteric topics. It's smaller, not that scholarly but contains translations of original texts without much in the way of commentary; however, it does contain a section entitled "Pansophy, Magic and Cabbala".

Of course both books are not 'primers' but I thought you might want to check out some source texts as well. Apart from that, annas-archive.org seems to list mainly biographies although I'd have to download "The Hermetic and Alchemical Writings of Paracelsus - Two Volumes in One" by A.E. Waite to be really sure.

 

[pixel_fortune]

Thank you!

 

[stalkinghyena]

So right now I am about halfway through The Devil's Doctor: Paracelsus and the World of Renaissance Magic and Science by Phillip Ball and I am thinking it's a good door opener. It's far from the perceptible hero worship of Stoddart, though he does give her credit on her lack of credulity compared to Franz Hartman. There are overviews of magic and alchemy (with some questionable comments, but generally fair) in there, and ol' Theophrastus's views on those and his idiosyncratic Neoplationism. His works are described in passing overviews, as are his medical classifications. There are some interesting bio sections on folks that the subject interacted with, such as major Reformation era figures like Luther, Melanchthon and Bullinger, among others. Apparently he was roommates with Erasmus for a short time, and even cured him of an ailment for which a "thank you" letter is produced.
Also interesting was that, while he never met Agrippa, they both had the same friends. Also, Theophrastus is reported to have enjoyed the Three Books.

 

[Hu96ie]

If you're looking for an esoteric perspective, in Ingenium, Frater Acher outlines Paracelsus's life and vision to define his concept of Radical Otherness. Besides quoting his writings throughout the book, he also dedicates an entire chapter to Paracelsian Magic. I think it's an excellent introduction.
His book, The Olympic Spirits: Paracelsus' Practice of the Inner Stars, has also just been published.