The article considers the changing status of alchemy in the intellectual context of Western Europe. It shows that in the New Age, when it was denied legitimacy by both scientific natural science and official Christianity, it was pushed into the sphere of marginal religiosity, where alchemical tradition has survived to the present day within esoteric movements. In the first half of the 20th century, analytical psychology attempted to demarginalize alchemy through psychological reinterpretation. In the interpretation of the goals of transmutation, the emphasis shifted from material manipulation to transformation of spiritual states, and alchemy was thus denied a genetic link to chemistry. C.G. Jung interpreted it as a pre-scientific psychology, metaphorically describing the course of psychic experience associated with individuation. It is concluded that, despite attempts at demarginalization, alchemy has retained the status of a discipline that lacks scientificity and is not recognized by official church authorities representing traditional confessions in Western culture. The results of this study are significant for understanding the history of religion.
Key words: alchemy, religion, marginal religiosity, esotericism, scientific revolution, analytical psychology
DOI: 10.22250/20728662-2025-4-26-33
About the authors
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Olga Yu. Boytsova – D.Sc. (Political Science), Full Professor, Head of the Department of Philosophy of Religion and Religious Studies, Lomonosov Moscow State University; Leninskie Gory, Moscow, Russia, 119991; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |
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Vladimir V. Vinokurov – D.Sc. (Philosophy), Associate Professor, Professor of the Department of Philosophy of Religion and Religious Studies, Lomonosov Moscow State University; Leninskie Gory, Moscow, Russia, 119991; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |