Aurora consurgens : a document attributed to Thomas Aquinas on the problem of opposites in alchemy / edited, with a commentary, by Marie-Louise von Franz ; translated by R.F.C. Hull and A.S.B. Glover.

Text in Latin and English; introd. and commentary in English.

"A companion work to C.G. Jung's Mysterium coniunctionis."

Includes bibliographic references (p. 479-522).

1 Introduction. 2 Aurora Consurgens: text and translation and 3 Commentary. 1. The aurora or Aurean Hora of Blessed Thomas Aquinas. Here beginneth the treatise entitled Aurora Consurgens. 2. What wisdom is. 3. Of them who know not and deny this science. 4. Of the name and title of this book. 5. Of the provocation of the foolish. 6. The first parable: Of the black earth, wherein the seven planets took root. 7. The second parable: Of the flood of waters and of death, which the woman both brought in and put to flight. 8. The third parable: Of the gate of brass and bar of iron of the Babylonish captivity. 9. The fourth parable: Of the philosophic faith, which consisteth in the number three. 10. The fifth parable: Of the treasure-house which wisdom built upon a rock. 11. The sixth parable: Of heaven and earth and the arrangement of the elements. 12. The seventh parable: Of the confabulation of the lover with the beloved. 4 Was St. Thomas Aquinas the author of Aurora Consurgens?

"Originally published [in German, 1957] as part 3 of Mysterium coniunctionis by C.G. Jung, this volume contains a rare medieval alchemical treatise, reputed to be the last work of St. Thomas Aquinas, which was rediscovered by Dr. Jung in the course of his researches. It bears out Jung's view that the alchemical tradition, through its symbols, served to express unconscious psychic contents. Dr. von Franz's analysis of this ancient text suggests that the author experienced a breakthrough of the unconscious while in an ecstatic state which may sometimes be observed as a prodromal symptom of death. History records that Thomas Aquinas died in a trance just after having expounded the Song of Songs, and Aurora ends with a paraphrase of the same Biblical verses and a vision of the mystic marriage. Dr. von Franz's commentary shows how Jung's system may be used as a key to unlock the meaning of a cryptic but psychologically significant document."

Hardcover