"Prehistoric people knew only too well their own mortality. They watched children, parents, grandparents, friends and enemies die year after year. They knew the sting and pain of death. They were trapped in physical bodies that became injured, diseased, old and eventually too weak to live. They had heard stories about their ancestors who had lived to be hundreds, even thousands of years old before succumbing to death. They also knew stories about immortal beings who never died and continued to affect the lives of every generation in every civilization. That knowledge was a motivator that gave rise to hope that started people in every nation of the world on a quest to find the 'elixir' of immortality." (page 18)
"It has been known by many names: elixir of life, elixir of immortality, elixir of longevity, elixir vitae, magic potion, panacea, fountain of youth. We do not know what it was called before written history, but the human race has searched for an elixir of life since we lost immortality." (page 20)
"The ancient Chinese physican's goal in treating patients was to gain balance between Yin and Yang. They believed too much or too little of either was potentially damaging to life. Finding the perfect balance, they believed, had the potential for finding immortality." (page 27)
"The writings of the Tao Te Ching became rules for living for millions of Chinese people through the centuries. They also became important in the quest for immortality." (page 39)
"Immortality to the Chinese meant physical immortality. The soul or personality of a person was believed to be an incorporation of several interrelated souls dispersed at death. The purpose of immortality was to return to primordial wholeness and become one with the Tao. Taoists believed they could achieve immortality by nourishing the "vital principle" in their bodies and changing themselves into something with more lasting qualities." (page 41)
"The Vedic period (named after the Veda texts of Hinduism) began about 1,500 B.C. and continued for more than a thousand years. Those ancient spiritual texts spoke about the belief in and quest for immortality. People who believed the Vedas were called "children" and "sons of immortality." (page 56)
"Legend had it that Vishnu advised the gods (devas) to unite with their demon enemies (asuras) and churn the great ocean of milk. They used the snake-like king Vasuki to churn the ocean and that brought forth Soma (Amrita), the elixir of immortality." (page 59)
"The ancient internal alchemists described every aspect of the Eightfold Path of Yoga in the Hindu texts as a guide to all who would travel on the path of the quest for immortality." (page 82)
"People who practiced Yoga for the enrichment of life and fulfillment of the quest for immortality would meditate and focus on developing each energy center." (page 86)
"It was believed reading the writings of Thoth would unlock the mysteries of the gods and bring a human into the presence of the gods and knowledge of immortality." (page 88)
"Muslim alchemy had its birth in the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad ... The most famous of all Muslim alchemists was Abu Musa Jabir ibn Haiyan al-Azdl ... Jabir, like other alchemists of his day, believed in an elixir (al-iksi) that could change base metals into gold, improve a person's health and lengthen their lives." (page 111)
"An ancient mystical Jewish sect called "Kabbalah" believed it had found a method for unlocking the mysteries of the Hebrew Bible. Members called it "Gemetria." (page 131)
"One of the powerful alchemical movements of the 17th century that influenced many people searching for the Elixir of Immortality was the Rosicrucian Order, also known as Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis and Brotherhood and Society of the Rose Cross" (page 164)
"Alchemy was always viewed as a process of change and change was what happened to Western alchemy." (page 215)
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