64 



GhazzaU s Alchemy of Happiness. 



established way of salvation, with which God has in- 

 spired the prophets, has its basis in external knowledge. 

 These miserable and weak men, since they have no ac- 

 quaintance with science, and no education, and knowledge 

 of external things, why should they indulge in such corrupt 

 fancies, and unfounded language ? They resemble, beloved, 

 a person who having heard it said that alchemy was of more 

 value than gold, because that whatsoever thing should be 

 touched with the philosophers' stone would turn to gold, 

 should be proud of the idea and should be carried away 

 with a passion for alchemy. And when gold in full bags 

 is offered him, he replies. "Shall I turn my attention to 

 gold, when I am dissolving the philosophers' stone ? " 

 And he finishes with being deprived of the gold, and with 

 only hearing the name of the philosophers' stone. He be- 

 comes forever a miserable, destitute, and naked vagabond, 

 who wastes his life upon alchemy. 



The science then of revelation, or of infused spiritual 

 knowledge, resembles alchemy, and the science of the doc- 

 tors of the law resembles gold ; but it is folly and pure loss 

 not to accept and be satisfied with solid gold, on account 

 of one's ardor to discover the philosophers' stone, which 

 latter knowledge is not acquired by one in a thousand. 



There is still one farther observation that deserves to be 

 made. If a person by the payment of a thousand pieces of 

 gold, could become master of alchemy, yet the condition 

 of the man who is absolutely master of ten thousand pieces 

 of gold would be better and preferable. And this illus- 

 trates the position of the soofees. If a person follow their 

 method and attain to the knowledge of some things, he still 

 does not equal in excellence, the doctors of the law. Just 

 as we see, that books on alchemy, and students of alchemy 

 are very numerous, while those who are successful are the 

 least of few, so the path of mysticism is sought for by all 

 men, and longed for by all classes of society, yet those who 



