Meditatio Course

Meditatio is not about stillness—that is meditation. Rather, meditatio is about conversing with the mystery. As articulated by Marthinus Rulandus in his 1612 Alchemical Lexicon, it is ‘a conversation with an other who is not seen.’

This practice is firmly rooted in Western Alchemy rather than Eastern Spirituality. Where spiritual traditions often seek to transcend or overcome the material world, alchemy serves the soul—descending into what is deep and inward.

At its core, meditatio is relational. It explores our connection to the mystery, i.e. that percolating discomfort of ‘not knowing’ we so often encounter in the soul. Instead of striving to overcome this discomfort, we enter it, discovering the beautiful depths of soul hidden within.

Crucially, this conversation is not the same as everyday thinking. Ordinary thinking is a monologue—a running commentary disconnected from relationship. Shifting from thinking to meditatio means waking up to ‘the other’ inside the unknown. Recognising that ‘they’ have a mind of their own and do not speak our language, we learn to approach by asking questions and to delicately discern the response.