The Norse creation myth describes how the primordial Fire of Muspelheim and the Water of Niflheim interact in the Emptiness of Ginnungagap, giving birth to the middle world of Midgard.

Historically Norse tradition is closely connected to shamanism.

The idea of the World Tree connecting the upper, middle, and lower worlds is directly matched by Yggdrasil, which connects various places and realms. The most popular version suggests there are nine "worlds", but different sources give different versions. It's also not always clear if all the places mentioned in the sources are equally "big" to be considered actual separate worlds or if there are some lesser locations or regions.

But what we definitely see, according to Gylfaginning, is that before and during the creation of Midgard ("Middle yard", hence middle word) there were only three major places, similar to what we see in the shamanic worldview.

Muspelheim, the hot and glowing realm of Fire, is described to be to the south of middle Emptiness Ginnungagap. It's easy to draw parallels with the underworld full of lava which sometimes erupts from beneath the Earth.

Niflheim, the realm of mist and ice, is described to be to the north and the source of all rivers, spring Hvergelmir is located there. If matching to the vertical shamanic model, we have no other choice but to put it to the upper world, which is again quite logical, if we remember high snowy mountain peaks where lots of rivers begin.

Such a layout is quite common across cultures and religions. Take the lower world of Asuras full of fire and river Ganga which begins in the upper world and falls to the Shiva's hair, who spends most of the time in the snows of Kailas mountain.

Even in the Christian model, we can find "waters above" and underground hell sometimes described as full of fire.

So this is what we accept as a working model in the Runic Alchemy - the primordial trinity of Water / Emptiness / Fire which is described to be aligned with a North/South axis we translate into the shamanic vertical axis of the world tree and place Water above and Fire below.

The true source of this view of the universe as a vertical structure of three major worlds is a revelation, which I received back at the beginning of the Runic Alchemy journey and this discovery became a foundation for understanding runes not only as letters or symbols. We can find deep meaning in their graphical structure as part of such a vertical system of coordinates.

All the runes are built from only three basic types of graphic elements: descending diagonal bar, ascending diagonal bar, and vertical axis.

We place each rune on the grid of five horizontal levels, each representing from top to bottom levels of Water, Air, Emptiness, Earth, and Fire.

• The very top level represents the upper world of Water. The bottom level represents the lower world of Fire
• And three inner levels of Air, Emptiness, and Earth represent Midgard with Sky and Earth separated by an elusive line of horizon in the center.

For example here is an Eihwaz rune:

By reading it from left to right we can see how the lower diagonal bar starts at the level of Earth and descends to the level of Fire. The vertical axis connects all the five levels simultaneously. And finally, the upper diagonal bar descends from the level of Water to the level of Air.

As a core of Runic Alchemy, the "Philosopher's Stone" recipe was discovered - a symmetrical bindrune that includes almost all the Elder Futhark:

This symbol serves as a blueprint describing the creation of the universe. We, as alchemists, follow the instructions encoded in the Philosopher's Stone and try to reproduce Creation locally. By doing so, we are getting closer to the original creator force.

The stone contains, as its building blocks, all the runes except Ansuz, Fehu, and Jera. Each rune has its specific place within Stone and this specific place plays a crucial role in the rune's meaning and effect.

In turn, by discovering the true position and meaning of each rune we unfold the secrets of the Philosopher's Stone and creation.

About Runic Alchemy

The foundation of Runic Alchemy was obtained from practice and experiments, rune divinations, meditations, magical dreams, and the guidance of Gods. In Runic Alchemy we are staying as close as possible to the available historical sources, but are not limited by them. Be aware that this modern Norse-based mystic research started around 2006 / 2007. There is no evidence that something like this existed in the Viking period or earlier and we do not claim to have secret/lost knowledge of the past. After almost two decades of research and practice, the time has come to share this knowledge with more people and see what will happen.

This book covers deep topics so it will be interesting for advanced seekers. At the same time, it starts from the very basics to make sure it's accessible for beginners as well. From the author's perspective, the primary goal of this book is to connect with the right people who may share similar experiences, values, goals, and interests.

In this book, we will explore:

• How to extend your perception beyond yourself and manipulate energies with your hands.
• How to move your focus far from yourself to travel upwards and downwards, accessing the sources of primordial Fire and Water.
• How to channel and sustain these energy streams and balance your dual nature through the experience of simultaneity.
• How to direct these streams to interact with each other and start your Creation.
• How other runes work, whether part of the stone or not.
• How this abstract system applies to our real world and what practical results we can achieve through spiritual practice.

When reading this book and practicing the suggested exercises, listen to yourself as the primary source of spiritual knowledge and the sole gateway to the realms where everything described here occurs.

Runic Alchemy is an ongoing live project. There is a slowly growing online community where you are welcome to join to ask any questions, exchange ideas, share experiences, and get to know recent updates and current research progress.

This book guides you step by step to obtain your seed of the Pholosopher's Stone and grow it big enough to become your internal source of Light on which you can rely in daily life and spiritual journey.

Philosopher's Stone already exists and there is only a single Philosopher's Stone but it's out there, out of space and time.

By recreating Philosopher's Stone on your side you open the gate between material and ideal worlds allowing bidirectional influence which is sometimes called magic.

The process of initial seeding, growing, and perfecting of the stone is gradual allowing more and more strong and prolonged connection.

We believe at some level this gate can be opened wide enough so even the alchemist himself will be able to transcend through it.