Introduction to the Science Abbey Alchemy Series
By D. B. Smith
Welcome to a journey through the ancient and elusive discipline known as the Royal Art—the luminous tradition of symbolic alchemy.
More than a proto-scientific curiosity, alchemy is the sacred science of transformation: of nature, of self, and of civilization. Among initiates, it has long been revered as the supreme profession—not for what it makes, but for what it unmakes: ignorance, vice, and illusion. In the most refined circles, it is called the art of doing nothing—not in idleness, but in the subtle mastery of presence, patience, and perfection.
Traditionally, alchemy is defined as the transmutation of base metals such as lead or iron into silver and gold. The alchemist seeks the mythical Philosopher’s Stone, that mysterious agent of change said to turn any substance into pure gold—symbolizing the perfection of both matter and mind.
This quest, while outwardly material, serves as a profound metaphor: the science of transmuting the leaden burdens of ordinary life into health, clarity, strength, and illumination.
Across cultures and centuries, two primary streams of alchemical thought have taken root—external and internal alchemy. External alchemy involves physical substances: herbal formulas, mineral elixirs, and refined compounds aimed at longevity or even physical immortality.
Internal alchemy, by contrast, turns inward. It is a path of disciplined meditation, breathwork, and visualization, in which the chemical laboratory becomes the human body itself, and transformation is the work of spirit upon spirit.
This series of essays explores the Royal Art from both perspectives—philosophical and practical, symbolic and scientific—tracing its manifestations in the East and West, in monasteries and laboratories, in the mystical and the modern.
We invite you to enter these arcane chambers not to escape reality, but to refine it. May the ancient wisdom within these pages serve as your crucible.
Let the Great Work begin.
D. B. Smith
Articles in the Royal Art Series
The Royal Art (An Introduction to Alchemy)
Ancient Indian Alchemy
Chinese Alchemy
Chinese Daoist Alchemical Meditation
The Mysteries and Science: Origins of Western Alchemy Part I
Magic and Science: Origins of Western Alchemy Part II
The Western Mystery Tradition: Neoplatonism, Hermeticism and Kabbalah
The Early Alchemists of the West
The Muslim Alchemists
Buddhist Alchemy
The Origins of Freemasonry in Architecture, Science and the Liberal Arts
Medieval Alchemy: Between Monastery and Laboratory
The Medieval Hermetic-Kabbalistic Tradition and Rosicrucianism
Alchemy in Freemasonry and Rosicrucianism
Alchemy in Three Hermetic Orders: G.’,D.’., O.T.O. and A.’.A.’.
Russian Alchemy: A Hidden Tradition of Transformation
Alchemy and the Birth of Modern Science
The Memory Palace, Archetypes, Psychotherapy and Symbolic Alchemy
Zanoni: An Alchymical Romance
An Alchemical Rite: The Royal Art Society
AUTHOR
D. B. Smith is an independent historian, ritualist, and comparative religion scholar specializing in the intersections of Western esotericism, Freemasonry, and Eastern contemplative traditions. He formerly served as Librarian and Curator at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial, overseeing historically significant artifacts and manuscripts, including those connected to George Washington’s personal life.
Initiated into The Lodge of the Nine Muses No. 1776, a philosophically focused lodge in Washington, D.C., Smith studied under influential figures in the Anglo-American Masonic tradition. His work has been featured in national and international Masonic publications, and his efforts have helped inform exhibits, lectures, and televised documentaries on the history and symbolism of Freemasonry.
Smith’s parallel study and practice of Soto Zen Buddhism—including ordination as a lay practitioner in the Katagiri-Winecoff lineage—has led him to investigate convergences between ritual, mindfulness, symbolic systems, and the evolving role of spiritual practice in secular societies. He is the founder of Science Abbey, a platform for interdisciplinary inquiry across religion, philosophy, science, and cultural history.
