Full Translation:
It is true, and no lie, certain and to be depended upon,
That which is above is as that which is below, and that which is below is as that which is above,
for the performance of the miracles of one thing.
And as all things are produced from only one thing, by the mediation of one thing:
so all things are born of this one thing, by adaptation.
The Sun is its father, the Moon its mother,
the Wind carries it in its belly, its nurse is the Earth.
This thing is the father of all perfect things in the world.
Its power is most perfect when it is converted into Earth.
Separate the Earth from the Fire, the subtle from the gross, gently and with judgment.
It ascends from the Earth to the Heaven and descends again to the Earth,
and receives the powers of the superior and inferior things.
By this means you will have the glory of the whole world,
and thereby all obscurity shall fly from you.
This is the strong force of all forces,
for it overcomes all subtle things and penetrates all solid things.
Thus the world was formed.
Hence proceed wonderful adaptations,
which are produced in this way.
Hence I am called Hermes Trismegistus, having the three parts of the philosophy of the whole world.
What I had to say about the operation of the Sun is completed.
Translation Context
Bacstrom was a German physician, natural philosopher, and self-initiated Rosicrucian active in England in the late 18th century. His translation of the Emerald Tablet emerged during a renewed wave of Rosicrucian alchemical revival, colored by Enlightenment empiricism and esoteric Protestant mysticism.
His translation style is elegant, conservative, and noticeably more moralistic. Phrases like “to be depended upon” and “gently and with judgment” signal his concern for ethical alchemical practice. It is believed Bacstrom considered himself a spiritual reformer, hoping to align scientific reason with mystical revelation.
His translation draws upon Newton but adds devotional precision. This version reveals a Rosicrucian effort to preserve alchemy as an inward spiritual purification rather than just a physical science.
Axiom-by-Axiom Interpretive Notes
Axiom 1: “It is true, and no lie, certain and to be depended upon” introduces moral trust as a framing device. This reflects Bacstrom’s Protestant influence and adds ethical grounding to metaphysical certainty.
Axiom 4: “By adaptation” is retained from earlier versions, but “are born of” emphasizes a gentle emergence rather than procedural mechanics—shifting connotation from engineering to natural birth.
Axiom 8: “Gently and with judgment” reveals a major departure in tone. Bacstrom overlays the technical instruction with ethical restraint, emphasizing character and discretion as part of the process. This is in line with Rosicrucian teachings that transformation must mirror inner virtue.
Axiom 12: “Thereby all obscurity shall fly from you” is kept intact, but its position after a morally colored process implies that gnosis is not just given, but earned—through right conduct.
Axiom 17: “What I had to say… is completed” affirms closure with humility. Bacstrom, like Newton, ends with finality—but his is less a proof and more a whispered reverence.