What was that yellow powder in 'Mother!'? I think I found the answer. [mother! SPOILERS!]

In Taoist Alchemy there's the concept of jindan, or the Golden Elixir.

Some of the more relevant excerpts from the link:

Modern studies usually refer to the Chinese arts of the elixirs as Waidan (External Alchemy) or Neidan (Internal Alchemy), but the authors of alchemical texts often call their tradition the Way of the Golden Elixir (jindan zhi dao) . . . the central act of the alchemical process consists of causing matter to revert to its "essence" (jing), or materia prima. The main role in this procedure is played by the crucible (fu), which functions as a medium equivalent to the inchoate state (hundun) that precedes the formation of the cosmos. In that medium, under the action of fire, the ingredients of the elixir are transmuted, or "reverted" (huan), to their original state. . . . Chen Zhixu and other authors emphasize that the inner elixir is possessed by every human being, and is a representation of one's own innate realized state. Liu Yiming (1734-1821) expresses this notion as follows: Human beings receive this Golden Elixir from Heaven. . . . Golden Elixir is another name for one's fundamental nature, formed out of primeval inchoateness (huncheng, a term derived from the Daode jing). There is no other Golden Elixir outside one's fundamental nature. Every human being has this Golden Elixir complete in himself: it is entirely realized in everybody. It is neither more in a sage, nor less in an ordinary person. It is the seed of Immortals and Buddhas, and the root of worthies and sages.

I've only seen the movie once and so my memory of it isn't perfect, so my theory of how it fits in isn't fully formed, but I was so excited about this concept I had to share.

In searching the internet for more information about this golden elixir, I came across this strange book called Revelations -- The Golden Elixir. If you've seen the movie, you probably understand why that title intrigued me. I can't read the whole thing, but found this bit on the google books preview. Again, if you've seen the movie, you probably understand why it intrigued me.

What do you think?!

Submitted September 21, 2017 at 12:29PM by puddingccake http://ift.tt/2hm5qE9