Inner Opus Press.
The Alchemist Within is no ordinary book on psychology—It is a soulful manifesto, a call to restore Psyche to her rightful place at the heart of inner work and sacred science. Rooted in the Hermetic tradition and nourished by depth psychology, this work invites the reader into the art of self-alchemy—not as metaphor, but as a lived, participatory path of becoming. With grace and insight, the author fuses Jungian and Hillmanian visions—where symbols, dreams, and images guide us toward individuation and mythic renewal. Gnosis here is not mere knowledge, but a transformative knowing that reshapes the knower from within. At its heart lies a sacred marriage: the union of spiritus rector, the soul’s inner guide, with the anima mundi, the soul of the world. In this union, psychology becomes what it was always meant to be—a path of transformation aligned with the rhythms of the cosmos.
A rare offering, this book refrains from objectifying the soul. Instead, it walks beside it, allowing the fire of inspiration and the weight of struggle to transmute the raw material of the self into something refined, luminous, and whole.
—Mervat Nasser, MD, MPhil, FRCPsych
Founder & Director, New Hermopolis
Author of The Path to the New Hermopolis (Rubedo Press, 2019)
How marvelous to have in one volume a brilliantly lucid and compassionate account of the multicultural tradition of alchemy written from the point of view of practical guidance for everyday life. The Alchemist Within excels in that most elusive of feats: writing for the novice without sacrificing scholarly depth. This is a book to read, re-read and to treasure. It contextualizes alchemy in its multiple sources and histories, clarifies its role in Jungian depth psychology, and gently demonstrates its potential to deepen, transcend and transform our lives in this troubled century. A truly wonderful and unmissable resource.
Susan Rowland, Ph.D.—Pacifica Graduate Institute.
What if we were actually more creative, more intuitive, more empathic, and more powerful than we realize? What might our lives look like? What would our shared world look like? The Alchemist Within asks just such questions as Dr. Mansoor Abidi inspires us to realize our unique potentials as co-creators within a majestic, and dynamically interconnected cosmos. Utilizing his many years of research into the art, science, and spiritual nature of alchemy from both Western and non-Western traditions, Abidi demonstrates how alchemy is a living practice of transformation of both inner and outer realities. Through his skills as a life coach and professor, Abidi has developed an applied alchemy suitable for investigating and enriching our contemporary lives as full participants in a grand cosmic drama–as beings that form the bridge between psyche and matter.
Mary Antonia Wood, PhD. Chair, MA Depth Psychology and Creativity Program at Pacifica Graduate Institute. Author, The Archetypal Artist: Reimagining Creativity and the Call to Create.