There is a persistent belief in
alchemaicAlchemy is both a philosophy and a practice with an aim of achieving ultimate wisdom as well as immortality, involving the improvement of the alchemist as well as the making of several substances described as possessing unusual properties...
and
hermetic* Hermeticism, a magical and religious movement stemming from the teachings of Hermes Trismegistus* Hermetics, the deliberate use of esoteric imagery...
tradition in the existence of two
sunThe Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. The Earth and other matter orbit the Sun, which by itself accounts for about 99.86% of the Solar System's mass....
s: a hidden one of pure "philosophical gold," consisting of the essential
FireFire has been an important part of all cultures and religions, from pre-history to modern day, and was vital to the development of civilization. It has been regarded in many different fashions throughout history.-Greek and Roman Tradition:...
conjoined with
aetherAccording to ancient and medieval science, aether , also spelled æther or ether, is the material that fills the region of the Universe above the terrestrial sphere.- Mythological origins :...
, and the apparent one of profane "material gold." The "dark, consuming fire" of the material sun leads to its being called the "Dark" or "Black Sun." According to the
Book of the Holy Trinity, after Adam's fall, tainted by Original Sin, man is made "from the black sun's fire."
It is possible that these teachings influenced
PhilolausPhilolaus was a Greek Pythagorean and Presocratic philosopher. He argued that all matter is composed of limited and unlimited things, and that the universe is determined by numbers. He is credited with originating the theory that the earth was not the center of the universe...
in the development of his groundbreaking theory of the
Central FireThe Central Fire or Hearth of the Universe is a fiery celestial body hypothesized by the pre-Socratic philosopher Philolaus to be positioned at the center of the universe, and around which all other celestial objects revolve...
.
The two suns in the hermetic tradition
There is a persistent belief in
alchemaicAlchemy is both a philosophy and a practice with an aim of achieving ultimate wisdom as well as immortality, involving the improvement of the alchemist as well as the making of several substances described as possessing unusual properties...
and
hermetic* Hermeticism, a magical and religious movement stemming from the teachings of Hermes Trismegistus* Hermetics, the deliberate use of esoteric imagery...
tradition in the existence of two
sunThe Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. The Earth and other matter orbit the Sun, which by itself accounts for about 99.86% of the Solar System's mass....
s: a hidden one of pure "philosophical gold," consisting of the essential
FireFire has been an important part of all cultures and religions, from pre-history to modern day, and was vital to the development of civilization. It has been regarded in many different fashions throughout history.-Greek and Roman Tradition:...
conjoined with
aetherAccording to ancient and medieval science, aether , also spelled æther or ether, is the material that fills the region of the Universe above the terrestrial sphere.- Mythological origins :...
, and the apparent one of profane "material gold." The "dark, consuming fire" of the material sun leads to its being called the "Dark" or "Black Sun." According to the
Book of the Holy Trinity, after Adam's fall, tainted by Original Sin, man is made "from the black sun's fire."
It is possible that these teachings influenced
PhilolausPhilolaus was a Greek Pythagorean and Presocratic philosopher. He argued that all matter is composed of limited and unlimited things, and that the universe is determined by numbers. He is credited with originating the theory that the earth was not the center of the universe...
in the development of his groundbreaking theory of the
Central FireThe Central Fire or Hearth of the Universe is a fiery celestial body hypothesized by the pre-Socratic philosopher Philolaus to be positioned at the center of the universe, and around which all other celestial objects revolve...
. This is supported by the fact that the various teachings regarding multiple suns are sometimes attributed to
EmpedoclesEmpedocles was a Greek pre-Socratic philosopher and a citizen of Agrigentum, a Greek city in Sicily. Empedocles' philosophy is best known for being the origin of the cosmogenic theory of the four classical elements. He also proposed powers called Love and Strife which would act as forces to bring...
, who was a contemporary of Philolaus, and his senior. However, this connection may be coincidental, and it is likely that the attribution of these ideas to Empedocles stems from an imperfect understanding of his cosmology in regard to the reflective nature of the Sun.
Sol niger
Sol niger (
black sunThe term Black Sun , also referred to as the Sonnenrad , is a symbol of esoteric or occult significance, notable for its usage in Nazi mysticism....
) is also the name of the result of the first stage of the
Opus Magnum in
alchemyAlchemy is both a philosophy and a practice with an aim of achieving ultimate wisdom as well as immortality, involving the improvement of the alchemist as well as the making of several substances described as possessing unusual properties...
, the blackening (nigredo). The complete
Opus magnum (Great Work) ends with the production of
goldGold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. It has been a highly sought-after precious metal for coinage, jewelry, and other arts since the beginning of recorded history. The metal occurs as nuggets or grains in rocks, in veins and in alluvial deposits. Gold is...
.
The
Opus magnum can also be understood in a mystic way:
see Alchemy - The Opus magnum
Contemporary usage of the term "Black Sun" can be found in the works of esoteric musicians such as
COILCoil were an English cross-genre, industrial experimental music group formed in 1982 by John Balance—later credited as "Jhonn Balance"—and his partner Peter Christopherson, aka "Sleazy". The duo worked together on a series of releases before Balance chose the name Coil, which he claimed...
and
Boyd RiceBoyd Blake Rice is an American experimental sound artist under the moniker of NON since the mid-1970s, archivist, actor, photographer, author, member of the Partridge Family Temple religious group, co-founder of the UNPOP art movement and current staff writer for Modern Drunkard Magazine.
, and occult groups such as Black Sun Rising (a Pylon of the Temple of SetThe Temple of Set is an initiatory occult society claiming to be the world's leading left-hand path religious organization. It professes Setian philosophy and magical practice.-History:...
).
In popular culture
- "Alchemy of the Black Sun Cult" is the first single
In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.-History:...
and videoA music video is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music/song. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings. Although the origins of music videos go back much further, they came into their own in the...
from the AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
black metalBlack metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It often employs fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, double-kick drumming, and unconventional song structure....
bandRock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
GoatwhoreGoatwhore is an American blackened death metal band, formed in 1997 in New Orleans, Louisiana.- Biography :Goatwhore was formed by singer/guitarist Sammy Duet following the breakup of his previous band, Acid Bath. Soilent Green singer L...
's 2006 albumAn album or record album is a collection of related audio or music tracks distributed to the public. The most common way is through commercial distribution, although smaller artists will often distribute directly to the public by selling their albums at live concerts or on their websites.-...
"A Haunting Curse".
- Sol Niger Within
Sol Niger Within is the first and only release by Fredrik Thordendal's Special Defects, a side project of Meshuggah guitarist Fredrik Thordendal. The album was originally released in 1997 on the Ultimate Audio Entertainment label....
is the first and only release by Fredrik Thordendal's Special Defects, a side project of MeshuggahMeshuggah is a Swedish five-piece experimental metal band formed in 1987. Meshuggah's line-up has primarily consisted of founding members vocalist Jens Kidman and lead guitarist Fredrik Thordendal, drummer Tomas Haake, who joined in 1990, and rhythm guitarist Mårten Hagström, who joined in 1993...
guitarist Fredrik ThordendalFredrik Thordendal is the lead guitarist and a founding member of the Swedish experimental metal band Meshuggah.-Musical career:...
.