（四）第三把钥匙
1)英译版原文
By means of water fire may be extinguished, and utterly quenched. If much water be poured upon a little fire, the fire is overcome, and compelled to yield up the victory to the water. In the same way our fiery sulphur must be overcome by means of our prepared water. But, after the water has vanished, the fiery life of our sulphurous vapour must triumph, and again obtain the victory. But no such triumph can take place unless the King imparts great strength and potency to his water and tinges it with his own colour, that thereby he may be consumed and become invisible, and then again recover his visible form, with a diminution of his simple essence, and a development of his perfection.
A painter can set yellow upon white, and red or crimson upon yellow; for, though all these colours are present, yet the latter prevails on account of its greater intensity. When you have accomplished the same thing in our Art, you have before your eyes the light of wisdom, which shines in the darkness, although it does not burn. For our sulphur does not burn, but nevertheless its brilliancy is seen far and near. Nor does it colour anything until it has been prepared, and dyed with its own colour, which it then imparts to all weak and imperfect metals. This sulphur, however, cannot impart this colour until it have first by persevering labour been prevailed upon to abjure its original colour. For the weaker does not overcome the stronger, but has to yield the victory to it. The gist of the whole matter lies in the fact that the small and weak cannot aid that which is itself small and weak, and a combustible substance cannot shield another substance from combustion. That which is to protect another substance against combustion must itself be safe from danger. The latter must be stronger than the former, that is to say, it must itself be essentially incombustible. He, then, who would prepare the incombustible sulphur of the Sages, must look for our sulphur in a substance in which it is incombustible – which can only be after its body has been absorbed by the salt sea, and again rejected by it. Then it must be so exalted as to shine more brightly than all the stars of heaven, and in its essence it must have an abundance of blood, like the Pelican, which wounds its own breast, and, without any diminution of its strength, nourishes and rears up many young ones with its blood. This Tincture is the Rose of our Masters, of purple hue, called also the red blood of the Dragon, or the purple cloak many times folded with which the Queen of Salvation is covered, and by which all metals are regenerated in colour.
Carefully preserve this splendid mantle, together with the astral salt which is joined to this sulphur, and screens it from harm. Add to it a sufficient quantity of the volatility of the bird; then the Cock will swallow the Fox, and, having been drowned in the water, and quickened by the fire, will in its turn be swallowed by the Fox.
2)个人翻译
通过水火会被熄灭，甚至彻底绝根。若将大量的水倾倒于火上，火便被征服，火被迫将权柄让予水。同理，我们那炽热的硫亦须借我们制备的水来征服。然而硫汽中的水性耗尽后，硫内炽热的火性活髓必将狂喜，再次重获它对硫的定义权，但假使没有国王赋予我们的水巨大的效力和魅力，并将其染成自己的色彩的话，这样的权柄交接不会出现。通过这国王得以被消耗而隐没无形，然后伴着简陋本质的减少、完美本质的发展，他的可见形体将尽数找回。
炼金术士能将白染成黄或红，也可将黄染成深红，皆因这些颜色尽管全部表达显现，但后者会因自身更精粹的性质而占居上风。当你在我们的炼金艺术里完成了如上所述的事，你会目睹在黑暗中虽不燃烧却闪耀着的智慧之光，因为哲学硫尽管并不会燃烧，但它的光辉远近可见。
当然硫不会给任何东西染色，除非它被处理过并自我授与其本质之色（哲学硫），之后这本质之色便能赋予到所有贱金属和病金属上了。当然，硫能自授本质之色的先决条件是，它先需历经锲而不舍的努力被说服，放弃了它与生俱来的原色，因为不纯者无法压倒纯粹者，唯有不得已出让定义权的结果。整件事的要旨在于稀薄者无法点化它的有缺本质，就像可燃物无法使另一物免于燃烧；那能够庇护他者抗燃之物本身须是能在火焰中安全无虞的，它的本质需较前者更为丰盈。
简言之，就是后者自身须是不可燃的。
综上所述，欲制备不燃哲学硫者，他须在可燃硫中的不可燃之处寻求该物，而此物只可在可燃硫的躯体被盐海吸收又再次排出后才能寻得。然后它必将崇高显贵，比天上众星更为辉耀。在它的精髓中必蕴藏着充裕的血液，就像那啄伤己胸的鹈鹕一般，这血将滋育许多的幼雏，却不会有任何的效力衰减。这酊剂，所有金属皆在它这色彩中凭其甦生，它是我们这些哲人的玫瑰，带着紫的色泽，谓之龙的红血，亦或是那救恩之后所披多重折叠的紫色斗篷。
连同那与硫结合的星光之盐一同妥善保存这件华美斗篷，使其免受损害吧。加入足量的鸟之变化，而后公鸡将吞下狐狸，溺毙于水，又经由火焰活化，最终反过来被狐狸吞下。
加一，我要听。我要听诺斯替
不过其实这个词sublunary，直译是月亮下的世界，但是其实不仅仅是指月亮（虽然在人类登月的时候所有神秘学中的天体从物质意义上的转变成了哲学神秘学概念，我说神秘学也在与时俱进吧hhh）还泛指所有的天体行星，在大部分神秘学中，人世的一切早已在行星界预演过，或者人世的一切都依赖于行星界，一切事物都有在天体上的对应，这就是占星的基础。
……所以最后只讲了亚里士多德的蒸散论和硫（盐）汞论
