Cosmic alchemy

[Antares]

The elements theory (which are in essence the principles that rule the manifestation / substance of creation), as present in alchemy, is indeed something that is supposed to be beyond the "common" conventions. It teaches about the principles beyond principles, as alchemy is all about the principles (in action).

However, alchemy is a certain approach, after all - which can be thought of, then, as a teaching, it is about principles applied to itself. So while alchemy deals with transformations (hence fire), we can percieve it as a system of concepts that also falls into another (meta-)system of concepts. See? Transform the mind of a scientist, and the principles of science itself become affected. Because this is his or her mind which created them. You affect not the object, but the subject, then, i.e. the source. This is a meta-level of concepts, that are applied to alchemy as well.

So my view is that the only aspect that is really beyond any principles is consciousness: it is that what creates principles, like those found in alchemy. Everything else - no matter what meta-meta-meta-concept you could go with - is an object within a system, and a subject of another system. I think you could go infinitely with finding new meta-systems, and perhaps it's what the consciousness development is about in the gods' realms. They may have kind of wars (being actually mind games) where they play with concepts to win over another. It is not something that - to a degree - scientists did miss, they didn't - the same idea, in at least some limited form, appeared quite recently about 100 years ago in mathematics... and this is a good evidence where fire kills metal, as - as you pointed out - it's something that goes beyond conventions. Try to define fire as a principle as opposed to the other 4 principles within this system - you may have a serious challange here. If you're interested in this rather philosophical (and rather not mathematical - any more at this point) dilemma, you may see e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bertrand_Russell and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_G%C3%B6del

BTW, I do think that teachings about alchemy are not alchemy itself (in action). The former is occult, kind of science, i.e. metal element. A paradox where science about the subject can be killed by the subject itself. Because this is the dilemma of the systems that Kurt Godel has discovered, thus undermining the principles of mathematics previously believed to be fixed "norms".