Children of Knowledge

Wizards & Witches -M20- Mage Information

Introduction

The Solificati , also known as the Children of Knowledge (among many other names), are a group of mages notable for being founding members of both the Order of Reason and the Council of Nine Mystick Traditions. Their time among both factions (combined), only amounts to about 15 years.

While many went their separate ways, several of them regrouped and called themselves the Children of Knowledge, hoping to hide their Solificati origins. Since then, they have kept to themselves, being secretive for fear of retribution, staying out of the conflict between the Traditions and what is now called the Technocratic Union. With time working against them, however, they soon had to choose sides or perish. Tonight, two factions claim the Solificati title: Those affiliated with House Solificati of the Order of Hermes and those affiliated with the Disparates.

Paradigma

The paradigm of the Solificati, like the art they pursue, is trans-formative and shifting. The last great invention of LSD in the 1950s resulted in a radical split between those who embraced psychotropic substances and those who reject them to stay true to their practiced arts.

Renaissance

Magic is a symbol for self-refinement. While it bestows great powers, those trinkets are nothing compared to the spiritual process. Everything in Creation is part of the process (the stars, the minerals, the spirits, the beasts), and is a reflection of a cosmic truth; every item has a higher state. The world is organic, caked with baseness that, when smelted away, reveals Divinity. That smelting presents the greatest challenge; it requires wisdom, education, intuition and outer elements.

Perfection of one breeds perfection of all. Material things are ultimately hollow. One must be generous as the swan, honorable as the flame and valiant as the lion. The true Philosopher's Stone is not a stone at all - it is the spirit that lives forever.

Modern Nights

Far from being the dusty and socially isolated laboratory rats of medieval folklore, the modern Children of Knowledge enjoy spreading their form of Enlightenment in the mortal world. They do this by taking advantage of their knowledge of chemistry (which is the modern "child" of alchemy) and pharmacology. Originally, alchemy was developped to the purpose of changing one physical form into another, with the ultimate goal being the transmutation of lead (or another base metal) into gold through the so-called "Philosopher's Stone." Awakened alchemists realized, however, that this was a parable, and that the true mission of magical alchemy was to turn the spiritual being of mankind to an Awakened state, an epiphany of unity with the universe. The Philosopher's Stone was not simply about turning lead into gold, but about helping humanity transcend the bonds of spiritual ignorance. All the Children of Knowledge had to do, they believed, was get the collective consciousness of humanity to open itself to the possibility of transcendental Enlightenment, and then knowledge would make itself known to all.

As followers of this philosophy the Children of Knowledge are squarely at odds with the Technocracy, for such universal transcendence forms the virtual antithesis of Technocratic beliefs and goals. The Children have seen their ultimate goal of spiritual transcendence grow further and further out of reach as the Technocracy imposes its paradigm of banality on the Masses. This very thing may yet drive them into the arms of the Traditions (and it will after the events leading to Mage: the Ascension Revised Edition). Although the Children of Knowledge believe that most of the Traditions' philosophies are flawed, they do not believe they can stand alone against the Technocracy. For them, the old adage, The enemy of my enemy is my friend, rings increasingly true with each passing day.

History

The Solificati's roots are found in the earliest practices of alchemy, the first mystic science. For many centuries, there was no kind of organization among the practitioners of the Royal Art beyond the occasional loose alliance or small exclusive order.

Dark Ages

Medieval alchemy was simultaneously an art and a science. The original premise of alchemy, as written in the Corpus Hermeticum in the first four centuries A.D., was that base metals could be transmutated into gold and silver by freeing them from their inherent impurities. From Aristotle, they took the theory that all substances were made of prima materia, which comprised the four elements of earth, fire, air and water. All things were considered combinations of these elements in different portions.

Alchemy flourished and alchemists started to come together as a secret mystical community of magical research and practice. Astrology was introduced as a way to help determine the most influential times to attempt transmutation and a Chinese concept of medicine, adopted by the great Arab alchemist Jabir ibn Hayyan, further purported that if one ate gold that had been transformed from base metals, one could achieve immortality.

The golden age of alchemy was achieved in Europe in the 12th and 13th centuries. Some of the greatest alchemists of all time - Arnold of Villanova, Albertus Magnus and Roger Bacon - worked in this age. Many alchemists met during this time and formed an informal but influential organization, which they called the Solificati. Knowledge and effort shared, they believed, brought everyone closer to discovery. Rank was not so much a matter of how much knowledge one had accumulated, but of how much one had discovered. They worked closely with the Order of Hermes (with whom modern Solificati claim a common history, though the Order denies it), and with them discovered many new properties of Magic.