The philosophers stone was never about a rock
Tl;dr We are all a potential philosophers stone.
Hear me out, all past alchemists were cryptic cuz alchemy was illegal. When we read their notes about lions eating the sun, it looks unrealistic. Pair it with occult practices and most of society is turned off by the concept.
We must've tried dipping all kinds of rocks into acid, trying to make a philosophers stone and gave up because it never worked.
What if the philosophers stone, was always about us. Turning lead into gold by helping others become the best version of themselves. Following the law of as above so below, lets apply it here.
Nigredo- Going through hardship
Albedo- Reflecting on said hardship
Yellow ido- Working thru the hardship
Rubedo- Becoming the best version of ourselves.
Pairs nicely with the concept of psychological transmutation. Pretty new here so I'd love to hear the opinions of more practiced alchemists.