The alchemists wrote as if they were describing a chemical process, and in one sense they were. They were also describing something else: the movement of a psyche undergoing transformation. Jung read the corpus that way in Mysterium Coniunctionis and Psychology and Alchemy; Edwin Edinger later rendered the stages usable clinically in Anatomy of the Psyche. What the alchemists called an opus is recognizable, by a modern reader, as the long work a soul undertakes to become itself.
The opus moves through stages named for the colors the matter takes as it changes. Nigredo, the blackening \u2014 dissolution, depression, the old self breaking down. Albedo, the whitening \u2014 clarification, separation, cool light. Citrinitas, the yellowing \u2014 dawn, warmth returning, first action. Rubedo, the reddening \u2014 embodiment, the new self coagulated into a stance that can live in the world.
The stages are not a ladder climbed once. A psyche can be in nigredo in one domain of life and rubedo in another, and most lives re-enter the dark materials many times. What this assessment offers is a reading of where the opus is most active in you right now \u2014 where the soul is doing its current work.
How the Assessment Works
Twenty-four statements, six per stage. For each, rate how often the statement describes your experience from 1 (Never) to 5 (Always). Each stage receives a score out of 30. The dominant one names the operation the psyche is currently undergoing. None of the stages is better than another; all are necessary.