Philosophers' stone

1. Etymology

Philosophers' stone (alchemy) is a metaphor for successful transmutation of base metal into gold; psychologically, an archetypal image of wholeness. Related: lapis; coniunctio.

2. Plain summary

Jung quotes the Rosarium philosophorum: make a round circle of man and woman, extract a quadrangle and from it a triangle; make the circle round—and you have the Philosophers' Stone.

Samuels (Lapis in alchemy glossary): philosopher’s stone as alchemist’s goal; sometimes metaphor for the goal—hence lapis speaks of self-realization and individuation.

Examples (exhaustive house list for this Index lemma — common philosophers'-stone motifs named across Jung’s essays and standard Jungian lexica; not a claim that Jung’s CW contains only these):
alchemical gold metaphor; archetypal wholeness; Rosarium circle–quadrangle–triangle; lapis / self-realization; dual-stamp self / coniunctio / individuation.

3. Academic elucidation

In analytical psychology the philosophers' stone is alchemical image of psychic wholeness—CW 11 ¶92. Descent Press keeps Sharp and Samuels (lapis ~p. 14) in §4. Prefer CW 11 ¶92.

4. Lexicon

Sharp (1991)

Philosophers' stone. In alchemy, a metaphor for the successful transmutation of base metal into gold; psychologically, an archetypal image of wholeness. (See also coniunctio.) … Make a round circle of man and woman, extract therefrom a quadrangle and from it a triangle. Make the circle round, and you will have the Philosophers' Stone.

(Sharp, 1991) — cites CW 11 ¶92 (Psychology and Religion) in Sharp’s lemma.

Samuels, Shorter & Plaut (1986) — alchemy glossary Lapis p. 14

Lapis: Philosopher's stone, goal of the alchemist. Sometimes even alchemists regard the stone as a metaphor for the goal. Hence, lapis speaks of self-realisation and INDIVIDUATION.

(Samuels, Shorter, & Plaut, 1986/2013, p. 14)

5. CW concordance — sample, not exhaustive

… the anonymous author of the Rosarium philosophorum says: “Make a round circle of man and woman, extract therefrom a quadrangle and from it a triangle. Make the circle round, and you will have the Philosophers’ Stone.”
(Jung, 1938/1969, CW 11, pp. 53–54, ¶92)

See also: wholeness; self; coniunctio; individuation; nigredo; archetypal-image.

References

Jung, C. G. (1969). Psychology and religion. In H. Read, M. Fordham, G. Adler, & W. McGuire (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.) (2nd ed., Vol. 11, pp. 53–54, ¶92). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1938)

Samuels, A., Shorter, B., & Plaut, F. (1986). A critical dictionary of Jungian analysis. Routledge.

Sharp, D. (1991). Jung lexicon: A primer of terms & concepts. Inner City Books.