Category:Natural Philosophy

Natural philosophy is the analysis, as opposed to the description, of nature, whereas natural history is the description, as opposed to the analysis, of nature. Natural philosophy is a precursor of chemistry and physics; natural history is the precursor of biology and geology. The reflection entailed in natural philosophy and natural history begins in Iron age cultures. Natural philosophy significantly commits itself to the theory of four elements: air, earth, fire and wind. This commitment parallels and indeed mirrors that of the spellcasting traditions to the theory of the elemental planes. Nonetheless, natural philosophy does not take its lead from spellcasting tradition and in particular refrains from offering gods as causes. This may easily invite the charge of blasphemy. Indeed, natural philosophy may even attempt to integrate the gods into system, not so much privileging the natural over the supernatural as bracketing the very distinction. This may easily invite the charge of heresy. Alchemy is, in effect, an attempt keep a foot in both the camp of natural philosophy and the camp of a spellcasting tradition, an endeavor that is mostly untroublesome in Classical, Dark, Early Medieval, Medieval and Chivilric age cultures. Chemistry involves the adaption of a natural philosophy inspired by mechanics and the adoption of a position antagonistic to alchemy in particular and to the spellcasting tradition in general, a gesture common to Renaissance age cultures. Chemistry renounces the commitment to the theory of the four elements and embarks on a program of specialization that threatens to sever it from the tradition of natural philosophy and in so doing condemn natural philosophy to the dustbin of history.