MAGIC WORDS Coincidentia Oppositorum Meanings: • Fusion of opposites; reconciliation of contraries "The magical phrase 'coincidentia oppositorum' can either be dismissed as nonsense or extolled as dialectical profundity. With reference to the absolute to which the idea is supposed to lead us, it remains ambiguous. At times it seems to mean: God is the coincidence of opposites. At other times the idea is only a springboard from which we are supposed to leap in order to touch the absolute -- no one can tell how. But whoever makes the leap falls back to his starting point. . . . This ambiguity hints at a reality the truth of which comes to life only within ourselves through our thinking, yet which is not present merely because we think." -- Karl Jaspers, Anselm and Nicholas of Cusa (1974) Origins: These magic words were discussed by the Christian philosopher Nicholas of Cusa (Nikolaus Krebs) (1401-1464). Coldpot harry: What's the magic word? midgie: Coldpot! -- Mary Chase, Midgie Purvis (196 ) Mystique: Conjuring images of a witch's cauldron, the magic word coldpot resonates with alchemy (the "cold pot" of metallurgy). A cold pot calls for a spark, said the Sufi mystics, for "[f]ire is put under the cold pot, not the pot which is boiling over."14 Coldpot contains within itself the possibility of highly-unlikely events coming to pass. Statistically speaking, "a cold pot of water could spontaneously come to a boil; it is simply not very likely. But unlikely events are quasi-certain to happen if we wait long enough."15 Ignition and expectation -- both are at the heart of coldpot. The sparkling occurrence of highly-unlikely events is indeed magical. Coldpot also resonates with risk, as one is "especially [to] avoid pouring hot water into a cold pot"16 so as to avoid "rapid and uneven thermal expansion, which can easily crack the pot."17 Therefore, a cold pot would seem to demand the basic principle of homeopathy: "like with like" (cold water being best suited to a cold pot). The fact that "we can see water condense on the outside of a cold pot placed over a gas flame"18 further illustrates the concept of "like with like." A cold pot also seems to demand that a process 14 Jalal al-Din Rumi, Tales from the Masnavi (1961) 15 Herman Daly and Joshua Farley, Ecological Economics (2004) 16 Thomas J. Elpei, Participating in Nature (2002) 17 A. D. Livingston, Duck and Goose Cookbook (1997) 18 Knut Schmidt-Nielsen, Animal Physiology: Adaptation and Environment (1997)