# Applied Biodynamics — Issue 035 (Winter 2001–2002)

**By JPI Admin** · 2025-12-31

Issue 035 preserves Hugh Courtney’s and German-Michael Hahn’s detailed accounts of Hugo Erbe’s Three Kings Preparation, including two closely related—but not identical—making and perimeter-application protocols.

[**Download Issue 035 PDF**](https://go.jpibd.org/ab-035)

Hugh J. Courtney’s **“The Three Kings Preparation”** introduces Erbe’s biography and the place of this special preparation within his wider work. Erbe combined gold in the D2 potency, frankincense, and myrrh with rainwater and vegetable glycerine, interpreting the mixture as an offering to elemental beings and a perimeter practice associated with Epiphany. Those protective and spiritual effects belong to Erbe’s spiritual-scientific interpretation and practitioner testimony; they are not demonstrated physical outcomes.

Courtney paraphrases a recipe of 30 grams each of aurum metallicum D2, frankincense, and myrrh, ground together to a fine powder, then mixed with 50 grams each of rainwater and vegetable glycerine. He reports using about one teaspoon in roughly two gallons plus two cups of warm rainwater or sun-exposed pond water, stirred for one hour beginning at 1:30 p.m. on January 6. The stirred liquid is applied outward around a complete boundary, with a spray about every 55 yards; approximately half a gallon is said to cover 3,280 feet of perimeter.

German-Michael Hahn’s **“Preparation Beings: The Three Kings Preparation of Hugo Erbe”** gives a larger-scale version. It places the one-hour grinding across midnight on New Year’s Eve, adds the water and glycerine near the end, and stores the resulting paste until Epiphany. On January 6, Hahn calls for one hour of stirring beginning about 1:30 p.m., followed by outward perimeter application. His field guidance estimates one to two liters per kilometer of boundary and stresses route planning, paired walkers, clear segment descriptions, and confirming everyone’s return.

The separate **“Protocol for Hugo Erbe’s Three Kings Bio-Dynamic Preparation”** uses the same 30/30/30/50/50-gram formula but gives 5 cubic centimeters of paste per 8 liters of water, dissolved first in water near 60 °C to avoid clumping. It gives January 6 stirring from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. and application near 4:00 p.m. Because these historical instructions differ in start time, dilution, and workflow, a practitioner should select one documented protocol rather than silently combine them.

The issue also prints Vikki Childs’s reader response about beginning a Maryland vineyard, seeking biodynamic education, and asking JPI to continue preparation production while expanding public teaching. It is a useful primary record of how a new grower understood JPI’s role at the time.

For an evidence-oriented evaluation, separate the ceremony and spiritual intention from measurable field outcomes. Map the boundary and interior before treatment; retain comparable untreated or standard-practice areas when possible; predefine soil, crop, pest, disease, frost, wildlife, and management measures; and record observations on fixed dates. First-person impressions may be retained as qualitative notes but should not be reported as proof of an external mechanism.

## Articles

-   Reader Response on JPI’s Future and a New Biodynamic Vineyard (V. Childs) 
-   The Three Kings Preparation (H. J. Courtney) 
-   Preparation Beings: The Three Kings Preparation of Hugo Erbe (G.-M. Hahn; translated by B. Emmett) 
-   Protocol for Hugo Erbe’s Three Kings Bio-Dynamic Preparation (G.-M. Hahn and family; supplied and translated by J. Greene) 

## Key Topics Covered

Hugo Erbe’s biography, special preparations, and Three Kings practice.

Gold D2, frankincense, myrrh, rainwater, vegetable glycerine, trituration, storage, stirring, and perimeter application.

Differences among the historical timing, dilution, temperature, and route instructions.

Elemental beings, protection, and reconciliation as spiritual-scientific interpretations rather than measured mechanisms.

JPI’s production, education, succession, and relationship with farmers beginning biodynamic practice.

## Repeatable Practice

1.  Choose one source protocol and record material source, lot, weights, grinding vessel, duration, temperature, added water and glycerine, storage, and paste yield.
2.  Map the entire boundary, assign route segments, measure water and paste, and record stirring, application time, weather, distance, volume, and participants.
3.  Predefine physical observations and retain comparable untreated or standard-practice areas when feasible.
4.  Keep qualitative impressions in a separate dated log and report null, uncertain, and unfavorable observations alongside favorable ones.

## Explore Related Resources

[Three Kings preparation and application guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-erbe-8) · [Three Kings Preparation](https://go.jpibd.org/product-erbe-8) · [Rudolf Steiner’s _Agriculture Course_](https://go.jpibd.org/book-agriculture-course)

## Citation

Source: _Applied Biodynamics_, Issue No. 35, Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Bio-Dynamics, Winter 2001–2002.

**Tags:** Applied Biodynamics Archive, Biodynamic Agriculture

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> Source: [The Josephine Porter Institute](https://www.jpibiodynamics.org/blogs/applied-biodynamics/applied-biodynamics-issue-035-winter-2001-2002)