The Nexus and the Phenomenon

Illustration of Tria Prima, from a German alchemical ms., c. 1600, Yale University Library

When I try to look at a star in the night sky, I have to look slightly to one side in order to see clearly the star (or more correctly, its light). “Nexus”--both the word and its manifestation--is similar. When I start trying to zero in on “nexus,” it eludes me. I …