SYMBOLISM OF
THE THREE DEGREES
OLIVER DAY STREET
Scanned at the Phoenixmasonry Research Society by Brother Ralph Omholt - January 2007
The NATIONAL MASONIC LIBRARY
consists of a series of carefully selected titles of uniform binding and excellent craftsmanship, in which may be found the best results of Masonic research by masters of the Craft in America and abroad. Every aspect of Freemasonry is covered; its ritual, its symbolism, its philosophy, its past history, present activities and development. All recognized schools of Masonic thought are represented, thus providing the best literature of the Craft in authentic form.
THESE TITLES ARE NOW AVAILABLE:
SYMBOLICAL MASONRY
by H. L. Haywood
THE BUILDERS
by Joseph Fort Newton
SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
by Oliver Day Street
THE GREAT TEACHINGS OF MASONRY
by H. L. Haywood
The MEN'S HOUSE
by Joseph Fort Newton
FOREIGN COUNTRIES
by Carl H. Cloudy
THE RELIGION OF MASONRY
by Joseph Port Newton
SPECULATIVE MASONRY
by A. S. McBride
SHORT TALKS ON MASONRY
by Joseph Fort Newton
THE BEGINNINGS OF FREEMASONRY IN MLUICA
by Melvin M. Johnson
TERRITORIAL MASONRY
by Ray V. Denslow
(other titles in preparation)
MASONIC PUBLICATIONS DIVISION
Southern Publishers, Inc.
SYMBOLISM OF
THE THREE DEGREES
By OLIVER DAY STREET
Kingsport, Tennessee
SOUTHERN PUBLISHERS, Inc.
MASONIC PUBLICATIONS DIVISION
COPYRIGHT, 1922, 1924,
BY THE MASONIC SERVICE
ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES
SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
- B -
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
FOREWORD
TO THE M. S. A. EDITION
The new edition of this book, as it now appears, is almost a new book, in content as well as in format. Originally little more than a pamphlet, poorly printed, it now takes its place—revised and enlarged by more than one-third — in the M. S. A. National Masonic Library, as a substantial and important contribution to the, exposition of Masonic symbolism. It is not too much to say that it is the best book on the subject since Mackey wrote, and we believe it will be so recognised. The author proceeds upon the principle, ignored by so many, that Masonic symbols should have a Masonic interpretation, as determined by the history and teaching of the Craft. This saves him the trouble, and his readers the weariness, of wandering through the mazes of ancient lore in quest of imaginary meanings of symbols to which the Craft has given, tacitly or officially, its own interpretation. The comparative study of symbols, to say nothing of their varied, meanings and migrations, is another subject, and is beyond the limits and purpose of this book.
The book will be welcomed by the Craft as a practical and competent elucidation of its symbolism, and it is an honor to the Service Association to give it a worthy and permanent form.
JOSEPH FORT NEWTON.
FOREWORD
TO THE FIRST EDITION
Some books are so much be-trumpeted before their appearance and make their advent accompanied by such a battery of acclamation that afterwards one is at a loss to know whether to attribute their success to their own merits or to the preparatory campaign of advertising. Others come "without bell," without ostentation or announcement, like the stealing of light at dawn, and make their way very slowly and by their own intrinsic worth. The present volume is an excellent example of the latter class. Brother Street first collected his materials for a series of lectures in his own state of Alabama. Later on these lectures were published serially in The Builder, the journal of the National Masonic Research Society. Beginning in August, 1918, the demand for copies of the journal containing the serial was such that the Society issued the manuscript in book form, albeit of a most modest fashion. This little book in turn has been so much read and so widely sought that not a copy remains to be sold. And now the Society, with Brother Street's consent and assistance, is republishing "Symbolism of the Three Degrees" in a volume of such dignity and permanence as the proved worth of the essay entitles it to.
It chances that I myself have written a book on Symbolical Masonry, if I may be here permitted to say as much, and therefore I can speak with something of the authority of experience when I say that this work is one of the half dozen best books on the subject in our Ian-
vii
viii FOREWORD
guage. Those who have labored in the field of Masonic symbolism know what toil is required; what mountains of books must be read; what masses of rubbish must be overhauled for an ounce of value; and how confusing is the babel of interpretation that breaks from books, Monitors, speeches, magazine articles, pamphlets and id genus omne. To find one's way, to keep one's head, to emerge at last with one's sanity intact and with something of value, is a task. To Brother Street belongs the honor of such an achievement. He has read wisely and well; thought much; and followed the lead of the official Monitors without abandoning his own rights or duties of independent judgment.
The Craft needs a large literature of such books as this. Private students and members of study clubs should master it paragraph by paragraph. Masters and Wardens and all others entrusted with the exemplification of our marvellous Masonic Ritual will find in it such light on all the important symbols of the Three Degrees as will give them and their audience a new interest in the work, and a new appreciation of the inexhaustible wealth hidden away within the heart of Ancient Craft Masonry.
H. L. HAYWOOD,
Editor of The Builder.
Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Oct. 1, 1922.
CONTENTS
PAGE
FOREWORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
FOREWORD TO FIRST EDITION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . vii
PART ONE:
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
PART TWO:
THE FELLOW CRAFT DEGREE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
PART THREE:
THE MASTER MASON DEGREE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
APPENDIX:
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
PART ONE: THE ENTERED
APPRENTICE DEGREE
SYMBOLISM OF
THE THREE DEGREES
PART ONE
THE ENTERED
APPRENTICE DEGREE
It is first necessary that we should understand the scope of our subject. First, be it understood, we attempt to exhaust no topic upon which we touch, but only to stimulate the interest and curiosity of the reader to pursue the subject further for himself. Under the term "symbolism," we include also the legends and allegories of Masonry, though properly speaking they are not symbols. Yet they are all so closely interwoven and so employed for the same or like purposes they can scarcely be treated separately.
General Albert Pike, that great. Freemason and philosopher, says that "to translate the symbols [of Freemasonry] into the trivial and commonplace is the blundering of mediocrity." That there has been some blundering of this kind on the part of our Monitor makers must be apparent to any serious and intelligent student of Masonry.
Difficult as it is to assign adequate meaning to some of our Masonic symbols, it is equally difficult, when once starts , to know where to stop. Says a distinguished British Freemason, Brother W. H. Rylands:
13
14 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
"Symbolism is always a difficult affair as every one knows or at least ought to know. When once fairly launched on the subject, it often becomes an avalanche or torrent which may carry one away into the open sea or more than empty space. On few questions has more rubbish been written than that of symbols and symbolism: it is a happy hunting ground for those, who, guided by no sort of system or rule, ruled only by their own sweet will, love to allow their fancies and imaginations to run wild. Interpretations are given which have no other foundation than the disordered brain of the writer, and, when proof or anything approaching a definite statement is required, symbols are confused with metaphors and we are involved in a further maze of follies and wilder fancies."
Thus we are to steer our bark between the Scylla of Brother Pike and the Charybdis of Brother Rylands; without, therefore, descending to the commonplace on the one hand or soaring away from the plane of common sense on the other, we hope to be able to say something of interest concerning the symbolism of the First Degree.
A symbol is a visible representation of some object or thing, real or imagined, employed to convey a certain idea. Sometimes there is an apparent connection between the symbol and the thought represented, but more often the association seems to be entirely arbitrary. The earliest forms of symbolism of which we know were the ancient hieroglyphical systems of writing. We may indeed say that symbolism is but a form of writing; in fact, the earliest and for hundreds, and perhaps even thousands of years, the only form of writing known to the human race. It prevailed among every ancient people of whom we have any definite knowledge.
The learned Dr. William Stukeley, of England, the
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 15
author of many antiquarian works, said truly that the "wisdom of all the ancients that is come down to our hands is symbolic." 1
Few of us appreciate the importance of symbolism and the great part it plays even now in our everyday life. We have said that all symbolism is a form of writing; with equal truth, we may invert the statement and say that all writing, ancient and modern, is symbolism. It has been proved that our present methods of writing are but developments from the hieroglyphical, and are as purely symbolical as any that have preceded them. Our thoughts themselves and the forms in which we express them are all symbolic. Even spoken language is symbolical; were it not so we should not have to be taught a language in order to understand it. A certain spoken sound, or printed word is representative of a certain idea, not naturally so, but by arbitrary usage; and this is precisely what a symbol is. To the direct forms of speech we have added the so-called "figures of speech," similes, metaphors, parables and allegories, rendering language both spoken and written still more symbolic. In short, without symbols communication, except of the most restricted sort, among men would be impossible. The importance of the subject is, therefore, not easily exaggerated. Except when our attention is specifically directed to it, we are not conscious of the extent to which the symbolical enters into our daily thought and life. Symbolism, however, in that aspect in which it is commonly understood, no longer prevails, except to a very limited degree.
This ancient form of writing, now generally fallen into disuse, Masonry has to some extent at least perpetuated and employs in recording her precepts and impressing them upon her votaries.
1 Mackey, Symbolism of Freemasonry, p. 73.
16 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
Another ancient and favourite method of teaching stip employed by Masons is that of the allegory. The allegory is a figure of speech, that is to say, a departure from the direct and simple mode of speaking, and the employment, for the sake of illustration or emphasis, of a fancied resemblance between one object or thing and another.
If we say of a man, as we often uncharitably do, "He is an ass," this is a metaphor. If we say of him, as Carlyle did of Wordsworth, "He looks like a horse," this is a simile. An extended simile with the comparative form and words left out, in which the real subject is never directly mentioned but left to be inferred, is called an allegory. The most famous example of the allegory in literature is Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.
One desirous of entering into the real spirit of these ancient methods of imparting instruction should read Bacon's Wisdom of the Ancients, and particularly the preface to that remarkable book. He shows that nearly all the complex and to us absurd tales of Grecian mythology were but parts of a great system for inculcating natural, moral and religious truths by means of the allegory. What more grotesque and revolting, we may ask, than the myth of Pan?
"He is portrayed by the ancients," to quote Bacon, "in this guise: on his head a pair of horns that reach to heaven; his body rough and hairy, his beard long and shaggy; his shape biformed, above like a man, and below like a beast; his feet like goats' hoofs; and he bore these ensigns of his jurisdiction, to wit, in his left hand a pipe of seven reeds, and in his right a sheep-hook, or a staff crooked at the upper end, and his mantle made of a leopard's skin."
Yet under the master touch of Lord Bacon this in-
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 17
congruous creature, half Man and half goat, is shown to be a beautiful and apt symbol of all nature. Approaching that branch of symbolism which at present concerns us, Masonic Symbolism, it may be asserted in the broadest terms that the Mason who knows nothing of our symbolism knows little of Freemasonry. He may be able to repeat every line of the Ritual without an error, and yet, if he does not understand the meaning of the ceremonies, the signs, the words, the emblems and the figures, he is an ignoramus Masonically. It is distressing to witness how much time and labor is spent in memorising "the work"; and how little in ascertaining what it all means.
Far be it from us to underrate the importance of letter-perfection in rendering our ritual. In no other way can the symbolism of our emblems, ceremonies, traditions, and allegories be accurately preserved, but we do maintain that, if we are never to understand their meanings, it is useless to preserve them. The two go hand in hand; without either the beauty and symmetry of the Masonic temple is destroyed.
It is in its symbols and allegories that Freemasonry surpasses all other societies. If any of them now teach by these methods it is because they have slavishly imitated Freemasonry.
The great Mason and scholar, Brother Albert Pike, said:
"The symbolism of Masonry is the soul of Masonry. Every symbol of a lodge is a religious teacher, the mute teacher also of morals and philosophy. It is in its ancient symbols and in the knowledge of their true meanings that the preeminence of Freemasonry over all other orders consists. In other respects, some of them may compete with it, rival it, perhaps even excel it; but by
18 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
its symbols it will reign without a peer when it learns again what its symbols mean, and that each is the embodiment of some great, old, rare truth."
In our Masonic studies the moment we forget that the whole and every part of Freemasonry is symbolic or allegoric, the same instant we begin to grope in the dark. Its ceremonies, signs, tokens, words and lectures at once become meaningless or trivial. The study of no other aspect of Freemasonry is more important, yet the study of no aspect of it has been so much neglected. Brother Robert F. Gould, of England, our foremost Masonic historian, declares it is the "one great and pressing duty of Freemasons."2 Brother Albert Pike, no doubt the greatest philosopher produced by our fraternity, declared as we have seen that symbolism is the soul of Masonry.
We know that symbols are in Masonry, and we know not when or how they got there. We know not who assigned to them their meanings. We know that many of them were employed for the same purpose, the communication of ideas, before the beginning of authentic history; of some of them we know a part at least of their original meanings, but of the meaning of others we know nothing at all.
In some instances it is possible to ascertain or at least to surmise the origin of the symbol and what gave rise to it. But in many of the most important this inquiry has baffled all research.
If in Masonry we speak of a Temple, we do not mean one of stone and mortar; if we speak of a square, we do not mean one of steel or wood; if we speak of compasses, we do not mean one of. metal.
We are told in our Monitors that "every emblem, character and figure depicted in the lodge has a moral and
2 A. Q. C., Vol. II, p. 43.
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 19
useful meaning and forcibly inculcates the practice of virtue." The same may with equal truth be said of our every ceremony, sign, token, legend, and allegory. If this is true, it must follow that to be ignorant of Masonic symbolism is to be ignorant of Masonry.
Even our name—Mason or Freemason—is symbolical. Literally it means "builder in stone." Of course, we are engaged in no such labours except in a symbolic sense. We liken the development of human character to the erection of a building; we liken the manly virtues which constitute a finished character to the polished stones which enter into a finished structure.
The etymology of the word Mason, whether used to indicate a speculative or an operative Mason, is obscure.
NAME OF THE FRATERNITY
Undoubtedly the very name of Masonry is symbolic. The likening of the developing of human character to the building of a house is an old simile. It was certainly in use among the Jews as early as the time of David (2 Samuel vii, 27; Ps. cxviii, 22) and was a favourite figure of speech with Jesus. It could, therefore, cause no surprise that a society whose professed mission is character-building should bear symbolically the name of the occupation of those engaged in the building of houses. It might be asked why are we not called Freecarpenters instead of Freemasons if we get our name from house builders. The answer is that we might have been so called had our Fraternity originated in America instead of Europe. Carpenters are a much more important factor in house building here than in the Old World. There nearly everything is and has for centuries been built of stone or brick. This is still more the case in Palestine where, according to our traditions, the society of Free-
20 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
masons had its origin. There, because of the scarcity of timber, the occupation of a mason was always of much greater consequence than that of the carpenter. Besides, it will be borne in mind that the more important edifices of all countries have, since the beginning of historic times, been built of stone or marble.
In the ceremonies of making a Mason we do not attempt to do more than to indicate the pathway to Masonic knowledge, to lay the foundation for the Masonic edifice; the brother must pursue the journey or complete the structure for himself by reading and reflection.
Brother Pike thus expresses this idea:
"Science makes use of symbols; but for its transmission language is also indispensable; wherefore the Sages must sometimes speak. But when they speak they do so not to disclose or to explain but to lead others to seek for and find the truth of science and the meaning of the symbols."
There must be somewhere in Freemasonry a consistent plan running entirely through it by which all that is genuine in it may be rationally explained. It can not be that a miscellaneous collection of rules, customs, symbols and moral, precepts, however valuable in and of themselves, thrown together without order or design, could have attracted the attention among intelligent men that Freemasonry has done in all ages in which it is known. Surely unity must somewhere exist in the great variety which we find in the Masonic system.
A little study will reveal to us that the great, vital, underlying idea, sought to be inculcated by the several degrees considered collectively and which runs entirely through the system, is to give an allegorical or symbolical representation of human existence, not only here but here-
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREES 21
after, and to point the way which leads to the greatest good both in this life and in the life to come. Our ceremonies and symbols, while beautiful and impressive in and of themselves and incidentally teaching valuable lessons of religion, morality and industry, all cluster around and contribute to this central idea. But it is only when we reflect upon them in relation to this sublime allegory of human life that we are enabled to comprehend them in the fullness of their beauty and grandeur. The Masonic student, therefore, who has never caught this conception of his subject has failed to grasp Freemasonry in its most instructive and important aspect.
Endeavour, therefore, to get clearly in your minds the point we emphasise and which we shall attempt to demonstrate, namely, that every sign, every symbol and every ceremony in the First Degree, in addition to any primary signification it may have, is also designed to illustrate allegorically some moral phase of human existence.
The great German poet, Goethe, says:
"The Mason's ways are
A type of existence,
And his persistence
Is as the days are
Of men in this world."
We have dwelt at length on this thought just because it is not otherwise possible adequately to explain any part of the Masonic system.
DEFINITION OF MASONRY
A more beautiful, a more accurate, or a more comprehensive definition of Freemasonry never has and never will be given in so few words than that it is "A system
22 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
of Morality veiled in Allegory and illustrated by Symbols." 3
It is truly a SYSTEM. It is not a mere hodge-podge of rules, maxims and precepts thrown together without order or design, as ignorant Masons so often suppose.
It is a system of MORALITY. The word morality in its first and broadest sense, "the doctrine of the right and wrong in human conduct," (Standard Dictionary) covers the whole field.
It is veiled in ALLEGORY. Rightly understood the whole system is an elaborate allegory of human life. An allegory is a departure from the direct mode of speaking in which the real subject is not mentioned by name but is more or less thinly veiled, though not hidden, beneath figures of speech.
It is illustrated by SYMBOLS. What might otherwise be unintelligible in the allegory is made plain by the symbols accompanying it. The meanings of most of these symbols, though sometimes forgotten and hence not obvious, may be ascertained by study and reflection.
In our view two other facts may be regarded as setting a limit in a loose sort of way to the meaning of Masonic symbols. One is that Masonry is derived from an operative society; the other that the symbols are obviously designed to teach moral and religious truths., We must conclude, therefore, that to our ancient brethren they meant and were designed to teach moral and religious truths of the need of which they were conscious. These are such only as would appeal to a man of practical common sense. It is folly to talk of these symbols meaning the same to them that they have meant at times to societies of philosophers and mystics. These additional meanings may be just as true and legitimate, but they are not Masonic meanings. The rule we have just laid down is
3 Mackey, Symbolism of Freemasonry, p. 10
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 23
general enough to admit of opinions different enough as to any symbol. Reliance must at last be placed largely upon a liberal measure of common sense. One fact is undoubted and that is that Speculative Freemasonry is a development from the operative Masons' guilds of former times. But when this change began or when it became complete are points of controversy. When we come to consider the time and manner, when and how the separation occurred there is very great uncertainty. Without attempting to state the evidence on which the conclusion is based, it is generally agreed that certainly as early as A.D. 1600, Speculative Masonry was in existence though still maintaining a sort of connection with the operative craft. Just what this connection then was is not precisely known. The complete divorcement of Speculative from operative Masonry, according to the most reliable authorities, seems to have taken place a few years prior to A.D. 1717. Just here a whole troup of questions begin to press for answer. Whence did the Speculative Masons derive their esoteric, symbolical and philosophical teachings, if not from the operative guilds? If from them, whence and when and how did they in their turn obtain them? And our understanding of the meanings of the Masonic symbols must in a measure wait the answering of these questions. Our present knowledge is not sufficient to enable us to answer them.
Brother Gould has said that one great and pressing duty of Freemasonry was, he thought, to try and recover the lost meanings of many Masonic symbols, and to do this effectually it would be desirable to ascertain whether the symbolism they possessed became theirs by inheritance, or was the accidental product of adoption (or assimilation). If this symbolism was inherited, then the analogous customs of remote antiquity should form the subject of their study and investigation; but if on the
24 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
contrary, it was introduced at a comparatively recent date into Freemasonry, then the way it was actually understood by those who introduced it ought to have the first claim upon their attention.4
INITIATION
Initiation is now, as it has been for countless ages, employed as a symbol of the birth and endless development of the human mind and soul. The Entered Apprentice Degree represents birth and the preparatory stage of life, or in other words, youth; the Fellow Craft represents the constructive stage, or manhood; the Master Mason represents the reflective stage, or old age, death, the resurrection, and the everlasting life. This explanation of the three degrees is briefly given in our lecture on ' the Three Steps delineated on the Master's Carpet.
THE LODGE
Is it true that the lodge symbolically represents the world? We might say to begin with that some have thought the word "lodge" derived from the Sanskrit word "loga," meaning the world. However this may be, our Monitors tell us that the form of a lodge is an "oblong square" from East to West and between North and South, from earth to heaven and from surface to centre. This of course, if it means anything, can mean nothing less than the entire known habitable earth and Masonic scholars universally so interpret it. This meaning was more manifest at the period when Freemasonry is supposed to have had its origin, for the then known world lying around the shores of the Mediterranean sea was literally of the form of an "oblong square." One doubt-
4 A. Q. C., Vol. III, p. 43.
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 25
ing this may consult any map of the ancient world, especially that of Comas Indicopleustes of the sixth century or that of Strabo A.D. 18.
Dudley, in his Naology (p. 7), says that the idea that the earth was a level surface and of a square form may be justly supposed to have prevailed generally in the early ages of the world. It is certain that down to a comparatively recent date it was believed that beyond a certain limit northward life was impossible because of the darkness and cold, and likewise that beyond a certain limit southward it was impossible because of the blinding glare and intense heat of the sun. It was even supposed that in the farthest South the earth was yet molten. The biblical idea was that the earth was square. Isaiah (xi, 12) speaks of gathering "the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth": and in the Apocalypse (xx, 9) is the vision of "four angels standing on the four corners of the earth."
So thoroughly grounded were these beliefs that in ancient times the "square," now the recognised symbol of the lodge, was the recognised symbol of the earth, as the circle was of the sun. In this antiquated expression "oblong square," we therefore have not only an apt description of the ancient world and evidence that the lodge is symbolical thereof,5 but also a remarkable evidence of the great age of Freemasonry. It tends strongly to date our institution back to the time when the human mind conceived the earth to be a plane surface and was ignorant of its spherical character.
Likewise the lodge, which is sometimes defined as "the place where Masons work," symbolises the world or the place where all men work.
Again, its covering is said to be a clouded canopy or
5 Universal Cyclopedia, "Rome," Vol. X; The Times Atlas, Plate II; Mackey, Symbolism of Freemasonry, 101.
26 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
starry decked heaven, a description that could have not the slightest application to anything else but the world.
If the lodge symbolises the world and the Mason symbolises man, it follows that initiation must symbolise the introduction of the individual into the world, or the birth of the child. It was so regarded in the ancient systems of initiation and is now so understood by Masonic scholars everywhere. It is the least important view to consider it merely as the method of admitting one to membership in a Society.
The preparation of the candidate and the plight in which he is admitted an Entered Apprentice strikingly typifies the helpless, destitute, blind and ignorant condition of the newly born babe. But initiation means more than this; by all the authorities it is agreed to by a symbolical representation of the process by which not only the child had been brought into existence and educated into a scholarly and refined man but that by which the race has been brought out of savagery and barbarism into civilisation.
The state in which a candidate enters an Entered Apprentice lodge fittingly typifies the barbaric, not to say savage, state in which man originally moved when he knew not the use of metals and out of which he has been brought to his present condition. It is precisely this that has led to the application of the term "barbarian" to the uninitiated. On this point, we quote Brother Albert Pike again; he says:
PREPARATION
"In that preparation of the candidate which symbolises the condition of the Aryan race especially in its infancy, he represents the condition of the race
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 27
when there were no manufacturers and the fabrics of the loom were unknown, when men dressed in the skins of animals, and, when the heat made these a burden, were hardly clothed at all. He represents their blindness of ignorance, even of the most useful arts, and altogether of divine truths; and that in which the number 3 appears, the bonds in which they were held of their sensual appetites, their passions that were their masters, anger, revenge, hatred, and all the evil kindred of these; and their superstitious fears."
The preparation of the candidate is symbolical of that equality of all men which is one of the fundamental doctrines of our society. He is stripped of everything that indicates any difference in fashion, station or wealth. All evidences of artificial distinctions are obliterated. The onlooker could not tell whether he is a prince or a pauper, a millionaire or a beggar. On the other hand, he is not deprived of any of those qualities of heart, mind, or character which mark the real superiority of one man over another. From the very beginning of initiation he is urged to make the utmost use of these in an effort to excel in all that is noble and worthy.
A little study and reflection will show that every Masonic symbol has an apt application not only to the moral and intellectual life history of the individual but also to that of the race considered collectively. Biologists tell us that this parallel between the individual and the race holds good in the material realm and that in the physical growth and development of every child from the moment of its conception till it is a fully grown man, there is epitomised the history of the evolutionary development of the race through all the ages that have passed. However this may be, it is certain that an exact parallel does exist between the moral and intellectual growth of the
28 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
child and the process which history indicates the race as a whole has passed through.
SECRECY
One of the very first lessons taught the candidate and impressed upon him symbolically and in an unforgettable manner is the duty of secrecy.
The secret signs, tokens, and words, which usually excite the greatest curiosity among the uninitiated, are in fact the least important parts of Freemasonry. All understand this who have ever passed through the solemn ceremony of being raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason. Still they are not without their value. They are a protection against impostors; they are a passport to the attention and assistance of the initiated everywhere. They have stayed the uplifted hand of the destroyer; they have arrested the despoiler of female virtue; they have softened the asperities of the tyrant; they have subdued the rancor of the malevolent and broken down the barriers of political animosity and religious intolerance. May our secrets be forever preserved inviolate!
But the chief value of this lesson lies in the fact that few persons are able to keep a secret. It is a priceless but rare virtue, and yet one where little effort is made to teach or practise it. If Masonry could do no more than train its membership to preserve sacredly (except where a higher duty commands disclosure) the secrets of others confided to them, it would have done a great work and one which alone would entitle it to a continued existence. The ancients so prized this virtue that they allotted a god to it. It is said of Aristotle that, when asked what thing appeared to him most difficult of performance, he replied, "To be secret and silent." I fear we moderns would more nearly deify the gossip.
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 29
The ancient symbol of secrecy is a finger laid acros the lips.
The manner of the candidate's reception is symbolical of the pricks of a violated conscience for any departure from those injunctions of secrecy and virtue laid upon them in the course of initiation. Rites similar to our own at this point were in vogue among the ancients.
TOOL SYMBOLS
One of the things first noticed in the Entered Apprentice Degree and continued throughout all the degrees is the employment of the tools of the operative Mason as emblems of moral qualities. This peculiarity of Freemasonry is well known even to outsiders.
Brother George Fleming Moore, former editor of "The New Age" and Past Sovereign Grand Commander, Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction, declares that it is clear that the ancient Chinese philosophers used our present Masonic symbols "in almost precisely the same sense in which they are used by us in modern Freemasonry." 6 The tools with which men labour are not inappropriate for use as moral symbols: they are neither humble nor trivial. They are worthy emblems of the highest and noblest virtues. Tools have performed an astonishing part in civilising and enlightening mankind. They are one of the few things that distinctly mark man as immeasurably superior to the other animals. Some scientists have even contended that it is alone man's ability to fashion and use tools that has raised him above the level of the brute creation. But radical as this view must be, it cannot be denied by any thoughtful man that the use of tools has been one of the chief instrumentalities in all
6 "The New Age," Vol. XVII, p. 283.
30 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
human progress, not only material but mental and spiritual. Without tools we could not till the soil, or work the mines, or reduce the metal; we could enjoy only the rudest shelters; and all the creations of art which appeal to our spiritual natures would be impossible. The very stages of human advancement are named from the char- acter of the tools that were employed during them; thus, the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, etc.
Some students suppose the first great achievement of man in his progress from savagery to civilisation to have been the development of articulate speech; the second, the discovery of the uses of fire; the third, they believe to have been the invention of a tool, namely, the bow and arrow. But doubtless this was preceded by the discovery of the use of the club even if the club did not precede the development of speech, as has been the case with the great anthropoid apes. Pottery, another class of utensils, they hold to have been the fourth; the domestication of animals, the fifth; and the discovery of the manufacture and use of iron, the sixth. The seventh was the art of writing which also involved the use of a tool. Thus we see that four, perhaps five, epoch-making strides of savage and barbaric man had to do with the use of tools.
With civilised man, the case has been even more striking. Among his early discoveries or inventions were gunpowder, the mariner's compass, the manufacture of paper, and printing with movable type. Another was the demonstration by Copernicus (1530) that the earth revolves on an axis and that the sun does not daily make a circuit around her. The steam engine, machines for weaving and spinning, apparatus for generating and utilising the boundless possibilities of electricity, the gasoline engine and the flying machine are all achievements made possible by the invention and use of new tools. And it must be remembered that the discovery of Copernicus,
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 31
was rendered possible only through the use of another tool. To the Psalmist the heavens declared the glory of God's handiwork, but a thousand times more solemnly and impressively do they now disclose it through the medium of the telescope. It was nothing less than an inspiration that prompted our ancient brethren to symbolise the tools with which they produced those creations of art and architecture whose sight causes our breasts to heave with the highest emotions of which we are capable.
Professor Henry Smith Williams,7 after pointing out the many material advantages involved in the use of tools, says that we must not "overlook the esthetic influence of edged implements." And then what must be said of the tools that make our music? If there is a glimpse of heaven obtainable on earth, it is in the wonderful art made possible through our marvellous musical instruments.
How our various working tools acquired the particular symbolical meanings we now attach to them we do not always know. In some instances we know that they have borne them for ages.
At any rate, it is with peculiar fitness that the material tools, which contribute so essentially to the building and the beautifying of the material structure, should be made to symbolise those virtues which are so essential to the building and beautifying of human character, that moral and spiritual building not reared with hands.
It is by the use of tools that the architect designs, erects, and adorns the building. So also is it that by the practice of the moral, intellectual and religious virtues human character is perfected. In a system, therefore, where a perfect building is made to symbolise the perfect character, it is not surprising but is altogether appropriate that the
7 Encyclopedia Brittanica, Vol. VI, p.404
32 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
tools which produce the one should symbolise the virtues which make the other.
THE TWENTY-FOUR INCH GAUGE
is a symbol of time but not in the sense, as we learn in the Third Degree, that the scythe symbolises time. The scythe denotes the fleetness of time and the brevity of all things human, while the Twenty-four Inch Gauge typifies time well spent. It teaches us the value of our time, that time wasted can never be regained, that it is a priceless commodity, that there is a time for all things, a time for labour, a time for rest, a time for amusement, a time for worship, and a time for the relief of distress. It is the same lesson so beautifully taught in Ecclesiastes iii, or as redacted by Jastrow in A Gentle Cynic, p. 209:
"Everything has its appointed time and there is a time
for every occurrence under the sun.
There is a time to be born,
And a time to die,
There is a time for planting,
And a time for uprooting."
In other words, let everything be done in time and in order, so that none of this most valuable gift of God to man shall be wasted. How few of us place an adequate estimate upon the value of our time! Note those who sit around and whittle and chew tobacco.
The gauge being divided into twenty-four inches it naturally, in a system like ours, became the symbol of the twenty-four hours of the day.
THE COMMON GAVEL,
or stonemason's hammer, was the tool with which the apprentice performed those first operations involved in
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 33
fitting a stone for its proper place in the building, such as "breaking off the corners of rough stones"; or, as expressed in England (Emulation Working), "to knock off all superfluous knobs and excrescences." It was not adapted to giving polish or ornamentation to the stone and hence it should symbolise only that training of the youth which is designed to give mechanical skill and to divest him of those social habits which characterise man in a state of nature. In Canada, it is said to teach that "labour is the lot of man" and that qualities of heart and head are of limited value "if the hand be not prompt to execute the design" of the master. However, since the chisel has fallen into disuse in the United States and many other countries as a Blue lodge symbol, the symbolism of the Common Gavel has been extended so that it now typifies the enlightening and ennobling effects of training and education in all its various branches.
THE CHISEL
has a symbolism somewhat akin to that of the Common Gavel, or stonemason's hammer.8 The Gavel was used only in the earlier processes of dressing the stone and is not adapted as we have just said to giving it a high polish or ornamentation. It, therefore, symbolises the earlier steps in the education and moral training of the youth. When it is desired to give a higher finish to the stone or to give it an ornamental shape or to engrave designs upon it, the Chisel was and still is brought into play. The Chisel, therefore, symbolises those advanced studies and trainings which give a man polish and refinement and fit him for the highest stations in life. In the United States, the Chisel is practically obsolete in Blue Masonry but it reappears in the beautiful Mark Master's Degree where it
8 Pike, Morals and Dogma, p. 30.
34 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
is said to "demonstrate the advantages of discipline and education." In England (Emulation Working), it is said to "point out to us the advantages of education by which means alone we are rendered fit members of regularly organised society." In Canada, it is said to teach that "nothing short of indefatigable exertion can induce the habit of virtue, enlighten the mind, and render the soul pure." We regard it as a distinct loss to Blue lodge symbolism in the United States that the Chisel has been surrendered to Capitular Masonry. Its proper place is in the Fellow Craft Degree, from which many believe the Mark Master Degree to have been originally taken.
THE KEY
has a beautiful symbolism familiar to English Masons but unknown to us. It symbolises the tongue and teaches us that it should always be ready to speak in a brother's defence and "never lie to his prejudice." Emulation Working (English) gives this charge: "That excellent key, a Freemason's tongue, which should speak well of a brother absent or present,—and when unfortunately that can not be done with honour and propriety, should adopt that excellent virtue of the Craft which is Silence."
SOLOMON'S TEMPLE
A symbol which appears early in this Degree and recurs in many subsequent degrees and rites is that of Solomon's Temple. If building symbolises the developing of the human mind and character, nothing is more logical than
9 Emulation Working, Lectures of the Three Degrees, etc. (Lewis, 1896), pp. 8, 9.
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 35
that the most perfect building known should be chosen as the symbol of a perfect character. But in this connection it is often asked why was not the Parthenon, or the Pantheon, or the temple of Zeus at Athens chosen for this symbol. Two answers are possible:
First; a tradition has prevailed since long before the birth of Christ that the Temple of Solomon was the most artistic and the most highly wrought structure ever erected by man.
Second; if Masonry had its origin at the time and under the circumstances claimed by our traditions, namely, at the building of the Temple, it would be inevitable that Solomon's Temple should be chosen as this symbol.
Of course historians laugh at this claim, but historians have laughed at many things which have turned out to be true. Without assuming to assert that it is true, we desire to point out what is at least a plausible hypothesis underlying this tradition. Many Masonic writers have maintained apparently with reason that earlier than a thousand years before Christ, the priests of Dionysus, or Bacchus, devoting themselves to architecture in the erection of their temples, had founded the "Fraternity of Dionyian Architects"; that these in course of time spread throughout Asia Minor and Phoenicia and gradually acquired the exclusive privilege of erecting the temples and the public buildings. It is supposed by them that Hiram, King of Tyre, whom we know to have been the erector of great buildings, Hiram Abif and the Tyrians, who were sent to assist King Solomon in the building of his Temple, were members of this fraternity. Granted the existence of such buildings as King Hiram erected, they can scarcely be accounted for except by supposing the existence of a society of builders who erected them. If such a society existed in Phcenicia at that date it would be remarkable if Hiram Abif and the other Tyrian artificers were not members of it, and
36 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
it would naturally follow that at least the skilled workmen on Solomon's Temple would be similarly organised.
A corroborating circumstance of our Temple tradition is that precisely at the time of Solomon, Judah was the most powerful and Phoenicia the most enlightened artistically and commercially of all the nations of the world, This was many centuries before the ascendancy of Greece and a thousand years before Rome extended her possessions beyond Italy. Solomon's Temple antedates the earliest known remains of historic Greek architecture by nearly 300 years. Archaeology thus corroborates the claim of both Biblical and Masonic tradition that down to its time no building had been erected equal to it in splendour and beautiful finish." Its construction naturally called in requisition the Tyrians, they being neighbours and the most finished artisans of the time. The secret society "habit" was quite as common among men then as it is now. Their long association together and their pride in such a great work would just as naturally lead them to form themselves into a society, as like motives led the soldiers of our Revolutionary and Civil Wars to form patriotic societies. We have seen that there were already in existence and at hand secret societies which needed only a slight modification to make them much like what our traditions say Masonry then was.
The probabilities all favour the conclusion that the Temple was built by a society of masons. Nor is there anything incredible in the theory that Solomon who was prosecuting this work, and Hiram, King of Tyre, whose subjects many of the builders were, condescended to honour the society with their patronage and favour, thus linking their names with the tradition.
In seven years, this bond would become quite strong;
10 Universal Cyclopedia, p. 428; I Ibid., p. 290; 9 Ibid., p. 8; Tramslatiotss, Lodge of Research, No. 2429, Leicester, 1907-o8, p. 139.
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 37
upon their dispersion every little group would continue to feel this tie of sympathy and to take pride in their great achievement, with the result that organisations having the same or similar traditions would spring up in various parts. The idea would soon become prevalent among all bodies of masons that their ancient brethren erected the Temple.
At any rate, it is clear that in the ancient Mysteries, Solomon found ready-formed institutions which with slight changes were admirably adapted to the creation and cultivation of a bond of union and sympathy among the workmen on the Temple, which would tend to make them more efficient, skilful and zealous and which would greatly expedite the work. There is nothing, therefore, inherently improbable in the assumption that Solomon with his wisdom and knowledge of human nature would turn the existing religious associations of his time to his use in accomplishing his great and holy undertaking.
This assumption does not imply that all the skilled artisans then in the world were employed in the building of the Temple or that Freemasonry descended from those alone who were thus employed. The number, however, must have been sufficiently great that the tradition soon gained currency among all the building classes throughout the then-known world that the erection of the Temple was due to their predecessors in the craft. Thus may we rationally account for this tradition among us without insisting upon its historical accuracy.
MODESTY OF TRUE CHARACTER
We are told that in the building of Solomon's Temple there was not heard the sound of any tool of iron. It is a well authenticated historical fact that the Jews, not to mention other ancient peoples, believed that an iron tool
38 SYMBOLISM OF THE THREE DEGREES
was polluting to an altar to Deity. Hence, in the days of Moses, the laws prescribed that in erecting an altar of stone to Jehovah no iron tool should be employed upon it. The work of erecting the Temple, therefore, went on noiselessly but with speed and perfection. - This tradition, besides being borne out by the known facts of Hebrew history, has a beautiful symbolism. It is this: the erection and adornment of the moral and spiritual temple in which we are engaged, that of human character, and of which Solomon's was typical, is not characterised by the clang of noisy tools. About true character building there is nothing of bluster and show; it is a silent, noiseless process. It is the empty vessel that makes the greatest sound.
HALE
A certain sign is called the hale or hele frequently misspelled hail. The term is commonly understood even by Masons to mean accost or salute, but such is not its mean ing at all. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon helots and means to cover or conceal." The English word heal, for example the healing of a wound or the healing of a Mason, is derived from the same word and primarily signifies to cover. The hale, therefore, has the same Masonic signification as due guard and is intended to impress upon us the value of caution, a virtue so few men possess.
TILE, TILER, TYLER
These words so common in and so peculiar to Freemasonry have a use and meaning similar to hale. They derive from the word tile, used in covering houses. To tile a house is to cover it; one who puts the tiles on a
11 Pike, Morals and Dogma, p. 63.
THE ENTERED APPRENTICE DEGREE 39
house, who tiles it, is called a tiler. Therefore, to cover a lodge, to protect it against intrusion, is to tile it; the officer who does this is called the tiler. The correct spelling is undoubtedly tiler
