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The construction of dual pillars, obelisks, sphinxes
and so on was not uncommon in the ancient Near East. It is not known what
their exact symbolism was. Speculation ranges from their signifying duality
(that duality or polarity are twin forces throughout Creation), guardianship
of the temple, symbolic gateways, to the idea of being a connection between
heaven and earth.
Some researchers have thought that the two pillars before
Solomon's Temple represented the Pillar of Cloud and the Pillar of Fire
which led the Israelites through the desert to the Promised Land. It was
their guide in the light as well as in the dark.
The globes on the columns are said to be the celestial
and terrestrial spheres representing heaven and earth.
The two pillars also correspond to the Three Great Supports
of Masonry. The columns of Wisdom and Strength are emblematically represented
by the pillars in the South and North, respectively. The candidate, as
he is brought into the Lodge, comes to represent the third column of Beauty
or Balance.
The Winding Staircase
As we mentioned before, the Winding Staircase is a symbol
of ascension. It is described as consisting of three, five, and seven steps.
The number of steps has changed over the years. Sometimes there were only
five and at others seven. Preston listed thirty-six, dividing them into
one, three, five, seven, nine and eleven. The Hemming lectures listed the
number at twenty-five. American Masonry has kept to fifteen. Note the connection
between this number and the number of Fellowcrafts in the Third Degree.
Much of the symbolism of the Winding Staircase is explained
in the ritual itself. There are some points to bring out that may lead
one to further research and insight.
The significance of the number three has already been
mentioned. We have the three Degrees, the Three Great Lights, the three
Columns, the three Officers, the Three Grand Masters and the three Principle
Tenets of Freemasonry. What we want to emphasize here is the Three Theological
Virtues: Faith, Hope, and Charity. These virtues were considered a ladder
to heaven, another symbol of ascent. The Four Cardinal Virtues presented
in the First Degree compliment these in the sense that the Four are symbolically
horizontal (basically dealing with our actions here on earth) while the
Three are symbolically vertical (referring to our method of ascent to further
light). Our Aprons are composite examples of the Three and the Four making
Seven.
The Five Steps are also explained in some detail. A few
points for further consideration concern the symbolism of the number five.
The geometrical symbol of five is, of course, the pentagram. The emblem
of Pythagoras's fraternity was the five-pointed star. At each point of
the star was a Greek letter which all together spelled a Greek word meaning
"health" (ugitha). The pentagram is a symbol of the Microcosm, that
is, Man.
Another avenue to explore is the ratio of the column height
to diameter. They are approximately: Tuscan 1/7; Doric 1/8; Ionic 1/9;
Corinthian and Composite 1/10. It is also worth studying which order of
architecture was used to build a particular type of temple. The Parthenon
on the Acropolis, dedicated to Athena, is Doric, as is her temple at Delphi.
The Ephesian temple of Diana, a moon goddess, is Ionic. The importance
of the compass to the Ionic Order is also worthy of study.
The Seven Steps symbolize the Seven Liberal Arts and Sciences.
These were formulated as early as 330 CE. The Christian scholars adopted
them soon afterwards and we find their full flowering at the Neo-platonic
Cathedral School of Chartres in 12th Century France. The interesting
work that came together here was the union of the philosophies of Neo-platonism
and Christianity. The study of the Seven Liberal Arts was considered a
means to the knowledge of God. This principle was actually expressed in
the construction of the Gothic Cathedral of Chartres. We even find for
the first time sculpted representations of the Seven Liberal Arts on the
West Door of the Cathedral.
The Masters of Chartres taught that the proper study of
the Seven Liberal Arts guided the intellect to approach the hidden light
behind the world. The invisible underlying structure of Reality, the Truth,
could be apprehended in this way. As another matter of interest, it was
in the mid-thirteenth century that the humble mason who had mastered the
Seven Liberal Arts was entitled to the designation of architect.
Admission to the
Middle Chamber
The passage from the Outer Porch to the Middle Chamber
represents a definite step in the journey to enlightenment. The wages received
in the Middle Chamber come as a result of achieving this distinction. Remember
that the candidate had to first ascend the Winding Staircase in order to
gain admission. The Fellowcraft must become proficient in the Seven Liberal
Arts. A regular study of the subjects is demanded to gain admission to
the outer doors leading to this Middle Chamber. It is when the initiate
begins to perceive the synthetic vision of this Masonic education and a
special intuition begins to dawn within his mind and conscience that he
knows the inner doors are opening to that Chamber within. Outside, the
candidate was shown a symbol of plenty, but here it has been established
in fact.
The Wages of a Fellowcraft
Corn, Wine, and Oil are symbolic wages earned by the
Fellowcraft Mason who arrives at the Middle Chamber. These symbolize wealth
in mental and spiritual worlds. Corn represents nourishment and the sustenance
of life. It is also a symbol of plenty, and refers to the opportunity for
doing good, to work for the community, and to the performance of service
to mankind. The Corn referred to in this Degree is actually what we call
wheat.
Wine is symbolic of refreshment, health, spirituality,
and peace. Oil represents joy, gladness and happiness. Taken together,
Corn, Wine, and Oil represent the temporal rewards of living a good life.
The actual "wages" are the intangible but no less real
compensation for a faithful and intelligent use of the Working Tools, fidelity
to your obligations, and unflagging interest in and study of the structure,
purpose and possibilities of the Fraternity. Such wages may be defined
in terms of a deeper understanding of brotherhood, a clearer conception
of ethical living, a broader toleration, and a more resolute will to think
justly, independently, and honestly.
Corn or grain has also represented the concept of resurrection.
Wine has symbolized mystical attainments, divine intoxication and ecstasy.
Oil is one of the elements of consecration. Perfumed oil was used to anoint.
The Masonic Letter
"G"
Why the letter "G" is so prominently displayed in Masonic
lodges is an enigma to Masonic historians. Like the sphinx before the pyramids,
it stands before us in silence and mystery. It is not consistently displayed
throughout the Masonic world and there are Masonic scholars who feel it
should be removed. The reason that it is so displayed is plainly given
to the candidate in this Degree. We are told that it is the initial of
Geometry as well as the initial of the name of the Supreme Being. From
the time of the "Old Charges" and manuscripts up to the present, the synonymous
nature of Geometry and Masonry is clearly stated. It is also obvious that
"G" is the initial of God. This alone may be sufficient reason for its
presence.
There are other considerations that the Masonic student
might want to take into account. The immediate question for some may be
why is Geometry given such exalted status? One might also observe that
the word "God" is not a name per se, but is a category of being
- like "human being." The name of the Supreme Being depends on what tradition
a person follows, and it would not be incorrect to say that the True Name
of the Supreme Being cannot be known. Obviously, then, the letter "G" does
not refer to the common usage of that term.
These two issues have given rise to much speculation regarding
the focus given to this one letter of the alphabet. We will offer a few
of these speculations for your benefit.
The ancient languages of Phoenician, Hebrew and Greek
all placed the "G" in the third place. In Hebrew, the order is aleph,
beth,
gimel. In Greek, the order is alpha, beta,
gamma
and so on. The Phoenician/Hebrew letter gimel means camel. There
is an interesting passage in the Gospel of St. Matthew regarding our patron
John the Baptist: "And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and
a leathern girdle about his loins." (Matt 3:4) In both Hebrew and Greek,
each letter is assigned a numerical value as well as a phonetic one, so
that "G" is equivalent to the number "3" in both languages. The Greek letter
gamma looks like an upside down "L". It is two perpendicular lines
forming the angle of a square. Gamma is also associated with Dionysus
and resurrection.
The importance of Geometry to a full understanding of
Freemasonry becomes apparent to the candidate as he progresses through
the degrees. He is unequivocally informed that Geometry is the basis or
foundation of Masonry. A full explanation for this importance is not forthcoming,
just that it is very important to undertake the study. We would suggest
that the Masonic student might follow some of the following lines of research,
that he may come to his own conclusions.
It is thought that the Egyptians became skilled at surveying
because the annual flooding of the Nile obliterated boundary markers in
their fields. They had to set out and calculate new boundaries each year.
The Greeks named this skill Geometry, or "earth measurement." Empirical
generalizations were derived, presumably, from their experience in field
measurement. The Greeks, it is thought, made the advancement of using deductive
logic to expand the knowledge into a theoretical science, and Pythagoras
is credited with this achievement. This actually set the groundwork for
the development of the sciences. So we may consider Geometry the first
science.
Pythagoras and his Society, and later, Plato and his Academy,
raised Geometry to a sacred science of discovering the nature of reality
and through it the Deity. We have such statements from Plato as: "Geometry
rightly treated is the knowledge of the eternal." And also: "Geometry must
ever tend to draw the soul towards the truth." Later, Euclid systemically
presented all the knowledge of Geometry in his work Elements of Geometry,
beginning with five unproved principles about lines, angles, and figures,
which he called postulates. Euclid uses only the compass and straight edge
for all the drawings, proofs, and solutions.
There are some Masonic researchers who think that the
letter "G" represents a little known method of Biblical interpretation
known as gematria. One of the earliest known references to this
method is found about 200 CE in the Bariatha of R. Eliezer ben R. Jose,
the Galiean, which is a collection of 32 rabbinical rules. Gematria
is listed within this treatise as a rabbinical method of biblical exegesis.
As already mentioned, the Hebrew and Greek alphabets were also used as
numbers. Therefore, every Hebrew word and every Greek word is the sum of
the value of the individual letters. Exploring this technique of letter-number
substitution, one looks for words, names, and phrases that add up to like
values. Like values are thought to have meaningful relationships. For example,
the Hebrew word for "heaven" (ha-shamayim) has the same gematria
value as the word for "soul" (neshamah); that is, 395, derived by
adding up each letter to arrive at a total. The Qabalist would say this
means that the soul is identical with heaven.
Another example of gematria can be found by comparing
the Hebrew words for "love" (ahebah) and "unity" (echad),
both of which add to 13. Combining the values of these two words gives
us 26, the number of the Hebrew word rendered in English as Jehovah, the
principal Name of God. This is a clear intimation that the nature of God
can be understood as Love and Unity.
This exegetical technique can be used with both the Hebrew
scriptures and the Greek Christian scriptures. There are other texts that
have been found to contain hidden gematria in Latin and Arabic,
as well. From the practice of gematria have arisen extremely interesting
techniques, which reveal a type of spiritual Geometry hidden within the
Scriptures.
Number, Order, Symmetry,
and Proportion
The great teachings of this Degree revolve around the
importance of the Masonic study of number, order, symmetry and proportion.
The Masonic use of the term Geometry includes all of these. Nature is the
true temple of the Deity. If this is so, then cosmic and natural laws are
like
the Trestleboard. These laws are discovered in the practice of the Seven
Arts (they were called liberal arts because their practice liberated the
mind). The ancient philosophers considered Geometry to have the power to
lead the mind from the world of appearances to the contemplation of the
divine order. Further study would most certainly include a detailed study
of Pythagorean number philosophy, the Golden Mean, Plato's work, the Neoplatonists,
and Qabalistic gematria.
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