Does it need explanation?
Not contemplating biologically or genetically, but geometrically. Tetrahedrons, Pentagons. Squares. Circles.
Does it need explanation?
Not contemplating biologically or genetically, but geometrically. Tetrahedrons, Pentagons. Squares. Circles.
The ecliptic (which appears tilted in the picture) is orientated toward the Milky Way galaxy and is considered the Galactic Horizon. The Zodiac follows the ecliptic. You should see the familiar constellations of the zodiac along that line. The Equator (which appears level in the picture) is tilted with respect to the Milky Way about 23 degrees. The Celestial Equator is just the earth’s equator extended into space. You should see the familiar constellation Orion on the Equator. This constellation is most easily recognizable because of the fact that it is on the Celestial Equator and we can see it readily from planet earth.
Here is the secret to manifesting everything. Contemplate the figure and understand how object come into being.
This is how planets appear to move backwards. Retrograde can cause the influence to work in an unusual manner…or “backwards”.
By
John B. Love, III WM, Western Star Lodge No 83
Are you a true Master Mason? You may have the three degrees of Blue Lodge Masonry, but are you a true Master Mason? A true Master Mason is a Master of Self. However, you can’t be a master of self. Only the LORD can be a master of your(self). You must allow the GMOTU into your hearts.
This is the message that the symbols of Masonry, ancient mysteries and all religions repeat to us.
These emblems upon the alter tells us the same. The Square creates squares which are symbolic of matter or the material world. ┌ ═ ║The Compasses creates circles which are symbolic of energy or the spiritual world. ○
The position of the Square & Compasses throughout the three degrees of masonry shows the path of man. In the 1°, spirit is behind the matter. The matter may not acknowledge the spirit, but it is there. In the 2°, spirit and matter operate in duality together. But duality means there is an oscillation (back and forth) between the two. In the 3°, spirit fully dominates (root is Latin meaning LORD or Tetragrammaton) matter. Spirit has dominion (root is Latin meaning LORD or Tetragrammaton) over matter in ways matter cannot comprehend. (Remember that the hieroglyphic seen within the Middle Chamber alludes to the Tetragrammaton.)
The circle, again, means the spiritual realm, unity and 1. The square, again, means the material realm, duality and 2. Duality is a mosaic pavement (ground floor) of opposites such as hot and cold, up and down, male and female, good and evil. But the GMOTU understands all these opposites as unity or 1. Now for a slight shift.
I don’t mind if my brother drinks, smokes and has sex if he does it with the Most High in mind and heart. You see the GAOTU created everything in the universe including drinking, smoking and having sex. Please understand, I am not encouraging or discouraging my brothers to do these things. I am just trying to prove a point. How can you do these things in absence of the All Seeing Eye and thus the Most High? YOU CAN’T!
That’s what our symbols tell us. There is nothing that you do, say or think that is not with the GMOTU.
To my Christian brothers, I love Jesus Christ! But I ask you to step outside of your Christianity for a moment. Masonry is not Christianity. Christianity is Masonry. It is incorrect to understand Masonic symbols in Christian terms; Christian symbols should be understood by Masonic terms. Think about it. Our symbols that are derived from geometry go back to King Solomon, far beyond the beginning of the teachings of Christ. And of course, Geometry is older than both, as it is what the GGOTU used to lay the foundation of the inner workings of the universe.
Jesus Christ is often called a Jewish carpenter. HE WAS NOT! The mistranslation of carpenter should be craftsman. He was a craftsman. Most buildings and structures 2000 years ago in Israel were not made of wood. They were made of stone. Jesus Christ was a mason. His lodge was the Essenes, not the Pharisees or the Sadducees.
Christ’s message is that the “kingdom of heaven is within”. Is this not the same that our symbols communicate to us? If you want to understand more of what Master Mason Christ was talking about, if you want to understand how to live spiritually in a material world then count from 2 to 1 and study the Masonic symbols within your(self).
Thanks to James Pennington for finding this video.
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud,
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
1. Solution, the act of passing from a gaseous or solid condition, into one of liquidity.
2. Filtration, the mechanical separation of a liquid from the undissolved particles suspended in it.
3. Evaporation, the changing or converting from a liquid or solid state into a vaporous state with the aid of heat.
4. Distillation, an operation by which a volatile liquid may be separated from substances which it holds in solution.
5. Separation, the operation of disuniting or decomposing substances.
6. Rectification, the process of refining or purifying any substance by repeated distillation.
7. Calcination, the conversion into a powder or calx by the action of heat; expulsion of the volatile substance from a matter.
8. Commixtion, the blending of different ingredients into new compounds or mass.
9. Purification (through putrefaction), disintegration by spontaneous decomposition; decay by artificial means.
10. Inhibition, the process of holding back or restraining.
11. Fermentation, the conversion of organic substances into new compounds in the presence of a ferment.
12. Fixation, the act or process of ceasing to be a fluid and becoming firm; state of being fixed.
13. Multiplication, the act or process of multiplying or increasing in number, the state of being multiplied.
14. Projection, the process of turning the base Metals into gold.
In silence with averted head
by night the "evil three" have fled.
And cold and stiff the body lies
Beneath the gloomy winter skies.
Yet had you been a watcher there.
That dismal night beside the dead.
Had you that night been kneeling there,
Beside the dead in tears and prayer.
You might have seen, amid the air,
A flickering, dim, auroral light,
Which hovered on the midnight air,
And, seeing in the gloomy sky
This mystic strange, celestial light
Contending with the powers of night.
You might have taken hope thereby.
There was, alas! no watcher there
To mark this radiance in the air.
To gaze with earnest, tearful eye
Upon this radiance in the sky.
There was no watcher there, alas!
To ask in anxious whispers low,
"Will not this light still brighter grow,
Or will it from the heavens pass
And leave me plunged in deeper gloom
Beside this cold and lonely tomb?"
Meanwhile the light increased--although
Beside the grave no mourner stood
Amid the lonesome solitude--
And as with tints of blue and gold,
And flashes of prismatic flame,
It lighted up the midnight cold,
Along the plain in beauty came
A shining and majestic form,
And as it came the winter's storm
As if abashed, its fury checked.
No more above and round the path,
Beneath the wind's tempestuous wrath,
The snowy billows heave and toss;
A sacred calm as he draws nigh
Pervades at once the earth and sky.
His robe was blue, its borders decked
With evergreen and scarlet moss;
His hands upon each other rest,
Due north and south, due east and west;
The open palms together pressed
As if engaged in silent prayer.
He thus had formed with pious care
The holy symbol of the cross.
A lamb doth close beside him go,
Whose whiter fleece rebukes the snow:
These things sufficiently proclaim
His mystic office and his name.
Beside the grave he comes and stands,
Still praying there with folded hands;
And, while he prays, see drawing near
Another shinning form appear,
His right hand on his bosom pressed,
As if by bitter grief distressed,
The other pointing to the skies,
And, as he weeps, each radiant tear,
That from his sad and earnest eyes
Falls on the earth, is transformed there
To violets blue and blossoms fair,
That sweetly perfume all the air.
A third one now appears in sight,
Arrayed in royal robes of light,
A "lordly lion" walks in pride.
More glorious far, and at his side
And he who came in glory last
Between the others gently passed.
And, looking down upon the dead,
With level, open palms outspread,
A holy benediction said.
This done, the first one, by command,
The dead god taketh by the hand:
At once through all the body flies
The same warm flush that marks the skies.
The shrunken features, cold and white,
A moment shine with life and light.
A moment only--'tis in vain:
Unconquered Death resumes his reign.
So doth a solitary wave
Leap up amid the lonely night,
And catch a gleam of life and light,
And then sink helpless in its grave.
To raise the god the first thus failed--
The powers of darkness yet prevailed;
So to the second he gives place,
Who, like the first one, by command,
The sun-god taketh by the hand
And, looking downward in his face
With pleading voice and earnest eyes,
On Phoebus calls and bids him rise.
Though at his touch the blood unbound.
With rapid current red and warm
Runs swiftly through the prostrate form,
Yet silent on the frozen ground
The god lies in a trance profound,
Devoid of motion, deaf to sound.
Alas! alas! what doth remain?
Shall death and darkness ever reign,
And night eternal hide the day?
Then said the third one, "Let us pray."
And full of faith and strong intent,
His prayer to IH. VAH. upward went.
"Amen" was said--"so mote it be!"
And then the last one of the three
Arose and stretching forth his hand,
Calls on the dead, and gives command
In IH. VAH.'s name to rise and stand.
Then up rose Phoebus in his pride,
With the "lordly lion" by his side,
And earth and sky with his glory shone
As again he sat on his golden throne.
For the voice of God is nature's law,
And strong was the grip of the lion's paw.
When down the zodiacal arch
The summer sun resumes his march,
Descending from the summit high
With eager step he hastens by
The "lordly lion" of July
And clasps the virgin in his arms.
Through all the golden August days
The sun the ardent lover plays,
A captive to her dazzling charms.
But when the harvest time is o'er,
When they gathered grapes perfume the air
And ruddy wine begins to pour,
The god resumes his way once more;
And, weeping in her wild despair,
He leaves the royal virgin there.
What cares he now for Virgo's woes,
As down the starry path he goes
With scornful step, until, at last,
The equinoctial gate is passed?
Two misty columns black with storms,
While overhead there hangs between
A lurid thunder cloud, which forms
The frowning archway of the gate--
The gloomy equinoctial gate,
An evil place for travelers late,
Where envious Libra lurks unseen;
And near the portal lies in wait
September, filled with deadly hate.
With stately step the god draws nigh,
Yet such is his majestic mien,
That whether he shall strike or fly,
The trembling ruffian hardly knows,
As Phoebus through the gateway goes.
But, as the shining form came near,
The wretch's hate subdued his fear,
And, nerving up his arm at length,
He aimed a blow with all his strength
Full at the god as he went by.
In anger Phoebus turned his head--
Away the trembling coward fled.
The god, though smarting with the blow,
Disdains to follow up his foe:
And down the zodiacal path
Pursues his gloomy way in wrath.
Still blacker turn the autumn skies,
and red Antares, evil star,
Points out the place, more fatal far,
Where fell October ambushed lies.
The Sun, as if he scorned his foes,
In pride and glory onward goes.
Not he from deadly Scorpio flies,
Nor pauses he, nor backward turns,
Though redder yet Antares burns,
And darker yet his pathway grows.
Meanwhile October, from his lair,
On Phoebus rushes unaware,
His murderous purpose now confessed,
And smites the sun-god in the breast,
A ghastly wound the villain makes--
With horrid joy his weapon shakes;
And, as he sees the god depart,
His hand upon his bosom pressed,
Believes the blow has reached the heart.
Along his way the sun-god goes,
Unmindful where the path may lead,
While from his breast the life-blood flows.
The clouds around him gather now,
The crown of light fades from his brow.
And soon, advancing 'mid the night,
The Archer on his pallid steed,
With bended bow, appears in sight.
November, bolder than the rest,
Hides not behind the gloomy west:
But, striding right across the path,
Defies the god and scorns his wrath;
And, raising high his frowning crest,
These haughty words to him addressed:
"September and October, both,
You have escaped and still survive;
But I have sworn a deadly oath,
By me you cannot pass alive.
That which I promise I perform.
For I am he who, 'mid the storm,
Rides on the pallid horse of death."
While even thus the spectre spoke,
He drew his arrow to the head--
The god received the fatal stroke,
And at the Archer's feet feel dead.
Soon as the sun's expiring breath
Had vanished in the ether dim,
December came and looked on him;
And looking, not a word he saith,
But o'er the dead doth gently throw
A spangled winding sheet of snow.
And when the winding sheet was placed,
Comes evil Janus, double-faced,
A monster like those seen in sleep.
An old "seafaring man" is he,
As many others understand,
Who carries water from the deep
And pours it out upon the land.
Now February next appears,
With frozen locks and icy tears,
A specter cruel, cold, and dumb,
From polar regions newly come.
These three by turns the body bear
At night along the west, to where
A flickering gleam above the snows
A dim electric radiance throws,
A nebular magnetic light,
Which, flashing upward through the night,
Reveals the vernal equinox,
And him whose potent spell unlocks
The gates of spring.
An evergreen
Close by this spot is blooming seen.
'Tis there they halt amid the snow--
Unlawful 'tis to go farther go--
And, having left their burden there,
They vanish in the midnight air.
Yet on this very night next year
Will this same evil three appear,
And bring along amid the gloom
Another body for the tomb
But still the evergreen shall wave
Above the dark and dismal grave,
For ever there a token sure
That, long as Nature shall endure,
Despite of all the wicked powers
That rule the wintry midnight hours,
The sun shall from the grave arise,
And tread again the summer skies.
The third degree of masonry is referred to as the sublime degree of Master Mason. Sublime is the adjective form of the noun sublimation. Sublimation is a chemical process of transforming a substance from a solid directly to a gaseous state without that substance passing through its liquid state.
The ancients revered the four “elements” of earth, water, air and fire. These symbolic elements, they believed, made up the composition of all physical matter. In a chemical sense their belief can be found to be true, because these symbols represent the chemical states of matter. Earth is the solid state. Water is the liquid state. Air is the gaseous state. Fire is the energy state. All matter can be transformed into a solid, liquid or gas, provided enough heat (energy) is applied.
These symbols have another meaning, too. Earth (solid) is a representation of the body. Air (gas) is a representation of spirit. Water (liquid) is a representation of the soul. Fire (energy) is a representation of the Perfected Will. Perfected Will is the conscious control of thoughts, words and actions used to transform humans to a higher state of existence. This is symbolized by the shaping of the rough stone by the working tools into a perfect stone.
Sublimation then is not just a chemical process (transforming solid matter in to gases) but it is the process being raised from a physical state to a spiritual state. Many examples of this process can be found in the Book of Law:
The password of a Master Mason is a worker of metals; not jus a blacksmith but also a chemist, an alchemist. Sublimation is specifically an alchemical word. Alchemy is the practice of turning lead into gold. Most people confuse this with something of monetary value (metals). They tried to become rich by bringing their lead to the Alchemist.
Although the Alchemist does work with a soft gray base metal and transforms it into a soft golden perfect metal, it is not the chemicals of lead (Pb.) or gold (Au.) that he uses. Like the Alchemist, the Master Mason transformation is from a physical state to a spiritual state. He sublimates. He transforms his material into a white stone or Philosopher’s stone. The secret of the Philosopher’s stone can be found in the Holy Royal Arch degrees.
These are just some of the symbols that are present in our work and labor. I challenge you as Master Masons to explore and internalize them so that your length, width and breadth may be square; fitted for that unseen Temple.