Masonic Philosophy

[fitviavi]

.
The following has been adapted from a page at
www.peninsulamasoniclodge.org/Masonic_Philosophy/masonic_philosophy.html

Freemasonry is a fraternity or brotherhood - not a religious society - based on the belief that each person has a responsibility to help make the world a better place. Freemasonry encourages good men to become better men by promoting a life dedicated to high ideals, community service, and benevolence. Freemasons believe in the importance of religion; men of all faiths and religious beliefs are members of the organization. Freemasonry celebrates ethnic diversity and welcomes men of all racial backgrounds. Thus membership in the fraternity is comprised of all nationalities and faiths.
Freemasons are deeply involved in helping people. Their compassion for others manifests itself in many ways, from housing neglected children to helping seniors remain independent. In practical ways Freemasons seek to aid individuals who are sick, aged, or destitute, or whose physical, emotional and psychological needs are not being met. The vast majority of Masonic philanthropies assist people who are not Masons.

Masonic principles:

• Act with honor and integrity in everything you do
  
• Believe in a Supreme Being and keep faith in the center of your life
  
• Be tolerant and considerate of different religious, social, and political views
  
• Strive to leave the world a better place than when you entered it
  
• Practice mutual help-give and accept help when it's needed
  
• Uphold and maintain the principals of good government; oppose divisive and degrading influences, and be a good citizen
  
• Value self-improvement over financial success
  
• Remain good at heart
  
• Strive to live a brotherly life

[/li][/ul][/blockquote]
Can you suggest any additions or alterations to the above?

The following are provided for those who wish to explore further:

(1) Masonic Philosophy - extracted from the Grand Lodge of Ohio's "Candidate Councelor's Handbook" - www.guigue.org/guitex45.htm

(2) "The influence of Plato's Republic on Freemasonry and Masonic Ritual" by Stephen Michalak -
www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/plato_freemasonry_book.html

(3) "The Philosophy of Freemasonry: its mythical structure" by Dr Ronald Ng -
www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/freemasonry_philosophy.html

(4) "The Philosophy of Masonry"- five lectures by Roscoe Pound - access in issues 5-9 of OMTP online newsletter at
bit.ly/9YGvsU

(5) "The Philosophy of Masons: in several epistles from Egypt, to a nobleman" by Thomas Marryat (1730-1792), published in 1790 in London. An electronic version of the original text of 1790 is available online to registered libary card holders of the National Library of Australia -
catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/3263658

Marryat's work is being republished in 2010 under the title "The Esoteric Odyssey" after research and editing for modern readers by Stephen Dafoe and Randy Williams.

S&F

[paul]

May 9, 2010 11:22:27 GMT 9.5 fitviavi said:

Strive to leave the world a better place than when you entered it

This is perhaps the most important task.

Of course the measure of a better place is the Divine Plan - as symbolised by all the shuffling of plans in Mark.

The Divine Plan is not limited to the Earth and thus the earthly temples need to connect to the temples in the heavens. This has two prominent aspects:

- access by individual brethren to the heavenly temples by whatever is veiled by Jacob's Ladder
- entry to earthly lodges by the 7 (heavenly) Masons Who Make a Lodge Perfect

[LorrB]

That description Paul, reminds me of Blakes (?) painting of the spiral staircase with angels/people coming and going or ascending/descending if you wish.

[paul]

Here is Blake's Jacob's Ladder



Notice the Blazing Star at the top and that the ladder is a stair and spiral.

Notice also the angel at the bottom bearing a platter. Its nature is identified by the stars next to it.

[LorrB]

Great post fitviavi - when people ask me "what is Freemasonry?" - I am often left speechless, mainly because Freemasonry is so much to so many and so different for each. It is hard to refine the answer to a sentence or two.

Different... Freemasonry is different, and very accommodating, to most views.

One of the links you posted fitviavi illustrates what I am trying to say.

The dictionary indicates that philosophy is "the love or pursuit of wisdom." It is divided into three branches : 1) natural, 2) moral, and 3) metaphysical philosophy.

We can discard two of these categories. We are primarily interested in moral philosophy, since Freemasonry is a moral science. Hence to apply the above definition to Masonry, we must pursue wisdom in moral philosophy.
www.guigue.org/guitex45.htm

I was amused to see how quickly two of the categories of philosophy were discarded out of hand. Apparently the writer has not paid much attention to those words "Freemasonry is a peculiar system of morality?"

[fitviavi]

.
Another image showing Jacob's Ladder in non-spiral form - note the Master's Plan of Work, on the pavement, in front of the Circle apparatus.



S&F

[LorrB]

The significance of the Masters Plan escapes me Fitv.. any clues?

However I do notice that the device used to raise the stone is in the same pattern as the pillars and that the stone is raised with the aid of 'the unseen'. I have become accustomed to comparing the Deacons with this unseen guidance - and especially so since they are the ones that are charged with bearing/carrying commands/messages down to the consciousness of the personality. Jungian psychology? Whatever the deacons represent, they are our reliable route to 'the centre', imo.

[LorrB]

May 10, 2010 10:02:40 GMT 9.5 paul said:

Here is Blake's Jacob's Ladder

Notice the Blazing Star at the top and that the ladder is a stair and spiral.

Notice also the angel at the bottom bearing a platter. Its nature is identified by the stars next to it.

A platter.. I thought it was a crown. Mind you, it is a tad large for Jacob's head. Can you explain the stellar connection with the platter. I can't fathom it out.

Is there any significance in the numbers of the various clusters of stars. ie at ground level we have the familiar 12, then they move to 6, 4 and 3.
Blake was a mystic and I am supposing that everything has a meaning in his paintings.

I would take 12 to be the Zodiacal/Twelve Tribes/Labours of Hercules influences on our daily lives.

6 I am not so sure of (apart from the famous 6th sense)
4 elements
3 Consciousness, subconsciousness, superconsciousness.

The peculiar moral being... as we 'ascend' the ladder we surrender each of these ?? In our Initiation ceremony we make 'offerings' to the Wardens of the Gates.

[paul]

>A platter.

"Grail \Grail\, n. [OF. graal, greal, greet, F. graal, gr?al, LL. gradalis, gradale, prob. derived fr. L. crater bowl, mixing vessel, Gr. krath`r. See Crater.] A broad, open dish; a chalice; -- only used of the Holy Grail.

Note: The Holy Grail, according to some legends of the Middle Ages, was the cup used by our Savior in dispensing the wine at the last supper; and according to others, the platter on which the paschal lamb was served at the last Passover observed by our Lord. "

"He said there was a thing called the Grail
whose name he had read clearly
In the Constellations.
A host of angels left it on the earth
and then flew away up over the stars."

"And the heathen, Flegetanis, could read in the heavens high
How the stars roll on their courses, how they circle the silent sky,
And the time when their wandering endeth — and the life and the lot of men
He read in the stars, and strange secrets he saw, and he spake again
Low, with hated breath, and fearful, of the thing that is called the Grail,
In a cluster of stars was it written, the name, nor their love shall fail."

Note the "cluster of stars" next to the platter

[LorrB]

There are also the stories about the Grail being the Sangreal - Royal Blood. Bowls, chalices, cups etc holding royal blood. I still wonder whether the so called royal blood stems from the times when 'the angels of God visited the daughters of man and knew them". If the 'angels 'were rather an alien race (do angels need physical satisfaction?) then it might be right that

A host of angels left it (bloodline) on the earth
and then flew away up over the stars."

I do recall also, that the Grail stories feature 'fish' ie The Fisher King, the hermit asserts that the Sangreal carried by the beautiful damsel did not contain a fish (as Chrétien implied it should)... the Jesus (bloodline of David) stories talk about fish an awful lot too... fishermen who were fishers of men, fish and loaves, walking on water.

There is something fishy about the Grail ;D (We won't mention the Sumerian tablets with all those pictures of men dressed up in fish costumes - or the story that they cross bred with earthlings. And we definitely won't mention that they, like the angels, came to Earth).

Getting back to Freemasonry... didn't the original story of raising the dead refer to Noah? And we do have a whole side degree based on the story of Noah.

This is better than Soduko.

[LorrB]

PS... and is the little child on the shoulder (first illustration) a subtle hint from Blake about his beliefs?

[paul]

The Fisher King was likely a Fish (people) King - recall the Merovingians are said to be descended from a Quinotaur

"King Meroveus, who is said to have been the spawn of a “Quinotaur” (a sea monster), who raped his mother when she went out to swim in the ocean. "

I suspect the Quinotaur was an annedotus. Oannes was/is the best known annedotus

"In the first year there appeared, from that part of the Erythræan sea which borders upon Babylonia, an animal endowed with reason, by name Oannes, whose whole body (according to the account of Apollodorus) was that of a fish; that under the fish's head he had another head, with feet also below similar to those of a man, subjoined to the fish's tail. His voice, too, and language were articulate and human; and a representation of him is preserved even to this day.

This being was accustomed to pass the day among men, but took no food at that season; and he gave them an insight into letters and sciences, and arts of every kind. He taught them to construct cities, to found temples, to compile laws, and explained to them the principles of geometrical knowledge. He made them distinguish the seeds of the earth, and showed them how to collect the fruits; in short, he instructed them in every thing which could tend to soften manners and humanize their lives. From that time, nothing material has been added by way of improvement to his instructions. And when the sun had set this being Oannes retired again into the sea, and passed the night in the deep, for he was amphibious. After this there appeared other animals like Oannes, of which Berosus proposes to give an account when he comes to the history of the kings. "

The Widow Isis is associated with the fish people



and here is Isis in the middle with the fish on her head



Sometimes only the tail is shown

[LorrB]

Well that is certainly illustrates to me that we only see what we see and not all of that which we might see..

I have been looking at this sort of stuff for 40 years and never ever noticed a fish on Isis' head. (Mind you I drove a car through Blackwood once dressed as a giant chicken and nobody noticed me either ;D true story).

Now I am wondering if the fish symbol of Christianity is really a reference to the Age of Pisces or something else.

[paul]

I suspect that the fish on the head of Isis (and Nephthys) is somewhat artistic license - that is, the depictions were probably made many generations after Isis was last seen.

Similarly Sekhmet is depicted with a lion head when in reality she is humanoid with strongly leonine features

I suspect that Isis has a physical form recognisably related to the annedotus

[LorrB]

Talking about fishy heads... where did the design of the Bishop's Mitre come from? Anyone know?

[paul]

The annedotus (Oannes) had a fish head as well as a human head. "he instructed them in every thing which could tend to soften manners and humanize their lives. From that time, nothing material has been added by way of improvement to his instructions"

The annedotus also instructed humans in what are now regarded as spiritual and religious matters.

Hence those who aspire to the status of the annedotus wear hats that look like fish heads - mitres

[LorrB]

Ironic that the Catholics are referred to as 'fish eaters'. Although I guess one can digest knowledge.

Do you think most of the Bishops know where their headgear comes from?
The mitres are the same shape as the doors on churches... same connection?

Now I am wondering about Freemasonry's Arch...?

[paul]

The doors are ogival en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogive

The arch in Holy Royal Arch refers to the dome of the heavens rotating about the pole star. The god An/Anu/On was said to be related to the pole star and An was called Holy Arch by the ancient Egyptians.

An was the "god of millions of years" who traveled in a "boat of millions of years"

According the Sumerian literature Anu lowered kingship to earth.

Hence An is holy and royal and represents the centre of the arch

[LorrB]

Solomon...

Sol = Sun
Om =?
On = God related to the Pole Star.

?

[paul]

Sol is Latin
Om is Sanscrit?
On is ??

But SLMN is Hebrew