CHAPTER II.

RUINED TEMPLES-MASONRY AND MASONIC SYMBOLS.
^AIS was the most important city during the Saitic Empire, and the one which gave its name to the period when the Theban Empire yielded her exalted position to the growing power of the cities of the Delta, extending from the twentieth dynasty to the conquest of the valley of the Nile by Alexander the Great in the year B. c. 332. During this period many magnificent temples and tombs were erected that were the admiration of the learned men of Greece and other coun- tries, many of whom went to Egypt for the express purpose of acquir- ing knowledge and information not obtainable in their own countries, and where they perfected their studies in science, art, and phil- osophy peculiar to the Golden Age of Egypt. The tutelar deity of this ancient cit}^ of Sais, was the goddess Neith, whom the Greeks identified with their Athene. She is very often represented with a weaver's shuttle, and is also frequently seen armed with bow and arrows, corresponding to the warlike goddess of the Greek Minerva, worshipped both b}- the Egyptians and the Libyans. There is no question in my mind, but, that this identification of Neith with Athene caused Pausanias to believe that Pallas-Athene originally came from Libia, to which Sais was frequently considered to belong. If the Egypt- ians did really conceive of the goddess Neith as weaving, it was only in a figurative sense, as creating. Upon her temple was inscribed : " / am the things that have been, and that are, and that will be ; no one hath ever me unveiled?''
Herodotus gained a vast amount of knowledge and information from the priests of this city, as well as from his personal observations, and so did hundreds of other prominent men who came from all parts of Greece and distant countries to acquire a knowledge of the profound philoso- phies, sciences and architecture, which belonged to these ancient people,
28 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
who not only erected the Pyramids and Sphinx, but adorned their wondrous valley and Delta of the Nile with such stupendous monu- ments, that they have been the admiration of the world down to the present day.
It was here in Sais that Solon associated with the Hierophants of Egypt, and Cambyses also visited this celebrated city after he had con- quered the " Land of Egypt." He not only admitted his being an initiate, but he showed himself favorable to the rites and ceremonies of the mysteries, as practiced in the temple of Neith, by permitting it to stand as a monument to the fraternity in all its magnificence, just as he found it, and the very fact of his doing so proves that he was not only an initiate, but an Hierophant, who, like others before him had seen the " Light." His name was " Ameth." He had passed through the puritying elements, and had most assuredly witnessed the glory which filled the sanctuary be3^ond the veil shrouding the ivory portal. In see- ing this inefi"able mystic glory and having been thoroughly instructed in the esoteric teachings, like other Initiates, he recognized the presence of the Supreme Architect, as manifested in the beauty and grandeur of the outer world. His mind must have been enlightened by the " Hol}^ Doctrine," a knowledge of which not onl}^ purifies the heart from sin, but drives ignorance from the mind, and insures the favor of the gods, thus opening the gates of immortal felicity to all who have passed beyond the veil.
The barriers have now been rent asunder and the initiate begins to understand himself and realizes that although he is blind to his sur- roundings and the knowledge which permeates the Kosmos, yet he carries the light of all knowledge within his heart, aye, within his own hand, that will light him on to the highest planes of intellectual and spiritual development. He will appreciate the fact that by the exercise of the inner vision all Wisdom is at his command. Every man who stepped across the mystic portals of the ancient Mysteries followed in the same paths trodden b}- those who had gone before. They learned the same lessons, received the same Light and vowed the same vows. In this wa3^ the}^ were bound b}^ a tie stronger than " chains of brass," and consequentl}' they would always endeavor to build up rather tlian tear down. Thus it was that Cambyses permitted this celebrated struc-
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 29
ture to stand. He himself had fed the sacred fire upon the altar and had identified himself with the Hierophants who presided over the Ancient Mysteries within this celebrated temple.
To-day there is no trace of this wondrous temple, or the royal palace and mausoleum of the Pharoah's connected with it. Nothing now remains of the glory pertaining to this once celebrated city, but a few fellaheen dwellings, claiming the name of Sais, whose glory reached the four corners of the earth. But, to-day, the villagers only assume the first two letters of the old name and call it Sa. In the ancient city of Sais there was a chapel that had been hewn out of a single block of granite, brought from the quarries of Syene, the weight of which must have been fully three hundred tons.
Herodotus tells us of the magnificence of this wondrous city and the grandeur of the tomb of Osiris, whose columns were adorned with palm-capitals ; the statues and the rows of andro-sphinxes which led up to the entrance of the temple were most magnificent specimens of the best Egyptian sculpture. He also tells us of the sacred lake, etc., but at the present time there is ver}^ little of it to be seen to give us an idea of its size and beauty, excepting an irregular sheet of water and portions of an immense wall that is sixty-five feet wide and about one thousand five hundred feet long. This wall, however, verifies the state- ment of Herodotus respecting the lake, and to satisfy one that it must have been a magnificent city, in its palmy days, as they never built such stupendous walls around ordinary cities. Few relics of this once famous city have been brought to light, and all that greets the eye of the traveller or tourist now visiting this place, is ruin, utter ruin.
San-Tanis^ or ZOAN, was a city of very great prominence during the time of Moses, and it was in this place that both he and Aaron compelled Pharaoh to let the Israelites go " out of the land of Egypt and out of the house of bondage;" through the wonders they per- formed in the field of Zoan [Exodiis y: lo^ and Psalms j8 : 12-^j). The site of this celebrated city is occupied to-day by Arab fishermen, who call their village San^ which is the Arab form of the ancient Zan or Zoan. The inhabitants of this place are the lineal descendants of the Blamites and Bashrausites. They were also known as Malekites, wlio were, during the Christian domination, firm adherents of the
30 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
orthodox churcli, but who were quite willing to embrace El-IslaTU when the opportunity offered.
These people are, in many respects, like their great ancestors, rude and uncultured, and extremely uncivil, treating all tourists and travellers with scant respect, but especially is this so if they be Christians. If it were not for the expectation of obtaining a goodly " baksheesh " from those who go to this place in order to examine the ruins and site of the "Field of Zoan," they would be far more uncourteous. The Greeks call this village Tanis, but the Egyptian name agrees with that in the Scriptures, which corresponds to the monumental name of this celebrated city. The truth of this assertion has verification from the statue found here, which is to be seen in the Museum of Antiquities, bearing an inscription stating that the individual it represents was " a governor in his town, a magnate in his province and a prefect in the towns and fields of Tan, ' meaning Zan or Zoan.' "
It was here the celebrated stone was found that was called by the French " La Pierre de San." It was that famous trilingual stone, con- taining Greek, hieroglyphic and Demotic characters, known to the Egyptologists as the " Decree of Kanopus," that constituted an edict promulgated by Ptolemy Euergetus in the year b. c. 237 at Kanopus, then the religious capital of the country. The original stone is now to be found in the Museum of Antiquities, Gizeh, near Cairo. There are two plaster casts of this stone, one of which has been placed in the British Museum, the other in the Aberdeen Univer- sity, Scotland. This limestone tablet or " stele " was discovered by Dr. Lepsius in the year 1866. It was the writing on this stone which established the correctness of the method of deciphering the inscriptions on the celebrated " Rosette Stone," or stele, by Cham- polin and others.
Stele is the name that is given to tablets of granite, limestone, wood, or faience, so often found amid the ruins of tombs andN temples in the valley of the Nile. They were used for the purpose of inscribing upon them the various decrees, historical records, victories of the various Pharaohs or kings of Egypt and biographical notices of prominent men and officials — in fact any thing of importance would be inscribed upon these stelse. The largest number of these stones have been found
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 31
placed inside the tombs, generally in the passage-way leading into the mummy chamber. They have also frequently been found placed just inside the door or entrance to the sepulchre, as well as at the bier, and a great many are to be seen set into the walls of various tombs throughout Kgypt. They vary in size and shape, according to the fashion of the dynasty in which the individual lived. Sometimes they were rectangu- lar, at other times lozenge or oval-shaped, but each and every one of them were inscribed with the name of the deceased, generally setting forth the principal events of their lives, as well as their pedigree, titles, etc., etc.
It is very difficult to tell the exact date of the origin of this city or by whom founded, but from the Scriptural account we are enabled to learn that the city of Zoan was built seven 3'ears after Hebi'on was established {see Numbers /j .• 22). The branch of the Nile on which this famous cit}^ of Zoan was situated was called the Tanitic. It was the most easterly branch of this grand old river and nearest to Palestine and Arabia, if we except that of the Pelusiac. There is no question but that the city grew in import- ance and power during the New Empire and when the Hyksos, in their warlike expeditions overran and dominated this northern part of Egypt, tbey found established here a race kindred to their own; consequently they made this city their capital, and at once proceeded to adorn and beautify it with most magnificent buildings and sculp- tures of all kinds, employing none but Egyptian artists to do the work, specimens of which were discovered hy Mariette Bey, who threw a vast amount of light upon this period of Egyptian history. The rather peculiar type of sphinxes that he found here he attributed to these shepherd kings. He also stated that the probabilities were, that at the time one of these kings was reigning in Memphis, Joseph was sold into Egypt and may have served under him, for, as he says, this Pharaoh was not a pure born Eg3^ptian, but of foreign parentage, of. shepherd descent, like himself, and the treatment Joseph received, based upon this supposition, is far more easily understood.
Under the thirteenth dynasty this city received a great impetus. Quite a large number of v&ry fine monuments and colossi were erected by Amenemhat and the two Usertesens, remains of which are
32 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
to be found in the Museum of Gizeh, all testifying to the importance of Zoan at that period. Although the city had reached such importance at that time, the sanctuary of the great temple dates back to the sixth dynasty, B. c. 3703, plainly showing the rise and fall of this wonderful city during various epochs of Egyptian history.
During the lives of the monarchs of the twenty-ninth dynasty it was decorated and adorned with magnificent statues, obelisks and most exquisite works of art, and the rulers of this dynasty, Sethi, Rameses II and Meneptha often came here to hold their court and join in the sacred rites and ceremonies of the ancient mysteries.
It was under the twenty-first dynasty, B. c. mo, that Tanis or Zoan became the capital of Egypt oncfe more, and gave its name to the d3'nasty, and also to that branch of the river Nile on which it was situated. Under this administration the public buildings and temples were restored ; the needs of the city carefully attended to, and its avenues beautified, but it again fell to a city of secondary consideration, although Marietta claimed that it was a town of great importance from the twenty-second to tlie twenty-sixth dynasty. He gave the name Tanite to the twenty-third dynast3^ The city again began to decline during the reign of Amasis, by whom the capital of Egypt was removed to Sais, making Naucratis the sole port of entry for Egypt, and com- pelling all vessels to go there to load or discharge their freight. In consequence of which Naucratis soon grew into prominence, becoming one of the best known cities in Eg3'pt. It was located about fifteen miles west of the capital of Egypt (Sais.) This decree of Amasis making Naucratis the sole port of entry for Egypt Avas the cause of its rapid growth, for it gave to this place special privileges.
Herodotus tells us that this king (Amasis) " was partial to the Greeks,'' and induced them to come and settle in Egj^pt. Amasis had recognized their bravery and power during his war with Apries, consequently, when they immigrated to this land of Egypt and estab- lished themselves at Naucratis, this great king did all in his power to help them, because he knew he would be enabled to depend upon them in case of war. He afterwards verified his good opinion of them, for when the Persians invaded Egypt he mustered them into the Egyptian forces, and led them on to assist him in repelling the invaders.
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 33
They responded to his call and assisted him in establishing himself more firmly in the hearts of his countrymen and in the land of Egypt.
Amasis was born in the town of Niouph, of poor and humble parents, but, through his wonderful abilities, his high intellectual power and force of character, he rose to the high and exalted position of ruler, or Pharaoh over Egypt, and over this great and mighty people. In attaining this exalted position he was not looked upon as a legitimate kiug by the higher classes, because th.&y considered it to be an infringe- ment upon the ancient constitutions of the Egyptians. The kings of Egypt had always been chosen from among the priests or soldiers of the country, but as he belonged to neither one nor the other he was consid- ered to be ineligible, and the prominent men endeavored to have him deposed. As he was supported by the people, who had placed him upon the throne, they were compelled to abandon their opposition and acknowledge him as King and Pharaoh of Egypt.
Herodotus tells us in the second book {Euterpe, chapter 172), "At first his subjects looked down upon him, and held him in but small esteem, because he had been a mere private person, and of a house of no great distinction ; but after a time Amasis succeeded in reconciling them to his rule, not by severity, but by cleverness. Among his other splendors he had a golden foot-pan, in which his guests and himself were wont, upon occasion, to wash their feet. This vessel he caused to be broken in pieces, and made of the gold an image of one of the gods, which he set up in the most public place in the whole city ; upon which the Egyptians flocked to the image, and worshipped it with the utmost reverence. Amasis finding this was so, called an assembly and opened the matter to them, explaining how the image had been made of the foot-pan, wherein they had been wont formerly to wash their feet, and to put all manner of filth within it, yet now it was reverenced. And truly, he went on to say, it had gone with him, as with the fot)t-pan. If he was a private person formerly, 3'et now he had come to be their king. And so he bade them honor and reverence him. Siich was the mode in which he won over the Egyptians, and brought them to be content in his service."
Amasis was one of the first kings of whose personal character we know anything, and from the records that have been preserved we find
34 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
that he had a very strict sense of honor and justice. It is positively known that he devoted himself to the interests of his country and the intellectual advancement of his fellow men. He possessed those qualities which not only endeared him to his soldiers and countrymen, but commanded the respect of the prominent men of all other nations. He loved pleasure, but when business of the nation required his services, he gave the whole of his time and attention to those require- ments. He was a wise king, ruler, and Hierophant of the Mysteries, and enforced the law, compelling every Egyptian to appear once a year and demonstrate to the Governor of the Nome, in which he lived, that he was earning an honest living, to enable him to support his wife and family ; failing to prove this the penalty was Death. Draco made this same law in Athens, but afterward Solon repealed it on account of its severity. This Egyptian King and Hierophant thoroughly understood the " Pole Star of Truth," and endeavored by his own conduct to demonstrate to all men that the teachings received from the ancient m3'steries were most sublimely grand and beautiful. He knew full well there was no royal road to the understanding of its profound sjanbology, science and philosophies, and in order to attain to a k-nowledge of the rites, ceremonies and esoteric teachings of the various degrees, he would have to devote his time to it b}^ earnest studj^, profound attention and the soul's deep meditation, before he would be enabled to comprehend the ineffable beaiity of the rites and ceremonies. Like others who have passed beyond the mj-stic portals, he realized that without it he would simply pass through the ceremonies of the ancient m3^steries of Egypt, but the sublimity and grandeur of the teachings would be as incomprehensible as the veiled statue of Neith, (Isis) in the temple of Sais.
" Masonr}^ is a peculiar system of morality, veiled in allegor}', and illustrated bj- symbols." But we must distinctly understand that ritualism is not Masonry. The glorious teachings embodied in the ethics of Masonr}^ are, and ever will be, in existence, having been taught and promulgated through ever}- age. And it did not require the building of tjae temple b}' Solomon to demonstrate the profound morality' that belonged to our glorious Fraternit}^, for it has had a continuous existence through every epoch of the world's history.
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EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 35
The profound wisdom contained in the veiled symbols is most beau- tiful and sublimely grand, and, as I have hereinbefore stated, the real meaning of the various symbols, belonging to Masonry, must be carefully searched out before the student can ever hope to understand the faintest glimmer of their true meaning. This cannot be told the aspiring candidate too often, that, in order to come to an understanding of the true meanings that are embodied in our symbology, he must learn the meaning contained in the very first degree, as herein lies the key or combination to those above.
Through all countries in the world, from the cave temples of India to those of Nubia, through the valley of the Nile and its Delta, as well as in Chaldea, Assyria, Greece, Rome and even amid the tropical growth of long drifting centuries in Mexico and Yucatan, are to be found, at the present day, in all these places, monuments and ruins of temples covered with signs, symbols and hieroglyphic inscriptions going to prove, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that our glorious fraternity has existed in each and every one of them. If 3'ou will take time to search for yourselves, as I have done, you will find that Free Masonry must have originated in India, and that it was cradled upon the banks of the Nile, beyond the dawn of authenticated history. Here in this extremely interesting valley will be found ocular demon- strations that our ancient brethren were not onl}- speculative, but practical, operative Masons, who beautified and adorned the world with magnificent specimens of their work, from the Gopuras and temples of India, the Pyramids and stupendous fabrics of Egypt to the marble miracles of Greece and the grandest ruin of Rome — the Coliseum.
In the valley of the Nile our ancient brethren have demonstrated their knowledge in gigantic temples and colossal monolithic statues. The "Arundel Marbles" in the British Museum speak louder than a thousand tongues to testify to the sublimity to which they had attained in sculpture. The Acropolis and Parthenon are in ruins, but even as they are, in their mutilated grandeur, they testify to the men of cultured Greece and to the names of those craftsmen who wrought them. All these things go to prove that our practical, operative brethren of a prehis- toric age thoroughly comprehended the mechanical arts and sciences, otherwise they never could have quarried and carried across the desert
36 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
sands, such stupendous blocks of granite with which to build their imposing temples, wherein they practiced the rites and performed the ceremonies in a manner similar to our ancient craftsmen long before Moses officiated in the temples of Egypt. These same sublimely beau- tiful ceremonies stand to-da}^, across the threshold of the twentieth century, as a monument of glory to our most ancient and illustrious Rite and the Supreme Architect of the Universe. Those who believe in the Supreme Architect of the Universe can unite with us, in the Masonic fold, upon the level and true points of fellowship which unite and bind us all in fraternal bonds of Masonic love, teaching to each and every one the glory of the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man.
Albert Pike states, in " Morals and Dogmas," page 726, that " Relig- ion is the crown of morality, not its base. The base of morality is itself. The moral code of Masonry is still more extensive than that developed by philosophy. To the requisitions of the law of nature and the law of God, it adds the imperative obligation of a contract. Upon entering the Fra- ternity, the initiate binds to himself every Mason in the world. Once enrolled among the Children of Light^ every Mason on earth becomes his brother, and owes him the duties, the kindness, and sympathies of a bro- ther. On every one he may call for assistance in need, protection against danger, sympathy in sorrow, attention in sickness, and decent burial after death. There is not a Mason in the world who is not bound to go to his relief when he is in danger, if there be a greater probability of saving his life than losing his own. No Mason can wrong him to the value of any- thing, knowingly, himself, nor suffer it to be done by others, if it be in his power to prevent it. No Mason can speak evil of him, to his face or behind his back. Every Mason must keep his lawful secrets, and aid him in his business, defend his character when unjustly assailed, and protect, counsel, and assist his widow and orphans. What so many thou- sands owe to him, he owes to each of them. He has solemnly bound himself to be ever ready to discharge this sacred debt. If he fails to do it, he is dishonest and forsworn ; and it is an unparalleled meanness in him to obtain good offices by false pretences, to receive kindness and service, rendered him iinder the confident expectation that he will in his turn render the same, and then to disappoint, without ample reason, and just expectation. Masonry holds him also by his solemn promise to a purer
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 37
life, a nobler generosity, a more perfect charity of opinion and action ; to be tolerant, catholic in his love for his race, ardent in his zeal for the interest of mankind, and the advancement and progress of humanity."
We are positively certain that the esoteric teachings of both the Lesser and the Greater Mysteries were never revealed to any one who was not considered to be worthy and well qualified to receive them, but we must distinctly understand that all those who had received the light from the Lesser were not always considered worthy to pass across the threshold of the Greater Mysteries. In order to be enabled to attain to these rites and ceremonies, they had to stand the test of being proven worthy to receive them, and if they were permitted to enter through the sacred portals, they had to pass through the most profound and sublime ceremonies before they were entrusted with the key to the symbology which would enlighten them, and lift the veil to their search- ing and bewildered gaze, thus revealing the ineffable glories that lay beyond the mystic portals.
It must be thoroughly understood that in joining a Masonic Lodge a man does not immediately become a truer, purer, or better man ; it simply shows him the light of truth, and impresses upon him " T/m/ there is no Religion higher than TrutliJ' Neither will he at first see the beauties, nor understand the mystic ceremonies, for he will be blinded, as it were, by the effulgent light that permeates the sanctuaries of our glorious Fra- ternity, when he will at once realize that the keynote to a thorough know- ledge and understanding of the sublimity and grandeur of the ceremonies of our beloved Scottish Rite is meditation and earnest study.
Any Mason, be he Elu, Knight, or Prince, who is interested in the origin of the symbols and teachings of our ancient and accepted Scottish Rite of Free Masonry, can in India, Egypt and other countries, have ocu- lar demonstration, in signs, symbols, and Masonic emblems, which have been in existance thousands of years before the building of the temple by our three Grand Masters, wherein to practice the esoteric teachings of our most illustrious fraternity, teachings that have been the admiration of the most profound men of every epoch in the world's history.
Symbols appeal to the eye, and impress themselves upon our memory, as oral instructors to the ear. The level is symbolical of equality and teaches us the universal brotherhood of man. The square
38 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
is au emblem of justice, for, as Brother Fellows states, " It was the means in Egypt of establishing the boundaides of lands that had been obscured or carried away by the inundations." It is a very ancient symbol and like many others we cannot trace it to any particular nation or people. It does not derive its chief importance from the operative Mason, but rather from the speculative. We know that it was held, as a most profound sacred symbol, among the ancient Egyptians, for it was always carried in all their grand and solemn proces- sions, by certain officials who were called Stolists. In our symbolic degrees it teaches ns honesty of purpose, and fair dealing to ail men. The plumb teaches us to learn to subdue our lower animal passionate nature ; it is the symbol of unerring i-ectitude. The mosaic pavement is most assuredly symbolical of the human life, checkered with good and evil, forcibly emblematic of man's career, as each day we stand upon the bright square of hope or the black square of misfortune or adversity^ To-day we are crowned with joy and happiness, to-morrow we may be filled with sorrow and tribulation. It teaches us to walk upright before all men, in humbleness of heart, and to assist our weary brother by the way- side, for we do not know the day nor the hour when we, ourselves, may need the help of those we have assisted. The tesselated border symbol- izes the manifold blessings and comforts continually surrounding us, but the blazing star in the centre comes down to us from those ancient adepts, who named not only the signs of the Zodiac, but every star that glitters in the infinitude of space.
Let us go back beyond the " Golden Age of Egypt," when the arts and sciences were flourishing, which, centuries later, furnished the embers from which leaped Grecian culture and Roman civilization. What a sweep backward must the imagination take in order to appreciate the almost bewildering stretch of time from the present da}', of this twentieth century, to the earliest ages of Egyptian civilization, when the people of this wondrous valle}^ watched for the sign which assured them of all that was necessary for the siistenance of themselves, and the pi'eserv^tion of their domestic animals ! And this sign was a brilliant, luminous star, appearing upon the eastern horizon in the early evening, which they called Sothis, or Anubis the barker, the same as we call Sirius, the dog star). Its appearance warned the people who occupied the lowlands
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 39
adjacent to the river Nile, of approaching danger, that they might be enabled to go to higher ground and escape the flooding waters. About this time these waters came rushing down from its interior sources, from unknown regions in Central Africa, bearing within its bosom immense quantities of decayed organic substance that deposited itself evenly over the whole of the flooded country. This acted upon the parched and thirsty soil as a rich and powerful fertilizing agent, fructifying and causing all things planted to grow in abundance. All the fellaheen had to do was to scatter their seed broadcast upon the soil, trample them in with their domestic animals, and when the waters subsided watch their crops grow luxuriantly and reap a thousand fold what they had sown. No wonder, then, they eagerly longed for the coming of this glorious symbol which was to them a harbinger of the fruits of the earth and the fulness thereof, for to them the glorious river Nile was an emblem of God the Father, who brought to their very doors the necessaries of life. So we find it upon the floors of our temples — an emblem of faith in the goodness of the Supreme Architect of the Universe.
The overflowing of the river Nile was considered by the ancient Egyptians a demonstration of the activity of the Osirian Triad, because they considered that Isis personified the earth of the Nile valley and Delta, but not the whole earth universal like Seb^ who was the representative of the earth in all its wonderful manifestations and differentiations. But they believed that Isis personified the rich black land of the Delta and valley of the Nile, on both banks of the river, as far as Thebes, and beyond, to the first cataract, where all things grew in such luxuriant abundance, and that she would continue to give to the ever succeeding generations, from her inexhaustible productive forces, all that was necessary for the sustenance of Man and his domestic animals living in this wondrous valley of the Nile. How did she produce these wonderful manifestations ? Simply by the union of Osiris with Isis. Osiris personified the river Nile, which overflows its banks and takes Isis in his loving embrace, thereby uniting, every year, the river Osiris to his beloved Isis, and from this union comes forth the virgin harvest which represented Horns the Son, and thus we have the Egyptian triad of Osiris, Isis and Horus.
40 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
Egypt ! how well I remember thy fertile valley, thy glorious river, and the evidences of thy former grandeur, whose splendors not only filled the ancient world with admiration and wonder, but compel the learned men of to-day to stand with awe before thy mighty monolithic statues and gigantic structi;res, whose very ruins represent the tattered pages of the archives of one of the grandest nations the world has ever known, and the evidences of a remote and wonderful civilization ! We can gather a vast amount of kuowledge and information respecting her manners and customs, science, arts and philosophies in the study of her tombs, temples and monolithic sculptures, as these things represent the stony leaves that have been written with pens of steel. Although her temples have fallen into decay and her innumerable statues and obelisks destroyed, broken into fragments and carried off by vandals, there remains no doubt a very large number of priceless treasures, still lying shrouded beneath the drifting desert sands, whose covering is even now being removed. We may possibly be enabled to recover many of the treasured secrets of the " Golden Age of Egypt " that will throw " more light " on the knowledge and Wisdom pertaining to Ancient Egj'ptians and the Craftsmen who wrought in the quarries in those golden days of long ago, in order to erect the temples which to-day lie scattered broadcast throughout the length and breadth of this most extraordinary valley.
In viewing these magnificent ruins I was filled with marvellous admiration for the majesty of their proportions, their wonderful strength and beauty, and the extraordinary knowledge of the mechanical arts and sciences possessed by the ancient craftsmen in their construction. I recognized that they represented the thoughts of men who lived in the hoary ages of a far away past, whose very names, if known, would command our most profound respect and admiration — men who rocked the cradle of Ancient Masonry in the land of the mighty Pharaohs, long centuries ago. There is but little to interest the traveller of to-day in "The field of Zoan," and he will realize that what was once the splendid palaces and temples of Egypt's mighty warlike kings, are now dwelling places for the lowly fishermen of San, amid ruins of tombs, temples, monuments and fragmentary statues that lie scattered around in the wildest confusion imaginable.
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 41
The drifting sands are slowly and silently covering up the remains of what was once one of the grandest cities of Lower Egypt^ whose fame reached the four corners of the earth. The principal divinities worshipped in " The field of Zoan " were Ptah, Amen, and an Asiatic divinity called Set, or Sutek, but which was afterwards worshipped under the form of Ra, Horus, etc. The country in the vicinity of Tanis is low and marshy land, with scarcely any vegetation excepting reeds and dwarfed tamarask bushes, among which wild boars are often to be found. A canal runs through it now, and still it does not fertilize the soil. " Fire passed through Zoan, and it is desolate." (Ezekiel 30 : 14.)
There are immense numbers of all kinds of water fowl that will afford good sport to the traveller or tourist, and help to replenish their larder if they camp as they go along. Whoever comes to this place should not forget to bring a goodly supply of insect powder and oil of pennyroyal — the first for the fleas whose name are legion, and outnumber those of San Francisco ten to one ; the oil of pennyroyal to ward off attacks of the blood-thirsty mosquito and the pertinacity of the miserable Egyptian fly.
Egypt was divided into Nomes or Cantons, for administrative pt:r- poses, and each Nome was presided over by a Governor or Monarcli^ appointed by the king himself A Nome consisted of one of the principal cities, and the surrounding villages that were in a measure dependent upon it. The duty of each Monarch was to superintend his Canton, see to the collecting of revenues, etc., in fact, all the details of the Government were attended to either by him or his deputies, and he was held personally responsible for all their acts, as well as his own. In the Delta there were, according to Strabo, (Book 17: 787,] ten of these Nomes, and the same in the Thebiad, while the intermediate country was credited with seven, growing at a later date into sixteen. Each Nome had definitely established boundaries, originally laid out by order of the early rulers. These Nomes eventually grew to the number of fifty, three among them being included in the Greater and Lesser Oasis and the Oasis of Anion. All these were divided into Toparchies^ but of what size we are unable to say. Each of these Nomes sent delegates, who were accompanied, by the chief priests and priestesses, of the principal temple
42 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
in their Nome, to the general convention that met, at stated times, in the magnificent palace of the Labyrinth, near Lake Moeris (of which I shall speak later on). At these conventions, possibly, the king presided and administered justice in accordance with the Law, and it was, no doubt, used for the same purpose as our legislature.
B/ibasiis. — This ancient city is now called Tel Basta. The Pi-beseth of the Scriptures (Bzekiel 30: 17), is situated on the west bank of the Pelusiac branch of the Nile, about fourteen miles north of Belbeys, in very low marsy land pregnant with malaria, fever, etc. This was the site of one of the most ancient cities of Lower Egypt, and the ruins to be seen there to-day attest to her former magnificence and grandeur. The lofty mounds of brick that protected the city from the annual inundations of the Nile are sujEcient proof of its antiquity.
Herodotus (in Book II, chapter 137) claims that these mounds were formed by Egyptians who, having committed some offence, were com- pelled to raise the ground in the vicinity of the city to which they belonged. In conseqtience of this a great many cities in the Delta of the Nile rose far above the plain, safe from the flooding waters of old God Nilus. He especially mentions Bubastis as having been raised to a greater elevation than any other city in Egypt, which was a noticeable fact in his time as well as in our own. As early as the reign of Uscr- Maai-Ra, Rameses II., (The Great), these mounds began to rise around the city when that great warrior king connected the waters of the Red Sea wdth the river Nile, b. c. 1340. This city was no doubt of consider- able importance, at least thirty-four centuries ago, during the reign of the " wall builder," Thotmes III. It received its death blow when Amasis made Sais his capital and fixed the seat of his power in his favorite city {see anic)^ and Bubastis, like Tanis, and other cities of importance, began to sink into insignificance.
Bubastis attained its highest importance and power under the twenty-second dynasty, whose first king was Sesonchis, the conqueror of Thebes, who united in himself the two crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt, besides making his native city the capital, and source from which emanated all his mandates. The student of ancient Egyptian history and Masonic tradition will recognize the magnificence to which this city had risen under the various d3masties, ranging from the Second
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 43
Mempbite of the Old Monarchy (see Manetho) until its decline and subsequent fall. It began to lose its power when Amasis issued bis famous edict making Naucratis the only port of entry in Egypt. The annals of the celebiated red granite temple of this city, extending back beyond authenticated history, cbnstituted the glory of each succeeding dynasty. Its ruins of to-day form one of the grandest pages of the archives of ancient Egyptian history.
This magnificant city and red temple won the admiration of Herodotus (see Book II., Chapters 137-8), whose description is very accurate. In relation to it he says : " Here is the goddess Bubastis, which well deserves to be described. Other temples may be grander, and may have cost more in the building, but there is none so pleasant to the eye as this of Bubastis." Then he goes on to describe it as follows : " Excepting the entrance, the whole forms an island. Two artificial channels from the Nile, one on either hand of the temple encompass the building, leaving only a narrow passage by which it is approached. These channels are each a hundred feet wide and they are thickly shaded with trees. The gateway is sixty feet in height, and ornamented with figures cut upon stone six cubits high and well worthy of notice. The temple stands in the middle of the city, and is visible on all sides, as one walks around it. The city has been raised by means of an embankment, while the temple has been left untouched in its orig- inal condition. You can look down upon it wherever you are. A low wall runs around the enclosure, having figures engraved upon it, and inside there is a grove of beautiful tall trees, surrounding the shrine con- taining the image of the goddess. This enclosure is a furlong in length, and the same in breadth. The entrance to it is by a road, paved with stone for a distance of about three furlongs, which passes straight through the market place in an easterly direction and is four hundred feet in width. Trees of an extraordinary height grow on each side the road leading from the temple of Bubastis to that of Mercury."
This temple was sacred to the goddess Bast, who personified the spring-time warmth of the sun. Pasht, the Bubastis of the Egyptians, is often represented with the head of a cat, or, in the older sculptures, with a lion's head crowned with a disk and uraes, like the sun god Ra. The disk and lion indicate her connection with the solar deity,
44 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
while the iiraes was a symbol of immortality, and was generally worn upon the forehead of a king or queen. It is also an emblem of royalt5^ This deadly asp rears itself on the brow ready to strike and defend the wearer from his or her enemies. Bubastis of the Egyptians, is the same as the Artemis (Diana) of the Greeks, {//er. 2 : 18 j.) Bast is often represented both sitting and standing, with the cat or lion's head, disk and nraes holding the amulet of life the a7ix. She is sometimes found holding in her right hand a sistrum, carr3dng on her left arm a basket, and holding in her left hand an aegis. She is always represented as a woman, and very often a prayer accompanies the figure, one of which is, " May she grant all life, and power, all health and joy of heart," or " I am Bast, the Lady of Life."
The panegyrics^ or festivals, that were held by the people at the various temples of Egj^pt, sank into comparative insignificance compared with the festivities which took place in Bubastis, whose magnificent temple was the favorite resort of men, women and children. These came from every Nome in Eg3'pt, to participate in the sacri- fices and licentious festivities indulged in by all who sought Bast. The}' would come down the river and canals, by boats, in immense numbers, the men beating drums and playing on pipes, and the women beating cymbals in time with the music, while those who had no instru- ments, would accompany the harmony, by beating time with their hands, shouting, and behaving in a very indecent manner, much after the stj'le of the v/omen who participate in the festival of Ceres at Eleusis. On arriving at Bubastis, they would offer sacrifices and form processions, being led by men who played the pipe, the rest would fol- low and perform most indecent acts while dancing, shouting and making all kinds of gestures in a very debauched condition and in drunken abandonment. The number annuall}' assembling here to participate in the panegyrics of Bast, has been estimated at seven hundred thousand men and women, not including children.
The first king of the twentj^-second dynasty, Sesonchis, or She- shonk, was contemporary Avith Solomon, King of Israel. The scripture name of this Egyptian king was Shishak. During the latter part of the reign of Solomon he tried to kill Jeroboam, who in order to save his life, fled into Egypt, and no doubt to the city of Bubastis, taking refuge
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 45
with Shishak. On his return he introduced some of the Egyptian divinities to the people of Israel. Afterwards Shishak invaded and captured the fenced cities of Judah and Benjamin, and took posses- sion of Jerusalem, after which he carried away with him into Egypt the vast treasures that Solomon had collected. \_See 2nd Kings, Chap. 13'].
The historic names found upon monuments and sculptures of Bubastis, range from Khufu of the fourth dynasty to Ptolemy Euergetus second. There are also to be found among the ruins the name of Rameses second, Osorkon first, Amyrtaeus and others. The ruins of this magnificent city lie scattered around in bewildering confusion. There is, no doubt, many beautiful statues, lotus, palm-leaf, and Hathor- head capitals, shrouded in the drifting sands, which may never be brought to the light of day to testify to their wondrous skill and knowledge in the art of carving. One very important discovery was made in the ruins of this once famous city, and that was a fallen pylon of the time of Osorkon second. The carving upon it furnishes a description of a very important festival, which is of great interest to scholars of the present day, as it explains everything pertaining to it in all its details.
The temples of Lower Egypt differ considerably from those of Upper Egypt. In those above Cairo, or the Delta of the Nile, the walls are built of sandstone and the columns are made of difi"erent pieces, while granite is confined to the pylons, monuments, statues, etc. In the Delta the temples were built principally of granite, the vestibules, etc., having columns of a single stone of the same material. From the Hypostyle hall of this celebrated, magnificent red granite temple of Bubastis, came three valuable specimens of ancient Egyptian work- manship, now in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, consisting of a Hathor-headed capital, a Lotus-bud capital, and a tablet on which Amen-Ra is represented enthroned on a dais that is reached by a series of steps, towards which a procession is apparently going for the purpose of rendering homage to the Great God of Egypt, the son of Ptah. The Egyptians affirmed of him, that he was One, the Only One. He formed the Jirs^ in the great Triad of Thebes — Amen, Mut and Chansu.
46 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
The ruins of Bubastis are composed of large dark mounds of debris, plainly visible from the railroad. There is little to be seen here that will interest the traveler of to-day, except the mutilated remains of this once magnificent city, unless he is desirous of identify- ing the shattered remains with the descriptions by Herodotus, Rawlinson and others ; if so, he will be enabled to verify the statements made by these authorities respecting its site, surroundings, and magnitude. One thing is certain, he will see the great height of the mounds and the enormous blocks of beautiful red granite that Herodotus admired so much in the temple itself, and will also be enabled to recognize the site of both the temple of Bast and Mercury. Herodotus states in Book 2, Chaps. 66 and 67, that " If a cat dies 'in a private house by a natural death, all the inmates of the house shave their eyebrows ; and on the death of a dog they shave the head and the whole of the body." Cats dying in any part of Egypt, were taken to the ancient city of Bubastis in order to be embalmed, after which they were deposited in a special place made for the purpose, but all dogs were buried in the various towns to which they belonged, and in certain receptacles provided for the burial of their bodies.
Ancient €itics-©siriait fH3)tlj-1liarma»
tr
"Co thine abode, to thine abode, Oh come,
Co thine abode, god Hn, I thee implore, Chine enemies exist not any more; Return, oh glorious sovereign, to thine home.
"I am thy sister, rehom thou hast embraced, Looh on me, X, thy sister, loving thee; Oh, beauteous youth, stay thou not far from mc. But come to thine abode with haste, with haste.
"X see thee not, and to my heart doth throng
Hnguish for thee, and bitterness untold;
Mine eyes seek to thee, wishing to behold ere X behold will it be long?
"Bow long, oh glorious sovereign, must I yearn.
Before the sight of thee mine eyes shall bless? God Hn, beholding thee is happiness, Co her who loveth thee, return, return.

Come to thy sister, come unto thy wife, Oh, Qrt-het! Lo, one mother gave us life, Chysclf from me no longer separate.
"Che gods and men towards thee turn their faces, Sleeping for thee when they behold my tears. X make lament, but there is none that bears, ■^ea, though with plaint, unto the heavenly places, I, who so loved thee here on earth, do cry, Chy sister, none hath loved thee more than X"
— Quoted from the Hymns of Ancient Egypt (Rawusley).
48
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 49