Section 15

^'Light has always formed one of the primary objects
of heathen adoration. The glorious spectacle of ani-
mated nature would lose all its interest if man were
deprived of vision, and light extinguished; for that
which is unseen and unknown becomes, for all prac-
tical purposes, as valueless as if it were non-existent.

''Light is a source of positive happiness; without it,
man could barely exist; and since all religious opinion

*"The most early defection to Idolatry," says Bryant, "con-
sisted in the adoration of the sun and the worship of demons, styled
Baalim." — "Analysis of Ancient Mythology," vol. iii. p. 431.

152 Symbolism of Freemasonry

is based on the ideas of pleasure and pain, and the
corresponding sensations of hope and fear, it is not to
be wondered if the heathen reverenced Hght. Dark-
ness, on the contrary, by replunging nature, as it were,
into a state of nothingness, and depriving man of the
pleasurable emotions conveyed through the organ of
sight, was ever held in abhorrence, as a source of mis-
ery and fear. The two opposite conditions in which
man thus found himself placed, occasioned by the en-
joyment or the banishment of light, induced him to
imagine the existence of two antagonist principles in
nature, to whose dominion he was alternately subject.

* 'Light multiplied his enjoyments, and darkness
diminished them. The former, accordingly, became his
friend, and the latter his enemy. The words 'light*
and 'good,' and 'darkness' and 'evil,' conveyed similar
ideas, and became, in sacred language, synonymous
terms. But as good and evil were not supposed to flow
from one and the same source, no more than light, and
darkness were supposed to have a common origin,
two distinct and independent principles were estab-
lished, totally different in their nature, of opposite
characters, pursuing a conflicting line of action, and
creating antagonistic effects. Such was the origin of
this famous dogma, recognized by all the heathens,
and incorporated with all the sacred fables, cosmogon-
ies, and mysteries of antiquity."^

The contests between the good and evil principle,
symbolized by light and darkness, composed a very
large part of the ancient mythology in all countries.

Among the Egyptians, Osiris was light, or the sun;
and his arch-enemy, Typhon, who ultimately destroyed
him, was the representative of darkness.

1 Duncan, "The Religions of Profane Antiquity," p. 186.

Rite of Intrusting and Symbolism of Light 153

Zoroaster, the father of the ancient Persian rehgion,
taught the same doctrine, and called the principle of
light, or good, Ormazd, and the principle of dark-
ness, or evil, Ahriman. The former, born of the
purest light, and the latter, sprung from utter dark-
ness, are in this mythology continually making war on
each other.

Manes, or Manichseus, the founder of the sect of
Manichees in the third century, taught that there are
two principles from which all things proceed; the one
is a pure and subtile matter, called Light, and the
other a gross and corrupt substance, called Darkness.
Each of these is subject to the dominion of a superin-
tending being, whose existence is from all eternity.
The being who presides over the light is called God;
he that rules over the darkness is called Hyle, or Demon.
The ruler of the light is supremely happy, good, and
benevolent, while the ruler over darkness is unhappy,
evil, and malignant.

Pythagoras also maintained this doctrine of two
antagonistic principles. He called the one, unity,
lightj the right hand, equality, stability, and a straight
line; the other he named binary, darkness, the left hand,
inequality, instability, and a curved line. Of the col-
ors, he attributed white to the good principle, and
black to the evil one.

The Cabalists gave a prominent place to light in
their system of cosmogony. They taught that, before
the creation of the world, all space was filled with what
they called Aur en soph, or the Eternal Light, and that
when the Divine Mind determined or willed the pro-
duction of Nature, the Eternal Light withdrew to a
central point, leaving around it an empty space, in
which the process of creation went on by means of

154 Symbolism of Freemasonry

emanations from the central mass of light. It is
unnecessary to enter into the Cabalistic account of
creation; it is sufficient here to remark that all
was done through the mediate influence of the Aur
en soph, or eternal light, which produces coarse mat-
ter, but one degree above nonentity, only when it
becomes so attenuated or faint as to be lost in dark-
ness.

The Brahminical doctrine was, that ''light and dark-
ness are esteemed the world's eternal ways; he who
walketh in the former returneth not; that is to say, he
goeth to eternal bliss; whilst he who walketh in the
latter cometh back again upon earth, ^' and is thus
destined to pass through further transmigrations, until
his soul is perfectly purified by light. ^

In all the ancient systems of initiation the candidate
was shrouded in darkness, as a preparation for the
reception of light. The duration varied in the different
rites. In the Celtic Mysteries of Druidism, the period
in which the aspirant was immersed in darkness was
nine days and nights; among the Greeks, at Eleusis, it
was three times as long; and in the still severer rites
of Mithras, in Persia, fifty days of darkness, solitude,

* See the "Bhagavad Gita," one of the religious books of Brah-
minism. A writer in Blackwood's Magazine, in an article on the
"Castes and Creeds of India," vol. Ixxxi. p. 316, thus accounts for the
adoration of light by the early nations of the world: "Can we won-
der at the worship of light by those early nations? Carry our
thoughts back to their remote times, and our only wonder would
be if they did not so adore it. The sun is life as well as light to
all that is on the earth — as we of the present day know even better
than they of old. Moving in dazzling radiance or brilliant-hued
pageantry through the sky, scanning in calm royalty all that passes
below, it seems the very god of this fair world which lives and blooms
but in his smile."

Rite of Intrusting and Symbolism of Light 155

and fasting were imposed upon the adventurous neo-
phyte, who, by these excessive trials, was at length
entitled to the full communication of the light of
knowledge.

Thus it will be perceived that the religious sentiment
of a good and an evil principle gave to darkness, in the
ancient symbolism, a place equally as prominent as
that of light.

The same religious sentiment of the ancients, modi-
fied, however, in its details, by our better knowledge of
divine things, has supplied Freemasonry with a double
symbolism — that of Light and Darkness,

Darkness is the symbol of initiation. It is intended
to remind the candidate of his ignorance, which Free-
masonry is to enlighten; of his evil nature, which Free-
masonry is to purify; of the world, in whose obscurity
he has been wandering, and from which Freemasonry
is to rescue him.

Light, on the other hand, is the symbol of the autopsy,
the sight of the mysteries, the intrusting, the full
fruition of Masonic truth and knowledge.

Among the Rosicrucians, who have, by some, been
improperly confounded with the Freemasons, the word
lux was used to signify a knowledge of the philosopher s
stone, or the great desideratum of a universal elixir and
a universal menstruum or solvent. This was their
truth.

Initiation precedes the communication of knowledge
in Freemasonry, as darkness preceded light in the old
cosmogonies. Thus, in Genesis, we see that in the be-
ginning "the world was without form, and void, and
darkness was on the face of the deep.*' The Chaldean
cosmogony taught that in the beginning ''all was
darkness and water." The Phoenicians supposed that

156 Symbolism of Freemasonry

''the beginning of all things was a wind of black air, and
a chaos dark as Erebus/'^

But out of all this darkness sprang forth light, at the
divine command, and the sublime phrase, ''Let there
be light," is repeated, in some substantially identical
form, in all the ancient histories of creation.

So, too, out of the mysterious darkness of Free-
masonry comes the full blaze of Masonic light. One
must precede the other, as the evening preceded the
morning. "So the evening and the morning were the
first day."

This thought is preserved in the great motto of the
Order, ^^Lux e tenebris'' — light out of darkness. It is
equivalent to this other sentence: Truth out of initia-
tion. Lux, or light, is truth; tenehrce, or darkness, is
initiation.

It is a beautiful and instructive portion of our sym-
bolism, this connection of darkness and light, and well
deserves a further investigation.

"Genesis and the cosmogonies," says Portal, "men-
tion the antagonism of light and darkness. The form
of this fable varies according to each nation, but the
foundation is everywhere the same. Under the symbol
of the creation of the world it presents the picture of
regeneration and initiation. ^

Plutarch says that to die is to be initiated into the
greater Mysteries; and the Greek word Te\evTq.v, which

* The "Institutes of Menu," which are the acknowledged code of
the Brahmins, inform us that "the world was all darkness, un-
discernible, undistinguishable altogether, as in a profound sleep,
till the self-existent, invisible God, making it manifest with five
elements and other glorious forms, perfectly dispelled the gloom."
— Sir William Jones, "On the Gods of Greece. Asiatic Researches,"
i. 244.

2 "On SymboUc Colors," p. 23, Inman's translation.

Rite of Intrusting and Symbolism of Light 157

signifies to die, means also to he initiated. But black,
which is the symbolic color of darkness, is also the sym-
bol of death. Therefore, again, darkness, like death, is
the symbol of initiation. It was for this reason that
all the ancient initiations were performed at night.

The celebration of the Mysteries was always noctur-
nal. The same custom prevails in Freemasonry, and
the explanation is the same. Death and the resur-
rection were taught in the Mysteries, as they are in
Freemasonry. The initiation was the lesson of death.
The full fruition or autopsy, the reception of light, was
the lesson of regeneration or resurrection.

Light is, therefore, a fundamental symbol in Free-
masonry. It is, in fact, the first important symbol that
is presented to the neophyte in his instructions, and
contains within itself the very essence of Speculative
Freemasonry, which is nothing more than the contem-
plation of intellectual light or truth. ^

* Freemasonry having received the name of lux, or light, its dis-
ciples have, very appropriately, been called "the Sons of Light."
Thus Burns, in his celebrated Farewell:

Oft have I met your social band,

And spent the cheerful, festive night;

Oft, honored with supreme command,
Presided o'er the sons oj light.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Symbolism op the Corner-stone

WE come next, in a due order of precedence, to
the consideration of the symbolism connected
with an important ceremony in the ritual of
the first degree of Freemasonry, which refers to the
north-east corner of the Lodge. In this ceremony the
candidate becomes the representative of a spiritual
corner-stone. And hence, to thoroughly comprehend
the true meaning of the emblematic ceremony, it is
essential that we should investigate the symbolism of
the corner-stone.

The corner-stone,^ as the foundation on which the
entire building is supposed to rest, is, of course, the
most important stone in the whole edifice. It is, at
least, so considered by operative workmen. It is laid
with impressive ceremonies; the assistance of Specu-
lative Freemasons is often, and always ought to be,
invited to give dignity to the occasion; and the event
is viewed by the builders as an important era in the
construction of the edifice.

Among the ancients the corner-stone of important

edifices was laid with impressive ceremonies. These

* Thus defined: "The stone which lies at the corner of two
walls, and unites them; the principal stone, and especially the
stone which forms the comer of the foundation of an edifice." —
Webster.

158

Symbolism op the Corner-stone 159

are well described by Tacitus, in his history of the re-
building of the Capitol. He details the preliminary
ceremonies which consisted in a procession of vestals,
who with chaplets of flowers encompassed the ground
and consecrated it by libations of living water.

Then he adds that, after solemn prayer, Helvidius,
to whom the care of rebuilding the Capitol had been
committed, ''laid his hand upK^n the fillets that adorned
the foundation stone, and also the cords by which it
was to be drawn to its place. In that instant the magis-
trates, the priests, the senators, the Roman knights,
and a number of citizens, all acting with one effort and
general demonstrations of joy, laid hold of the ropes
and dragged the ponderous load to its destined spot.
They then threw in ingots of gold and silver, and other
metals, which had never been melted in the furnace,
but still retained, untouched by human art, their first
formation in the bowels of the earth. "^

In the rich imagery of Orientalism, the corner-stone
is frequently referred to as the appropriate symbol of a
chief or prince who is the defence and bulwark of his
people, and more particularly in Scripture, as denoting
that promised Messiah who was to be the sure prop and
support of all who should put their trust in His divine
mission.

As, for instance, in Psalm cxviii. 22, ''The stone
which the builders refused is become the head-stone
of the corner," which, Clarke says, "seems to have
been orginally spoken of David, who was at first re-
jected by the Jewish rulers, but was afterwards chosen
by the Lord to be the great ruler of His people in
Israel'*; and in Isaiah xxviii. 16, **Behold, I lay in Zion,
for a foundation, a stone, a tried stone, a precious

^ Tacitus, "History," 1. iv. c. 53, Murphy's translation.

160 Symbolism of Freemasonry

corner-stone, a sure foundation," which clearly refers
to the promised Messiah.

To the various properties that are necessary to con-
stitute a true corner-stone, — its firmness and durability,
its perfect form, and its peculiar position as the con-
necting link between the walls, — we must attribute the
important character that it has assumed in the language
of symbolism. Freemasonry, which alone, of all ex-
isting institutions, has preserved this ancient and uni-
versal language, could not, as it may well be supposed,
have neglected to adopt the corner-stone among its
most cherished and impressive symbols; and hence it
has referred to it many of its most significant lessons of
morality and truth.

We have already alluded to that peculiar mode of
Masonic symbolism by which the Speculative Free-
mason is supposed to be engaged in the construction of
a spiritual temple, in imitation of, or, rather, in refer-
ence to, that material one which was erected by his
operative predecessors at Jerusalem. Let us again, for
a few moments, direct our attention to this important
fact, and revert to the connection which originally ex-
isted between the operative and speculative divisions of
Freemasonry. This is an essential introduction to any
inquiry into the symbolism of the corner-stone.

The difference between Operative and Speculative
Freemasonry is simply this — that while the former was
engaged in the construction of a material temple, formed,
it is true, of the most magnificent materials which the
quarries of Palestine, the mountains of Lebanon, and
the golden shores of Ophir could contribute, the latter
occupies itself in the erection of a spiritual house — a
house not made with hands — in which, for stones and
cedar, and gold and precious stones, are substituted the

Symbolism of the Corner-stone 161

virtues of the heart, the pure emotions of the soul, the
warm affections gushing forth from the hidden foun-
tains of the spirit, so that the very presence of Jehovah,
our Father and our God, shall be enshrined within us as
His Shekinah was in the holy of holies of the material
temple at Jerusalem.

The Speculative Freemason, then, if he rightly com-
prehends the scope and design of his profession, is
occupied, from his very first admission into the Order
until the close of his labors and his life — and the true
Freemason's labor ends only with his life — in the con-
struction, the adornment, and the completion of this
spiritual temple of his body. He lays its foundation in
a firm belief and an unshaken confidence in the wisdom,
power, and goodness of God. This is his first step.
Unless his trust is in God, and in Him only, he can
advance no further than the threshold of initiation.
And then he prepares his materials with the gauge and
gavel of Truth, raises the walls by the plumb-line of
Rectitude, squares his work with the square of Virtue,
connects the whole with the cement of Brotherly Love,
and thus skillfully erects the living edifice of thoughts,
and words, and deeds, in accordance with the designs
laid down by the Master Architect of the universe in
the great Book of Revelation.

The aspirant for Masonic light — the Neophyte — on his
first entrance within our sacred porch, prepares himself for
this consecrated labor of erecting within his own bosom
a fit dwelling-place for the Divine Spirit, and thus com-
mences the noble work by becoming himself the corner-
stone on which this spiritual edifice is to be erected.

Here, then, is the beginning of the symbolism of the
corner-stone; and it is singularly curious to observe
how every portion of the archetype has been made to

162 Symbolism of Freemasonry

perform its appropriate duty in thoroughly carrying
out the emblematic allusions.