Section 32

Bryant. Jacob Bryant, frequently quoted in this work, was a
distinguished English antiquary, born in the year 1715, and
deceased in 1804. His most celebrated work is "A New
System of Ancient Mythology," which appeared in 1773-76.
Although objectionable on account of its too conjectural
character, it contains a fund of details on the subject of
symbolism, and may be consulted with advantage by the
Masonic student 41

Builder. The chief architect of the temple of Solomon is
often called "the Builder." But the word is also applied
generally to the Craft; for every Speculative Freemason
is as much a builder as was his operative predecessor. An
American writer (F. S. Wood, of Arkansas) thus alludes to
this symbolic idea. ''Freemasons are called moral build-
ers. In their rituals, they declare that a more noble and
glorious purpose than squaring stones and hewing timbers
is theirs, fitting immortal nature for that spiritual building
not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." And he
adds, ''The builder builds for a century; Freemasons for
eternity." In this sense, "the Builder" is the noblest title
that can be bestowed upon a Freemason 51

BuNYAN, John. Familiar to every one as the author of the
"Pilgrim's Progress." He lived in the seventeenth cen-
tury, and was the most celebrated allegorical writer of Eng-
land. His work entitled "Solomon's Temple Spiritual-
ized" will supply the student of Masonic symbolism with
many valuable suggestions 88

C

Cabala. The mystical philosophy of the Jews. The word
which is derived from a Hebrew root, signifying to receive,

328 Synoptical Index

has sometimes been used in an enlarged sense, as compre-
hending all the explanations, maxims, and ceremonies which
have been traditionally handed down to the Jews. But in
that more limited acceptation, in which it is intimately con-
nected with the symbolic science of Freemasonry, the Cab-
ala may be defined to be a system of philosophy which em-
braces certain mystical interpretations of Scripture, and
metaphysical speculations concerning the Deity, man, and
spiritual beings. In these interpretations and speculations,
according to the Jewish doctors, were enveloped the most
profound truths of religion, which, to be comprehended by
finite beings, are obliged to be revealed through the medium
of symbols and allegories. Buxtorf, "Lexicon of the Tal-
mud," defines the Cabala to be a secret science, which treats
in a mystical and enigmatical manner of things divine,
angelical, theological, celestial, and metaphysical, the sub-
jects being enveloped in striking symbols and secret modes
of teaching. 153

Cabalist. a Jewish philosopher. One who understands and
teaches the doctrines of the Cabala, or the Jewish phil-
osophy 153

Cabiri. Certain gods, whose worship was first established in
the Island of Samothrace, where the Cabiric Mysteries were
practised until the beginning of the Christian era. They
were four in number, and by some are supposed to have
referred to Noah and his three sons. In the Mysteries there
was a legend of the death and restoration to life of Atys,
the son of Cybele. The candidate represented Cadmillus,
the youngest of the Cabiri, who was slain by his three
brethren. The legend of the Cabiric Mysteries, asf ar as it
can be understood from the faint allusions of ancient
authors, was in spirit and design very analogous to that
of the Third Degree of Freemasonry 256

Cadmillus. One of the gods of the Cabiri, who was slain by
his brothers, on which circumstance the legend of the Ca-
biric or Samothracian Mysteries is founded. He is the ana-
logue of the builder in the Hiramic legend of Freemasonry. 256

Cairns. Heaps of stones of a conical form, erected by the
Druids. Some suppose them to have been sepulchral
monuments, others altars. They were undoubtedly of a
rehgious character, since sacrificial fires were lighted upon

Synoptical Index 329

them, and processions were made around them. These
processions were analogous to the circumambulations in
Freemasonry, and were conducted hke them with reference
to the apparent course of the sun. . . . .144

Cassia. A gross corruption of Acacia. The cassia is an aro-
matic plant, but it has no mystical or symbohc char-
acter. 250

Celtic Mysteries. The religious rites of ancient Gaul and

Britain, more famiUarly known as Druidism, which see. 109

Ceremonies. The outer garments which cover and adorn

Freemasonry as clothing does the human body. . • , H
Although ceremonies give neither life nor truth to doctrines
or principles, yet they have an admirable influence, since by
their use certain things are made to acquire a sacred char-
acter which they would not otherwise have had. Hence
Lord Coke has most wisely said that "prudent antiquity
did, for more solemnity and better memory and observa-
tion of that which is to be done, express substances under
ceremonies." 170

Ceres. Among the Romans the goddess of agriculture; but
among the more poetic Greeks she became, as Demeter, the
symbol of the prolific earth. See Demeter. ... 36

Charter of Cologne. A Masonic document of great celeb-
rity, but not of unquestioned authenticity. It is a
declaration or affirmation of the design and principles of
Freemasonry, issued in the year 1535, by a convention of
Craftsmen who had assembled in the city of Cologne. The
original is in the Latin language. The assertors of the
authenticity of the document claim that it was found in
the chest of a Lodge at Amsterdam in 1637, and after-
wards regularly transmitted from hand to hand until the
year 1816, when it was presented to Prince Frederick of
Nassau, through whom it was at that time made known to
the Masonic world. Others assert that it is a forgery,
which was perpetrated about the year 1816. Like the
Leland manuscript, it is one of those vexed questions of
Masonic literary history over which so much doubt has
been thrown, that it will probably never be satisfactorily
solved. A translation of the charter, with copious ex-
planatory notes by Bro. Mackey, was given in the American
Quarterly Review of Freemasonry, vol. ii. p. 52. . . . 64

330 Synoptical Index

Christianization of Freemasonry. The interpretation of
its symbols from a Christian point of view. This is an
error into which Hutchinson and OHver in England, and
Scott and one or two others of less celebrity in this coun-
try, have fallen. Bro. Mackey held that it is impossible
to derive Freemasonry from Christianity, because the
former, in point of time, preceded the latter. In fact,
he believed that the symbols of Freemasonry are Solo-
monic, and that its religion was derived from the ancient

priesthood. 237

The infusion of the Christian element was, however, a natural
result of surrounding circumstances; yet to sustain it
would be fatal to the cosmopolitan character of the in-
stitution 239

Such interpretation is therefore modern, and does not belong
to the ancient system 248

Circular Temples. These were used in the initiations of the
religion of Zoroaster. Like the square temples of Free-
masonry, and the other Mysteries, they were symbolic of
the world, and the symbol was completed by making the
circumference of the circle a representation of the zodiac. 108

CiRCUMAMBULATiON. The ceremouy of perambulating the
Lodge, or going in procession around the altar, which was
universally practised in the ancient initiations and other
religious ceremonies, and was always performed so that
the persons moving should have the altar on their right
hand. The rite was symbolic of the apparent daily course
of the sun from the east to the west by the way of the
south, and was undoubtedly derived from the ancient
sun-worship 141

Civilization. Freemasonry is a result of civilization, for it
exists in no savage or barbarous state of society; and in
return it has proved, by its social and moral principles, a
means of extending and elevating the civilization which

gave it birth 222

Freemasonry is therefore a type of civilization, bearing the
same relation to the profane world that civilization does to
the savage state 223

Colleges op Artificers. The Collegia Fabrorum, or Work-
men's Colleges, were established in Rome by Numa, who
for this purpose distributed all the artisans of the city into

Synoptical Index 331

companies, or colleges, according to their arts and trades.
They resembled the modern corporations, or gilds, which
sprang up in the middle ages. The rule established by
their founder, that not less than three could constitute a
college — "tres faciunt collegium" — has been retained in
the regulations of the Third Degree of Freemasonry, to a
Lodge of which these colleges bore other analogies. . .19

Cologne, Charter of. See Charter of Cologne.

Common Gavel. See Gavel.

Consecration. The appropriating or dedicating, with certain
ceremonies, anything to sacred purposes or offices, by sepa-
rating it from common use. Masonic Lodges, like ancient
temples and modern churches, have always been conse-
crated. Hobbes, in his ''Leviathan" (p. iv. c. 44), gives the
best definition of this ceremony. ''To consecrate is in
Scripture to offer, give, or dedicate, in pious and decent
language and gesture, a man, or any other thing, to God,
by separating it from common use." 171

Consecration, Elements of. Those things, the use of which
in the ceremony as constituent and elementary parts of it,
are necessary to the perfecting and legalizing of the act of
consecration. In Freemasonry, these elements of conse-
cration are corn, wine, and oil, — which see 172

Corn. One of the three elements of Masonic consecration,
and as a symbol of plenty it is intended, under the name
of the "Corn of Nourishment," to remind us of those tem-
poral blessings of life, support, and nourishment which we
receive from the Giver of all good. 172

Corner Stone. The most important stone in the edifice, and
in its symbolism referring to an impressive ceremony in

the First Degree of Freemasonry. 158

The ancients laid it with peculiar ceremonies, and among ,
the Oriental nations it was the symbol of a prince, or chief. 158
It is one of the most impressive symbols of Freemasonry. , 160
It is a symbol of the candidate on his initiation. . . . 161
As a symbol it is exclusively Masonic, and confined to a
temple origin 174

Covering of the Lodge. Under the technical name of the
"clouded canopy or starry-decked heavens," it is a symbol
of the future world — of the celestial Lodge above, where the
G .*. A .*, O /. T /. U .'. forever presides, and which constitutes

332 Synoptical Index

the "foreign country" which every Freemason hopes to
reach. 117

Creuzer. George Frederick Creuzer, who was born in Ger-
many in 1771, and was a professor at the University of
Heidelberg, devoted himself to the study of the ancient
religions, and with profound learning, established a peculiar
system on the subject. Many of his views have been
adopted in the text of the present work. His theory was,
that the religion and mythology of the ancient Greeks
were borrowed from a far more ancient people — a body of
priests coming from the East — who received them as a
revelation. The myths and traditions of this ancient
people were adopted by Hesiod, Homer, and the later
poets, although not without some misunderstanding of
them, and they were finally preserved in the Mysteries,
and became subjects of investigation for the philosophers.
This theory Creuzer has developed in his most important
work, entitled "Symbolik und Mythologie der alten Volker,
besonders der Greichen," which was published at Leipsic,
in 1819. There is no translation of this work into English,
but Guigniaut published at Paris, in 1824, a paraphrastic
translation of it, under the title of "Religions de I'An-
tiquit^ consid^rees principalement dans leur Formes
Symboliques et Mythologiques." Creuzer's views throw
much light on the symbolic history of Freemasonry. . 37

Cross. No symbol was so universally diffused at an early
period as the cross. It was, says Faber, "Cabiri," ii. 390,
a symbol throughout the pagan world long previous to its
becoming an object of veneration to Christians. In ancient
symbology it was a symbol of eternal life. M. de Mortillet,
who in 1866 published a work entitled ''Le Signe de la
Croix avant le Christianisme," found in the very earliest
epochs three principal symbols of universal occurrences;
viz., the circle, the pyramid, and the cross. Leslie ("Man's
Origin and Destiny," p. 312), quoting from him in refer-
ence to the ancient worship of the cross, says, "It seems
to have been a worship of such a peculiar nature as to
exclude the worship of idols." This sacredness of the
cross symbol may be one reason why its form was often
adopted, especially by the Celts in the construction of
their temples, though we have admitted in the text the

Synoptical Index 333

commonly received opinion that in cross-shaped temples
the four limbs of the cross referred to the four elements.
But in a very interesting work — ''The Myths of the New
World" — Brinton assigns another symbolism. "The sym-
bol that beyond all others has fascinated the human mind,
THE CROSS, finds here its source and meaning. Scholars
have pointed out its sacredness in many natural religions,
and have reverently accepted it as a mystery, or offered
scores of conflicting, and often debasing, interpretations.
It is hut another symbol of the four cardinal points, the
four winds of heaven. This will luminously appear by a
study of its use and meaning in America" (p. 95). Mr.
Brinton gives many instances of the religious use of the
cross by several of the aboriginal tribes of this continent,
where the allusion, it must be confessed, seems evidently
to be to the four cardinal points, or the four winds, or four
spirits, of the earth. If this be so, and if it is probable
that a similar reference was adopted by the Celtic and
other ancient peoples, then we would have in the cruciform
temple as much a symbohsm of the world, of which the
four cardinal points constitute the boundaries, as we have
in the square, the cube, and the circle. .... 107

Cteis. a representation of the female generative organ. It
was, as a symbol, always accompanied by the phallus, and,
Uke that symbol, was extensively venerated by the nations
of antiquity. It was a symbol of the prolific powers of
nature. See Phallus 113

Cube. A geometrical figure, consisting of six equal sides with
equal angles. It is the square solidified, and was among
the ancients a symbol of truth. The same symbolism is
recognized in Freemasonry 162

D

Darkness. It denotes falsehood and ignorance, and was a very

universal symbol among the nations of antiquity. . .150

In all the ancient initiations, the aspirant was placed in dark-
ness for a period differing in each — among the Druids for
three days, among the Greeks for twenty-seven, and in the
Mysteries of Mithras for fifty 154

In all of these, as well as in Freemasonry, darkness is the
symbol of initiation not complete. 155

334 Synoptical Index

Death. Because it was believed to be the entrance to a better
and eternal life, which was the dogma of the Mysteries,
death became the symbol of initiation; and hence among
the Greeks the same word signified to die, and to he initiated.
In the British Mysteries, says Davies, " Mythology of the
British Druids," the novitiate passed the river of death in
the boat of Garanhir, the Charon of the Greeks; and before
he could be admitted to this privilege, it was requisite that
he should have been mystically buried, as well as mystically
dead 156

Definition of Freemasonry. The definition quoted in the
text, that it is a science of morality, veiled in allegory and
illustrated by symbols, is the one which is given in the

English lectures 11

But a more comprehensive and exact definition is, that it is a
science which is engaged in the search after divine truth. . 305

Delta. In the higher Degrees of Freemasonry, the triangle is
so called because the Greek letter of that name is of a

triangular form. 195

It is a symbol of Deity, because it is the simplest perfect
figure in geometry; it is the leading figure in which space
is enclosed by straight or right lines 197

Demeter. Worshipped by the Greeks as the symbol of the
prolific earth. She was the Ceres of the Romans. To her
is attributed the institution of the Eleusinian Mysteries
in Greece, the most popular of all the ancient initiations. 35

Design of Freemasonry. It is not charity or almsgiving. . 266
Freemasonry is not the cultivation of the social sentiment;

for both of these are merely incidental to its organization. 268
But it is the search after truth, and that truth is the unity of
God and the immortality of the soul. .... 305

DiESEAL. A term used by the Druids to designate the circum-
ambulation around the sacred cairns. The word is derived
from two words signifying "on the right of the sun," because
the circumambulation was always in imitation of the course
of the sun, with the right hand next to the cairn or altar. 144

DiONYsiAC Artificers. An association of architects who pos-
sessed the exclusive privilege of erecting temples and other
public buildings in Asia Minor. The members were distin-
guished from the uninitiated inhabitants by the possession
of peculiar marks of recognition, and by the secret character

Synoptical Index 335

of their association. They were intimately connected with the
Dionysiac Mysteries, and are supposed to have furnished
the builders for the construction of the temple of Solomon. 45

Dionysiac Mysteries. In addition to what is said in the text,
we add the following, slightly condensed, from the pen of
that accomplished writer, Albert Pike: "The initiates in
these Mysteries had preserved the ritual and ceremonies
that accorded with the simphcity of the earhest ages, and
the manners of the first men. The rules of Pythagoras were
followed there. Like the Egyptians, who held wool un-
clean, they buried no initiate in woolen garments. They
abstained from bloody sacrifices, and lived on fruits or
vegetables. They imitated the life of the contemplative
sects of the Orient. One of the most precious advantages
promised by their initiation was to put man in communion
with the gods by purifying his soul of all the passions that
interfere with that enjoyment, and dim the rays of divine
light that are communicated to every soul capable of re-
ceiving them. The sacred gates of the temple, where the
ceremonies of initiation were performed, were opened but
once in each year, and no stranger was allowed to enter.
Night threw her veil over these august Mysteries. There
the sufferings of Dionysus were represented, who, like
Osiris, died, descended to hell, and rose to hfe again; and
raw flesh was distributed to the initiates, which each ate in
memory of the death of the Deity torn in pieces by the
Titans." 45