Esoteric Symbolism
These seven laws are the basis of all true psychological understanding and, when their influence is
better grasped, man will arrive at real self knowledge. He will then be ready for the fourth
initiation which releases him from all further need for rebirth. This is the truth which underlies the
Masonic teaching, which is given under the symbolism of the first eighteen degrees. These can be
divided into four groups of degrees:--Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft, (followed by the Mark
degree) Master Mason (followed by the H.R.A.) and the grouped degrees, four to seventeen, in
the Scottish Rite. These seventeen degrees prepare the man for the fourth [Page 153] or
fundamental degree, taken by a man who is a Master Mason. It can only be taken when the
Master is in possession of the true Lost Word. He has risen from the dead; he has been entered,
passed, and raised, and now can be perfected. Herein lies a great mystery. These seventeen
degrees, leading to the first great step, (taken by the risen Master) are subjectively related to the
seventeen laws which we have been considering. There is a parallelism worth noting between:--
1. The eighteen laws:--
a. The three major laws of the universe,
b. The seven minor laws of the solar system,
c. The seven basic laws of the soul, plus what we might call the great law of Deity Itself, the law
of God's synthetic purpose.
2. The eighteen subplanes through which man makes his way:--
a. The seven physical subplanes.
b. The seven astral or emotional-desire subplanes.
c. The four lower mental subplanes.
3. The eighteen degrees in Masonry, from that of the Entered Apprentice to that of the perfected
initiate of the Rose Croix Chapter.
4. The eighteen centres of force with which the spiritual man has to work:
a. The seven centres in the etheric body.
b. The seven centres in the astral body.
c. The three rows of petals in the egoic lotus.
d. The "Jewel in the Lotus", at the heart of the "flower of the soul", which makes the eighteenth
centre.
An understanding of these symbolic relations will do much to clarify the way of the soul in a body,
and will constitute the basis of all true esoteric psychological study. TSR-II 153
...the fundamental Masonic symbol of the Eye of God which dominates everything within the
Temple...
1. The Eye of God. Shiva is the first Person of the Trinity, the Destroyer, but at the same time the
Final Absorber, the Whole and yet the part. This is the organ of the divine Will or Power, the Eye,
through Whose directed gaze the power flows outward to its created Whole. In the case of the
human spirit, it is the Monad.
2. The Eye of Vision, indicating this time not the directing energy, but the conscious Observer,
the Soul, whether cosmic, solar or human.
3. The Eye that Knows. This is the disciple who, from stage to stage, reacts increasingly to the
direction of the spiritual will and to the growth of sensitive response, and in both his brain and his
mind consciousness in the three worlds knows. That knowledge is limited in the neophyte,
deepening in the disciple and profound in the Master, but it is all related to vision. DNA-II 265
The only ritual which is [Page 228] still regarded as of value to the human family as a
whole--particularly to the advanced person--is the Masonic Ritual. The reason for this is that it
is a pictorial representation of the process of Creation, of the relation between God and man, of
the Path of Return and also of those great Initiations through the means of which the liberated
initiate passes into the Council Chamber of the Most High. But with the exception of this, the
small petty rituals of position and of physical relations in respect to attitude and seating
arrangements are regarded as unnecessary and as usurping frequently the attention which should
be given to the work in hand. GWP 227-28
There has been much loose talk about the raising of the kundalini fire and much misapprehension
in the matter. Let me assure you that it is most difficult to raise, and can only be done by a
definite act of the will and through the intense mental focussing and concentrated attention of the
man, seated on the throne of consciousness in the head. The Masonic tradition has the teaching
clearly held in its beautiful ritual of the raising of the great Master-Mason. Only when there is
united effort of a fivefold kind, and only after repeated failure, does the [Page 594] vivifying life
course through the entire body and bring to life the true man.TWM
The passwords as used in Masonry--though practically valueless now--based on the use of
mantrams and some day when there is an Initiate Head to all these organisations (such as
Masonry, various esoteric societies, and religious bodies) the old mantrams will be given back in
pure form to the peoples. LOM 165
Herein is found the secret of the resurrection, viewing it in the planetary sense,-- a resurrection
enacted also individually by each achieving son of God. This is the great Masonic secret, and the
central mystery of the sublime or third degree in Masonry. It is sometimes occultly referred to as
"the relation of death to the five life-giving energies seen working upon the third day of
revelation." TSR-I 264
The darkness of ignorance was chosen and man started, through desire, to work his way from
darkness to light, from ignorance to knowledge, from the unreal to the Real. Such is the great
symbolic work of Masonry. It is an elucidation of the Way of Relinquishment. TSR-II 77
The first ray disciple has, therefore, to meet the requirements to the best of his ability and to
follow the four stages of the technique of projection. When he has faithfully followed this
outlined routine, personality and soul fusion has to be consciously attempted and to some measure
achieved, and then these blended factors are held steady in the triadal light. Another point of
focussed intention is now brought about, resulting in a new and still more dynamic tension. In the
completed silence which results, the act of projecting the antahkarana is performed, [Page 515]
and it is then carried forward on the impetus of a Word of Power. The symbolism connected with
this lies behind the Masonic usage of the words, translated into English, "So mote it be," uttered
with the right hand stretched forth and signifying the embodied will of the Lodge, itself a symbol
of the Will and Purpose of the Most High. TSR-V
Again the first two stages of Intention and Visualisation have been carefully followed and the four
stages of the Projection have been carried through to their highest point. The vivid light of the
second ray soul (the most vivid in this second ray solar system) dominates the light of form and
radiates out to the triadal light. Then comes a moment of intense concentration and the peculiar
Word of Power of the second ray is enunciated. Of this Word, the dual symbol SXPRULXS
takes form in the mind of the disciple and signifies the assertion: "I SEE THE GREATEST
LIGHT." This statement has relation to the Central Spiritual Sun and not to the Heart of the Sun;
it involves, if I might so express it, the most intense effort to see in the light the relation of the
whole, and this is one of the most potent experiences to which the disciple can be subjected. It is
not vision or even aspiration to see the vision. It is complete sight and of this the Masonic symbol
of the "Eye of God," the "All-Seeing Eye," is the expression. It involves realisation of the light
of the divine countenance; of this the light of the soul is the dim reflection. The disciple has learnt
the significance of solar and lunar light (soul and form light), but this is something other. It is the
great obliterating light of reality itself, revealing the fact of the higher Lighted Way which leads to
Nirvana; Of this, the projected antahkarana is the stage first consciously realised by the disciple.
TSR-V 517
Those who pass away from the earth after the fifth initiation, or those who do not become
Masters in physical incarnation, take their subsequent initiations elsewhere in the system. All are
in the Logoic Consciousness. One great fact to be borne in mind is, that the initiations of the
planet or of the solar system are but the preparatory initiations of admission into the greater
Lodge on Sirius. We have the symbolism held for us fairly well in Masonry, and in combining
the Masonic method with what we are told of the steps on the Path of Holiness we get an
approximate picture. Let us enlarge somewhat:--
The first four initiations of the solar system correspond to the four "initiations of the Threshold,"
prior to the first cosmic initiation. The fifth initiation corresponds to the first cosmic initiation,
that of "entered apprentice" in Masonry; and makes a Master an "entered apprentice" of the
Lodge on Sirius. The sixth initiation is analogous to the second degree in Masonry, whilst the
seventh initiation makes the Adept a Master Mason of the Brotherhood on Sirius. IHS 17-18
This subjective and objective system governs the manifestation of the soul on the physical plane.
It indicates to those who can see in truth, the grasp or hold that the soul has upon its instrument;
it can be seen whether that grasp is occasional and partial or whether it is entire and whole. This
is most wonderfully indicated in a certain Masonic grip, which marks a climax in the experience
of the candidate to the mysteries. TSR-II 65
...the experience of the three crosses has a Masonic significance and can be connected with the
Blue Lodge:
1. The Common Cross . . . The E.A. Degree
2. The Fixed Cross . . . . . . The F.C. Degree
3. The Cardinal Cross . . . . The M.M. Degree
Much will come to light in Masonry when its astrological implications are studied and understood.
TSR-III 104
Humanity is the treasure-house of God (this is the great Masonic secret), for only in the human
kingdom, as esotericists have long pointed out, are the three divine qualities found in their full
flower and together. In man, God the Father has hidden the secret of life; in man, God the Son
has secreted the treasures of wisdom and of love; in man, God the Holy Spirit has implanted the
mystery of manifestation. Humanity, and humanity alone, can reveal the nature of the Godhead
and of eternal life. TSR-I 312
...the secret of the Masonic story and of the slaying of the Master by the three most [Page 397] closely associated with Him in His death and burial. Masons will all recognise the three to whom I here refer. These three were the founders of the modern Jewish race. They were three advanced disciples who resented the command to enter, free and untrammelled, the place where light is to be found. They sought to hold that which they had gathered and to dedicate it to the service of God. Their unrecognised motive was love of riches and a desire to hold safe their gains.
TSR-I
Curiously enough, this ancient race [Jewish], founded by the three who loved that which they had to offer
more than that which they longed to take, were the originators of the Masonic tradition. Their
history (and incidentally the history of humanity) is embodied in that dramatic ritual. The reward
for their sincerity,--for they revolted in utter sincerity, believing they knew best--was the
permission to enact each year, on the return of the day when they might have entered into light,
the story of the search for light. Because they had been so [Page 399] nearly resurrected from the
death of earth into the life of light, the great tradition of the mysteries was started by them. They
chose death and slew that which "had lived and which could have claimed reward", and which
could have spoken the word of power which would have caused the gates of resurrection to open
wide.
We are told that these three swore an everlasting vow to stand together and never to desert each
other. This vow down the ages they have kept; it has consequently produced that racial
separativeness and community of interests which arouses the antagonism of other races. TSR-I
Virgo symbolises depths, darkness, quiet and warmth; it is the valley of deep experience wherein secrets are discovered and eventually "brought to light"; it is the place of slow, gentle and yet powerful crises and periodic developments which take place in the dark and yet which lead to light. It is the "blinded stage" which is found in Masonic rituals and which ever precedes the gift of light. Virgo stands for the "womb of time" wherein God's plan (the mystery and the secret of the ages) is slowly matured and--with pain and discomfort and through struggle and conflict--brought into manifestation at the end of the appointed time. Today it would seem (curiously and convincingly) that we are entering into the eighth month of the gestation period; this is almost literally the case where humanity is concerned for--counting from Virgo to Aquarius, the sign into which we are now entering--we find that there are just eight signs: Virgo, Leo, Cancer, Gemini, Taurus, Aries, Pisces and Aquarius, and this is surely the guarantee [Page 261] that the birth of the new age, of the new consciousness and the new civilisation and culture is inevitable and sure. TSR-III
