Rituals of Freemasonry
The Worship of Lucifer, SATAN
Part 1 of 5
From the Analogy ("The Matrix") page you learned that certain Masonic authors praise Lucifer. And it doesn’t stop there. It extends to their symbolism as well. It is important to STRESS that not all Masons worship Lucifer, only the top 5% do.
A majority of this page on Freemasonry was taken from Masonic books that were published by Masonic Publishing Companies. Most of these writings were kept secret.
Many people still do not understand the importance of studying this subject to its logical conclusion. Their spiritual freedom is at stake. Remember two things about Masonry:
1) Superior Masons deliberately lie to their fellow Masons, as those Masons "deserve to be mislead"
2) Explanations given to 95% of all Masons are wrong
This quote from Masonic author, Carl Claudy sums it all up:
"Cut through the outer shell and find a meaning; cut through that meaning and find another; under it, if you dig deep enough, you may find a third, a fourth - who shall say how many teachings?"
Many who are in Masonry are not aware that they are lied to.
Finally, remember Albert Pike’s bold assertion in Morals & Dogma, that "Masonry is identical to the ancient Mysteries" [p. 624, teachings of the 28th Degree]
Of course these top 5% call Jesus Christ an "inferior god," they never, ever mention Him in their teachings or their rituals. This shouldn’t surprise you since the Pope carries a bent Satanic cross as seen on another page which shames Christ on the cross.
Freemasons used Luciferic symbols within the layout of government center Washington D.C. Freemasons worship Lucifer, the Light-Bearer. Lucifer and Satan are biblically the same individual, Freemasonry is really the worship of Satan. By quoting their own sources and depicting the symbols in which they use, this claim is proven.
LUCIFER PRAISED AS THE LIGHT-BEARER OF FREEMASONRY
"Lucifer, the Light-bearer! Strange and mysterious name to give to the Spirit of Darkness! Lucifer, the Son of the Morning! Is it he who bears the Light, and with its splendors intolerable, blinds feeble, sensual, or selfish souls? Doubt it not!"
[Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry]
Masons from the first initiation which is the first degree are urged to mightily "seek the Light!" The average Mason is continually saying that he is "seeking the Light," and will spend his entire life "moving toward the Light."
People who haven’t studied this subject would assume that this "Light" is the revelation of the God of the Bible. This statement is continuously held up to try to convince us that Masonry is Christian. In the above quote, Albert Pike is saying that Lucifer is the One who bears the Light of Freemasonry.
The sentence immediately preceding confirms not only that Lucifer is the Light-bearer, but that Masons of previous degrees have been led to believe that the opposite was true.
The wording of this sentence is difficult to understand unless you have special knowledge. Doc Marquis was asked for his explanation, lets look at what he had to say:
"The Apocalypse is, to those who receive the nineteenth Degree, the Apotheosis of that Sublime Faith which aspires to God Alone, and despises all the pomps and works of Lucifer."
[Ibid.]
It seems to contradict the sentence first quoted above, It appears to contradict the quote above where Pike identifies Lucifer as the Masonic Light-bearer. However when you understand the esoteric explanation from Doc Marquis, your understanding clears up completely.
The Apocalypse is identified first by Pike as being the Book of Revelation written by the Apostle John. Pike then states that similar books from other religions are just as ’inspired’ as Revelation, mentioning Plato, Philo, the Sephar Yezirah, and the Sohar. Pike says all three of these books -- Apocalypse [Revelation], the Sephar Yezirah, and the Sohar, are all identically "inspired." And since the last two books are of non-Christian faiths, Albert Pike is saying that the contents of Revelation are no big deal.
Pike then says that these three books "are the completest embodiment of Occultism." [Ibid.] Now, we understand that Pike views the God of the Apocalypse as being the opposite but equal to Satan just as typical Occultists believe and teach!
Secondly, Doc Marquis provides the esoteric, occultic, explanation. Pike is also saying in this sentence that, in the previous 18 degrees, Masons believed that God was the Light-bearer, but now, in this 19th Degree, Pike is giving them new revelation. This insight completely squares with stated Masonic policy of deliberately misleading Masons in the lower degrees until they were really ready for the "truth."
This is the truth - Masonry worships Lucifer.
PIKE’S TYPICAL SATANIC PHRASE -- OUT WHERE EVERYONE CAN SEE
Concrete evidence is then given by Pike of Freemason’s worship of Satan/Lucifer on the very front of the cover of Morals and Dogma. Pike writes a Latin phrase just below the round seal of "God," this is a phrase proven to be Satanic.
Any "Satanic brother" looking at this phrase would know that the contents of this book are Satanic. They would also understand that the entire religion of Freemasonry is Satanic.
"DEUS MEUMQUE JUS" is this phrase. The literal meaning is "God and My Right"
Doc Marquis says this statement is a typical one within Satanism. There is one meaning within another with this statement. The first meaning is that the Freemason can depend upon their God to determine their Right and Justice. The second meaning is, since the God of Freemasonry is Lucifer, Masons are saying that they are "using occult methods," through Lucifer, to achieve their Rights and Justice.
This phrase is very powerful and dangerous within Satanism says Marquis. A Satanist knows the content within Pike’s book is Satanism just by reading, "DEUS MEUMQUE JUS." They don’t even have to read the book, just the phrase to know.
"SEETHING ENERGIES OF LUCIFER WITHIN YOUR HANDS!"
"The day has come when Fellow Craftsman must know and apply their knowledge. The lost key to their grade is the mastery of emotion , which places the energy of the universe at their disposal. Man can only expect to be entrusted with great power by proving his ability to use it constructively and selflessly. When the Mason learns that the key to the warrior on the block is the proper application of the dynamo of living power, he has learned the mystery of his Craft.
The seething energies of Lucifer are in his hands, and before he may step onward and upward, he must prove his ability to properly apply energy. He must follow in the footsteps of his forefather, Tubal-Cain, who with the mighty strength of the war god hammered his sword into a plowshare."
[Manly P. Hall, 33rd Degree, K.T., The Lost Keys of Freemasonry or The Secret of Hiram Abiff , Forward by Reynold E. Blight, 33rd Degree, K.T., Illustrations by J. Augustus Knapp, 32nd Degree, Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply Company, Inc., Richmond, Virginia, p. 48; Emphasis Added]
Once the Mason learns to control his emotion and to apply the "dynamo of living power," the Mason can be assured of being able to control the "seething energies of Lucifer" in his hands.
He makes the admission that Masonry is the Craft, which is an old name for Witchcraft. Satanists are assured that, if they will join the coven and learn the Craft, he will control the supernatural power of Satan, just as Manly P. Hall promises here.
As you can see, they have exposed themselves. Powerful proof that Freemasonry is Satanism. The language is direct and clear. It is not cluttered with deliberately confusing arcane language that only an insider can understand.
Further, note that Hall and Reynold E. Blight are 33rd Degree Masons, while the Illustrator is 32nd Degree. Macoy Publishing Company is also one of the most respected of all Masonic Publishing Houses.
REVELATIONS OF TUBAL-CAIN
Please take note that Hall makes reference to Tubal-Cain, above. We need to review this sentence because it too reveals Satanism. The Mason must "follow in the footsteps of his forefather, Tubal-Cain, who with the mighty strength of the war god hammered his sword into a plowshare."
In the Masonic Quiz Book, the candidate is asked this question:
"Who was Tubal Cain?" Answer: "He is the Vulcan of the pagans."
[William P. Peterson, Editor, Masonic Quiz Book: "Ask Me Brother", Chicago, Illinois, Charles T. Power Company, 1950, p. 18, 88, 131, 213; also found in John Yarker, The Arcane Schools: A Review of their Origin and Antiquity: With a General History of Freemasonry and Its Relation to the Theosophic Scientific and Philosophic Mysteries, Belfast, Ireland, William Tait, 1909, p. 30; also found in A. R. Chambers, Editor, Questions and Answers, 1972, p. 237; also found in Malcom Duncan, Duncan’s Ritual of Freemasonry, New York, David McKay Company, Inc., n.d. 3rd Edition, p. 94.]
Tubal-Cain is the password given in the Third Degree of Master Mason.
You can identify Freemasonry with paganism within this sentence. But what is the meaning of the Vulcan of the pagans? A very important question because Manly P. Hall advises the Mason that, once he has the seething energies of Lucifer in his hands, he is to walk in Tubal-Cain’s footsteps.
Hall makes it sound like Tubal-Cain is one of the Greek gods, does he not? And, we know conclusively that Tubal-Cain is Vulcan of the Pagans. Let us review who Vulcan of the pagans is, by looking within occult sources.
"Vulcan was a sun deity who was associated with fire, thunderbolts and light. The festival in honor of him was called the Vulcania in which human sacrifices were offered."
[Percival George Woodcock, Short Dictionary of Mythology, New York, Philosophical Library, p. 152].
"According to Diel, he bears a family relationship to the Christian devil."
[J.E. Cirlot, translated by Jack Sage, A Dictionary of Symbols , New York, Dorset Press, 1991, p. 362].
"It is fascinating to know that he married Venus, another name for Lucifer or the devil ."
[Woodcock, op. cit., p. 150-151]
Manly P. Hall tells the Mason that he can have the seething energies of Lucifer in his hands, and then tells him to follow in the footsteps of the "Christian devil," to whom "human sacrifices" are offered.
THE INFERNAL NAMES
There may be some people who have read up to this point and still might be skeptical. Masonry cleverly masks its references to Satan.
There are 77 names which pagans have used to refer to Satan over the centuries and they are in the Satanic Bible. We’ll review some of these "Infernal Names" of Satanism found within Masonry. [Satanic Bible, Anton LaVey, p. 144-46]
We shall list the Freemason teaching on each of these names, and then the explanation.
Baphomet --
"The Gnostics held that it [universal agent] composed the igneous [pertaining to fire] body of the Holy Spirit, and it was adored in the secret rites of the Sabbat or the Temple under the hieroglyphic figure of Baphomet or the hermaphroditic goat of Mendes ."
[Pike, op. cit., p. 734, teaching of the 28th Degree]
We find it absolutely incredible that the Freemasons should portray the Holy Spirit with the Satanic symbol, Baphomet.
Eliphas Levi created this symbol, one of the foremost Satanists and Freemasons of all time.
The Baphomet is one of the most evil of all symbols. Looking closely at the Baphomet (above) you will see that the emphasis is on sex. This Being is androgynous -- both male and female -- you can see it has the breasts of a woman, and an erect phallus.
You’ll notice that the erect phallus has two serpents coiled around it. The Baphomet has the head of a "Horned Goat," another title for Satan.
Masonic and Occult Symbols Illustrated is a book in which Dr. Burns says,
"In a book on witchcraft, The Complete Book of Witchcraft and Demonology ... the caption states that he is ’the horned god of the witches, symbol of sex incarnate’."
[p. 51]
And if you look at his right hand you will see Baphomet making the sign of the Devil’s triad.
"Baphomet is also known as the Sabbatic goat, in whose form Satan is to be worshipped at the Witches’ Sabbath."
[Frank Gaynor, Dictionary of Mysticism]
Then, we discovered that Baphomet is officially approved as a symbol of the Church of Satan [The Occult Emporium, Winter, 1993-1994, p. 54] and that it is worn by the Priest of Satan [Ibid., 1990-1991, p. 26]
Since Albert Pike linked Baphomet with the Goat of Mendes , we will show this obviously Satanic symbol, as well. It should also be noted that from the way a pentagram is normally seen (one point up, two down), rotating the pentagram 33 degrees you get a Satanic Pentagram. 33 is the highest degree there is in Freemasonry.
Freemasonry makes use of the Pentagram quite a bit. You can see the similarity between the Eastern Star and and the Satanic Pentagram above. The Eastern Star is a Freemason division for women.
Once again, Masonry utilizes a very evil Satanic symbol for the Order that trains its young, impressionable girls. Why didn’t Masonry at least utilize the "Good Star" with one point up, rather than the most evil 5-pointed star, this Goats Head of Mendes? Truly, their use of this symbol tells us exactly that they are evil through and through, even to their own young girls.
Eastern Star
Above is a picture of a typical Masonic Ring symbol (compass, square, and rule). On the right is the full figure from which the Ring symbol was taken. Looking closely you can see two 5-pointed pentagrams. One of which is colored darker than the other. The one depicting Satan is the one which has two points up and one down. And the other with one point up and two down, depicting Lucifer. [See the Lucifer-Satan Pentagram explanation, below].
The Masonic Ring symbol is just a disguised Pentagram with both the "Good" and "Evil" stars represented.
Thoth --
"The first HERMES was the Intelligence or Word of God. Moved with compassion for a race living without law ... God sent to man Osiris and Isis, accompanied by THOTH, the incarnation or terrestrial repetition of the first HERMES; who taught men the arts, science, and the ceremonies of religion; and then ascended to Heaven or the Moon."
[Pike, Morals and Dogma].
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky was founder of the House of Theosophy. Her books were all written by her demonic Guiding Spirits in a form that is called Automatic Writing.
These writings tie Thoth together nicely.
"... Hermes, the god of wisdom, called also Thoth, Tat, Set, and Sat-an; and that he was, furthermore, when viewed under his bad aspect, Typhon, the Egyptian Satan , who was also Set."
[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Isis Unveiled , Vol. I: Science]
Blavatsky like Anton LaVey in the Satanic Bible, had no trouble tying the Infernal Name, Thoth, with Satan, and especially the Egyptian Satan. This subject does go back a long way. Remember Pike’s words, quoted in the very beginning, that "Masonry is identical to the ancient Mysteries!"
What this statement means is that Freemasons believe the same as all the Ancient Mysteries and worship the same god, Satan, and they worship Satan under different names.
Keep in mind that we are dealing with a highly advanced people. A people who have had a lot of practice in their art of deceit. From the Table of Coincidence page in the Masonic rituals section you were made aware that individuals within the U.S government and NASA have been staging major worldly events which coincide with 19.5/33 degrees from the perspective of that particular event. This again is traceable back to ancient Egypt.
Since Blavatsky mentioned another of the Infernal Names, Typhon, and has identified him as the Egyptian Satan, let us review Albert Pike once again, as we discover that Freemasonry reveres Typhon as well.
Typhon --
"Osiris was the son of Helios (Phra) the ’divine offspring congenerate with the dawn’ and at the same time an incarnation of Kneph or Agathodaemon, the Good Spirit, including all his possible manifestations, either physical or moral. He represented in a familiar form the beneficent aspect of all higher emanations and in him was developed the conception of a Being purely good, so that it became necessary to set up another power as his adversary, called Seth, Baby, or Typhon to account for the injurious influences of Nature."
[Pike, op. cit., p. 588, Teachings of the 28th Degree, Knight of the Sun, or Prince Adept].
Once again, we can see the occult, Satanic doctrine that all of Nature is composed of good and evil, black and white, opposites that are equal but opposite. Folks, this is pure Satanism, and Albert Pike has just espoused it, explaining that nature could not allow the all-loving, all-good Osiris to exist without an evil counterpart. In fact, Satanism and Freemasonry both share the same, very revealing, symbol to depict this situation. Quoting from Masonic sources, you are provided with this picture.
In these symbols, the below left-hand Pentagram surrounded by the magic circle is Lucifer -- the good god -- with the one point upward and two down; the below right-hand Pentagram, again surrounded by the magic circle, is Satan -- the evil god -- with the two points up and the one down.
These symbols depict exactly what Albert Pike is talking about in the paragraph above. He says that the evil god, whom he calls Seth or Typhon [Typhon is listed in The Satanic Bible as Infernal Names for Satan] is the adversary of the good god, Osiris; therefore, Pike is saying Osiris is Lucifer , a finding consistent with the rest of the Occult realm.
[Above symbols taken from: Arthur Edward Waite, The Mysteries Of Magic: A Digest of the Writings of Eliphas Levi, Chicago, DeLaurence, Scott, and Company, Inc., 1966 Edition, 1909, p. 223 -- NOTE: Waite is a Freemason author!; also shown in D. Duane Winters, A Search For Light In A Place of Darkness: A Study of Freemasonry , p. 69.]
You should find this highly interesting that the Masonic street layout for Washington, D.C., which is on another page, is laid out in the form of the evil Pentagram on the right, the symbol for Satan, also known as the Goats Head of Mendes. Therefore, the Masonic Plan for the United States is one of evil, even in their own minds, not good.
Pan --
"... Satan is not a black god, but negation of God ... this is not a Person, but a Force, created for good, but which may represent evil. It is the instrument of Liberty or Free Will. They represent this Force ... under the mythologic and horned form of the God Pan; thence came the he-goat of the Sabbat, brother of the Ancient Serpent, and the Light-bearer ..."
[Pike, Morals and Dogma, p. 102]
Since The Satanic Bible lists Pan as one of the Infernal Names of Satan, we need to look further into the Occult for more information on Pan. However, we now know that, from Pan came the he-goat of the Sabbat, brother of the Serpent, and the Light-bearer, [Lucifer] , because Albert Pike, the #1 Freemason of all history, has just told us.
One thing more to keep in mind. They have planned their debut of their Anti-Christ. He will be on the scene soon, you can bet on it. It’s all part of their New World Order. Freemasonry is truly evil, it is deceptive, it is the work of the Devil. Listen to Bill Cooper, describe Freemasonry. Cooper was a member of Demolay during his youth, and later, spent over 20 years in Naval Intelligence. He is most familiar with the organizations which are driving the world into the New World Order and the appearance of its Messiah, the Biblical Antichrist.
"I tell you now that Freemasonry is one of the most wicked and terrible organizations upon this earth. The Masons are major players in the struggle for world domination. The 33rd Degree is split into two. One split contains the core of the Luciferian Illuminati and the other contains those who have no knowledge of it whatsoever."
[Behold A Pale Horse]
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Monday, September 26, 2011
EXCLUSIVE!!***SEPT-14-2011 HUGE UFO CRAFT FILMED OVER SAN ANTONIO,TX*** - YouTube
***Latest UFO Sighting over San Antonio,Tx***
Sep-14-2011 a Huge UFO craft was filmed over San Antonio,Tx..As I was facing west I notice this Huge glowing object traveling east.I could clearly see this object was no aircraft .No FAA navigational light's were visible.So i quickly crabbed my camcorder for a closer observation..As i began filming this huge unknown object multiply lights could be seen..This UFO appears to be a solid craft.On the video you can see this object to be emiting some kind of glowing energy.While i was filming unknown,the lights configuration began to change.When zooming in multiply lights were diff were shape... I did not see any FAA lights/hear any noise coming from this unknown object....In my opinion Clearly an UNIDENTIFED FLYING OBJECT..This was an awesome sighting due to as it appears to be One solid object..And the size of this object seemed to be enormous..This huge glowing object was clearly no aircraft or satellite
Sep-14-2011 a Huge UFO craft was filmed over San Antonio,Tx..As I was facing west I notice this Huge glowing object traveling east.I could clearly see this object was no aircraft .No FAA navigational light's were visible.So i quickly crabbed my camcorder for a closer observation..As i began filming this huge unknown object multiply lights could be seen..This UFO appears to be a solid craft.On the video you can see this object to be emiting some kind of glowing energy.While i was filming unknown,the lights configuration began to change.When zooming in multiply lights were diff were shape... I did not see any FAA lights/hear any noise coming from this unknown object....In my opinion Clearly an UNIDENTIFED FLYING OBJECT..This was an awesome sighting due to as it appears to be One solid object..And the size of this object seemed to be enormous..This huge glowing object was clearly no aircraft or satellite
FREEMASONARY AND ILLUMINATI
by Peter Farley
Excerpted from Volume 5 of 'Where Were You Before The Tree of Life?'
from 4ThruthSeekers Website
The Illuminati
"Popular history texts and encyclopedias generally paint the Illuminati as having its origins in 1776 Bavaria. However, the origins go back much further. The Illuminati are tied directly through masonry to the sun and Isis cults of ancient Egypt.
"The term "Illuminati" was used by one early writer, Menendez Pelayo, as early as 1492 and is attributable to a group known as the "Alumbrados" of Spain. The Alumbrados were said to receive secret knowledge from an unknown higher source, resulting in superior human intelligence. This group was condemned by an edict of the Grand Inquisition in 1623, in what was another battle in the long-running war between the catholic Church and the secret societies.
"Some writers claim that a group known as the "Illumined Ones" was founded by Joachim of Floris in the eleventh century and taught a primitive, supposedly Christian doctrine of "poverty and equality." This tactic to disguise Illuminism behind a thin veil of Christianity is now a well-established theme. Later, this group is said to have become violent, plundering the rich and thereby discrediting Christianity as a whole.
"Still other writers trace the Illuminati to the dreaded Ishmalean sect of Islam, also known as "the Assassins." Founded in 1090 by Hassan Sabah, this group combined the use of the drug hashish with murder as their main path to illumination.
"Killing was a mystical experience to this branch of the Mystery Schools. They not only maintained their control by murder and threats of murder, they believed that the assassin could acquire the gnosis, or soul energy from the victim. This is the theory behind the human and animal sacrifices of Satanists throughout history (and the ritual child abuse etc).
"Primitive religions get the same effect by dancing and drumbeating. Seeking this form of illumination was the main attraction of drugs like marijuana, hashish, and LSD to teenagers of the 1960s and the 1970s. Buddhists can gain the same illumination through sexual rituals known as Tantric Yoga, or through the different forms of mediation. Witchcraft covens still meet in the nude and participate in group sexual rituals for the same effect. Mass participation in animal sacrifice is another way to scavenge gnosis.
"The sad fact is that although sex, drugs, dancing, and drumbeating are believed to release a lot of gnosis, Satanists believe that sacrifices release more of it than anything else. Such are the dark and sordid machinations of the deluded souls who think their gnosis accumulations and illumination will give them some form of deity or immortality. . ."
". . . In what may be the most beautifully composed denunciation of Masonry ever written, de Poncins wrote:
"The great task of freemasonry is to spread ideas sometimes noble and beautiful in appearance but in reality destructive, of which the prototype is the famous motto: Liberty, equality, fraternity."
"Masonry, a vast organism of propaganda, acts by slow suggestion, spreading the revolutionary ferment in an insidious manner. The heads sow it among the inner lodges, these transmit it to the lower lodges whence it penetrates into the affiliated institutions and into the press, which takes in hand the public."
"Tirelessly and during the necessary number of years, the suggestion . . . works upon public opinion and fashions it to wish for the reforms from which nations die. In 1789 and 1848 [the years of the French revolutions], freemasonry, in its momentary command of power, failed in its supreme endeavor. Taught by these experiences, its progress has become slower and surer. When once the revolutionary preparation is obtained and judged sufficient, masonry leaves the field to the militant organizations, Carbonari, Bolshevists, or other open or secret societies, and retires into shadows in the background. There it is not compromised; in case of check, it seems to have remained apart, and is all the better able to continue or take up again its work, like a gnawing worm, obscure and destroying."
"Masonry never works in the full light of day. Every one knows of its existence, its meeting places and of many of its adepts, but one is ignorant of its real aims, its real means, its real leaders. The immense majority of masons themselves are in that position. They are only the blind machinery of the sect which they serve... Many honest masons are so blind that they would be stupefied if they knew for what they are being used."
The Masonic Ritual revealed
"Every Mason swears to a set of oaths so ancient that a separate term has been set aside to describe them. These are called "blood oaths."
"Masonry, as we know it today in America, is thought of as having thirty-third degrees, or levels. Many offshoot organizations have developed over the years that have attempted to add additional degrees above the publicly known thirty-three. Mormonism is one such offshoot. As shown in a later chapter, its founder Joseph Smith, and most, if not all of his initial inner circle of supporters were Masons. He borrowed heavily from Masonic ritual for his newly-created Mormon ceremonies.
"With each successive degree, the Mason must swear to ever more cruel and barbarous oaths. The following details of the initiation oaths of the first three degrees of Masonry are closely guarded Masonic secrets. In fact, every Mason musts swear to kill any fellow mason who reveals them. Fortunately for humanity, however, several brave souls in the last 200 years have felt compelled to speak out, publishing this "secret work" for the world to see. It is thanks to these courageous men that we have the exact wording and rituals of at least the first three degrees."
The personal experience of Lucifer is not often described in literature. What it was like to be Hitler living in a physical body with the incarnational Luciferian energy can only be hinted at in his biographies. The traditional Hollywood idea of fangs and claws and large ‘devilish’ bodies is a stereotype that does not equate to the assimilation of these energies into 3rd dimensional living. Perhaps some of Aleister Crowley’s life might hint at it in part. Alan Richardson, perhaps to some extent, manifests in his book Earth God Rising, the slow descent into what might be called Luciferianism.
And then Camelot
"All myths are in fact living energies. We have decided that much. The ones in question were ancient when the First Dynasty began around 3100 B. C. – and yet they are no age at all. They are instead ever-becoming, like the spurting of Atum, or the column of some sparkling and infinite fountain. How to find that fountain, and when to drink from it, is something that we can spend a lifetime studying only to find (as seekers always do) that it is within us all along.
"One of those figures from the realms of myth and history who was more aware of such matters then most was a certain priest from the 26th Dynasty. Now he knew all about this sort of thing, as he never ceased to tell anyone who cared to listen. Many of the people thought him insufferable because of this, but the man had absolute conviction as to his merit and his destiny, and he never ceased to prophesy. That was what he was best at.
"His name was Ankh-f-n-Khonsu, which means "His heart is with Khonsu." Khonsu was the old Moon God from Thebes, where the mysteries functioned on a more subconscious level than elsewhere. This Dynasty, which ran from 663 to 525 BC—as near as such things can be determined—saw pharaohs bearing the names Necho and Psamtik and Ahmose supporting their rule by Osirian doctrines rather than through the purely solar cults which had taken over in previous centuries.
Set—it was always Set—became the personification of darkness again; the great arts and styles of the Old Kingdom were recreated; a colossal granite temple for the Apis Bull was built at Saqqara; and the Egyptians were able to imagine for a little while that true greatness had been restored to their land. Ankh-f-n-Khonsu, who lived a full life sometime during those reigns, was the priest who brought about the Aeon of Osiris to replace that of Isis. And, as is the way of magic, he was also the one who brought it to an end.
Excerpted from Volume 5 of 'Where Were You Before The Tree of Life?'
from 4ThruthSeekers Website
The Illuminati
"Popular history texts and encyclopedias generally paint the Illuminati as having its origins in 1776 Bavaria. However, the origins go back much further. The Illuminati are tied directly through masonry to the sun and Isis cults of ancient Egypt.
"The term "Illuminati" was used by one early writer, Menendez Pelayo, as early as 1492 and is attributable to a group known as the "Alumbrados" of Spain. The Alumbrados were said to receive secret knowledge from an unknown higher source, resulting in superior human intelligence. This group was condemned by an edict of the Grand Inquisition in 1623, in what was another battle in the long-running war between the catholic Church and the secret societies.
"Some writers claim that a group known as the "Illumined Ones" was founded by Joachim of Floris in the eleventh century and taught a primitive, supposedly Christian doctrine of "poverty and equality." This tactic to disguise Illuminism behind a thin veil of Christianity is now a well-established theme. Later, this group is said to have become violent, plundering the rich and thereby discrediting Christianity as a whole.
"Still other writers trace the Illuminati to the dreaded Ishmalean sect of Islam, also known as "the Assassins." Founded in 1090 by Hassan Sabah, this group combined the use of the drug hashish with murder as their main path to illumination.
"Killing was a mystical experience to this branch of the Mystery Schools. They not only maintained their control by murder and threats of murder, they believed that the assassin could acquire the gnosis, or soul energy from the victim. This is the theory behind the human and animal sacrifices of Satanists throughout history (and the ritual child abuse etc).
"Primitive religions get the same effect by dancing and drumbeating. Seeking this form of illumination was the main attraction of drugs like marijuana, hashish, and LSD to teenagers of the 1960s and the 1970s. Buddhists can gain the same illumination through sexual rituals known as Tantric Yoga, or through the different forms of mediation. Witchcraft covens still meet in the nude and participate in group sexual rituals for the same effect. Mass participation in animal sacrifice is another way to scavenge gnosis.
"The sad fact is that although sex, drugs, dancing, and drumbeating are believed to release a lot of gnosis, Satanists believe that sacrifices release more of it than anything else. Such are the dark and sordid machinations of the deluded souls who think their gnosis accumulations and illumination will give them some form of deity or immortality. . ."
". . . In what may be the most beautifully composed denunciation of Masonry ever written, de Poncins wrote:
"The great task of freemasonry is to spread ideas sometimes noble and beautiful in appearance but in reality destructive, of which the prototype is the famous motto: Liberty, equality, fraternity."
"Masonry, a vast organism of propaganda, acts by slow suggestion, spreading the revolutionary ferment in an insidious manner. The heads sow it among the inner lodges, these transmit it to the lower lodges whence it penetrates into the affiliated institutions and into the press, which takes in hand the public."
"Tirelessly and during the necessary number of years, the suggestion . . . works upon public opinion and fashions it to wish for the reforms from which nations die. In 1789 and 1848 [the years of the French revolutions], freemasonry, in its momentary command of power, failed in its supreme endeavor. Taught by these experiences, its progress has become slower and surer. When once the revolutionary preparation is obtained and judged sufficient, masonry leaves the field to the militant organizations, Carbonari, Bolshevists, or other open or secret societies, and retires into shadows in the background. There it is not compromised; in case of check, it seems to have remained apart, and is all the better able to continue or take up again its work, like a gnawing worm, obscure and destroying."
"Masonry never works in the full light of day. Every one knows of its existence, its meeting places and of many of its adepts, but one is ignorant of its real aims, its real means, its real leaders. The immense majority of masons themselves are in that position. They are only the blind machinery of the sect which they serve... Many honest masons are so blind that they would be stupefied if they knew for what they are being used."
The Masonic Ritual revealed
"Every Mason swears to a set of oaths so ancient that a separate term has been set aside to describe them. These are called "blood oaths."
"Masonry, as we know it today in America, is thought of as having thirty-third degrees, or levels. Many offshoot organizations have developed over the years that have attempted to add additional degrees above the publicly known thirty-three. Mormonism is one such offshoot. As shown in a later chapter, its founder Joseph Smith, and most, if not all of his initial inner circle of supporters were Masons. He borrowed heavily from Masonic ritual for his newly-created Mormon ceremonies.
"With each successive degree, the Mason must swear to ever more cruel and barbarous oaths. The following details of the initiation oaths of the first three degrees of Masonry are closely guarded Masonic secrets. In fact, every Mason musts swear to kill any fellow mason who reveals them. Fortunately for humanity, however, several brave souls in the last 200 years have felt compelled to speak out, publishing this "secret work" for the world to see. It is thanks to these courageous men that we have the exact wording and rituals of at least the first three degrees."
The personal experience of Lucifer is not often described in literature. What it was like to be Hitler living in a physical body with the incarnational Luciferian energy can only be hinted at in his biographies. The traditional Hollywood idea of fangs and claws and large ‘devilish’ bodies is a stereotype that does not equate to the assimilation of these energies into 3rd dimensional living. Perhaps some of Aleister Crowley’s life might hint at it in part. Alan Richardson, perhaps to some extent, manifests in his book Earth God Rising, the slow descent into what might be called Luciferianism.
And then Camelot
"All myths are in fact living energies. We have decided that much. The ones in question were ancient when the First Dynasty began around 3100 B. C. – and yet they are no age at all. They are instead ever-becoming, like the spurting of Atum, or the column of some sparkling and infinite fountain. How to find that fountain, and when to drink from it, is something that we can spend a lifetime studying only to find (as seekers always do) that it is within us all along.
"One of those figures from the realms of myth and history who was more aware of such matters then most was a certain priest from the 26th Dynasty. Now he knew all about this sort of thing, as he never ceased to tell anyone who cared to listen. Many of the people thought him insufferable because of this, but the man had absolute conviction as to his merit and his destiny, and he never ceased to prophesy. That was what he was best at.
"His name was Ankh-f-n-Khonsu, which means "His heart is with Khonsu." Khonsu was the old Moon God from Thebes, where the mysteries functioned on a more subconscious level than elsewhere. This Dynasty, which ran from 663 to 525 BC—as near as such things can be determined—saw pharaohs bearing the names Necho and Psamtik and Ahmose supporting their rule by Osirian doctrines rather than through the purely solar cults which had taken over in previous centuries.
Set—it was always Set—became the personification of darkness again; the great arts and styles of the Old Kingdom were recreated; a colossal granite temple for the Apis Bull was built at Saqqara; and the Egyptians were able to imagine for a little while that true greatness had been restored to their land. Ankh-f-n-Khonsu, who lived a full life sometime during those reigns, was the priest who brought about the Aeon of Osiris to replace that of Isis. And, as is the way of magic, he was also the one who brought it to an end.
FREEMASONARY SYMBOLISM
Freemasonic Symbolism
IN several early Masonic manuscripts--for example, the Harleian, Sloane, Lansdowne, and Edinburgh-Kilwinning--it is stated that the craft of initiated builders existed before the Deluge, and that its members were employed in the building of the Tower of Babel. A Masonic Constitution dated 1701 gives the following naive account of the origin of the sciences, arts, and crafts from which the major part of Masonic symbolism is derived:
"How this worthy Science was first begunne, I shall tell. Before Noah's Flood, there was a man called Lameck as it is written in the 4 Chap. of Gen.: and this Lameck had two Wives. The one was called Adah, and the other Zillah; by the first wife Adah he gott two Sons, the one called Jaball, and the other Juball, and by the other wife Zillah he got a Son and Daughter, and the four children found the beginning of all Crafts in the world. This Jaball was the elder Son, and he found the Craft of Geometric, and he parted flocks, as of Sheep and Lambs in the fields, and first wrought Houses of Stone and Tree, as it is noted in the Chap, aforesaid, and his Brother Juball found the crafte of Musick, of Songs, Organs and Harp. The Third Brother [Tubal-cain] found out Smith's craft to work Iron and steel, and their sister Naamah found out the art of Weaving. These children did know thatt God would take Vengeance for Sinne, either by fire or water, wherefor they wrote these Sciences which they had found in Two Pillars of stone, thatt they might be found after the Flood. The one stone was called Marbell--cannott burn with Fire, and the other was called Laturus [brass?], thatt cannott drown in the Water."
The author of this Constitution there upon declares that one of these pillars was later discovered by Hermes, who communicated to mankind the secrets thereon inscribed.
In his Antiquities of the Jews, Josephus writes that Adam had forewarned his descendants that sinful humanity would be destroyed by a deluge. In order to preserve their science and philosophy, the children of Seth there fore raised two pillars, one of brick and the other of stone, on which were inscribed the keys to their knowledge. The Patriarch Enoch--whose name means the Initiator--is evidently a personification of the sun, since he lived 365 years. He also constructed an underground temple consisting of nine vaults, one beneath the other, placing in the deepest vault a triangular tablet of gold bearing upon it the absolute and ineffable Name of Deity. According to some accounts, Enoch made two golden deltas. The larger he placed upon the white cubical altar in the lowest vault and the smaller he gave into the keeping of his son, Methuseleh, who did the actual construction work of the brick chambers according to the pattern revealed to his father by the Most High. In the form and arrangement of these vaults Enoch epitomized the nine spheres of the ancient Mysteries and the nine sacred strata of the earth through which the initiate must pass to reach the flaming Spirit dwelling in its central core.
According to Freemasonic symbolism, Enoch, fearing that all knowledge of the sacred Mysteries would be lost at the time of the Deluge, erected the two columns mentioned in the quotation. Upon the metal column in appropriate allegorical symbols he engraved the secret reaching and upon the marble column placed an inscription stating that a short distance away a priceless treasure would be discovered in a subterranean vault. After having thus faithfully completed his labors, Enoch was translated from the brow Of Mount Moriah. In time the location of the secret vaults was lost, but after the lapse of ages there came another builder--an initiate after the order of Enoch--and he, while laying the foundations for another temple to the Great Architect of the Universe, discovered the long-lost vaults and the secrets contained within.
John Leylande was appointed by King Henry VIII to go through the archives of the various religious institutions dissolved by the king and remove for preservation any books or manuscripts of an important character. Among the documents copied by Leylande was a series of questions and answers concerning the mystery of Masonry written by King Henry VI. In answer to the question, "How came Masonry into England?" the document States that Peter Gower, a Grecian, traveled for knowledge in Egypt, Syria, and every land where the Phœnicians had planted Masonry; winning entrance in all lodges of Masons, he learned much, and returning, dwelt in Greater Greece. He became renowned for his wisdom, formed a great lodge at Groton, and made many Masons, some of whom journeyed in France, spreading Masonry there; from France in the course of time the order passed into England.
To even the superficial student of the subject it must be evident that the name of Peter Gower, the Grecian, is merely an Anglicized form of Pythagoras; consequently Groton, where he formed his lodge, is easily identified with Crotona. A link is thus established between the philosophic Mysteries of Greece and mediæval Freemasonry. In his notes on King Henry's questions and answers, William Preston enlarges upon the vow of secrecy as it was practiced by the ancient initiates. On the authority of Pliny he describes how Anaxarchus, having been imprisoned in order to extort from him some of the secrets with which he had been entrusted, bit out his own tongue and threw it in the face of Nicocreon, the tyrant of Cyprus. Preston adds that the Athenians revered a brazen statue that was represented without a tongue to denote the sanctity with which they regarded their oath-bound secrets. It is also noteworthy that, according to King Henry's manuscript, Masonry had its origin in the East and was the carrier of the arts and sciences of civilization to the primitive humanity of the western nations.
Conspicuous among the symbols of Freemasonry are the seven liberal arts and sciences. By grammar man is taught to express in noble and adequate language his innermost thoughts and ideals; by rhetoric he is enabled to conceal his ideals under the protecting cover of ambiguous language and figures of speech; by logic he is trained
THE MYSTERY OF THE MACROCOSM.
Redrawn from Cesariano's Edition of Vitruvius.
Summarizing the relationship between the human body and the theory of architectonics, Vitruvius writes:
"Since nature has designed the human body so that its members are duly proportioned to the frame as a whole, it appears that the ancients had good reason for their rule, that in perfect building the different members must be in exact symmetrical relations to the whole general scheme. Hence, while transmitting to us the proper arrangements for buildings of all kinds, they were particularly careful to do so in the case of temples of the gods, buildings in which merits and faults usually last forever. * * * Therefore, if it is agreed that number was found out from the human fingers, and that there is a symmetrical correspondent between the members separately and the entire form of the body, in accordance with a certain part selected as standard, we can have nothing but respect for those who, in constructing temples of the immortal gods, have so arranged the members of the works that both the separate parts and the whole design may harmonize in their proportions and symmetry." (See The Ten Books on Architecture)
By some it is believed that St. Paul was initiated into the Dionysiac Mysteries, for in the tenth verse of the third chapter of First Corinthians he calls himself a "master-builder" or adept: "According to the grace of God which is given into me, as a wise master-builder, I have laid the foundation and another buildeth thereon. " As survivals of the ancient Dionysiac rites, the two diagrams of Cesariano, accompanying this chapter are of incalculable value to the modern mystic architect.
in the organization of the intellectual faculties with which he has been endowed; by arithmetic he not only is instructed in the mystery of universal order but also gains the key to multitude, magnitude, and proportion; by geometry he is inducted into the mathematics of form, the harmony and rhythm of angles, and the philosophy of organization; by music he is reminded that the universe is founded upon the laws of celestial harmonics and that harmony and rhythm are all-pervading; by astronomy he gains an understanding of the immensities of time and space, of the proper relationship between himself and the universe, and of the awesomeness of that Unknown Power which is driving the countless stars of the firmament through illimitable space. Equipped with the knowledge conferred by familiarity with the liberal arts and sciences, the studious Freemason therefore finds himself confronted by few problems with which he cannot cope.
THE DIONYSIAC ARCHITECTS
The most celebrated of the ancient fraternities of artisans was that of the Dionysiac Architects. This organization was composed exclusively of initiates of the Bacchus-Dionysos cult and was peculiarly consecrated to the science of building and the art of decoration. Acclaimed as being the custodians of a secret and sacred knowledge of architectonics, its members were entrusted with the design and erection of public buildings and monuments. The superlative excellence of their handiwork elevated the members of the guild to a position of surpassing dignity; they were regarded as the master craftsmen of the earth. Because of the first dances held in honor of Dionysos, he was considered the founder and patron of the theater, and the Dionysians specialized in the construction of buildings adapted for the presentation of dramatic performances. In the circular or semicircular orchestra they invariably erected an altar to Æschylus, the famous Greek poet, that while appearing in one of his own plays he was suspected by a mob of angry spectators of revealing one of the profound secrets of the Mysteries and was forced to seek refuge at the altar of Dionysos.
So carefully did the Dionysiac Architects safeguard the secrets of their craft that only fragmentary records exist of their esoteric teachings. John A. Weisse thus sums up the meager data available concerning the order:
"They made their appearance certainly not later than 1000 B.C., and appear to have enjoyed particular privileges and immunities. They also possessed secret means of recognition, and were bound together by special ties only known to themselves. The richer of this fraternity were bound to provide for their poorer brethren. They were divided into communities, governed by a Master and Wardens, and called γυνοικιαι (connected houses). They held a grand festival annually, and were held in high esteem. Their ceremonials were regarded as sacred. It has been claimed that Solomon, at the instance of Hiram, King of Tyre, employed them at his temple and palaces. They were also employed at the construction of the Temple of Diana at Ephesus. They had means of intercommunication all over the then known world, and from them, doubtless, sprang the guilds of the Traveling Masons known in the Middle Ages." (See The Obelisk and Freemasonry.)æthral edifices, open to the sky, in honour of Jupiter Lightning, the Heaven, the Sun, or the Moon: for these are gods whose semblances and manifestations we behold before our very eyes in the sky when it is cloudless and bright. The temples of Minerva, Mars, and Hercules will be Doric, since the virile strength of these gods makes daintiness entirely inappropriate to their houses. In temples to Venus, Flora, Proserpine, Spring-Water, and the Nymphs, the Corinthian order will be found to have peculiar significance, because these are delicate divinities and so its rather slender outlines, its flowers, leaves, and ornamental volutes will lend propriety where it is due. The construction of temples of the Ionic order to Juno, Diana, Father Bacchus, and the other gods of that kind, will be in keeping with the middle position which they hold; for the building of such will be an appropriate combination of the severity of the Doric and the delicacy of the Corinthian."ūtb) or 'Pole' of his time. * * * Subordinate to the Qūtb are two holy beings who bear the title of 'The Faithful Ones,' and are assigned places on his right and left respectively. Below these is a quartette of 'Intermediate Ones' (Evtād); and on successively lower planes ate five 'Lights' (Envār), and seven 'Very Good' (Akhyār). The next rank is filled by forty 'Absent Ones' (Rijal-i-ghaib), also termed 'Martyrs' (Shuheda). When an 'Axis' quits this earthly existence, he is succeeded by the 'Faithful One' who has occupied the place at his right hand. * * * For to these holy men, who also bear the collective titles of 'Lords of Souls,' and 'Directors,' is committed a spiritual supremacy over mankind far exceeding the temporal authority of earthly rulers." (See Mysticism and Magic in Turkey, by L. M. J. Garnett.)
The fraternity of the Dionysiac Architects spread throughout all of Asia Minor, even reaching Egypt and India. They established themselves in nearly all the countries bordering on the Mediterranean, and with the rise of the Roman Empire found their way into Central Europe and even into England. The most stately and enduring buildings in Constantinople, Rhodes, Athens, and Rome were erected by these inspired craftsmen. One of the most illustrious of their number was Vitruvius, the great architect, renowned as the author of De Architectura Libri Decem. In the various sections of his book Vitruvius gives several hints as to the philosophy underlying the Dionysiac concept of the principle of symmetry applied to the science of architecture, as derived from a consideration of the proportions established by Nature between the parts and members of the human body. The following extract from Vitruvius on the subject of symmetry is representative:
"The design of a temple depends on symmetry, the principles of which must be most carefully observed by the architect. They are due to proportion, in ἀναλογία. Proportion is a correspondence among the measures of the members of an entire work, and of the whole to a certain part selected as standard. From this result the principles of symmetry. Without symmetry and proportion there can be no principles in the design of any temple; that is, if there is no precise relation between its members, as in the case of those of a well shaped man. For the human body is so designed by nature that the face, from the chin to the top of the forehead and the lowest roots of the hair, is a tenth part of the whole height; the open hand from the wrist to the tip of the middle finger is just the same; the head from the chin to the crown is an eighth, and with the neck and shoulder from the top of the breast to the lowest roots of the hair is a sixth; from the middle of the breast to the summit of the crown is a fourth. If we take the height of the face itself, the distance from the bottom of the chin to the under side of the nostrils [and from that point] to a line between the eyebrows is the same; from there to the lowest roots of the hair is also a third, comprising the forehead. The length of the foot is one sixth of the height of the body; of the forearm, one fourth; and the breadth of the breast is also one fourth. The other members, too, have their own symmetrical proportions, and it was by employing them that the famous painters and sculptors of antiquity attained to great and endless renown."
The edifices raised by the Dionysiac Builders were indeed "sermons in stone." Though unable to comprehend fully the cosmic principles thus embodied in these masterpieces of human ingenuity and industry, even the uninitiated were invariably overwhelmed by the sense of majesty and symmetry resulting from the perfect coordination of pillars, spans, arches, and domes. By variations in the details of size, material, type, arrangement, ornamentation, and color, these inspired builders believed it possible to provoke in the nature of the onlooker certain distinct mental or emotional reactions. Vitruvius, for example, describes the disposition of bronze vases about a room so as to produce certain definite changes in the tone and quality of the human voice. In like manner, each chamber in the Mysteries through which the candidate passed had its own peculiar acoustics. Thus in one chamber the voice of the priest was amplified until his words caused the very room to vibrate, while in another the voice was diminished and softened to such a degree that it sounded like the distant tinkling of silver bells. Again, in some of the underground passageways the candidate was apparently bereft of the power of speech, for though he shouted at the top of his voice not even a whisper was audible to his ears. After progressing a few feet, however, he would discover that his softest sigh would be reechoed a hundred times.
The supreme ambition of the Dionysiac Architects was the construction of buildings which would create distinct impressions consistent with the purpose for which the structure itself was designed. In common with the Pythagoreans, they believed it possible by combinations of straight lines and curves to induce any desired mental attitude or emotion. They labored, therefore, to the end of producing a building perfectly harmonious with the structure of the universe itself. They may have even believed that an edifice so constructed because it was in no respect at variance with any existing reality would not be subject to dissolution but would endure throughout the span of mortal time. As a logical deduction from their philosophic trend of thought, such a building--en rapport with Cosmos--would also have become an oracle. Certain early works on magical philosophy hint that the Ark of the Covenant was oracular in character because of specially prepared chambers in its interior. These by their shape and arrangement were so attuned to the vibrations of the invisible world that they caught and amplified the voices of the ages imprinted upon and eternally existent in the substance of the astral light.
Unskilled in these ancient subtleties of their profession, modern architects often create architectural absurdities which would cause their creators to blush with shame did they comprehend their actual symbolic import. Thus, phallic emblems are strewn in profusion among the adornments of banks, office buildings, and department stores. Christian churches also may be surmounted with Brahmin or Mohammedan domes or be designed in a style suitable for a Jewish synagogue or a Greek temple to Pluto. These incongruities may be considered trivial in importance by the modern designer, but to the trained psychologist the purpose for which a building was erected is frustrated in large measure by the presence of such architectural discordances. Vitruvius thus defines the principle of propriety as conceived and applied by the Dionysians:
"Propriety is that: perfection of style which comes when a work is authoritatively constructed on approved principles. It arises from prescription (Greek θεματισμῷ), from usage, or from nature. From prescription, in the case of hyp
In describing the societies of Ionian artificers, Joseph Da Costa declares the Dionysiac rites to have been founded upon the science of astronomy, which by the initiates of this order was correlated to the builder's art. In various documents dealing with the origin of architecture are found hints to the effect that the great buildings erected by these initiated craftsmen were based upon geometrical patterns derived from the constellations. Thus, a temple might be planned according to the constellation of Pegasus or a court of judgment modeled after the constellation of the Scales. The Dionysians evolved a peculiar code by which they were able to communicate with one another in the dark and both the symbols and the terminology of their guild were derived, in the main, from the elements of architecture.
While stigmatized as pagans by reason of their philosophic principles, it is noteworthy that these Dionysiac craftsmen were almost universally employed in the erection of early Christian abbeys and cathedrals, whose stones even to this very day bear distinguishing marks and symbols cut into their surfaces by these illustrious builders. Among the ornate carvings upon the fronts of great churches of the Old World are frequently found representations of compasses, squares, rules, mallets, and clusters of builders' tools skillfully incorporated into mural decorations and even placed in the hands of the effigies of saints and prophets standing in exalted niches. A great mystery was contained in the ancient portals of the Cathedral Of Notre Dame which were destroyed during the French Revolution, for among their carvings were numerous Rosicrucian and Masonic emblems; and according to the records preserved by alchemists who studied their bas-reliefs, the secret processes for metallic transmutation were set forth in their grotesque yet most significant figures.
The checkerboard floor upon which the modern Freemasonic lodge stands is the old tracing board of the Dionysiac Architects, and while the modern organization is no longer limited to workmen's guilds it still preserves in its symbols the metaphysical doctrines of the ancient society of which it is presumably the outgrowth. The investigator of the origin of Freemasonic symbolism who desires to trace the development of the order through the ages will find a practical suggestion in the following statement of Charles W. Heckethorn:
"But considering that Freemasonry is a tree the roots of which spread through so many soils, it follows that traces thereof must be found in its fruit; that its language and ritual should retain much of the various sects and institutions it has passed through before arriving at their present state, and in Masonry we meet with Indian, Egyptian, Jewish, and Christian ideas, terms therefrom the supreme ambition of their craft and symbols." (See The Secret Societies of All Ages and Countries.)
The Roman Collegia of skilled architects were apparently a subdivision of the greater Ionian body, their principles and organization being practically identical with the older Ionian institution. It has been suspected that the Dionysians also profoundly influenced early Islamic culture, for part of their symbolism found its way into the Mysteries of the dervishes. At one time the Dionysians referred to themselves as Sons of Solomon, and one of the most important of their symbols was the Seal of Solomon--two interlaced triangles. This motif is frequently seen in conspicuous parts of Mohammedan mosques. The Knights Templars--who were suspected of anything and everything--are believed to have contacted these Dionysiac artificers and to have introduced many of their symbols and doctrines into mediæval Europe. But Freemasonry most of all owes to the Dionysiac cult the great mass of its symbols and rituals which are related to the science of architecture. From these ancient and illustrious artisans it also received the legacy of the unfinished Temple of Civilization-that vast, invisible structure upon which these initiated builders have labored continuously since the inception of their fraternity. This mighty edifice, which has fallen and been rebuilt time after time but whose foundations remain unmoved, is the true Everlasting House of which the temple on the brow of Mount Moriah was but an impermanent symbol.
Aside from the operative aspect of their order, the Dionysiac Architects had a speculative philosophic code. Human society they considered as a rough and untrued ashlar but lately chiseled from the quarry of elemental Nature. This crude block was the true object upon which these skilled craftsmen labored--polishing it, squaring it, and with the aid of fine carvings transforming it into a miracle of beauty. While mystics released their souls from the bondage of matter by meditation and philosophers found their keenest joy in the profundities of thought, these master workmen achieved liberation from the Wheel of Life and Death by learning to swing their hammers with the same rhythm that moves the swirling forces of Cosmos. They venerated the Deity under the guise of a Great Architect and Master Craftsman who was ever gouging rough ashlars from the fields of space and truing them into universes. The Dionysians affirmed constructiveness to be the supreme expression of the soul, and attuning themselves with the ever-visible constructive natural processes going on around them, believed immortality could be achieved by thus becoming a part of the creative agencies of Nature.
SOLOMON, THE PERSONIFICATION OF UNIVERSAL WISDOM
The name Solomon may be divided into three syllables, SOL-OM-ON, symbolizing light, glory, and truth collectively and respectively. The Temple of Solomon is, therefore, first of all "the House of Everlasting Light," its earthly symbol being the temple of stone on the brow of Mount Moriah. According to the Mystery teachings, there are three Temples of Solomon--as there are three Grand Masters, three Witnesses, and three Tabernacles of the Transfiguration. The first temple is the Grand House of the Universe, in the midst of which sits the sun (SOL) upon his golden throne. The twelve signs of the zodiac as Fellow-Craftsmen gather around their shining lord. Three lights--the stellar, the solar, and the lunar--illuminate this Cosmic Temple. Accompanied by his retinue of planets, moons, and asteroids, this Divine King (SOLomon), whose glory no earthly monarch shall ever equal, passes in stately pomp down the avenues of space. Whereas CHiram represents the active physical light of the sun, SOLomon signifies its invisible but all-powerful, spiritual and intellectual effulgency.
The second symbolic temple is the human body-the Little House made in the image of the Great Universal House. "Know ye not," asked the Apostle Paul, "that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" Freemasonry within a temple of stone cannot be other than speculative, but Freemasonry within the living temple of the body is operative. The third symbolic temple is the Soular House, an invisible structure, the comprehension of which is a supreme Freemasonic arcanum. The mystery of this intangible edifice is concealed under the allegory of the Soma Psuchicon, or Wedding Garment described by St. Paul, the Robes of Glory of the High Priest of Israel, the Yellow Robe of the Buddhist monk, and the Robe of Blue and Gold to which Albert Pike refers in his Symbolism. The soul, constructed from an invisible fiery substance, a flaming golden metal, is cast by the Master Workman, CHiram Abiff, into the mold of clay (the physical body) and is called the Molten Sea. The temple of the human soul is built by three Master Masons personifying Wisdom, Love, and Service, and when constructed according to the Law of Life the spirit of God dwells in the Holy Place thereof. The Soular Temple is the true Everlasting House, and he who can raise
THE MYSTERY OF THE MICROCOSM.
Redrawn from Cesariano's Edition of Vitruvius.
Herein is depicted the mysterious Word of Plato which was crucified in space before the foundation of the world. The anonymous author of The Canon writes:
"The Logos or soul of the world, according to Plato, the Greek Hermes, and the Christ, according to the Christian Gnostics, are all one and the same as the Hebrew Adam Kadmon, who is the second person of the cabalistic triad. The Cyllenian Hermes, described by Hippolytus, so exactly resembles the lesser man found in Cesariano's edition of Vitruvius, that they may be justifiably considered to be identical."
After relating the figure to Dionysus because of the vine leaves wound in the hair, the same writer concludes: "Here we have clearly and distinctly a curious survival of the cosmic deity of Greece, copied and disfigured by the crude draughtsmen of the Middle Ages, but faithfully preserved, and recognizable to the last." Similar figures are to be found in Agrippa's De Occulta Philosophia. Like Cesariano's diagrams, however, the key given for their interpretation is most inadequate. Agrippa declares that, being a type of the lesser world, man contains in himself all numbers, measures, weights, motions, and elements. The secret doctrine of Freemasonry, like that of the Dionysiac Architects, is concerned primarily with the effort to measure or estimate philosophically the parts and proportions of the microcosm, so that by the knowledge derived therefrom the supreme ambition of their craft might be realized--the creation of a perfect man.
or cast it is a Master Mason indeed! The best-informed Masonic writers have realized that Solomon's Temple is a representation in miniature of the Universal Temple. Concerning this point, A. E. Waite, in A New Encyclopædia of Freemasonry, writes: "It is macrocosmic in character, so that the Temple is a symbol of the universe, a type of manifestation itself."
Solomon, the Spirit of Universal Illumination--mental, spiritual, moral, and physical--is personified in the king of an earthly nation. While a great ruler by that name may have built a temple, he who considers the story solely from its historical angle will never clear away the rubbish that covers the secret vaults. The rubbish is interpolated matter in the form of superficial symbols, allegories, and degrees which have no legitimate part in the original Freemasonic Mysteries. Concerning the loss of the true esoteric key to Masonic secrets, Albert Pike writes:
"No one journeys now 'from the high place of Cabaon to the threshing floor of Oman the Yebusite,' nor has seen, 'his Master, clothed in blue and gold;' nor are apprentices and Fellow-crafts any longer paid at their respective Columns; nor is the Master's working tool the Tracing Board, nor does he use in his work 'Chalk, Charcoal, and an Earthen Vessel,' nor does the Apprentice, becoming a Fellow Craft, pass from the square to the compass; for the meanings of these phrases as symbols have long been lost."
According to the ancient Rabbins, Solomon was an initiate of the Mystery schools and the temple which he built was actually a house of initiation containing amass of pagan philosophic and phallic emblems. The pomegranates, the palm-headed columns, the Pillars before the door, the Babylonian cherubim, and the arrangement of the chambers and draperies all indicate the temple to have been patterned after the sanctuaries of Egypt and Atlantis. Isaac Myer, in The Qabbalah, makes the following observation:
"The pseudo-Clement of Rome, writes: 'God made man male and female. The male is Christ: the female, the Church.' The Qabbalists called the Holy Spirit, the mother, and the Church of Israel, the Daughter. Solomon engraved on the walls of his Temple, likenesses of the male and female principles, to adumbrate this mystery; such, it is said, were the figures of the cherubim. This was, however, not in obedience to the words of the Thorah. They were symbolical of the Upper, the spiritual, the former or maker, positive or male, and the Lower, the passive, the negative or female, formed or made by the first."
Masonry came to Northern Africa and Asia Minor from the lost continent of Atlantis, not under its present name but rather under the general designation Sun and Fire Worship. The ancient Mysteries did not cease to exist when Christianity became the world's most powerful religion. Great Pan did not die! Freemasonry is the proof of his survival. The pre-Christian Mysteries simply assumed the symbolism of the new faith, perpetuating through its emblems and allegories the same truths which had been the property of the wise since the beginning of the world. There is no true explanation, therefore, for Christian symbols save that which is concealed within pagan philosophy. Without the mysterious keys carried by the hierophants of the Egyptian, Brahmin, and Persian cults the gates of Wisdom cannot be opened. Consider with reverent spirit, therefore, the sublime allegory of the Temple and its Builders, realizing that beneath its literal interpretation lies hidden a Royal Secret.
According to the Talmudic legends, Solomon understood the mysteries of the Qabbalah. He was also an alchemist and a necromancer, being able to control the dæmons, and from them and other inhabitants of the invisible worlds he secured much of his wisdom. In his translation of Clavicula Salomonis, or The Key of Solomon the King, a work presumably setting forth the magical secrets gathered by Solomon and used by him in the conjuration of spirits and which, according to Frank C. Higgins, contains many sidelights on Masonic initiatory rituals, S. L. MacGregor-Mathers recognizes the probability that King Solomon was a magician in the fullest sense of that word. "I see no reason to doubt," he affirms, "the tradition which assigns the authorship of the 'Key' to King Solomon, for among others Josephus, the Jewish historian, especially mentions the magical works attributed to that monarch; this is confirmed by many Eastern traditions, and his magical skill is frequently mentioned in the Arabian Nights."
Concerning Solomon's supernatural powers, Josephus writes in his Eighth Book of the Antiquities of the Jews:
"Now the sagacity and wisdom which God had bestowed on Solomon was so great that he exceeded the ancients, in so much that he was no way inferior to the Egyptians, who are said to have been beyond all men in understanding; * * * God also enabled him to learn that skill which expelled demons, which is a science useful and sanative to him. He composed such incantations also by which distempers are alleviated. And he left behind him the manner of using exorcisms, by which they drive away demons, so that they never return; and this method of cure is of great force unto this day."
The mediæval alchemists were convinced that King Solomon understood the secret processes of Hermes by means of which it was possible to multiply metals. Dr. Bacstrom writes that the Universal Spirit (CHiram) assisted King Solomon to build his temple, because Solomon being wise in the wisdom of alchemy knew how to control this incorporeal essence and, setting it to work for him, caused the invisible universe to supply him with vast amounts of gold and silver which most people believed were mined by natural methods.
The mysteries of the Islamic faith are now in the keeping of the dervishes--men who, renouncing worldliness, have withstood the test of a thousand and one days of temptation. Jelal-ud-din, the great Persian Sufic poet and philosopher, is accredited with having founded the Order of Mevlevi, or the "dancing dervishes," whose movements exoterically signify the motions of the celestial bodies and esoterically result in the establishment of a rhythm which stimulates the centers of spiritual consciousness within the dancer's body.
"According to the mystical canon, there are always on earth a certain number of holy men who are admitted to intimate communion with the Deity. The one who occupies the highest position among his contemporaries is called the 'Axis' (Q
The Axis is a mysterious individual who, unknown and unsuspected, mingles with mankind and who, according to tradition, has his favorite seat upon the roof of the Caaba. J. P. Brown, in The Dervishes, gives a description of these "Master Souls."
FREEMASONRY'S PRICELESS HERITAGE
The sanctum sanctorum of Freemasonry is ornamented with the gnostic jewels of a thousand ages; its rituals ring with the divinely inspired words of seers and sages. A hundred religious have brought their gifts of wisdom to its altar; arts and sciences unnumbered have contributed to its symbolism. Freemasonry is a world-wide university, teaching the liberal arts and sciences of the soul to all who will hearken to its words. Its chairs are seats of learning and its pillars uphold an arch of universal education. Its trestleboards are inscribed with the eternal verities of all ages and upon those who comprehend its sacred depths has dawned the realization that within the Freemasonic Mysteries lie hidden the long-lost arcana sought by all peoples since the genesis of human reason.
The philosophic power of Freemasonry lies in its symbols--its priceless heritage from the Mystery schools of antiquity. In a letter to Robert Freke Gould, Albert Pike writes:
"It began to shape itself to my intellectual vision into something more imposing and majestic, solemnly mysterious and grand. It seemed to me like the Pyramids in their loneliness, in whose yet undiscovered chambers may be hidden, for the enlightenment of coming generations, the sacred books of the Egyptians, so long lost to the world; like the Sphynx half buried in the desert. In its symbolism, which and its spirit of brotherhood are its essence, Freemasonry is more ancient than any of the world's living religions. It has the symbols and doctrines which, older than himself, Zarathustra inculcated; and ii seemed to me a spectacle sublime, yet pitiful--the ancient Faith of our ancestors holding out to the world its symbols once so eloquent, and mutely and in vain asking for an interpreter. And so I came at last to see that the true greatness and majesty of Freemasonry consist in its proprietorship of these and its other symbols; and that its symbolism is its soul."
Though the temples of Thebes and Karnak be now but majestic heaps of broken and time-battered stone, the spirit: of Egyptian philosophy still marches triumphant through the centuries. Though the rock-hewn sanctuaries of the ancient Brahmins be now deserted and their carvings crumbled into dust, still the wisdom of the Vedas endures. Though the oracles be silenced and the House of the Mysteries be now but rows of ghostly columns, still shines the spiritual glory of Hellas with luster undiminished. Though Zoroaster, Hermes, Pythagoras, Plato, and Aristotle are now but dim memories in a world once rocked by the transcendency of their intellectual genius, still in the mystic temple of Freemasonry these god-men live again in their words and symbols; and the candidate, passing through the initiations, feels himself face to face with these illumined hierophants of days long past.
IN several early Masonic manuscripts--for example, the Harleian, Sloane, Lansdowne, and Edinburgh-Kilwinning--it is stated that the craft of initiated builders existed before the Deluge, and that its members were employed in the building of the Tower of Babel. A Masonic Constitution dated 1701 gives the following naive account of the origin of the sciences, arts, and crafts from which the major part of Masonic symbolism is derived:
"How this worthy Science was first begunne, I shall tell. Before Noah's Flood, there was a man called Lameck as it is written in the 4 Chap. of Gen.: and this Lameck had two Wives. The one was called Adah, and the other Zillah; by the first wife Adah he gott two Sons, the one called Jaball, and the other Juball, and by the other wife Zillah he got a Son and Daughter, and the four children found the beginning of all Crafts in the world. This Jaball was the elder Son, and he found the Craft of Geometric, and he parted flocks, as of Sheep and Lambs in the fields, and first wrought Houses of Stone and Tree, as it is noted in the Chap, aforesaid, and his Brother Juball found the crafte of Musick, of Songs, Organs and Harp. The Third Brother [Tubal-cain] found out Smith's craft to work Iron and steel, and their sister Naamah found out the art of Weaving. These children did know thatt God would take Vengeance for Sinne, either by fire or water, wherefor they wrote these Sciences which they had found in Two Pillars of stone, thatt they might be found after the Flood. The one stone was called Marbell--cannott burn with Fire, and the other was called Laturus [brass?], thatt cannott drown in the Water."
The author of this Constitution there upon declares that one of these pillars was later discovered by Hermes, who communicated to mankind the secrets thereon inscribed.
In his Antiquities of the Jews, Josephus writes that Adam had forewarned his descendants that sinful humanity would be destroyed by a deluge. In order to preserve their science and philosophy, the children of Seth there fore raised two pillars, one of brick and the other of stone, on which were inscribed the keys to their knowledge. The Patriarch Enoch--whose name means the Initiator--is evidently a personification of the sun, since he lived 365 years. He also constructed an underground temple consisting of nine vaults, one beneath the other, placing in the deepest vault a triangular tablet of gold bearing upon it the absolute and ineffable Name of Deity. According to some accounts, Enoch made two golden deltas. The larger he placed upon the white cubical altar in the lowest vault and the smaller he gave into the keeping of his son, Methuseleh, who did the actual construction work of the brick chambers according to the pattern revealed to his father by the Most High. In the form and arrangement of these vaults Enoch epitomized the nine spheres of the ancient Mysteries and the nine sacred strata of the earth through which the initiate must pass to reach the flaming Spirit dwelling in its central core.
According to Freemasonic symbolism, Enoch, fearing that all knowledge of the sacred Mysteries would be lost at the time of the Deluge, erected the two columns mentioned in the quotation. Upon the metal column in appropriate allegorical symbols he engraved the secret reaching and upon the marble column placed an inscription stating that a short distance away a priceless treasure would be discovered in a subterranean vault. After having thus faithfully completed his labors, Enoch was translated from the brow Of Mount Moriah. In time the location of the secret vaults was lost, but after the lapse of ages there came another builder--an initiate after the order of Enoch--and he, while laying the foundations for another temple to the Great Architect of the Universe, discovered the long-lost vaults and the secrets contained within.
John Leylande was appointed by King Henry VIII to go through the archives of the various religious institutions dissolved by the king and remove for preservation any books or manuscripts of an important character. Among the documents copied by Leylande was a series of questions and answers concerning the mystery of Masonry written by King Henry VI. In answer to the question, "How came Masonry into England?" the document States that Peter Gower, a Grecian, traveled for knowledge in Egypt, Syria, and every land where the Phœnicians had planted Masonry; winning entrance in all lodges of Masons, he learned much, and returning, dwelt in Greater Greece. He became renowned for his wisdom, formed a great lodge at Groton, and made many Masons, some of whom journeyed in France, spreading Masonry there; from France in the course of time the order passed into England.
To even the superficial student of the subject it must be evident that the name of Peter Gower, the Grecian, is merely an Anglicized form of Pythagoras; consequently Groton, where he formed his lodge, is easily identified with Crotona. A link is thus established between the philosophic Mysteries of Greece and mediæval Freemasonry. In his notes on King Henry's questions and answers, William Preston enlarges upon the vow of secrecy as it was practiced by the ancient initiates. On the authority of Pliny he describes how Anaxarchus, having been imprisoned in order to extort from him some of the secrets with which he had been entrusted, bit out his own tongue and threw it in the face of Nicocreon, the tyrant of Cyprus. Preston adds that the Athenians revered a brazen statue that was represented without a tongue to denote the sanctity with which they regarded their oath-bound secrets. It is also noteworthy that, according to King Henry's manuscript, Masonry had its origin in the East and was the carrier of the arts and sciences of civilization to the primitive humanity of the western nations.
Conspicuous among the symbols of Freemasonry are the seven liberal arts and sciences. By grammar man is taught to express in noble and adequate language his innermost thoughts and ideals; by rhetoric he is enabled to conceal his ideals under the protecting cover of ambiguous language and figures of speech; by logic he is trained
THE MYSTERY OF THE MACROCOSM.
Redrawn from Cesariano's Edition of Vitruvius.
Summarizing the relationship between the human body and the theory of architectonics, Vitruvius writes:
"Since nature has designed the human body so that its members are duly proportioned to the frame as a whole, it appears that the ancients had good reason for their rule, that in perfect building the different members must be in exact symmetrical relations to the whole general scheme. Hence, while transmitting to us the proper arrangements for buildings of all kinds, they were particularly careful to do so in the case of temples of the gods, buildings in which merits and faults usually last forever. * * * Therefore, if it is agreed that number was found out from the human fingers, and that there is a symmetrical correspondent between the members separately and the entire form of the body, in accordance with a certain part selected as standard, we can have nothing but respect for those who, in constructing temples of the immortal gods, have so arranged the members of the works that both the separate parts and the whole design may harmonize in their proportions and symmetry." (See The Ten Books on Architecture)
By some it is believed that St. Paul was initiated into the Dionysiac Mysteries, for in the tenth verse of the third chapter of First Corinthians he calls himself a "master-builder" or adept: "According to the grace of God which is given into me, as a wise master-builder, I have laid the foundation and another buildeth thereon. " As survivals of the ancient Dionysiac rites, the two diagrams of Cesariano, accompanying this chapter are of incalculable value to the modern mystic architect.
in the organization of the intellectual faculties with which he has been endowed; by arithmetic he not only is instructed in the mystery of universal order but also gains the key to multitude, magnitude, and proportion; by geometry he is inducted into the mathematics of form, the harmony and rhythm of angles, and the philosophy of organization; by music he is reminded that the universe is founded upon the laws of celestial harmonics and that harmony and rhythm are all-pervading; by astronomy he gains an understanding of the immensities of time and space, of the proper relationship between himself and the universe, and of the awesomeness of that Unknown Power which is driving the countless stars of the firmament through illimitable space. Equipped with the knowledge conferred by familiarity with the liberal arts and sciences, the studious Freemason therefore finds himself confronted by few problems with which he cannot cope.
THE DIONYSIAC ARCHITECTS
The most celebrated of the ancient fraternities of artisans was that of the Dionysiac Architects. This organization was composed exclusively of initiates of the Bacchus-Dionysos cult and was peculiarly consecrated to the science of building and the art of decoration. Acclaimed as being the custodians of a secret and sacred knowledge of architectonics, its members were entrusted with the design and erection of public buildings and monuments. The superlative excellence of their handiwork elevated the members of the guild to a position of surpassing dignity; they were regarded as the master craftsmen of the earth. Because of the first dances held in honor of Dionysos, he was considered the founder and patron of the theater, and the Dionysians specialized in the construction of buildings adapted for the presentation of dramatic performances. In the circular or semicircular orchestra they invariably erected an altar to Æschylus, the famous Greek poet, that while appearing in one of his own plays he was suspected by a mob of angry spectators of revealing one of the profound secrets of the Mysteries and was forced to seek refuge at the altar of Dionysos.
So carefully did the Dionysiac Architects safeguard the secrets of their craft that only fragmentary records exist of their esoteric teachings. John A. Weisse thus sums up the meager data available concerning the order:
"They made their appearance certainly not later than 1000 B.C., and appear to have enjoyed particular privileges and immunities. They also possessed secret means of recognition, and were bound together by special ties only known to themselves. The richer of this fraternity were bound to provide for their poorer brethren. They were divided into communities, governed by a Master and Wardens, and called γυνοικιαι (connected houses). They held a grand festival annually, and were held in high esteem. Their ceremonials were regarded as sacred. It has been claimed that Solomon, at the instance of Hiram, King of Tyre, employed them at his temple and palaces. They were also employed at the construction of the Temple of Diana at Ephesus. They had means of intercommunication all over the then known world, and from them, doubtless, sprang the guilds of the Traveling Masons known in the Middle Ages." (See The Obelisk and Freemasonry.)æthral edifices, open to the sky, in honour of Jupiter Lightning, the Heaven, the Sun, or the Moon: for these are gods whose semblances and manifestations we behold before our very eyes in the sky when it is cloudless and bright. The temples of Minerva, Mars, and Hercules will be Doric, since the virile strength of these gods makes daintiness entirely inappropriate to their houses. In temples to Venus, Flora, Proserpine, Spring-Water, and the Nymphs, the Corinthian order will be found to have peculiar significance, because these are delicate divinities and so its rather slender outlines, its flowers, leaves, and ornamental volutes will lend propriety where it is due. The construction of temples of the Ionic order to Juno, Diana, Father Bacchus, and the other gods of that kind, will be in keeping with the middle position which they hold; for the building of such will be an appropriate combination of the severity of the Doric and the delicacy of the Corinthian."ūtb) or 'Pole' of his time. * * * Subordinate to the Qūtb are two holy beings who bear the title of 'The Faithful Ones,' and are assigned places on his right and left respectively. Below these is a quartette of 'Intermediate Ones' (Evtād); and on successively lower planes ate five 'Lights' (Envār), and seven 'Very Good' (Akhyār). The next rank is filled by forty 'Absent Ones' (Rijal-i-ghaib), also termed 'Martyrs' (Shuheda). When an 'Axis' quits this earthly existence, he is succeeded by the 'Faithful One' who has occupied the place at his right hand. * * * For to these holy men, who also bear the collective titles of 'Lords of Souls,' and 'Directors,' is committed a spiritual supremacy over mankind far exceeding the temporal authority of earthly rulers." (See Mysticism and Magic in Turkey, by L. M. J. Garnett.)
The fraternity of the Dionysiac Architects spread throughout all of Asia Minor, even reaching Egypt and India. They established themselves in nearly all the countries bordering on the Mediterranean, and with the rise of the Roman Empire found their way into Central Europe and even into England. The most stately and enduring buildings in Constantinople, Rhodes, Athens, and Rome were erected by these inspired craftsmen. One of the most illustrious of their number was Vitruvius, the great architect, renowned as the author of De Architectura Libri Decem. In the various sections of his book Vitruvius gives several hints as to the philosophy underlying the Dionysiac concept of the principle of symmetry applied to the science of architecture, as derived from a consideration of the proportions established by Nature between the parts and members of the human body. The following extract from Vitruvius on the subject of symmetry is representative:
"The design of a temple depends on symmetry, the principles of which must be most carefully observed by the architect. They are due to proportion, in ἀναλογία. Proportion is a correspondence among the measures of the members of an entire work, and of the whole to a certain part selected as standard. From this result the principles of symmetry. Without symmetry and proportion there can be no principles in the design of any temple; that is, if there is no precise relation between its members, as in the case of those of a well shaped man. For the human body is so designed by nature that the face, from the chin to the top of the forehead and the lowest roots of the hair, is a tenth part of the whole height; the open hand from the wrist to the tip of the middle finger is just the same; the head from the chin to the crown is an eighth, and with the neck and shoulder from the top of the breast to the lowest roots of the hair is a sixth; from the middle of the breast to the summit of the crown is a fourth. If we take the height of the face itself, the distance from the bottom of the chin to the under side of the nostrils [and from that point] to a line between the eyebrows is the same; from there to the lowest roots of the hair is also a third, comprising the forehead. The length of the foot is one sixth of the height of the body; of the forearm, one fourth; and the breadth of the breast is also one fourth. The other members, too, have their own symmetrical proportions, and it was by employing them that the famous painters and sculptors of antiquity attained to great and endless renown."
The edifices raised by the Dionysiac Builders were indeed "sermons in stone." Though unable to comprehend fully the cosmic principles thus embodied in these masterpieces of human ingenuity and industry, even the uninitiated were invariably overwhelmed by the sense of majesty and symmetry resulting from the perfect coordination of pillars, spans, arches, and domes. By variations in the details of size, material, type, arrangement, ornamentation, and color, these inspired builders believed it possible to provoke in the nature of the onlooker certain distinct mental or emotional reactions. Vitruvius, for example, describes the disposition of bronze vases about a room so as to produce certain definite changes in the tone and quality of the human voice. In like manner, each chamber in the Mysteries through which the candidate passed had its own peculiar acoustics. Thus in one chamber the voice of the priest was amplified until his words caused the very room to vibrate, while in another the voice was diminished and softened to such a degree that it sounded like the distant tinkling of silver bells. Again, in some of the underground passageways the candidate was apparently bereft of the power of speech, for though he shouted at the top of his voice not even a whisper was audible to his ears. After progressing a few feet, however, he would discover that his softest sigh would be reechoed a hundred times.
The supreme ambition of the Dionysiac Architects was the construction of buildings which would create distinct impressions consistent with the purpose for which the structure itself was designed. In common with the Pythagoreans, they believed it possible by combinations of straight lines and curves to induce any desired mental attitude or emotion. They labored, therefore, to the end of producing a building perfectly harmonious with the structure of the universe itself. They may have even believed that an edifice so constructed because it was in no respect at variance with any existing reality would not be subject to dissolution but would endure throughout the span of mortal time. As a logical deduction from their philosophic trend of thought, such a building--en rapport with Cosmos--would also have become an oracle. Certain early works on magical philosophy hint that the Ark of the Covenant was oracular in character because of specially prepared chambers in its interior. These by their shape and arrangement were so attuned to the vibrations of the invisible world that they caught and amplified the voices of the ages imprinted upon and eternally existent in the substance of the astral light.
Unskilled in these ancient subtleties of their profession, modern architects often create architectural absurdities which would cause their creators to blush with shame did they comprehend their actual symbolic import. Thus, phallic emblems are strewn in profusion among the adornments of banks, office buildings, and department stores. Christian churches also may be surmounted with Brahmin or Mohammedan domes or be designed in a style suitable for a Jewish synagogue or a Greek temple to Pluto. These incongruities may be considered trivial in importance by the modern designer, but to the trained psychologist the purpose for which a building was erected is frustrated in large measure by the presence of such architectural discordances. Vitruvius thus defines the principle of propriety as conceived and applied by the Dionysians:
"Propriety is that: perfection of style which comes when a work is authoritatively constructed on approved principles. It arises from prescription (Greek θεματισμῷ), from usage, or from nature. From prescription, in the case of hyp
In describing the societies of Ionian artificers, Joseph Da Costa declares the Dionysiac rites to have been founded upon the science of astronomy, which by the initiates of this order was correlated to the builder's art. In various documents dealing with the origin of architecture are found hints to the effect that the great buildings erected by these initiated craftsmen were based upon geometrical patterns derived from the constellations. Thus, a temple might be planned according to the constellation of Pegasus or a court of judgment modeled after the constellation of the Scales. The Dionysians evolved a peculiar code by which they were able to communicate with one another in the dark and both the symbols and the terminology of their guild were derived, in the main, from the elements of architecture.
While stigmatized as pagans by reason of their philosophic principles, it is noteworthy that these Dionysiac craftsmen were almost universally employed in the erection of early Christian abbeys and cathedrals, whose stones even to this very day bear distinguishing marks and symbols cut into their surfaces by these illustrious builders. Among the ornate carvings upon the fronts of great churches of the Old World are frequently found representations of compasses, squares, rules, mallets, and clusters of builders' tools skillfully incorporated into mural decorations and even placed in the hands of the effigies of saints and prophets standing in exalted niches. A great mystery was contained in the ancient portals of the Cathedral Of Notre Dame which were destroyed during the French Revolution, for among their carvings were numerous Rosicrucian and Masonic emblems; and according to the records preserved by alchemists who studied their bas-reliefs, the secret processes for metallic transmutation were set forth in their grotesque yet most significant figures.
The checkerboard floor upon which the modern Freemasonic lodge stands is the old tracing board of the Dionysiac Architects, and while the modern organization is no longer limited to workmen's guilds it still preserves in its symbols the metaphysical doctrines of the ancient society of which it is presumably the outgrowth. The investigator of the origin of Freemasonic symbolism who desires to trace the development of the order through the ages will find a practical suggestion in the following statement of Charles W. Heckethorn:
"But considering that Freemasonry is a tree the roots of which spread through so many soils, it follows that traces thereof must be found in its fruit; that its language and ritual should retain much of the various sects and institutions it has passed through before arriving at their present state, and in Masonry we meet with Indian, Egyptian, Jewish, and Christian ideas, terms therefrom the supreme ambition of their craft and symbols." (See The Secret Societies of All Ages and Countries.)
The Roman Collegia of skilled architects were apparently a subdivision of the greater Ionian body, their principles and organization being practically identical with the older Ionian institution. It has been suspected that the Dionysians also profoundly influenced early Islamic culture, for part of their symbolism found its way into the Mysteries of the dervishes. At one time the Dionysians referred to themselves as Sons of Solomon, and one of the most important of their symbols was the Seal of Solomon--two interlaced triangles. This motif is frequently seen in conspicuous parts of Mohammedan mosques. The Knights Templars--who were suspected of anything and everything--are believed to have contacted these Dionysiac artificers and to have introduced many of their symbols and doctrines into mediæval Europe. But Freemasonry most of all owes to the Dionysiac cult the great mass of its symbols and rituals which are related to the science of architecture. From these ancient and illustrious artisans it also received the legacy of the unfinished Temple of Civilization-that vast, invisible structure upon which these initiated builders have labored continuously since the inception of their fraternity. This mighty edifice, which has fallen and been rebuilt time after time but whose foundations remain unmoved, is the true Everlasting House of which the temple on the brow of Mount Moriah was but an impermanent symbol.
Aside from the operative aspect of their order, the Dionysiac Architects had a speculative philosophic code. Human society they considered as a rough and untrued ashlar but lately chiseled from the quarry of elemental Nature. This crude block was the true object upon which these skilled craftsmen labored--polishing it, squaring it, and with the aid of fine carvings transforming it into a miracle of beauty. While mystics released their souls from the bondage of matter by meditation and philosophers found their keenest joy in the profundities of thought, these master workmen achieved liberation from the Wheel of Life and Death by learning to swing their hammers with the same rhythm that moves the swirling forces of Cosmos. They venerated the Deity under the guise of a Great Architect and Master Craftsman who was ever gouging rough ashlars from the fields of space and truing them into universes. The Dionysians affirmed constructiveness to be the supreme expression of the soul, and attuning themselves with the ever-visible constructive natural processes going on around them, believed immortality could be achieved by thus becoming a part of the creative agencies of Nature.
SOLOMON, THE PERSONIFICATION OF UNIVERSAL WISDOM
The name Solomon may be divided into three syllables, SOL-OM-ON, symbolizing light, glory, and truth collectively and respectively. The Temple of Solomon is, therefore, first of all "the House of Everlasting Light," its earthly symbol being the temple of stone on the brow of Mount Moriah. According to the Mystery teachings, there are three Temples of Solomon--as there are three Grand Masters, three Witnesses, and three Tabernacles of the Transfiguration. The first temple is the Grand House of the Universe, in the midst of which sits the sun (SOL) upon his golden throne. The twelve signs of the zodiac as Fellow-Craftsmen gather around their shining lord. Three lights--the stellar, the solar, and the lunar--illuminate this Cosmic Temple. Accompanied by his retinue of planets, moons, and asteroids, this Divine King (SOLomon), whose glory no earthly monarch shall ever equal, passes in stately pomp down the avenues of space. Whereas CHiram represents the active physical light of the sun, SOLomon signifies its invisible but all-powerful, spiritual and intellectual effulgency.
The second symbolic temple is the human body-the Little House made in the image of the Great Universal House. "Know ye not," asked the Apostle Paul, "that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" Freemasonry within a temple of stone cannot be other than speculative, but Freemasonry within the living temple of the body is operative. The third symbolic temple is the Soular House, an invisible structure, the comprehension of which is a supreme Freemasonic arcanum. The mystery of this intangible edifice is concealed under the allegory of the Soma Psuchicon, or Wedding Garment described by St. Paul, the Robes of Glory of the High Priest of Israel, the Yellow Robe of the Buddhist monk, and the Robe of Blue and Gold to which Albert Pike refers in his Symbolism. The soul, constructed from an invisible fiery substance, a flaming golden metal, is cast by the Master Workman, CHiram Abiff, into the mold of clay (the physical body) and is called the Molten Sea. The temple of the human soul is built by three Master Masons personifying Wisdom, Love, and Service, and when constructed according to the Law of Life the spirit of God dwells in the Holy Place thereof. The Soular Temple is the true Everlasting House, and he who can raise
THE MYSTERY OF THE MICROCOSM.
Redrawn from Cesariano's Edition of Vitruvius.
Herein is depicted the mysterious Word of Plato which was crucified in space before the foundation of the world. The anonymous author of The Canon writes:
"The Logos or soul of the world, according to Plato, the Greek Hermes, and the Christ, according to the Christian Gnostics, are all one and the same as the Hebrew Adam Kadmon, who is the second person of the cabalistic triad. The Cyllenian Hermes, described by Hippolytus, so exactly resembles the lesser man found in Cesariano's edition of Vitruvius, that they may be justifiably considered to be identical."
After relating the figure to Dionysus because of the vine leaves wound in the hair, the same writer concludes: "Here we have clearly and distinctly a curious survival of the cosmic deity of Greece, copied and disfigured by the crude draughtsmen of the Middle Ages, but faithfully preserved, and recognizable to the last." Similar figures are to be found in Agrippa's De Occulta Philosophia. Like Cesariano's diagrams, however, the key given for their interpretation is most inadequate. Agrippa declares that, being a type of the lesser world, man contains in himself all numbers, measures, weights, motions, and elements. The secret doctrine of Freemasonry, like that of the Dionysiac Architects, is concerned primarily with the effort to measure or estimate philosophically the parts and proportions of the microcosm, so that by the knowledge derived therefrom the supreme ambition of their craft might be realized--the creation of a perfect man.
or cast it is a Master Mason indeed! The best-informed Masonic writers have realized that Solomon's Temple is a representation in miniature of the Universal Temple. Concerning this point, A. E. Waite, in A New Encyclopædia of Freemasonry, writes: "It is macrocosmic in character, so that the Temple is a symbol of the universe, a type of manifestation itself."
Solomon, the Spirit of Universal Illumination--mental, spiritual, moral, and physical--is personified in the king of an earthly nation. While a great ruler by that name may have built a temple, he who considers the story solely from its historical angle will never clear away the rubbish that covers the secret vaults. The rubbish is interpolated matter in the form of superficial symbols, allegories, and degrees which have no legitimate part in the original Freemasonic Mysteries. Concerning the loss of the true esoteric key to Masonic secrets, Albert Pike writes:
"No one journeys now 'from the high place of Cabaon to the threshing floor of Oman the Yebusite,' nor has seen, 'his Master, clothed in blue and gold;' nor are apprentices and Fellow-crafts any longer paid at their respective Columns; nor is the Master's working tool the Tracing Board, nor does he use in his work 'Chalk, Charcoal, and an Earthen Vessel,' nor does the Apprentice, becoming a Fellow Craft, pass from the square to the compass; for the meanings of these phrases as symbols have long been lost."
According to the ancient Rabbins, Solomon was an initiate of the Mystery schools and the temple which he built was actually a house of initiation containing amass of pagan philosophic and phallic emblems. The pomegranates, the palm-headed columns, the Pillars before the door, the Babylonian cherubim, and the arrangement of the chambers and draperies all indicate the temple to have been patterned after the sanctuaries of Egypt and Atlantis. Isaac Myer, in The Qabbalah, makes the following observation:
"The pseudo-Clement of Rome, writes: 'God made man male and female. The male is Christ: the female, the Church.' The Qabbalists called the Holy Spirit, the mother, and the Church of Israel, the Daughter. Solomon engraved on the walls of his Temple, likenesses of the male and female principles, to adumbrate this mystery; such, it is said, were the figures of the cherubim. This was, however, not in obedience to the words of the Thorah. They were symbolical of the Upper, the spiritual, the former or maker, positive or male, and the Lower, the passive, the negative or female, formed or made by the first."
Masonry came to Northern Africa and Asia Minor from the lost continent of Atlantis, not under its present name but rather under the general designation Sun and Fire Worship. The ancient Mysteries did not cease to exist when Christianity became the world's most powerful religion. Great Pan did not die! Freemasonry is the proof of his survival. The pre-Christian Mysteries simply assumed the symbolism of the new faith, perpetuating through its emblems and allegories the same truths which had been the property of the wise since the beginning of the world. There is no true explanation, therefore, for Christian symbols save that which is concealed within pagan philosophy. Without the mysterious keys carried by the hierophants of the Egyptian, Brahmin, and Persian cults the gates of Wisdom cannot be opened. Consider with reverent spirit, therefore, the sublime allegory of the Temple and its Builders, realizing that beneath its literal interpretation lies hidden a Royal Secret.
According to the Talmudic legends, Solomon understood the mysteries of the Qabbalah. He was also an alchemist and a necromancer, being able to control the dæmons, and from them and other inhabitants of the invisible worlds he secured much of his wisdom. In his translation of Clavicula Salomonis, or The Key of Solomon the King, a work presumably setting forth the magical secrets gathered by Solomon and used by him in the conjuration of spirits and which, according to Frank C. Higgins, contains many sidelights on Masonic initiatory rituals, S. L. MacGregor-Mathers recognizes the probability that King Solomon was a magician in the fullest sense of that word. "I see no reason to doubt," he affirms, "the tradition which assigns the authorship of the 'Key' to King Solomon, for among others Josephus, the Jewish historian, especially mentions the magical works attributed to that monarch; this is confirmed by many Eastern traditions, and his magical skill is frequently mentioned in the Arabian Nights."
Concerning Solomon's supernatural powers, Josephus writes in his Eighth Book of the Antiquities of the Jews:
"Now the sagacity and wisdom which God had bestowed on Solomon was so great that he exceeded the ancients, in so much that he was no way inferior to the Egyptians, who are said to have been beyond all men in understanding; * * * God also enabled him to learn that skill which expelled demons, which is a science useful and sanative to him. He composed such incantations also by which distempers are alleviated. And he left behind him the manner of using exorcisms, by which they drive away demons, so that they never return; and this method of cure is of great force unto this day."
The mediæval alchemists were convinced that King Solomon understood the secret processes of Hermes by means of which it was possible to multiply metals. Dr. Bacstrom writes that the Universal Spirit (CHiram) assisted King Solomon to build his temple, because Solomon being wise in the wisdom of alchemy knew how to control this incorporeal essence and, setting it to work for him, caused the invisible universe to supply him with vast amounts of gold and silver which most people believed were mined by natural methods.
The mysteries of the Islamic faith are now in the keeping of the dervishes--men who, renouncing worldliness, have withstood the test of a thousand and one days of temptation. Jelal-ud-din, the great Persian Sufic poet and philosopher, is accredited with having founded the Order of Mevlevi, or the "dancing dervishes," whose movements exoterically signify the motions of the celestial bodies and esoterically result in the establishment of a rhythm which stimulates the centers of spiritual consciousness within the dancer's body.
"According to the mystical canon, there are always on earth a certain number of holy men who are admitted to intimate communion with the Deity. The one who occupies the highest position among his contemporaries is called the 'Axis' (Q
The Axis is a mysterious individual who, unknown and unsuspected, mingles with mankind and who, according to tradition, has his favorite seat upon the roof of the Caaba. J. P. Brown, in The Dervishes, gives a description of these "Master Souls."
FREEMASONRY'S PRICELESS HERITAGE
The sanctum sanctorum of Freemasonry is ornamented with the gnostic jewels of a thousand ages; its rituals ring with the divinely inspired words of seers and sages. A hundred religious have brought their gifts of wisdom to its altar; arts and sciences unnumbered have contributed to its symbolism. Freemasonry is a world-wide university, teaching the liberal arts and sciences of the soul to all who will hearken to its words. Its chairs are seats of learning and its pillars uphold an arch of universal education. Its trestleboards are inscribed with the eternal verities of all ages and upon those who comprehend its sacred depths has dawned the realization that within the Freemasonic Mysteries lie hidden the long-lost arcana sought by all peoples since the genesis of human reason.
The philosophic power of Freemasonry lies in its symbols--its priceless heritage from the Mystery schools of antiquity. In a letter to Robert Freke Gould, Albert Pike writes:
"It began to shape itself to my intellectual vision into something more imposing and majestic, solemnly mysterious and grand. It seemed to me like the Pyramids in their loneliness, in whose yet undiscovered chambers may be hidden, for the enlightenment of coming generations, the sacred books of the Egyptians, so long lost to the world; like the Sphynx half buried in the desert. In its symbolism, which and its spirit of brotherhood are its essence, Freemasonry is more ancient than any of the world's living religions. It has the symbols and doctrines which, older than himself, Zarathustra inculcated; and ii seemed to me a spectacle sublime, yet pitiful--the ancient Faith of our ancestors holding out to the world its symbols once so eloquent, and mutely and in vain asking for an interpreter. And so I came at last to see that the true greatness and majesty of Freemasonry consist in its proprietorship of these and its other symbols; and that its symbolism is its soul."
Though the temples of Thebes and Karnak be now but majestic heaps of broken and time-battered stone, the spirit: of Egyptian philosophy still marches triumphant through the centuries. Though the rock-hewn sanctuaries of the ancient Brahmins be now deserted and their carvings crumbled into dust, still the wisdom of the Vedas endures. Though the oracles be silenced and the House of the Mysteries be now but rows of ghostly columns, still shines the spiritual glory of Hellas with luster undiminished. Though Zoroaster, Hermes, Pythagoras, Plato, and Aristotle are now but dim memories in a world once rocked by the transcendency of their intellectual genius, still in the mystic temple of Freemasonry these god-men live again in their words and symbols; and the candidate, passing through the initiations, feels himself face to face with these illumined hierophants of days long past.
SECRET SOCIETIES WHAT ARE THEY 2
2 - Heavenly Bodies: The Gods of the Ancients
To further our quest in the understanding of secret societies we need to fully understand their background, both in belief and in history.
Because so many of today’s secret societies express imagery and symbolism that revolves around the beliefs of our pre-Christian ancestors, we would do well to try and comprehend how and why these beliefs started and what the symbols that we see really mean. To this end, we need to investigate the realm of the "heavenly bodies" - the planets in the night sky.
I am always overjoyed when I visit a remote location, where the light from street lamps doesn’t pollute and poison our vision of our heavenly partners.
To stand and stare on a crystal clear night at the twinkling stars and to be in awe at the incredible number of lights that reach our eyes is an experience everybody should have. Today we understand what these stars are - they are distant and sometimes long-dead suns. Our ancestors, without the orange glare of a suburban street, were unaware of the science behind the wonder.
For them these were the myriad eyes of the gods in heaven - the great Shining Ones in the sky.
The father sun and the mother moon were dominant due to their size and the seeming relationship they held to the very hormonal nature of man and woman - they literally controlled our lives. There is little wonder that the tales of these heavenly twinkling gods should remain with us in our religious fables, myths, and folklore.
Similar to the Pagan god Pan, whose name means "All," the Bible says that "Christ is all and in all." Did the early Christians and Gnostics understand man’s relationship with the hidden forces of the larger universe?
One thing is sure, this understanding has been held like a baby in arms by the secret societies we shall soon discuss.
The questions of whether early man understood and utilized the effects of cyclic patterns, electromagnetic forces, and the closeness of his nature with plants and animals may be answered in the signs of the reverence he paid to these elements; his worship and ritualistic behavior surrounding some of these basic and fundamental parts of the "supernature."
Cyclic patterns and rhythms dominate our lives, from the day to night patterns to the seasonal changes and their effects upon us.
If we look at a few of the cycles that have become important to man, we can see how they affect us.
The solar system in balance
Day/night cycles are different in other parts of the world. Some have longer nights and shorter days, for example, and their nature has adapted accordingly. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is purely the result of long nights.
On the equator, where the sun is stronger and is out for longer periods, SAD does not exist and is indeed refuted.
In several parts of the world, we have four seasons. Elsewhere, the seasons are different. Tropical regions have two seasons: wet and dry. Monsoon areas have three: cold, hot, and rainy. In polar regions, the temperature change from summer to winter is abrupt.
Man, animal, and plant life have adapted remarkably well to the different seasons they experience, and so too has their mythology.
The pineal gland actually measures the seasons and length of day. This is how we adapt to the various seasons around the globe. Many species, including some types of bird, can accurately predict the weather to help them plan migratory patterns.
The Orange Ladybird insect in the United Kingdom has never been wrong in its long-term winter predictions.
The Moon
The moon plays an important part in all the religions of the world and is hidden deeply in the secret societies.
Lunar cycles and human experience are intrinsically linked. The tidal flow of the world’s oceans corresponds to the waxing and waning of the moon, as does the menstrual cycle, which has had a profound effect upon our early and later religious beliefs.
Menstruation (moon-struation) occurs only during the fertile years and had symbolic meaning amongst early cultures. The menstrual blood of women is considered with awe and fear and may have much to do with the use of Red Ochre by ancient man.
This blood is also derided and called unclean (even today, the women of Judaism go through a purification bath seven days after the end of the menstruation), a poisoning of woman for her sins by the great gods, although this appeared to be a much later addition as a result of the subtle battle of the religious sexes, as the earlier cults seem to have revered the blood, even to the point of drinking it.
Menstruating women were often kept away from the other members of their tribe or village.
This may be why the witches’ Sabbath took place specifically on the day when the moon took rest, and was associated with evil. Ishtar, one of the Moon Goddess’s titles, was said to be menstruating on this day. The menstruating woman is also seen as a symbol of fertility, and in some African cultures she is led around the home of one who wishes to become pregnant and asked to touch everything.
THe onset of menstruation marks the move from child to woman and was celebrated with Earth Goddess or Mother Goddess rituals and, much later, within the taking of blood in the Eucharist.
The Sabbath (Heart-rest of the moon), the moon’s day of rest, the seventh day, was later taken over by the Jews, who turned it into their day of rest and laid waste to the maternal, lunar religions, and inaugurated their paternal "sun god." Christians took this further, moving the day of rest to the Mithraic Sun-day - the original moon day being Monday. 1
The sidereal lunar month is 27.32 days and the synodic lunar month is 29.53 days. Both have different paths and different meanings dependent upon your culture. In the sidereal lunar year there are 13 months per year. This is a matriarchal structure and is more than 3,000 years old.
The instillation of a 12-month period seems to have been an attempt by the solar patriarchal cultures to gain dominance, and thus we now have 12 months per year. The months are, in effect, symbols of the Zodiac houses.
Each "house" or "mansion" of the Zodiac is approximately 30 degrees, so the sun passes through each "mansion" every 30 degrees. Jesus, of course, as the symbol of the sun came of age at 30 and claimed that his Father’s mansion had many rooms.
All of this was what is known as astrotheology - the theology of the stars - and all of this crept slowly into the hidden chambers of the secret orders.
The elimination of the 13-month period has come down to us today with the persecution of the witches’ coven, which has 13 members, the number 13 being considered unlucky in the West, but more importantly the fact that Jesus had 12 disciples, therefore making up 13 in total, the hidden number of Mother Earth.
Indeed the very concept of Christianity is built around a celestial and solar worship:
Christ is the sun, which dies for three days in midwinter and is resurrected three days later; Mary being linked both in myth and etymology to the moon; and the 12 disciples representing the 12 star-signs.
The moon is tied up in many of our early cultures.
The names of its associated deities vary due to locality, language, and ethnic differences, but are all essentially of the same:
Aphrodite, Astarte, Badb, Brigit, Ch’ang O, Demeter, Persephone, Hecate, Inanna, Isis, Ishtar, Maja Jotma, Tsuki-Yomi, and all emerging as the Gnostic Sophia or wisdom.
Some of these designations have been carried on, kept alive behind the scenes by the secret cults while they were subtly battling or even creating the front lines of the new or growing solar and male-oriented popular gods such as Mithras and Yahweh.
They are all literal elements of a very real internal symbolism - the balance of the male and female sides of our own mind.
The terms "lunatic" ("moon-struck") and "mental" are both taken from the moon, under the impression that such effects are brought on by the lunar periods, usually the full moon. It is not surprising that the moon was denounced as the "mad" moon when we consider the patriarchal and matriarchal battles being fought across the continents.
The idea was put forward that the electrical energy of the body became drained at this time of the month, and caused the person to lose his or her faculties. Just 200 years ago, Lunacy was even covered by English law. Kleptomania, arson, and dangerous driving have been shown scientifically to increase at times of the full moon, so there may be some scientific reason for this matriarchal lost battle.
The Jewish Passover is celebrated on the lunar calendar; the Christian Easter (Eoster was the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring) is calculated from the full moon after the vernal equinox. The full moon at the autumnal equinox is celebrated as the harvest moon. The Jews had moon festivals, such as New Moon and Full Moon (see Num. 28,11:14). The eclipse of the moon is considered by many cultures to be the union of the Sun God and Moon Goddess.
There were 500,000 births measured in New York in 1948/57. The results revealed that more births occurred during a waning moon and the maximum after a full moon. In the North Sea coast of Germany, most births occurred at high tides as the moon passed overhead. More children are born in the Northern Hemisphere in May and June than in November and December, and vice versa in the Southern Hemisphere.
Size of offspring has also been mapped and shows a noticeable pattern dependent upon time of year.
In the 1960s, Eugen Jonas understood the lunar aspect of ovulation and successfully increased the effectiveness of contraception to 98 percent. When he was presented with the birth charts of 250 newborn children he successfully identified the sex of 87 percent of the babies from planetary information alone.
Frank Brown of Northwestern University, Illinois, found that oysters in his laboratory, 1,000 miles from their Connecticut shore, opened at the same time as their home shores’ high tide, which, in turn, is related to the moon’s orbital pattern. Brown also proved that potatoes, rats, and fiddler crabs are all governed by lunar periods. Within laboratories, the metabolisms of various creatures fluctuated in response to lunar patterns and geomagnetic factors.
Now, years later, research is proving that all known sea creatures, when taken from their natural homes, still obey the same lunar cycles. At the time, many scientists thought Brown to be dealing with the paranormal sciences and ignored his research. What it does show (and scientifically) is the effect of cycles and electromagnetic energy on the natural inhabitants of this planet - including humans.
It is no wonder the ancients saw in these planetary bodies the gods who controlled their lives.
The Sun
The Shining One, "great light of the world," is venerated all over the globe as the light of life, the giver of heat, and the most important cyclic symbol of all time.
Our ancestors knew that it meant life or death. It was essential for the sun to return every day, for its strength to be renewed again each Easter. We say the sun is wise, and therefore in mystery plays around the world, light equates to wisdom. The strength of the sun gave rise to its being considered the most powerful of the deities. In the early developed civilizations the sun is always there.
In Egyptian culture, and according to the Heliopolis cult, the sun was Atum, Ra, Re, Atum-Ra, or Ra-Atum. In the Memphis cult, the sun was known as Amun, or Amun-Re. The scarab beetle is often used to portray the sun in some aspects, a symbol of self-regeneration and the early ideas of reincarnation. The sun is generally male and outwits the lunar female goddess as well as mates with her.
We sacrifice, dance (almost always, significantly, in circles or cycles), travel hundreds of miles, and sing to the great light. We humanize it and give it names such as Apollo, and include him in dramas. This, of course, hides a deeper and more symbolic understanding that the initiated, the ancient Shining Priesthood of the sun knew how to decipher.
The cyclic pattern and life-giving nature of the sun is key to the secrets of the ancient Shining Ones.
The movements of the sun have inspired tales of where the sun god goes and why he comes back, of battles fought and death overcome. This last idea of overcoming death gives us the first hint at how man has used the sun god fables and mysteries to hide the secret ideas of how we could be reincarnated.
Thousands of years of begging the sun to return each day and be reborn each spring led ancient man to develop his own rebirth rituals and ideas of how to accomplish it. Now, with thousands of years of additional mystery and symbolism, we find it almost impossible to decipher the magic secret.
Everyday we rise with the sun. Our bodies release hormones, which waken, revive, and regenerate us. In summer, our endocrine glands release more hormones that bring a sense of well-being. By late afternoon we feel more relaxed as the sun’s strength wanes. The secret police of many countries often choose this time of day to arrest people, as they are more easily subdued.
If today we understand how to utilize the power of the sun with the regenerative effects of holidays and by the dealings of the secret police, what did our ancient and supposedly less complicated ancestors do?
Sunspot activity affects our biorhythms directly in ways we do not understand. Evidence shows that it can be an irritant to our bodily functions and mental attitude.
The Foundation for the Study of Cycles has produced some interesting results with their long-term research, including some of the following:
There is a 3.86 year cycle in lemming suicides and North American lumber pine growth; an 11.1 year cycle of sun spot activity and serious upsurge in war and unrest.
The Black Death and the Great Plague coincided with this solar turbulence. There is also an increase in traffic accidents every 11.1 years, a rise and fall in hemlines, and an increase of volcanic and earthquake activity.
This last point will not be lost on those who already know that Yahweh was in fact a volcanic and solar god - an ancient linking of the two cyclic phenomena.
The Stars
The myriad Shining Ones also have an effect on us.
Michel Gauquelin, a French psychologist, placed the hypothesis that we are affected by the position of the planets at our time of birth firmly on the doorstep of science. He showed that the position of the stars had some indication as to what line of work one may enter later in life.
This was not related to the practice of astrology or the horoscopes in the daily newspapers, but a serious, scientific data analysis.
The psychologist Hans Eysenck said,
"How ever much it may go against the grain, I think we must admit that there is something here that requires explanation."
His results, however, only showed the astronomically aligned tendencies within the higher professionals, as the same response was not achieved with unskilled workers.
The study of the stars goes back thousands of years. Some say 4,000 B.C. Sumeria was the first to do so. Others put this even earlier and say that ancient man was studying the stars 32,000 years ago. 2
Their evidence is an engraved antler from Abri Blanchard, France, with a strange pattern of notches or calendrical phases of the moon.
With all the evidence on patterns, rhythms, and electromagnetism that affect our bodies, it is no wonder that modern science has taken another look at the ancient art of astrology, which has been neglected because of the widespread misuse of generic horoscopes.
Natal astrology deals with planetary positions at the time of our birth. Astrometeorology concerns the prediction of major earthquakes, climatic changes, and volcanic eruptions. There is much evidence to suggest that certain animals, which can predict such occurrences, are born at a specific time of year that corresponds to certain astrological predictions, and the reason is simple.
The movements of the planets cause changes in the subtle electromagnetic energy of the galaxy, and with such organs as the pineal gland, animals can indeed "read" this information. In my other work (The Serpent Grail), I have shown how this energy is indeed real and can, in fact, even be picked up by humans, when they revert back to their own superconscious.
Cosmobiology is the study of the balance between cyclic behavior, biological patterns, radiation, and gravitational effects upon us, and as any good scientist will tell you, gravitation is a wave and can affect our psyche.
Ancient peoples must have understood the precise mappings of these newly named sciences when they too predicted such things by the stars. It may be that ancient man was using both his "hidden powers," and the tools of the Earth around him. It may also be that the ideas and symbolism of alchemy were just a few more steps along this path.
The Indian sage, Parasar (circa. 3000 B.C.) used natal astrology in his work. Megalithic structures have many astrological and Earth alignments.
The Pyramids map the stars, obeying the Hermetic lore of "as above so below." Ziggurats, temples, floor paintings, carvings, and 40-mile-long lines etched into the ground all convey the ancient and global belief in astrological predictions.
The very earliest almanacs contained weather forecasts based upon astrological predictions. In the countries of Arabia, the position of the stars was consistent with the weather. The ancient priesthood would have appeared to be in the know all the time, and, therefore, would appear holy and godlike; it was little wonder that they became incorporated into the symbolic format and titles of the stars.
The term zodiac has a meaning pertaining to animals, possibly "animal map" or "circle of animals." This is seen more precisely in the ancient Chinese chart on which every star sign has an animal name. The Zodiac is the belt of the gods, which lies nine degrees to either side of the ecliptic plane, and contains the orbits of the moon and the major planets.
Each Zodiac is 30 degrees apart.
The sun originally traversed these minor gods on a regular path and the various signs of the zodiac were blessed with his arrival. All the god-man stories, from Jesus to Horus, can be shown quite easily to be this very progression of the sun through the heavens.
That the word zodiac pertains to animals explains why it contains animal symbols, such as the ram and fish. These ancient anthropomorphic beliefs were included into the sky, in the same way that Pagan gods were taken on as saints by the Christian Church.
Later on, the saints received their own stars and were painted with them in ecclesiastical fervor - they even took on the symbols of the animals, as they were nothing more than a Christian creation developed from astrotheological origins. This concept has been concealed from the general population, as Acharya S tells us in The Christ Conspiracy:
The cosmology or celestial mythos has in reality been hidden from the masses for many centuries for the purpose of enriching and empowering the ruling elite. Its conspiring priest-kings have ruled empires in full knowledge of it since time immemorial and have ‘lorded’ it over the heads of the serfs.
Here yet again we have other authors discovering the idea that since time "immemorial" the people of the world have been lied to for power.
In some of the world’s zodiacs, such as the Chinese version, there is even a tree at the center representing the Earth’s polar axis - and this is the real location of Eden, in the sky.
The Babylonians, and especially people in the Middle East, studied the stars mathematically and attempted, even as long as 5,000 years ago, to scientifically log the reactions and effects of the stars. They produced a calendar and perfect measures of time, essential for a people without clocks.
Carl Jung suggested that the Zodiac was an archetypal component of the psyche of mankind, and he linked it with the theory of the "collective unconscious."
The patterns and rhythms of the stars, with their gravitational and radiation activity, have enormous effects upon our universe, but could they also affect us individually and collectively?
The cosmic radiation hitting and passing through our planet is millions of years old. It comes in cycles, as does the solar wind. The cycles increase and decrease, but nevertheless there is a pattern. Our species has been on this planet, and life has been part of the vast universe, long enough for there to be some marked and observable effect.
There are a vast number of other cycles in which we are involved, such as urinary cycles, sexual cycles, stock market crashes, epidemics, and a host of other minor cycles. A study of history will show how generations experience the same mistakes, and successes, all in a cyclic pattern. Stock market crashes themselves make a profound analogy.
Those in the know and with the power or money can predict these things, so they can also increase their power and money exponentially. Those with the knowledge maintain the power - the knowledge of cycles.
The Buddhist Wheel of Life reflects the understanding the ancients had of this cyclic life of ours. The Wheel culminates in the 12 links in the chain of causation on the search for truth, and it depicts, amongst others, creatures of passion, stupidity, and hatred, and shows how we endlessly repeat the same things. These repeating patterns of life events, circumstances, and our thoughts and emotions that come round again and again, are just like the planets that orbit the sun at different rates of orbital frequency.
We could say that the orbiting movement of the planets in our solar system represent - and at the same time reflect - the same patterns that are going on within a person’s internal dialogue, as if what is going on in outer-space reflects what is going on within our inner-space, and within the inner depths of our own psyche.
The Hindus also make a connection with reincarnation, as the life-death cycle is just another cycle of repeating patterns they believe are due to karma not yet worked out, and broken. It is said that the ultimate goal is to stop or break the Wheel of Karma.
If this is true, then every person’s astrological chart will contain information about the present life and maybe even previous lives - that is, the "program" that each person holds within his or her own consciousness - and that an individual’s chart or horoscope will also show the strengths and weaknesses of that person, and also those circumstances and events that are both rewarding and challenging. It will also show the stumbling blocks that we each have to overcome in order to move on.
If we are intelligent enough to study the cycle of the heavens and understand this, then it’s possible that our own personal horoscope will, more or less, reveal to us the same patterns locked up in our DNA, being the path of our own life, and also the challenges that are set before us, which we are being encouraged to try and break.
It may even be possible to break the program or pattern entirely!
It has now been determined that the information one gets from a personal horoscope is usually about 75 to 80 percent correct, depending of course on the skill of the astrologer - adding that this statistic really stems from the fact that, in general, man has only a limited knowledge about astrology - as much knowledge as he has about everything else, if you take things to the highest level that man can understand at this present stage in his evolution.
Lack of knowledge about astrology is really due to certain prejudices people have in regard to the superficial and over-generalized version of astrology that is deemed acceptable both for and by society.
The astrology that we read in the newspapers and magazines and can learn from the books on the shelves in the Mind, Body, and Spirit section is the astrology familiar to society, and which has become too generalized and commercialized to be of any real use.
The planets themselves - and more importantly the position of the planets in the solar system at any one time - will give a different meaning for each individual. The different vibrational influences that radiate from each planet, and especially the changing vibrations that result from the changing positions of each planet in relation to the others in the solar system, are very subtle as to be hardly noticeable or measurable.
However, because of the continuous bombardment of these vibrations on the Earth, they are also deeply effective and far-reaching with regard to the consciousness of each individual on this planet, and so the meanings that can be read from them is based on the position of the planets at the exact time of every individual’s conception or birth.
Seeing that most of us are conceived and born at different times this creates a wide variety of different beliefs, experiences, and outlooks. All this is reflected in the positions of the planets in the cyclonic, cycling motion of our solar system, which acts as a giant cosmic clock, containing within all its biorhythmic-like cycles the "blueprint" for each individual life on this planet.
So then, in a nutshell, an individual’s astrological chart is a picture of that individual’s life, and each planet (and the interactions between the planets) charts the repeating patterns in that life - the frequencies of the planets, creating the vibrational patterns that had been imprinted on the central nervous system while the fetus of the individual was growing in the womb.
The patterns of events that take years to repeat are linked to the larger, slower, outer planets - such as Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus. One’s horoscope is really a representation of one’s picture of reality, and the internal dialogue that creates this particular picture.
I am certain the ancients understood this, and this may have been one of the reasons why great emphasis was placed on the positions of the stars and the movements of the sun, moon, and planets.
The web that man has spread across the many thousands of years is complex and cluttered.
Historians would have us believe that various human achievements sprang up spontaneously and simultaneously across the continents. Mathematically, this is in error. There are too many coincidences, too many simultaneous eruptions of human culture and achievement, from the buildings that share a common purpose as solar and astral temples to the emergence of the ancient cross as a symbol - all of this is related to the resonant energy of the universe and is deeply entrenched in the emerging scientific idea of quantum entanglement.
This new theory, backed by scientists from Beijing University, actually shows how telepathy is possible and likely when the particles/waves of two individuals are entangled. The same effect occurs with any energy wave/particle. Through meditation the individual comes closer and closer to consciously understanding this energy - an amazing thought, and an amazing deception that this information has been kept from us.
Remember that there is no easy way to show everything that is linked, there is simply too much information and much is hidden in secret societies.
In 1957, Tom Lethbridge wrote a book called Gogmagog. He claimed that Druidism and Brahmanism were linked and shared a common origin. Lethbridge believed that their ancient religion was somehow related to and existed for the Earth Goddess, also associated with the Moon Goddess and often cross-linked.
This is true in that She was one of the deities worshipped by the ancient priesthood, to whom the Brahmins and Druids were related.
The Earth/Moon Goddess, or Mother, had many names, Gaia or Ge, Isis, Astarte, and eventually culminating in the Virgin Mary (Mother of God) or even Mary Magdalene, and leading to the cult of the Black Virgin, which itself seems to be related more to Mary Magdalene than the Mother of God. In essence they are all built around the same energy, the same very human and even universal pattern that is built into each and every one of us.
Lethbridge was so upset by the reaction to his hypothesis that he "retired" to Devon and took up dowsing, itself uniquely linked to the ancient Shining Ones’ culture and to the idea of earth energy. Unfortunately, the effect of this was to fuel his adversaries’ opinions of him, even though he discovered some remarkable facts, which to this day are highly regarded by dowsers.
Lethbridge showed that different substances or items produce different swing rates of the pendulum. The pendulum is well known for being the most accurate dowsing implement, and in Lethbridge’s case this proved to be true. He found that the age of items gave a different rate, as did the surrounding emotions. A pebble thrown violently reacted differently from one thrown in a less aggressive manner.
Work carried out by other dowsers has shown that while the rates differ between dowsers, the principle remains the same. This difference may be due to the rate at which the dowser absorbs the emitted energy, but it is hard to understand why the rates are uniformly different. If there had been a pattern of irregular rates this would be sufficient evidence to ignore the practice; as it is, we have evidence enough to require further investigation.
Although some of the conclusions drawn by Lethbridge are open to debate, we are left wondering whether there is any evidence for humans being able to pick up energy. And I was to find there was. (See author’s other work or www.serpentgrail.com)
As we have seen, electromagnetism is in all things and we are open to its power, as are animals. The theory is that we transfer this energy to the implements used in dowsing. This may explain why some dowsers have different rates, but still keep the same proportions as Lethbridge’s work. In the Vietnam War and World War I, dowsers were used to help the Army find unexploded shells and locate mines. Modern oil companies use the skills of the dowsers to locate oil.
There is much evidence to show that ancient man practiced dowsing, or radiesthesia, in one form or another. In the Tassilin-Ajjer caves in the Sahara of southeastern Algeria, there are ancient pictoglyphs, approximately 8,000 years old, which show what appears to be dowsing.
Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom and writing, and the Greek Daedalus, both closely associated, are credited with its invention.
The Chinese, the masters of Feng Shui, have also been credited with the invention of dowsing from the 3rd millennium B.C. In the Bible we find that Moses (the patriarch who, according to Acts, had all the knowledge of Egypt and whose name is linked to the sun and the snake) was adept at finding water with his rod. The writers of the Bible vehemently opposed the tradition of dowsing.
This was because just about any layperson could dowse and therefore could take the secret knowledge away from the priesthood and reduce their power.
Later, the Inquisition of the Catholic Church found it necessary to stamp out dowsing once again, while many abbots continued the practice in secret and even wrote extensively on the subject, albeit symbolically. What would be the reaction of the Church if its people were to find out that their own prophets, including the supposed Savior, practiced divination?
Among the other forms of divination to look out for is Bath-Kol: divination by means of the heavenly, divine voice.
By interpreting this sound, the ancient Jewish prophets could announce the Will of God to the people. If ever there was a tool to keep the sacredness of God within the elite, then this is it. This practice appears to be worldwide in all cultures but is carried out only by the initiated few.
That is not to say that those individuals were not in some way and through some form of formulated ritual actually getting involved in the quantum entanglement of the universal collective.
Necromancy, the art of raising spirits from the dead to discover answers, is another form of divination that has strong links with the Bible. The Witch of Endor, in 1 Samuel 28, summoned the spirit of Samuel for Saul to question. Saul paid the price for this sin, but this demonstrates the existence of this ancient practice, which stretches back to beliefs in the Underworld or place of the ancestors; a belief and a divination accomplished all over the globe.
Was this a practice common to the ancient priesthood who may have traveled the world?
The period fits well. But it is also part and parcel of the Shining Ones’ attempt to contact those who have passed into the Duat or Underworld. The ancient priests actually believed that they could contact the spirits of the dead through meditation, drug-induced states, or even physical actions such as Dervish.
Astrology is a form of divination relating to the stars. This too was practiced globally at the same time as necromancy. 3
The interpretation of dreams, oneiromancy, is a worldwide custom and one which also appears within the pages of the Bible, as well as many other holy books from just about every other religion and culture from our ancient past. Sometimes the dreamer would choose a specific location and take a hallucinogenic substance to bring on a dream, which only the priest could interpret.
In the Bible, the one with the ability to interpret the dream was the chosen one of God - the Shining One, a special person or priest.
Scrying is the method of using a crystal or shining ball, mirror, or, more correctly and more ancient, a shining stone. Only a priest, or latterly clairvoyant, could read the message received. This art goes back to and even further than the Egyptians. Gypsies (the word is derived from "Egyptians") still use the crystal ball today.
Hebrew tradition has it that Adam received wisdom from a shining stone, and Nostradamus used a bowl of water, as did Zeus.
Geomancy is the ancient from of reading messages from the earth. The word comes from the Greek word for Mother Earth, Ge or Gaia, and mancy or magos, meaning knowledge. Ancient Greek, Latin, and Arab writers tell us about geomancy. This divination technique is also global and is referred to in the Bible, in some remarkable places, as we will see in later chapters.
The timescale of the spread of geomancy across the globe is much debated. There is, however, no doubt that it was universally used and shows the link of mankind to beliefs within the Mother Goddess, right through into Christianity - a survival of ancient traditions.
In geomancy, the earth is drawn upon by hand or with sticks and a response read. Special codes or symbols are used, which are known only by the initiated. The symbols are usually lines, dots, or stars. The final symbol is probably the one we should remember, as this includes the symbol of the fish, although not in modern geomancy techniques.
The Arabs used random marks and read these. In other parts of the world, earth was thrown into the air and the shapes it formed as it fell on the ground it were interpreted.
In China, the most complex form of geomancy was Feng Shui (literally, "wind and water"), the interpretation of the Earth energies (known as "Dragon Paths") and the use of this reading to discover where best to place tombs or temples. The Chinese use a similar technique on humans in acupuncture, a very popular and reportedly effective alternative medicine.
The Chinese called the powers of the Earth "Yin" (female, negative) and "Yang" (male, positive). As we know, everything, including energy, matter, and magnetism, has a positive and a negative, so once again, our ancestors were there before us. Modern-day dowsing has shown that sites such as Stonehenge, Glastonbury, Newgrange, the pyramids of Egypt, and the ziggurats of South America are all situated on these so-called ancient energy lines.
This is yet another example of the global aspect of these ancient beliefs, which spread through cultures without altering the ethnicity of the population, but fitting in with it. This ancient priesthood did not change or improve the lifestyles of the general population, which is why it has been so difficult for archaeologists to discover their existence; instead, they simply passed on knowledge, sharing the power amongst themselves and the few who were chosen to become Shining Ones.
There are subtle hints, missed by orthodox history, which are beginning to reveal the patterns of an antiquated hierarchy of special priests.
Once we are alerted to their existence, it becomes obvious that they were there all along. If we read any part of the Bible again and replace the words "Lord" or "God" with the "Shining Ones," it will become apparent how deeply rooted into our culture this priesthood really is.
There are many belief systems in the world, but they all come from one basic and undeniable core, invented and evolved separately by the Shining Ones. The same term is used across the globe due to the same enlightened aspect or illumination achieved and sustained by them, and a worship of the same solar globe seen everywhere.
These priests were the experts of self-mind-control - manipulating their own minds into the Shining world of the universe through energy cycles and magnetism.
With the use of drugs and physical and mental effort, they achieved the Holy Grail of existence. With the benefits to themselves being good health and knowledge of the world around them, they found the Elixir.
Instead of looking for great migrations of civilizations such as Atlantis, we should be looking toward the faith makers, the illuminated ones who spread throughout the peoples of the world and became gods among men.
To further our quest in the understanding of secret societies we need to fully understand their background, both in belief and in history.
Because so many of today’s secret societies express imagery and symbolism that revolves around the beliefs of our pre-Christian ancestors, we would do well to try and comprehend how and why these beliefs started and what the symbols that we see really mean. To this end, we need to investigate the realm of the "heavenly bodies" - the planets in the night sky.
I am always overjoyed when I visit a remote location, where the light from street lamps doesn’t pollute and poison our vision of our heavenly partners.
To stand and stare on a crystal clear night at the twinkling stars and to be in awe at the incredible number of lights that reach our eyes is an experience everybody should have. Today we understand what these stars are - they are distant and sometimes long-dead suns. Our ancestors, without the orange glare of a suburban street, were unaware of the science behind the wonder.
For them these were the myriad eyes of the gods in heaven - the great Shining Ones in the sky.
The father sun and the mother moon were dominant due to their size and the seeming relationship they held to the very hormonal nature of man and woman - they literally controlled our lives. There is little wonder that the tales of these heavenly twinkling gods should remain with us in our religious fables, myths, and folklore.
Similar to the Pagan god Pan, whose name means "All," the Bible says that "Christ is all and in all." Did the early Christians and Gnostics understand man’s relationship with the hidden forces of the larger universe?
One thing is sure, this understanding has been held like a baby in arms by the secret societies we shall soon discuss.
The questions of whether early man understood and utilized the effects of cyclic patterns, electromagnetic forces, and the closeness of his nature with plants and animals may be answered in the signs of the reverence he paid to these elements; his worship and ritualistic behavior surrounding some of these basic and fundamental parts of the "supernature."
Cyclic patterns and rhythms dominate our lives, from the day to night patterns to the seasonal changes and their effects upon us.
If we look at a few of the cycles that have become important to man, we can see how they affect us.
The solar system in balance
Day/night cycles are different in other parts of the world. Some have longer nights and shorter days, for example, and their nature has adapted accordingly. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is purely the result of long nights.
On the equator, where the sun is stronger and is out for longer periods, SAD does not exist and is indeed refuted.
In several parts of the world, we have four seasons. Elsewhere, the seasons are different. Tropical regions have two seasons: wet and dry. Monsoon areas have three: cold, hot, and rainy. In polar regions, the temperature change from summer to winter is abrupt.
Man, animal, and plant life have adapted remarkably well to the different seasons they experience, and so too has their mythology.
The pineal gland actually measures the seasons and length of day. This is how we adapt to the various seasons around the globe. Many species, including some types of bird, can accurately predict the weather to help them plan migratory patterns.
The Orange Ladybird insect in the United Kingdom has never been wrong in its long-term winter predictions.
The Moon
The moon plays an important part in all the religions of the world and is hidden deeply in the secret societies.
Lunar cycles and human experience are intrinsically linked. The tidal flow of the world’s oceans corresponds to the waxing and waning of the moon, as does the menstrual cycle, which has had a profound effect upon our early and later religious beliefs.
Menstruation (moon-struation) occurs only during the fertile years and had symbolic meaning amongst early cultures. The menstrual blood of women is considered with awe and fear and may have much to do with the use of Red Ochre by ancient man.
This blood is also derided and called unclean (even today, the women of Judaism go through a purification bath seven days after the end of the menstruation), a poisoning of woman for her sins by the great gods, although this appeared to be a much later addition as a result of the subtle battle of the religious sexes, as the earlier cults seem to have revered the blood, even to the point of drinking it.
Menstruating women were often kept away from the other members of their tribe or village.
This may be why the witches’ Sabbath took place specifically on the day when the moon took rest, and was associated with evil. Ishtar, one of the Moon Goddess’s titles, was said to be menstruating on this day. The menstruating woman is also seen as a symbol of fertility, and in some African cultures she is led around the home of one who wishes to become pregnant and asked to touch everything.
THe onset of menstruation marks the move from child to woman and was celebrated with Earth Goddess or Mother Goddess rituals and, much later, within the taking of blood in the Eucharist.
The Sabbath (Heart-rest of the moon), the moon’s day of rest, the seventh day, was later taken over by the Jews, who turned it into their day of rest and laid waste to the maternal, lunar religions, and inaugurated their paternal "sun god." Christians took this further, moving the day of rest to the Mithraic Sun-day - the original moon day being Monday. 1
The sidereal lunar month is 27.32 days and the synodic lunar month is 29.53 days. Both have different paths and different meanings dependent upon your culture. In the sidereal lunar year there are 13 months per year. This is a matriarchal structure and is more than 3,000 years old.
The instillation of a 12-month period seems to have been an attempt by the solar patriarchal cultures to gain dominance, and thus we now have 12 months per year. The months are, in effect, symbols of the Zodiac houses.
Each "house" or "mansion" of the Zodiac is approximately 30 degrees, so the sun passes through each "mansion" every 30 degrees. Jesus, of course, as the symbol of the sun came of age at 30 and claimed that his Father’s mansion had many rooms.
All of this was what is known as astrotheology - the theology of the stars - and all of this crept slowly into the hidden chambers of the secret orders.
The elimination of the 13-month period has come down to us today with the persecution of the witches’ coven, which has 13 members, the number 13 being considered unlucky in the West, but more importantly the fact that Jesus had 12 disciples, therefore making up 13 in total, the hidden number of Mother Earth.
Indeed the very concept of Christianity is built around a celestial and solar worship:
Christ is the sun, which dies for three days in midwinter and is resurrected three days later; Mary being linked both in myth and etymology to the moon; and the 12 disciples representing the 12 star-signs.
The moon is tied up in many of our early cultures.
The names of its associated deities vary due to locality, language, and ethnic differences, but are all essentially of the same:
Aphrodite, Astarte, Badb, Brigit, Ch’ang O, Demeter, Persephone, Hecate, Inanna, Isis, Ishtar, Maja Jotma, Tsuki-Yomi, and all emerging as the Gnostic Sophia or wisdom.
Some of these designations have been carried on, kept alive behind the scenes by the secret cults while they were subtly battling or even creating the front lines of the new or growing solar and male-oriented popular gods such as Mithras and Yahweh.
They are all literal elements of a very real internal symbolism - the balance of the male and female sides of our own mind.
The terms "lunatic" ("moon-struck") and "mental" are both taken from the moon, under the impression that such effects are brought on by the lunar periods, usually the full moon. It is not surprising that the moon was denounced as the "mad" moon when we consider the patriarchal and matriarchal battles being fought across the continents.
The idea was put forward that the electrical energy of the body became drained at this time of the month, and caused the person to lose his or her faculties. Just 200 years ago, Lunacy was even covered by English law. Kleptomania, arson, and dangerous driving have been shown scientifically to increase at times of the full moon, so there may be some scientific reason for this matriarchal lost battle.
The Jewish Passover is celebrated on the lunar calendar; the Christian Easter (Eoster was the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring) is calculated from the full moon after the vernal equinox. The full moon at the autumnal equinox is celebrated as the harvest moon. The Jews had moon festivals, such as New Moon and Full Moon (see Num. 28,11:14). The eclipse of the moon is considered by many cultures to be the union of the Sun God and Moon Goddess.
There were 500,000 births measured in New York in 1948/57. The results revealed that more births occurred during a waning moon and the maximum after a full moon. In the North Sea coast of Germany, most births occurred at high tides as the moon passed overhead. More children are born in the Northern Hemisphere in May and June than in November and December, and vice versa in the Southern Hemisphere.
Size of offspring has also been mapped and shows a noticeable pattern dependent upon time of year.
In the 1960s, Eugen Jonas understood the lunar aspect of ovulation and successfully increased the effectiveness of contraception to 98 percent. When he was presented with the birth charts of 250 newborn children he successfully identified the sex of 87 percent of the babies from planetary information alone.
Frank Brown of Northwestern University, Illinois, found that oysters in his laboratory, 1,000 miles from their Connecticut shore, opened at the same time as their home shores’ high tide, which, in turn, is related to the moon’s orbital pattern. Brown also proved that potatoes, rats, and fiddler crabs are all governed by lunar periods. Within laboratories, the metabolisms of various creatures fluctuated in response to lunar patterns and geomagnetic factors.
Now, years later, research is proving that all known sea creatures, when taken from their natural homes, still obey the same lunar cycles. At the time, many scientists thought Brown to be dealing with the paranormal sciences and ignored his research. What it does show (and scientifically) is the effect of cycles and electromagnetic energy on the natural inhabitants of this planet - including humans.
It is no wonder the ancients saw in these planetary bodies the gods who controlled their lives.
The Sun
The Shining One, "great light of the world," is venerated all over the globe as the light of life, the giver of heat, and the most important cyclic symbol of all time.
Our ancestors knew that it meant life or death. It was essential for the sun to return every day, for its strength to be renewed again each Easter. We say the sun is wise, and therefore in mystery plays around the world, light equates to wisdom. The strength of the sun gave rise to its being considered the most powerful of the deities. In the early developed civilizations the sun is always there.
In Egyptian culture, and according to the Heliopolis cult, the sun was Atum, Ra, Re, Atum-Ra, or Ra-Atum. In the Memphis cult, the sun was known as Amun, or Amun-Re. The scarab beetle is often used to portray the sun in some aspects, a symbol of self-regeneration and the early ideas of reincarnation. The sun is generally male and outwits the lunar female goddess as well as mates with her.
We sacrifice, dance (almost always, significantly, in circles or cycles), travel hundreds of miles, and sing to the great light. We humanize it and give it names such as Apollo, and include him in dramas. This, of course, hides a deeper and more symbolic understanding that the initiated, the ancient Shining Priesthood of the sun knew how to decipher.
The cyclic pattern and life-giving nature of the sun is key to the secrets of the ancient Shining Ones.
The movements of the sun have inspired tales of where the sun god goes and why he comes back, of battles fought and death overcome. This last idea of overcoming death gives us the first hint at how man has used the sun god fables and mysteries to hide the secret ideas of how we could be reincarnated.
Thousands of years of begging the sun to return each day and be reborn each spring led ancient man to develop his own rebirth rituals and ideas of how to accomplish it. Now, with thousands of years of additional mystery and symbolism, we find it almost impossible to decipher the magic secret.
Everyday we rise with the sun. Our bodies release hormones, which waken, revive, and regenerate us. In summer, our endocrine glands release more hormones that bring a sense of well-being. By late afternoon we feel more relaxed as the sun’s strength wanes. The secret police of many countries often choose this time of day to arrest people, as they are more easily subdued.
If today we understand how to utilize the power of the sun with the regenerative effects of holidays and by the dealings of the secret police, what did our ancient and supposedly less complicated ancestors do?
Sunspot activity affects our biorhythms directly in ways we do not understand. Evidence shows that it can be an irritant to our bodily functions and mental attitude.
The Foundation for the Study of Cycles has produced some interesting results with their long-term research, including some of the following:
There is a 3.86 year cycle in lemming suicides and North American lumber pine growth; an 11.1 year cycle of sun spot activity and serious upsurge in war and unrest.
The Black Death and the Great Plague coincided with this solar turbulence. There is also an increase in traffic accidents every 11.1 years, a rise and fall in hemlines, and an increase of volcanic and earthquake activity.
This last point will not be lost on those who already know that Yahweh was in fact a volcanic and solar god - an ancient linking of the two cyclic phenomena.
The Stars
The myriad Shining Ones also have an effect on us.
Michel Gauquelin, a French psychologist, placed the hypothesis that we are affected by the position of the planets at our time of birth firmly on the doorstep of science. He showed that the position of the stars had some indication as to what line of work one may enter later in life.
This was not related to the practice of astrology or the horoscopes in the daily newspapers, but a serious, scientific data analysis.
The psychologist Hans Eysenck said,
"How ever much it may go against the grain, I think we must admit that there is something here that requires explanation."
His results, however, only showed the astronomically aligned tendencies within the higher professionals, as the same response was not achieved with unskilled workers.
The study of the stars goes back thousands of years. Some say 4,000 B.C. Sumeria was the first to do so. Others put this even earlier and say that ancient man was studying the stars 32,000 years ago. 2
Their evidence is an engraved antler from Abri Blanchard, France, with a strange pattern of notches or calendrical phases of the moon.
With all the evidence on patterns, rhythms, and electromagnetism that affect our bodies, it is no wonder that modern science has taken another look at the ancient art of astrology, which has been neglected because of the widespread misuse of generic horoscopes.
Natal astrology deals with planetary positions at the time of our birth. Astrometeorology concerns the prediction of major earthquakes, climatic changes, and volcanic eruptions. There is much evidence to suggest that certain animals, which can predict such occurrences, are born at a specific time of year that corresponds to certain astrological predictions, and the reason is simple.
The movements of the planets cause changes in the subtle electromagnetic energy of the galaxy, and with such organs as the pineal gland, animals can indeed "read" this information. In my other work (The Serpent Grail), I have shown how this energy is indeed real and can, in fact, even be picked up by humans, when they revert back to their own superconscious.
Cosmobiology is the study of the balance between cyclic behavior, biological patterns, radiation, and gravitational effects upon us, and as any good scientist will tell you, gravitation is a wave and can affect our psyche.
Ancient peoples must have understood the precise mappings of these newly named sciences when they too predicted such things by the stars. It may be that ancient man was using both his "hidden powers," and the tools of the Earth around him. It may also be that the ideas and symbolism of alchemy were just a few more steps along this path.
The Indian sage, Parasar (circa. 3000 B.C.) used natal astrology in his work. Megalithic structures have many astrological and Earth alignments.
The Pyramids map the stars, obeying the Hermetic lore of "as above so below." Ziggurats, temples, floor paintings, carvings, and 40-mile-long lines etched into the ground all convey the ancient and global belief in astrological predictions.
The very earliest almanacs contained weather forecasts based upon astrological predictions. In the countries of Arabia, the position of the stars was consistent with the weather. The ancient priesthood would have appeared to be in the know all the time, and, therefore, would appear holy and godlike; it was little wonder that they became incorporated into the symbolic format and titles of the stars.
The term zodiac has a meaning pertaining to animals, possibly "animal map" or "circle of animals." This is seen more precisely in the ancient Chinese chart on which every star sign has an animal name. The Zodiac is the belt of the gods, which lies nine degrees to either side of the ecliptic plane, and contains the orbits of the moon and the major planets.
Each Zodiac is 30 degrees apart.
The sun originally traversed these minor gods on a regular path and the various signs of the zodiac were blessed with his arrival. All the god-man stories, from Jesus to Horus, can be shown quite easily to be this very progression of the sun through the heavens.
That the word zodiac pertains to animals explains why it contains animal symbols, such as the ram and fish. These ancient anthropomorphic beliefs were included into the sky, in the same way that Pagan gods were taken on as saints by the Christian Church.
Later on, the saints received their own stars and were painted with them in ecclesiastical fervor - they even took on the symbols of the animals, as they were nothing more than a Christian creation developed from astrotheological origins. This concept has been concealed from the general population, as Acharya S tells us in The Christ Conspiracy:
The cosmology or celestial mythos has in reality been hidden from the masses for many centuries for the purpose of enriching and empowering the ruling elite. Its conspiring priest-kings have ruled empires in full knowledge of it since time immemorial and have ‘lorded’ it over the heads of the serfs.
Here yet again we have other authors discovering the idea that since time "immemorial" the people of the world have been lied to for power.
In some of the world’s zodiacs, such as the Chinese version, there is even a tree at the center representing the Earth’s polar axis - and this is the real location of Eden, in the sky.
The Babylonians, and especially people in the Middle East, studied the stars mathematically and attempted, even as long as 5,000 years ago, to scientifically log the reactions and effects of the stars. They produced a calendar and perfect measures of time, essential for a people without clocks.
Carl Jung suggested that the Zodiac was an archetypal component of the psyche of mankind, and he linked it with the theory of the "collective unconscious."
The patterns and rhythms of the stars, with their gravitational and radiation activity, have enormous effects upon our universe, but could they also affect us individually and collectively?
The cosmic radiation hitting and passing through our planet is millions of years old. It comes in cycles, as does the solar wind. The cycles increase and decrease, but nevertheless there is a pattern. Our species has been on this planet, and life has been part of the vast universe, long enough for there to be some marked and observable effect.
There are a vast number of other cycles in which we are involved, such as urinary cycles, sexual cycles, stock market crashes, epidemics, and a host of other minor cycles. A study of history will show how generations experience the same mistakes, and successes, all in a cyclic pattern. Stock market crashes themselves make a profound analogy.
Those in the know and with the power or money can predict these things, so they can also increase their power and money exponentially. Those with the knowledge maintain the power - the knowledge of cycles.
The Buddhist Wheel of Life reflects the understanding the ancients had of this cyclic life of ours. The Wheel culminates in the 12 links in the chain of causation on the search for truth, and it depicts, amongst others, creatures of passion, stupidity, and hatred, and shows how we endlessly repeat the same things. These repeating patterns of life events, circumstances, and our thoughts and emotions that come round again and again, are just like the planets that orbit the sun at different rates of orbital frequency.
We could say that the orbiting movement of the planets in our solar system represent - and at the same time reflect - the same patterns that are going on within a person’s internal dialogue, as if what is going on in outer-space reflects what is going on within our inner-space, and within the inner depths of our own psyche.
The Hindus also make a connection with reincarnation, as the life-death cycle is just another cycle of repeating patterns they believe are due to karma not yet worked out, and broken. It is said that the ultimate goal is to stop or break the Wheel of Karma.
If this is true, then every person’s astrological chart will contain information about the present life and maybe even previous lives - that is, the "program" that each person holds within his or her own consciousness - and that an individual’s chart or horoscope will also show the strengths and weaknesses of that person, and also those circumstances and events that are both rewarding and challenging. It will also show the stumbling blocks that we each have to overcome in order to move on.
If we are intelligent enough to study the cycle of the heavens and understand this, then it’s possible that our own personal horoscope will, more or less, reveal to us the same patterns locked up in our DNA, being the path of our own life, and also the challenges that are set before us, which we are being encouraged to try and break.
It may even be possible to break the program or pattern entirely!
It has now been determined that the information one gets from a personal horoscope is usually about 75 to 80 percent correct, depending of course on the skill of the astrologer - adding that this statistic really stems from the fact that, in general, man has only a limited knowledge about astrology - as much knowledge as he has about everything else, if you take things to the highest level that man can understand at this present stage in his evolution.
Lack of knowledge about astrology is really due to certain prejudices people have in regard to the superficial and over-generalized version of astrology that is deemed acceptable both for and by society.
The astrology that we read in the newspapers and magazines and can learn from the books on the shelves in the Mind, Body, and Spirit section is the astrology familiar to society, and which has become too generalized and commercialized to be of any real use.
The planets themselves - and more importantly the position of the planets in the solar system at any one time - will give a different meaning for each individual. The different vibrational influences that radiate from each planet, and especially the changing vibrations that result from the changing positions of each planet in relation to the others in the solar system, are very subtle as to be hardly noticeable or measurable.
However, because of the continuous bombardment of these vibrations on the Earth, they are also deeply effective and far-reaching with regard to the consciousness of each individual on this planet, and so the meanings that can be read from them is based on the position of the planets at the exact time of every individual’s conception or birth.
Seeing that most of us are conceived and born at different times this creates a wide variety of different beliefs, experiences, and outlooks. All this is reflected in the positions of the planets in the cyclonic, cycling motion of our solar system, which acts as a giant cosmic clock, containing within all its biorhythmic-like cycles the "blueprint" for each individual life on this planet.
So then, in a nutshell, an individual’s astrological chart is a picture of that individual’s life, and each planet (and the interactions between the planets) charts the repeating patterns in that life - the frequencies of the planets, creating the vibrational patterns that had been imprinted on the central nervous system while the fetus of the individual was growing in the womb.
The patterns of events that take years to repeat are linked to the larger, slower, outer planets - such as Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus. One’s horoscope is really a representation of one’s picture of reality, and the internal dialogue that creates this particular picture.
I am certain the ancients understood this, and this may have been one of the reasons why great emphasis was placed on the positions of the stars and the movements of the sun, moon, and planets.
The web that man has spread across the many thousands of years is complex and cluttered.
Historians would have us believe that various human achievements sprang up spontaneously and simultaneously across the continents. Mathematically, this is in error. There are too many coincidences, too many simultaneous eruptions of human culture and achievement, from the buildings that share a common purpose as solar and astral temples to the emergence of the ancient cross as a symbol - all of this is related to the resonant energy of the universe and is deeply entrenched in the emerging scientific idea of quantum entanglement.
This new theory, backed by scientists from Beijing University, actually shows how telepathy is possible and likely when the particles/waves of two individuals are entangled. The same effect occurs with any energy wave/particle. Through meditation the individual comes closer and closer to consciously understanding this energy - an amazing thought, and an amazing deception that this information has been kept from us.
Remember that there is no easy way to show everything that is linked, there is simply too much information and much is hidden in secret societies.
In 1957, Tom Lethbridge wrote a book called Gogmagog. He claimed that Druidism and Brahmanism were linked and shared a common origin. Lethbridge believed that their ancient religion was somehow related to and existed for the Earth Goddess, also associated with the Moon Goddess and often cross-linked.
This is true in that She was one of the deities worshipped by the ancient priesthood, to whom the Brahmins and Druids were related.
The Earth/Moon Goddess, or Mother, had many names, Gaia or Ge, Isis, Astarte, and eventually culminating in the Virgin Mary (Mother of God) or even Mary Magdalene, and leading to the cult of the Black Virgin, which itself seems to be related more to Mary Magdalene than the Mother of God. In essence they are all built around the same energy, the same very human and even universal pattern that is built into each and every one of us.
Lethbridge was so upset by the reaction to his hypothesis that he "retired" to Devon and took up dowsing, itself uniquely linked to the ancient Shining Ones’ culture and to the idea of earth energy. Unfortunately, the effect of this was to fuel his adversaries’ opinions of him, even though he discovered some remarkable facts, which to this day are highly regarded by dowsers.
Lethbridge showed that different substances or items produce different swing rates of the pendulum. The pendulum is well known for being the most accurate dowsing implement, and in Lethbridge’s case this proved to be true. He found that the age of items gave a different rate, as did the surrounding emotions. A pebble thrown violently reacted differently from one thrown in a less aggressive manner.
Work carried out by other dowsers has shown that while the rates differ between dowsers, the principle remains the same. This difference may be due to the rate at which the dowser absorbs the emitted energy, but it is hard to understand why the rates are uniformly different. If there had been a pattern of irregular rates this would be sufficient evidence to ignore the practice; as it is, we have evidence enough to require further investigation.
Although some of the conclusions drawn by Lethbridge are open to debate, we are left wondering whether there is any evidence for humans being able to pick up energy. And I was to find there was. (See author’s other work or www.serpentgrail.com)
As we have seen, electromagnetism is in all things and we are open to its power, as are animals. The theory is that we transfer this energy to the implements used in dowsing. This may explain why some dowsers have different rates, but still keep the same proportions as Lethbridge’s work. In the Vietnam War and World War I, dowsers were used to help the Army find unexploded shells and locate mines. Modern oil companies use the skills of the dowsers to locate oil.
There is much evidence to show that ancient man practiced dowsing, or radiesthesia, in one form or another. In the Tassilin-Ajjer caves in the Sahara of southeastern Algeria, there are ancient pictoglyphs, approximately 8,000 years old, which show what appears to be dowsing.
Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom and writing, and the Greek Daedalus, both closely associated, are credited with its invention.
The Chinese, the masters of Feng Shui, have also been credited with the invention of dowsing from the 3rd millennium B.C. In the Bible we find that Moses (the patriarch who, according to Acts, had all the knowledge of Egypt and whose name is linked to the sun and the snake) was adept at finding water with his rod. The writers of the Bible vehemently opposed the tradition of dowsing.
This was because just about any layperson could dowse and therefore could take the secret knowledge away from the priesthood and reduce their power.
Later, the Inquisition of the Catholic Church found it necessary to stamp out dowsing once again, while many abbots continued the practice in secret and even wrote extensively on the subject, albeit symbolically. What would be the reaction of the Church if its people were to find out that their own prophets, including the supposed Savior, practiced divination?
Among the other forms of divination to look out for is Bath-Kol: divination by means of the heavenly, divine voice.
By interpreting this sound, the ancient Jewish prophets could announce the Will of God to the people. If ever there was a tool to keep the sacredness of God within the elite, then this is it. This practice appears to be worldwide in all cultures but is carried out only by the initiated few.
That is not to say that those individuals were not in some way and through some form of formulated ritual actually getting involved in the quantum entanglement of the universal collective.
Necromancy, the art of raising spirits from the dead to discover answers, is another form of divination that has strong links with the Bible. The Witch of Endor, in 1 Samuel 28, summoned the spirit of Samuel for Saul to question. Saul paid the price for this sin, but this demonstrates the existence of this ancient practice, which stretches back to beliefs in the Underworld or place of the ancestors; a belief and a divination accomplished all over the globe.
Was this a practice common to the ancient priesthood who may have traveled the world?
The period fits well. But it is also part and parcel of the Shining Ones’ attempt to contact those who have passed into the Duat or Underworld. The ancient priests actually believed that they could contact the spirits of the dead through meditation, drug-induced states, or even physical actions such as Dervish.
Astrology is a form of divination relating to the stars. This too was practiced globally at the same time as necromancy. 3
The interpretation of dreams, oneiromancy, is a worldwide custom and one which also appears within the pages of the Bible, as well as many other holy books from just about every other religion and culture from our ancient past. Sometimes the dreamer would choose a specific location and take a hallucinogenic substance to bring on a dream, which only the priest could interpret.
In the Bible, the one with the ability to interpret the dream was the chosen one of God - the Shining One, a special person or priest.
Scrying is the method of using a crystal or shining ball, mirror, or, more correctly and more ancient, a shining stone. Only a priest, or latterly clairvoyant, could read the message received. This art goes back to and even further than the Egyptians. Gypsies (the word is derived from "Egyptians") still use the crystal ball today.
Hebrew tradition has it that Adam received wisdom from a shining stone, and Nostradamus used a bowl of water, as did Zeus.
Geomancy is the ancient from of reading messages from the earth. The word comes from the Greek word for Mother Earth, Ge or Gaia, and mancy or magos, meaning knowledge. Ancient Greek, Latin, and Arab writers tell us about geomancy. This divination technique is also global and is referred to in the Bible, in some remarkable places, as we will see in later chapters.
The timescale of the spread of geomancy across the globe is much debated. There is, however, no doubt that it was universally used and shows the link of mankind to beliefs within the Mother Goddess, right through into Christianity - a survival of ancient traditions.
In geomancy, the earth is drawn upon by hand or with sticks and a response read. Special codes or symbols are used, which are known only by the initiated. The symbols are usually lines, dots, or stars. The final symbol is probably the one we should remember, as this includes the symbol of the fish, although not in modern geomancy techniques.
The Arabs used random marks and read these. In other parts of the world, earth was thrown into the air and the shapes it formed as it fell on the ground it were interpreted.
In China, the most complex form of geomancy was Feng Shui (literally, "wind and water"), the interpretation of the Earth energies (known as "Dragon Paths") and the use of this reading to discover where best to place tombs or temples. The Chinese use a similar technique on humans in acupuncture, a very popular and reportedly effective alternative medicine.
The Chinese called the powers of the Earth "Yin" (female, negative) and "Yang" (male, positive). As we know, everything, including energy, matter, and magnetism, has a positive and a negative, so once again, our ancestors were there before us. Modern-day dowsing has shown that sites such as Stonehenge, Glastonbury, Newgrange, the pyramids of Egypt, and the ziggurats of South America are all situated on these so-called ancient energy lines.
This is yet another example of the global aspect of these ancient beliefs, which spread through cultures without altering the ethnicity of the population, but fitting in with it. This ancient priesthood did not change or improve the lifestyles of the general population, which is why it has been so difficult for archaeologists to discover their existence; instead, they simply passed on knowledge, sharing the power amongst themselves and the few who were chosen to become Shining Ones.
There are subtle hints, missed by orthodox history, which are beginning to reveal the patterns of an antiquated hierarchy of special priests.
Once we are alerted to their existence, it becomes obvious that they were there all along. If we read any part of the Bible again and replace the words "Lord" or "God" with the "Shining Ones," it will become apparent how deeply rooted into our culture this priesthood really is.
There are many belief systems in the world, but they all come from one basic and undeniable core, invented and evolved separately by the Shining Ones. The same term is used across the globe due to the same enlightened aspect or illumination achieved and sustained by them, and a worship of the same solar globe seen everywhere.
These priests were the experts of self-mind-control - manipulating their own minds into the Shining world of the universe through energy cycles and magnetism.
With the use of drugs and physical and mental effort, they achieved the Holy Grail of existence. With the benefits to themselves being good health and knowledge of the world around them, they found the Elixir.
Instead of looking for great migrations of civilizations such as Atlantis, we should be looking toward the faith makers, the illuminated ones who spread throughout the peoples of the world and became gods among men.
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