< The Hermetic Cross of Praise, its History and Symbolism (continued from page 3-198) >
king of the fourth dynasty B. C. 2966, (Lepsius) 991 from Menes, and long before Sethos I. 1439 B. C.—identified with the Pharoah of Joseph by some, although no mention of anything but shepherd hordes are ever recorded as coming unto the land.
And the Book of the Dead was the ritual of the Egyptian religion, containing an account of the passage of the soul of every individual Egyptian, from its earthly habitation in Chami-land to the presence of Osiris, in Amenti—located, like almost all heavens, in the regions of the mysterious west— where the Bull of the West reigned in sempiternal glory over his disciples. To attain to this felicity the soul had to pass through many trials—to appear for judgment and justification before many inferior rulers or assessors of sins—but the Eye of Osiris, and the splendor of his Throne, was ever present in the minds of his adorers. This Omniscient Eye is denoted in the jewel of the Hermetic Cross by the stone in the centre, and its color indicated the degree of light in which the bearer of it might progressively stand in the ranks of those to whom it possessed a peculiar symbolism. The Hermetic Books, therefore, contained in this ritual such an account of the soul’s purification, and its relation to the Great King of Light, and Master and Reviver of the World, with allusion to the mysteries celebrated from time to time, in remembrance of the traditional death of this Osiris, the Egyptian Savior.
No wonder, then, »hat with Every Egyptian citizen, even to the poorest rank, there was buried a portion of the Holy Writings; those who could afford it had it sculptured on the sarcophagus before their departure—as they termed it—into Amenti, whence they were to return at a better time into their bodies—hence the practice of embalming—and resume a purified life of happiuess and activity under the eye of the Master of Al!
Thus, Fraters, I have commenced with the centre of my jewel, and in a few more brief sentences I hope to radiate therefrom. The principle is the monotheism of the most ancient peoples, the consequence is a reception of them, into the most immediate of the glorious mansions of the Almighty, through His universal love to all mankind and creation.
Having thus justified the centre of the jewel, namely, the monotheism of Hermes, I may be allowed to refer to the legend associated with it. It is brief, but I think most interesting to all Masons, and has it points of contact with the Scriptures.
[Here the Lecturer gave a viva-voce account of an ancient legend or tradition, which it is not permitted to communicate except by word of mouth.]
Having now described the origin of the Hermetic Cross, to which reference is continually made in the early hieroglyphic records, and which has survived to modern times as a jewel of an ancient and occult Eastern order, I will conclude by enumerating some of the many symbolical interpretations of which it is susceptible, and which have become attached to it in the course of its history, by magicians, occult philosophers, and students of the Cabala.
Applied to T. G. A. O. T. U., it typifies His all-embracing power, its arms extending in every direction to show that no one can escape the illimitable power of the Almighty, represented more particularly by the stone in the centre, who by means of His angels is acquainted with the minutest acts of His creatures throughout the universe. There is no limit to the extension of the arms, which, bent at right angles, show His Universal love and charity, and in each corner typify a place of refuge for the weary soul of man. Applied to the Universe, the centre stone represents the Sun, illuminating everything with his rays, and restraining every member of the Solar system, however remote, within the focus of his attraction.
It is an emblem of Activity, as it typifys the continual revolution of the Earth upon its axis; and it also represents the four elements, which in a mystical sense constitute the fabric of the earth.
Considered as Man, it represents him in a humble sitting posture—one hand supporting the body on the ground, the other raised towards heaven in supplication and hope, deprecating punishment and entreating mercy. In this sense it likewise refers to the Smaragdine Tablet of Hermes, and the upper arm should bear the word Solve and the lower one Coagula. The head in the original hieroglyphic is thrown back, and is surmounted by the magical conical cap, signifying the earnestness with which man should rely upon the Supreme Being on high, and the steadfastness with which man should seek the true life and encounter the true light. The figure is supposed to be naked, typifying the utter dependence of man upon his Maker, and reminding us of the instability and inefficiency of worldly wealth. As man is born naked and helpless, so—devoid of wealth—he resigns himself to the grave. The two hands in their several positions remind us that that which is above is as that which is below, and that as life is spent here so will the reward be in the immortal life.
As applied to Architecture, the four corners refer to the four sacred cities of asylum prescribed by the legends of the Order, and the four letters of the Tetragrammaton, the four states of human life—the childhood, youth, manhood and old age, and in all ways it possesses the scale of the number four, as mentioned by Cornelius Agrippa in his Occult Philosophy.
Whoso beareth it should endeavor in all ways to walk in the ways of T. G. A. O. T. U., to whom be ail glory and praise.
Reason vs. Instinct–A Sagacious Dog
Many curious historical facts prompt the question as to the link that connects the higher with the lower forms of animal life. Where reason ends and brute instinct begins is a problem which the savans and natural philosophers have onned the puzzling cap to decide to no purpose. Neither the profound and abstruse Greeks, nor their questionable superior successors have yet traced the line which divide the so-called distinction between the superior and inferior stamps of creation. The following account from St. Cyr, Tours, in France, of a genuine combat between a dog and a man, which took place in the year 1361at Paris, on the lie Notre Dame, may prove of some interest, since it was, in fact, a judicial one, and took place in order to detect a cruel murder. A French nobleman, the representative of an old family of the name of De Mont Didier, was murdered when passing through the Forest of Bondy. He was missing, as also was his pet hound, for several days; but the dog at last made his appearance at the house of his master's most intimate friend in Paris. He looked half starved, and howled bitterly. The people gave him food, which he took, and then began his lamentations afresh, moving towards the door, and returning to seize his master's friend by the coat. His actions were so peculiar, that persons determined to follow him, and in due time he led them away into the forest, and up to a certain tree, where he began to howl and scratch. The people dug down, and discovered M. de Montdider’s body. He had evidently been murdered, and hid away. Time went by, and no trace of the assassin could be found; but one day the dog met a Chevalier Macaire, and dew most violently at him. He showed the greatest fury whenever he met the Chevalier, and persons began to wonder and chatter about it, and to recollect that Macaire had been an enemy of Montdidier’s. So suspicions were roused, more particularly as the bound was particularly good-tempered to every one except the Chevalier. The King at last heard of it, and expressed a wish to see the hound. He also ordered the Chevalier to attend the court. The dog was brought, and remained very gentle until it sud denly recognized Macaire, who stood amid a crowd of courtiers. Directly the dog saw him, he sprang forward with a fearful bay, and attempted to seize him. This was in the age when the fashion of judicial combat was m vogue, so his majesty decided that a duel should take place between the chevalier and canine friend of the murdered man. The space for the combat was marked in the lleffo de Notre Dame-Macaire was only allowed to carry a stick, and a large cask was placed for the dog to retreat into when nearly beaten. Immediately the bound was let loose, he sprang on the chevalier, attacking him first on one side and then on the other, skillfully avoiding the blows from his adversary's cudgel, sad at last he made one splendid bound, seized Macairr by the throat, and pulled him down. The murderer, alarmed, thought that God had interposed to fix his guilt, so he then and there confessed bis crime in the presence of the king and all his court. There was at one time a very famed picture of this memorable combat between dog and man over the chimney of the great hall of the Chateau of Montargis. Animals were often tried during the Middle Ages, and the legal process was conducted with as much ceremony and parade, perchance with more feeling, than in the present age displayed when a woman takes her stand in the witness-box, and undergoes the ordeal of a cross-examination; therefore, the battle between a human being and a canine brute did not appear so extraordinary then, as the case reported a couple of years ago at Hanley did.
A play based on this story, and called the Day of Montargis, is not unfrequently given in the provinces, where, when the dog is well trained, it is sure to bring down the house.
Editor's notes
- ↑ Reason vs. Instinct–A Sagacious Dog by unknown author, Spiritual Scientist, v. 5, No. 6, October 12, 1876, p. 69. "Scribe" in the London Medium
Sources
Spiritual Scientist, v. 5, No. 6, October 12, 1876, p. 69