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Why is the north a place of darkness?

coachn

Coach John S. Nagy
Premium Member
I agree with the above and like your list

Working Guidelines...
  1. Laws are Causes & Effects that have been shown Not to Vary from Prediction and are based upon Past Result
    Note sure about this one... Laws are not always so scientific.. but it does work for the purpose

  2. Rules are Agreed upon Behaviors and Consequences, at least agreed upon by the rule makers
    or
    Rules are Agreed upon Behaviors and perceived Consequences, at least agreed upon by the rule makers

  3. Ethics are Social Mores
    Or
    Ethics are Social Mores held, discussed, adjusted and agreed by wider society.

  4. Morality are Private Mores
    or
    Morality comprises Private Mores held by individuals and also specific groups of people sharing a common morality

  5. Mores are Behaviors that Honor Values
  6. Values are Things, Ideals, etc. thought to be Important.

  7. Beliefs are Things, Ideals, etc. thought to be Real.
    Or
    Beliefs are Things, Ideals, etc. thought to be Real, true and/or right
I do love a good list Coach :)
I love when a good Brother takes good materials and makes them better. KUDOS!
 

Warrior1256

Site Benefactor
I hold that faith is a choice to believe, regardless of evidence for or against. Belief can be chosen based upon perceived evidence too. In this respect, I see Faith as a subset of belief.
True.
U don't actually use the tools...how the hell would u actually use a pair of compasses to keep ur self in check? Its just another Allegory to remind u to keep urself in checj
Also true.
 

dfreybur

Premium Member
how the hell would u actually use a pair of compasses to keep ur self in check?

An addition to the symbolic use of the compasses by describing the range of behavior we should engage it, there is the indirect effect when using the instrument in a profession.

Crafts or professions that use a compass include carpentry, masonry, architecture, drafting, mechanical engineering and so on. The work in these professions is exacting and systematic. Do the work correctly and the result is a product that lasts. It's why the tool was chosen for symbolic purposes. But think about the influence of the elderly Brothers at lodge have on the younger Brothers at lodge. The influence of the type of work that uses the compasses is similar for those who engage in those fields.
 

dfreybur

Premium Member
I agree. This is why that I have said that it is really not fair to judge people from the past by the morals of today.

Each generation recognizes an injustice practiced by previous generations. I have no idea what injustice I commit but I've read enough history to know the generation of my grandchildren will notice and start the work of resolving it. At which point I'll have no idea what they are doing and why. I pray that my grand children's grand children look upon me with just enough generosity that I knew not what I did.
 

Bloke

Premium Member

from above link said:
My Response: For them (compasses) to do any good, you must first internalize them.

Indeed. A good topic. I find at different times I tend to rely on different tools which is not just related to the problem but where *I* am at in life.... i sometimes wonder if the secret is knowing which tool to use. For instance, when examining a charitable need, I rarely apply the 24 inch guage or compasses (measurement) to see if I've got the time but the tools of justice (square, plumb). I need to do better on which tool I pick up, which is the secret to any tool.... you don't use hammers to put in screws...
 

coachn

Coach John S. Nagy
Premium Member
... you don't use hammers to put in screws...
AreYouSure.jpg
 

dfreybur

Premium Member
I need to do better on which tool I pick up, which is the secret to any tool.... you don't use hammers to put in screws...

"When the only tool you have is a hammer every problem looks like a nail." I have literally pounded in screws with a rock because I was in a remote location with nothing but a rock, which rock I processed by a ceremony "Rock, I dub thee a hammer". Wrong headed approach, but there are times when a wrong headed approach is what you have.
 

Brother JC

Moderating Staff
Staff Member
Not to be confused with a "Glasgow Kiss," which will also drive screws and nails into walls. Painfully.
 

Kade

Registered User
One of the greatest mysteries for me personally is why do Masons consider the north a place of darkness? Most of the Masons I have asked this question have referred to the explanation given in the ritual. When I tried to press them further I quickly discovered that they had no ideas other than quoting the ritual. What do you think? is there another reason why the north is traditionally a place of darkness?

Further, Symbolically, what does the north represent? What does the symbol of darkness teach us?

Are you sure that there are only 33 degrees? I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the North. You know what is more valuable than gold on this planet? Discernment...especially when surrounded by vipers.
 

Elexir

Registered User
Are you sure that there are only 33 degrees? I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the North. You know what is more valuable than gold on this planet? Discernment...especially when surrounded by vipers.

There exist only three degree. The rest are high degreess wich has diffrences in number of degrees and the ideas from theritual creators.
 

Warrior1256

Site Benefactor
I was in a Scottish lodge not long ago and the DC (who often attended English lodges) had set up the S&C on the VSL with the square to the East - contrary to the arrangement used by local Scottish lodges.

This was before the brethren had entered so I pointed this out and asked him to feel the atmosphere in the temple and then turn around the S&C so the compasses were in the East. He immediately felt the temple become more peaceful. So he made the changes a couple more times and each time the square was in the East he could feel the tension rise.
Really? Well....I may try this.
 

hanzosbm

Premium Member
Sorry to revive an old thread, but I just read an interesting thought that I figured could add something here.

In Manly Hall's Secret Teachings of All Ages, he discusses the idea of Elementals; beings of an etheric nature. Now, don't get me wrong, Hall was a bit of a whack job, but we're not discussing what is true, we're discussing the beliefs of those who created the ritual.

He says: "Mediæval mystics gave a corner of creation (one of the cardinal points) to each of the four kingdoms of Nature spirits, and because of their earthy character the gnomes were assigned to the North--the place recognized by the ancients as the source of darkness and death. One of the four main divisions of human disposition was also assigned to the gnomes, and because so many of them dwelt in the darkness of caves and the gloom of forests their temperament was said to be melancholy, gloomy, and despondent. By this it is not meant that they themselves are of such disposition, but rather that they have special control over elements of similar consistency."

In the Gnostic and Hermetic philosophies, the material world is seen as the antithesis of the spiritual world and in some cases, evil. If the men creating these rituals were of the same idea as Hall and the Gnostics, then they may have felt that the north offered no spiritual light.

I know, it's a bit of a reach, but...this is all about various theories anyway, right?
 

Warrior1256

Site Benefactor
In the Gnostic and Hermetic philosophies, the material world is seen as the antithesis of the spiritual world and in some cases, evil. If the men creating these rituals were of the same idea as Hall and the Gnostics, then they may have felt that the north offered no spiritual light.

I know, it's a bit of a reach, but...this is all about various theories anyway, right?
It's as good a theory as any.
 

coachn

Coach John S. Nagy
Premium Member
S... If the men creating these rituals were of the same idea as Hall and the Gnostics, then they may have felt that the north offered no spiritual light.

I know, it's a bit of a reach, but...this is all about various theories anyway, right?
Joseph Campbell offered up, in his "Power of Myth" "and "Transformations of myth through time", that the North was a place of unknowns and to go there when you wanted adventure and much needed change. He cites many mythologies, such as the native Americans, that had this "North" theme within their tales.
 
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