Who found the lost word

The Masonic legend of the “lost word”, as briefly stated by Dr. Mackey, in his Symbolism of Freemasonry, is as follows:

“The mystical history of Freemasonry informs us that there once existed a WORD of surpassing value, and claiming a profound veneration; that this word was known to the few, and that it was at length lost, and that a temporary substitute for it was adopted.”

This idea of a mystic, all-powerful “word” was an ancient and widely diffused superstition. Just how this notion originated has not been handed down to us, either by tradition or otherwise.

It, however, probably came to be entertained in the following manner:

It is generally known to the profane – i.e., the uninitiated – that those who were admitted to the “Mysteries” were entrusted with a certain sacred word; and as the scientific knowledge, also secretly imparted to those who were initiated, gave those who took the higher degrees the power to work apparent miracles, the ignorant and superstitious multitude naturally thought, and were perhaps taught to believe, that it was by the use of this “word”, so sacredly concealed, that the priests were able to perform all their wonderful works.

The word was, however, nothing but the “password” which went with the “sign”, by which the initiated could make themselves known to one another.

The notion was that this “word” consisted of the true name of God, together with knowledge of its proper pronunciation, and that the fortunate possessor of this knowledge became thereby clothed with supernatural power – that by the speaking of this word he could perform all sorts of miracles, and even raise the dead.

According to the Kabbalists, “as the very heavens shook, and the angels themselves were filled with terror and astonishment when this tremendous word was pronounced.”

Jewish tradition states that God himself taught Moses his true name and its correct pronunciation at the “burning bush”. They believed that Moses, being thus possessed of the “word”, used it to perform all his miracles, and to confound and overthrow Pharaoh and his hosts.

It was from these, and other similar legends thus widely diffused among the ancient Oriental nations, that the veneration for a particular word arose, together with an earnest desire to obtain it, and a laborious search for it, by ambitious believers in its power.

All the magicians, enchanters, and wonder workers of the East, and the adepts of the West, were supposed to have, in some mysterious way, become possessed of this “word”, and were known to the aspirants and students of occult sciences (not yet so fortunate) by the names of “masters”, and the “word” was called by them the “master’s word”.

In former and less enlightened times the possession of the true name of God and its proper pronunciation, or some substitute for it, authorized by divine command, were even supposed requisite in order to worship him aright; for it was ignorantly thought that, if God was not addressed by his own proper name, he would not attend to the call, nor even know that the prayers of his worshipers were really addressed to him, and not to Baal, Osiris, or Jupiter; or, if knowing, would indignantly reject them. In the East, to address even an earthly potentate by any other than his own proper, high, and ceremonious title, was considered both irreverent and insulting.

Among the Jews, however, the pronunciation of the true name was supposed to be followed by such tremendous effects that a substitute, for which they believed they had the divine sanction, was enjoined.

Accordingly, we find in the Old Testament that, whenever the name of God occurs, the substitute is used instead of the true name. The word substituted is generally “Adonai”, or Lord, unless the name follows that word, and then “Elohim” is used; as, “Adonai Elohim”, meaning, Lord God. From this long continued use of a substitute for the real word, the latter, or at least its correct pronunciation, was thought to be lost.

According to some the sacred Tetragrammaton, or four lettered name of God in Hebrew, incorrectly pronounced Jehovah, was the true word.

Others thought that the Hebrew word Jah, the Chaldaic Bul or Bell, or the Egyptian On or Om, the Hindu Aum, together with various combinations of them all, constituted the “grand omnific word”. But as the possession of no one of them, nor any possible combination of them, seems to confer any miraculous powers on the possessor, neither of them can be the correct one according to ancient traditions.

The Astronomical Significance of the “Word”

The Masonic legend of the deposit of the “word” in a secure and secret place, and its very consequent loss, is as follows:

“Enoch, under the inspiration of the Most High, built a secret temple underground, consisting of nine vaults, or arches, situated perpendicularly under each other. A triangular plate of gold, each side of which was a cubit long, and enriched with precious stones, was fixed to a stone of agate of the same form.

“On this plate of gold was engraved the “word”, or true-name of God; and this was placed on a cubical stone, and deposited in the ninth or lowest arch. In consequence of the deluge, all knowledge of this secret temple was lost, together with the sacred and ineffable or unutterable name, for ages.

“The lost word was subsequently found in this long-forgotten subterranean temple by David, when digging the foundations for the temple, afterward built by Solomon his son.”

Other versions of this legend ascribe the building of the underground temple, and the deposit therein of the “word”, to Solomon, and its discovery to those “who dug the foundations of the second temple on the same spot, and connect it with the ‘substitute ark’ deposited in the same place.”

Both legends, however, agree in stating that the “word” was buried deep underground, and in the ninth arch, or lowest of them all; and that it was lost, and remained “buried in darkness” until it was subsequently found and brought to light.

In ancient times, and according to the mystical theology of those days; God and the sacred name of God were supposed to be one and the same. The “word” was itself considered to be, in some sense, a living, creative power.

Thus Plato taught that the divine “logos”, or word, was God. But the sun was by the ancients universally adopted as the symbol of God, and subsequently confounded with God, so the various names of God became also solar names. The loss of the solar name, therefore, became but another expression of the loss of the sun, or sun-god, in the lower hemisphere.

Now, let us see how this will harmonise with the legend just related. The sun, having reached the summit of the zodiacal arch, at the summer solstice, begins to descend toward the region of darkness.

From Cancer he descends to Leo, from Leo to Virgo, from Virgo to Libra, and so on until Capricorn is reached, which is the ninth sign from the vernal equinox, and the undermost of one of the zodiac, corresponding to the ninth or lowest arch of the secret vault, and there on 21st December, at his lowest declination, at the winter solstice, he is lost, and “lies buried in darkness”, until, reviving, he commences his ascent toward the vernal equinox, and begins by his more potent rays to rebuild that glorious temple of light and beauty, adorned by flowers and fruits, which the rude assaults of winter have destroyed.

Another allegorical correspondence is found in the fact that the discovery of the word is made according to the Masonic legend, by “three”, which agrees perfectly with the number of signs, Aquarius, Pisces and Aries, and the months January, February and March, which separate the winter solstice from the vernal equinox, when, according to the legend of Hiram, the sun is found.

The sacred name was engraved on a triangular plate of gold, which, according to astrology, is the solar metal. This triangular plate was fixed to a stone of agate of the same form.

Now each month, the ancient astrologers taught, had its appropriate gem. The agate is emblematic of the month of June, the summer solstice, and the resurrection and exaltation of the sun.

The whole was placed on a cubical stone, but the cube was sacred to Apollo, who is identical with Helios, the sun-god. The altar of Apollo at Delos was in the form of a cube. The symbolism of this legend is therefore perfect in all of its details – the emblematic correspondence is too absolute to be accidental.

The legend of the lost word is but another form of the solar allegory of the death and resurrection of Hiram, and other solar avatars including Jesus, and teaches the same lesson.

By Julian Websdale, HumansAreFree.com; / Reference: Hewitt Brown, R. (2002). Stellar Theology and Masonic Astronomy. San Diego: The Book Tree.

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The Lost Word (of Freemasonry) By Bro. Arthur Caswell Parker 33°

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The college, the adepts, the initiates, the priests were scattered all over the world when Seth, the son of Noah, came with an army and defeated Nimrod, and this is where the legend really comes from because Seth chopped Nimrod up into little pieces and scattered him all over the land.

In the legend of the Osirian cycle, Osiris was chopped into fourteen pieces. Isis came to put him back together again and bring him to life. She could find all the pieces save one, the phallus, or the generative force. It is now known as the Lost Word Freemasonry, and the phallus is represented by the obelisk, the monolith.

«The priests lost the Word, the name of the Flame.» — The Initiates of the Flame (1922) Manly Hall pg. 8

Osiris body representing the Secret Doctrine is divided into fourteen parts. It is the penis, the generative force, the phallus, the obelisk, which is lost. It represents Lost Word of Freemasonry, it represents the Luciferian philosophy. It represents the light, the sun, Lucifer the intellect.

It had been thrown into the river and devoured by three fishes. The three fishes represent ignorance, superstition, and fear or the church, the state, and the mob. The force and the power in the age Pisces, the fish, was Christianity, and the fish referrers to Christianity. Isis reproduced the penis in gold.

«the cosmic story of CHiram, the Universal Benefactor, the Fiery Architect: of the Divine House, who carries with him to the grave that Lost Word which, when spoken, raises all life to power and glory. According to Christian mysticism, when the Lost Word is found it is discovered in a stable, surrounded by beasts and marked by a star.»-The Secret Teachings of All Ages by Manly P. Hall pg. 77-81

Hiram Abiff, the chief architect of King Solomon’s Temple, who was murdered by three ruffians during an unsuccessful attempt to force him to divulge the Master Masons Lost Word.

«before he (Hiram) expired he hid the hammer and disc upon which he had inscribed the Word. This was never found until ages later when Hiram, “the widow’s Son,” was reborn as Lazarus and became the friend and pupil of the Lion of Judah, who raised him from death through initiation. When the hammer was found it had the shape of a cross, and the disc had become a rose. Therefore he took his place among the immortals under the symbolical name Christian Rosenkreuz» — Freemasonry And Catholicism By Max Heindel pg. 41

«Now according to our ancient traditions upon the slain Hiram’s rod was the full name of Deity, or perhaps the first and most important syllable. His rod was essential not only in forming the ineffable word but in completing the right angle.»-The Lost Word By Bro. Arthur C. Parker

«CHiram when raised from his grave whispers the Master Mason’s Word»-The Secret Teachings of All Ages by Manly P. Hall pg. 77-81

«The Word, which was said to be lost, was pronounced upon the cross, which the Jews could not comprehend. The false brethren are represented by Judas, who proved false to his Master; and the sprig of cassia represented the cross, of which wood it is said to have been composed.»—Historical Landmarks, vol. ii. p. 176.»-Duncan’s Ritual And Monitor Of Freemasonry by Malcolm C. Duncan

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Replacement

«This golden phallus is the three‐lettered word of Freemasonry concealed under the letters A‐U‐M.»- Freemasonry of the Ancient Egyptians, by Manly Hall pg. 152

«Hindoos we have the om, and the a, u, m, indicating different methods of pronouncing the Sacred name.» — Ancient Mystic Oriental Masonry By R. Swinburne Clymer pg. 46

«The Trinity in man lives in the three great chambers of the human body, from which they radiate their power throughout the three worlds. These centers are the brain, the heart, and the reproductive system. These are the three main chambers of the pyramid and also the rooms in which arc given the Entered Appentrice, Fellowcraft, and Master Mason’s degrees of Blue Lodge Masonry. In these three chambers dwell the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, who are symbolized by the three-lettered word, AUM. The transmutation, regeneration, and unfoldment of these three great centers result in the sounding of the Lost Word, which is the great secret of the Masonic Order. From the spinal nerves come impulses and life forces which make this possible. Therefore the Mason is told to consider carefully his substitute word, which means «the marrow of the bone.»» Anatomy of Man Manly P. Hall pg. 8

«the Master’s word mahabone and has him whisper the word back, cautioning the new Master that the word must only be passed in this position, called the “five points of fellowship.” As the newly raised Master Mason learns the Master’s word, the blindfold is removed.»- Born in Blood: The Lost Secrets of Freemasonry by John J. Robinson Pg. 215-223

«Some Masonic historians take the allegory literally, almost always a mistake, and state that what was lost was the «word» of the Grand Master, or the «secrets» of the Master. What the Templars had lost, literally, was their wealth, respect, and power…»- Born in Blood: The Lost Secrets of Freemasonry by John J. Robinson Pg. 274

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True Word

«The True Word of a Mason is to be found in the concealed and profound meaning of the Ineffable Name of Deity communicated by God to Moses» — Ancient Mystic Oriental Masonry By R. Swinburne Clymer pg. 51

«This tradition of the Ineffable Name is brought into Masonry from the Hebrew Kabalah,»- Ancient Mystic Oriental Masonry By R. Swinburne Clymer pg. 48 (see Kabbalah and Freemasonry)

«Diodorus says that the name given by Moses to God was ΙΑΩ. Theodorus says that the Samaritans termed God IABE, but the Jews ΙΑΩ. Philo Byblius gives the form ΙΕΥΩ; and Clemens of Alexandria ΙΑΟΥ. Macrobius says that it was an admitted axiom among the Heathen, that the triliteral ΙΑΩ was the sacred name of the Supreme God. And the Clarian oracle said: «Learn thou that ΙΑΩ is the great God Supreme, that ruleth over all.» The letter Ι signified Unity. Α and Ω are the first and last letters of the Greek Alphabet.» — Morals and Dogma by Albert Pike pg. 700-701

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«the so-called Lost Word is not a Word, but refers to a Force, Power or Energy, resulting from careful training and Spiritual Development.» — The Philosophy Of Fire By R. Swinburne Clymer pg. 52

«The exact science of human regeneration is the Lost Key of Masonry, for when the Spirit Fire is lifted up through the thirty-three degrees, or segments of the spinal column, and enters into the domed chamber of the human skull, it finally passes into the pituitary body (Isis), where it invokes Ra (the pineal gland) and demands the Sacred Name. Operative Masonry, in the fullest meaning of that term, signifies the process by which the Eye of Horus is opened. » — The Secret Teachings of All Ages By Manly P. Hall pg. 252

Dr. Lewis and George Washington as Grand Master of his Masonic Lodge painted during his presidency of the new nation

See also~~ GEORGE WASHINGTON: “Hero to all nations” ~ Paramahansa Yogananda
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[Yogananda Site]  GEORGE WASHINGTON was a Freemason, and the Grand Master of his Lodge at the time he was President of the newly formed United States of America. Many other founding fathers, future presidents and citizens were also Masons, though some, not understanding the inner/esoteric meaning, practiced only the outer/exoteric rituals and moral teachings.

Freemasonry is a centuries old secret spiritual society (dating from the 1500-1600s, the era of Shakespeare; at that time the secrecy served to protect its spiritual teachings and also their practitioners from persecution and possible death at the hands of the ruling government.)  Its esoteric teachings reach back to India of Vedic times.  The organization has continued to modern times, though the deeper spiritual meaning has generally been lost. 

In this talk, Dr. Lewis first explains the ‘LOST WORD’ in Paramahansaji’s teachings; he then shows that the same purpose is found in Freemasonry, to regain the Lost Word [AUM/OM].

See also below photos and video of the George Washington Masonic Memorial.  Read also an excerpt from Paramahansaji’s praise of George Washington “Hero to All Nations” (read that entire article at the link above).

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WATCH VIDEO – 5 mins.

George Washington Masonic Memorial

beautiful views of the George Washington Masonic Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia, and some talk about freemasonry

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After Dr. Lewis’ talk, see comments of highest praise by Paramahansaji about George Washington.

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READ THE ARTICLE

THE LOST WORD, Comparison of Esoteric Masonry to SRF, Dr. M.W. Lewis

[excerpts]

DR. LEWIS: “The Lost Word.” What is the “Word?” The Word is the first emanation of Spirit, the Great Cosmic Sound, the Holy Vibration [AUM, OM]. From that Holy Vibration all things have come, and into that vibration, all things must melt.

Let us turn for substantiation to the scriptures, to St. John, the 1st Chapter, the 1st Verse. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Word is God in us. The Holy Vibration is God in us. That Holy Vibration is the Witness in us of God’s Presence. And in the 10th Verse, “He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not.” How few know the Word – very few – and yet that Word has produced all things. The world knows Him not. The Word has been lost.

And finally in the 12th Verse, “But as many as received Him, to them gave He the power to become the sons of God.” That’s the key. Those who somehow, by some method, contact that Word within them, and then merge in that Word, they have the power to become the sons of God, or to make God’s Consciousness in them dynamic to their own consciousness. . . So that’s what the Word is. And as I have said, the Word has been lost. . . . .

THE WORD WAS KNOWN TO THE ANCIENTS

Now this Word was known to the ancients many, many years ago. Ten thousand years ago, especially in India, it was known to the king sages and the great ones. They had the Word. They had the realization of their oneness with God. They had the awareness of God in them as the Holy Vibration…But it was reserved, especially through the dark ages. As we came down from that golden age many years ago into the dark ages it was lost to the multitudes, because of the preponderance of evil. . .

That’s the ideal of Self-Realization yoga, is to enable you, and me, and all who will, to once more make dynamic to our consciousness that lost Word, Holy Vibration, in which is God’s Presence. It is God in us, but it has been lost. . . .

IT IS THE SAME LOST WORD AS MASONARY

Now going just a little bit, with some interesting facts, self-realization, as I have said, has been lost, and the ideal of Self-Realization is to regain that lost Word.

So this is the same lost Word of Masonry. I want to bring in a few interesting facts. I imagine there are some Masons who feel that it is the same lost Word. No one has a corner on it, although Masonry has capitalized on the lost Word, because Masonry, in the beginning, was built around eternal truths of God.

Masonry was influenced by the ancient mysteries, the Essenes, the Chaldeans, and Hermeticism, and especially by Hindu yoga. Masonry is especially interested and influenced by that, and that is why Masonry flourished so well in India, because they accept all, irrespective of color, race or creed. And there are many creeds in India. And even now Masonry is built on that great principle, of accepting all irrespective of color, race or creed, because it believes in the one Eternal God, the Supreme Architect of the Universe, just like Self-Realization believes in, and, of course, the Indians have had that for ages. Therefore, Masonry flourished in India. . . .

EXPLANATION OF ‘EXOTERIC’ AND ‘ESOTERIC’ BELIEF IN MARSONRY AND COMPARISON WITH SRF

Now I want to give a few comparisons, if I may, about Masonry and Self-Realization Fellowship. These are of spiritual value. Real Masonry is of a spiritual nature. Exoteric Masonry is the outward form, the symbolism. Most Masons are of that form. There were, back through the ages, Operative Masonry, Masons, who had the Word. So an Operative Mason is one who has the Word, the realization of the Word. A Speculative Mason is one who does not have it. He may belong to the Masonic Order, but he does not have the realization of the Word. Now you see the difference between a true Mason, a real Mason, and a Speculative Mason.

Now in Self-Realization we have the same thing. We have Self-Realizationists who know theory only. We have Self-Realizationists who know the Word. So they have regained the lost Word just like an Operative Mason has regained once more the realization of the Word…eternal truth is the same whether you’re a Mason or not.

from THE LOST WORD, Comparison of Esoteric Masonry to SRF, Dr. M.W. Lewis

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Read the Article

GEORGE WASHINGTON: “Hero to all nations” ~ Paramahansa Yogananda

Yogananda shown placing flowers on Washington’s tomb during his visit to Mt. Vernon on February 22, birth date of George Washington), East-West Magazine, May-June 1927

[short excerpts]
As Washington performed his duty, he never forgot the Giver of all gifts. . .Most great men that serve live hundreds of years before their time. He came, he conquered, he mastered himself and the situations in which he was placed, and then withdrew and led the life of a hermit in seclusion here.

There are…those puny ones who cater to the mob sentiment and who put the national mansion on a loose foundation; but men like Lincoln and Washington have always tried to solidify the foundations of the national mansions with the eternal rock of truth and spirituality.

His love of Truth, his great strength, deep understanding, not only made him America’s national hero, but all nations of the world are proud of him and glorify him. . . .

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See also~~

GEORGE WASHINGTON: “Hero to all nations” ~ Paramahansa Yogananda

 ABRAHAM LINCOLN, “He was working for God” ~ Paramahansa Yogananda and Monastics

BACK TO

LAY DEVOTEES STORIES of Gurus and Monastics

John H. Walton. The Lost World of Adam and Eve. Downer’s Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015. 253pp. $17.00

In 2009, John Walton, professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College, challenged the evangelical world with the publication of his The Lost World of Genesis One. He argued that contrary to a traditional, literal reading of Genesis, essential clues to understanding the first chapter of Genesis were found in ancient Near Eastern literary and cultural contexts: «the key… is to be found in the literature from the rest of the ancient world» (p.10). Claiming that Genesis 1 was written in a way shaped by ancient Near Eastern temple inauguration, Walton argued that the text spoke of God ordaining functions for creation as his temple, rather than describing creation’s material origins. According to Walton, Genesis simply does not address material origins, aside from the first verse. This «long lost understanding» of the Genesis text, Walton argued, helpfully removed obstacles to a rapprochement between contemporary mainstream scientific interpretations of the past and the Christian faith.

In a 2012 Zygon article, Walton reflected that his interpretation of Genesis allowed an easy harmony with «evolutionary creationism» or theistic evolution, describing the «dust» and «rib» as «archetypal affirmations about the nature of humanity… the focus is on all womankind and mankind.»[1]  Around the same time, Walton embarked on a seven month global tour to promote his new hermeneutic, speaking at evangelical seminaries and colleges from New Zealand to the United States.[2] Biologos paid the bill.

It is no surprise then, that in The Lost World of Adam and Eve (2015), Walton moves forward in the Genesis text, seeking a comprehensive application of this hermeneutic to the Genesis text narrating humanity’s creation. Like his previous volume, Walton arranges his chapters as «propositions,» most of which build on those prior. He also includes an excursus on Paul’s use of Adam by N.T. Wright.

Walton is well aware that a key part of the battle of persuasion on Genesis and human origins in the evangelical world lies in creating theological and exegetical space for his hermeneutic. In his introduction he reassures the reader that he retains, «the broad spectrum of core theology» of Genesis:

[T]he authority of Scripture, God’s intimate and active role as Creator regardless of the mechanisms he used or the time he took, that material creation was ex nihilo, that we have all been created by God, and that there was a point in time when sin entered the world therefore necessitating salvation (pp.13-14)

It is worth pausing here to consider what Walton is offering us. Discerning readers will realize that this «core theology» of the early Genesis narrative is a substantial diminishment from that of traditional evangelical orthodoxy. In his broad spectrum of core theology, he actually offers us less from Genesis, not more. Walton tells us that his is a «Bible-first approach (in contrast to a science-first or even extra-biblical-first approach)» (p.14). At the same time, he notes that his impetus in writing lies in being «prompted by new information from the ancient world and new insights by modern science.»(p.14) This motivated his return to the biblical text, «to see whether there have been options that have been missed or truths that have become submerged under the frozen surface of traditional readings» (p.14)

Walton goes on to explain a key element for his «ice-breaking» approach to early Genesis: a view of divine accommodation in inspiration requiring extra-biblical contextualization for readers living in subsequent eras. «God has accommodated the communicator and immediate audience,» meaning that «when we read the Bible, we enter the context of that communication as low-context outsiders… we have to use research to fill in all the information that would not have been said by the prophet in his high-context communication to his audience. This is how we, as modern readers must interact with an ancient text» (p.16-17)

The variance of Walton’s doctrine of accommodation from that of historic, Reformed orthodoxy becomes clearer as we examine his exegetical warrant for this claim, and the subsequent application he provides: 

…it is no surprise that Israel believed in a solid sky and that God accommodated his communication to that model in his communication to Israel. But since the text’s message is not an assertion of the true shape of cosmic geography, we can safely reject those details without jeopardizing authority or inerrancy. Such cosmic geography is the belief set of the communicators… the framework of their communication, not the content of their message (p.20)

Walton’s reference here to the solid sky rests on a particular, and narrow, delineation of the meaning of «expanse» (raqiya‘) as a hard «firmament» in a way which does not cohere well with the overlapping use in the Old Testament of the term «heaven» (shamayim, cf. Genesis 1:8, 20; Psalm 8:8, 79:2). [3] Walton’s argument is not new. Keil and Delitzsch engaged with and rebutted this in 1861. In the 1930’s, Valentine Hepp also responded:

If they confine themselves to the historical books [of Scripture], to which the literal method must be applied, they cannot even find enough fragments for a construction of a[n ancient Near Eastern] biblical world-image. Their dome of heaven crashes down, for the firmament in Genesis 1 only brings separation. We cannot think here of permanent partition, for God also made separation between light and darkness, between sea and land [4]

While critiquing Walton’s mis-definition of raqiya‘ may seem mere wrangling over semantics, the more pressing concern is the application that Walton draws from this and two ensuing mis-definitions (the «heart», and the «waters above»). Having reshaped the doctrine of accommodation, he now redefines inerrancy so that Scripture is not to be understood as making scientific affirmations, particularly in the realms of cosmology, anatomy, and physiology (p.20). While on the one hand Walton claims a firm hold on Scripture’s authority and inerrancy, on the other he surmises that God communicated using an errant description of his creation, allowing us «to safely reject those details» of the text of Genesis (p.20). Why? Because what really mattered to God was that the primitive people of that day understood God’s core message in a familiar mode of communication. Walton’s propositions on this point appear remarkably similar to the «kernel theory» of inspiration proffered by modern theological liberalism from the 19th century onwards—engaged and rebutted by confessional and conservative evangelical Protestants all along the way, but now repackaged, and subsumed under the term «inerrancy». The result is even more problematic than a flat out rejection of the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy; Walton takes the language of inerrancy and redefines it contrary to the explicit wording:

We deny that Biblical infallibility and inerrancy are limited to spiritual, religious, or redemptive themes, exclusive of assertions in the fields of history and science [5]

If Walton’s proposal on accommodation and inerrancy is accepted, one would be hard pressed to explain why it ought not be applied to other Old Testament and New Testament descriptions of historical events involving the natural order, including plagues, healings, and Christ’s bodily resurrection.

Having adjusted the doctrines of accommodation and inerrancy, Walton moves to establish ancient Near Eastern (ANE) literature as foundational for and essential to the interpretation of Genesis. This is a significant step beyond stating that it may have a subservient, helpful role. Walton states that an accurate reading of the Genesis text requires the assistance of ancient Near Eastern literature: «this is what provides the basis for our interpretation of the early chapters of Genesis as an ancient document» (p. 23).  But what will be the sure guide for the interpretation of ANE literature? Does the Holy Spirit guide us into all of the «truth» of ANE writings as he does with Scripture? Or do we take this role? What if ANE origins and temple literature is actually a derivative pagan distortion of biblical truth? Who will discern, «the clues to [the] cognitive environment [that] can be pieced together from a wide variety of ancient literature»? (p. 22) Who will decide what the balance of interpretative authority between text and extra-biblical ANE context is?

According to Walton, not everyone is capable of such interpretation, but only «those who have the gifts, calling and passion for the study of the ancient world»—ostensibly like himself. Walton argues that this «is not a violation of the clarity of Scripture propagated by the Reformers,» and in a sense he is right, as his arguments here first of all conflict with the doctrine of the sufficiency of Scripture.[6] Though he has stated that his is a «Bible-first» approach, Walton’s approach at least means that prayerful, Spirit-reliant, exegetical study of the text within the context of the whole Bible is insufficient to accurately understand its meaning. 

So how do these theological and hermeneutical moves play out in Walton’s exposition of Genesis on human origins in The Lost World of Adam and Eve? First, we see that he reiterates his earlier assessment that ancient Near Eastern origins and cosmological literature is concerned with functional, rather than material origins. As several critics have noted, while Walton speaks with a high degree of certitude, this reconstruction of ancient Near Eastern «worldview» is less than compelling.

The basis for Walton’s case rests on a weak assessment of extra-biblical ancient Near Eastern literature. Walton claims that concern with the establishment of functions is the common theme of ancient Near Eastern worldview, as expressed in its origins literature. There are two major issues with the claim. The first is documentary: even if Walton had amassed primary sources, extant ANE writings remain fragmentary and limited, representing scattered bits of evidence from a large historical period and geographical region. To compare it to the last two thousand years of European history, Walton’s citations are akin to taking selections of writing from pagan writers of the late Roman Empire, medieval Irish monasticism, 19th century Polish intellectuals, and Foucault, and then weaving them together to hypothesize a unified «European» belief on origins. 

But the problem is more significant than this. Walton’s reconstructive theory of the primacy of «function» not only rests on a paucity of source citation, but also does not cohere with a comprehensive reading of existing extra-biblical ANE source materials. Richard Averbeck describes Walton’s approach this way: «Driving a wedge between material creation as over against giving order to the cosmos by assigning functions or roles is a false dichotomy that does not stand up under scrutiny in ANE creation accounts… material creation was of great concern in the ANE.»[7] Reading the Enuma Elish alone makes this abundantly clear.

Even more pressingly, the mainstream Christian history of the interpretation of Genesis has always held that in his Genesis description of his work of creation, God is telling us his bringing into being both the material order and the functionality of that order (as well as non-material aspects of the created order, such as souls). Walton realizes that he faces challenges here, and carves out as much semantic range wiggle room as possible, both in Hebrew and in translation, in order to exegetically justify his claims—moves which necessarily rest on his ANE interpretive hypothesis. What becomes clear over and over is that by emphasizing the functional, partly by laying claim to typological understandings which are part of the history of the literal interpretation, Walton’s effective exclusion of the «material» offers us less from Genesis, not more. This of course is a key selling point: a Genesis which does not speak of material origins solves the thorny issues of conflict with evolutionary biological models of origins. 

Walton not only argues that the text of Genesis indicates less than we have believed, but he also concludes that it teaches other than we have believed. In his 11th proposition, Walton states that Adam and Eve were real historical persons. A naïve evangelical reader might breathe a sigh of relief here, feeling all must be well, especially with Walton’s claims of his commitment to Scripture’s «authority» and «inerrancy.» But Walton’s description of Adam and Eve is markedly different from that of historic Christian orthodoxy.[8] According to Walton, not only does the text not tell us that Adam and Eve were without ancestors and the biological ancestors of all humanity, but it also indicates that Adam, in his sin, failed to achieve immortality for an already existing humanity, and as the archetypal man, brought them under accountability for their sin, through the influence of the serpent or «chaos creature.»[9] Adam was a failed priestly savior for a pre-existing, contemporaneous, «disordered» humanity. N.T. Wright joins in in his excursus seeking to affirm the same, proffering a reinterpretation of Romans with a substantial shift of emphasis—away from historic, Protestant orthodoxy on the doctrines of sin, grace, and Christ’s person and work. Walton and Wright’s proposals are wide-ranging and troubling, closely echoing the shifts Carl Trueman explored in his essay, «Original Sin and Modern Theology.»[10]

In seeking to reconstruct The Lost World of Adam and Eve, Walton has not only lost the rich reality of the traditional reading of Genesis, but the authority, perspicuity, sufficiency, and  inerrancy of the Word, along with much else. Where Walton’s earlier work was helpful, his direction in the Lost World series is troubling. Some reviewers, like Lee Irons and Richard Averbeck at the Gospel Coalition and Themelios, have mingled praise with criticism of The Lost World of Adam and Eve, but the errors are too critical and extensive to commend the book, even in part. Only when we lose the Word do we lose the world of Adam and Eve, and find ourselves trying to reconstruct it from other sources.

William VanDoodewaard (PhD, Aberdeen) is Professor of Church History and Historical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, and an ordained minister serving at Holy Trinity Presbyterian Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan

Notes:

The lost word

Source: Mackey’s Encyclopedia of Freemasonry

The last of the symbols, depending for its existence on its connection with a myth to which I shall invite attention, is the Lost Word, and the search for it. Very appropriately may this symbol terminate our investigations, since it includes within its comprehensive scope all the others, being itself the very essence of the science of masonic symbolism. The other symbols require for their just appreciation a knowledge of the origin of the order, because they owe their birth to its relationship with kindred and anterior institutions. But the symbolism of the Lost Word has reference exclusively to the design and the objects of the institution.

First, let us define the symbol, and then investigate its interpretation.

The mythical history of Freemasonry informs us that there once existed a WORD of surpassing value, and claiming a profound veneration; that this Word was known to but few; that it was at length lost; and that a temporary substitute for it was adopted. But as the very philosophy of Masonry teaches us that there can be no death without a resurrection,—no decay without a subsequent restoration,—on the same principle it follows that the loss of the Word must suppose its eventual recovery.

Now, this it is, precisely, that constitutes the myth of the Lost Word and the search for it. No matter what was the word, no matter how it was lost, nor why a substitute was provided, nor when nor where it was recovered. These are all points of subsidiary importance, necessary, it is true, for knowing the legendary history, but not necessary for understanding the symbolism. The only term of the myth that is to be regarded in the study of its interpretation, is the abstract idea of a word lost and afterwards recovered.

This, then, points us to the goal to which we must direct our steps in the pursuit of the investigation.

But the symbolism, referring in this case, as I have already said, solely to the great design of Freemasonry, the nature of that design at once suggests itself as a preliminary subject of inquiry in the investigation.

What, then, is the design of Freemasonry? A very large majority of its disciples, looking only to its practical results, as seen in the every-day business of life,—to the noble charities which it dispenses, to the tears of widows which it has dried, to the cries of orphans which it has hushed, to the wants of the destitute which it has supplied,—arrive with too much rapidity at the conclusion that Charity, and that, too, in its least exalted sense of eleemosynary aid, is the great design of the institution.

Others, with a still more contracted view, remembering the pleasant reunions at their lodge banquets, the unreserved communications which are thus encouraged, and the solemn obligations of mutual trust and confidence that are continually inculcated, believe that it was intended solely to promote the social sentiments and cement the bonds of friendship.

But, although the modern lectures inform us that Brotherly Love and Relief are two of «the principal tenets of a Mason’s profession,» yet, from the same authority, we learn that Truth is a third and not less important one; and Truth, too, not in its old Anglo-Saxon meaning of fidelity to engagements,232 but in that more strictly philosophical one in which it is opposed to intellectual and religious error or falsehood.

But I have shown that the Primitive Freemasonry of the ancients was instituted for the purpose of preserving that truth which had been originally communicated to the patriarchs, in all its integrity, and that the Spurious Masonry, or the Mysteries, originated in the earnest need of the sages, and philosophers, and priests, to find again the same truth which had been lost by the surrounding multitudes. I have shown, also, that this same truth continued to be the object of the Temple Masonry, which was formed by a union of the Primitive, or Pure, and the Spurious systems. Lastly, I have endeavored to demonstrate that this truth related to the nature of God and the human soul.

The search, then, after this truth, I suppose to constitute the end and design of Speculative Masonry. From the very commencement of his career, the aspirant is by significant symbols and expressive instructions directed to the acquisition of this divine truth; and the whole lesson, if not completed in its full extent, is at least well developed in the myths and legends of the Master’s degree. God and the soul—the unity of the one and the immortality of the other—are the great truths, the search for which is to constitute the constant occupation of every Mason, and which, when found, are to become the chief corner-stone, or the stone of foundation, of the spiritual temple—»the house not made with hands»—which he is engaged in erecting.

Now, this idea of a search after truth forms so prominent a part of the whole science of Freemasonry, that I conceive no better or more comprehensive answer could be given to the question, What is Freemasonry? than to say that it is a science which is engaged in the search after divine truth.

But Freemasonry is eminently a system of symbolism, and all its instructions are conveyed in symbols. It is, therefore, to be supposed that so prominent and so prevailing an idea as this,—one that constitutes, as I have said, the whole design of the institution, and which may appropriately be adopted as the very definition of its science,—could not with any consistency be left without its particular symbol.

The WORD, therefore, I conceive to be the symbol of Divine Truth; and all its modifications—the loss, the substitution, and the recovery—are but component parts of the mythical symbol which represents a search after truth.

How, then, is this symbolism preserved? How is the whole history of this Word to be interpreted, so as to bear, in all its accidents of time, and place, and circumstance, a patent reference to the substantive idea that has been symbolized?

The answers to these questions embrace what is, perhaps, the most intricate as well as most ingenious and interesting portion of the science of masonic symbolism.

This symbolism may be interpreted, either in an application to a general or to a special sense.

The general application will embrace the whole history of Freemasonry, from its inception to its consummation. The search after the Word is an epitome of the intellectual and religious progress of the order, from the period when, by the dispersion at Babel, the multitudes were enshrouded in the profundity of a moral darkness where truth was apparently forever extinguished. The true name of God was lost; his true nature was not understood; the divine lessons imparted by our father Noah were no longer remembered; the ancient traditions were now corrupted; the ancient symbols were perverted. Truth was buried beneath the rubbish of Sabaism, and the idolatrous adoration of the sun and stars had taken the place of the olden worship of the true God. A moral darkness was now spread over the face of the earth, as a dense, impenetrable cloud, which obstructed the rays of the spiritual sun, and covered the people as with a gloomy pall of intellectual night.

But this night was not to last forever. A brighter dawn was to arise, and amidst all this gloom and darkness there were still to be found a few sages in whom the religious sentiment, working in them with powerful throes, sent forth manfully to seek after truth. There were, even in those days of intellectual and religious darkness, craftsmen who were willing to search for the Lost Word. And though they were unable to find it, their approximation to truth was so near that the result of their search may well be symbolized by the Substitute Word.

It was among the idolatrous multitudes that the Word had been lost. It was among them that the Builder had been smitten, and that the works of the spiritual temple had been suspended; and so, losing at each successive stage of their decline, more and more of the true knowledge of God and of the pure religion which had originally been imparted by Noah, they finally arrived at gross materialism and idolatry, losing all sight of the divine existence. Thus it was that the truth—the Word—was said to have been lost; or, to apply the language of Hutchinson, modified in its reference to the time, «in this situation, it might well be said that the guide to heaven was lost, and the master of the works of righteousness was smitten. The nations had given themselves up to the grossest idolatry, and the service of the true God was effaced from the memory of those who had yielded themselves to the dominion of sin.»

And now it was among the philosophers and priests in the ancient Mysteries, or the spurious Freemasonry, that an anxiety to discover the truth led to the search for the Lost Word. These were the craftsmen who saw the fatal-blow which had been given, who knew that the Word was now lost, but were willing to go forth, manfully and patiently, to seek its restoration. And there were the craftsmen who, failing to rescue it from the grave of oblivion into which it had fallen, by any efforts of their own incomplete knowledge, fell back upon the dim traditions which had been handed down from primeval times, and through their aid found a substitute for truth in their own philosophical religions.

And hence Schmidtz, speaking of these Mysteries of the pagan world, calls them the remains of the ancient Pelasgian religion, and says that «the associations of persons for the purpose of celebrating them must therefore have been formed at the time when the overwhelming influence of the Hellenic religion began to gain the upper hand in Greece, and when persons who still entertained a reverence for the worship of former times united together, with the intention of preserving and upholding among themselves as much as possible of the religion of their forefathers.»

Applying, then, our interpretation in a general sense, the Word itself being the symbol of Divine Truth, the narrative of its loss and the search for its recovery becomes a mythical symbol of the decay and loss of the true religion among the ancient nations, at and after the dispersion on the plains of Shinar, and of the attempts of the wise men, the philosophers, and priests, to find and retain it in their secret Mysteries and initiations, which have hence been designated as the Spurious Freemasonry of Antiquity.

But I have said that there is a special, or individual, as well as a general interpretation. This compound or double symbolism, if I may so call it, is by no means unusual in Freemasonry. I have already exhibited an illustration of it in the symbolism of Solomon’s temple, where, in a general sense, the temple is viewed as a symbol of that spiritual temple formed by the aggregation of the whole order, and in which each mason is considered as a stone; and, in an individual or special sense, the same temple is considered as a type of that spiritual temple which each mason is directed to erect in his heart.

Now, in this special or individual interpretation, the Word, with its accompanying myth of a loss, a substitute, and a recovery, becomes a symbol of the personal progress of a candidate from his first initiation to the completion of his course, when he receives a full development of the Mysteries.

The aspirant enters on this search after truth, as an Entered Apprentice, in darkness, seeking for light—the light of wisdom, the light of truth, the light symbolized by the Word. For this important task, upon which he starts forth gropingly, falteringly, doubtingly, in want and in weakness, he is prepared by a purification of the heart, and is invested with a first substitute for the true Word, which, like the pillar that went before the Israelites in the wilderness, is to guide him onwards in his weary journey. He is directed to take, as a staff and scrip for his journey, all those virtues which expand the heart and dignify the soul. Secrecy, obedience, humility, trust in God, purity of conscience, economy of time, are all inculcated by impressive types and symbols, which connect the first degree with the period of youth.

And then, next in the degree of Fellow Craft, he fairly enters upon his journey. Youth has now passed, and manhood has come on. New duties and increased obligations press upon the individual. The thinking and working stage of life is here symbolized. Science is to be cultivated; wisdom is to be acquired; the lost Word—divine truth—is still to be sought for. But even yet it is not to be found.

And now the Master Mason comes, with all the symbolism around him of old age—trials, sufferings, death. And here, too, the aspirant, pressing onward, always onward, still cries aloud for «light, more light.» The search is almost over, but the lesson, humiliating to human nature, is to be taught, that in this life—gloomy and dark, earthly and carnal—pure truth has no abiding place; and contented with a substitute, and to that second temple of eternal life, for that true Word, that divine Truth, which will teach us all that we shall ever learn of God and his emanation, the human soul.

So, the Master Mason, receiving this substitute for the lost Word, waits with patience for the time when it shall be found, and perfect wisdom shall be attained.

But, work as we will, this symbolic Word—this knowledge of divine Truth—is never thoroughly attained in this life, or in its symbol, the Master Mason’s lodge. The corruptions of mortality, which encumber and cloud the human intellect, hide it, as with a thick veil, from mortal eyes. It is only, as I have just said, beyond the tomb, and when released from the earthly burden of life, that man is capable of fully receiving and appreciating the revelation. Hence, then, when we speak of the recovery of the Word, in that higher degree which is a supplement to Ancient Craft Masonry, we intimate that that sublime portion of the masonic system is a symbolic representation of the state after death. For it is only after the decay and fall of this temple of life, which, as masons, we have been building, that from its ruins, deep beneath its foundations, and in the profound abyss of the grave, we find that divine truth, in the search for which life was spent, if not in vain, at least without success, and the mystic key to which death only could supply.

And now we know by this symbolism what is meant by masonic labor, which, too, is itself but another form of the same symbol. The search for the Word—to find divine Truth—this, and this only, is a mason’s work, and the WORD is his reward.

Labor, said the old monks, is worship—laborare est orare; and thus in our lodges do we worship, working for the Word, working for the Truth, ever looking forward, casting no glance behind, but cheerily hoping for the consummation and the reward of our labor in the knowledge which is promised to him who plays no laggard’s part.

Goethe, himself a mason and a poet, knew and felt all this symbolism of a mason’s life and work, when he wrote that beautiful poem, which Carlyle has thus thrown into his own rough but impulsive language.

And now, in concluding this work, so inadequate to the importance of the subjects that have been discussed, one deduction, at least, may be drawn from all that has been said.

In tracing the progress of Freemasonry, and in detailing its system of symbolism, it has been found to be so intimately connected with the history of philosophy, of religion, and of art, in all ages of the world, that the conviction at once forces itself upon the mind, that no mason can expect thoroughly to comprehend its nature, or to appreciate its character as a science, unless he shall devote himself, with some labor and assiduity, to this study of its system. That skill which consists in repeating, with fluency and precision, the ordinary lectures, in complying with all the ceremonial requisitions of the ritual, or the giving, with sufficient accuracy, the appointed modes of recognition, pertains only to the very rudiments of the masonic science.

But there is a far nobler series of doctrines with which Freemasonry is connected, and which it has been my object, in this work, to present in some imperfect way. It is these which constitute the science and the philosophy of Freemasonry, and it is these alone which will return the student who devotes himself to the task, a sevenfold reward for his labor.

Freemasonry, viewed no longer, as too long it has been, as a merely social institution, has now assumed its original and undoubted position as a speculative science. While the mere ritual is still carefully preserved, as the casket should be which contains so bright a jewel; while its charities are still dispensed as the necessary though incidental result of all its moral teachings; while its social tendencies are still cultivated as the tenacious cement which is to unite so fair a fabric in symmetry and strength, the masonic mind is everywhere beginning to look and ask for something, which, like the manna in the desert, shall feed us, in our pilgrimage, with intellectual food. The universal cry, throughout the masonic world, is for light; our lodges are henceforth to be schools; our labor is to be study; our wages are to be learning; the types and symbols, the myths and allegories, of the institution are beginning to be investigated with reference to their ultimate meaning; our history is now traced by zealous inquiries as to its connection with antiquity; and Freemasons now thoroughly understand that often quoted definition, that «Masonry is a science of morality veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols.»

Thus to learn Masonry is to know our work and to do it well. What true mason would shrink from the task?

As we search for the Lost Word, may we keep in mind the admonitions and observations of Plutarch in «On Isis and Osiris»:


But those who relate that Typhon’s flight from the battle was made on the back of an ass and lasted for seven days, and that after he made his escape, he became the father of sns, Heirosolymus and Judaeus, are manifestly, as the very names show, attempting to drag Jewish traditions into the legend.

Let us first explore some of the history and properties of the Lost Word.

From Whence the Lost Word?

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through HIM, and without HIM nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.» — John 1:1-5

Of all the enduring legends within Western esoteric traditions, few hold such pre-eminence as «the Lost Word». Whether popularized by mass religion such as Christianity, or within esoteric studies as Speculative Freemasonry, «the Word» remains a «key» to Western esotericic philosophical constructions.

Bro. Arthur C. Parker, in writing for «The Builder Magazine in 1923, referenced,

UPON a clay tablet found amid the ruins of an ancient city upon the Euphrates was the words of a hymn — a hymn of a Word. The song is old, five thousand years old, and perhaps twenty-five centuries older than the Hebrew scripture, and, in any event, it antedates teh final development of those writings. Shall we pause to listen?

The Word that causes the heavens on high to tremble,

The Word that makes the world below to quake,

The Word that bringeth destruction to the Annunakis,

The Word is beyond the diviner, beyond the seer!

His Word is a tempest without rival.

Ultimately, the «Word» being referenced above related to a «Word of Enlil» and so, by definition, could not be construed as «the Lost Word» for which so many have sought, but the hymn reminds us of the antiquity of a reverence for particular «Words», or «the Word».

In the case of «the Omnific Word», or «the Lost Word», it is important to remember that «transpositions and modifications» were employed in the development of «sacred nomenclatures» as they passed from race to race. Hence what is called by one name in one system or culture might yet be called yet another in another, while yet a third in a third.

Aside from the verbalized changes to words, there remains sub-surface an even more important philosophical construction. The «core truth», however, remains. Its presence and meaning depends quite literally on «which side of the coin you viewing».

For example, it is said of Ma’at of the Egyptians that Ma’at was the reason why «order» existed. Without Ma’at, chaos would reign. Nothing, really, could exist without Ma’at. Ma’at, was, therefore, perhaps the most important of deities. Without Ma’at, Nun, the waters of chaos, would return to reclaim the Universe.

With the rise of Greek philosophy, the principles of Ma’at, already fused further to the properties of Ma’at’s husband, Thoth, would be incorporated into the Logos of the Greeks. «Logos» was a Greek word employed by Plato to mean, philosophically, «the Word». The Greeks gave to the Word the rational principle which was said to govern all things.

In this manner, Ma’at and «the Logos» are directly equivalent — transposition and modifcations of a concept that is passed from one race to another so as to employ local cultural significances.

At around the same time as Plato was expounding upon the philosophical of «the Logos» or «the Word», another work is said to have begun to evolve orally within Jewish philosophicalk constructions. In this work, considered to be «pseudographia» and known as «The First Book of Adam and Eve, we find that «the Word» plays a central role in the story,

And because when they were in the garden they were filled with the grace of a bright nature, and they had not hearts turned toward earthly things.

Therefore, God had pity on them; and when He saw them fallen before the gate of the garden, he sent His Word to our father, Adam and Eve, and raised them from their fallen state.

By the time of the writing of the Gospel of John some 350-400 years after Plato, the heavily influenced Jewish religious elite would incorporate the Greek concept of the Logos into Jewish (Christian) constructions via the oft quoted passage from the Gospel of John.

The attempt to fuse Jewish traditions to the larger Philosophical construction had begun.

In the beginning was the Logos (Word), and the Logos (Word) was with God and the Logos was God.

Properties of «the Lost Word»

Before we are able to «recover» the «Lost Word», it is helpful to ascertain just what precisely are the properties of this «Word». In order to do so, we need to keep in mind the idea of «transpositions and modifications» as they pass from one race to another.

For instance, in Christianity, it is said that «in the beginning was the Word», yet in the beginning as it is applied to Egyptian mythology refers to «Ma’at» who was responsible for ordering the Universe from the primal chaos. This same ordering principle became «the Logos» of the Greeks, and so «the Word» as it is caste into Christianity is but a transposition of «Ma’at» via the philosophical concept known as «the Logos» of the Greeks.

Indeed, the English speaking Western world has been disconnected from its history.

In what is arguably one of the greatest epics ever written in English, John Milton released a work called «Paradise Lost» in 1674. The tale revolves around the mythical fall of Adam and Eve from «the Garden of Eden» and hence, «Paradise Lost».

The «Lost Word», or «the Omnific Word» as coined by Milton, is hardly mentioned at all in current academic curriculum below specialized higher education. Consequently, few within such countries as the United States, Canada, or England are really aware of of «the Word’s» importance to the development of the philosophical structures that would be woven into fraternal movements as «Freemasonry».

Writes Milton, in Paradise Lost,

Silence, ye troubl’d waves, and thou Deep, peace,

Said then th’ Omnific Word, your discord end:

Here, «the Word» is given the properties of bringing an end to «discord», or chaos.

Farr into Chaos, and the World unborn;

For Chaos heard his voice: him all his Traine

Follow’d in bright procession to behold

Creation, and the wonders of his might.

Here, Milton can be seen as providing to «the Word» properties traditionally associated with the Egyptian Goddess Ma’at. The Word Ma’at literally means «truth», and within the larger construction of Ma’at are embodied such ideals as «cosmic order», «balance», and a reality based on a rational and logical order. The sun would set and again would rise, the tides would ebb and flow, the seasons would each have their predictable time, all of which were attributable to Ma’at.

Thus Ma’at (the literal word), being a pre-cursor to the «Mythological Word» of Western esoteric constructions, would become integrally woven into into these same said Western esoteric constructions under a different name.

Within Freemasonry, the «Word» plays a central theme and role, while the attributes affixed to the Word provide for the adumbrations upon which one may come to ascertain and recover this same said «Word».

From «The Symbolism of Freemasonry», written by Albert Mackay, we find in chapter XXXI (31=3.1), The Lost Word

«The mythical history of Freemasonry informs us that there once existed a WORD of surpassing value, and claiming a profound veneration; that this Word was known to but few; that it was at length lost; and that a temporary substitute for it was adopted. But as the very philosophy of Masonry teaches us that there can be no death without a resurrection,—no decay without a subsequent restoration,—on the same principle it follows that the loss of the Word must suppose its eventual recovery.»

He continues on,

The WORD, therefore, I conceive to be the symbol of Divine Truth; and all its modifications—the loss, the substitution, and the recovery—are but component parts of the mythical symbol which represents a search after truth.

«Divine Truth» is Ma’at, and the modifications, substitutions, and transpositions which become known as «the Logos» or «the Word», are but reflections of this earlier concept known as Ma’at.

Jehovah and the Tetragrammaton

Much confusion exists within the fields of Western esoteric studies precisely because there has been a sustained and largely successful campaign to fuse Jewish traditions to that of Western Paganism. Far too often, Jewish esoteric constructions are provided «pre-eminent status» regardless of the rational and historical underpinnings which would wash away what is, in hindsight, pillars which have been caste into sand.

The search for «the Lost Word» has fallen prey to this very methodical and aeon attempt to fuse Jewish mysticism to the larger Construct.

Says Mackay, in his epic work from 1913, «The Encyclopedia of Freemasonry», argued that there were two generally accepted terms for this the Lost Word was attributed.  These attributes were directly linked to two different degrees within the Freemasonic schools, namely «the American system» and «the English Royal Arch».  In the English Royal Arch system, Mackay states that the English system had attributed to the Lost Word a three word attribute,

Not withstanding this explicit and unmistakable declaration of the founder of the English Royal Arch, that the Tetragrammaton is the omnific word, the present system in England has rejected it, and substituted into its place three other words, the second of which is wholly unmeaning.»

Mackay argues that the American system of 1913, was of the opinion that «JEHOVAH» was the «omnific» or Lost Word.

«In the American system, as revised by Thomas Smith Webb, there can be no doubt that the Tetragrammaton was recognized as the omnific word.  In the Freemason’s Monitor, prepared by him for monitorial instruction, he has inserted, among the passages of Scripture to be read during an exaltation, the following from Exodus, which is the last in order, and which anyone at all acquainted with the ritual will at once see is appropriated to the time of the eurisis or discovery of the Word.

«And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, «I am the Lord, and I appeared unto Abraham, and unto Isaac and to Jacob by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not know to them.»

Of course, Mackay could have written that this sky god appeared to Bernanke, and Netanyahu, and Golda Meir, and little Tommy, and baby Suzy, for all it matters, for he then draws the conclusion from the above that lord of all lords Jehovah must be the name.  Santa Claus is really real.  Really. Continues Mackay,

From this we can conclude that Webb recognized the name JEHOVAH and not the three other words.

OK.  That is pretty heavy.  Mystical even.  I must say, such words are absolutely mesmerizing, until one realizes the political overtones of the whole exercise.  Continues Mackay,

To call anything but this four letter name an omnific word — an all creating and all-performing word — either in Masonry or in Hebrew symbolism, whence Masonry derived it, is to oppose all the doctrines of the Talmudists and Kabballists, and the Gnostics and to repudiate the teachings of every Hebrew scholar from Buxtorf to Gesenius. To fight the battle against such odds is to secure defeat. It shows more of boldness than of discretion. And hence the General Grand Chapter of the United States has very wisely restored the word Jehovah to its proper place. It is only in the York and in the American Rites that this error has ever existed. In every other Rite the Tetragrammaton is recognized as the True Word. 

Ah. The smell of an Agenda! Mackay, thoroughly inebriated in his love affair with Jewish mysticism, could not see that his life work revolved around an agenda of fusing of Jewish mysticism to the larger Philosophical construction! To not accept the «teachings» of the Kabballists, a concept met with contempt by earlier Philosopher’s as Agrippa, was tantamount to a simplistic act of «repudiation» — an obvious presumption — and such a recognition that «the True Word» lay somewhere beyond the confining and simplistic teachings of Jewish mysticism was nothing more than «boldness» rather than «discretion».

Some 70 years later, this same dogmatic presumption of «truth» as exhibited by Mackay, and along with it same, his desire to perpetuate a falsehood under a banner of a «total truth», would be mirrored by the Temple of Set and the psychological warfare pamphlet known as «MindWar».

…and so it must be axiomatic of MindWar that it always speaks the truth. Its power lies in its ability to focus recipient’s attention on the truth of the future as well as that of the present. MindWar thus involves the stated promise of the truth that the United States has resolved if it is not already so.«

It is better to argue that the stated «truths» of Mackay and MindWar, of a presumed truth wholly centered on Jewish mysticism, is itself the primary example of boldness rather than discretion.

A Jewish centered «tetragrammaton» as «the True Word» is about as much a realistic truth as the truth of 9-11, the truth of a magical silver bullet and the JFK assassination story, and on and on.

The Truth needs not an «agenda» to «make it so».

It is. Its self evidency stands as a testament unto itself.

«JEHOVAH», «JAH BUL ON», the «tetragrammaton» — all fail to present themselves with a self evidency.

«The Nature of the Quest»

Fortunately, through the ages, men and women of vision, stamina, and creativity, have contributed to the preservation and eventual recovery of this lost, «True Word». Through the use of symbols, art, song, word, architecture, to name but a few, Philosophers of old have etched their knowledge into the fabric and web of esoteric philosophical constructions.

To say that «JEHOVAH» or «the tetragrammaton» is a complete restoration and representation of the totality of the «Word» would be akin to stopping at the shores of the sea and proclaiming that one has just swam from one side of a great ocean to the other. There is a level of audacity and absurdity to the proclamation. The gullible, or those overly desirous, might listen and fall prey to the tale, but the serious seeker and student scoffs and continues seeking.

How can a concept as JEHOVAH and a system designed to be destructive «magically» also be the same source upon which a recovery of a previous lost concept be reconstructed?

Plutarch provides the clearest example of such an absurd reach of the imagination.

For Isis is a Greek word, and so also is Typhon, her enemy, who is conceited, as his name implies,6 because of his ignorance and self-deception. He tears to pieces and scatters to the winds the sacred writings, which the goddess collects and puts together and gives into the keeping of those that are initiated into the holy rites,

It is intellectual insanity to presume that the same god (JEHOVAH TYPHON SETH) who tears the sacred constructions to pieces to be scattered to the winds is in and of «itself» the «True Word». You could bleed scratching your head trying to make sense of that one. Or you could bang your head against a wall and proclaim the act «divinic» and «spiritual».

Ours is not a world of such simplistic «pleasures». Ours is a world of recognizing the Construction exists, recognizing that the Construction by virtue of material separation must then too be scattered and hence, in order to re-construct, must be gathered and put back into its rightful conceptual construction.

This is the nature of the quest, be it the «Holy Grail», or whatever other name one wishes to attribute to same.

The «tearing to pieces» is the losing of the Construction, and, through a rational reconstruction of the philosophical deconstruction, we gather up the pieces so that the philosophical construction may be pieced back together.  Ultimately, this leads to a recovery of «the Lost Word».  The end result and aim is to acquire an absolute (to the degree possible) vision and understanding of «the Lost Word».

If we can hold the concept in our mind long enough, we may even be fortunate to glimpse the Word with clarity, lucidity, free of superstitions and without error.

To begin, we listen to the words of many authors and philosophers.  We study and meditate on the symbols woven into literature and architecture.  We seek to find a common message and them within sacred architecture.  In doing so, we must adhere to strict regimens of logic and reason fore the mind is wont to see what it wishes to see, believe what it wishes to believe.

We must be willing to abandon convention and seek outside of «stated truths», for something concealed and yet to be revealed requires a search into sacred objects and nomenclatures across a full spectrum of human endeavor and seek out the underlying, common, and hence universal theme and narrative.

Adumbrations of Pi

One of the first hints linking Pi to higher spiritual evolution may be found in the Rishis of India in a hymn to Lord Krishna. As advanced by Jagadguru Swami Sri Bharati Krsna Tirthaji Maharaja, author of Vedic Mathematics. Jagadguru put forward the idea that ancient Sanskrit, like later Greek, Rune, and Hebrew (among others) was too fused to number. In this way, through the art of Gematria, esoteric knowledge could be preserved through encoding numerical concepts in the language. Ancient Sanskrit was encoded such that syllables were fused to number.

In this hymn to Lord Krishna (a parallel to Osiris) it begins with the word/phrase «Gopibhagyamadhuvrata…» When the first 32 syllables are converted back to number, the phrase is Pi, to 32 digits, leading some to ponder where the decimal digits of Pi are nothing short of a sonic code for dedications to Krishna.

When we return back to Western esoteric constructions, we find that the number 32 plays a prominent role in such works as «Kabballah», as well as in more cryptic symbols found in «Freemasonry», where the number «32» or «33» is oft set in a triangle resting atop the double headed eagle of the Scottish Rite.

Sacred Architecture also plays an integral role into the preservation of a more ancient and universal philosophical system. The Great Pyramids of Egypt and the Pyramid of the Sun as constructed by the Mayans each intricately wove Pi into their design. The distance of the base of the Pyramid of the Sun has a ratio of 4 times Pi, while the Pyramid at Giza, as so aptly stated at Gizapyramid.com,

If we equate the height of the pyramid to the radius of a circle, than the distance around the pyramid is equal to the circumference of that circle.

The Arts, to include Mythology, also is replete with hints and references to Pi and Phi. Leonardo Da Vinci’s work has been de-constructed to reveal a large dependency on encoding Phi, while such tales as «The Epic of Gilgamesh», when constructed into English, reveals that he who came to understand the secrets of the gods was named «UTNAPISHTIM», a word that not so cryptically, reversed, reveals the sound set MITHS PI ANT U, or «Myths, Pi, and You».

More academic oriented books from Freemasonry also hint more directly (and accurately) at the importance of Pi to the larger philosophical construction. Says Higgins in «Hermetic Masonry»,

In all manner of observation, the hidden key and underlying theme is a dedication to Pi, and its sister constant Phi. It is here we must look, and it is here where the answer must lie.

The Alphabet as the Lost Word

In Victor Hugo’s occult laced work, «Notre Dame de Paris», as prefaced in «Hermetic Masonry» by Frank Higgins, we find the following,

Ultimately, «the Word» references back to an Alphabet. It is from this Alphabet that «God creates the Universe and makes all things», a form of definition and instruction that is largely Qaballistic in nature. We must then fuse this Alphabet to the more real «True Word», which is not a word at all, but rather a number.

It is not some absurd word as JEHOVAH, a name that means «that which is against life» and for which its adherents have destroyed so much through time immemorial. It is not «Yud He Vav He», a very simplistic transposition for which the key is in English. It is not the Jewish «tetragrammaton», a concept that at its ultimate expression adds up to only 72, or 1/5 of a circle. The Muslim call to prayer, being 5 times per day, is too but 1/5 of the circle.

Although it is true that 5, as representative of 72 degrees, or 1/5 of a circle, does indeed add up to a Pi component, 72 in and of itself is not representative of Pi.

That «secret number» from which has no beginning and no end (as set against its sacred form, the circle) is the transcendent constant known as Pi. And if «the Lost Word» is «Pi», to what decimal is the Word carried, and how to we go about its recovery?

We must, above all else, listen to Plutarch and search using logic and reason.

First, the «Word» was never «lost». It has always been known, a guarded secret among «the Builders» for whom such a number would be instrumental and critically important to their Craft. To the Priests of the Letters, their efforts would be to encode this Word into the very core of the Alphabet and languages within which they were working.

In English, or the 26 digit sequence which has come to be known as «The English Alphabet», this occult Art reached its zenith, with both a philosophy and physical design perfections that revealed «the Word» in lucid clarity.

What we know is that «the Word» is set against a 32 digit sequence. This is hinted at across the spectrum of Occult formulae, be it the Hymn to Lord Krishna, «Jewish Kabballah», or Freemasonry, to name but a few.

Pi, to 32 digits, appears as follows:

Again, applying logic and reason, we note that the first 32 digits of Pi has a number of repeating 2 digit numbers, the first of which is the number 26. Centered on the second 26 is another 3 pairs of digits, the numbers 79, 32, and 38, as shown here:

The repeating two digit numbers of 79, 38, and 32 represent 6 digits. In the English Alphabet, we note in the design that we have symmetrical and asymmetrical letters. They are as follows:

Symmetrical — AHIMOTUVWXY
Asymmetrical — BCDEFGJKLNPQRSZ

Within each of these designs, we find identical 6 digits sequences —

BCDEFG — TUVWXY

We can surmise that this sequence is mirroring the two pairs of 6 digit pairings found in Pi. It is just a matter of how to locate them along the decimal sequence. More to the point. The asymmetrical sequence reveals a clear decimal design of Pi. JKL N PQRS Z BCDEFG shows pairings of 3 letters, 1 letter, 4 letters, 1 letter, and 6 letters.

3.1416

PI.

Clearly the Alphabet is exhibiting absolute design parallels of the Word, which is Pi.

The way the Alphabet lines up against Pi in totality is as follows:

If Pi is «the Lost Word», then it becomes apparent that a highly advanced initiated Elite encoded their ideals and philosophy, indeed — the Word itself, into the very fabric of the English Alphabet and language.

The qaballistic secrets of the language await to revealed to all who have a desire to seek and learn.

“The Lost Word”

by Bryan Dietrich

“The Lost Word” Reader’s Guide

by Worshipful Master Curtis Scott Shumaker

Those who attended the 2011 Installation may remember that it featured a reading by Bryan Dietrich of the poem he wrote for the occasion: “The Lost Word.” Some recent events have made it timely for me to discuss that poem in this month’s Trestleboard. Firstly, the poem has been published in a leading, nationally known Masonic publication: Philalethes: The Journal of Masonic Research & Letters. This journal introduces “The Lost Word” by saying it was written for the occasion of Culver City-Foshay Lodge’s Ninety-second Installation, which gives our lodge nationwide recognition. This, combined with the fact that Bryan Dietrich is an awardwinning, top-selling poet is likely to make “The Lost Word” a highly acclaimed and well known work of Masonic literature. Secondly, the poem is being featured in the short film that members of our lodge have created for a Grand Lodge film competition. Finally, I plan on leading a discussion of the poem at our Social Night in September. In preparation, I have had it emailed to all lodge members. For those of you who may be interested but cannot attend Social Night, I thought it may be helpful to quote and discuss a few lines of it here as a guide to aid in comprehension and enjoyment.

The biggest tip for reading “The Lost Word” is that it follows the Seven Liberal Arts and Sciences represented on the Winding Staircase: Grammar, Logic, Rhetoric, Arithmetic, Geometry, Music, and Astronomy.
His theme is to show how in each of these fields is a different way of seeking to fill missing or forgotten truths about ourselves and our universe, rediscovering that which we need to make ourselves whole. Finding the “lost word” that will give completion and meaning to our existence. Ironically, the poem suggests that this search will never be entirely complete. This should be no discouragement, however, since the search is more meaningful and valuable than the answer. If you find Bryan’s poetry difficult to understand, it is chiefly because of two reasons: 1, he makes use of many references to literature, history, religion, and the sciences that test the knowledge of even highly educated readers; 2, he uses complicated forms of wordplay that involve puns, double-meanings, and metaphors that require unraveling, much like riddles. Surmounting these challenges, however, will increase meaning, line by line. I will explain a few key passages here, and we will discuss more of the poem at the next Social Night.

The first few lines of the poem may be especially frustrating for many readers:

Whitman died chasing Champollion, seeking
grammar for God, a uniform hieroglyphic.
American answers for Egyptian enigmas.
Still, he found no stone, no Virginia Rosetta.

The key here is the history behind the Rosetta Stone, an artifact inscribed with the same text in three forms of writing that enabled scholars to finally read Egyptian hieroglyphics. At this time, roughly the middle of the 19th century, some people (including many overly enthusiastic Masons) were so in awe of the accomplishments of ancient Egypt that they believed its newly translatable writings would reveal primal, universal truths about God and his relationship with humanity. When many were looking to the past for “lost truths,” the American poet Walt Whitman was creating a revolutionary type of poetry inspired by the newness of America which, he may have believed, would allow him to find a universal form of expression that could reveal great truths about the human condition. Of course, all he found was an American form of expression. And the Hieroglyphs only whispered the dead words of a dead language. Language can only be a tool; it will not produce the lost word out of thin air.

Notice how the next two stanzas discuss logic and rhetoric in much the same way. In these stanzas, you see many names, only some of which you may find familiar. My general advice in reading Bryan’s poetry is that when you see names or proper nouns, look them up on the Internet; don’t stop with just a simple definition. The more you read in each case, the better you will understand Bryan’s purpose in referencing them. I’ll give you one here for free, because you may find it especially interesting. In the second stanza, he refers to Baudrillard, followed shortly by the phrase “the desert of the real.” Jean Baudrillard is an important philosopher in the fields of sociology and communications who argues that we use our systems of media to create an artificial reality.
Interestingly, the above quotation, as well as Baudrillard’s book, Simulacra and Simulation, in which it was originally used, were featured in the movie The Matrix, another artistic work involving a search for that which was lost.

The fourth stanza suggests that arithmetic alone cannot provide the answers because it may be improperly utilized to support false models of physical reality. This stanza may sound like nonsense, but it is actually an accurate summary of a wild theory by a mad astronomer named Velikovsky. Ho posited, with
“correct” mathematical proofs, that an unknown planet he called Pong created Venus out of Jupiter and was responsible for biblical miracles. Notice how Bryan blends the mythology of the Gods Jupiter and Venus with their planetary equivalents. In the geometry Stanza, Bryan observes how geometric shapes define each other, and he extends this concept into a metaphor describing how we shape our world, even as our world shapes us. With music, he connects the Renaissance idea of the music of the spheres to the supposed radio waves that will bring us evidence of extraterrestrial life. In turn, he speculates how we look to hypothetical superior alien civilizations as sources for all the answers we seek, including the ultimate question:
. . . The name of the name
of the being who best knows God?
The Final stanza, which is the part we used for our Grand Lodge film, encodes references that any Mason should easily recognize. It also casts light on the true meaning of the last, lost word:
. . . All but the one
we have sought. All but the right word, the one
we lost before the rest. The name, the name
of the one who made us, laid us brick by brick,
set us on the level, encompassed our corners,
rounded what was rough, set square that which
strayed, the one who tamped us, tested us,
smiled upon us, deep as the deepest temple.