Ken Wilber reminds us in his book Eye
to Eye that medieval philosophers made a
distinction between three kinds of light and
three kinds of eyes. We have eyes of flesh
which see with exterior light - lumen exterior
- the physical world of sense objects and
matter. Then we have an eye of reason,
which sees with interior light - lumen interior
- the truths of reason, mind and knowledge.
Finally, we have an eye of contemplation,
which sees with higher or transcendent light
– lumen superius - the ultimate reality of
oneness, the ground of Being. It is these
three lights that we need to consider
in Freemasonry and the rituals clearly
differentiate between them.
The exterior light of the body equates
to the light of Nature, described in the
First Degree with the words ‘restored to
the blessing of material light’. This is distinct
from the inner light of the mind which,
in the Second Degree, is that of intellect.
Emmanuel Swedenborg wrote:
It has often been granted me to perceive and
also to see that there is a true light that enlightens
the mind, wholly distinct from the light that is
called natural light. I have been raised up into
that light by degrees; and as I was raised up my
understanding became so enlightened as to enable
me to perceive what I did not perceive before, and
finally such things as I could not even comprehend
by thought from natural light.
Finally, in the Third Degree, the light
of contemplation is described as that ‘Light
which is from above’.
The experience of enlightenment appears
to be the sensing, feeling and knowing that
the body, heart and mind are being infused,
usually from ‘above’ with inner light of a
spiritual nature. When talking about this
illumination it is called ‘light from above’
as a way of describing the process by which
it appears to come from a part of our being
that is ‘higher’ than body or mind. Sri
Aurobindo describes the process:
Into the consciousness with a fiery ardour of
realisation comes a downpour of inwardly visible
light. There is also in this descent the arrival of
a greater dynamic, a luminous ‘enthusiasmos’
of inner force and power which replaces the
comparatively slow and deliberate process of the
mind by a swift, sometimes vehement, almost
a violent impetus of rapid transformation.
With the coming of this inner light the
recipient is initiated into a new and higher
level of realisation. The light experienced in
the different Degrees of Freemasonry is one
and the same, only at different levels of the
spectrum of consciousness. The experience
of enlightenment often comes after an
intense inner struggle, like a breakthrough
between the opposites of good and evil; it
brings an understanding which embraces
both the polar opposites.
It is often a struggle between fear and
love. When the power of love finally
prevails and light dawns in the heart, then
the walls of fear dissolve and the heart opens.
To lose any sense of fear, particularly that of
dying, is to be free, and that of course is one
important teaching in the Third Degree of
Freemasonry. As Walt Whitman wrote in
Leaves of Grass:
Not I, not any one else can travel that road
for you. You must travel it for yourself. It is not
far, it is within reach. Perhaps you have been on
it since you were born and did not know.
It is self-evident that this is what the
writers of our rituals had in mind when they
developed the Freemasonry we know and
love as a progressive science, leading from
darkness and ignorance to light and
knowledge and culminating in wisdom
and enlightenment.
So how does any of this help Anglo-
Saxon Freemasonry in its present decline?
The reasons why men persevere and enjoy
their Masonry are complex and will be
different for each of us. At one end of the
scale there are those brethren who are
looking for companionship alone, and
Freemasonry provides them with a friendly
and trusting environment.
Then there are those who value the
contribution the Craft makes to charity,
and are motivated by a desire to help those
less fortunate than themselves, both Masons
and non-Masons alike.
Some like the chance to perform the
rituals and work hard to ensure high
standards are maintained in our ceremonies;
others make a study of Freemasonry from
an historical or social perspective; then there
are those who choose to explore the inner
and more esoteric aspects of the ritual in
order to discover more about Freemasonry
and themselves.
It is for the latter that we need to give a
better understanding of the inner meanings
of the Craft; partly to encourage a better
study of Freemasonry and partly to increase
the amount of revealed light in the Order as
a whole. The success of such a venture will
only be judged by the effect it has on those
who are interested in the mysteries, and
want to deepen their knowledge of the true
nature of the Order.
| |
External Bath Abbey – angels
climbing Jacob’s Ladder. The
ladder is featured in the First
Degree tracing board and in
its early Masonic format had
three rungs depicting Faith,
Hope and Charity
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