Transcription
foreign [Music] the journey of a freemason is a continuous path, one that pursues further light and knowledge within an institution of moral instruction, utilizing signs, symbols, and allegorical teachings. the traveler seeks to attain a better understanding of his place in this world.
many of the lessons experienced by the freemason are literally and allegorically connected to the building of king solomon's temple in jerusalem. masonry is presented in stages or steps, known as degrees. the road through the first three degrees of masonry, collectively known as the blue lodge, culminates in the tragic and untimely death of hiram abib, the chief architect responsible for designing and directing the temple's construction.
a freemason who chooses to travel past the first three degrees has many routes he can consider. one of these paths is the body of the scottish rite. this journey consists of 29 further degrees to provide even more light and knowledge for the mason to discover.
the following discussion focuses on the teachings of the fourth degree, secret master. no degree teaches only a single meaning. no symbol has only a single meaning. the values of truth itself, virtue, and duty are centerpieces throughout the fourth degree.
an essential symbol used to understand the teachings and lessons contained within this degree is that of a key, more specifically an ivory key. as each key in our world is unique in its form, shape, and purpose, so too is each person's interpretation of the meaning conveyed and associated with it. here, we hope that the following discussion will stimulate unique personal thought from the listener. there are no wrong answers when discovering symbolism and meaning. every individual is tasked with creating their own understanding and interpretation. each person is in possession of their own unique, one-of-a-kind key. the duty now is to discover that key's purpose to oneself.
so why the key? what does that represent? well, the key is kind of significant because it's an allegory. what it looks like is it is an interpretation to every individual. in the ancient days, the key had many different representations. each individual is up to the interpretation of what key does lock the door or unlock the wheel. [Music] whether it reveals or conceals, that's the part of the key.
so throughout the world, how could the key be represented? the key allegorically is represented throughout all different kind of cultures and everything else since time immemorial. in egypt, the key was put in the tomb so that they could unlock the door to the underworld. in the orient, the key was held in esteem, just simply because they could unlock the rice pantry where they could get food. so the significance of the key has been quite universal for many, many cultures over a long period of time, and it's open to individual interpretation.
what would your, I guess, individual interpretation of that be? well, I guess the key tells me two or three things. as a mason, you start with your first three degrees and you look for enlightenment. you are told that it's necessary that you have to educate yourself to become a better person. the key is the way of unlocking those things inside you that makes you a better person, understanding exactly what the degrees of masonry, through even through the scottish rite, teach you and using those as an educational tool to enlighten yourself.
now, I know that you and I have had this discussion in the past in different representations of the key, such as maybe the teeth being the key of ivory, um, where, where we as masons ask for, um, [Music] ask for further enlightenment, and we receive it. that in itself could be the, could be a key as to unlocking that lock of information. correct? correct. when you go back and look at the, uh, the ancient catechisms, the old catechisms, it tells you right in there that, uh, the key of ivory is the key to the bone box, and the bone box is kind of a box of coral. now, coral not being significant as a piece of coral that you picked up, but coral as a color. the ivory key, in that sense, represents the teeth. if you can't get it past the teeth, you can't reveal a secret or you can't conceal a secret. that's the idea behind it.
a mason is taught, in like, in the fourth degree, is taught secrecy. there is a reason for that secrecy. the secrecy is to make absolutely certain that each individual mason keeps within his own heart the secrets of, of freemasonry. you've heard my thoughts on exactly what the key kind of means to me. about your thoughts on that? my thoughts are along the same line. um, like I said, we've had this discussion between the two of us on several different occasions, um, where you ask for, I guess, further enlightenment or further information, and that the teeth are what I would represent, or what I would feel it represents, the, the key of ivory, um, to help further you along in your journey. you know, each, each individual mason has their own journey to make. um, so that key to me, that key is going to be as unique as the individual. um, [Music] like I said, each man's journey is different. each key is unique. there, you know, what, what key works for me is not going to work for you necessarily, or for any other individual. that's, that's the idea behind it. that's the thought behind freemasonry. if you, you know, when you talk about masonry, a lot of guys forget that first word, freemasonry. the idea behind freemasonry is to let an individual develop his own ideas behind the allegories that are presented to it. each one of those means something different.
when you look at the fourth degree of the scottish rite, which is the very beginning of your journey in scottish rite freemasonry, you find out that here we sit, we are in a room that's dark because grand master hiram abif has just been murdered, and his fidelity and his loyalty by keeping the secrets of freemasonry are now being explained through each one of those degrees. in the first section of the scottish rite, called the logic perfection, that induces a mason to learn allegorically all the way along the line from the fourth degree to the 14th degree. each degree builds upon itself, just as the scottish rite builds upon the allegories of your first three degrees in the blue lodge. I think that's important that a lot of people fail to think on how those things, two things, really relate to one another.
what do you think about that? I guess my thoughts on that [Applause] could also lead into the actions of a mason, um, as far as how the key is represented, um, because the, the your actions as an individual, it could also act as a key by locking or unlocking doors, um, [Music] kind of the way I look at that. um, you mentioned grand master hiram abif with his actions, unwilling to give up the secrets of a mason and lost his life because of it. um, I think that the character that that depicts should be the actions of all masons. I mean, your word is your bond. um, therefore, it could be, like I said, could go into, um, that key to open and close doors. the door is very, very important because you've knocked on the door many times to get where you're at. when you stop and think about the fidelity of hiram and why he did what he did, it should represent the fidelity in every man, because it's the internal components that make masons, not the external components. that's why a prime example, take a good look at us. you're all dressed in black. I'm dressed in a white shirt with, with a pair of blue jeans on. each individual's taste. it's up to each of us to understand and realize that our duty is to ourselves, as well as to each other. that's part of the fourth degree of producer. duty becomes very important. duty to yourself, which is what you're talking about with from a man's actions. and there's an old philosophy that says actions speak louder than words. consequently, I gotta, I agree with you 100%. a man's duty is to himself, as well as to others, which is one of the principal teachings of the scottish rite.
well, and I think also with, in speaking with the key, I think just the symbolism of the key should make each individual take a hard look at themselves. um, are my actions square and upright? um, you know, will they allow me to get that further information or enlightenment that I'm seeking? but like I said, I think it should, I think the symbolism of, of the key should have each individual take a look at themselves. and I think that's kind of what the, the, the degrees of masonry do. it's an analyzation of yourself. we want you not to examine somebody else to look for their flaws or look for their good ones. masonry wants you to look within yourself to find out and correct your errors. those are the things that freemasonry teaches you.
I would fully agree with that. it, uh, it wants you to take the things and the allegories that you learn and study to make yourself a better individual, not only for your own self-being, but for the self-welfare and being of others. that seems to be very important. masonry has long been considered a very charitable organization. well, charity comes in many different forms. it doesn't come in just giving somebody money. it comes in how charitable you are yourself to another human being. how many doors have you opened for someone else to become enlightened? I think that's, that's a thought. every time you and I have met with an individual or somebody outside of masonry, we have tried to pick each and every one that we possibly could that was a good character and invite them into this fraternity because not only do they have something to offer for the fraternity, but the fraternity has something to offer for them. and that's very important as far as our relationship to each other and to our brothers.
I, I couldn't, I couldn't agree more with that. um, but I don't think I could have put that any better. masonry is a, it's a science. it's an art form. it's a thing of beauty. the idea behind seeing and understanding each one of these degrees that promote self-examination along with your brotherhood and friends and fellows, not being judged by your thoughts, but having a discussion, just like you and I are. that's the basis in the beginning of the fourth degree. that in itself becomes the key. now you have it. you've been given it. well, it's up to you to decide just exactly what you are going to do with it. like always, my brother, it has been a pleasure. always enlightening, always fun. it is, it's always a good, it's always a good study. hmm. [Music] you.