ars quatuor coronatorum vol 01-21 yarker j

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Table of Contents:

The following articles are all from various Volumes of the Masonic "Ars QuatuorCoronatorum", which are the 'Transactions of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076EC', which bills itself as 'the premier Lodge of masonic research':

a) "Unrecognized Lodges and Degrees of Freemasonry before and after 1717" [Volume 1(1886-1888)]... 1

b) "Brahminical Initiation" [Volume 5 (1892)] 7

c) "The Nismesian Theory and French Legend" [Volume 6 (1893)].. 11

d) "Notes in Reference to H.A.B." [Volume 7 (1894)].. 13

e) "The Order of the Temple" [Volume 11 (1898)] 15

f) "The Old Swalwell Lodge and the Harodim" [Volume 15 (1902)]. 19

g) "Royal Templar Certificate of 1779" [Volume 16 (1903)] 25"Patent of a Russion Grand Lodge 1815" [Volume 16 (1903)].. 27and "The Haughfoot Lodge" [Volume 16 (1903)].. 29

h) "The Very Ancient Clermont Chapter" [Volume 17 (1904)].. 33and "High Grades in Bristol and Bath" [Volume 17 (1904)]. 37

i) "An Old York Templar Charter" [Volume 18 (1905)].. 41

j) "The Carlolus of our Ancient MSS" [Volume 19 (1906)]. 49and "Arab Masonry" [Volume 19 (1906)] 55

k) "On Masonic History. Let us seek the truth" [Volume 20 (1907)]. 57

l) "Two Ancient Legends concerning the 1st Temple, Termed Solomon's Temple" [Volume 21(1908)]... 69

ABOUT THE AUTHOR1: John Yarker (April 17, 1833 - March 20, 1913)

Yarker was neither a degree-monger, nor a charlatan, for he believed what he wrote, that themany degrees he had discovered all predated regular Freemasonry. He never inventedevidence but accepted, uncritically, the invented evidence of others. His desperate attempt toensure the continuance of the Ancient and Primitive Rite led him into the company of the fraud,Theodore Reuss, and Aleister Crowley.

Expelled from the Ancient and Accepted Rite, he severed all connection with regularFreemasonry. He published The Arcane Schools: a review of their origin and antiquity; with a

general history of Freemasonry, and its relation to the theosophic, scientific and philosophicmysteries, (Belfast: 1909); and was publisher of The Kneph, the official journal of the Antientand Primitive Rite, from 1881 to 1900.

Author of 26 short papers in the Transactions of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076 [not allof which we have here], he was an active promoter of the Royal Arch, Ancient and PrimitiveRite, Knights Templar, and the old York degrees of Heredom-Kadosh.

1Taken from: http://www.freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/esoterica/yarker_j/yarker_j.html


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TBANSACTIONS or THK LODGE QCATDOR COBONATI. 107this from all sturounding it, both in qnality andodor, that the line of the bodies could be readilytraced. The odor of this decomposed earth,whichhad been flesh, was similar to clotted blood, andwould adhere in lumps whencompressedin the hand.

T his was not the grave of Indian warriors;in those we find pots made ofearth or stone, and allthe implements of war, for the warrior had an ideathat after he arosefrom the dead he would need inthe "huntinggrounds beyond " his bow and arrow,war hatchet and scalping knife.

T he facts set forth will doubtlessconvinceeveryMason who will carefully read the account of thisremarkable burial that the American Indians werein possession of, at least, some of the mysteries ofour order, and that it was evidently the grave ofMasons, and the threehighest officers in a MasonicLodge. The grave was situated dueeast and west,an altar was erected in the centre; the south, west,and east were occupied, ffce north was not; implements of authority wereneareachbod^, the differencein the quality of the beads, the axesm one,two, andthree pieces, and the differencethatthe bodies wereplaced from the surface indicate beyond doubt thatthese three persons had been buried by Masons, andthose, too,that understood what they were doing.

Will some learned Mason unravel thismystery,and inform the Masonic world how they obtained somuch Masonic information f

The axes, maxillary bones, some of the teeth,beads, and otherbones,have been forwarded throughDr. H. C. Yarrow, of Fort Macon, N .C ., to theSmithsonian Institute at Washington, D.C., to beplaced among the archives of that Institution forexhibition, at which place they may be seen.

SKV.E.M. UTCBS. Lenoir,N.C, Veeemher10th, 1887.BlOBT WoESHIPICI,BSOTBIR,

Tourletter askingforcopiesof "IndianBelies" atland. Iencloseyou twocopies, also twopaperscontainingaBynopsisofotherwork,copiedfrom the AmericanNaturalist,by Prof.Cyrus Thomas of the Smithsonian Institution. Amoregeneral aoooont willbepublished in the forthcomingreportsof the BureauofEthnology,Vol. 5,1883-4,which willbe issued at an early day, and yon may obtain a copy byapplyingtoyonrmember of Congressintime.Iam very much obliged for the copy of "History ofFreemasonry," I shallread it with pleasure. I am W.M .Hibriten Lodge, F. &A.M., No. 262, Lenoir, N.O., and havealwaysbeen interestedinantiquities. Theexcavationof themound in 1871, acursoryglanceofwhichisgivenin "IndianBelies" hasalways beena mystery tome, and Iwould beverygreatlyobligedto you, for anylight on thesubject thatyou may beabletogive. It hasevery indicationof Masonry.The bottomof the excavation was perfectly level. On thesouth sideof thegravethe blackloam hadbeen left for onestep,abonteight incheshigh,threefeetlongby twofeetwide,on the platformthe black loamhadbeen left for the seatofthe J.W., twostepsat thewest with asimilar platform andseat,andthree stepsat theeast with seatasbefore described.Theaxesin one, two, andthree pieces,the stonein thecentre,

the lengthof thegrave dueeast and westnothing in thenorth. If not Masonic, what is it? If Uasonio, how didthey obtainthemysteriesP Thatlarge numbers of Indiajosonce occupiedthis section is evident from variona oircnm-Btances. That they emigrated or traded with Indians iaevident,from the fact thatI have taken out copper frommoundsthathasbeenexaminedbyscientists who say itcamefrom LakeSuperior,conchshells from the QxHiof Mexico,crabshellsfrom theAtlantic,andmicawhichmayhave been

takenfrom the ancient worked mines of Mitchell County,o.. Sea. I hare taken out one hundred and eighty.ightbodiesandhavefoundthemburiedin every position,but themounddescribedhasalways beenthemostinterestingto me.

Writemewhatyou think of it.Yours in A. F. & A. H.,

J. M. SPAIKHOITB.

TKB i m B o o o v x n DIiODOES ft DEOSEES OF FSEEXASOmX

B B V O U Am AVTBB 1717 .[COMMUNICATED]

M T object in writing thispaper is not so muchto deal with the subject at length, of what I majterm unrecognized Freemasony, as to direct theattention of those Masonic Students who havebetter opportonities for investigation, to the unsatisfactory nature of all that has been put forward inrecent years on the subject of the high-grades, andto point out certain isolated traces of the early existence in this country of a system from which theContinental high-grades were derived, I hold, inopposition to the modem school,that we are notjustified in treatingthe assertions of the Continentalbrethren, of last century, with that superciliousdisbelief of their claims, which in recent times hasbeen the trait of masonic writers of the so-calledcritical school. It is not enough, in this case,to demand documentary proo f: in the natureof asocietysuch as ours, which isbelievedto have passedthrough the centuries under oaths of secrecy, wehave no right to expect a particle even of a document. A ll that we may expect to find is hiddenallegory and symbols, with here and therea slip ofthe tongue or the pen. T ounderstand the allegorical writings of times beyond our own it is alsonecessary that a studentshould have devoted sometime to occult or Hermetic enquiry: in fact noprogress can be made without it.

As introductory to my subject it is necessary toallude slightly to the pre-christian societies,geomatioand religious, which spread from Egypt throughoutEurope as Isiaque, Gnostic, Jewish, and Christian.They had a president and officers, signs, tokens, anddegrees. I agree with Bro . C . H. Tendlerthat thesesocieties had probably, in all cases, an architecturalsymbology. Bro . Gould, in his now famous history,has shownthat the most ancient Chinese schoolsofphilosophy had adopted Masonic allegory andemblems; the Jews, especially in the apocryphalGreco-Egyptian writings, use them; so does SaintPaul in calling himself a master-builder. Some ofthese schools became literal Christians, othersremained firm in their ancient Gulte, and were thetrue Gnostics. Their dogma will be found in theDivine Pymander, which is a G reek adaptation ofthe ancient Egyptian initiation, and I doubt notthatthe celebrated Tablet of Bembo, which our Bro.Westcott has done so much to illustrate, was thetracing-board, so)tospeak, ofone|ofthese Mase-onieaor TableLodges. The Jewish Cabala is the Hebrewversion of the same lore. Cardinal Newman is not

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TRANSACTIONS OF THE LODGE QUATUOB COBONATI. 109-But there is a still more singular proof of the

continuedexistence of a British Order of the Templei nthe so-calledCharter of Larmenius, which speciallyplaces under ban the Scottish Templars. Now ifthatdocument were genuine, as is yet held bysome,the reason of such anathema is clear: they hadengaged in civil strife and obtained the advantageo f an independent position by it. But if, as is moreprobable,the document be a forgery, the cause of theban is clearly apparent. It is asserted that Philipo f Orleanscollectedthe remains of the older Societyo f " Resurrected Templars," andemployedtheJesuitfather, Bonani, to forge the Charter in 1705, upontbat he sent two members to the King of Portugalto obtain the recognition of the Order of Christ, butthe King ordered their arrest,one died in durance,and the other escaped to Gibraltar and to England.I f there had been no Scottish Templars in the suito f the old Pretender then, 1705, in France, therecould have been no cause to destroy them.

It is not to be supposed that these orders, atthis period, had any basis of masonic initiation. Nodoubt Templers were occasionally accepted bymasons. No doubt also, and we have at least someevidenceof the fact. Templars were received by theRosicrucian Societies ; the Knights were oftenstudents of alchemy and astrology; even Lilly recordshis family connection with one of thera underthe heteredox designation of Templar. But it ismore than probable that the Scottish Templarspassed on the catechetical three degrees of theArcane Discipline, I consider that this system ispreserved tothis day in a newform as an independent order. In 1743 there existed in London anOrder termed the Royal Order, or HeredomRosyCross,which claimed to have been founded by Bruceas an Order of Knighthood, in place of the T emplars.The claim has no basis, and no doubt the forms ofthe Order were thenadapted to the new theory.But it is valuable as tradition, if properly interpreted. Its catechism corresponds to what Col.Mooresets forth, on the evidence of an old physician, as theteaching of the Danish Fraternity of St. John, towhich I alluded previously, its threesteps may bedivided into Patriarchial, Levitical, and Christianinstruction, and under their present modified formhave great resemblance to the Arcane Discipline,and though, as we see, claiming to be ancient in1743,the tradition conected it with Scottish Templars who actually owed their salvation to theassistance they rendered Bruce against England.

Although I have disclaimed herein the connection of Templars with the Masonic fraternityyet, as amatterof fact, the receptions of St. Johnand the Temple, as old as 1127, correspond in aremarkable manner with those of a Craft-mason.The two Kjiightly orders differedonlyin this thatthe first (S t. John) was an open ceremony, thesecond (Templars) a secret ceremony like that ofthe Masons. In the first place he had to hear mass,confess himself, and receive absolution; he is informed that he must put off the old man and beregenerated; he had to present himself in a secularhabit, nngirdled, with a lighted taper in his hand," in orderthathe may appear perfectly free at thetime of entering upon so sacred an engagement." In

this guise he had to present himself respectfullybefore the President and petition to be received"into the Company of Brothers." The Presidentthenpoints out to him the duties he will take uponhimself and howsalutaryand advantageous it is forhis soul. He was asked if he would submit himselfto the obligations, and the Templar made thisdemandthreetimes. If he gave his assent he wasquestioned upon his present position, was he married,in debt, or a slave ? If the replies were satisfactorythe President presented an open Missal, on whichthe Aspirant laid both his hands, and tooka vow toAlmighty God,the Virgin, and St. John the Baptist,o f obedience, poverty, and chastity. Then he replacedthe Missal on the altar,which he kissed, andwas invested with the Crossed Mantle, with anaddress upon the severalpartsof the same. Thisconcluded, all present embraced the newly proposedKnight in token of friendship, peace, and brotherlylove. In the French Order the Knight (not theEsquire) was coffined and covered with a funerealpall.

Having arrived at this point I am now able topass to the Masonic Lodges of St. John whichexistedbefore and after the establishment of a GrandLodge in 1717. I consider that Bro. Sadler hasmade it very clearthat these Lodges of St. John didmaintain an independent position until about theyear 1750. But in its original signification, say atYork,before 1715, a St. John's Lodgemay be takento mean only a regular lodge,held on St. John theBaptist's day in midsummer. I maintain, however,that it came to have a more extended meaning inconnectionwith the seven degree Rite of St. Johnand the Temple. Theproofofthisis to be found insomesources I will mention. In the Catechism ofthe Grand Mystery 1724,we find the Gnostic symbolo f across upon a triangle and its extra Christaincharacter appears in such questions as these,

Q. What dothey (the 3lights) represent?A Thethree Persong,Father,Son, andHoly Ghost.Q. What dothey (the 2pillars)represent?A Astrengthand stabilityof the Churchin allages.So much for the catechism of the first masonic

degree,which no doubt is some years olderthan thepublished date of 1724. The next thingthatI shallnoticeis the preface to " Long Livers " by R obertSamber, written in 1721. It is in complete accordwith the allegorical language of the Rosicrucians,whichwas three-fold in its character; operative oralchemical, humanitarian, or relating to man'smoral and physicalnature; and Theosophical orrelating to the working of the Divine soul. It isvery clear that this Preface is not operative oralchemical, and with the double light of Rosicrucianliterature and the seven degree Rite of Masonry, itis not difficult to understcuid. That it does alludetoaRite of seven degrees I make no doubt, but asI have already put forth my views at some lengthelsewhere,I cannot devote space to its considerationhere. The next proof of a system of seven degreesis in the two letters of 1724 respecting the" Gormogons." Whoever wrote these letters wasevidently well acquainted with the pretensionB ofthe Masons and was probably a dissatisfied initiate.In one part he alludes to Samber as a Renegade

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110 TRANSACTIONS OF THE LODGE QUATUOR COBONATI.

Papist, and states tbat some of the Masons wrotethemselves S.T.P. after their names, for which heridicnles them in his own way. N ow S. is no doubtSociety, and T.P. was used to indicate the TemplarOrder both on the seal of Dunkerley in 1791, andby the 1788 London Templars of the French Clermont system, which had been introduced by Frenchrefugees. Next we find the writer, in the sameletter of 1724, ridiculing Dr. Rawlinson with representing himself as member of S fifthorder whichpossessedan ineffable word of mighty power ; andamongst the Ancients,whom I consider Bro. Sadlerhas proved to derive from pre-1717 Masons andwho were yet often visited by Moderns and wereeven affiliated, the Arch degree constituted the fifthorder, and laid claim tothisvery ineffable and allpowerful word. Wethen find that in 1728 Oakleyadopts in his speechpartof the language of Samber;we find in 1729that Chambers alleges thatsomeofthe Freemasons possessed all the characters of theRosicrucians; we find in 1730 that A . Z. in the"DailyJoarnal," distinctly accuses the Freemasonso f having adopted some part of the receptions ofthe foreign Society of Rosicrucians; we find in1738 a non-Mason writing in the Gentleman'sMagazine that in all probability the more reconditeaims of the Masons are concealed in an InnerChapter. Lastly in 1737 we find Ramsay making aspeechin which are embodiedthp dogmas and teachings of this class of Masons. My theory willcorroborate the views set forth so ably by Bro.Gouldthat Ramsay did not invent a R ite; but ashe was an honest and learned man his speech provesthathe did not derive his initiation from a lodgeunder the revived 1717 system, but from the independent Lodges of St. John.

I must, perforce, admit thatthere is but scantdocumentary evidence ofthissystem, and I wi-itethispaper almost wholly in the hopethatour brethrenin London will turn their attention to the closerinvestigation of the subject on these lines. It maybethat everything of value perished in the Masonicbonfire of 1720. We find, however, in B ro . Lane's" Masonic Records " that in 1723therewas aLodgemeeting at St. John's Coffee House, Clerkenwell,for which a blank is left in the two following lists.I t is scarcely likely that aLodgewould be formedin 1723 and become extinct in the next year; it ismuch more probable that it was an older Lodgewhich saw reason to withdraw after the publicationo f the Constitutions in that year. Again, inHogarth's plate of the Scald-Miserable Masons, hehimself being a Past Officer of Grand Lodge,wefind represented the Sword-bearer to " His Graceo f Watton, Grand Master of the Holy Lodgeof St.John of Jerusalem, in Clerkenwell." There was alsoa body of Masons meeting in Clerkenwell lastcentury, who conferred many outside degrees. I t isprobably owing to these circumstancesthat Clerkenwell Gate has been claimed as an ancient Lodgeroom, and that Preston assertsthat the Knights ofSt. John assembledtheir Grand Lodgein 1500, andMasonry rose into notice under their patronage.One more remark before I pass to something else;last century there existed a Rite of 7. of whichthe last, or Templar Priest, dated its Certificates

" Year of R evival," 1686. This I hold is about theperiodwhen it may be reasonably supposedthat theJacobite party, amongst which may be reckonedlater on Samber and the Duke of Wharton,attempted the revival of the old Rosicrucian Ordernpon new lines. It frees the Scots Masons of Franceand Germany from the constant charges madeagainst them of bad faith. By the amalgamationo f the British Templars with Freemasonry, and theacceptance of the legend of Hiram, it becamenecessary about 1741 to reconstruct the Templardegrees of Heredom Rosy Cross in London on anewbasis. We can credit even Marshall when hesays he received in 1741 the Templar grade frombrethren in the Army, and Von Hund when hesaysthat in 1742 the " Knight of the RedFeather"made him a Templar in the presence of Kilmarnock, and that he was thereupon introduced toPrince Charles Edward as a new recruit. Bro .Gould has gone so fully into the history of theStrict Observance that I need say no more. Littlecredit can be placed upon Charles Edward's denialthathe was a Freemason; his brother was a Cardinalo f Rome, and Charles had sunk into a state ofsottish imbecility; but as all my contention is thatthe British Templars had only a version of theArcane Discipline it was not necessary that heshould be a Mason, and it is noteworthy that onlytwo sections are attributed to his patronagetheHeredom Rosy Cross and Temple. But some confirmation o f the Masonicnatureof the Templar in1746is given in aletter,printed by Bro. Hughan inhis "E ngl ish Rite," addressed by B ro. J. T. Polletto Bro. J. Peter Vogel, 25 Apr il, 1763, in which hestates that the Royal Arch was carried to Franceby the Scottish Regiment Ogilvy in 1746. A s theKnights of Malta sought initiation into Freemasonryfrom 1740 we may concludethat they found something consonant totheir own Order, and would encourage the Masons in propagating a Christiansystem of Masonry.

This paper has already run to too great alength; but I cannot resist the opportunity of a fewwords on Symbolism;this subject has, however,beenso ably treatedby Bro. A.F.A . Woodfoini, thatI needonly instance a few leading traits, which goto confirm the views I have here put forward soimperfectly.

In the Rosicrucian writings and Samber'sMasonicpreface we find allusions to the "BookM."I am inclined to think that this alluded originallyto the Book of Nature, or the Microcosm and theMacrocosm. But the term was adopted by theLodges,and a "Book M, or Masonry triumphant,"was published.

In the Rosicrucian system we find these thingsin common with the Royal Arch. It seems inevidence that Continental Masonry, about 1740,gave the word JHVH as the original word ofMasonry. Both the Royal A rch and the Rosicrucian writings treatat length on the great value ofthisIneffable word. Bro. Westcott seems to establish a connection between the Royal Arch andCabalism. The nine-chambered letterkey was usedby both the Rosicrucians and the ancient A rchMasons; it is essentially an Arch alphabet, for

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TEANSACTIONS OF THE LODGE QUATTOR COEONATI. Illthough Dermott indicates that he knew it fromabout 1740, it does not seem to have been used bythe Craft. The Royal A rch arms are admitted tohave been taken from the papers of a JewishGabalist, who lectured on Solomon's Temple in1680,and we find the symbolstreated of in the oldBosicrucian writings. The nine-chambered cyphermay have suggested the nine arches of Enoch.

The alleged banner of the Bosicrucians was aBed Gross on a white field, such as is used in theTemplar Bite.

I am quite open to admit thatafter the EnglishBite of 7o, which be it noted, always claimed ourown country for its birth-place, and never a continentalderivation, was introduced abroad, it sufferedmodification by the older secret societies, and cameback to us so modified and affected all our Masonrysomewhat. B ro. Gould, in his account of the Com-panionage,has given us an account oftheir Ouilbiette,it is not unlikely to have been the origin of thecross found in the 4o of Glermont and Hund, uponwhich was placed a lion, a fox, an ape, adove, anda pelican; most of these were terms in the Com-panionage.

In advancing these views I must ask thebrethren to believethat I amactuated solely by thedesire of Masonictnith in history. I consider thatUniversal Masonry, such as is practised by ourGrand Lodge, is the only system worthy of support.I t is not my business to enquire whether thoseMasons who were advocating a rival system wereright or wrong. It leads up to interesting andintellectual enquiry, and as such we may be pleasedto seethat a number of grades have been continuedto us, and are yet practised upon the tolerant basiso f Craft Masonry.JOHN Y A B K K R , P.M.

S K A U I B E A 1C A80V?(Translated from (he French of Bro. P. Tempeli by

W. Speth.JT H E R E is a chapter under this same title in a

book written for the public in the iviiith century.The author indicates the disposition required inorder to make those sacrifices to which one is exposedin Freemasonry. Those who do not possess thistemperament, he counsels to abstain. D o not offeryourself, he says, without due consideration.

Bead a History of Masonry: there is no lacko f them. Bead the libels publishedagainstMasons ;the Bulls of Excommunication ; examine the chargesmade. Bead some earnest work on its tenets, forexample, " Morals and Dogma," by the learned andVenerable Bro. Pike, Grand Commander of theSupreme C ouncil of the SouthernStatesof America.

Do not present yourself out of mere puerilecariosity; you will only be disappointed.Donot join the C raft except with a firm resola-tion to study the institution. It partakes of thenature of certain natural phenomena, of certainmasterpieces of art, of the venius of certain men.The first view destroys the illusion, onemust studythem to comprehend them.

If, combined with the loveof the trueand thegood, you have not also a slight mental attractiontowards the poetry resident in all things, and ajudgment tempered by feeling and sentiment, enternot, you will be bored. He who, with the cultureo f progress, combines that of old memories; who,whilst pureuing exact science can yetunderstandallthe charm of a venerable myth ; who loves custombecause it is old, antique forms because they arebeautiful, even prejudice, becauseit is at the root ofhuman history, such a one will find full play for hisinstinctsas an archaeologist. But, should you enquirehow it will benefit your pocket or influence theelections,gonot in

If, in religious matters, you start with theassumption thatyour opponent is afool or a knave,venturenot to approach. But, if you respect everysincere opinion, or if, being of a religious temperament yon can bear with those who are not so, orrather are so different ly from yourself, thengo ; noone will wound your susceptibilities, and you willhurtno one.

If, asregardsG od and your soul, you appreciatethe majesty of the issue, whilst possibly of theopinion that the science of some does not differgreatly from the agnosticism of others, youraspirations may probably encounter comforting support.

If, as a physician or lawyer , a tradesman ormerchant, official or clerk, you seek to find thereeitherclients or patrons, you will be grievously disappointed. As an official you would inspire thegood-humoured contempt of the minister, were he amason, and his successor would, perhaps, send yonabout your business. A s a merchant, you wouldcause both your masonry and your merchandise tobe regarded with suspicion.

If, being ambitious, you have capabilities equalto your ambition, go : many will learnto know yonthoroughly. But if yon merely seek to acquirestilts for your too diminutive legs, keep aloof : andfor the very same reason.

As a politician, do not dream of making partisans in a Lodge: you will only prevail with thosewhoalready follow you; and you will possibly losethem and have to endure their reproach that youhave imported discord within the sacred precincts :yoursuccess will be short-lived.If you hold opinions which possess you ratherthanyouthem,if your disposition be such as to renderyou too prone to blame others, or if you have nopride in yourbirthright independence in allmattersthatconcern yourself, the education of your children,the actions of your religious,civilor family life,you.will never possess the requisite masonic qualificst-tions, you will never understandthose who do.

If you be entirely absorbed by your profession,your associations, your position in society, approachnot Why should youundertakeobligations whichwillbe onerous to yon ?

If you owe all your time and resources to yourfamily,abstractnothing from a duty which is aboveall others. The Lodge is an incentive to outlay.T on would either regretnot being able to do evenas the others, or you would violate our statutes inconsecrating to your pleasure that which is justlyclaimed elsewhere.

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Transactionsof theLodge Quatuor Coronatu 21

^ITHOTJT appearing to be thonglit to set myself np as a superior Masonicauthority, I may perhaps be allowed to say, with bated breath, thatall thepapers on Indian thought that have appeared lack the links which connectthem with the Craft. India, however, from remote ages, has had its ownFreemasonry, which is connected with Brahminism, in the same way as our^ Craft is connected, as I claim, with Gnosticism, Sufeism, Rosicrucianism, etaProfessor Jacolliot, the illustrious traveller, has brought from India the

history of the origin of Masonry, preserved in the Archives of the priests of Benares. 1translatehis remarksfrom theBulletin de la O.L, Symbolique Eccossaise. " There, the priesthoodhas,from the commencement, established its power in a fashion more solidthan elsewhere ; he has enclosed each man in the fold of a caste,from which neither he nor hisdescendants can depart. He has ascribed to himself as his right, superiority overall others;his friend the warrior comes next. Amongst the lower classestaken in, is found that ofstone-cutters, sculptors, carvers of fluted columns, who, at another time, united into a secretsociety,and adopted as a rallying sign the pei*pendicular. Another class, lower still thanthis, the terrace-makers, brickmakers, tilers, had also formed a secret society, of which theaim was, likethatof the first, to aid its members who were exposed to the persecutions ofthe priests and warriors, to protect themselvesfrom them; the rallying sign of these lastwas the horizontal sign. Almost all other classesfollowed thisexample. On what accountthese two principal societies, bom from the same needs, living side by side in the samecountry, fell into disagreement, no one knows. But the fact ispatent at any rate,and itappears that this disagreement lasted during a long succession of centuries, to the greatjubilation of the priests, the enemy of both. When at last,at anepochwhich precedes ourera by several thousand ages, the two rival societies, seeingthat they were on the point ofsuccumbing,made an alliance, united theirsignsthe (level and plumb) perpendicular andhorizontal becamecommonto both, then, little by little, they united all the other disinheritedsocieties founded as they were to resist the priests, to whom, like themselves, they werelikelyto succumb. Masonry was founded. Its adepts, after having constructed in Indiacollossaland strange monuments, so solidly built that they have resisted all the convulsionso fourglobeand have remained standing to our own days, those adepts, I say, spread throughout the East.''

So far Jacolliot and his accuracyrestsupon the learning of the pundit under whomhe studied Indian history. There is nothing new under the sun. In the above extract we seethe same feuds distracting India thousands of years ago, as amongst the French Companion-age and the English "Anc ients' ' and "Moderns," but we are fortunately let into the"inner life" of the body that Jacolliot alludes to, by a dispute which occurred in 1881between Travancore and Cochin, and the body resembles those described in 1775 byHutchinson as Hali-werk-folk. The Madras government undertook to settle this dispute,and, as it was a mysticmatter,which it was very clearthatthey couldnot comprehend, thedecisiongave great dissatisfaction, petitions were sent in, and a pamphlet circulated uponthe subject, by A . Sankariah, A . B. Naib Devau ofCochin: entitled " Memorandum of thePresident Founder of the Hindu Sabha of the Thatchudaya Kaimal Stanom, of the Templeo fKudalmanikham in native Cochin; Recently the subject of contention between the Stateso fTravancore and Cochin,and a decision by tne Madras government." You can only findspacefor aveiyshort account ofthisdispute, but the pamphlet itself ought to be securedforyour library. A Thachudaya Kaimal is the spiritualhead of a Yogamor Lodge,and iselected by the Yogakhars ofthis particular temple when they require it, or meet with acompetentman, who clearly must be a Y o g i ,able to perform the miracle of Kudalmavikkum^whichliterally is the "gem absorbed," but esoterically, thesaintunited toGk)d. The " repairo fthe temple " is the function of this personage, and, esoterically, it isstatedthatit takesninety years to rebuild a small portion of the sacred places called Sri-KovU or OirhhorOrahamyand it isonlythenthatan appointment is necessary. It is said that an adversedecision " will extinguish the only and feeble remnant of ancient Brahman Freemasonrycarefully concealed in a small native space of the Madras Presidency." Yet it seems to boa Sudra Associationclaiming the rights of equal antiquity with the Brahmins. Both theKajahs of Cochin and Travancore, as well as the Yogakkars, are agreedthatonceaChiefofthe Kayankulam Royalfamily for his merit received the spiritualordination ofThachudaya-Kaimal but was occasionally represented at the temple by the nomination of a particular

BRAHMINICAL INITIATION.B Y B R O . JOHN Y A R K E R


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22 Transactions of the Lodge Quatuor Coronati,is said thatthiscontention is the resultof " a few schismatic memhers of the Yogam," andthat the resthad no intention " to consecrate a Thachudtfa-Kaimal This is allthatneed behere stated about the dispute, and I will now add certain remarksof Mr.,perhaps he oughtto be called Bro. , A .Sankariah; premisingthattheseYoyakkars would seem to be speculativeMasons,who had a temple of theirown, and claimed to elect their own spiritual master.Someslj fun is got out of a proposal made by the Arbitrator that the Sacred place/ 'which neededrepair, should be surveyed." The Masonicinstitutionwas wide-spread in India in ancient days and cherished bythe initiatedin secret, if, indeed, India was not the parentof all Freemasonry in the world.Thetruthsor secrets of Hindu Theosophy have been inculcated and preserved in the Architectural Symbolism ofhumanArt, as well as in the macrocosm and microcosmof Nature. Theinitiatesof the Art Fraternity belonged to all castes and races, and the Hinduinitiates,calledat thisday the Kammalar castes in many partsof India, wear also the thread or sign ofInitiation, like the Brahmins who only are entitled to become the Initiatesof the NatureorVedic Fraternity. *Visvakarmwn,*meaning the Builder or Mason of the Universe, is theSupreme Gk)d of the A rt School,and corresponds to Brahma of the Brahmins. The truthsorsecretsare precisety the same, though differently symbolized or studied in the two systems. TheBishis or founders of the Yedic Schoolwere of course also founders of the Masonic. Thewords'Silpa Thachu' are tantamountto Masonic, the first being a Sanscrit and the secondaMalaylam word. I t will now be clear to the reader why the Masonic Initiates, or theHindu castes known as carpenters, masons, blacksmiths, goldsmiths, etc., ojien dispute theauthority of the Brahmans, how the Pyramidis of Egypt is being discovered to be a stone-bible,and why the Hindus prize the worship of idols in temples. Temples, and even privat.ehouses, in India are buUt under the rulesof the Thacu-Veda orarchitecturalphilosophy, whichhas precisely correspondinggodsand cerem>oniesto those of other Hindu Vedaa. In MalabarthisMasonic superstition (as thosewho do not knowstyle it) is particularly strong, and oftenpalaces, and temples, too, have been pulled down for accidentsattributedto violation of therulesofThachu-Shastra. I am not surprised thatthearbitratorand the Madras governmenthave not suspected any such philosophical mystery to exist in the matter,for true initiatesare rareeven amongst the Hindus, who are all blindadherentsof the Craft infaithas opposedtoknowledge. Suffice it for mypresentpurpose tostatethatthe Yogakkars of the temple inquestion ofIrinjalacooda have from time immemorial constituted a Masonic Fraternity, asindeed all Brahman Yogams are such, a fraternity to whom Vedic is not differentesoterically from Thachu . . . Yogam, etymologically and popularly, too, means anassembling or meeting fromyug to join. The religiousyoga is joining of the soul to God.The secular Udyogam,or appointment in the government service or under amaster, is to bejoinedto some work or snperior; Viogamis the break of a connection, and so on. Nor havetheArbritrator . . considered the etymology or philosophy of the ' Thachudaya-Kaimalywhich, literally, means the Chief having the Thachu secret. The Yogam (whether trusteesor proprietors) of Irinjalacooda thenhave conferredthat spiritual degree, or *Stanom,*onaproficient in the Mysteries oftheirMasonic Craft, if ever they found one worthy of being soOrdained The Yogakkars do not need instruction from any incompetentman. It has not been found thattherehas been a succession of I'hachudya-Kaimals. Evenin the treatiesin connection with the T .K. 'repair of the temple,' is alluded to, esoterically,as his 'function.'" I t would seemthatbefore consecration ofthis Y o g i , his horoscope bad tobe cast, and afterconsecration, the Eajah himself touches his palanquin as an act of veneration, or as a god even. Petition D says :"The Sacred Truthsof the Vedas and Shastershave been, from time to time immemorial, symbolised and inculcated in Masonicforms andmeasurements; the esoteric significations of which can be understood only by the Initiated."

I will only mention furthera somewhat curious notice. Judge Walhouse, in his workon "Devil Worsnip," mentions a 15th century legend of India. Akalkatti,or stone-cutter,named Jackan-achari (? Master Jackan) built most of the exquisiteJainTemples in Canara.The traditionis,thathe and his wife, having quarrelled with their son respecting a templein course of erection, both committed suicide, and becameBhutes, so malign and feared thatnonedareattempt theirexorcism. It is elsewhere claimedthatall IndianTemples are built80as to symbolise a secret doctrine and esoterictruths,and I do not doubt that the samesymbolicruleprevailed in Western Masonry, and is resolveable in theArcane Discipline of theChristians,and constituting the realMasonic Secrets.

As to the Aryan orIndianorigin of Freemasony, thetermDionysian Artificers, appliedtoaGreek fraternity resembling our own, would seem to load us to India; but the tendencyo f modern researches is to a primitive Turanian race, from which both Aryan and Semiteare derived, which had a priesthood of three degrees, continued by the Magi, Cabiri of


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T^raiuacUons of theLodge Quatuor Coronati. 23in the same sense ; but the mysteries of the Cabiri are said to have used Semitic or Chaldeanwords,hence they would travel to Greecefrom Babylon : in other words, Maaonry comingthrough one line mightgiveus a Rite which became Christianised, and in another race ourpresent Craft Masonry. On the other hand, the Mystics of India are advocating a civilisationderivedfrom a lost Continent, emigrants of which settled in the Dekkan, whilst, accordingto Egyptian priests, they penetrated to Greece and Lybia, 9000 years beforeSolon. LePlongeon claims to have found the same legend about Yucatan, and to have discovered thatthe hieroglyphicsof its ancient buildings are identical with those of Egypt, and interpretablebythe language of the people ofPatau. Some of the magnificent Cyclopianruins of thissubmerged race are described by Captain Cookeon the sea-washed shores ofEaster Island.A Cyclopwas a one-eyed giant, that is a man who is represented in the miracle ofKudal^vumikhum, who sees with the eye of Visvdkarman.


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34 Transactions of theLodge Quatuor Ooronati.

THE NISMESIAN THEORY AND FRENCH LEGEND.B Y JOHN Y A R K E R .

TSE subject ofthisheading is amatter so all-important to a fall comprehensiono f Masonic history, that I hope I may be pardoned, in any attempt, to keepthematter to the front. I have recently occupied my leisure time in compiling a synoptical sketch of the historical antiquity of Speculative Fre^masonry, in which commencing with Turanian civilization, we reach thftAiyan; the two in art being exemplified in Cabiric or Cyclopean Masoniy;and Aryan or Dionysian Masonry; until we arrive at the Christian systent

of our Anglo-Saxon predecessors. This necessitated some further enquiry into thNismesian theory of Bro. Howard, and the Semitic legends of the preface to the Cooke MS

ars quatuor coronatorum vol 01-21 yarker j

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