The Compasses
From The Grand Lodge Of Texas
During his initiation, the Entered Apprentice Mason is told that the Holy
Bible, Square and Compasses are the Three Great Lights of Masonry while they are
presented as the Furniture of the Lodge in the Entered Apprentice Lecture.
During the lecture, he is told the Holy Bible is dedicated to God because He
presents His divine will to us through His sacred writings, the Square to the
Master since it is the proper emblem of his office, and the Compasses to the
Craft.
While the square and compasses are not unique to Freemasonry, the interlaced
Square and Compasses are almost universally recognized as emblems of
Freemasonry. However, the Square and Compasses have not always appeared together
in Masonic ritual. In fact, it appears the symbolism of the Square and Compasses
developed separately. In 1830, while excavating for rebuilding a bridge in
Limerick, Ireland, an old brass square dated 1517 was uncovered with the
inscription, "I will strive to live with Love and Care, on the level and by the
square." Above the entrance to the Salisbury Abbey in England is an inscription
from the same 1500's period that reads: "As the compass goes round without
deviation from the circumference, so doubtless, truth and loyalty never
deviate." (Note the quotations have been modernized.) It appears from
early times the square stood for right and honesty while the compasses
represented undeviating truth and loyalty.
In early 18th century Masonic charts, the Square and Compasses are often
depicted without the other, and when they are both presented, they are rarely
shown together and never are they interlaced as we see them presented today. The
Arms of the Masons Company of London, later adopted by the Grand Lodge of
England, showed the compasses opened at an angle upon a chevron. There was no
square in the emblem. None of the early Masonic publications appear to have
contained representations of either the square or the compasses. It appears,
based on early Masonic disclosures, that the Square and Compasses were
considered simply Furniture of the Lodge until later in the 1700's when they
were elevated to Great Lights in the Masonic Ritual. Furthermore, it was into
the 19th century before the interlaced Square and Compasses were being depicted
in Masonic charts and publications.
With this background, it is appropriate to consider the Masonic symbolism of the
Compasses. It is one of the first symbols presented to the new Freemason, where
he is told it is dedicated to the Craft as an emblem of the self-restraint that
enables him to act according to right on all occasions. The Compasses, as such,
teaches the Freemason the obligation he owes to himself. That obligation needs
to be made plain. It is the primary and imperative duty of circumscribing his
desires and keeping his passions within due bounds. As Solomon says in Proverbs
16:32, "Better is he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city."
In short, the Compasses represent self-knowledge, self-reverence, and
self-control. Without these three characteristics, one's life may lead toward
confusion and chaos. All three are required for the proper balance in our
relationships to God, our fellow man, and ourselves. To know ourselves, our
strengths and weaknesses and our limitations, is the first key to wisdom and
security against many a pitfall in life. Without this knowledge, or by
disregarding it, a man can go too far, exceed his limitations, and lose control
of himself. By doing so, he loses some measure of his self-respect, which leads
to losing respect for others and ultimately losing respect for God.
We live within physical and spiritual spheres that are both limited and
unlimited. Hemmed in and restricted we strive for liberty without rule or limit.
However, limitless liberty is anarchy and slavery. Liberty rests upon law, and
it is a wise man who takes account of both, who knows how to qualify one by the
other. The Compasses teaches the Freemason how to achieve this balance, in his
physical and spiritual life.
Political philosopher Edmund Burke wrote, "Men are qualified for civil liberty
in exact proportion to their disposition to put moral chains upon their own
appetites; in proportion as their love to justice is above their rapacity; in
proportion as their soundness and sobriety of understanding is above their
vanity and presumption; in proportion as they are more disposed to listen to the
counsels of the wise and good, in preference to the flattery of knaves. Society
cannot exist unless a controlling power upon will and appetite be placed
somewhere, and the less of it there is within, the more there must be without.
It is ordained in the eternal constitution of things that men of intemperate
minds cannot be free. Their passions forge their fetters."
Much of our life is ruled for us with the laws of nature governing the universe
while the laws of the land make us aware that the rights and liberties of others
limit our liberty. In addition, we are faced with the norms of society that we
dare not to defy altogether. These represent many areas from which our passions
and desires can stray at our peril. However, there are many areas of our life
where we have freedom and these are the places where most of our joy and sorrow
lie. It is in the realm of desire and emotion within ourselves where we are the
freest and the most alone. It is here that the Freemason needs the wise and
faithful use of the Compasses.
How to use the Compasses is one of the finest arts, requiring the highest skill
of the Master Mason. If he is properly instructed, he will rest one point on the
innermost center of his being and with the other draw a circle beyond which he
will not go, until he is prepared to go farther. He will live and labor within
his limits, striving to increase his moral and spiritual knowledge until he
reaches the outer rim of his circle, his bounds. He will then draw another
circle and grow to its bounds until he attains a full-orbed life, balanced,
beautiful, and finely poised. No wise man should dare to forget the saying, "In
nothing too much," for there are many situations encountered in life where a
step too far or a word too much leads to disaster. If he experiences a quick
tongue, a hot temper, or a bad mood, he will apply the Compasses to keep his
weaknesses within his circle of strength and control his passions.
As we consider our relationship to God, we must also use the Compasses to draw a
circle encompassing as much of His nature as we can understand, enlarging the
circle as our spiritual understanding grows. While it is beyond man's grasp to
fully understand God's nature in this life, He does provide for us an avenue to
understand that nature when we are instructed to "love our neighbor as
ourselves." In this sense we are reminded of the inscription at the Salisbury
Abbey when truth and loyalty should never deviate towards our fellowman.
It is fitting to close this discussion with the symbolic explanation of the
Compasses provided in Akin's Manual. The words warrant our careful reflection.
"The Compasses remind us of His unerring and impartial justice, which, having
defined for our instruction the limits of good and evil, will either reward or
punish us, as we have obeyed or disregarded His divine commands."
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