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Heredom | The High Degrees of Freemasonry

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SpecialProject2008PSReviewofFreemasonrymeetstheScottishRiteResearchSociety.

SEEKINGMORELIGHT
TenselectedpapersfirstpublishedonHeredom,
TheTransactionsoftheScottishRiteResearchSociety

Humanprogressisourcause,libertyofthoughtoursupremewish,freedomofconscienceourmission,
andtheguaranteeofequalrightstoallpeopleeverywhereourultimategoal.TheScottishRiteCreed

ANINTRODUCTIONTOTHEHIGHDEGREESOF
FREEMASONRY
byHenrikBogdan,VII
PublishedinVol.14,Year2006.

NopartofthispapermaybereproducedwithoutwrittenpermissionfromtheScottishRiteResearchSociety.
HTMLcodepropertyofPSReviewofFreemasonryAllrightsreserved

BYTHEPUBLICATIONOFSAMUELPRICHARD'SMASONRYDISSECTEDin1730,theMasonicsystemofinitiationhadbeen
establishedwiththreeCraftDegrees:EnteredApprentice,FellowCraft,andMasterMason.EventhoughthethreeCraftor
BlueLodgeDegreescontinuedtobemodifiedandelaborated,thebasiccomponentsandthestructureofthedegreeswas
firmly established. It did not take long, however, before new rituals began to appear on the Masonic scene. These new
ritualswereoftenconsideredtobecomplementstoorelaborationsoftheCraftDegrees.Infact,theMasoniclodgesofthe
secondhalfoftheeighteenthcenturyexperiencedavirtual"ritualboom",especiallyinFranceandtheGermanspeaking
countries. Many of these new rituals were collected into systems or rites, [1] and these rites often competed with each
other to serve as the sole custodian of what was claimed to be the secret of Masonry.[2] The High Degrees are often
referredtoas"RedDegrees",whilethethreeCraftDegreesintheirturnarereferredtoas"BlueDegrees".Inordertobe
eligiblefortheHighDegrees,thecandidatemustbeaMasterMason.
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TEMPLARANDECOSSAISRITES

IndiscussingMasonicHighDegreesoftheeighteenthcentury,adistinctionneedstobemadebetweenwhatisknownas
theTemplarDegrees,ontheonehand,andtheEcossais(orScottish)Degreesontheother.Ithasbeenestablishedthat
the Ecossais Degrees come from London,[3]whereas the Templar Degrees have a French origin.[4]These two types of
HighDegreesarethemostcharacteristicdegreesoftheeighteenthcentury.[5]

Theearliestreference to Ecossais or Scottish Masonry in England is a "Scots Masters Lodge" held at the Devil's Tavern,
TempleBar,London,in1733.ThislodgemetonthesecondandfourthMondayofeachmonth,andthelodgewasactive
until 1736 when it was erased from the list of lodges. In 1735 a total of twelve masons were "made" Scots Masters at
LodgeNO.113attheBearInn,Bath.Fiveyearslater,in1740,therewereatleastthreemorereferencestomasonsbeing
made or "rais'd" Scots Masters.[6] Ecossais Masonry appears to have spread to the Continent at an early stage, and
referencestothistypeofHighDegreeMasonryinBerlindatefromatleast1741andinFrancefromaround1743.[7]

WhiletheEcossaisDegrees to a large extent are occupied with the construction of a new Temple (an implicitlyChristian
theme), the Templar Degrees center on the legend that Freemasonry derived from the medieval Knights Templar. The
orderoftheKnightsTemplar,foundedinthefirstdecadeofthetwelfthcentury,wasdisbandedbyPhilipIV"TheFair"of
Bourbon(12681314)andPopeClementV(12641314)inthefirst decadeof the fourteenthcentury, butaccording toa
Masonic legend, the Templars survived in the highlands of Scotland and later reappeared to the public as the Order of
Freemasons.ThefirstpersontopresentthistheoryofcontinuationwastheScotsmanChevalierAndrewMichaelRamsay
(16861743)wholivedasanexpatriateinParis.RamsaywastheoratoroftheLodgeLeLouisd'Argent,whoseWorshipful
MasterwasCharlesRadclyffe(16931746).Inafamousorationgivenatthelodgein1737,Ramsaystatedthatmedieval
crusaders in the Holy Land, or Outremer, founded Freemasonry.[8] He did not explicitly identify the crusaders who
allegedlyfoundedFreemasonryasbeingtheKnightsTemplar,butasPierreMollierhaspointedout,theidentificationofthe
CrusaderswiththeTemplarswasnotfaraway.[9]

Ramsay's oration proved to be a milestone in the development of Masonic rituals of

initiation,andsoonritualsbegantoappearthatincorporatedRamsay'sthesis.Itwasin
the milieu of the Jacobite Parisian Lodges that the Masonic Templar Degrees first
developed, perhaps as early as 1737.[10] The best known propagator of Templar
Degrees in Germany was Baron Karl Gotthelf von Hund (17221776), and it is often
claimedthathehadbeeninitiatedintoaTemplarDegreeinFrancein1743.[11]Onthe
basisofthisinitiation,hesetuptheRiteoftheStrictObservancethatconsistedofthree
additional degrees: Scottish Master, Novice, and Knight Templar or Knight of the
Temple.ThenameoftheRitehad"thedoublemeaningoffollowingstrictlytherulesof
theOrderaswellasdistinguishingitfromthethencurrentGermanFreemasonry."[12]
VonHundfurthermoreintroducedapeculiarfeatureinthestructureofhisRite.namely
that of the Unknown Superiors or Superiores Incogniti.[13] These Unknown Superiors
ruled,throughvonHund,theRiteoftheStrictObservance.andthemembersoftheRite
wereexpectedtostrictlyobservethedecreesoftheseSuperiors.Ithasbeensuggested
thattheactualheadoftheRitewasnoneotherthantheyoungpretenderBonniePrince
Charlie, Charles Edward Stuart (17201788). The political implications for Masonry
(especially in connection with the Scottish Rites) during the eighteenth century have
beenthesubjectofmuchdebateandspeculations.WhileitisclearthatmanyJacobite
exiles were active in Masonic lodges, it remains an open question to what extent
Jacobite interests actually shaped Masonic rituals of initiation.[14] In 1772 the Strict WesternEsotericismandRitualsof
Observance merged with the socalled Clerics (Klerikat) created by Johann August InitiationbyHenrikBogdan
ReadBookReview
Starck (17411816), but this agreement ended in 1778. Four year later, in 1782, the
Strict Observance was officially brought to an end at the Convent of Wilhelmsbad and
replacedbytheRectifiedScottishRite(seebelow).

ManyoftheHighDegreeRitesthatwerefoundedduringtheeighteenthcenturyhavepassedintooblivion,buttherestill
remainanumberofimportantRitestothisday.ThemostimportantofthesearetheAncientandAcceptedScottishRite,
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theRectifiedScottishRite,andtheSwedishRite.ByfarthelargestoftheseRitesintermsofthenumberofinitiatesisthe
Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, which has a total of thirtythree degrees including the three Craft Degrees.[15] The
RiteisacollectionofFrencheighteenthcenturyritualsanditcontainsbothEcossaisandTemplarDegrees.[16]Thereare
alsootherinfluencessuchaschivalry,alchemy,andRosicrucianism.[17]TheRosicruciansymbolismismostlyconcentrated
in the Eighteenth Degree, Knight RoseCroix, while the TwentyEighth Degree, Knight of the Sun, contains alchemical
symbolism.[18]In1801theScottishRitewasofficiallyfoundedinCharleston,SouthCarolina.

RECTIFIEDSCOTTISHRITE
TheRectifiedScottishRitewasfoundedaround1774byJeanBaptisteWillermoz(17301824),asilk tradesman living in
Lyons.[19] Willermoz had become a Mason in 1750 and six years later founded the lodge Parfaite Amitie, which was
constituted by the Grand Loge de France. In 1767 he was initiated into L'Ordre des Elus Coens (see below) and in 1773
intotheRiteoftheStrictObservance.TheritualsoftheRectifiedScottishRitedeveloped,fromthe"rathercrude"ritualsof
theStrictObservanceoversomethirtyfouryearsfrom1775to1809.[20]Themainobjectoftheritualsissaidtobethe
"progressiverevelationofthetheosophicaldoctrineandteachingsofMartinesdePasqually"whohadfoundedL'Ordredes
ElusCoens.[21]It seems that Willermoz remained faithful to the teachings of Martines de Pasqually and the Elus Coens
and considered them to be the key to the true secret and object of Freemasonry. In fact, L'Ordre des Elus Coens
functionedasaninnerorderoftheRectifiedScottishRite,orasa"MasonrybeyondMasonry".[22]Today,theRiteisactive
in Switzerland, France, and Belgium, and it is explicitly Christian in character. The majority of lodges belonging to the
RectifiedScottishRitenolongerpracticethetwohighestdegrees:ProfessedandGrandProfessed.[23]

SWEDISHRITE
The Swedish Rite is the name given to a Rite practiced in Scandinavia and parts of Germany.[24] The degree system
consists of a total of eleven degrees, with the last degree restricted to a limited number of initiates (as the case is with
most Masonic rites). The Grand Master of the Rite is called the Vicar of Solomon. This Rite is particularly unified as a
systembecausetheritualsoftheindividualdegreesarecloselyinterconnectedwitheachother.[25]

FreemasonrywasintroducedinSwedenasearlyas1735whenthefirstlodgewasestablishedinStockholmbyCountAxel
WredeSparre ( 17081772).[26] WredeSparre had been initiated by Charles Radclyffe (16931746), Earl of
Derwentwater,inParisin1731.Sixyearslaterin1737,thesameyearthatRamsaydeliveredhisfamousoration,Radclyffe
gave the Swedish mason Carl Fredrik Scheffer (17151786) a charter to open lodges in Sweden. In 1756, the first St.
AndrewsLodge,L'Innocente,wasfoundedinStockholmbyCarlFredrikEckleff(17231786),[27]anditworkedtheFourth
and Fifth Degrees. Three years later in 1759, Eckleff founded the first chapter, which worked the Sixth to the Ninth
Degrees.[28] These degrees eventually became part of the Swedish Rite. Eckleff was instrumental in shaping what
eventually developed into the Swedish Rite, and it is often assumed that it was he who firmly implemented a Christian
basisfortherituals.However,theritualswereofFrenchorigin,anditwasonlyaround1800thatFreemasonrywasopened
toJewsinFrance.Itisthereforenaturallyassumedin the Constitutionsissuedby Radclyffethat Freemasonry wastobe
ChristianinSweden.Eckleff'ssystemwasfurtherdevelopedbyDukeCarlofSodermanland(17481818),laterKingCarl
XIII,whorevisedtheritualsinca.1780andca.1800.

EGYPTIANRITES
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During the latter part of the eighteenth century a new form of Masonry appeared that was partly a reaction against the
EcossaisandtheTemplarRites.ThisformofMasonrydidnotplacetheoriginsofFreemasonrywiththemedievalcrusades
butinsteadinancientEgypt.[29]Ever since the Renaissance, Egypt had been seen as the cradle of Western civilization,
andduringthelatterpartoftheeighteenthcenturyavirtual"Egyptomania"flourished.[30]Thiswasenhancedevenmore
with Napoleon's military campaign in Egypt and the vast amounts of Egyptian artefacts subsequently brought back to
FrancebyFrenchofficers.PerhapsthemostimportantoftheseobjectswastheRosettaStonethatwasfoundin1799at
Rosetta (Rashid), east of Alexandria. In 1822 JeanFranois Champollion managed to decipher the ancient Egyptian
hieroglyphswiththehelpofthisstone.

WhileEgyptianMasonryneverbecamearealchallengetothepredominanceoftheotherformsofHighDegreeMasonry,it
hasremainedonthefringesofregularMasonrytothisday.However,acloserlookattheritualsoftheEgyptianRites,such
astheRite of Misraim show, as Antoine Faivre has pointed out, that Egyptian Masonry was not very Egyptian in nature.
[31]In fact, most of the rituals that were included in the Egyptian Rites, such as the Memphis and Misraim Rites, were
takenfromEcossaisandTemplarRites.Thereis,however,oneaspectthatsetsEgyptianMasonryapartfromtheTemplar
andEcossaissystems,andthatisthemarkedprevalenceofWesternesotericinfluencesupontheformer.Itisclearthat
the foremost propagators of Egyptian Masonry, from the eighteenth century to the twentieth, were part of the Western
esotericmovement.

OneoftheearliestpropagatorsofEgyptianMasonrywasKarlFriedrichvonKoppen(17341797)whofoundedtheOrderof
theAfrikanischeBauherren (African Architects) in 1767.[32]This order was based on a short text by him and Bernhard
Hymmen (17311787), CrataRepoa.[33]The authors presented an alternative history of Freemasonry in which the first
GrandMasterwasidentifiedasthebiblicalHam,whoimmigratedtoEgyptandtheretookthenameMenes.InEgyptMenes
received secret knowledge that has been passed on and preserved by generations of Freemasons all the way to the
eighteenth century. Allegedly, the Order of the Afrikanische Bauherren was based on this secret knowledge. The rite
comprisedatotalofelevendegreesdividedintothreegroupsorTemples.

AnotherinfluentialsystemwasCagliostro'sEgyptianRite,foundedinNaplesin1777,withaSupremeCouncilestablished
inParisin1785.[34]AlessandrodiCagliostro(pseudonymofGiuseppeBalsamo,17431795)wasoneofthemostfamous
and charismatic adventurers of the eighteenth century. Among other things, he claimed to have been initiated at the
pyramidsinEgypt,andheassertedthathepossessedtheknowledgetotransmutebasemetalsintosilverandgold.Other
claims included the ability to evoke spirits and that he had lived for no less than two thousand years. In 1785 he
announcedthatbothmenandwomenshouldbeentitledtothemysteriesofthepyramids,andhethusopenedhisRiteto
women.[35] Cagliostro's preoccupation with esoteric matters apparently found its way into the initiatory system of his
EgyptianRite,andtheRiteincludedalchemicalaspects,thesearchforaspiritualimmortality,andangelictheurgy(magic
performedwiththeaidofbeneficentspirits).[36]

ThemostfamousofalltheEgyptianRites,andcertainlythemostinfluentialones,weretheMisraim and Memphis Rites.

ThefirstoftheseRites,theRiteofMisraim,wasfoundedaround1805inMilanbytheFrenchmanLechangeur(d.1812).It
issaidthathisreasonforfoundingthisRitewasthathewasdeniedaccesstothehigherdegreesoftheScottishRite.[37]
HethereforedecidedtocreatehisownorderthatheclaimedwouldbesuperiortotheScottishRite.Itispossiblethatthere
issomehistoricaltruthtothisstory,asEgyptianMasonrywaslargelyareactionagainsttheEcossaisandTemplarRites.
TheorderwascalledtheRiteofMisraiminreferencetothelegendoftheorderaboutthesonofthebiblicalHam,Misraim.
According to this legend, Misraim had a profound part in shaping the religion of ancient Egypt, it was none other than
Misraim who was the originator of the secret tradition of Isis and Osiris. Furthermore, the wisdom preserved within the
sanctuaryoftheritewasclaimedtoderivefromAdam,whohadreceiveditdirectlyfromGod.[38]

AfewyearslatertheordercameintothehandsofthreebrothersfromAvignon,Marc,Michael,andJosephBedarride,and
itwasundertheirleadershipthattheorderwasintroducedinFrancein1815.TheBedarridebrotherstriedtogettheRite
recognizedbytherulingMasonicbodyinFrance,theGrandOrient.TheRitewascomparativelysuccessfulforacoupleof
years, and a number of lodges were established throughout France. Internal strife, however, put a stop to further
expansion, and in 1817 the Supreme Council of the Rite was formally disbanded.[39] Various lodges nevertheless
continued to work the degrees of the rite. The rite consisted of a total of ninety degrees, divided into four series, which
werefurthersubdividedintoseventeenclasses.ThefourserieswerecalledSymbolic,Philosophic,Mystic,andKabbalistic.
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[40]

In1833JacquesEtienne Marconis de Negre (1795

1868) joined the Rite of Misraim 1833 in Paris, but
he was excluded from the Rite a few months later.
HethenmovedtoLyonswherein1836hefounded
alodgeoftheRiteofMisraim,usinganothername.
The Bedarride brothers apparently did not suspect
thatthefounderofthislodgewasthesameperson
whohadbeenexcludedafewyearsearlierinParis.
InMay1838,however,Marconiswasexpelledonce
againfromtheRite.Thistime,insteadofrejoining
underadifferentname,hesetuphisownEgyptian
Masonic Rite the Rite ofMemphis.[41] This Rite
consisted of 96 degrees, with a 97th degree
reservedfortheheadoftheOrder,calledtheGrand
Hierophant 97.[42] Marconis managed to set up
lodges of the Rite in Paris, Belgium, and Great
Britain (where a Grand Lodge of the Rite was
established). In 1856 Marconis travelled to New
York where he instituted a Grand Lodge of the rite,
calledthe"DisciplesofMemphis".Afterafewyears
HarryJ.Seymourbecametheheadoftheriteinthe
U.S.,andin1867hereformedtheinitiatorysystem
oftheRiteandreducedthenumberofdegreesfrom
96to33.Afewyearslater,theritewasreimported
to Europe via John Yarker (who established a
SovereignGrandSanctuaryin1872),andeventually
formed the basis for the Ordo Templi Orientis. In
Italy, the Rite of Memphis and the Rite of Misraim
merged into one system around 1881 through the
endeavours of Giuseppe Garibaldi (18071882),
under the name Rite of Memphis and Misraim.[43]
There are today many organizations that claim to
representtheRitesofMemphisandMisraim.

"ESOTERIC"FREEMASONRY

Masonic rites of a more outspoken esoteric bent included rites and

orders such as L'Orde des Elus Coens and the Rite Ecossais
philosophique, but Rosicrucian Rites and Degrees can also be
included in this category. The first of these, L'OrdedesElusCoens,
ortheTheOrderoftheMasonicKnightsElusCoensoftheUniverse,
wasfoundedbythetheosophistandkabbalistMartinesdePasqually
(1708/17091774) in the 1760s, and it included a peculiar form of
theurgymixedwiththephilosophyandtheosophyofitsfounder.[44]
Although this order possessed all the outward characteristics of a Masonic organization, such as a hierarchical degree
system,ritualsofinitiation,andlodges,andemployedatypicalMasonicterminology,itisperhapsmorefittingtolabelthe
L'OrdedesElusCoensasareligiousmovement.Thereasonforthisisnotonlythepeculiarreligiousteachingsderivedfrom
Pasquallybutalsothemarkedreligiouslifethatthememberswereexpectedtolive,whichisreferredtointhenameofthe
order:"chosenpriests"fromtheHebrewCohen,meaningpriest. Pasqually's teachings center around the Gnostic idea of
the Fall of Man through which humankind became separated from God. Through the initiatory system of the order the
members were expected to reverse the fall and make an upward journey in which the seven degrees of the order (not
countingthethreeCraftDegrees)correspondedtothesevengiftsoftheSpirit.Thefinalgoaloftheinitiatoryprocesswas
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"reintegration"areturntotheprimitiveandprimordialstate
of man characterized by union with God. The theurgy
employed in the order was a means to this goal, through
whichdivineenergieswereinvokedandthecommunionwith
goodspiritswassought.AccordingtoJeanFranoisVarthis
theurgy was not aimed at acquiring natural or supernatural
powers,anditwaspartofareligious"cult"whichincludeda
liturgy.[45]

Theinitiatorysystemoftheorderconsistedofatotaloften
degrees, of which the preliminary Craft Degrees were not
seenaspartoftheOrderassuch.Thedegreesweredivided
into four different classes (again, not counting the Craft
Degrees), with the degree of ReauCroix as the highest
degreethatconstitutedaclassofitsown.Afterthedeathof
Pasqually in 1774, Caignet de Lester (1725 1778)
succeeded him as leader of the order (Grand Souverain de
l'Ordre), followed by Sebastian de Las Casas in 1778.
Although L'Orde des Elus Coens was formally dissolved in
1781 it continued to have active lodges, most notably the
oneinLyonsundertheleadershipofWillermoz.[46]

The Rite Ecossais philosophique was the successor of an

esotericRitecalledRiteHermetiqued'Avignon,foundedin1774.[47]AccordingtoJ.A.M.Snoek:

TheRiteHermetiquewasinfactcreatedinthelodgeSaintJeand'Ecossein
Marseille,wheresomemembersofthelodge,whichwasfoundedin1774
inAvignon,receiveditsdegrees,anditwasthislodgeofMarseillethat
constitutedthelodgeSaintJeand'EcosseinAvignonon31July1774.[48]

In 1776 the Rite Hermetique was exported from Avignon to Paris, where it changed its name to Rite Ecossais
philosophique. The history of the development of theRite Ecossais philosophique's degree system [49] is a complicated
matterinitself,butsufficetosaythatthelistofferedinCollectaneacorrespondswithalistmadebyClaudeAntoineThory
fortheritein1766[sic].[50]Obviously,thedateofThory'slistisanerror,sincetheRitedidnotevenexistthen.[51]Itis
uncertainwhentheRitewasdissolved,butitprobablyoccurredsometimebetween1844and1849.[52]TheRiteEcossais
philosophiqueisagoodexampleofthemorealchemicallyoriented Masonicsystemsofthe eighteenth century as willbe
evidentfromtheritualsofthedegreeofTrueMasonorAcademiedesVraisMaons(seeappendix).

Finally,mentionshouldbemadeofthesocalledRosicrucian
DegreesandRitesthatalsoappearedontheMasonicscene
duringtheeighteenthcentury.Theprimecharacteristictrait
of these types of degrees and Rites is that they allude in
different ways to the Rosicrucian movement of the
seventeenth century. There probably never existed a
Rosicrucian Fraternity as described in the Rosicrucian
manifestos, but the idea of such a fraternity nevertheless
becamepopularduringtheseventeenthcentury.ItdidnottakelongbeforeMasonrywasseenaslinkedtoRosicrucianism.
Forinstance,inTheMusesThrenodie(1638)the"BrethrenoftheRosieCross"aredescribedasbeinginpossessionofthe
MasonWord.Itneedstobeemphasized,however,thattheMasonicRosicrucianDegreesdifferconsiderablybothincontent
andintheirrelationtoseventeenthcenturyRosicrucianism.Inordertosimplifymatters,itcanbesaidthatmost(butnot
all) of the Masonic Rosicrucian Degrees and Rites of the eighteenth century were focused on alchemy, whereas later
RosicrucianDegreesandRitesaremorefocusedonChristianMysticism.

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OneofthemostinfluentialMasonicRosicrucianRitestoappearonthescenewasDerOrdendes Gold und Rosenkreuzes

(TheOrderoftheGoldandRosyCross)thatwasfoundedatthemiddleoftheeighteenthcenturyintheGermanspeaking
world.ThisRitewasaMasonicoffshootofanalchemicalbrotherhoodcalledDerOrdendesGuldenundRosenkreutzes(The
OrderoftheGoldenandRosyCross)foundedin1710.[53]TheRosicrucianismofDer Orden des Gold und Rosenkreuzes
washeavilyinfusedwithalchemy[54]buttherewasalsoapoliticalaspecttotheOrder.Many,ifnotmost,oftheMasonic
Craft Lodges of the eighteenth century cherished the ideals of the Enlightenment, whereas the High Degree Rites often
were more ambivalent as regards these ideals. The members of Der Orden des Gold und Rosenkreuzeswere to a large
extentconservativeintheiroutlook,andtheOrdercanbeseen,toacertaindegree,aspartoftheantiAufklarung(anti
Enlightenment)movementactiveintheGermanspeakingworldduringthesecondhalfoftheeighteenthcentury.[55]

Apartfromthepursuitofalchemicalknowledge,anotherimportant
characteristicdrewpeopletothenewRosicrucianorder:itspolitical
stance.Rosicrucianisminthelate18thcenturybecamearallyingpoint
forthosewhowereofconservativeoutlookandwhowereopposedto
thesociallyradical,rationalistic,andevenantireligioustendencies
whichwerebecomingaseriouschallengeinGermany.[56]

TheOrderwascomparativelysuccessfulandlodgeswereestablishedintheGermanspeakingcountries,Austria,Hungary,
andnorthernItaly.[57]Itssuccesswasduenotonlytothefactthattheorderfunctionedasa"conservativefocalpoint"
butalsobecauseitstressedtheimportanceofreligionintimeswhenantireligioussentimentswerepopularincertainparts
ofsociety.Furthermore,theGermancharacteroftheOrderappealedtopersonsofanationalisticorientation.Lastbutnot
least, the Order claimed to possess a secret knowledge (alchemy) that was restricted to its initiates.[58] Theinitiatory
systemofDerOrdendesGoldundRosenkreuzesconsistedofninedegrees,andonehadtobeaMasterMasoninorderto
beeligibletojointheorder.[59]
Another important Masonic Rosicrucian order is The Royal
Order of Scotland, which was founded in the middle of the
eighteenthcentury,perhapsasearlyas1741.[60]Theorder
fell into a twentyyear long abeyance from 1819 to 1839,
but it recuperated and is today a relatively large rite with
numerousProvincialGrandLodges.[61]Itwasestablishedin
the United States in 1877 with the prolific Masonic author
AlbertPike(18091891)asitsfirstProvincialGrandMaster.
It consists of two high degrees: the Order of Heredom of
Kilwinning, and the Knights of the Rosy Cross. The first of
these two degrees gives further explanations of the three
Craft Degrees, while that of the Knights of the Rosy Cross is characterized by Christian mysticism veiled in Rosicrucian
symbolism.AccordingtoalegendaryhistoryoftheOrder,[62]theRoyalOrderofScotlandwasfoundedbyKingRobertthe
Bruce{12741329)in1314tocommemoratetheassistancehereceivedatthebattleofBannockburnonJune24,1314,
from sixtythree Knights Templar. The Knights Templar had showed up unexpectedly at a crucial point of the battle and
assistedRoberttheBrucetodefeattheEnglishforcesofEdwardII(12841327).Thedefeatensuredtheindependenceof
ScotlanduntiltheUnionof1707.

The Eighteenth Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Rite, RoseCroix of Heredom, Knight of the Pelican and Eagle, is
probablythemostwellknownandpracticedofalltheMasonicRosicrucianDegrees.Eventhoughthehistoryofthisdegree
reachesbacktothemiddleofeighteenthcenturyFrance,itdiffersconsiderablyincontentfromothereighteenthcentury
Masonic Rosicrucian Rites such as Der Orden des Gold und Rosenkreuzes.[63] In 1768 a Masonic body was founded in
PariswhichcalleditselftheFirstSovereignChapterRoseCroix,andinthestatutesthatitissuedayearlateritisstated
that "The knights of Rose Croix are called knights of the Eagle, of the Pelican, Sovereigns of Rose Croix, perfect Prince
MasonsfreeofHeredon."[64]TheEagleandthePelicanaresymbolsofChrist,whichalludestotheChristiannatureofthe
degree.ThenameHeredon,morecommonlyspelledasHeredom(andsometimesasHarodim[65]),isthenamegiventoa
mythical mountain supposed to exist north of Kilwinning, Scotland.[66] According to a Masonic myth, associated
particularly with Ecossais Masonry, the Masons were driven away from Jerusalem after the destruction of the Temple of
JerusalemandsubsequentlyfoundtheirwaytothismountaininScotland.Theyremainedonthismountainuntilthetime
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oftheCrusades.

Rosicruciandegreesthusfallintotwomaincategories,alchemicalandChristian,butitneedstobeemphasizedthatthere
arenoclearcutbordersbetweenthetwocategories.Furthermore,alchemicaldegreesoftheeighteenthcenturyarenotby
necessityRosicrucian,asisevidencedbytheTrueMason,orAcademiedesVraisMaons,intheappendix.

CONCLUDINGREMARKS

The High Degrees of Freemasonry were enormously successful and a large number of rites were established during the
eighteenth century. A number of these Rites, such as the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite and the Swedish Rite, are
active to this day. Others,suchasDer Orden des Gold und Rosenkreuzes, ceased to exist a long time ago. Perhaps the
moststrikingcharacteristicofthisformofritualisitsdiversity,whichincludessuchtypesasChivalric,Templar,Ecossais,
andEgyptian High Degrees. Their common denominator is that, in various ways, they contain elaborations of the Craft
Degree rituals. Furthermore, it is particularly in certain types of High Degrees that Western esotericism is explicitly
transmitted.Asanexampleofsucharitual,IanalyzedintheappendixtheTrueMasonoftheRiteEcossaisphilosophique,
which in essence contains a complete exposition of eighteenth century alchemy. In the nineteenth century the more
outspoken esoteric High Degree systems, such as the Rites of MemphisandMisraim, the Antient and Primitive Rite, and
theSwedenborgian Rite existed on the fringes of the Masonic world, but many of these would in various ways survive
intothetwentiethcenturyandcontinuetoexisteventothisday.

APPENDIX

TrueMason,orAcademiedesVraisMaons

EIGHTHDEGREEOFTHEHERMETICRITE

ThefollowingritualfromtheRiteEcossaisphilosophiqueisarepresentativeexampleofaFrenchHighDegreeritualofthe
latterpartoftheeighteenthcentury.IhaveusedtheritualstranslatedinCollectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),asmyprimary
sourcefortheTrueMasonritual.Asaritual,theDegreeofaTrueMason,orAcademiedesVraisMaons,isnotparticularly
elaborateorimpressive.Nevertheless,itincludespartsthataredeeplysaturatedwithWesternesotericism,particularlyin
theformofalchemyand,toalesserextent,Kabbalah.[67]Thesepartsareconcentratedinadiscoursedeliveredbythe
SeniorSageorSurveillant,intheexplanationofthetracingboardandintheinstructionthatisintheformofacatechism.

Theritualtakesplaceinalodge,calledtheAcademy,anditisperformedbythreemainofficers,calledMostWise,[68]and
Senior and Junior Sages, respectively. The Academy is illuminated by three candles placed on the tracingboard. The
dominant colors of the ritual are black, white, and red the walls are draped in black, there should be white and red
columns,theglovesandthecordonsshouldbewhite,black,andred.[69]Giventhealchemicalnatureofthisritual,these
colorsprobablyrefertothethreestagesofthealchemicalprocess:Nigredo,Albedo,andRubedo.

The Academy is opened in the ordinary fashion of Masonic rituals of initiation. That is, the chief officer, in this case the
Most Wise, asks the two Surveillants or Sages whether the lodge room is properly guarded and if all present are True
Masons.TheAcademyisthenproclaimedopened,andoneofthebrethren,calledSageAcademicians,isaskedtogivea
lecture on a chosen subject. It is then announced by the Senior Surveillant that a reception is to be made: "Most Wise,
there is a philosopher Mason in the preparation chamber, whom the Academy has deemed worthy of being admitted
amongus".[70]

Thecandidate,whohasbeenwaitinginachamberofpreparation,[71]isdivestedofallmetals,andhashishat,coat,and
shoesremoved.Thesleevesofhisshirtarerolledup,hishandsaretiedbehindhisback,andfinallyheisblindfolded.After
theusualquestionsandknockonthedoor,thecandidateisadmittedtothelodgeroomwhereheisledtotheWest,facing
theMostWiseintheEast.Thereisan"earthenwarevessel,intowhicharepouredwinespirits,mercury,andsalt.These
aretobelightedandfurnishtheonlyilluminationontheacademy."[72]Thecandidateisaskedwhathedesires,andafter
answeringthathewantstobeadmittedtotheAcademy,ifheisfoundworthy,theAcademiciansindicatetheirconsentto
hisrequestbyrappingonceonthefloorwiththeirrods,whichtheyareholding.
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Thecandidateisthen,inthecustomaryfashionofMasonicrituals,ledaroundthelodge.Theseperambulations,whichare
threeinnumber,aremadeinacircle,asquare,andatriangle.Whentheperambulationsarecompleted,theblindfoldis
removed,andthecandidateiscausedtoseetheearthenvesselwiththefire.Afterfourminutes,heisconductedtothe
foot of the throne of the Most Wise, and there caused to kneel. The candidate then takes the obligation in this kneeling
position.Thisobligationisacomparativelyshortandsimpleone:

I,....,promiseonmywordofhonor,andunderpenaltyofhaving
mylipssealedandmybowelscutopen,nevertorevealeitherdirectlyor
indirectly,toanyoneatall,andunderanypretext,themysterieswhichI
willbehold,andmaytheGreatJehovahbemystrongandholyguide.[73]

ThecandidateisthendeclaredaTrueMasonbytheMostWise,andinstructedinthetraditionalsecretsofthedegree:the
sacredword,thepassword,thename,thegrip,theage, the step, and finally the battery. Of these secrets, perhaps the
mostsignificantarethesacredwordandthepassword,JehovahandMetralon,[74]respectively.TheMostWiseproceeds
topresentthecandidatewiththeapron,gloves,andawand.Thecandidateisledtothetracingboard,wherehegivesa
discoursethathehaspreparedbeforehand.Whenthecandidatehasfinishedhisdiscourse,theMostWiserespondswitha
discourseofhisown.This discoursebegins by stating that the Degree of True Mason was created at the time when God
broughtorderoutofchaos,andthatthedegreeincludestheprinciplesofallotherdegrees.TherehavebeenmanyAdepts
overthecenturies,butsomeofthemhavebeenledastray.Theprofanewhocriticizethatwhichtheydonotunderstand,
"whoarelackingakeenmindandindustrioushand,...willloseforthemselvesallthejoysofdiscoveryandlabor,andscorn
allthattheydonotpossess,powerofimagination,andcourageofdoing".TheMostWisecontinuesbyurgingthebrethren
to abandon the profane, or "these offsprings of darkness" and enemies to their own hatred of their vain and
inconsequentialidea.

Forustruechildrenoflight,andsincerefriendsofhumanity,whosee
inthoseinstructionsandthepractice,theclearannouncementoftruth,
therewillbeatlastthepleasureswhichresulttherefrom.[75]

Thediscourseendswithapromisethatthebrethrenwillguideandhelpthecandidatein"thescience"byexplainingthe
obstaclesplacedinhispathandassistinghiminhisstudies.Thereisalsoanexhortationtofollowinthefootstepsof"that
greatman,whosepresenceissodearandusefultous,andwhosememorywillalwaysbeprecioustous".Oneplausible
suggestion is that this refers to Hiram, or perhaps Christ. Upon the completion of the discourse, the Senior Surveillant
proceedstoexplainthesymbolismofthetracingboard.

Youwillseefirst,wiseacademician,intheupperpartofthetableaua
radiantandcapital"J"inthemiddle.
ThetrianglerepresentsGodinthethreepersons,andthecapital"J"is
theinitialoftheineffablenameoftheGreatArchitectoftheUniverse.[76]

TheineffablenameoftheGreatArchitectindicatedbytheletterJis,ofcourse,Jehovah,thesacredwordofthedegree.As
discussed in chapter four of my bookWestern Esotericism & Rituals of Initiation, Jehovah, is the old Master's Word that
waslostatthetimeofHiram'sdeath.

TheshadowycirclesignifiestheworldwhichGodcreatedthecross
withinitrepresentsthelightbymeansofwhichHewilldevelopit.
Thesquare,thefourelementswhichdevelopedinit.
Thetriangle,thethreeprinciples,whichthemixtureofthefourelementsproduced.
ThecircleissurroundedbythewaterswhichGodhasplacedabovethefirmament.[77]

The reference to the cross is one of the few direct references to Christianity to be found in the ritual. The passage also
explainswhytheperambulationsthatthecandidatehadtoundergoduringtheritualwereintheshapeofacircle,square,
and a triangle. The four elements refer, of course, to the antique idea that all matter is constituted by four elements,
namelyearth,water,air,andfire.[78]Thisideacontinuedasabasiccomponentofalchemicaltheorylongafterorthodox
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science had discarded it. The three principles refer to the alchemical principles of sulphur, mercury, and salt (discussed
later).

Thestarrycircledesignatesthefirmament.
TheothercirclewiththesignsandtheplanetsrepresentstheZodiac.[79]

According to the Ptolemaic worldview, the earth is the center of the universe, and around this center there are seven
planetaryspheresinwhichthesevenplanetsofantiquity(theMoon,Mercury,Venus,theSun,Mars,Jupiter,andSaturn)
move.ThemovementoftheplanetswasconsideredtobecausedbythePrimumMobile,locatedeitherat,orbeyond,the
firmamentofthestars.Itisthisfirmamentthatisreferredtointhepassageabove.

ThecrosswhichsurmountsthemsignifiesthatasGodthroughhisgreat
powercreatedtheuniverse,sothroughhisbeneficenceheredeemedit.
Thefourfigureswhichsurrounditaretheemblemsoftheatmosphere
andthefourwinds.
Man,thesun,theplantswhichoneseesonthesurfaceoftheearthare
theimageofthethreedivisionsofnature,thatis,theanimal,themineral
andthevegetable,whichthroughthemediumoftheprimalfireand
ofthecentralfire,thatthegreatarchitectplacedincontinualagitation,
cometotheirperfection.[80]

It is specifically stated in the bylaws of the degree that no mason may be admitted, without being "Christian, pious,
discreetandwise".[81]AlthoughtheChristianelementsoftheritualarealmostnonexistent,itissignificanttonotethat
asarule,HighDegreesystemstendtobelimitedtoChristianmembers.Itisthereforequitenaturaltofindareferenceto
thecrossintheritual.Further,thedivisionofnatureintotheanimal,mineral,andvegetableworldsderivesfromAristotle.
Theprimalandcentralfiresmostlikelyrefertothetwodifferenttypesoffireoftenencounteredinalchemicalliterature.
[82]

ThetwouppermostletterssignifythatGodcreatedthosewhichstand
belowthatnatureproducesandthatartmultiplies.
Onthealtarofperfumes,wenotethemewhichisgiventomatterthetwo
towersarethetwofurnaces,wetanddry,throughwhichwemusttravel.
Thetubewhichisinthefurnaces,servestogivethetemperatureof
thefireproducedbycharcoalofoaktrees.Thefirewillwellconsumethe
philosopher'sstone.Belowweseetherodforstirringthefire.
Andthetwofiguressurmountedbyacross,arenothingotherthan
thetwovasesofnatureandofthatroyalart,inwhichonemaycausea
doublemarriageofthewhitewomanandtheredservant,fromwhich
marriagetherewillbebornamostpowerfulking.[83]

Thispartoftheexplanationofthetracingboardisentirelydevotedtoalchemicalimagery.Thetwofurnaces,describedas
wetanddry,throughwhich"wemusttravel"isadirectreferencetothealchemicalformulaofSolveetCoagula(dissolve
andcoagulate),discussedbelow.Thefurnaceitselfisanimportantsymbol,asitisthoughtthatthemetalundergoesits
mortification and subsequent purification within a furnace, or athanor as it is usually called. The furnace is furthermore
oftenidentifiedwiththefirethatcausesthemortificationofthemetal.Itissignificantthatthecoalisspecifiedasbeingof
oak trees, as the oak is a name for the philosophical tree.[84] The philosophical tree symbolizes the entire alchemical
process,frombasemetaltogold,orfromunenlightenedtoenlightenedsoul.Thephilosopher'sstoneisprobablythemost
wellknownofallalchemicalsymbols,anditsprimaryimportisthecompletionorthecrowningofthealchemicalwork.As
such,itisconsideredtopossessanumberofqualities,suchastheabilitytotransmutemetals,curediseases,prolonglife,
andtorejuvenate."Royalart"wasthenamegiventoalchemy(butasshowninchapter4ofWesternEsotericism&Rituals
ofInitiation,itwasalsoanamegiventoFreemasonry),asgoldwasconsideredtobetheroyalmetal.Afurtherreference
tothe"royal"natureofthealchemicalprocessisthe"mostpowerfulking"thatwillbebornoutofthemarriagebetween
the"whitewoman"andthe"redservant".Thewhitewomanandtheredservantstandforthefemaleandmaleprinciples,
respectively.Thekingisanothersymbolforthephilosopher'sstonethegoalofthealchemicalquest.
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Completionoftheexplanationofthetracingboardisfollowedbytheinstruction,whichisintheform of a catechism. In
eighteenthcenturyFrenchMasonicrituals,catechismsusedtobepracticedattheendoftheritual(justbeforeclosingthe
lodge),or at thetable lodge after theinitiation.Be thatas itmay, the instructionisofutmostimportanceasitnotonly
touchesuponsymbolsencounteredintheritual,butmoreimportantlyalsoshowsexactlythekindofalchemywithwhich
themembersofthedegreewereexpectedtobefamiliar.

Thecatechismbeginswiththefollowingquestion:

Q.Whoisyourfather?
A.Hermes.[85]

Hermes was, of course, seen as the mythical founding father of alchemy, and the above question can therefore be
interpretedasthatthecandidate,beinganalchemist,istherebya"child"ofHermes.[86]

Q.Didyoureceivethelight?
A.Verily,MostWise,thethreeprincipleswereexplainedtome.
Q.Doyouknowhowtoproceedwithyourlabors?
A.Verily,MostWise,Iknowhowtostirwiththerod,tomanipulatethe
materialsandtosealthevapoursagainstesscape[sic].[87]

ReceivingthelightisarecurrentthemeinMasonicritualsofinitiation,butinthiscontextthelightprobablyreferstothe
knowledge of the alchemical process, as the answer indicates that the light is connected to the knowledge of the three
principles. The three principles, in their turn, refer to the three alchemical principles sulphur, mercury, and salt. The
manipulation of the materials, or metals, is a direct allusion to the practice of alchemy. Furthermore, the sealing of the
vaporsfromescapeisareferencetotheusageofhermeticallysealedvesselsinalchemy.

Q.Whatisthesignificanceofthetenknocksyougaveonyourentryinto
theacademy?
A.Itistheperfectnumber.
Q.Whydoyousaythattenistheperfectnumber?
A.BecausetencomprehendsallthefaithandunityofGodbywhomall
wascreated,aswellaschaosfromwhichallthatexists,wasproduced.
Furthermore,hewhowouldbequitehappytounderstandthatwhichis
thebasicnumberofformalarithmetic,andtounderstandthenatureof
theprimesphericalnumberwhichisthehalfoftheten,willknow,says
PicdeMirandole,thesecretofthefiftydoorsoflearningofthegreat
fiftyyearsofthisgeneration,aswellastherulerofsimilarcycles,which
theCabalistscall"Ensopht,"orDivinityitself,unadorned.[88]

InChristianandJewishKabbalahalike,thenumbertenisseenasa"perfectnumber"asitcontainsGod'sentirecreationin
the form of the ten Sephiroth. The reference to "Ensopht" constitutes the unlimited Godhead, Ain Soph, from which the
TreeofLifewithitstenSephirothemanates.GiovanniPicodellaMirandola(14631494)wasthefirsttoseekevidencein
theKabbalahforthe"truth"ofChristianity,andthusinspiredlaterkabbalistssuchasJohannesReuchlin.Picoincludedhis
KabbalisticargumentsfortheauthenticityofchristianityinhisConclusiones(1486),acollectionofninehundredquestions
andanswers.[89]Thebookwas,however,suppressedbythepope.

Q.Explainthemeaningofyourjewel,thecolorsoftheribbonaswellas
whatisattachedthecrossandthetwolettersontheflapofyouapron
aswellasthesuninthecentertheletterswhichareonthetwosidesand
thetworedstripeswithwhichitisbordered.
A.Thejewelistherepresentationofmercury,sulphurandsalt.Thecolors
oftheribbonandglovesrepresentthethreeprincipalcolorswhichare
apparentinthecivilgovernment.
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ThecrossontheflapoftheapronistheLight,thetwolettersrepresent
theTrueMason.
Thesunrepresentsgold,thetwoletters,themeaningalreadygiven.
Finallythepoppyredcolorwithwhichtheapronisbordereddesignates
theperfectionofthephilosopher'sstoneasblackdenotes
putrificationandwhitesublimity.[90]

The reference to the three colors black, white and red refers to the three stages in the alchemical process: Nigredo,
Albedo,andRubedo.[91]Intheinitialorblackstatetheimpuremetaliskilledorputrefied,thatis,itisdissolvedintoits
original form, or PrimaMateria. According to alchemical theory, there can be no regeneration without corruption, no life
withoutdeath.Thisstateofdissolution,ormortification,isoftensymbolizedinalchemicalimagerywithsymbolsofdeath
andcorruption,suchasskeletons,skulls,andcoffins.Inthesecondorwhitephasetheblackenedmatterispurifiedbythe
mercurialwater,theuniversalagentoftransmutation."Thebodyhasbeenwhitenedandspiritualized(thatis,thefixedis
volatilized)andthesoulhasbeenpreparedtoreceiveilluminationfromthespirit.Thisisthestageatwhichthealchemist
achieves the white stone and the white elixir which has the power to transmute all imperfect metals to silver".[92] This
stage can also be interpreted as the spirit's separation from the body, which will reunite when the body is purified and
made pure and spotless. This stage is often symbolized by things pure, white, or silver, such as the moon, snow, and
virgins. Finally, in the third or red stage, the spirit is reunited with the white matter. This union is often described as a
"chemical wedding", and upon its completion the desirable Philosophers' Stone is achieved. Images such as red lions,
basilisks,redroses,andthesunoftensymbolizetheRubedophaseoftheopusalchymicum.[93]

Q.Doyouknowhowtomaketheuniversalmatter?
A.Ido,MostWise.
Q.Fromwhatdoyouproduceit?
A.Eternalandinternalfire.
Q.Whatdoesitresultin?
A.Thefourelements,whicharesaidtobethemainprinciples.
Q.Whatarethey?
A.Fire,air,waterandearth.
Q.Whataretheirqualities?
A.Heat,drought,coldandmoisture,thefirsttwocoupledwiththelatter
two,bringtotheearththedroughtandcold.
Waterhascoldandmoisture.
Airhasmoistureandheat,firehasheatanddrought,whichareall
unitedonearth,becausetheelementsarecirculatedlikethewindofour
fatherHermes.[94]

AsLyndyAbrahamstates,theideaofthefourelementswasderivedfromEmpedocles(494432B.C.)andPlato'sTimaeus
(ca.360B.C.),butcametoalchemythroughAristotle'stheoriesofmatter.[95]Allmatterultimatelyderivesfromaprima
materia,andthefourelementsaretheformsinwhichitmanifestsitself.[96]Thefourelementsarenotsimplytheordinary
fire,air,water,andearthinnature,butabstractprinciplesthatemanatefromtheprimamateria.Thealchemicalprocess
oftransmutation,oropusalchymicum,isbasedonthefundamentaltheorythatallmaterialobjectsandmatterconsistof
variousproportionsofthefourelementsandthattheseproportionscanbemanipulated.However,inordertocausethis
manipulation,itisfirstnecessaryto"kill"(theNigredophase)theoriginalformofthematteronewishestotransmute.The
answer to the question of what the qualities of the four elements are, displays further familiarity with basic concepts of
alchemy:therearefourqualitiesconnectedtotheelementshot,dry,cold,andmoist.[97]Eachoftheelementshastwo
ofthesequalities:firehashotanddryairhashotandmoistwaterhascoldandmoistandfinallyearthhascoldanddry.

Q.Whatdoesthemxture[sic]ofthefourelementsandtheirfourqualities
ofwhicheverythingisformed,produce?
A.Thethreemainprinciples.
Q.Whatnamesaregiventhem?
A.Mercury,sulphurandsalt.
Q.Whatdoyoumeanbymercury,sulphurandsalt?
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A.Thephilosophical,andnotthecommonlyknown,mercury,sulphur
andsalt.
Q.Whatisthephilosophicalmercury?
A.Itisaliquidandspiritwhichdissolvesandrefinesthesun.
Q.Whatisphilosophicalsulphur?
A.Itisfireandaspiritwhichdestroysandcolorsthatfire.
Q.Whatisphilosophicalsalt?
A.Itisamineralandasubstancewhichcongealsandfixes,andaccom
plishesallthisthroughthemediumoftheatmosphere.[98]

The three main principles of metals mentioned above were first proposed by Paracelsus (Theophrastus Bombastus von
Hohenheim,14931541).[99]According to this theory, all metals are constituted by three main principles: mercury (the
spirit),sulphur(thesoul),andsalt(thebody).[100]Mercuryandsalt,orspiritandbody,areseenastwocontrariesthat
areunitedby the mediating principle of sulphur, that is, the soul. Paracelsus' theory of thetriaprima, or the first three
principles,differsfromearliermedievalalchemyinwhichthemetalswereconsideredtoderivefromtwoprinciples,namely
sulphurandmercury.[101]Sulphurwasconsideredtobethemaleprinciple,orhot,dry,andactiveseed,whereasmercury
wasseenasthefeminineprinciplewithitscold,moist,andpassivequalities.Thesetwoprincipleswereconnectedtothe
wellknownalchemical formula of Solve et Coagula (dissolve and coagulate). This formula, known already by the Greek
alchemists, illustrates the fundamental practice of alchemy that is, the converting of a solid body into a fluid substance
(solve),andtheoppositeprocessofturningafluidintoadrysolidbody(coagula).Theprocesswastoberepeatedtime
and again, and each time the matter to be transmuted was considered to become purer. Mercury was connected to the
solveaspectoftheformulaandwasthusattributedtothepowerofdissolvingfixedmatterwhilesulphurwasconsidered
topossessthepoweroffixingandcoagulatingthevolatilesubstance,andthustobeconnectedtothesecond,orcoagula,
part of the formula. Furthermore, the mercury often encompassed the two elements of water and earth, while sulphur
encompassedairandwater.

Q.Howaretheseobtainedfromthreeprinciples?
A.Thefourelementsredoubled,asHermessaid,orthegreatelements,
accordinglytoRaymondLully,whichareMercury,sulphur,saltandglass.
Theformertwoactlikevolatiles,theonebeinglikewaterandtheother
likeair(oroil),andfleefirewhichcausestheonetobedrivenoffand
theothertobeconsumed.Theremainingtwosubstanceshoweverbeing
solidanddry,arenotaffectedbyfire.Thesaltdefiestheheatoffire
whileglass,orpureearthisnotaffectedexcepttobemeltedandrefined.
Becauseeachelementhastwoqualitiesthegreatorredoubledelements,
thatistosay,mercury,sulphur,saltandglassconsistoftwoofthesimple
elements,orinotherwords,eachofthefourhastwoelementsindifferent
proportions.Mercuryhasmorewaterthanisusuallyattributedtoit
oilorsulphur,moreairthesalthasmorefireandglasshasmoreearth.
Earthisatlastfoundpureandcleanatthecenterofalltheelementary
compounds,anditisultimatelyfreedfromalltheothers.[102]

TheanswerisanelaborationofParacelsus'threealchemicalprinciplesofmercury,sulphur,andsalt.

Q.Whatadvantagesdoesthisgiveone?
A.Twokinds,thefirstspiritual,thesecondismaterial.
Q.Whatarethey?
A.ThespiritualconsistsofknowingGod,natureandhimself.Thematerial
iswealthandriches.[103]

Itissignificantthatnotonlythespiritualadvantageofalchemyismentionedbutalsothematerialone.Thisshowsthatthe
alchemy taught by the Rite Ecossais philosophique to its initiates was not merely of a spiritual character, but of a
"chemical"natureaswell.

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Q.Hasnoteachofthesesciencessomethingwhichisappropriateand
particulartoit?
A.Pardonme,MostWise,theoneiscommonandtrivialandtheother
mysticalandsecret.Theinvisibleworldofourtheologyiscabalistic,
celestial,astrologicalandmagical,whiletheelementaryisphysiological
andchemical,whichrevealsbythesediscoveriesandtheseparationsof
fire,themosa[sic]hiddenandoccultsecretsofnatureofthethreekinds
ofcompositions.Wealsocallthislattersciencehermetic,orthe
operationofthegreatwork.
Q.Whatarethesourceswhereonemaysearchforthislatterscience?
A.ThepurestareHermesTrismegistus,ArnolddeVillenaeueRaymond
Lully,Gaber,BasilValentine,BernardCountofTrevisan,Nicholas
Flamel,thePhilalethes,theCosmopolitan,thePresidentoftheEspagnet
andChevalier,thefiguresofAbrahamtheJew,MichaelMayer,and
manyothers,whomwewillrecognizeamongothers.[104]

Thenamesreferredtoassourcesforthealchemicalscienceareallwellknownandinfluentialalchemicalauthors.

HERMESTRISMEGISTUSisofcoursethemythicalauthoroftheCorpusHermeticumwhichwasfirsttranslatedintoLatinby
Marsilio Ficino in 1471. During the Renaissance, however, Hermes also became known as an adept of alchemy, and a
numberofalchemicaltextswereattributedtohim,ofwhichtheTabulaSmaragdinaorEmeraldTabletisperhapsthemost
famous.Thisshorttextcontainsthefamousdictum"Asabove,sobelow,"illustratingtheesotericdoctrine that man is a
microcosmcorrespondingtothemacrocosm.[105]

ARNAUDEVILANOVA(12401311)wasaphysicianwhotranslatedmedicalworksbyauthorssuchasGalen,Avicenna,and
Albuzale into Latin, and he is generally seen as a representative medieval Galenism. Even though it is not ascertained
whetherornotVilanovaactuallypracticedalchemy,therearemanylegendsabouthimthatconnecthimwiththepractice
ofalchemy.[106]AccordingtoonesuchlegendVilanovaissupposedtohaveperformedhisfirsttransmutationinRomein
1286.Thereareanumberofalchemicalworksascribedtohim,suchasEpistolasuperalchemiaadregemNeapolitanumor
DesecretisnaturaeandExempladeartephilosophorum,buttheseareprobablyapocryphal.Thefirstcollectededitionof
hisworkswaspublishedatLyonsin1504.

RAYMOND LULLY, or Ramon Llull, (12321316) was a Catalan mystic who developed a mysticism combined to a certain
extent with Christian mysticism, Sufism, and Neoplatonism. The alchemical works ascribed to him are probably all
apocryphalandincludetitlessuchasApertoriumartis,L'Epistredel'abbreviationdelapierrebenoiste,ClaviculaRaymundi
Lullii,[107] and Comendiurn animae transmutationis artis metallorum.[108] Alchemical works ascribed to Llull began to
circulateduringthemiddleofthefourteenthcenturyandthesepseudoLlullianworkslaterbecamestandardfeaturesinthe
alchemicalcorpus.Inadditiontoalchemy,Llull'snamealsobecameassociatedwithmagicandKabbalahwithworkssuch
asDeauditucabbalisticoattributedtohim.[109]

ThealchemicalworksofGEBERwereextremelyinfluential,andhistheoryofsulphurandmercurywas predominant until

Paracelsusmodifieditinthebeginningofthesixteenthcentury.WorksattributedtoGeberincludeOftheinvestigationor
search of perfection and Of the sum of perfection, or of the perfect magistery.[110]The name Geber is taken from the
ArabscholarJabiribnHayyan(ca.721ca.815).

BASILIUSVALENTINUS was supposed to have been a fifteenth century Benedictine monk, to whose name a number of
alchemicaltractatesareascribed.
ThemostinfluentialoftheseareDieZwolfSchlussel,orTwelveKeyes,[111]firstpublishedin1599,andTheTriumphant
ChariotofAntimony(1604),firstpublishedinEnglishin1660.ThetrueidentityofBasiliusValentinushasnotbeensettled,
but it has been suggested that he was a late sixteenth century author, possibly the first publisher of Valentinus' works,
JohannTholde.

BERNARDOFTREVISAN, the Earl of Treviso in Italy, or Trevisanus (b. ca. 1460) was another earlyinfluentialalchemist,
whose works include La parole delaissee (1618), Le Text d'Alchymie et le SongeVerd (1695), and Treatise of the
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PhilosophersStone(1684).[112]

NICOLASFLAMEL(13301418)wasapublicwriterandartisanwhoafterhisdeathbecameregardedasanalchemist,who
togetherwithhiswife,Perrenelle,supposedlysucceededintransmutingmercuryintogoldin1382.ThereasonthatFlamel
cametoberegardedasanalchemistprobablystemsfromthefactthatheleftalargelegacyafterhisdeathandbecause
hehadorderedcertainallegoricalmotifstobepaintedonarcadesatthecemeteryoftheHolyInnocents.[113]According
to the legend, he had bought a rare manuscript entitled the "Book of Abraham the Jew," in the ritual referred to as the
"figuresofAbrahamtheJew."Thismanuscriptallegedlycontainedsevenemblematicdrawingsthatoutlinedthealchemical
process.AnumberofversionsofwhatclaimtobeAbraham'sfigureshavebeenpublishedcalledtheHieroglyphicFigures
ofFlamel.[114]

The PHILALETHES can refer to either Eugenius Philalethes, or to Eirenaeus Philalethes but it is more likely that the
reference is to the former, as the "Cosmopolitan," which is also mentioned in the ritual, is another name for the latter.
EugeniusPhilalethes was the pseudonym of Thomas Vaughan (16211665),[115] well known for his translation of the
Fame and Confession of the Fraternity of the R. C. published in 1652. His alchemical works include Anthroposophia
Theomagica, Anima Magica Abscondita,andMagiaAdamica,all three first published in 1650.[116]Vaughan's alchemical
writings were influential not only in England, but on the Continent as well, and his works were translated into French,
GermanandLatin.Theemphasisofhisalchemicalworkismoreonthespiritual,ormetaphysical,sidethanonthepurely
physical. As such, the alchemy of Vaughan can, at least to a certain extent, be seen as a form of mysticism. Eirenaeus
Philalethes, on the other hand, was probably the pseudonym of the influential scientist George Starkey (16281665).
StarkeywasborninBermudaandeducatedatHarvardCollege.In1650heimmigratedtoLondoninordertocollaborate
with one of the most important persons in the development of modern chemistry Robert Boyle (16271691).[117] The
alchemyofStarkey(ifindeedheisthetrueauthorbehindthenameofEirenaeusPhilalethes)differsconsiderablyfromthat
ofhisnamesakeEugeniusPhilalethesinthatitfocusesonthephysicalorchemicalaspectofthealchemicalwork.[118]

JEAN D'ESPAGNET (ca. 15641637) was an influential alchemist, and is quoted at length by Joseph Pernety in his Les
Fables Egyptiennes et Grecques (1786). His alchemical works include La Philosophie Naturelle and Arcanum Hermeticae,
bothofwhichwereincludedintheinfluentialcollectionBibliothecaChemicaCuriosa(1702).[119]

Finally,wehaveCOUNT MICHAEL MAIER (15691622), the German alchemist and Rosicrucian apologist. Maier moved in
highcirclesandwas,amongotherthings,theconfidantoftheEmperorRudolphIIandafrequentattendeeatthecourtof
James I. His most famous alchemical treatise, considered to be a classic of alchemical literature, is Atalanta Fugiens
publishedin1618.Theworkcontainsfiftyemblematicfiguresillustratingthealchemicalprocess.[120]

Whentheinstructionisdone,theritualendsinthefollowingmanner:

Themostwisethensays:Behold,wiseAcademician,whatthesenior
SurveillantandIhavetosayforyourinstruction.Weurgethatyoustudy
diligently,andwewishyoumuchhappinessinallthatyoudo,andwish
youarapidprogressinthatsciencewhichisthesoleandhonorableaim
ofMasonry.[121]

Thelodgeisthenrituallyclosed,andasalastactallpresentsaytogether:"Glory,laudandhonortotheCreatorpeace,
benedictionandprosperitytotrueMasons!"[122]

TheritualofTrueMasonisanexcellentexampleofhowalchemicaldoctrinesaretransmittedthroughaMasonicritualof
initiation.Thealchemicaldoctrinestransmitted,especiallyduringtheexplanationofthetracingboardandtheinstruction,
summarize in a condensed form the most important symbols and theories of eighteenthcentury alchemy.[123]
Furthermore,thelistofalchemicalauthorsattheendoftheritualcontainsthemostcelebratedandinfluentialnamesin
alchemicalliterature.Assuch,theritualoftheTrueMasonwastrulyinitiaticinthesensethatitinitiateditsadeptsinthe
Arcanumofalchemy.Thiswouldnaturallydependonwhetherornotthecandidatealreadywasfamiliarwithalchemy.
NOTES
[1]InMasonicliteratureRiteisoftenusedsynonymouslywithsystemandtheFrenchregime.ForagoodoverviewofthelargenumberofMasonic

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Rites,seeDanielLigou,DictionnairedelaFrancMafonnerie(Paris:PressesUniversitairesdeFrance,1987),pp.102135.FormodernAngloSaxon
highdegrees,seeKeithB.Jackson,BeyondtheCraft(London:LewisMasonic,1980).
[2]Thehistoryofhighdegreesandritesoftheeighteenthcenturyisanotoriouslydifficultsubject,soIwilllimitthisintroductiontoamere
historicaloutline.Itshould,however,benotedthatalargepartoftheliteraturedealingwiththissubjectisoutdatedduetorecentresearch.
ExamplesofsuchoutdatedliteratureareJamesF.Smith,"TheRiseoftheEcossaisDegrees".ProceedingsoftheOhioChapterofResearch,vol.10
(Dayton,Oh.:OtterbeinPress,1965)ArthurE.Waite,TemplarOrdersinFreemasonry(Edmonds,Wash.:SureFirePress,1991)and,toalesser
extent,ReneLeForestier,LaFrancMaonnerieTempliereetOccultisteauxXVIIIeetXIXeSiecles(Paris:AubierMontaigne,1970).
[3]PierreMollier,"L'OrdreEcossaisaBerlinde1742a1751,"RenaissanceTraditionelle,n.131132(2002),pp.21727.SeealsoAlainBernheim,
"DidEarly'High'orEcossaisDegreesOriginateinFrance?"Heredom,vol.5(1996),pp.87113.
[4]AndreKervellaandPhilippeLestienne,"Unhautgradetemplierdansdesmilieurxstuardistesen1750:L'OrdreSublimedesChevaliersElus"
RenaissanceTraditionelle,n.112(1997),pp.229ff.
[5]ForarepresentativecollectionofchivalricandTemplarrituals,seePierreGirardAugry,RituelsSecretsdelaFrancMaonnerieTempliereet
Chevaleresque(Paris:EditionsDervy,1996).
[6]"LodgeofAntiquity(thenN.1)made9BrnintoScotsMasters""5MMswere'Rais'dScotsMasters'inNo137,Bristol""5BrnmadeScots
MastersatSalisbury:'A.C.F.Jackson,RoseCroix(Addlestone,Surry:LewisMasonic,1993),p.219.
[7]Bernheim,"Early'High'orEcossaisDegrees'pp.3132.ThefirstreferencetoEcossaisMasonryfoundinFrenchexposuresisin[Abbe
Larudan?],LesFrancsMaonsEcrases(1746/47)inHarryCarr,EarlyFrenchExposures(London:QuatuorCoronatiLodgeNO.2076,1971),pp.
292,30714.
[8]TheOrationwaspublishedanumberoftimes,anditwassenttoCardinaldeFleuryonMarch20,1737.TwoofRamsay'sletterstoFleuryare
reproducedinAlbert
Lantoine,LaFrancMafonnerieEcossaiseenFrance(Paris:EmileNourry,1930).OnRamsay,seeinparticular"LePseudoCreateurdesHauts
Grades:LeChevalierdeRamsay'pp.1749,intheabovementionedworkbyLantoineandAlbertLantoine,HistoiredelaLaFrancMaonnerie
Franaise(Paris:EmileNourry,1927),pp.11324.
[9]"Apartirdumomentoul'onetablissaitunrapportentreFrancMaonnerieetChevalerie,desurcroitsicetteChevalerieetaitcelledescroisades,
lesTempliersn'etaient
plusloin!Enfait,ilsapparaissantdjenfiligranedansleDiscoursdeRamsay.Eneffetdanslecontextedescroisades,quid'autrequ'aux
Templierspeuts'appliquerladfensedeCettepromessesacre[qui]ntoitpasunsermentexcrable,commeonledbite,,?"PierreMollier,"Des
FrancsMaonsauxTempliers:Aperussurlaconstitutiond'unelgendeauSicledesLumires":inSymbolesetMythesdanslesmouvements
initiatiquesetsotriques,(Paris:ARlES,Arch/LaTabled'Emeraude,1999),p.97
[10]J.A.M.Snoek,"ManuscriptVersionofHerault'sRitual"inR.Caron,J.Godwin,W.Hanegraaf,andJ.L.ViellardBaron,eds.,Esoterisme,
GnosesetImaginaireSymbolique:MelangesoffertsaAntoineFaivre(Leuven:Peeters,2001),p.516.
[11]Uptillrecently,itwasassumedthattheclaimthatvonHundhadbeeninitiatedintoaTemplardegreeinFrancewasafabrication.However,
newfindingshaveshown
thatthereactuallyexistedaTemplardegreeinFrancepriortotheformationoftheRiteoftheStrictObservance.Forinformationonthisritual,see
KervellaandLestienne,"Unhautgradetemplier'RenaissanceTraditionelle.SeealsoSnoek,"Herault'sRitual."
[12]AlainBernheim,"JohannAugustStarck:TheTemplarLegendandtheClerics":Heredom,vol.9(2001),p.252.
[13]TheinclusionofUnknownSuperiorsisarecurrentfeatureinmanylaterwesternesotericsocietiesandorders.Forinstance,theMahatmasof
theTheosophicalSocietytheSecretChiefsoftheHermeticOrderoftheGoldenDawn,theA:.A:.(usuallyunderstoodastheOrderoftheSilver
StarorArgenteumAstrum)andeventhenewreligiousmovementOrderoftheSolarTemple.
[14]TheJacobiteinterestinFreemasonrydidnotpreventtheCatholicChurchfromtakinganegativepositionagainstFreemasonry.In1738and
1751twopapalbullswereissuedagainstFreemasonry:InEminentiApostolatusSpeculaofClemensXIIandProvidasRomanorumPontificumof
BenedictXIV:ForthetextofInEminentiinLatinandEnglishseeAlecMellor,OurSeparatedBrethrentheFreemasons(London:GeoergeG.Harap,
1964),pp.15660.
[15]SeeHaroldV.B.Voorhis,TheStoryoftheScottishRiteofFreemasonry,rev.ed.(Richmond,Va.:MacoyPub.,1980)PaulNaudon,Histoire,
RituelsetTuileurdesHautsGradesMalonniques(Paris:EditionsDervy,1993)AlbertLantoine,LaFrancMalonnerieEcossaiseenFrance(Paris:
EmileNourry,1930)JonathanBlanchard,ScotchRiteMasonryIllustrated:TheCompleteRitualoftheAncientandAcceptedScottishRite,2vols.
(Chicago:EzraA.Cook,188788reprint1950).ThelatterworkisanantiMasonicexposurethatnonethelesscontainsaccurateaccountsofthe
CerneauversionoftheritualsoftheAASR.
[16]TheScottishRitecontainsmoreEcossaisdegreesthanTemplaronesonlythe30and32areTemplar.
[17]Chivalricthemescanbefoundinthe15,KnightoftheEastorSword,andinthe21,NoachiteorPrussianKnight.ForaMasonic
interpretationoftheritualsoftheScottishRite,seeAlbertPike,MoralsandDogmaoftheAncientandAcceptedScottishRiteofFreemasonry
(Washington,D.C.:SupremeCouncil,33,1871),andHenryClausen,ClausensCommentariesonMoralsandDogma(Washington,D.C.:Supreme
Council,33,1974).
[18]FormoreinformationontheKnightoftheSunDegree,seePierreMollier,"LeChevalierduSoleil:Contributional'etuded'unhautgrade
maonniqueenFrance
auXVIIIesiecle"(Paris:EcolePratiquedesHautesEtudes:VeSectionSciencesReligieuses,LaSorbonne,1992).
[19]OntheRectifiedScottishRite,seePierreNoel."DelaStricteObservanceauRiteEcossaisRectifie,"inActaMacionica,vol.5(1995),pp.91
126.ActaMacionicaispublishedfortheRegularGrandLodgeofBelgiumbythelodgeofresearchArsMacionicaN30inBrussels.
[20]"LesrituelsduRiteEcossaisRectifiefurentelaboresenquelquesvingtquatreannees,de1775a1809,quivirentuntravailintenseetune
miseenplacelaborieuse.Onpeutydistinguerquatreetapesessentielles:lesrituelsdeLyon[1778],ceauxdeWilhelmsbad[1782],laversion
'courte'de1785,laversion'longue'de1788,cettedernierecaracteriseeparuneimpregnationmartinezistequidevaitculminerdanslerituelde
1809.Rienn'empecherait,aujourd'hui,leslogesrectifieesdechoisirl'unoul'autredecesrituelssuccessifs,tousconformesaunmomentdela
penseedufondateur!",Noel"StricteObservance,"p.112.
[21]Noel"StricteObservance,"p.120.
[22]WouterJ.Hanegraaff,DictionaryofGnosisandWesternEsotericism,(Leiden,Boston:BrillAcademicPublishers,2005)[hereafterreferredto
asDGWE]pp.1,17073.
[23]C.B.C.S.istheabbreviationforChevaliersBienfaisantsdelaCiteSainte(KnightsBeneficentoftheHolyCity).
[24]InSweden,thisRiteisreferredtoas"detSvenskaSystemet"(theSwedishSystem).

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[25]ForarecentexposureoftheritualsoftheSwedishSystem,seeSverreDagMogstad,Frimureri:mysterier,fellesskap,personlighetsdannelse
(Oslo:Universitetsforlaget,1994).
[26]ForFreemasonryinSweden,seeinparticularAnteckningartillSvenskaFrimurerietsHistoria,2vols.,(Stockholm:MeddelandenfranStora
Landslogensarkivochbibliotek,1892,1898)MagnusKinnander,SvenskaFrimurerietsHistoria(Stockholm:BokforlagetNaturochKultur,1943)
CarlDahlgren,FrimurerietmedtilliimpningpaSverige(Stockholm:AktiebolagetH.KlemmingsAntikvariat,1925)HarryLenhammar,Medmurslev
ochsviird:Svenskafrimurarordenunder250ar(Delsbo:Asak,1985)J.A.M.Snoek,"Swedenborg,Freemasonry,andSwedenborgian
Freemasonry:AnOverview'ActaMacionica,vol.11(2001),pp.3847.
[27]FormoreinformationonEckleff,seeHansBerg,"CarlFriedrichEckleffsommiinniskaochfrimurare'ActaMasonicaScandinavica,vol.I
(1998).
[28]ThefourthdegreewaslatersplitintotwodegreesApprenticeofSt.Andrew(IV)andCompanionofSt.Andrew(V)foratotaloften
degrees.
[29]ThattheoriginsofFreemasonrymightbefoundinancientEgyptwashintedatbeforeEgyptianMasonryassuchappearedonthescene.See,
forinstance,Anonymous,LeSceauRompu(1745),inCarr,EarlyFrenchExposures,p.208.
[30]SeeIanAssman,MosestheEgyptian:TheMemoryofEgyptinWesternMonotheism(Cambridge,Mass.,London:HarvardUniversityPress,
1997)ErikHornung,TheSecretLoreofEgypt:ItsImpactontheWest(IthacaandLondon:CornellUniversityPress,2001)PaulRich&David
Merchant,"TheEgyptianInfluenceonNineteenthCenturyFreemasonry'Heredom,vol.9(2001),pp.3351.
[31]AntoineFaivre,AccesstoWesternEsotericism(Albany,N.Y.:SUNYPress,1994),p.80.
[32]SergeCaillet,Arcanes&RituelesdelaMaonnerieEgyptienne(Paris:Tredaniel,1994),p.17.
[33]KarlFriedrichvonKoppenandBernhardHymmenCrataRepoa.OderEinweyhungeninderaltengeheimenGesellschaftderEgyptischen
Preister,([Berlin]:1770).Eventhoughthetextwasnotpublishedunti11770,itwascirculatedinmanuscriptformpriortoitspublication.An
EnglishtranslationofthetextwasserializedinTheKneph:OfficialJournaloftheAntientandPrimitiveRiteofMasonry,vol.2,nos.1522(1882).
[34]DGWE,p.225.ForanEnglishtranslationoftheserituals,see"Cagliostro'sEgyptianRite'Collectanea,vol.5,part2,(1954),pp.165215.
[35]ChristopherMcIntosh,EliphasLeviandtheFrenchOccultRevival(London:Rider,1975),pp.3031.
[36]Caillet,Arcanes&Ritueles,p.19DGWE,pp.22527.
[37]"TheRiteofMizraim,"Collectanea,vol.6,part1(1955),p.17.
[38]EugenLennhoffandOskarPosner,InternationalesFreimaurerlexikon(Zurich,Leipzig,Wien:AmaltheaVerlag,1932)pp.1,04445.
Collectanea,vol.6,part1(1955),p.17givesanotherexplanationofthenameoftherite:"theRiteofMisraim,socalledbecauseitslegendgoes
backtotheancientEgyptianKing,Menes,whowasalsoknownasMizraim".
[39]Collectanea,vol.6,part1(1955).p.18.
[40]ForanEnglishtranslationoftheritualsoftheRiteofMisraim,see"TheRiteofMizraim".Collectanea.vol.6,part1(1955),andvol.7,part2
(1961),pp.120164.
[41]FormoreinformationonthecheckeredhistoryoftheRiteofMemphis,seeAlbertPikeandWilliamC.Cummings,"TheSpuriousRitesof
MemphisandMisraim,"Heredom,vol.9(2001),pp.14797.
[42]ForanEnglishtranslationoftheritualsoftheRiteofMemphis,see"TheRiteofMemphis'Collectanea,vol.6,part2(1956),andvol.7,part1
(1958),pp.6995.
[43]RichandMerchant,"EgyptianInfluence'p.34.
[44]Formoreinformation,seetheindispensableworkbyLeForestier,LaFrancMaonnerieOccultiste.SeealsoDGWE,pp.33234.
[45]DGWE,p.935.
[46]DGWE,pp.33234,93135.
[47]ItisoftenstatedthatDomAntoineJosephPernety(17161796)wasthefoundernotonlyoftheRiteHermetiqued'Avignon,butalsoofthe
RiteEcossaisphilosophique.Modernscholarship,however,contestthisassumption.SeeSnoek,"Swedenborg,(2003),p.2832.
[48]Snoek,"Swedenborg'p.32.
[49]ForatranslationofalltheritualsoftheriteintoEnglish,seeCollectanea,vol.6,part3(1957).
[50]Snoek,"Swedenborg'p.68.
[51]ForadetailedaccountofthedevelopmentofthedegreesystemoftheRiteEcossaisphilosophiqueseeSnoek,"Swedenborg,Appendix2.
[52]Snoek,"Swedenborg'p.70.
[53]FormoreinformationonDerOrdendesGuldenundRosenkreutzesseechaptersixofChristopherMcIntosh,TheRosicrucians:TheHistory,
MythologyandRitualsofanOccultOrder(YorkBeach,Me.:SamuelWeiser,1997).
[54]ForanintroductiontothealchemyofDerOrdendesGoldundRosenkreuzesseeChristopherMcIntosh,"TheAlchemyandtheGoldund
Rosenkreuz'inZ.R.W.M.vonMartels(ed.)AlchemyRevisited:ProceedingsoftheInternationalConferenceontheHistoryofAlchemyatthe
UniversityofGroningen1719April1989(Leiden,NewYork:E.J.Brill,1990),pp23744.
[55]ChristopherMcintoshshowedinTheRoseCrossandtheAgeofReason(Leiden:E.J.Brill,1992)thattherelationshipofDerOrdendesGold
undRosenkreuzestotheantiAufklarung(antiEnlilghtenment)movementismorecomplicatedthanfirstmeetstheeye.
[56]McIntosh,TheRosicrucians,pp.6566.
[57]McIntosh,TheRosicrucians,p.68.
[58]McIntosh,TheRosicrucians,p.66.
[59]Foradescriptionoftheseconddegreeritufll(Theoreticus),seeMcintosh,TheRosicrucians,pp.7274.
[60]AlainBernheim,"TheOrderofKilwinningorScotchHeredom,thePresentRoyalOrderofScotland:'Heredom,vol.8(1999/2000),p.94.
[61]ForinformationonthehistoryofR.O.S.,seeR.S.Lindsay,ed.A.J.B.Milborne,TheRoyalOrderofScotland(Perthshire,Scotland:Wm.
Culross&Son,19702nded.,1972),andGeorgeDraffenofNewington,TheRoyalOrderofScotlandTheSecondHundredYears(Edinburgh:
Howie&Seath,1977).AlainBernheim,"TheOrderofKilwinningorScotchHeredom,thePresentRoyalOrderofScotland".Heredom..vol.8
(1999/2000),pp.93130.
[62]Thelegendaryhistoryismentionedintheritualoftheorder.TheRoyalOrderofScotland(N.P.:N.P.,N.D.[1910?]),p.53.
[63]ForinformationonthehistoryoftheRoseCroixofHeredom,KnightofthePelicanandEagleDegree,seeJackson,RoseCroix,pp.2430.
[64]Jackson,RoseCroix,p.27.
[65]TheversionHarodimisespeciallyfoundinFrenchversionsoftheritual.ItisaHebrewword,thepluralofHarod:oneWhorulesoractsasan
Overseer.Jackson,RoseCroix,pp.67.
[66]AccordingtoJackson,thefollowingsuggestionshavebeenofferedtothemeaningofthewordHeredom:Heresdomus,theLatinforhouseof

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theheir,orfirstborn.
Hierosdomos,theGreekforholyhouse.HarEdom,theHebrewfor(Holy)MountainoftheEarth.Jackson,RoseCroix,p.7.
[67]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),pp.20726.IhavecheckedtheprintedEnglishtranslationagainstaFrenchmanuscriptversionoftheritual
KloSSXXVI.3,GON193.C.68,AcademiedesVraisMaons.IamindebtedtoJ.A.M.Snoekforatranscriptofthismanuscript.
[68]KlossXXVI.3,GON193.C.68,states"TresSage:'
[69]TheEnglishtranslationstates,"theapronshouldbeembroidered,alsoingold,thefollowingthreesetsofletters,C.D.,N.P.,A.M:'TheFrench
manuscript,howeverstatethatthelettersshouldbeDCNPAM(DewCreatNaturaProducitArsMultiplicat).
[70]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.209.
[71]ThepreparationroomisusuallycalledaChamberofReflection,whichisoftentotallydark.InFrenchritualsthereareusuallytWorooms:the
"Chambredepreparation"andthe"Chambreobscure:'Afterbeingprepared(thatis,addressedandproperlyclothed)inthefirstone,thecandidate
isplacedinthesecondroominordertomeditate.Usuallythereisacandleburningthere.
[72]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.210.
[73]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.211.
[74]AccordingtoKlossXXVI.3,GON193.C.68,thepasswordisMitraton.However,bothMetralonandMitratonareprobablycorruptionsof
Metraton,thegreatestoftheangelsinJewishmythsandlegends.ThefunctionofMetratondiffersinvariousstories,butthemostimportantones
areasGod'smediatorwithmenandasaguardianofheavenlysecrets.
[75]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.213.
[76]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.214.
[77]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.214.
[78]ThistheorywasoriginallyformulatedbyEmpedokles(ca.492ca.432B.C.).
[79]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.214.
[80]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.214.
[81]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.223.
[82]LyndyAbrahamwrites:"Thesecretfire(thefierywaterandthewateryfire)lieshiddeninthealchemist'srawmatter('gold')andisstirredinto
actionbytheapplicationoftheoutermaterialfire".LyndyAbraham,ADictionaryofAlchemicalImagery(Cambridge:CambridgeUniv.Press,
2001),p.76.
[83]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),pp.21415.
[84]Abraham,AlchemicalIm!!gery,p.137.
[85]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.216.
[86]ForinformationonHermesinwesternesotericism,seeAntoineFaivre,TheEternalHermes:FromGreekGodtoAlchemicalMagus(Grand
Rapids,Mich.:PhanesPress,1995).
[87]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.216.
[88]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),pp.21617.
[89]ForamoderntranslationofPicdsconclusionsintoEnglish,seeS.A.Farmer,SyncretismintheWest:Picos900Theses(Tempe,Ariz.:Medieval
&RenaissanceTexts&Studies,1998).
[90]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.217.
[91]Thethreephasesofthealchemicalprocess,Nigredo,Albedo,andRubedoaresometimesextendedtoincludeafourthphase,Citrinitas,orthe
yellowstage,consideredtotakeplacebetweenAlbedoandRubedo.ThiswasknownalreadybytheGreekalchemists.Forinstance,Mariathe
JewessisattributedbyZosimusofPanopolis(latethirdandearlyfourthcenturies)tobefamiliarwiththefourphasesofcolortransformation.
RaphaelPatai,"MariatheJewessFoundingMotherofAlchemy:'Ambix,vol.29,part3(Nov.1982),p.181.
[92]Abraham,AlchemicalImagery,p.5.
[93]ItistemptingtodrawaparallelbetweenthethreephasesofalchemyandthethreephasesofVanGennep'sRitesdePassage:Nigredo
CorrespondstothefirstphaseinwhichthecandidateisseparatedfromhisorherpreviousstateAlbedotothemarginalorliminalstateand
finally,Rubedototheaggregationphase,ortheincorporationofthecandidateintothenewphase.
[94]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.218.
[95]Abraham,AlchemicalImagery,p.68.
[96]ThePrimaMateriapresupposesamonistictheoryofmetals,inwhichallsubstancesarebelievedtobebasicallyone.TheGreekalchemist
ChymesiscitedbyZosimusashavingdeclared,"OneistheAll,anditisthroughitthattheAllisborn.OneistheAll,andiftheAlldoesnotcontain
all,theAllwillnotbeborn".Patai,"MariatheJewess'p.182.
[97]ThesefourqualitiesCorrespondtothetheoryofGalen(b.131)inwhichthehumanbodyismadeupoffourhumours:blood(heat)bile(cold)
blackbile(dryness),
andphlegm(moisture).
[98]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),pp.21819.
[99]OnParacelsusseeAndrewWeeks,ParacelsusSpeculativeTheoryandtheCrisisoftheEarlyReformation(Albany,N.Y.:SUNYPress,1997)for
hisalchemicalwritingsseeArthurEdwardWaite)ed.,TheHermetic&AlchemicalWritingsofParacelsustheGreat(London:Elliott,1894).Onthe
impactofParacelsismoneighteenthcenturyFranceseeAllenG.Debus,Chemistry,AlchemyandtheNewPhilosophy15501700(London:
VariorumReprints,1987),pp.3654.SeealSoAllenG.Debus,TheFrenchParacelsians(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,1991).
[100]Abraham,AlchemicalImagery)pp.17677.
[101]Thetheoryoftwoprinciplesofmetals,isgenerallyattributedtotheArabalchemistGeber,orpseudoJabiribnHayyan.
[102]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.219.
[103]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957)p.221.
[104]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),pp.22122.
[105]Infull,thepassagereads,"Whatisaboveislikethatwhichisbelow,andwhatisbelowislikethatwhichisabove,"orinLatin,"Quodest
InferiusestsicutquodestSuperius,etquodestSuperiusestsicutquodestInferius."
[106]DGWE,pp.1023.
[107]MS.Franais2018.BibliothequeNationale.
[108]MS.Sloane3778.BritishLibrary.
[109]DGWE,pp.69496.

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[110]ForanEnglishtranslationoftheseworks,seeGeber,TheAlchemicalWorksofGeber(YorkBeach:SamuelWeiser,1994).
[111]ArthurE.Waite,ed.,TheHermeticMuseum(London:JamesElliotandCo.,1893),vol.1,pp.31157.
[112]ReprintedinStantonJ.Linden,TheAlchemyReader(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,2003),pp.13640.
[113]DGWE,pp.37071.
[114]SeealsoNicholasFlamel,"AShortTract,orPhilosophicalSummery"inTheHermeticMuseum,vol.1,pp.14147.Livredesfigures
hieroglyphiqueswasfirstpublishedin1612byArnaulddelaChevalerieasaFrenchtranslationofapresumablylostLatinoriginaltext.ALatin
manuscriptversionexists,however,atthearchivesoftheSwedishGrandLodgeofFreemasonry.ASwedishtranslationbyKjellLekebyfromthe
LatinmanuscriptwaspublishedasNicholasFlamel,BokenomdeHieroglyfiskaBilderna(Stockholm:Vertigo,PhilosophiskaForlaget,1996).
[115]FormoreinformationonThomasVaughan,seethebiographicalintroductiontoAlanRudrum,ed.,TheWorksofThomasVaughan(Oxford:
ClarendonPress,1984),andDGWE,pp.1,15758.
[116]Theseareincludedtogetherwith"APerfectandFullDiscoverieoftheTrueCoelumTerrae,orTheMagican'sHeavenlyChaos,andFirstMatter
ofallThings"in
ThomasVaughan,TheMagicalWritingsofThomasVaughan(EugeniusPhilalethes)(London:GeorgeRedway,1888).Thesearealsoincludedin
Rudrum,TheWorksofThomasVaughan.
[117]Boylewasalsodeeplyinvolvedwithalchemy.SeeMichaelHunter,ed.,RobertBoyleReconsidered(Cambridge:CambridgeUniv.Press,
1994)DGWE,pp.199201Linden,TheAlchemyReader,pp.23442.
[118]EirenaeusPhilalethes,"AnOpenEntrancetotheClosedPalaceoftheKing,"inTheHermeticMuseum,vol.2,pp.15998Eirenreus
Philalethes"TheSecretoftheImmortalLiquorcalledAlkahestorIgnisAqua,"inEirenaeusPhilalethes&others,CollectaneaChemica(London:
VincentStuart,1963).SeealsoDGWE,pp.108283,andLinden,TheAlchemyReader,pp.21121.
[119]JeanJacquesManget,BibliothecaChemicaCuriosa(ColoniaeAllobrogum,1702).
[120]OtheralchemicalworksbyMaierincludeArcanaarcanissima([Oppenheim?]London:1614)Examenfucorum(Francofurti:1617)Tripus
Aureus(Francofurti:1618).HisRosicrucianapologeticworksincludeSilentiumpostclamores(Francofurti:1617)andthecelebratedThemisaurea
(Francofurti:1618),translatedintoEnglishasThemisAurea:TheLawsoftheFraternityoftheRosieCrosse(London:ForN.Brooke,1656).Fora
thoroughdiscussionofMaier'salchemicalandRosicrucianpursuits,seeHerewardTilton,TheQuestforthePhoenix(Berlin&NewYork:Walterde
Gruyter,2003).
[121]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.222.
[122]Collectanea,vol.6,part3(1957),p.223.
[123]Foranoverviewofhowalchemyofthesixteenthtoeighteenthcenturiesdiffersfromearlierformsofalchemy,seeDGWE,pp.4250.Fora
goodgeneralintroductiontoalchemy,seeBruceT.Moran,DistillingKnowledge(Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress,2005).
EDITOR'SNOTE:This paper is chapter 5 of Henrik Bogdan's book Western Esotericism and Rituals of Initiation, published by State University of
NewYorkPress,SUNYSeriesinWesternEsotericTraditions,in2006.

Since1991,theScottishRiteResearchSociety(SRRS)hasbecomeoneofthemostdynamicforcesinMasonic
researchtoday,pursuingapublicationprogramemphasizingqualitybothincontentandphysicalform.Whileithas
its administrative offices at the House of the Temple in Washington, D.C., it is open to all. We encourage anyone
interested in deepening his or her understanding of Freemasonry to become a member and make the SRRS your
researchsociety.
HeredomistheflagshippublicationoftheScottishRiteResearchSocietyandhasbeensentannuallytomembers
since 1992. It is a collection of the finest essays on contemporary and historical Freemasonry emphasizing the
ScottishRite.
Each year the Scottish Rite Research Society publishes a volume of insightful, scholarly, and thoughtprovoking
articles on all aspects of Freemasonry, but with a general emphasis on the Scottish Rite. Past volumes include
studies on biography, bibliography, the evolution and meaning of Masonic rituals, history, kabbalah, hermeticism,
Masonicpoetry,PrinceHallAffiliation,symbolism,andmuchmore.Eachvolumeisusuallybetween150250pages,
andmaybecolorillustrated.(OnevolumeissentfreeeachyeartoduescurrentScottishRiteResearchSocietymembers.)
Heredom [orig. unknown] is a significant word in "high degree" Freemasonry, from French Rose Croix rituals where it refers to a mythical
mountain in Scotland, the legendary site of the first such Chapter. Possible explanations include: Hierosdomos, Greek for Holy House, Harodim,
HebrewforoverseersHeredum,Latinforoftheheirs.
ForfurtherinformationaboutMembershipBenefitsandHowtoJoin,pleasegoto:ScottishRiteResearchSociety

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