RoelantHollander
Registered User
Dear Brethren,
I am writing an essay about Freemasonry. Naturally the symbols that 'decorate' the Masonic Temple will be part of it. I am intrigued bij the mapping of the Zodiac signs on the Temple walls or ceiling. When I was looking into (reading a couple of essays, a few references in several books) it, I was surprised I could not find as much about it as one could about other symbols. At first I presumed how they were mapped in the Temple would be 'standard'. When I started browsing the web for Temple photos, not every Temple had the same mapping. So far I came across 7 different mappings.
Pretty much all Temples (so far except one) use the same traditional sequence: Aries (The Ram) Taurus (The Bull) Gemini (The Twins) Cancer (The Crab) Leo (The Lion) Virgo (The Maiden) Libra (The Scales) Scorpio (The Scorpion) Sagittarius (The Archer) Capricorn (The Goat) Aquarius (The Water-bearer) and Pisces (The Fish). Traditionally this order is placed counter-clockwise, but I noticed in some Temples the direction is opposite, clockwise.
The Zodiac's starting point (Tropical Zodiac) is generally set to 0 degrees at Aries. The following placements of Aries I have come across:
In many esoteric traditions Aries represent Spring and the Spring Equinox, and is Spring associated with the wind direction East. Some of the listed mappings would thus seem more logical than others. Still, the decorating of the Masonic Temple is never 'random'.
Dear Brethren, I hope you can tell me what kind of 'mappings' you have come across ... Does anyone of you have any idea why these differences?
Thank you.
F&S, Roelant Hollander
Lodge 303, 'De Gulden Regel' (The Golden Rule), The Netherlands.
I am writing an essay about Freemasonry. Naturally the symbols that 'decorate' the Masonic Temple will be part of it. I am intrigued bij the mapping of the Zodiac signs on the Temple walls or ceiling. When I was looking into (reading a couple of essays, a few references in several books) it, I was surprised I could not find as much about it as one could about other symbols. At first I presumed how they were mapped in the Temple would be 'standard'. When I started browsing the web for Temple photos, not every Temple had the same mapping. So far I came across 7 different mappings.
Pretty much all Temples (so far except one) use the same traditional sequence: Aries (The Ram) Taurus (The Bull) Gemini (The Twins) Cancer (The Crab) Leo (The Lion) Virgo (The Maiden) Libra (The Scales) Scorpio (The Scorpion) Sagittarius (The Archer) Capricorn (The Goat) Aquarius (The Water-bearer) and Pisces (The Fish). Traditionally this order is placed counter-clockwise, but I noticed in some Temples the direction is opposite, clockwise.
The Zodiac's starting point (Tropical Zodiac) is generally set to 0 degrees at Aries. The following placements of Aries I have come across:
- East (counter-clockwise)
- South-East (counter-clockwise movement)
- South-East (clockwise movement)
- South-Southwest (clockwise)
- North-West (clockwise movement)
- West-Northwest (clockwise movement)
- North-East (counter-clockwise movement)
In many esoteric traditions Aries represent Spring and the Spring Equinox, and is Spring associated with the wind direction East. Some of the listed mappings would thus seem more logical than others. Still, the decorating of the Masonic Temple is never 'random'.
Dear Brethren, I hope you can tell me what kind of 'mappings' you have come across ... Does anyone of you have any idea why these differences?
Thank you.
F&S, Roelant Hollander
Lodge 303, 'De Gulden Regel' (The Golden Rule), The Netherlands.