Masonic and Occult Symbols Illustrated

What is a symbol? Webster tells us that a symbol is “something that stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention, or accidental resemblance; esp: a visible sign of something invisible.” [Emphasis mine throughout] This is important to know because when we see a symbol we now know that there is a meaning BEHIND what is actually being shown since a symbol is “a visible sign of something invisible.” A related word, symbolism, is “the use of conventional or traditional signs in the representation of DIVINE BEINGS AND SPIRITS.” This, too, is important because many of these symbols also represent gods and goddesses.

Since this book will be covering many occultic and Masonic symbols, a few quotes from Masons about symbols would be in order. Masonic author, George H. Steinmetz, shares the following: “The symbols are not used in the commonly accepted meaning. It is ‘NOT BY EXACT RESEMBLANCE’; there IS a more recondite [meaning occult or esoteric] interpretation, as we suspected; it is one of ‘SUGGESTIONS OR ASSOCIATION IN THOUGHT.’

“There is a SECRET DOCTRINE in Freemasonry. That secret doctrine is concealed, rather than revealed, by the very lectures which, we are told, offer a ‘rational explanation’ of the ceremonies of initiation. If we were to accept these ‘rational explanations’ as final, and seek no further, Freemasonry would be a farce.” [Italics and caps in the original; Boldface added]

Carl Claudy, a Masonic writer, mentions that there are secrets inside secrets in symbolism.

He wrote: “CUT THROUGH THE OUTER SHELL AND FIND A MEANING; CUT THROUGH THAT MEANING AND FIND ANOTHER; UNDER IT IF YOU DIG DEEP ENOUGH YOU MAY FIND A THIRD, A FOURTH—WHO SHALL SAY HOW MANY TEACHINGS?”

In an Eastern Star book we are told: “A symbol is a figure of something intellectual, moral or spiritual, a visible object, REPRESENTING to the mind the semblance of SOMETHING WHICH IS NOT SHOWN but realized by association with it.”