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Article ON FREEMASONRY. THE NUMBER THREE. ← Page 8 of 16 →
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On Freemasonry. The Number Three.
elements , Vulcan—Juno- —Neptune ; in the prolific power which produces fruits , & c , Bacchus—Ceres—Vertumnus ; and in the infernal regions , Pluto—Proserpine—Minos . In subsequent ages , the Emperor Julian , who was not ignorant of the Christian ' s trinity , constituted a new triad , which he called Sol—Monimus—Azizus .
The notion of a triple intelligence so far pervaded the mythology of Greece aud Rome , that it became of universal application ; for the number three was supernal , and it was not considered possible for any system , either of philosophy or divinity , to be constructed without its assistance . Thus , Jupiter was distinguished by the three-forked
lightning ; Neptune , by the trident ; Pluto , by Cerberus the triple-headed dog ; while the caduceus of Mercury assumed a triform character , either by the central circle , with upper and lower semicircles attached , or by the wand flanked with serpents' heads . Sometimes this appendage was represented merely as a winged pedestal surmounted by the two
intersecting serpents , which still embodied a complete triad ; for the serpents formed a circle and lunette , to represent the sun and moon , and the wings were the hovering spirit of
the elements . Hence Homer terms this symbolical instrument " the golden three-leaved rod . " There was also a triad of Graces , called Aglia—Thalia—Euphrosyne ; another of Fates , named Clotho—Lachesis—Atropos ; of Sirens , called Parthenope—Ligea—Leucosia ; and of Furies , who were denominated Alecto—Tisiphone—Megara . Even the
obscene deities were invested with the same dignity . Thus they had a triad of Priapus—Phallus—Fascinus ; of Harpies , called Aello—Ocypete—Celeno ; and of Gorgons , named Medusa—Stheno—Euryale . " In the 54 th plate of Montfaucon ' s Supplement , in his account of Gaulic Antiquities , may be seen assemblages of deities in trile groups . In
p one of these groups it is not a little remarkable that the centre figure hath shoes on his feet , as if of superior dignity ; the other two figures , as if subordinate , are barefooted . In Gruter , too , may be seen deities in triple groups , worshipped by the ancient Germans which they call Mairse , and one is thus inscribedin honorem domus divince diis
, Mairabus . " Again , the Orphic Cronus was compounded of a man , a lion , and a serpent ; the Chimasra , of a serpent , a lion , and a goat ; and while Hecate was represented with three human bodies conjoined , Orion was reputed to have had three
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On Freemasonry. The Number Three.
elements , Vulcan—Juno- —Neptune ; in the prolific power which produces fruits , & c , Bacchus—Ceres—Vertumnus ; and in the infernal regions , Pluto—Proserpine—Minos . In subsequent ages , the Emperor Julian , who was not ignorant of the Christian ' s trinity , constituted a new triad , which he called Sol—Monimus—Azizus .
The notion of a triple intelligence so far pervaded the mythology of Greece aud Rome , that it became of universal application ; for the number three was supernal , and it was not considered possible for any system , either of philosophy or divinity , to be constructed without its assistance . Thus , Jupiter was distinguished by the three-forked
lightning ; Neptune , by the trident ; Pluto , by Cerberus the triple-headed dog ; while the caduceus of Mercury assumed a triform character , either by the central circle , with upper and lower semicircles attached , or by the wand flanked with serpents' heads . Sometimes this appendage was represented merely as a winged pedestal surmounted by the two
intersecting serpents , which still embodied a complete triad ; for the serpents formed a circle and lunette , to represent the sun and moon , and the wings were the hovering spirit of
the elements . Hence Homer terms this symbolical instrument " the golden three-leaved rod . " There was also a triad of Graces , called Aglia—Thalia—Euphrosyne ; another of Fates , named Clotho—Lachesis—Atropos ; of Sirens , called Parthenope—Ligea—Leucosia ; and of Furies , who were denominated Alecto—Tisiphone—Megara . Even the
obscene deities were invested with the same dignity . Thus they had a triad of Priapus—Phallus—Fascinus ; of Harpies , called Aello—Ocypete—Celeno ; and of Gorgons , named Medusa—Stheno—Euryale . " In the 54 th plate of Montfaucon ' s Supplement , in his account of Gaulic Antiquities , may be seen assemblages of deities in trile groups . In
p one of these groups it is not a little remarkable that the centre figure hath shoes on his feet , as if of superior dignity ; the other two figures , as if subordinate , are barefooted . In Gruter , too , may be seen deities in triple groups , worshipped by the ancient Germans which they call Mairse , and one is thus inscribedin honorem domus divince diis
, Mairabus . " Again , the Orphic Cronus was compounded of a man , a lion , and a serpent ; the Chimasra , of a serpent , a lion , and a goat ; and while Hecate was represented with three human bodies conjoined , Orion was reputed to have had three