THE THEOSOPHICAL SEAL a Study for the Student and the Non-Student
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THE THEOSOPHICAL SEAL A Study for the Student and the Non-Student BY ARTHUR М. COON WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY JAMES S. PERKINS THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO ALL SEARCHERS FOR WISDOM © 1958 THE THEOSOPHICAL PUBLISHING HOUSE ADYAR, MADRAS 20, INDIA CONTENTS INTRODUCTION by James S. Perkins ii PREFACE iv BOOK 1: A DIVINE LANGUAGE I Alpha and Omega 1 II Unity Becomes Duality 10 III Three: The Sacred Number 23 IV The Square and The Number Four 29 V The Cross 37 BOOK 2: THE TAU VI The Philosophic Cross 52 VII The Mystic Cross 57 VIII Victory 63 IX The Path 67 BOOK 3: THE SWASTIKA X Antiquity 75 XI The Whirling Cross 78 XII Creative Fire 81 BOOK 4: THE SERPENT XIII Myth and Sacred Scripture 85 XIV Symbol of Evil 92 XV Satan, Lucifer and the Devil 100 XVI Symbol of the Divine Healer 111 XVII Symbol of Wisdom 116 XXVIII The Serpent Swallowing its Tail 119 BOOK 5: THE INTERLACED TRIANGLES XIX The Pattern 130 XX The Number Three 134 XXI The Mystery of the Triangle 138 XXII The Hindu Trimurti 143 XXIII The Threefold Universe 148 XXIV The Holy Trinity 154 XXV The Work of the Trinity 161 XXVI The Divine Image 168 XVII “As Above, So Below” 174 XXVIII King Solomon’s Seal 180 XXIX Sixes and Sevens 187 BOOK 6: THE SACRED WORD XXX The Sacred Word 194 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 208 INTRODUCTION I am happy to introduce this present volume, the contents of which originally appeared as a series of articles in The American Theosophist. Mr. Arthur Coon’s careful analysis of the Theosophical Seal is highly recommended to the many readers who will find here a rich store of information concerning the meaning of the various components of the Seal. Symbology is one of the ancient keys unlocking the mysteries of man and Nature. H. P. Blavatsky in The Secret Doctrine refers again and again to the hidden meanings revealed in symbol to the one who possesses the keys of understanding. From time immemorial man has set his mark upon his work that thereby he might be known through his artifacts. Always that mark has revealed the person who made it, their nature, their uniqueness, and their striving after distant goals. Nations, too, have adopted “marks” symbolic of their purpose and destiny. And, however unnoticed or misunderstood they may be, the symbols remain as reminders of veiled truth to those who can see. The human being is always subject to the intimations of its divinity, and by signs and symbols it both seeks to express its perceptions of its inner realities and is awakened to them by the outer symbols. Modern psychology is making respectable, as well as valid, these inner promptings. Symbology is again becoming acceptable as a legitimate means for interpreting the true nature of things. For a symbol, whether expressed in someone’s dream, or as a trademark of a brand of soap, whether it be the Great Seal of a nation, or a form expressing the creation of a universe, is the visible representation of a reality, be it objective and external, or subjective and belonging to an inner realm of verities. To members of the Theosophical Society, as well as to countless non-members, the Theosophical Seal with its motto, “There is no Religion Higher than Truth”, is everywhere evidence of the Society’s existence. It is a distinguishing badge, representative of the character of the Theosophical Society. More than just a distinguishing mark, the Seal symbolizes the truths of the Ancient Wisdom which the ii Theosophical Movement was designed to promulgate in the modern world, and something of the mission and high destiny of the Society in the pure transmission of those truths. To those students who wish to probe more deeply into the symbolism of the Seal, this book will furnish a valuable guide. For the first time in our literature material has been brought together in a single work to trace the scattered threads of meaning that lie behind all of the elements of the Seal. Mr. Coon’s scholarship is thorough and painstaking, his analysis perceptive. In launching this volume it is hoped that a more profound understanding of the Seal and of the living Reality which it represents will be engendered in those who enter into its study. James S. Perkins iii PREFACE It is usually accepted that the first requisite in writing is a thorough knowledge of the subject. Indeed most experts on the art of writing hold that knowledge of the subject is a “must” in the list of a writer’s qualifications. He is certainly expected to speak with authority. However, upon the completion of this series of studies on the subject of symbolism, I can make no such claim. I am somewhat in the position of a student of plant life who goes to a strange forest in search of rare floral specimens. He may wander around, apparently aimlessly, stopping here and there to dig, to examine, to photograph—he may even get lost—until the end of the day forces him to gather up his implements, his notebook and sketches and go home. He looks over the result of his labors with misgivings. What more beautiful specimens has he missed? Why hadn’t he taken other directions—other paths? Of all the volumes that have been written, or are yet to be written, on the subject of symbolism, one must choose his material, take his own particular path, and find his own particular specimens. Many will be missed, and even those which he finds must bear the stamp of his own examination and his own point of view. He has no difficulty in finding or gathering enough material. His difficulty seems to be in trying to label or classify the maze of symbols which he finds everywhere. Take other branches of research, history, science, travel—these may be catalogued and classified under many headings. When he tries to use this method on symbolism—to tag symbols as to type, to pigeonhole them as to meanings, to catalog their sources—he enters a field difficult for the mind to follow. The reason for this is probably due to the fact that symbolism, like mysticism, deals with things intangible and illusive and which therefore seem to the mind to border upon unreality. The mind likes to deal with things and facts. Of course there are certain broad classifications of symbols such as allegory, fable, myth, sign, figure, etc., but none of these seems to fit my purpose. The tendency is always strong to make an outline and fit the material into it. There is always something satisfying about an index, and a sense of accomplishment. You get the feeling that, iv having made up a list of topics, your job is practically done. There is a feeling of security too, for if you stay on your predetermined plan, like a path through the woods, you are sure not to get lost. And yet this security, as in most fields of accomplishment, is the price of freedom. An outline can become a kind of fence or wall keeping out other ideas which may try to get in. It can also serve the purpose of keeping your own imagination from getting out. While if you keep on the path you will not get lost, you will surely miss a lot of things. So, aside from certain general headings, which serve more as guideposts than as an outline, these studies follow a rather winding path. I began my search through all available literature on the subject, reluctantly resisting the temptation to roam all over the field. Endless sorting, classifying, cutting, re-writing again and again resolved the material into some sequence of titles and subtitles. The question which comes first to mind is, what is a symbol? A homemade definition might read: a sign, mark, figure, picture or story which brings or suggests to the mind some fact or idea other than that which appears. Webster puts this thought more concisely: “that which suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention, etc.” This definition allows wide latitude. A thousand people might look at the same object, and each would be reminded of something utterly different. It is as if the object were a loadstone that drew forth a mental image out of the well of each person’s past experience. Take any object—a tree, for instance. The sight of a tree may invoke as many mental pictures as there are observers: a picnic in the park, Christmas morning with the children, the old homestead, a landmark, the lumber camp or the old sawmill, a nest of birds, the Garden of Eden, the family tree and the human race, ad infinitum. Besides the many types, sizes and species of trees, the idea “tree” becomes a composite symbol embracing or calling up endless mental images. This is a characteristic significant, as we shall see many times, of all symbols. Discoursing upon the subject of symbolism, Manly P. Hall writes, “A symbol always means what we think it means.” And again, “Symbols change their meanings according to the level of intelligence upon which the interpreter functions.” 1 1 Lectures on Ancient Philosophy, published in 1929, pp. 311, 315. v In a sense, we are living in a world of symbols. Everything around us is a visible manifestation of an idea which has its true home in another world. It is often difficult to draw a line between the symbol and the non-symbol.