DUTY:

Fulfill your destiny and re-create yourself by

reformation, repentance and enlarging your

knowledge.

FOR REFLECTION:

Is it possible to find your way to heaven alone?

IMPORTANT SYMBOLS:

Sun, moon, brazen serpent, Pythagorean right

triangle.

The Twenty-fifth Degree

"Knight of the Brazen Serpent"

~ Summary ~

This degree teaches the virtue of hospitality. One who

shows hospitality to guests is obliged not to

differentiate race, nationality or religion from whoever

knocks at his door. The nature of Masonry is to heal

those who are in distress from moral collapses,

psychological crises, diseases by superstitions and

ignorance. To save our fellows from these, to break

the chains which represent moral slavery, to set men

free, to be faithful and kind in every respect is the

compulsory thing to do. We fulfill our destiny by

re-creating ourselves, by enlarging our knowledge.

The apron is white, lined and edged with black; the

 white side spotted with golden stars, and the  black

 side with silver ones. Those on the white side

represent, by their positions and distances, the

 Pleiades, the Hyades, Orion and Capella.  Those on

the black side represent the stars of Perseus, Scorpio,

and Ursa Major. In the middle of the white side is a

triangle in a glory, in the center of which is the name

of Deity in Phoenician characters. On the flap is a

 serpent in a circle, with his tail in his mouth; and in the

circle so formed a scarab, or beetle. Over this is a

  star of gold, with the letter 'R' (for Regulus) over it;

on the right side of the apron another, with the letter

 'A' over it; and at the bottom of the apron another,

 with the letter 'F' over it. These last three letters

 have the same meaning as on the order explained

next.

The order is a crimson ribbon, on which are embroidered

the words, one under the other: OSIRIS, AHURA,

OSARSIPH, MOSES. Under them a bull, with a disk,

surmounted by a crescent between his horns. This is

worn from left to right; and across it, from right to left, is

 worn a broad, white, watered ribbon, on which are the

  words ISIS and CERES over a dog's head and a

 crescent. On the right breast, on the left breast, and at the

 crossing of these orders is a star of gold. Under that on

 the right breast is the letter 'A' (for Antares); and under

 that, at the crossing of the orders, the letter 'F' (for

 Formalhaut).

 On the crimson cordon is the word GEBURAH (valor) in

Hebrew; and on the white, the Hebrew word AUN (force

or strength). Together they mean the generative power

  and the productive power of nature.

The jewel is a Tau cross, of gold, surmounted by a circle  - the Crux Ansata of Egypt - round which a serpent is entwined. On the upright part of the cross is engraved the Hebrew word meaning 'he has suffered' or 'been wounded', and on the arms the Hebrew word given in the Bible for the brazen serpent, 'Nakhustan'.

  "Islam, or Mohammedanism as Pike calls it, has been one of the major religions in the world for over eleven centuries. In this degree, some Islamic doctrine is presented through the re-creation of initiation into the elite group among the Druse, a quasi-Islamic religious sect living in the Lebanon area; we encountered the Druse previously in the 22nd Degree, Prince of Libanus.

   The Druse are particularly known for secrecy and silence regarding their religious beliefs. Their vows of secrecy are so effective that very little is factually known of their beliefs. Any search for such an understanding is inhibited by the Druse practice of assuming the beliefs of the religion of their surroundings for the purpose of concealing their own doctrines; however, it is believed the Druse religious system is basically Islamic intermingled with Gnostic, Christian and Hebrew doctrine.

    Pike radically changed this degree in his reworking of the old ritual of the Rite. The character in the old ritual were Hebrew, that is, Moses, Aaron, Joshua and the candidate, a traveler. In Pike's version, the presiding officer is called Hakam, meaning wise or 'skilled' in Arabic, and the candidate represents an Ismaeli (a member of one of the major sects of Islam) in the area around Lebanon during the reign of Sayeed Abdullah, Great Emir of the Druses in 1450 A.D.. The candidate seeks initiation into the Druse system that he might become an Akal, a disciple of the Order of Truth. By 1450 the Druse and Ismaeli were clearly independent Islamic sects. Although it is believed the Druse do not recognize conversion to their faith, this may not have been known by Pike when he wrote the degree. In any event, history provides the general legend for the degree and Pike provides the details. In both cases, the emphasis is on the religion of Islam." (Hutchens, pp.214-215)