The American patriot
Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense,
wrote also about the Freemasons, though less famously. Freemasonry, he stated, “is derived and is the remains of the religion
of the ancient Druids, who, like the magi of Persia
and the priests of Heliopolis in Egypt , were
priests of the sun.” I had never before
associated Masonry with the Druids, but the idea of the Masons, Druids and
Egyptian priests being connected through sun worship makes sense to anyone who
has toured the Masonic House of the Temple in Washington, D.C.—the building is
full of Egyptian iconography and symbolism, highlighted by the pair of giant
marble sphinxes flanking the structure’s entryway.
If
the Freemasons truly did derive from the Druids as Paine argued, and if the
Masons truly did design Washington, D.C. in such a way as to imbed their
secrets within that design as so many modern observers have suggested, then
shouldn’t there be evidence of Druidic influence in the city’s layout? It turns out there is, in a stunningly
obvious way.
As readers may know, the sun-worshipping
Druids marked and observed not only the equinoxes and solstices, but the
cross-quarter days as well. These
cross-quarter days fall between an equinox and solstice, and occur in early
February, May, August and November. In
many ways they are the most accurate way to mark the seasons—the height of
summer occurs in early August and the height of winter in early February. For the pastoral communities of the British Islands that were home to the Druids,
these days also mark important events in the calendar. For example, Samhain in early November was
the traditional time to slaughter livestock for consumption during the winter
months, while Beltane in early May was the time to drive cattle to their summer
grazing lands.
So do the Freemasons
observe these cross-quarter days? If
Thomas Paine is correct, logic would argue that modern Masons should follow the
practices of their Druidic antecedents.
As with many things with the Masons, the answer to this inquiry is
hidden in plain sight. Pictured below is a Masonic Royal Arch banner,
commemorating the Royal Arch degree—I will not get into this too deep other
than to say the Royal Arch degree’s importance is reflected in the fact that it
is the only degree in Freemasonry which is a prerequisite to becoming a Master
Mason.
Note the four symbols
portrayed on the four crests that surround the central Royal Arch degree
insignia: Clockwise from upper left we
have an eagle, a lion, a man and a bull.
Those familiar with astrology will recognize the signs of Scorpio (the
eagle being a symbol, along with the scorpion, of Scorpio), Leo, Aquarius (man being the water carrier) and Taurus. These
signs, in turn, directly correlate to the four cross-quarter days: Imbolc occurs at the height of Aquarius (that
is, at the precise midpoint of Aquarius’ Zodiacal cycle), Beltane at the height
of Taurus, Lunasa at the pinnacle of Leo, and Samhain at the apex of
Scorpio. So it appears Paine was correct
in his assertion. Masonic ritual marks
and celebrates the cross-quarter days just as the Druids did before them.
So, back to Washington , D.C.
and our seemingly-random layout of the White House and Jefferson Memorial
vis-à-vis the Capital building. Savvy
readers will not be surprised to learn that on Beltane the sun sets on the
horizon directly above the White House along Pennsylvania Avenue (White House
pasted into image):
Similarly, on Imbolc the
sun sets down Maryland Avenue
atop the Jefferson Memorial (also pasted into image):
In conclusion, it seems
that Paine was correct in his assessment that Freemasonry derived from the
religion of the ancient Druids, as evidenced by the Masonic-inspired Druidic solar
alignments prevalent in the layout of Washington ,
D.C.