Temple Legend

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Model of the Temple of Solomon with the Brazen Sea (left) and the central altar (right) in the forecourt.

The Temple Legend or Hiram Legend, which is connected with the building of Solomon's Temple (1 Kings 6:1) and especially with the casting of the Brazen Sea (1 Kings 7:23), forms the basis of Freemasonry and was given by Christian Rosenkreutz himself in the 15th century, according to Rudolf Steiner. The temple, which was consecrated in 951 BC after seven years (1 Kings 6:38) of construction, was built by order of Solomon on the Temple Mount Moria in Jerusalem with the help of Phoenician builders who, according to tradition, were led by Hiram Abiff, who came from the descendants of Cain.

Contents

What Christian Rosenkreutz taught he could only pass on directly to a few disciples, no more than ten; for the others he had to clothe his teaching in a myth, which has approximately the following content:

„There was a time when one of the Elohim created a human being; a human being whom he called Eve. The Elohim himself united with Eve and Cain was born from Eve. Then the Elohim Yahweh or Jehovah created Adam. Adam also united with Eve and from this marriage Abel was born.

So with Cain we have to do with an immediate son of the gods and with Abel with an offspring of Adam and Eve, who were created as human beings. Now the myth continues.

The offerings that Abel made to the God Yahweh were pleasing to the God. But the offerings of Cain were not, for Cain was not created at the direct command of Yahweh. The result was that Cain committed fratricide. He slew Abel. Therefore he was excluded from fellowship with Yahweh. He went to distant places and became the progenitor of his own lineage there.

Adam continued to associate with Eve and to replace Abel, Seth was born, who also appears in the Bible. Thus two human families came into being: the first descended from Eve and the Elohim, the family of Cain; and the second descended from mere men, who joined together at the command of Yahweh.

From the lineage of Cain descended all who brought into being arts and sciences on earth, for example Methusael who invented writing, the Tau script, and Tubal-Cain who taught the working of ores and iron. Thus in this line, descending directly from the Elohim, humanity was born, trained in the arts and sciences. From this lineage of the Cains also came forth Hiram. He was the heir of all that had been stored up in knowledge, art and technology within the various generations of the sons of Cain. Hiram was the most important building artist imaginable.

From the other line, from the family of Seth, came Solomon, who excelled in all that came from Yahweh or Jehovah. He was endowed with the wisdom of the world, with all that the calm, clear, serene wisdom of the sons of Jehovah can provide. This was a wisdom which may well be uttered in words, which may go deep into the heart of man, lift him up, but not such a wisdom as can attack the immediate object and produce something real in technique, art and science. It was a wisdom that is an immediate inspired gift of God, not a wisdom worked out from below, springing from human passion, from human will. This was found in the sons of Cain, in those who were directly descended from the other Elohim. These were the strict workers who wanted to work out everything themselves.

Now Solomon decided to build a temple. He appointed as master builder the offspring of the sons of Cain: Hiram. It was at that time that the Queen of Sheba, Balkis, came to Jerusalem because she had heard about the wise Solomon. And she was indeed, when she arrived, enraptured by the sublime, clear wisdom and beauty of Solomon. He wooed her and also obtained her consent. Then this Queen of Sheba also heard about the building of the temple. Now she also wanted to meet Hiram, the master builder. When she saw him, the mere sight of him made a tremendous impression on her and captivated her completely.

Now something like jealousy arose between Hiram and the wise Solomon. As a result, Solomon would have liked to do something against Hiram, but he had to keep him so that the temple could be built.

Now the following happened. The temple was finished to a certain stage. Only one thing was still missing, which was to be Hiram's masterpiece: namely, the Brazen Sea. This masterpiece of Hiram was to represent the ocean, cast in brass, and adorn the temple[1]. All the ore mixtures had been wonderfully prepared by Hiram and everything was ready for casting. But now three journeymen[2] set to work, whom Hiram had found unfit to be appointed masters in the building of the temple. They had therefore sworn revenge against him and wanted to prevent the execution of the Bronze Sea. A friend of Hiram, hearing of this, informed Solomon of this plan of the journeymen so that he would thwart it. But Solomon, out of jealousy against Hiram, let the matter run its course, because he wanted to spoil Hiram. The result was that Hiram had to watch the whole casting dissolve because the three journeymen had added an unseemly substance to the mass. He tried to extinguish the foaming fire by pouring water on it, but it only got worse. While he was close to despairing about the outcome of the work, Tubal-Cain himself, one of his ancestors, appeared to him. He told him to throw himself into the fire, because he was not vulnerable to it. Hiram did so and reached the centre of the earth. Tubal-Cain led him to Cain, who was there in the state of original divinity. Hiram was now initiated into the secret of fire creation, the secret of ore casting and so on. He also received from Tubal-Cain a hammer and a golden triangle to wear around his neck. Then he returned and was now able to really make the Brazen Sea, to put the casting in order again.

Then Hiram won the hand of the Queen of Sheba. But he was attacked and killed by the three companions. But before he died, he managed to throw the Golden Triangle into a well. Now that they do not know where Hiram is, they are looking for him. Solomon himself is anxious and wants to find out where he is. It was feared that the three journeymen might betray the old master's word and so a new one was arranged. The first words that would be spoken when Hiram was found again were to be the new master word. When Hiram was found, he was still able to speak a few words[3]. He said: Tubal-Cain has promised me that I will have a son who will have many sons who will populate the earth and complete my work - the building of the temple. Then he indicated the place where the Golden Triangle was to be found. It was taken to the Brazen Sea and both were kept in a special place in the Temple, in the Holy of Holies. They can only be found by those who have understanding of what this whole temple legend of the temple of Solomon and his master builder Hiram means.“ (Lit.:GA 93, p. 59ff)

Literature
References to the work of Rudolf Steiner follow Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works (CW or GA), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach/Switzerland, unless otherwise stated.
Email: verlag@steinerverlag.com URL: www.steinerverlag.com.
Index to the Complete Works of Rudolf Steiner - Aelzina Books
A complete list by Volume Number and a full list of known English translations you may also find at Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works
Rudolf Steiner Archive - The largest online collection of Rudolf Steiner's books, lectures and articles in English.
Rudolf Steiner Audio - Recorded and Read by Dale Brunsvold
steinerbooks.org - Anthroposophic Press Inc. (USA)
Rudolf Steiner Handbook - Christian Karl's proven standard work for orientation in Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works for free download as PDF.

References

  1. ↑ In the Bible, the brazen sea is described thus:

    23 And he made the sea, cast, from one edge to the other, ten cubits round about, and five cubits high; and a cord of thirty cubits was the measure round about. 24 And round about the sea were knots on the edge thereof round about, ten to a cubit; it had two rows of knots cast with it at the casting. 25 And it stood on twelve oxen, three of them facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east; and the sea was on top of it, and their hind parts were all turned inwards. 26 And the thickness of the wall of the sea was a hand's breadth, and its rim was like the rim of a cup, like a lily that had sprung up; and two thousand buckets went into it. 1 Kings 7:23

  2. ↑ According to Masonic tradition, the three journeymen are called Jubela, Jubelo and Jubelum and are also said to correspond to the three autumnal signs of the zodiac Libra, Scorpio and Sagittarius, i.e. the time of the descending Sun from Michaelmas to Christmas; cf. Dr. Josef Schauberg: Vergleichendes Handbuch der Symbolik der Freimaurerei mit besonderer Rücksicht auf die Mythologieen und Mysterien des Alterthums, Volume II, Zurich 1861, page 212f
  3. ↑ In Charles William Heckethorn's: The secret societies of all ages and countries this scene is depicted thus:

    „Solomon hinted to the fellow- crafts that the removal of his rival, who refused to give them the master's word, would be acceptable unto himself; so when the architect came into the temple he was assailed and slain by them. Before his death, however, he had time to throw the golden triangle which he wore round his neck, and on which was engraven the master's word, into a deep well. They wrapped up his body, carried it to a solitary hiU and buried it, planting over the grave a sprig of acacia. Hiram not having made his appearance for seven days, Solomon, against his incUnation, but to satisfy the clamour of the people, was forced to have Tiim searched for. The body was found by three masters, and they, suspecting that he had been slain by the three fellow-crafts for refusing them the master's word, determined nevertheless for greater security to change the word, and that the first word acci- dentally uttered on raising the body should thenceforth, be the word. In the act of raising it, the skin came off the body, so that one of the masters ex-claimed " Macbenach ! " (the flesh is off the bones !) and this word became the sacred word of the master's degree. The three fellow-crafts were traced, but rather than fall into the hands of their pursuers, they committed suicide and their heads were brought to Solomon. The triangle not having been found on the body of Hiram it was sought for and at last dis- covered in the well into whicb the architect had cast it. The king caused it to be placed on a triangular altar erected in a secret vault, built under the most retired part of the temple. The triangle was further concealed by a cubical stone, on which had been inscribed the sacred law. The vault, the existence of which was only known to the twentyseven elect, was then walled up.“ (Lit.: Heckethorn, Vol I, p. 246f)

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