To Freemasons Pythagoras is one of the great initiates of Antiquity, along with Rama, Krishna, Hermes, Moses, Plato, Buddha and Jesus. Pythagoras was not Greek as is usually believed, but Phoenician. He was born either in Sidon or in Samos, a Phoenician counter, and the oracle of Delphi had predicted that he would be useful to all men in all times.

At the age of one Pythagoras was taken to the temple of Afqa in the Lebanese Mountain, at the source of the god Adonis' sacred river. This site, whose name hasn't changed is still as famous today as it ever was: an impressive grotto spewing forth a thunderous mass of icy water. Pythagoras was "baptized" in the basin of Adonis and blessed by the high priest in foresight of his illustrious destiny.

At an early age Pythagoras decided to become a wise man, and underwent extensive education in Greece before embarking on a 22-years initiation in Memphis. There in Egypt he learned numbers, symbols, geometry, astronomy, astrology and the mysteries of the Egyptian religion. He had just completed his training when Cambyse, king of Persia, invaded Egypt and took high priests and scholars with him to Babylon. For more than 12 years the captive Pythagoras rubbed elbows with scholars of different religions: men who were teaching Moses' monotheism, Greek polytheism, Hindu trinitarianism, Persian dualism, Zoroastrian occultism and the religion of his own countrymen.

When he was freed he returned to his mother in Samos, and both moved to Delphi then finally to Crotone, in the Italian gulf of Tarente. It was there that with the help of the Senate he founded his school of esoteric philosophy.

At the gate of Pythagoras' school stood a statue of Hermes, keeper of esoteric knowledge, that bade laymen stand back. A trial period of a few months was required before anyone could be admitted into the school, at the end of which the aspirant was put to the test, first physically then morally. The physical trial consisted in enduring a night in a cavern where frightening apparitions were supposed to happen. After this, the disciple spent twelve hours in a bare cell with only dry bread and water; he had to write on a board the meaning of the Pythagorean symbols. Finally, he was brought into a large room where his classmates harrassed him with difficult questions and mockeries. This final test was aimed at the ego, and if one managed to pass it he was admitted.

The novitiate lasted 3 years during which an absolute rule of silence was imposed on the student. A Phoenician detail: the lessons were often given in a sacred wood. Teaching occurred in the morning and the afternoon was dedicated to physical exercise. A common prayer was said in the evening and after dinner a lecture was given, which was then discussed.

Pythagoras' teachings were based on respect, tolerance, and the union of religions and peoples. Parents were the earthly representatives of the great deities and were honoured as such; a friend was like an alter ego that must be honoured like a god. Wedlock was sacred, for the initiated wife was her husband's equal (something that contradicted the Greco-Roman mentality of the time, but was natural for a Phoenician). The notion of suffering was considered sacred, for suffering was the crucible in which souls were forged, and therefore it had to be endured bravely ? yet it was never deliberately caused.

After the novitiate, the disciple accessed the inner court of the temple, where he was initiated into Pythagoras' mysterious science of numbers. This "sacred word" (to use his own terms) is today well-known to Masons and Occultists alike. Here's a little overview of the esoteric meaning of numbers according to Pythagoras' teachings:

1: Point. God, undividable and infinite. Now. The root of all things.

2: Line. Man and woman united in the One God. The superior female principle symbolized by the crescent moon of Egyptian and Phoenician deities. The two columns taken over from Phoenician temples and adopted into Qabalistic and Masonic lore.

3: Triangle. The perfect number, the triangle symbolizing Freemasons. The manifestation of 1 under 3 forms. The triad present in almost every religion. The 3 elements that make up man (spirit, soul, body). The three parts of Canaanite temples. The three points of the frontispiece of Greek temples that meant Wisdom, Strength and Beauty.

4: Square. The four directions. Keybearer of nature.

5: Pentalpha (or pentagram). Free will. Strife. Justice.

6: Hexagram. The six directions of space. Harmony, perfection of parts.

7: Triangle and Square. A pure and perfect number. The symbol of life as the 4 elements of the body uniting with the 3 elements of the soul. Dream.

8: Two Squares. All things are eight, universal harmony. Love and friendship.

9: Three Triangles. The number of the Muses and therefore knowledge of the sciences that they represented. Concord.

10: Tetractys. The world. The source of counting (the ten fingers). Fate, eternity.

The third degree of initiation was that of Science, which was taught by night, the seashore or in the crypt. Pythagoras believed Ptolemy's astronomical model -- that the earth was immobile and other planets revolved around it. He also believed, like the Egyptians, in the reincarnation of souls: the human soul is a portion of the great world soul Maia, and we return to her when we die. Earthly birth is equal to spiritual death, and vice-versa. The soul goes through different bodies, until it has brought itself sufficiently close to perfection that reincarnation is no longer necessary and the soul can unite with the Divine.

The summit of initiation was reached with the perfection of the 4th degree, at which point the disciple demonstrated healing and clairvoyant abilities.

Although I have used "he" throughout for conveniency, the School had female students and a whole gyneceum had been built for future mothers. These were apartments reserved to the woman, from which the husband was excluded. The newborn remained there 7 years during which the mother raised it freely. After that, his or her education was in the hands of the father.

If an adept left the school and revealed its secrets, a tomb was erected in his name and his soul was said to be dead. Likewise, a Mason who betrays the secrets is considered dead and is symbolically burned on a pyre.

Pythagoras was killed with 40 of his disciples during an uprising of the inhabitants of Crotone. The survivors fled to Sicily and Greece, but like today's Masons they considered themselves brothers. They traced Pythagoras' pentagram with a single line as a sign of recognition (and I believe this is the true origin of the Wiccan Pentagram, as Wiccan symbology derives from Freemason and Occult usage). The scholar's esoteric ideas rapidly spread throughout the Ancient world. As for his daughter Damo, she is said to have founded a Pythagorean school in a city about 20 km south of Beirut. The city took her name and is still known today as Damour.

The story of Hiram goes further back in time. Freemasons consider themselves to be the sons of Hiram, and for this reason he is referred to as Hiram-Abi ("Hiram (is) my father"), especially in Arabic-speaking lodges. Hiram represents life and truth struggling against persecution and injustice; the tools of his trade are the best-known part of Masonry where they play a symbolic role.

Christians and Jews are familiar with the fact that king Solomon called on Hiram, the Tyrian architect, to build his temple. It is now known that the temple was none other than a copy of a Phoenician temple of the period, likely that of Melqart in Tyr. The sanctuary was rectangular and tripartite, built on a platform that had an East-West orientation. Oriental sanctuaries followed the plan of common dwellings, as the sanctuary was considered to be a residence, and the Temple was no exception. In front of the entrance were erected two 12-meter-tall columns of bronze that played no structural role. In Phoenician lore they would represent the two columns that supported the world; right now they have made their way all the way into Tarot cards, where they are represented as black and white and refer to the Two Pillars of the Qabalistic Tree of Life. The decoration of the cedar wood that lined the inside was identical to that found on Phoenician ivories: it included pomegranates (a symbol of fertility to the Phoenicians), palmettes (recalling the tree of life) and winged sphinxes (protective forces). The cult accessories were also the kind that was found in all contemporary Phoenician sanctuaries ? a golden altar, the bread table, 10 candle holders etc. The "sea of bronze" was also cast by Hiram's team of Phoenician engineers.

At this point we step into the allegorical part of Hiram's story. It may be based on real events, but the elements that have come to us are obviously symbolic rather than real.

Hiram's workers were divided in three groups: apprentices, companions and masters. On paydays they presented themselves to the temple with the password revealed by Hiram. The apprentices met around the J column (Jachim), the companions around the B column (Boaz), and the masters in the central room.
Hiram's flock counted three black sheep: a mason named Jebulas, a carpenter named Jubelos, and a minor named Jubelum. They wanted to obtain the grade (and salary) of masters without going through the required stages. Planning to coerce Hiram into promoting them, they took place at the three doors of the temple and waited for him. When Hiram came to the South gate Jubelas made his demand, and as it was refused he hit Hiram with his ruler, aiming for the throat (it is noted that he missed and the blow reached the shoulder). Hiram ran to the West gate and the same scene happened with Jubelos, whereas Hiram received the blow of an iron square to the left side of his chest. He fled to the East gate and Jubelum hit him to the forehead with his mallet, killing him on the spot.

From a Masonic point of view, the tools of the crime and the parts of the body that were hit are highly symbolic. The ruler stands for precision, the square for rectitude, and the mallet for will. Hiram was hit at the throat, seat of material life, at the heart, seat of the soul, and at the forehead, seat of intelligence. As for the three assassins, they are the three banes of progress: lie, ignorance and ambition.

Jebulas, Jubelos and Jubelum took the body and buried it near Tyr, under an acacia stem. Solomon and Hiram were friends; he sent soldiers to find the body, and they discovered it thanks to an uprooted acacia stem that the killers had thrust over his grave. They laid his body to rest inside a sarcophagus and gave him a proper burial.

There ends the legend, or does it? Only a few years ago, there still existed near Tyr an ancient sarcophagus knows as the "Tomb of Hiram", that was a place of pilgrimage for Freemasons from around the world. It is not known whether it really is the tomb of Hiram, but its name is taken sufficiently seriously that when the Israelis invaded the South, they conducted excavations around it (they must be highly interested in the builder of the temple that symbolizes the unity of the Jewish people). I don't know what happened to it in the turmoil of the past 20 years.

Henri Moukheiber, Les apports du Liban à la civilisation mondiale.

David Allen Hulse, The Key of It All: The Western Mysteries.

Article © Joumana Medlej