" ............ The candidate encounters a tomb with three skulls. Viewing the skulls, he is reminded of what he was taught as he became a Perfect Master, the uncertainty of life and the inevitability of death. He receives this sober instruction :
"set thy house in order, for thy life passes with every breath thou drawest ! Death tracks thee like a bloodhound."
He is also told that the reward for those who overcome the dread of death is to "ascend above the terrestrial sphere." The center skull is that of Jacques De Molay (The Knights Templar) c.1244 - 1314 , and is wreathed in laurel and amaranths, signifying immortality. The skull adorned with a regal crown is that of Philip IV King of France c.1285 - 1314, and represents tyrannical kings. The third skull is that of Pope Clement V c.1264 - 1314, and represents unholy, ambitious religious leaders. De Molay in his dying breath summoned both the King of France and Pope Clement to meet him in a tribunal before God within the year. True to the claim both men did indeed die within that time. As a group the skulls portray the history of the human race -
that constant tragedy of guilty power and murdered innocence. |
