Teachings of Diogenes-Lesson 1 Emptiness

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Diogenes (c. 412- c. 323 B.C ) was a very playful philosopher who liked to use great wit when challenging the values and beliefs of his fellow citizens in ancient Athens.    He lived in great poverty, probably begging and stealing his food, and steadfastly disdained all forms of luxury.   It was because of his determination to follow his own dictates and not adhere to the conventions of society that he was given the epithet “dog,” from which the name “cynic” is derived. [i]

As a lover of history I am always looking for masonic connections. Lately I have come across some writings of Diogenes and they immediately struck a cord. I am a mentor at my lodge and I always stress to every candidate that masonry isn’t a service club. It is more an individual effort rather than a group effort that makes you a mason. This doesn’t come over night; it takes some time even years to fully realize the commitment to your own personal growth. Eventually you will have an epiphany and realize that what you do in your daily life is linked directly to your masonic thinking.

Masonic growth has had its ups and downs over the centuries; the latest growth surge was just after the Second World War, however by the end of the 1960’s masonry’s growth had slowed and the next decline had started. The seventies and eighties saw several generations by passing joining the order as it appeared too old and too conformist. However with the spread of the internet and a growing middle age population who were now yearning for a purpose in a very fast paced society, people are beginning to try and make sense out of their lives. Masonry once again has become a beacon to those who wish to find themselves and a purpose in their hectic lives.

There have been many changes to freemasonry over the centuries that we all have taken for granted and all too often you hear that tired old refrain “this is how its always been done”. Well it may have in the past but now is the present and the future is waiting to greet us tomorrow. I hope by looking at the teachings of a great philosopher such as Diogenes we can learn that change rests on the individual and is timeless. So I have selected some very choice teachings of Diogenes and over the next while I shall compare them to the principles of masonry and show how we can make ourselves better masons and individuals.

Lesson No. 1

Plato was discoursing on his theory of ideas and, pointing to the cups on the table before him, said “While there are many cups in the world, there is only one ‘idea’ of a cup, and this cupness precedes the existence of all particular cups.”

“I can see the cup on the table,” interupted Diogenes, “but I can’t see the ‘cupness.'”

“That’s because you have the eyes to see the cup,” said Plato, “but”, tapping his head with his forefinger, “you don’t have the intellect with which to comprehend ‘cupness’.”

Diogenes walked up to the table, examined a cup and, looking inside, asked, “Is it empty?”

Plato nodded.

“Where is the ’emptiness’ which precedes this empty cup?” asked Diogenes.

Plato allowed himself a few moments to collect his thoughts, but Diogenes reached over and, tapping Plato’s head with his finger, said “I think you will find here is the ’emptiness’.”

I find this one of the greatest lessons a Mentor has to learn. Plato disdained Diogenes, he thought him to be uncouth and called him a “dog” or in Greek “cynic”. But the lesson taught by Diogenes is most arguments are made from false assumptions. Plato deemed that the purest form, or ideal, of the cup was in the minds eye and that the cup before them was but an imperfect copy and to further his line of logic the most imperfect was a picture of the cup drawn by an artist.

But Diogenes pointing out the empty cup found the chink in Plato’s logic and I have no doubt with great glee pointed out where to find the ideal emptiness! A few years ago I made the mistake of accepting an interesting paper “Joshua’s Missing Day” to use for lodge education with out checking its facts. I had my Plato moment when I received an email several days later that informed me that though the paper sounded good it was indeed fact less. I could have found this out had I just researched it before I used it. Strangely enough it can be found on Snopes.com, an urban legend website.

Many of us who joined masonry 25 or more years ago now find we are the mentors of the younger members of our lodges. Not all want this responsibility however for those who take up the challenge there is a constant need to educate ourselves so we don’t; first, fall into the trap of assuming masonry is unchanging and second, that we realize we have the power to make  change.

If the mentoring is done properly the student will suddenly get that epiphany that brings Freemasonry into sharp focus. As a Mentor of young minds, whether the candidate is 21 or 101, you must always be sure of your teachings. Everyone has their own ideas as to what Masonry is, but it is up to the mentor to make sure they have the right idea. You can’t just say the Principles are Truth, Relief and Brotherly Love; your actions have to be their shining example! That way no one can come up to you and tap you on the head and say Freemasonry is an empty cup. We must study the history of freemasonry and we must also interpret it to today’s society.

Masonry should not be a stagnant unchanging society. Its principles are universal and it in some part should change, however it does get stuck and needs a push from time to time and that’s the job of good mentors.

Lesson 2 – Honesty
Lesson 3 – Light of Teaching


[i] From the web site of David Quinn

Wor.Bro. Ian M. Donald
Wor.Bro. Ian M. Donald

fraternally

Wor.Bro. Ian M. Donald

A man is not measured by how tall he stands,

But by how often he bends to help, comfort and teach!

Masonic Central Podcast

Br. W. Kirk MacNulty

Masonic author W. Kirk MacNulty

Join us for this episode from March 8, 2009, as Greg and Dean are joined W. Kirk MacNulty, who is an exceptional Freemason and author of several books on the fraternity. A longtime Freemason, MacNulty brings a special understanding of Freemasonry delving into the esoteric and deeper “mystical” underpinnings of the craft. In this conversation we go deep about finding the divine presence through Freemasonry.

Br. Kirk has been an inspiration for many on the mystical ideas of Freemasonry and its deep rooted ties to the Renaissance and scientific revolution that followed.  But interestingly, his take on Masonic Mysticism does did not originate from the familiar sources that we associate with it today.  Also, we plan to explore the meaning and need of allegory and myth, as it pertains to the fraternity.

I do think generally speaking, that there is probably a greater interest now in the in the mystical or metaphysical dimension than there used to be.

W. Kirk MacNulty

With perhaps in a more poignant tone, this episode talks about the reawakening of the new age idea and philosophy of the the development of the inner Temple and how that act is shaping the face of Freemasonry in the 21st Century.

Some of the topics we cover include:

  • The origins of Freemasonry
  • Freemasonry in the Renaissance
  • The Hermetic Cabalistic tradition
  • Dame Francis Yates
  • Manly P. Hall
  • Knights Templar
  • And much more.

Works by W. Kirk MacNulty include: The Way of the Craftsman, Freemasonry: Symbols, Secrets, Significance and Freemasonry: A Journey Through Ritual and Symbol.

Sadly, W. Kirk MacNulty passed in November of 2020 at the age of 88.

In Memoriam: W. Kirk MacNulty, FPS.

The Uses of Ritual and Symbolism

Leon Zeldis, FPS

Our age glories in skepticism and high technology. Science explores every corner of the universe, from the infinitesimal level of subatomic particles to that of the millions of galaxies spreading in an ever expanding universe, overwhelming us with an endless flood of new facts, while imagination is banished to the sidelines of fiction, and faith is condemned as irrational. Science attempts to find unifying theories that will make the world simple, but daily experience teaches us the opposite, that the world is in fact complex and variegated.

If such is our current world, why do Freemasons insist in conveying their messages through the medium of symbolism? Why do we continue performing long and complicated ceremonies? Why is Ritual the foundation of masonic teaching? Why, in the structure of Masonry, we have to perform a special symbolic ceremony to advance from one to degree to another?

Anthropologists tell us that even the most primitive societies have their rituals, often very elaborate. And in our present, “civilized” world, we are immersed in ritual, though we may not be aware of it. From nurseries to armed forces, from law courts to tennis courts, we see old and newly-born rituals performed every day.

Ritual is intimately connected with symbolism. The national flag, the logo of a company, and the colors of a traffic light, they are all symbolic.

The physicist, the modern demiurge, creates his invisible particles in a world of infinitely precise measurements, elaborate instruments, powerful computers and mathematical analysis.

However, the human mind does not appear to work following the rules of computer logic; rather, it works on the basis of symbolic networks. Apprehension and abstraction are symbolic in nature. The language we use to think with and to convey information to others is no more than a generally accepted system of symbols. Words do not correspond to measurable physical entities. They are but shadows, images that flash in the mind and evoke associations, memories and expectations. Furthermore, most of the brain’s activity goes on underneath the surface, so to say, below the level of consciousness. This activity, revealed sometimes in dreams and myths, is nothing but symbols and analogies.

Say I hold in my hand the score for Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. You see a book, yet in your mind you hear the four stating notes of the music, destiny knocking on the door, or V for Victory, if you remember Churchill. I say this a symphony, but a scientist might claim that it is only an object weighing 400 grams, composed of wood pulp beaten into sheets, partly covered with a mixture of carbon black and glue. Who is closer to the truth? Which truth is closer to us?

I now pick up a plastic disk and say this too is Beethoven’s Fifth. In my mind, they are closely related; the book and the disk are almost twins. More surprising still, they are both somehow representations of another, totally different experience, the actual concert performance of the music. The human mind has this extraordinary ability to abstract these various experiences: attending a concert, listening to a recording, reading a score, and conflating them into a single symbol: Beethoven’s Fifth.

Symbols, then, are tools for thought, ways to grasp reality and to relate it to ourselves. We sometimes forget that all measurements started as proportions of the human body. An inch is a thumb’s length; a palm, a yard (an arm’s length), a foot, a fathom (length of outstretched arms). The scientist has dehumanized his measurements, because his work is not done with tools adapted to the human body, but with instruments adapted to the machine.

In Masonry we look back to our human dimensions. The symbolic tools we use are intended to reveal direct insights about man, the microcosm, and the world about, the macrocosm. Masonry does not teach like in a classroom. We have no professors; rather we all are apprentices, learning through work, through practice, through personal experience.

Masonic teachings are acquired and developed only by personal effort and involvement, by experiencing the ritual ceremonies. Masonic degrees cannot be received by mail or through the Internet, like diplomas after concluding a course of study. Ritual and symbol are dead letter when on the printed page. Only when words and actions come to life, only by personal experience the symbols become reality.

Masons assemble in lodge in order to work. We hold work is such high esteem, because work is essentially a personal experience. Working we must use our hands, minds and heart.

Seeing only the external aspects of ritual, one may be inclined to call it a theatrical game. Indeed, when ritual is performed without proper preparation, as a charade, a series of actions, words and gestures carried out without thinking, ritual becomes a parody.

But ritual can also become the key to unlock a deeper, more immediate understanding of human nature than can be imparted by logical discourse. Ritual incorporates the accumulated experience of wise men who lived in ages before science and the scientific method were dominant, an experience expressed in legends and symbols. When Freemasonry itself is considered as a philosophical institution, that is, an association of free men lovers of knowledge, then, and only then, can we begin to appreciate the value of ritual and symbol in our Masonic work.

Yes, we do play a game in Masonry. It is a very ancient game, ever full of surprises. It is called the game of life. The tools that Masonry puts in our hands allow us to play the game better, with personal enjoyment and for the benefit of others.

More from Leon Zeldis


W.Bro. Leon Zeldis 33°

Hon. Asst. Grand Master  G.L. of the State of Israel.
P. Sovereign Grand Commander AASR, Israel.

W.Bro. S. Brent Morris – on Masonic Central

Brent Morris

W. Br. S. Brent Morris – Sunday, November 9, 2008

Editor of “The Scottish Rite Journal” and the author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Freemasonry.

S. Brent Morris, joined the Masonic Central podcast where he discussed the importance of the Scottish Rite in the 21st Century, the differences/similarities between the Scottish Rite and the York Rite, American Masonry today and shared his thoughts on how to proceed into 21st century Masonry.

In this podcast Morris discusses his personal Masonic journey including his time as the first (and only) American to head the Quatuor Coronati lodge of research and delve into the nuanced history of Scottish Rite Freemasonry in America.

We also talk about the development of the Scottish Rite Journal (the largest Masonic publication in the world with more than 250,000 circulation) from its former incarnation as the the New Age Magazine.

In this episode we dig deep into the issues facing Freemasonry (member retention), masonic literacy and the future of the gentle craft. This was a fascinating conversation to get to know Brent and his amazing work in furthering the fraternity.

This podcast was originally recorded on Sunday, November 9, 2008.

More from W. Br. S. Brent Morris: Landmarks And Liabilities.

More on S. Brent Morris.