Post by Tamrin on Nov 24, 2009 10:47:05 GMT 10
‘Marrow in the Bone’
and the Origin of the Masters World [sic]:
An Etymological Problem
[Excerpts - Article by C. Bruce Hunter, AQC, v.113, pp.151/165]
and the Origin of the Masters World [sic]:
An Etymological Problem
[Excerpts - Article by C. Bruce Hunter, AQC, v.113, pp.151/165]
Introduction [p.151]
From the early days of the Grand Lodge period, freemasons have been trying to discover, or perhaps more precisely rediscover, the definitions of a small collection of words.1 The inquiry is predicated on the belief that they once meant something. They were inherited from the fraternity’s dim past, and while one or more of them may have been created from whole cloth with no underlying meaning2, their central role in the ritual does seem to imply a link to something significant. Further, it is fairly obvious that their meaning was lost at some point in Masonic history. But as efforts to define these words have been more than a little awkward, we must conclude that, by the time records were being kept, the Craft had fallen into confusion about how to interpret them.
Learning what they signified is more than a matter of idle curiosity. The words appear intimately connected with the Lodge’s early symbolism. In fact, they appear to have gone to the heart of it, which clearly gives them a central role in the development of modern Freemasonry, but also makes them a key to understanding the organization’s present day symbology. Therefore it is of no little importance to pursue the matter.
Among these words is the so-called Master’s Word, which has the oldest pedigree of all the Craft’s ritual terms. It is mentioned in the ‘Edinburgh Register House MS’ (1696), where it is called the mason word, or simply the word, and its communication to an initiate is described as ‘all that is to be done to make him a perfect mason.’ Other documents of the period refer to the mason or freemasons word, and it is revealed explicitly under the name ‘the masters word’ in the ‘Sloane’ MS (c.1700).
While we might take the appearance of the word in print at such an early date as an indication that its meaning was equally accessible, an examination of the old documents provides evidence to the contrary. The earliest texts say nothing about its significance or meaning. In time, a number of explanations do arise, prominent among them is the cryptic phrase ‘marrow in the bone.’ But this only complicates the issue, as it is difficult to see where such phrases came from, what they could mean, or what relevance they might have to Freemasonry. There is, however, a subtle trail of evidence that reveals what the framers of the old rituals may have had in mind.
From the early days of the Grand Lodge period, freemasons have been trying to discover, or perhaps more precisely rediscover, the definitions of a small collection of words.1 The inquiry is predicated on the belief that they once meant something. They were inherited from the fraternity’s dim past, and while one or more of them may have been created from whole cloth with no underlying meaning2, their central role in the ritual does seem to imply a link to something significant. Further, it is fairly obvious that their meaning was lost at some point in Masonic history. But as efforts to define these words have been more than a little awkward, we must conclude that, by the time records were being kept, the Craft had fallen into confusion about how to interpret them.
Learning what they signified is more than a matter of idle curiosity. The words appear intimately connected with the Lodge’s early symbolism. In fact, they appear to have gone to the heart of it, which clearly gives them a central role in the development of modern Freemasonry, but also makes them a key to understanding the organization’s present day symbology. Therefore it is of no little importance to pursue the matter.
Among these words is the so-called Master’s Word, which has the oldest pedigree of all the Craft’s ritual terms. It is mentioned in the ‘Edinburgh Register House MS’ (1696), where it is called the mason word, or simply the word, and its communication to an initiate is described as ‘all that is to be done to make him a perfect mason.’ Other documents of the period refer to the mason or freemasons word, and it is revealed explicitly under the name ‘the masters word’ in the ‘Sloane’ MS (c.1700).
While we might take the appearance of the word in print at such an early date as an indication that its meaning was equally accessible, an examination of the old documents provides evidence to the contrary. The earliest texts say nothing about its significance or meaning. In time, a number of explanations do arise, prominent among them is the cryptic phrase ‘marrow in the bone.’ But this only complicates the issue, as it is difficult to see where such phrases came from, what they could mean, or what relevance they might have to Freemasonry. There is, however, a subtle trail of evidence that reveals what the framers of the old rituals may have had in mind.
1 I do not here refer to such biblical names as Boaz and Jachin, the origins and significance of which have never been at issue, but only to the remainder of the early ritual terms whose meanings are not immediately apparent.
2 A password can perform its function even if it is only a nonsense string of syllables.
Conclusion [p.163]
In one elegant symbol, the medieval ritual seems to have incorporated concern for a brother, respect for confidentiality, and the value of a good reputation. The bone box, which in places is clearly identified as the skull, contains the soft tissue, or marrow, which is necessary to function properly as a member of the group and to understand its moral and fraternal values. And through it connection with the tongue and heart, this ‘marrow in the bone’ governs the individual’s behaviour, ideally producing the rectitude so highly valued by the fraternity.
The early freemasons and their predecessors had available to them a bit of etymology that was tailor made for their organization. Whether they actually used it as suggested here can probably never be proved. Like ‘almost rotten to the bone’, ‘marrow in the bone’ may have been nothing more than a late attempt to understand a word whose meaning had become obscure. But we do see hints in the earliest surviving documents that the profound subtleties implicit in the phrase were present long before Morgan’s exposé appeared.
While the specific phrase ‘marrow in the bone’ is not prominent in the written record prior to the 1820s, it was in fact the first explanation offered for the Master’s Word in the 1720s. The sense of it appears in a fully developed form as early as the end of the 1600s, and its rationale existed in the 1300s. At the earliest known stage in the fraternity’s development, the Craft was already promoting a code of ethics that required its members to internalize its lessons in aid of developing a heartfelt respect for the well being of their colleagues. And there’s no reason to believe they did not have a word to describe the process.
In one elegant symbol, the medieval ritual seems to have incorporated concern for a brother, respect for confidentiality, and the value of a good reputation. The bone box, which in places is clearly identified as the skull, contains the soft tissue, or marrow, which is necessary to function properly as a member of the group and to understand its moral and fraternal values. And through it connection with the tongue and heart, this ‘marrow in the bone’ governs the individual’s behaviour, ideally producing the rectitude so highly valued by the fraternity.
The early freemasons and their predecessors had available to them a bit of etymology that was tailor made for their organization. Whether they actually used it as suggested here can probably never be proved. Like ‘almost rotten to the bone’, ‘marrow in the bone’ may have been nothing more than a late attempt to understand a word whose meaning had become obscure. But we do see hints in the earliest surviving documents that the profound subtleties implicit in the phrase were present long before Morgan’s exposé appeared.
While the specific phrase ‘marrow in the bone’ is not prominent in the written record prior to the 1820s, it was in fact the first explanation offered for the Master’s Word in the 1720s. The sense of it appears in a fully developed form as early as the end of the 1600s, and its rationale existed in the 1300s. At the earliest known stage in the fraternity’s development, the Craft was already promoting a code of ethics that required its members to internalize its lessons in aid of developing a heartfelt respect for the well being of their colleagues. And there’s no reason to believe they did not have a word to describe the process.
