The Universal Language of Freemasonry - ArchiMeD - Johannes ...

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Chapter 4 - Signs & Symbols
Apprentice to the pass grip of a Fellow Craft." 702 The name of the pass grip is
SHIBBOLETH. 703 Hereafter, the Senior Deacon is "from," that means "from the
pass grip of a Fellow Craft to the real grip of the same." 704 The name of the real
grip of the Second Degree is JACHIN, which is the name of the other column on
the porch of King Solomon's temple. This name is "halved" by the Worshipful
Master and the Senior Deacon.
In the Third Degree, the Worshipful Master asks the conductor of the
candidate again, "will you be off or from?", to which the latter answers, "from."
This time, he is "from the real grip of a Fellow Craft to the pass grip of a Master
Mason." 705 The name of this pass grip, which is "halved," is TUBAL CAIN. 706
The real grip of a Master Mason is the "strong grip, or Lion's Paw," which see in
Section 4.6.16. With this particular grip, the candidate who has just represented
Hiram Abiff and died his symbolic death is raised. While the Worshipful Master
thus raises him he whispers in the candidate's ear the "grand Masonic word," or
the substitute for it, which is MAH-HAH-BONE. 707 It is "halved" by the
Worshipful Master and the candidate.
These archaic grips of the first three degrees shall be sufficient to illustrate
the custom of giving secret hand signs. In concluding this section, it should be
stated that the functional importance of tangible and audible signs is often overstated.
Freemasonry is neither a school for sign language, nor a playground to
exercise hocus-pocus. In A Dictionary of Symbolical Masonry, Dr. George
Oliver cites a quotation that warns against conceiving the signs, tokens, and
passwords as the main principle of Freemasonry, since they are only a means of
intercommunication, and not the only "secret" to be gained from this institution,
which offers in fact a moral education:
Signs, tokens, and words do not constitute Freemasonry, but are local
marks whereby they know each other, and may be altered, or entirely
done away, without the least injury to scientific Freemasonry. It is with
many Freemasons too absurd a belief, and a still more absurd practice,
to build our science upon so shallow a foundation as signs, tokens, and
words, which I fear constitute with some the only attainment they look
for in Freemasonry. That certain signals may be necessary, I do readily
allow; but deny that such a mechanism shall constitute a principal part
of our institution. 708
702 Cf. Duncan, p. 66.
703 An emblem of plenty; cf. Section 4.6.6.
704 Cf. Duncan, p. 67.
705 Cf. ibid, p. 97.
706 Cf. Section 6.18.1.
707 Cf. Duncan, p. 120.
708 Quoted from Husenbeth in GHCDF, p. 686.