<strong>The</strong> <strong>The</strong>osophical <strong>Seal</strong> by Arthur M. Coon of the Self: these are but a few of the steps ahead of him. Over many hills and valleys the path stretches until far in the distance he sees the outline of a cross, and he knows that one day he too must make the supreme sacrifice, that by the power of the Christ within him he must renounce even the individual self that he may become one with that Greater Self of which he is a part. And with that renunciation will come the realisation that although his own individual self has expanded to become with the Supreme Self, he has lost nothing but gained All. In the infinite circle of being there is always his own individual center of consciousness. That is is the Mystic Cross whose base rests within his heart and whose upper bar is lost in the clouds of glory. Page 50
<strong>The</strong> <strong>The</strong>osophical <strong>Seal</strong> by Arthur M. Coon CHAPTER 8 VICTORY SINCE the Tau is a variant of the Cross, much that has been said about the one is therefore applicable to the other. And yet, in many ways, the Tau has a heritage uniquely its own. We usually think of the Tau as coming to us from ancient Egypt, but, as we shall see, its origins were rather cosmopolitan - or should we say international. At the outset, however, we shall take a quick review of the individual letters that go to make up this symbol. First we take the point,sign of God as Absolute, Potential Being. <strong>The</strong> point expanded becomes the circle, sign of infinity and eternity. It is That which is all-inclusive and allpervading Spirit. <strong>The</strong> horizontal line is the point in motion forming the material aspect of being. <strong>The</strong> vertical line represents Sprit or Life as descending into manifestation. Briefly, the two lines crossing signify the manifested universe as distinct from pure Spirit. Put these signs together in a certain order and we have the most mystic of all symbols, the ancient and sacred Tau. Much may be learned about a figure or a symbol by studying its form and shape, its phonetic and articulate values as sound, as well as its ancestral and traditional usages. Strictly speaking the Tau is a figure like our capital "T" or the Latin Cross without the upper bar. Actually the "T" with the circle above it was called in Egyptian the "Ankh" or the "Crux Ansata", that is, the Cross with a handle. Webster's International Dictionary says of the Ankh that it is a "Tau Cross with a loop at the top, used as an attribute or sacred emblem symbolising generation or enduring life". First then, we will consider the Tau proper or the "T" part of the symbol. <strong>The</strong> term "Tau" as used in this chapter will signify this capital "T". Indeed the word "Tau" is the Greek name for the letter "Tee". In the Hebrew, the "T" is written"Thao". <strong>The</strong> "Thao" significantly is the 22nd letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This very fact throws a most interesting sidelight upon this letter. Philologists recognise the Hebraic as being one of the most cryptic of all languages. Every letter had an exact meaning, or more correctly a group of related meanings; and words were built up of letters placed in such an order as to represent an entire phrase or a combination of ideas. <strong>The</strong> initial letter of the word gave its keynote and was therefore the most important. Each Hebrew letters also had a numeral value; that is, each letter not only represented an idea but was also associated with a number which represented its work or power. <strong>The</strong> Kabbalah cryptically calls these 22 letters the "signature of God". When, therefore, the "T" (Thao) was placed at the end or as the 22nd letter of the Hebrew alphabet, it was done to embody a certain idea or truth. According to the science of numbers, recognized and taught by many of the mystery schools, 22 is the number of completion and perfection. It is the number of the Master, even as 11 is the number of the Disciple. Albert Pike, in his great work on Masonic symbolism Morals and Dogma, gives an interesting viewpoint. "<strong>The</strong> Letter "T", he says, "as the last letter of the sacred alphabet represents the end and perfection of the "Great Work'." Again he writes, "In ancient times the mark of the Tau was set upon those who had been acquitted by their judges, as the sign of innocence" (page 504). He recognized the Tau or the Thao therefore as the sign of mastery and of a work completed. It is significant also to note that the Book of Revelation, most mystical of all Christian writings, has 22 chapters, and that in the 22nd and final chapter there is given the vision of New Jerusalem, the City of Eternal Peace. Thus 22 is not only the number of the Master, or one who has attained perfection, but Page 51