Masonic Mnemonics

Rivista di Massoneria - Revue de Franc-Maçonnerie - Revista de Masonerìa - Revista de Maçonaria

David Royal

MASONIC MNEMONICS

Memory Aids for Masonic Ritual

Published by Lewis Masonic, 2008.

Binding Paperback Format 148X105 Extent 80 pages
Price, £4.99
ISBN: 978-0-85318-292-4

Available from: Lewis Masonic

Introduction

I have always been in awe of those who would tell me of how they could "learn a page a day" or had the ability to "see the page" or "learn a section for next week". By the time I have learned my car registration, it's time to change the car. For those of you who are like me, some form of memory aid is essential. The system presented here came about due to my inability to perform a ceremony in the Lodge as Master. I started my year after having attended LOI regularly and going through the Blue Book many, many times feeling that I would cope. Of course, I found that whereas I had always followed the ritual as performed by others, as Master nothing happened unless initiated by something I should have done or said. I was so disappointed by my performance that I was determined to do better.

In my work I am involved in training and writing training courses and as I looked at the ceremonies I thought to myself that the very last way I would write a training manual, for any task, would be to recommend to anyone to keep reading it over and over again. Thus I constructed for my own use a training manual and this is how I produced what was considered a passable performance for the rest of my year (and, as it happened, the following year as well) .My ritual will never be worthy of a silver Vesta case, but, once or twice, I have made a connection with the candidate; I have held their attention with every word. I have seen a tear in a man's eye and I know what I have said to them, was special, and will be recalled as a peculiar moment. To me that was worth a silver suitcase. It is a fact that we come from man the hunter and for him it was essential for his survival that he remembered what he had seen. He needed to recognise both threats and opportunities quickly, as well as find his way home.

This was before language, so the visual part of the brain is the most powerful at remembering. You can use this innate power of the mind to recall the ceremony as it unfolds before you. Learn the path of the candidate; understand the story and the context in which it is told. At each point in the ceremony the candidate will be in a unique position if you know why he is there it will trigger what you need to say. This system is often called 'Mind Mapping'. This will allow you to break up what seems to be an enormous chunk of unrelated words into smaller parts with each part a story in its own context. There is symmetry in the ritual and many phrases are reused in each of the degrees; understanding this can enable you to learn those common phrases and remember the difference for each degree.

David Royal

Book-review

This useful book employs a clever combination of mnemonics and memory techniques to help memorise and retain ritual information. By using fun-and-easy rhymes, jokes and acronyms any Freemason will be able to remember the order of Masonic procedure.

Covering as it does all three Degrees of the Craft, this book is an essential reading for all Freemasons, whether novices or experienced pratictioners.

An invaluable guide for all Masons that will help to make the learning of craft ritual a much easier task!

Bruno Virgilio Gazzo
editor, PS Review of FM


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