The Monad Within You

Back in October of this year, I put out a book of original work on LULU titled “The Sunesis Cosmogram”, which features three essays I wrote regarding the Circumpunct Symbol of Freemasonry as well as the three virtues (Hope, Faith and Charity). The main essay of the book is my re-working of the Circumpunct and turning it into a different symbol and my interpretation of it. I did attach two other essays to the book, one of which is the “Wisdom and her Daughters” essay, which can be read HERE. The other essay was titled “The Monad Within You”, which I am presenting here on the blog in full. If you are unfamiliar with the Circumpunct symbol, no worries, it’ll be explained. If it looks familiar, well, it is, as the main point within a circle has been used by various traditions throughout history. I referenced it in my early blogging days in regards to the Monad of Gnosticism, and thus, it was incorporated into this essay when I wrote it in 2024. If you are interested in purchasing a copy of my book, I will provide a link at the end.

The Monad within You

A Masonic essay with Gnostic & Hermetic Tendencies

The point within a circle surrounded by two parallel lines, John the Baptist on the left and John the Evangelist / Theologian on the right, and the Holy Scriptures on top has many meanings behind it. A simplistic viewpoint is that the point is the individual, the circle within the two lines, which act as a boundary to circumscribe our passions and keep us within due bounds to ourselves and all of mankind. The Saints surround the outside and the Holy Scripture on top, which itself is our guide of faith. But what does this mean? Everyone will have a different take on the interpretation, but this will be my opinion, take it however you will.
The point within a circle is an ancient symbol, going back thousands of years. I relate this symbol with the MONAD of Hermetic and Gnostic traditions.

What is a “Monad”? The MONAD is the name for the source of all creation. Originally thought to be conceived by the Pythagoreans, which would date it back to the 6th century BC. The concept has been used by various traditions since then. There are different takes on what it means. Since I come from a Gnostic mindset, my opinion on the meaning of the symbol is that the circle represents the fullness of “the source, i.e. God” with the point being the point which everything emanates outward. For “God” is everything and we are all within “God”, thus we would be within the circle. Ideally there would be no circle as “God” is everything and anything, but for our simplistic minds to comprehend it, we symbolize it as such. The Gnostic text The Apocryphon of John (aka the Secret Book of John) mentions this about the Monad: “The Monad is a monarchy with nothing above it. It is he who exists as God and Father of everything, the invisible One who is above everything, who exists as incorruption, which is in the pure light into which no eye can look.
“He is the invisible Spirit, of whom it is not right to think of him as a god, or something similar. For he is more than a god, since there is nothing above him, for no one lords it over him. For he does not exist in something inferior to him, since everything exists in him. For it is he who establishes himself. He is eternal, since he does not need anything. For he is total perfection. He did not lack anything, that he might be completed by it; rather he is always completely perfect in light. He is illimitable, since there is no one prior to him to set limits to him.” There is much more that is said but this hammers in the point on what the Monad is. So if “God” encompasses everything, then we as an aspect of the source, would emanate the same principle. How does the point within a circle relate to a mere human being?

Taking a look at the next diagram, it gives you a clue of what it all means:

The middle point represents the SPIRIT of the source. The line (be it a literal line or invisible) from the point to the circle represents the SOUL. The circle would represent the material matter, i.e. the FLESH. These three concepts make up the human being. But it also makes up the path of which one has to partake in life. Instead of looking at it from the center outward, start from the circle and look inward. The FLESH is our material world. This is where we live our daily lives. Within us is our SOUL. This would be our consciousness, whether this is an individual aspect or part of a collective one. The source, or the SPIRIT, is the true originator, the SOURCE to which we constantly yearn to become one with once again. This road map shows us that we must become aware of our soul to find the path to the spirit. Once this DIVINE LIGHT is shown to us, we have our destination in which we are to go towards.

Now lets go back to the initial view of the point within a circle and that is the point which represents the individual and the circle is that of their boundaries to keep in their passions, vices, etc… That means to not let those particular issues overtake one’s life. The parallel lines are the boundaries in which one does not exceed. Basically one needs to keep their aspects in life in moderation and not over do it. This does not necessarily have to do with passions, vices or any negative issues, but even the most positive aspects need to be kept in tow. One needs to maintain balance in life. The parallel lines could also indicate a Positive + and Negative – boundary to one’s circumambulation . Stay centered! This has to do with POLARITY and that you need to weigh the pros/cons of your actions and how they will re-act to you from the opposite position.
As for the figures surrounding the symbol, there is John the Baptist on the left and John the Evangelist / Theologian on the right, and the Holy Scripture at the top.

Pictured is John the Baptist. John is venerated as a Jewish prophet, as the last of the old testament prophets and forerunner of Jesus Christ in Christianity, a prophet of God in Islam, patron saint of Freemasonry and as the greatest teacher in Mandaeism. If we are to take the symbol of John from a Christian perspective, then what does he mean in relation to this symbol? The parallel lines surrounding the circle are also known to indicate the summer and winter solstices. Freemasonry honors the nativity feast day of John, which is on June 24. This day is near the summer solstice. This is in reference to a “birth”, the coming of a greater light. John has the title of ForeRunner, as he is the one fore tells the coming of Christ. The Gospel of John 1:6-9 states: “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.”

John is the symbol of birth. He is telling you that something greater is coming. He is telling you the TRUE LIGHT is coming to the world. The TRUE LIGHT is coming to YOU. He is a witness to this LIGHT.
The Gospel of John 1:23 states: He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord”. John is that inner voice within you. He is that one crying out from the chaos and telling you that there is a greater LIGHT to come. John is the AWAKENING of your soul.
In typical Christian iconography, John is often depicted as rugged looking. In relation to this point within a circle symbolism in the FM fraternity, John is a personification of the rough ashlar. This is the stone cut from a quarry that is in a crude and uneven shape. However, it is a stone in which perfection can be obtained. John, while having seen the LIGHT and a prophet of the almighty, does have his flaws, one of which is speaking his mind openly and that ultimately leads to his death. But for the individual, you enter into this path as the rough, uneven stone. This leads us to why John is on the left. If we view this as a map, John is in the West. This is where we start our quest for enlightenment, since the Sun (LIGHT) rises from the East. All paths lead East. John the Baptist is the perfect patron Saint for those who are beginning their journey.

To the right of the circle we have John the Evangelist / Theologian. If the Baptist marks the beginning of our path, then the Theologian marks the end goal. So what is it about this John that would ascribe as such? In Christian mythology, he is the attributed author of the Gospel of John, the letters of John and Revelation. Historically these can not be confirmed but when dealing with allegories, those issues do not apply. It is what we can learn from these stories and the wisdom that it bestows upon us that is of utmost importance. John the Evangelist / Theologian is the last of the Jesus movement apostles. The others had all died of unnatural deaths but John lived to be in his late 90s/early 100s (depending on what legend you read). He had a lived a full life and had been around from the early beginnings of the Jesus movement, to the death of it’s leader, and the beginning of the Christian church, whatever that may have been in those days (which is NOT how it is now). This long life allowed him to obtain much wisdom. The Gospel of John is unlike the other three gospels as it is a more theological based work. The use of symbolism is very high. John is not just recounting a story, he’s creating a mythology of God / LIGHT within the world. The use of symbolism throughout the Gospel of John is the foundation of the Christian religion. This entails the end of the original Jesus movement, bringing Divine Wisdom into the world as it’s ultimate achievement. This John also stands on the right of the point within a circle symbol, once again highlighting his importance in the East as WISDOM, the Divine LIGHT. So we start at the Baptist, i.e. the birth of our journey, and end with the Theologian, i.e. the culmination of our path. As I mentioned earlier, John the Baptist is associated with the rough ashlar, with John the Evangelist/Theologian, he is associated with the smooth ashlar. He represents the perfection of the Jesus movement. His work, particularly the Gospel of John, is the foundation of the faith. I have not referenced Revelation (The Apocalypse of John), but that work in itself is HIGHLY symbolic. While I perceive the work to be a political commentary of the time, it is often viewed by laymen as a prophetic tale. Those who view it that way are not reading the text properly and are taking the allegorical symbolism as literal figures/events. But in this case, if the same John is responsible for this text and the gospel of his name, then we can apply the symbolic nature to his WISDOM.

Finally we come to the top of the point within a circle, and that is the Holy Scriptures (The Bible).

This book, portrayed by the Christian bible, is a symbol of any volume of sacred law. It is the rule and guide of faith which one follows in their life. It is the written word (LOGOS) of God in that you use for your journey through life. If you are like me, you use numerous books as guides and not particularly stick with just one, but even if you just use one, the interpretations of such are vastly numerous. When one sees this book at the top of the circle, one via a Masonic outlook may wonder why it’s in the North, as that is where darkness is. Typically the South is perceived as where the Sun shines bright, so why would the Logos be in the dark? Let’s first look at Matthew 4:16: “The people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”

2 Corinthians 4:6 states: “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

John 1:5: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

Do you see the pattern? The light shines brightest in the dark. The LOGOS of God shines upon you from the depths of darkness.

This concludes my interpretation of the point within a circle, or as I would like to call it,
THE MONAD WITHIN YOU.

As with all symbolism, the interpretation is up to you. My opinion may or may not resonate but I hope it at least makes you think.

S.M.I.B.

-bP (originally written 2024)

Icons featured in the post are Russian icons from the past several centuries. If you are interested in purchasing my book, “The Sunesis Cosmogram”, you can do so here.