The Mask as symbol in Martinism
Masks have always been seen as a form of disguise and are objects that are frequently worn over, or in front of the face to hide the identity of the person and by its own features to establish another being. This essential characteristic of hiding and revealing personalities or moods is common to all masks. They have been used from the earliest of times and are as varied in their use as in their symbolism.
They have been used in various roles to demonstrate rank, to discipline members of a group of society, to escape recognition or to protect the wearer from future recriminations.
The real drama and power of its form is the important contribution of the wearer. When he is attired in the mask, there is the loss of his previous identity and the assuming of a new one. The very act of donning a mask, sometimes allows a psychic change, or a change in energy or mood, leading the wearer to slip into a familiar role.
Whether used in tribal rituals, theatrical drama or even festivities, the mask has always succeeded in hiding the true identity and personality of the wearer. It is this characteristic of the mask that led me to look further into its role in Martinism.
The mask is one of the first significant symbols that the Neophyte encounters one his initiatic path. The mask is closely related to the initiate’s personality and in Martinist practice, it is commonly believed that by donning the mask, the personality of the individual is masked and therefore all appear as equals. In Martinist circles it is often referred to as “One becomes an Unknown in the midst of the group of Unknowns.”
It allows the individual to rid himself from the fear of those little insecurities that one is constantly subjected to in daily life, whether self-inflicted or due to the judgmental attitude/demeanour of others. It removes the need for the recognition, honor, or distinction the world may have conferred upon us and by which we are known to it. It allows for the necessary breathing space or freedom we as individuals so desperately need in our true journey in seeking the Light.
The practice of donning a hypothetical or illusionary mask in daily life, allows us to retire to secrecy whilst still observing others. This mask of circumspection will forever protect one against inquisitive looks of those beings whose character and behaviour are fickle and who have become slaves to the entrapment of the mundane world.
The mask allows one to fully recognize and understand oneself and one’s own Inner Being. It creates the ideal opportunity to learn to be oneself. It allows one to stand alone before people that you do not know and therefore have no favour to ask of, thus it is in this state of loneliness that one can fully grasp the principal of one’s own advancement.
It is in this state of being with oneself that one can truly realize the art of being responsible for one’s own acts and that one has to account to oneself for every action, thought and mindset. Other’s are not stepping-stones on the journey and no sentient being should ever be abused or used, but rather should be honoured and respected for their own journey. The isolation of the Mask allows for complete anonymity. It is in this space that we learn that one’s own conscience is the master to be feared, from whom one must always receive council and who will be the inflexible and severe judge, to whom one must render an account of one’s acts. It is the introspection provided by the mask that shows one the price that one must attached to one’s Liberty, Almighty by one’s Will, but before Destiny and before Providence.
Eliphas Levi said:” that liberty which one may cause the divinity of man, the most beautiful, the most superb, the most irrevocable of all the gifts of God to man. The liberty which the supreme Creator himself could not violate without denying he’s own nature; that liberty which one or two octane both forks when he does not possess it as the supreme autocracy.”
It is that Liberty, which is the liberty of the soul and mind and not merely that of the body, that we do not possess. It is by fighting against one’s passions, one’s earthly cravings, that one may hope to conquer that freedom which is so much praised, so exalted, and so truly Divine.
There is not one person on earth that is capable of depriving one of that intellectual and moral liberty, it is oneself that is the True and absolute master of it, and it is one alone who will answer before one’s own Conscience and Wants and God for the errors and faults that it may have caused one to commit.
The mask not only allows one to reflect inwards, but it also allows one to remain unknown to those that one has saved from misery or saved from ignorance. Anonymity removes the ego and it is becoming increasingly important to know how to sacrifice one’s worldly personality whenever the welfare of humanity may command it.
B.B. Nagarkar said, in the grand Parliament of Religions, held in Chicago in 1983:
“Buddha, the great teacher of morals and ethics, teachers in most sublime strains the doctrine of Nirvana, or self-denial and self-effacement. This doctrine of extreme self-abnegation means nothing more than the subjugation and conquest of our carnal self. For you know that man is a composite being. In him he has the angelic Andy and, in the spiritual training of our life means no more than the subjugation of the animal and setting free of the angelic.”
These are but some of the teachings that can be learned from this profound symbol like the mask and as one grows on the path even more applications will be revealed if one’s heart truly desires them.
The mask as symbol is the foundation stone of Martinism, and is normally represented hieroglyphic by the Hebrew letter “Yod”, because this letter is the principal, the ‘stem cell’, from which all the letters of the Hebrew alphabet are formed. The Masked Initiate, in a similar way, becomes the keystone for a spiritually empowered generation.
The mask is also represented by the figure 10, it being the number of the letter ”yod” and the number of thought, both human and divine. It is this thought process that we carry forth in our daily lives. The occasional and temporary isolation of this practice does not infer that we should become anchorites and dwell apart from humanity. On the contrary, it allows us to function in our daily lives among our fellow beings in a truly spiritual way, fully recognizing Divinity within ourselves and all those around us.