All of this is perfectly natural. We are, after all, apes with less hair. We strive to be the alpha male and female; to fit in with the society or "tribe" that surrounds us. And often that society is just a larger version of our selves; it is created by groups of selves.

But, in the times gone by, our ancestors saw through all of this and recognized that there was another way. They discovered that in-order for man to elevate himself above the level of the grind-stone, he needed to alter his internal dialogue. Man needed to understand himself and the forces that drive him.

This unique understanding - that there could be a higher goal for mankind, whether collectively or individually - evolved into what we now know as Gnosticism. Of course this is a massive oversimplification and we should always take into account the mystics - those who have experienced what we would call other-worldly emotions or visions. Also, regardless of popular perception, the Christian's were not the only Gnostics and mystics. Gnostic comes from the Greek word gignoskein meaning simply to know. It was applied to "one sect of so-called philosopher's in the first ages of Christianity."

However, the term is now being used more loosely and I personally see the term slightly differently to others and probably in a controversial light.

To me the Greek term implies all-knowledge. This is a kind of knowledge gained much like plugging ones mind into the world wide web and being able to download every single piece of data in an instant. In the same way, the true Gnostic, much like the mystic, could understand all things in a unique way. Whether this is the mind tapping into the collective unconscious, the Akashic records, or any other name given to the process, does not matter for the purpose of this article, the fact remains, it was believed. And because of this belief, physical manifestations of the internal belief system emerged the world over. In this way, the temples of man, were exactly that - Temples of Man.

Gnosis then, means knowledge of the most esoteric kind and this is the story that has been hidden from our eyes for too long. This is the truth of the secret societies that we on the outside are supposedly too worldly to comprehend.

The Temple

So, let us now try our best to comprehend the Temple of Solomon and in doing so, let us walk upon Holy ground, trodden only by the initiated.

In the years of my own searching there were times when I would be found at the feet of the Magi, sitting and listening to the wise words of the Sufi, joining in the debate at some Freemasonic Lodge. All the time I was learning and viewing the process with an open ear and an open eye, and yet also balancing it all with the knowledge of modern day science and reductionism. Both worlds, the one of the esoteric and the one of science are useless apart - both are needed today if we are to truly understand and believe.

And so down to facts about the Temple of Solomon. Well, unfortunately we are sadly lacking in any archaeological evidence, regardless of what you read on some literal fundamentalist website. What we are told is that in the 10th century BC, the wise King Solomon erected a great Temple to the Lord. Unfortunately, if any of this is true, then we actually find that it was a Temple, which encompassed many pagan religions.

According to Professor James Pritchard in his book, Solomon and Sheba (1974, p.35): ".. the so-called cities of Megiddo, Gezer and Hazor, and Jerusalem itself were in reality more like villages.. Within were relatively small public buildings and poorly constructed dwellings with clay floors. The objects reveal a material culture which, even by the standards of the ancient Near East, could not be judged sophisticated or luxurious.. The 'magnificence' of the age of Solomon is parochial and decidedly lackluster, but the first book of Kings implies exactly the opposite."

In fact and in the bright light of day, what we actually have, and what most writers are afraid to say, is no evidence whatsoever for Solomon's Temple. In fact, we have no evidence for Solomon, other than these peculiar Biblical texts. Neither do we have any evidence for the Queen of Sheba, or any of the other characters involved. Instead, there is more depth than could ever be imagined, more meaning than we would dare to believe.

John Michell in The Temple at Jerusalem: A Revelation, (Gothic Image) gives us an insight to the real meaning.:

"Legends of the Temple describe it as the instrument of a mystical, priestly science, a form of alchemy by which oppositely charged elements in the earth and atmosphere were brought together and ritually married. The product of their union was a spirit that blessed and sanctified the people of Israel."

How right Michell is. The Temple is an instrument of mystical and priestly science or even magic. The secret unravels before our eyes the more we learn. You see the true Gnostic, the true disciple or perfect one, must be a man or woman of balance. He or she must unite the two sides of the mind, the male and female principles as they are called. We are all both male and female and the alchemists used this concept of balance and revealed it in their images of the Hermaphrodite, half man and half woman.

Solomon, was no real man, and Sheba was no real woman. Instead they were symbols of this internal and often external process. The whole story of Solomon, Sheba and the Temple, which is the perfectly formed body, both physical and spiritual, is the story of our own psyche. It is an esoteric truth, misunderstood in its exoteric form.

Hiram

Hiram was the son of a Jewish mother and a Phoenician

We must also note something of interest mentioned in 1 Kings 16:

"Then he made two capitals of cast bronze, to set on top of the pillars. The height of one capital was 5 cubits; and the height of the other capital was five cubits. He made a lattice network, with wreaths of chainwork, for the capitals which were on top of the pillars: seven chains for one capital and seven for the other capital."

These pillars became known as Jachin, meaning "he establishes" and Boaz, which means "in him is strength" and these are now familiar to most modern Freemasons as central to their own Lodge or Temple. Copies of these can be clearly seen at the infamous Rosslyn Chapel as we shall discover.

But, what is interesting here is the original text about these pillars. Firstly bronze is used for the capitals, just as bronze is used for the "Brazen Serpent" of Moses and is indicative of the fiery aspect of the serpent as one of the channels in the Kundalini process. Their "heights" were 5 cubits, matching the five hooded cobras seen across India and atop many pillars, although the Bible calls them Lilies, which are symbols of balance anyway.

Leading up to these capitals then were "wreaths" of "chainwork", seven on each pillar. Strangely these chains were "for the capitals," and so we conclude that these seven levelled chains (coils) were pointing towards the head (capital) just as the serpents of the Kundalini do.

There are more real links between Hiram and the serpent. For instance, we noted above that he was of the Tribe of Naphtali. The standard of the Tribe of Naphtali, according to Jewish tradition, is a serpent or basilisk and this could have come from Egyptian origins, as Jewish tradition states that Naphtali was the brother of Joseph, chosen to represent the family to Pharaoh.

"And now I have sent a skillful man, endowed with understanding, Huram [Hiram] my master [father] craftsman, (the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre), skilled to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood, purple and blue, fine linen and crimson, and to make any engraving and to accomplish any plan which may be given to him, with your skilful men and with the skilful men of my lord David your father." 2 Chronicles 2:13-14.

Here, Hiram is said to be a son of the Tribe of Dan and even the tribe of Dan had an emblem, which was amazingly also the serpent, this time with a horse.

Incredibly there is also a hidden truth and repetitive pattern in this little statement about the real skills of this literary character. Follow this pattern:

Hiram is skilled in:-

1 gold and silver, 2 bronze and iron, 3 stone and wood, 4 purple and blue, 5 fine linen and crimson, 6 and to make any engraving 7 and to accomplish any plan which may be given to him.

Note that there are seven 'balanced' elements to the skill of the man who will build the Temple! This is a real clue to the Temple's secret indeed.

According to this book of Chronicles Hiram was a cunning man (a word used for the serpent) endued with understanding, skilful as we can see in the work of gold, silver, brass, stone and timber. But he was also credited with certain tools, which could pierce stone. Stone, as I show in Gnosis is symbolic of wisdom and foundation. Hiram's tool therefore pierced the veil or even the very root of wisdom.

According to the book of Kings the Temple was built of stone (or wisdom) before it was brought to the site. Something like a prefabricated building. It was said by tradition that neither hammer nor axe, nor any tool of iron was used in the building. So how was it built? This in itself is a paradox, which can only be answered by the true secret of the Temple being revealed.

According to Rabbinical teaching the prefabrication of the Temple was performed by the Shamir, a giant worm or serpent that could cut stones (incidentally worm means serpent). Not dissimilar to Norse and Celtic beliefs where Valhalla and Camelot were built with the fire of the dragon and in China where building is aided by the serpent energy.

This is a universal concept as can be seen in India, where it was the serpentine linked Naga's of fable who escaped their country and took the architectural wisdom abroad. The architect gods, such as Thoth of Egypt, are linked strongly with the serpent wisdom because they are linked with the building of "Temples of Wisdom" inside our SELVES.

The Shamir, according to one legend had even been placed in the hands of the Prince of the Sea (Shamir by Wilhelm Bacher & Ludwig Blau), which of course is symbolic of the Prince of Wisdom.

In essence what we really have here is the Temple of Wisdom being built by the serpent and that serpent is none other than that of, or similar to, the internal Kundalini, later to be developed into the Kabbalah. This is a psychological training manual; a method of self-improvement; a way for society to become One; a multi-layered method of getting closer to the deity which resides in each and everyone of us; a deity, that the ancients saw as being the same in each of us.

The whole process repeats again and again throughout the Bible. The Temple is reduced (like the alchemical method) and is remade. Then again and again, until finally the Christ is the Temple which is reduced (killed) and then rises again for the last time. And now, according to the texts, we can all meet with this Christ and we can all have the knowledge. We just need to understand that the true Christ is all and in all.

But this wasn't the end of the story .........

About the Author

Philip Gardiner is the author of The Serpent Grail: The Truth Behind the Holy Grail, the Philosopher's Stone and the Elixir of Life, Gnosis: The Secret of Solomon's Temple Revealed, The Shining Ones: The World's Most Powerful Secret Society Revealed and Proof? Does God Exist? He is host of the Philip Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge Conference UK (FKCUK) and writes columns for various magazines. He also has his own r