The Voice Box: Freemasonry & The Martial Arts - Aprons, Black Belts and Secret Handshakes

MMA announcer Michael "The Voice" Schiavello of HDNet Fights takes a look at the similarities of Freemasonry & The Martial Arts

In February 2009 I became an Entered Apprentice Freemason (first degree). In July 2009 I was passed to the Fellowcraft degree (second degree). In February 2010, I was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason (third degree). My journey through Freemasonry’s three degrees has been an extraordinary experience. Involvement in the world’s oldest and largest fraternal order gives me incredible joy as both a means to enhance my knowledge of the world and the way it works through Masonry’s allegorical teachings and knowing that the steps I have walked were walked by millions of men before me and will be walked by millions after I’m gone. 

Some of history’s most prominent men once spoke the same words I speak in Lodge; once undertook the same solemn oaths to ‘always conceal and never reveal’; once circumambulated the checkered lodge floor; and once wore a pure apron, a hoodwink and a cable tow. Presidents, actors, singers, composers, sports stars, billionaires, kings, princes and every day men throughout a long and illustrious Masonic history all called one another “brother” and all once stood in the North East corner without a coin in their pocket nor any jewelry on their body -- “divested of all money and metallic substances” -- in the first step toward receiving “light.” 

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This “light”, the great reward for the dedicated Mason is, in my interpretation, the illumination of the soul and the creation of upstanding character. As part of a global fraternity that welcomes men of every race, colour and creed, the one prerequisite of being a Mason is that you must believe in a Supreme Being, be it the Christian God, Jehovah, Allah or any other deity. Through allegorical stories played out in dramatic rituals and utilising the tools of operative stonemasons of old such as the square, compass, pencil, plumb rule, chisel and level, a Mason symbolically cuts away at the rough stone (rough ashlar) of his own character and becomes what we call a perfect ashlar, or a perfect stone who serves as a solid brick in the framework of society. It’s a beautiful collective aspiration of Masons that in making ourselves into perfect ashlars, we will create a better world based on the principal tenets of Freemasonry, being brotherly love, relief and truth, and supported by the three great pillars of Wisdom, Strength and Beauty. We are taught that there should be wisdom to contrive, strength to support, and beauty to adorn all great and important undertakings. The Mason is sure to prosper if he has the wisdom to plan with judgement, the strength to resist evil tendencies and influences, and extolls the beauty of brotherly love and charity.

Over the years Masonry has gotten a bad rap due to the perception that ours is a secret society. This, of course, is ridiculous. There is nothing secret about a society that keeps minutes of its every lodge meet; that places its symbol (the square and compass) on the front of its lodge buildings for all to see; and whose rituals are largely available for the reader on the internet and in countless books. Masonry is, however, a society with secrets, not that the word secret should conjure any sinister images of devil worship, sexual ritual or illuminati gatherings in preparation for a world takeover, as many conspiracy theorists would have you believe. Any religious or political talk is banned at lodge meetings (pretty hard to take over the world when you’re not even permitted to discuss politics!) and the only secrets a Mason swears an oath to keep are those signs, grips and words by which we can recognise each other. But you can find these grips and signs and all the “secret” masonic words on the internet, right? Of course you can, but reading a website and seeing pictures does not make you a Mason, just as seeing The Karate Kid or reading techniques in Black Belt magazine does not make you a martial artist. As any martial artist will tell you, martial arts is not merely about kicking and punching, just as Masonry is not about secret handshakes and passwords. To understand Masonry and receive the “light” so often mentioned in its rituals; and to understand martial arts and receive the enlightenment so often proclaimed by instructors, one must realise that there is more to each respective craft and art than handshakes, words, kicks and punches. Also it is the Mason’s ability to keep safe the secrets imparted to him -- even safe from friends and family no matter how much they demand them -- that help build character and go a long way towards creating that perfect ashlar. For what sort of man are you if you cannot keep safe simple secrets you have taken an oath to protect in the repository of your own bosom.

In my short but wonderful Masonic journey thus far, I continually see examples of a certain synergy between Freemasonry and martial arts. Indeed having spoken to some martial artists who are Freemasons, they too are attracted to the many similarities between the two and believe that any martial artist would find an immediate affinity with the discipline, ritual and structured teaching of Masonry, as such is found in the martial arts.

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What are some of the similarities I have noticed between Masonry and the martial arts?

The Lodge & The Dojo

Freemasonic meetings are conducted in a Lodge of which there are two parts: the Lodge Room or Temple (in the North) and the South where we retire for refreshments after Lodge meetings. 

Only Masons are allowed in the Lodge Room and its entrance is guarded by a man called a Tiler who wields a sword (sometimes an actual sword, but often a symbolic sword). It is to the Tiler that a visiting Mason from another lodge must prove himself by conveying the signs, grips and words of a Master Mason. In the early days of Freemasonry, the tiler was in place to guard lodge meetings against cowans (non Masons) and eavesdroppers, a word which stems from Masonic beginnings: people used to sit in the eaves of lodges to spy on Masonic meetings and were found out when they fell  through the eaves or dropped from them, hence the creation of the word.

Inside the Lodge, one must adhere to strict ritual with attention paid to even the most minute details such as the position of your feet and just the right amount of steps taken; being careful to never tread on the checkered floor; and knowing exactly what words to say and what signs to give at what specific time.

The South is open to all people including women. There is no Tiler in the South and visitors are welcomed with open arms, free to dine and drink with us. In fact visitors are so warmly embraced that we even make a visitor’s toast and sing a visitor’s song!

The Lodge is comparable to the martial arts dojo. The dojo floor is sacred, so much so that in most traditional dojos students are required to remove their shoes before entering. Upon entering the dojo the student bows to the instructor, just as the Mason upon entering Lodge gives the sign to the Master. The student then proceeds to stand in a certain position, usually in a line ordered from superior to lesser rank. Similarly Masons take their seat in the Lodge according to office: the Master in the East, the Senior Warden in the West; the Junior Warden in the South, the Entered Apprentices and Fellowcrafts in the North, and so on.

A martial arts dojo usually contains a dojo oath and some form of certification as to the dojo’s credentials and affiliations. So too a Masonic Lodge cannot be opened unless there is a warrant from Grand Lodge on the wall. There is no Masonic oath on display, however there are what are called tracing boards on display, opened on whatever degree Lodge business is being conducted. These tracing boards are illustrations featuring symbols from each degree that help impart to us valuable lessons about the degrees. For example, the second tracing board features a winding staircase leading to the middle chamber of an allegorical temple. This is symbolic of the second degree Mason being in the middle chamber of learning, that is above the lower chamber of an Entered Apprentice but not quite ready for the main chamber of the Master Mason. 

The Lodge and the dojo are similar too in that a white belt will not be able to participate in a black belt session just as an Entered Apprentice cannot participate in a Lodge opened in the Fellowcraft Degree or the Masters Degree, and a Fellowcraft cannot participate in a Lodge opened in the Masters Degree. You are only permitted to practice on that degree you have attained and not above, just as in the martial arts.

The Apron & The Black Belt

The Apron of a Master Mason

As in martial arts, a strict dress code is applied to Freemasonry. The Mason is always dressed in a black suit, white shirt and black bow tie for no other reason than all being on the same level without distinction in class. Masons treat each other as equals -- brothers -- with no Mason above another. Once you achieve the Third Degree and are raised to the sublime degree of a Master Mason, you are considered an equal among brothers, no matter what higher degrees may be conferred upon you. (Freemasonry has as many as thirty three degrees but the three blue lodge degrees are the requirements to become a Master Mason and receive full Masonic privileges. All other degrees while I’m sure stimulating and created to increase ones knowledge and expand on the teachings of the first three degrees, are superfluous to the three degrees). Every Mason is an equal, and as such we are all clothed equally in Lodge where we meet on the level and part on the square, as stated in the first verse of this famous 1854 Freemasonic poem:

We meet upon the level and we part upon the square
These words have precious meaning and are practiced everywhere
Come let us contemplate them, they are worthy of a thought
From the ancient times of Masonry these symbols have been taught
We meet upon the level, every country, sect and creed
The rich man from his mansion, the poor man from the field
For wealth is not considered within our outer door
And we all meet on the level upon the checkered floor

The various degrees can be identified by signs, grips and words (as mentioned above) however at a glance a Mason can also determine a brother’s degree by looking at the other item of clothing we wear in Lodge -- the apron. There is no more important item of clothing, and indeed no more important possession of the Mason than the apron worn around his waist. Upon receiving a plain, pure white apron during our Entered Apprentice initiation, we are told that it is the badge of a Mason, “more ancient that the Golden Fleece or Roman Eagle, more honourable than the Star and Garter.” The apron is made from lambskin representing innocence. We are told above all else to always keep our apron clean and safe and wear it with the upmost pride. 

Similarly students of the martial arts wear uniforms (gi) in the dojo and belts around their waist, the colour of which is determined by the rank (level of learning) they have achieved. These levels of learning, which come to a climax with the acquisition of a black belt, are achieved by the performance of ritualistic and rigorous tests that have been practiced since ancient times, just as those undertaken by the Mason when traveling through the degrees on his way to becoming a Master Mason (the black belt of Masonry, I suppose you could say, as with Masonic degrees conferred beyond the third, in the martial arts all other dans or degrees are simply added learning from the lessons learnt at black belt level). Just as the Mason is taught to prize his apron above all else and keep it clean, so too is the martial artist taught to treat his gi and belt with reverence. (interestingly, as a side note, originally martial artists wore white belts only that would become darker in colour through constant use, eventually turning black for the highly experienced martial artist. This is the origin of the black belt in modern martial arts)

The Rituals & The Gradings

To advance as a martial artist you must undergo strict gradings to achieve rank. These gradings change from style to style but the basics of them are pretty similar and usually involve: sparring, execution of technique, explanation of technique and the performance of kata or forms. Fail to perform these tests to perfection and you fail the grading. These gradings are also performed solo meaning that you receive almost no assistance and need to have the techniques and forms committed to memory. It’s not enough to simply  throw the techniques in the air, there is also very specific positioning of the body parts that must be performed with precision. These gradings utilise techniques and forms that can be traced back hundreds of years and in some cases even further back to ancient times, such as with the Shaolin roots of Kung Fu or the Karate of Okinawan farmers.

Likewise Masons undergo rituals (our gradings) to achieve the various degrees. These rituals have remained virtually unchanged for hundreds of years and aspects of them can be traced back to the ancient Egyptian mystery schools which are said to have developed after the sinking of Atlantis. Masons are required to commit enormous chunks of text to memory for the completion of these degrees in which the Master asks the candidate questions that the candidate must answer word perfectly. The candidate must also execute the signs and tokens with perfection, which includes the positioning of the feet, the arms, the hands, the fingers and more, not unlike the kata or forms a martial artist commits to memory with excellence of execution. Indeed one of the most mind-blowing aspects of the rituals is the ability I see in Master Masons to recite, word perfect, massive chunks of text. The oaths and tracing board lectures in each degree are extensive and last for several minutes of non-stop speech, all of which is done completely from memory. No wonder Freemasonry is practiced by so many into old age. The constant memory work is a sure fire way to prevent or at least slow down the onset of dementia.

The Working Tools & The Weapons

Modern Freemasons such as myself are called speculative Masons as opposed to operative Masons, meaning we practice Freemasonry speculatively for its character building and moral lessons, and not operatively as stonemasons. In our speculative learning we have adopted the tools of operative Masons from medieval stonemasons guilds and use them symbolically to impart valuable lessons. 

The Masonic Square & Compass

Indeed most of Freemasonry’s lessons are taught through symbolism and allegory. Ask a Freemason what Freemasonry is and you’ll most often get the answer: “A peculiar system of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols.” As the great Freemasonic scholar, Albert Pike once said: “The symbolism of Masonry is the soul of Masonry. It is in its ancient symbols and in the knowledge of their true meanings that the preeminence of Freemasonry over all other orders consists.”

Each degree of Freemasonry uses different working tools to symbolically teach the lessons of that degree. The various tools for each degree are:

• Entered Apprentice: 24-inch gauge, chisel, common gavel
• Fellowcraft: Level, square, plumb rule
• Master: Pencil, compass, skirret (in the USA the trowel is used, not the skirret)

Each of these was a working tool of the operative Masons who designed the gothic cathedrals of the Middle Ages and other amazing architectural wonders, such as King Solomon’s Temple, from which much Freemasonic symbolism is derived. However we as speculative Masons use these tools to impart moral lessons. It is even believed that ancient Chinese philosophers once used the very same symbols Freemasonry uses to teach moral lessons. Writes Oliver Day Street in his book Symbolism of the Three Degrees: “The tools with which men labour are not inappropriate for use as moral symbols: they are nether humble nor trivial. They are worthy emblems of the highest and noblest virtues. The very stages of human advancement are named from the character of the tools that were employed during them, thus, the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, etc.”

Just as Freemasonry uses the ancient working tools of the stonemasons to teach important moral lessons, so martial arts employs ancient tools to teach physical lessons. Martial arts weapons such as the tonfa and nunchaku were first employed as working tools by Okinawan farmers for their crops. The tonfa, for example, was used as a handle to grind rice. It was inserted into a hole in a large rock called the threshing stone and used to turn the rock grinding the rice to flour. Of course the tonfa and nunchaku are no longer employed as farming tools but rather used in martial arts to teach not only self defence (a steering wheel lock or a rolled up newspaper can be used like a tonfa in self defence application) but for hand-eye coordination, speed and balance. Forms or kata utilise such weapons as tonfa, sai, nunchaku and bo speculatively to develop the attributes just mentioned; in a similar way Masonry speculatively uses building tools of the operative Masons to instill moral teachings.

What It's Really All About

If you want to become a Freemason the path usually taken is to ask a Freemason you know to sponsor you into the fraternity, hence the popular slogan you sometimes see on bumper stickers or on licence plates: “To be one, ask one” usually written as “2B1ASK1”. 

My story was a little different. 

When my interest in Freemasonry was piqued, I didn’t know any Freemasons to ask about the fraternity, which meant there was nobody to sponsor me. I simply called the number of my local Lodge (Deepdene-Balwyn Lodge 275) and asked the gentleman on the other end of the line how I could go about becoming a Mason. He invited me to attend their dinners in the South at which I was free to ask as many questions about Masonry as I liked to all the Masons present. I was not allowed to participate in the Lodge Room but the South became a goldmine for information and the answer to several questions -- and I also got a free feed each night! 

I kept going back to those meetings in the South, month after month, getting to know the Masons of Lodge 275 before the Lodge Secretary decided I was ready to take the next step. This involved a meeting one night at Grand Lodge where a panel asked me several questions about my background, my work, my education and other aspects of my life. The pivotal question of their interview, however, was: why do you want to become a Mason?

When joining a martial arts class, many instructors ask the potential student why they want to learn Karate or Kung Fu or Aikido or Muay Thai or whatever art has piqued their interest. The answer to this question more often than not is one of the following: 

• I want to learn self defence
• I want to get fit
• I want to improve my confidence, which I can do through a and b

Very rarely will a prospective student say that they want to learn martial arts to know how to kick and punch people, as that is not what true martial arts is all about. You see true martial arts is a vehicle to developing better character. The study of martial arts uses the physical skill set of kicks, punches, chokes, locks, holds, etc to illuminate the student by way of developing confidence, discipline, respect for seniority, a sense of brotherhood with fellow class members and self improvement. No matter how big your ego, it is an incredibly humbling experience to get choked out or kicked in the legs by a martial artist of a higher grade once or twice a week.  It’s all part of the main aim of martial arts: to build character. This is the very reason why even in a day and age where the Mixed Martial Arts boom has debunked many of the myths of traditional martial arts and their practical application, traditional Karate, Kung Fu, Aikido, Hapkido and Taekwondo remain popular due to their ability to effectively build character and develop what the Japanese term “Budo Spirit.”

Back to my story about my interview at Grand Lodge and the question as to why I wanted to become a Mason. This is what I answered: “I once read a quote that Freemasonry makes good men better. I like to think that I am a good man but if there is a way to make me a better man, and that way is Freemasonry, they I want to be a part of it.” My answer was greeted with beaming smiles, friendly handshakes and the chief interviewer telling me it would “be a pleasure to have you as part of the fraternity.”

Just martial arts is just not about kicks and punches (though they do play a major part), so Freemasonry is not about secret handshakes, signs and words (though they also play a part). Both martial arts and Freemasonry’s biggest similarity is, in my opinion, that both are designed to build character, develop the “Budo” spirit of martial arts and the “perfect ashlar” that is the Freemason’s aim, and make us all round better human beings.

By Michael Schiavello
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Guest Writer

Michael Schiavello is the voice of MMA and K-1 on HDNet and a regular correspondent for InsideMMA. He commentated the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne and The Contender Asia reality TV series. He can be found online at: www.thevoiceofficial.com and at Twitter "SchiavelloVOICE."