THE
THEOSOPHICAL SEAL DESCRIBED THE SEAL of the Theosophical Society is composed of a number of symbols, all of them having been used from ancient times to express profound spiritual and philosophical concepts about humanity and the universe. They may be found in a variety of forms in the great religions of the world and their universality is further shown by their appearance in widely separated cultures.
Each symbol, studied separately, will yield a wealth of understanding, but none of them can be interpreted with a narrow precision. Taken together as in the Society's seal, they represent a unity of meaning, suggesting a vast evolutionary scheme embracing the whole of nature, physical and spiritual. Study and contemplation of the emblem as well as its several component symbols will lead the serious student to an awareness of some of the deepest mysteries of existence. A few brief suggestions may be helpful to the enquirer looking at the seal for the first time.
THE SERPENT is
the timeless symbol of the highest spiritual Wisdom. Swallowing its tail, it
is a symbol of regeneration. It is the self-born, the circle of infinite wisdom,
life and immortality. The circle itself is an ancient symbol of eternity and
represents the Absolute, the unmanifested universe containing the potentials
of all form. As representative of the infinite sphere, the "world
egg" of archaic cosmology, this symbol is found in every world religion and philosophy.
THE
INTERLACED TRIANGLES, one
(lighter) pointing upwards and the other (darker) pointing downwards, symbolise
the descent of spirit into matter and its reemergence from the confining limits
of form. They also suggest the constant conflict between the light and dark forces
in nature as well as the inseparable unity of spirit and matter. When depicted
within the circle of the serpent, the figure represents the universe and the
manifestation of Deity in time and space. The three lines and three angles of
each of the two triangles may remind us of the triple aspects of spirit: existence,
consciousness and bliss, and the three aspects of matter: mobility, resistance
and rhythm. The glyph can also be seen as the six pointed star, embracing
spiritual and physical consciousness and viewed by the Pythagoreans as the symbol
of creation.
IN THE CENTRE of the seal is the ankh or Crux Ansata, an ancient Egyptian
symbol of resurrection. It is composed of the Tau or T shaped cross surmounted
by a small circle and is often seen in Egyptian statuary and in wall and tomb
paintings where it is depicted as being held in the hand. The Tau symbolises
matter or the world of form; the small circle above it represents spirit or life.
With the circle marking the position of the head, it represents the mystic cube
unfolded to form the Latin cross, symbol of spirit descended into matter and
crucified thereon, but risen from death and resting triumphant on the arms of
the conquered slayer. So it may be said that the figure of the interlaced triangles
enclosing the ankh represents the human triumphant and the divine triumphant
in the human. As the cross of life, the ankh then becomes a symbol of resurrection
and immortality.
THE SWASTIKA,
placed in the emblem at the head of the serpent, is one of the numerous forms
in which the symbol of the cross is found. It is the fiery cross, with arms of
whirling flame revolving clockwise to represent the tremendous energies of nature
incessantly creating and dissolving the forms through which the evolutionary
process takes place. In religions which recognise three aspects of Deity, the
swastika is associated with the Third Person of the Trinity, who is at once the
Creator and the Destroyer: Shiva in Hinduism and the Holy Ghost in Christianity.
Applied to humanity, the figure may show the human as the link between heaven
and earth, one "hand" pointing toward heaven or spirit and the
other toward earth or matter.
ABOVE THE SEAL,
in Sanskrit characters, is the sacred word of Hinduism, Aum or Om, a word of
profound significance. It may be said to stand for the creative Word or Logos,
the ineffable Reality which is the source of all existence. We are reminded of
the statement: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God." Om is a word of power and should be uttered
only with the greatest reverence.