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Ancient writings contain detailed descriptions of
temples that were never discovered. Have these temples ever existed? What was the message encoded in
their architecture and dimensions?
Ezekiel's Vision of a Temple
(According to South Indian Temple Architecture)
Ancient Linear Measuring Scale
by T.L.Subash Chandira Bose, Sthapathi V.Raman and Jack
Andrews
Reprinted with permission.
All over the world many ancient linear measuring scales were
found and none of them are match with each other. Many scholars and
researchers spent their valuable time and finally concluded that the
selection of linear measuring scales was well known selected persons
called "Stapathis" (Architects) and would have originated
elsewhere in this mother earth. In this article we are trying to
unfold the mystery on the ancient linear measuring scale with the
"Linear measuring scale" indicated by Ezekiel in his
vision of the temple.
We find in book of Ezekiel the description of linear measuring
scale in very beginning in the chapter "Ezekiel’s vision of
Temple.
40.3 – 40.5:
"When he brought me there, behold, there was
a man, whose appearance was like bronze, with a line of flax and a
measuring reed in his hand; and he was standing at the gate
way."
"And the man said to me, son of man, look with your eyes,
and hear with your ears, and set your mind upon all that I shall
show you, for you were brought here in order that I might show it to
you; declare all that you see o the house of Israel."
"And behold, there was a wall all around the outside of the
temple area, the length of the measuring reed was six long cubits,
each being a cubit and a hand breadth in length; so he measured the
thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed."
By keeping the importance let us begin our discussion in detail
step by step.
Linear measuring scales: In India especially in Tamil Nadu
different type of ancient linear measuring scales (Kol) were found
by various researchers and archeologists. The most common scales are
Mannai Kol, Ulagalantha Kol, Nilamalantha Kol, Nanjai Kol, Punjai
Kol, Kuli Kol and Sirpanga Kol. In addition there are also few
linear scale such as Thalai Kol etc. We observed the linear scale
with the same name are varies in its measurements also remains a
mystery.
Location: Mostly we can observe the ancient linear measuring
scales marked on the base (Athisthanam) of the temples, walls of
temples, temple floor, and temple vestibules and near by the entry
gates of temples.
Direction: Ancient linear measuring scales were found towards
north or south direction, in very few cases towards east or west.
Identification: It can be identified with two or three or more
plus (+) marks. Some cases only with the vertical lines and few were
found with plus (+) mark at the ends and vertical line or lines in
the middle. The distance in between the both marks at extreme end
was the actual measurement of the scale.
The name of the scale inscribed within the marks, or nearby.
There are many cases the details about scale mentioned in the
ancient script inscribed on the near by walls.
By considering the importance of the linear measuring scale, we
shall discuss in detail also by referring the various ancient texts.
Sun: In the Brahmanic texts the Sun is Cosmic Intelligence and
the light it radiates is intellectual knowledge (Chevaller and
Cheerbrant, 1973, 4, p.216, s.v. Solell); it is the abode of Brahman
and Purusa and the seat of the cyclic legislator, Manu.
The Sun’s rays measure out the worlds, bring all things into
existence, and quicken all beings: "Thou alone, O Sun, art born
about the whole world" (AV XIII.2.3).
The Sun is the sacrificial Person who is "poured out upon
the earth from East to West" (RV X.90.5). It divides itself to
fill the worlds (MU VI.26) but yet remains undivided and whole among
divided things (BG XIII.16 and XVIII.20), "for inasmuch as he
is that (Sun) in yonder world he is one, and inasmuch as he is
numerously divided here on earth among living beings, he is
manifold"(SB X.5.2.16).
By this manifold division of itself the Sun’s light is
progenitive, " for progeny indeed is all the Light" (SB
VIII.7.1.16; cf. TS VII.1.1.1).
The Sun’s rays are his sons and every animate being is filiated
from the Sun; and the Enlightened know that" the rays of him
(the Sun) who burns there, are the righteous " (SB I.9.10 cf.
RV I. 109.7): they are the solar rays, and true sons of the sun (JUB
II.9.10).
The smallest ancient linear measurement was "Paramanu".
According to Brhatsamhita 57.1, when the sun’s rays pass through a
close net work (jala, lattice), the breath of a single beam of
light, which is extremely minute (anutara) is identified as a
"paramanu" (atom). This, of course, is not discernible by
human eye, although it is conceded that adepts (yogins) can develop
the power to perceive it.
Measurement: The Purusa (=Prajapati), the non-supreme (apara) and
first form of the supreme Brahman (Para-Brahman), identified with
Visavkarman, the Architect of Universe, bears the measuring rod
(mana, from ma), knows the divisions and thinks himself composed of
parts. Thus divided and measured out, Purusa thinks of himself as
the Goddess Uma, whose name, like maya, is from root ma, "to
measure": she is the "the measured out", the
manifested world come into existence by the thinking of Purusa. By
thinking himself as divided and composed of parts he measures out
cosmos.
He measures it (the fire altar) by finger breaths: for the
sacrifice being a divine man (Purusa), it is by him that every thing
is measured here. Now these, to with the fingers, are his lowest
measure (avama matra): he thus secures for him (the sacrificial man
or the Yajamana) that lowest measure of his and therewith he thus
measures him. He measure by twenty-four finger-breaths-Gayatri verse
consists of twenty-four syllables, and Agni is of the Gayatra
nature: as great as Agni is as great as his measure, by so much he
thus measure him. - SBr. X. 2.1.2.3:
System of Measurement: The System of Measurement, Maya mata-
Chapter-5 translated by Bruno Dagens.
5.1 : All habitations are defined by their dimensions. I am going
to present as well, methodically though in few words, the system of
measurements.
5.2 : The Manangula is known to be a multiple of an atom, defined
as that which can be perceived by the vision of those who have
mastered their senses.
5.3-6a : Eight atoms are equal to a speck of dust, in multiplying
each eight time by eight, we go from a speck of dust to the tip of a
hair, then to a nit, to a louse and finally to a grain of barley.
Eight barley grains make a digit (angula), which is called matra.
Twelve digits makes a span (vitrasi) twice which is cubit (hasta),
called by the learned, as well, kisku; twenty –five digits make a
prajapatya, twenty –six a dhanurmusti and twenty- seven a
dhanurgraha.
5.6a-11a: For vehicle and seats the cubit (is used), for
buildings the dhanurmusti and for the villages and so on the
dhanurgraha; the ordinary cubit however may serve for any building;
it is called ratni, aratni, bhuja, bahu and kara. Four cubits makes
a pole, also called yasti; eight poles (danda) makes a rope (rajju),
villages are to be measured in poles as are pattana, (towns),
nigama, kheta, palaces…. etc.; but house are to be in cubits. The
sage should employ the span for vehicle and seat, the digit for
small (objects) and the barley grain for very small ones. Such is
the system of measurements.
5.11b-12 : The matrangula is equal to the middle phalanx of the
middle finger of the officiating priest; it is (to be used for
measurements relating to) sacrifices…etc.; that which has just
been mentioned is also called " digit taken from the body"
(dehalabdhangula).
5.13a : Knowing all this the architect must measure rigorously.
Study: From the above, with measurement of "Purusa" the
linear scale with twenty-four-finger breath is to be selected for a
cubit. Also we find the measurement of priest or Yajamana (the chief
or the donor) is to be taken. There is an ancient proverb in Tamil
"Enn Jhan Udambuku Thaliae Prathanam", which means, "
The head is vital part of the body having eight span (vitrasi) of
length". We have already seen twice the span (vitrasi) is the
cubit (hasta) which is of twenty-four finger breath.
The Cubit in Tamil Mulam, in Hebrew ammah ("mother of the
arm" and "ammah" in Tamil is "Mother"), the
forearm, was the nominal distance from one's elbow to the fingertip;
the term "cubit" is from the Latin cubitus, the lower arm.
According to Geometry of Ancient India Page.44 – Swami Satya
Prakash Sarasvati: The measurement of hand breath is four-finger
breadth.
According to Sri Devi Bagavatham, in kaliyuga the average height
of a Purusa was six feet, as we seen earlier total height of a man
shall be eight span (vitrasi) (one span= 12 fingers) this means 8 x
12 = 96 fingers, in British system 6 x 12 = 72 inches. There fore
the ratio shall be 72: 96. Hence 0.75 inches = 1 finger.
Ezekiel the linear measuring scale: We find in book of Ezekiel
the linear measuring scale was six long cubits long. The each long
cubit was of a cubit and handbreadth in measurement. There fore the
measurement of a long cubit shall be (4+24) 28 fingers and reed
(28x6) 168 fingers.
Some thing amazing the measurement of a cubit (24 fingers) is
"Six" times of a handbreadth (4 fingers) and the
measurement of the reed (168 fingers) is "Six long cubits"
(28 fingers).
The measurement of long cubit is "Seven" times of a
handbreadth (7x4=28) and the reed is "Seven times of a
cubit" (24x7=168).
Based on the above the measurement we shall observe that the
Ezekiel’s linear measuring scale the long cubit (28 x 0.75) 21
inches and the reed (21 x6) 126 inches. Let us have a look at few
ancient linear measuring scales. We understand that the Hebraic
cubit was one foot nine inches i.e. 21 inches.
During the King Solomon period the measurement selected for the
temple construction was a standard cubit.
Due to some specific reason the number seven considered instead
of six. We find in entire Holy Bible the number "Seven"
play a vital roll and also in all the religion and culture in the
entire world, considered a Sacred Number in Ancient times.
Study on other linear measuring scale: An ancient linear
measuring scale (1000 A.D), Ulagalantha kol (stick used to measure
the world), with two plus (+) marks having total length of 128.5
inches was found at the tower of Vadavaraneswarar Temple,
Thiruvalankadu by Dr. Kudavail Balasubramanian. The ancient
inscription with in the scale, describe that this scale was marked
based on the scale in Rararajaeswarar (Big temple) temple situated
at Thanjavur, Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu.
Which is very close to Ezekiel’s linear measuring scale.
Another scale with the measurement of 28.5 inches also found with
extended plus (+) marks adjacent the main scale. If the main scale
divided by four and a half, we find the result 28.55555556 inches,
which is almost equal to 28.5 inches. Interestingly we shall find if
the scale divided by 6 it is " 21.4166667" inches (Ezekiel’s
long cubit 21 inches).
An ancient linear measuring scale (800 A.D.) "Mannai "
(Mannai Kol) with two plus (+) marks having total length of 113.5
inches was found by one of the authors of this article Sthapathi
V.Raman at Shree Kailasanathar temple situated at Alambakkam,
Tiruchirapalli District. In the near by stone inscription, a land of
" Mannai Kol four and half" with this measurement land was
measured and given as gift. So the actual measurement of the linear
scale "Mannai" was 510.75 inches. Interestingly we shall
find if the scale divided by 24 it is " 21.28125" inches
(Ezekiel’s long cubit 21 inches).
With the above reference we observe the linear scale shown in
ancient period has to be multiplied with some factors for actual
measurement.
Sacred Number Seven: There is an verse in Rig Veda book 10:
"Purusa, who had a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, a thousand
feet, investing the earth in all direction exceeds (it by a space)
measuring ten fingers."
Let us apply the factors used in Ezekiel’s scale, the
"Seven" times of ten fingers and by "Six" times.
The measurement of the reed would be 10 x 7 = 70 and 70x 6 = 420
fingers or 315 inches. Interestingly an ancient linear measuring
scale (1200 A.D), Nilamalantha kol (stick used to measure the
lands), with two plus (+) marks having total length of 157.5 inches
was found by Dr.Kallaikovan in Thiruchendurai temple situated at
Jeeya puram, Tiruchirapalli district, Tamil Nadu, India. We
surprised to observe 157.5 inches is half of 315 inches. Instead of
ten fingers, if only five fingers are selected and the scale
measurement will be (5x7=35, 35x6=210) 210 fingers or 157.5 inches.
Conclusion
Purusa or man's length as Unit of Measure: In the construction of
the firealtars, it has been customary in regards the man's length as
unit of measurement. All men are nit of equal stature, and hence the
Yajamana or House-holder (the chief host in the sacrifice) was taken
to be the standard for the sacrifice initiated by them.-Geometry in
Ancient India, Svami Satya Prakash Sarasvati, page 50.
The white elephant "Iravatha" was "seven Cubit”
in height. "Seventhi Puranam" verse. 314.
" The Great water (the Deep or Chaos) is said to be Seven
Cubits deep"-" Therein, in the great mother, all the Gods,
and the seven great ones are born." (See chapter c viii. a,
Book of the Dead and Egyptian Pantheon).
Ezekiel the linear measuring scale: The measurement of long cubit
is "Seven" times of a handbreadth (7x4=28 fingers) and the
reed is "Seven times of a cubit" (24x7=168 fingers).
We would like to conclude that, the "Purasa" (Divine
man) with a standard length of six feet and the Sacred number Seven
was considered in the selection of Ezekiel’s Linear measuring
scale of a "Long Cubit" and a "Reed", are
"21" inches and "126" inches respectively.
Dear brothers and sisters, this article is the beginning of
unfolding the mystery on ancient linear measuring scale and not an
end.
Copyright 2003 by T.L.Subash Chandira
Bose
Your comments about this article is most welcome, thank you.
E-mail: lscbose@eth.net
Solomon's Temple is one of the most interpreted
building in the history, and every architect saw it's composition in a
completely different way. Architects, mystics, Kings and fools, Templars, and
Masons especially phantasized and phantasize about the nature, composition,
meaning of this sacred building described in the Bible.
Many reasonable, but many more unreasonable suppositions have been made about
the nature of the temple, and they have all in common a desire to invest a
certain kind of meaning into described composition. If nothing else, Solomon's
Temple, is a target of human desire par excellence.
Introduction by www.aiwaz.net
Temple's Description in the Bible
Preparations for Building the Temple
1 Kings 5
1 When Hiram king of Tyre heard that Solomon had been anointed king
to succeed his father David, he sent his envoys to Solomon, because he had
always been on friendly terms with David. 2 Solomon sent back this
message to Hiram:
3 "You know that because of the wars waged against my father
David from all sides, he could not build a temple for the Name of the LORD his
God until the LORD put his enemies under his feet. 4 But now the LORD
my God has given me rest on every side, and there is no adversary or disaster. 5
I intend, therefore, to build a temple for the Name of the LORD my God, as the
LORD told my father David, when he said, 'Your son whom I will put on the throne
in your place will build the temple for my Name.'
6 "So give orders that cedars of Lebanon be cut for me. My men
will work with yours, and I will pay you for your men whatever wages you set.
You know that we have no one so skilled in felling timber as the
Sidonians."
7 When Hiram heard Solomon's message, he was greatly pleased and
said, "Praise be to the LORD today, for he has given David a wise son to
rule over this great nation."
8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon:
"I have received the message you sent me and will do all you want in
providing the cedar and pine logs. 9 My men will haul them down from
Lebanon to the sea, and I will float them in rafts by sea to the place you
specify. There I will separate them and you can take them away. And you are to
grant my wish by providing food for my royal household."
10 In this way Hiram kept Solomon supplied with all the cedar and
pine logs he wanted, 11 and Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors [1]
of wheat as food for his household, in addition to twenty thousand baths [2]
, [3] of pressed olive oil.
Solomon continued to do this for Hiram year after year. 12 The LORD
gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised him. There were peaceful relations
between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.
13 King Solomon conscripted laborers from all Israel-thirty thousand
men. 14 He sent them off to Lebanon in shifts of ten thousand a
month, so that they spent one month in Lebanon and two months at home. Adoniram
was in charge of the forced labor. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand
carriers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hills, 16 as well as
thirty-three hundred [4] foremen
who supervised the project and directed the workmen. 17 At the king's
command they removed from the quarry large blocks of quality stone to provide a
foundation of dressed stone for the temple. 18 The craftsmen of
Solomon and Hiram and the men of Gebal [5]
cut and prepared the timber and stone for the building of the temple.
Footnotes
-
5:11 That is, probably about 125,000
bushels (about 4,400 kiloliters)
-
5:11 Septuagint (see also 2 Chron.
2:10); Hebrew twenty cors
-
5:11 That is, about 115,000 gallons
(about 440 kiloliters)
-
5:16 Hebrew; some Septuagint
manuscripts (see also 2 Chron. 2:2, 18) thirty-six hundred
-
5:18 That is, Byblos
Solomon Builds the Temple
1 Kings 6
1 In the four hundred and eightieth [1]
year after the Israelites had come out of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's
reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, the second month, he began to build the
temple of the LORD .
2 The temple that King Solomon built for the LORD was sixty cubits
long, twenty wide and thirty high. [2]
3 The portico at the front of the main hall of the temple extended
the width of the temple, that is twenty cubits, [3]
and projected ten cubits [4] from
the front of the temple. 4 He made narrow clerestory windows in the
temple. 5 Against the walls of the main hall and inner sanctuary he
built a structure around the building, in which there were side rooms. 6
The lowest floor was five cubits [5]
wide, the middle floor six cubits [6]
and the third floor seven. [7] He
made offset ledges around the outside of the temple so that nothing would be
inserted into the temple walls.
7 In building the temple, only blocks dressed at the quarry were
used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool was heard at the temple site
while it was being built.
8 The entrance to the lowest [8]
floor was on the south side of the temple; a stairway led up to the middle level
and from there to the third. 9 So he built the temple and completed
it, roofing it with beams and cedar planks. 10 And he built the side
rooms all along the temple. The height of each was five cubits, and they were
attached to the temple by beams of cedar.
11 The word of the LORD came to Solomon: 12 "As for
this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, carry out my regulations
and keep all my commands and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise I
gave to David your father. 13 And I will live among the Israelites
and will not abandon my people Israel."
14 So Solomon built the temple and completed it. 15 He
lined its interior walls with cedar boards, paneling them from the floor of the
temple to the ceiling, and covered the floor of the temple with planks of pine. 16
He partitioned off twenty cubits [9]
at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within
the temple an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place. 17 The main hall
in front of this room was forty cubits [10]
long. 18 The inside of the temple was cedar, carved with gourds and
open flowers. Everything was cedar; no stone was to be seen.
19 He prepared the inner sanctuary within the temple to set the ark
of the covenant of the LORD there. 20 The inner sanctuary was twenty
cubits long, twenty wide and twenty high. [11]
He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar. 21
Solomon covered the inside of the temple with pure gold, and he extended gold
chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold. 22
So he overlaid the whole interior with gold. He also overlaid with gold the
altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.
23 In the inner sanctuary he made a pair of cherubim of olive wood,
each ten cubits [12] high. 24
One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing five
cubits-ten cubits from wing tip to wing tip. 25 The second cherub
also measured ten cubits, for the two cherubim were identical in size and shape.
26 The height of each cherub was ten cubits. 27 He placed
the cherubim inside the innermost room of the temple, with their wings spread
out. The wing of one cherub touched one wall, while the wing of the other
touched the other wall, and their wings touched each other in the middle of the
room. 28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.
29 On the walls all around the temple, in both the inner and outer
rooms, he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers. 30 He also
covered the floors of both the inner and outer rooms of the temple with gold.
31 For the entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive
wood with five-sided jambs. 32 And on the two olive wood doors he
carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid the cherubim and palm
trees with beaten gold. 33 In the same way he made four-sided jambs
of olive wood for the entrance to the main hall. 34 He also made two
pine doors, each having two leaves that turned in sockets. 35 He
carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers on them and overlaid them with gold
hammered evenly over the carvings.
36 And he built the inner courtyard of three courses of dressed stone
and one course of trimmed cedar beams.
37 The foundation of the temple of the LORD was laid in the fourth
year, in the month of Ziv. 38 In the eleventh year in the month of
Bul, the eighth month, the temple was finished in all its details according to
its specifications. He had spent seven years building it.
Footnotes
-
6:1 Hebrew; Septuagint four
hundred and fortieth
-
6:2 That is, about 90 feet (about 27
meters) long and 30 feet (about 9 meters) wide and 45 feet (about 13.5
meters) high
-
6:3 That is, about 30 feet (about 9
meters)
-
6:3 That is, about 15 feet (about
4.5 meters)
-
6:6 That is, about 7 1/2 feet (about
2.3 meters); also in verses 10 and 24
-
6:6 That is, about 9 feet (about 2.7
meters)
-
6:6 That is, about 10 1/2 feet
(about 3.1 meters)
-
6:8 Septuagint; Hebrew middle
-
6:16 That is, about 30 feet (about 9
meters)
-
6:17 That is, about 60 feet (about
18 meters)
-
6:20 That is, about 30 feet (about
9 meters) long, wide and high
-
6:23 That is, about 15 feet (about
4.5 meters)
Solomon Builds His Palace
1 Kings 7
1 It took Solomon thirteen years, however, to complete the
construction of his palace. 2 He built the Palace of the Forest of
Lebanon a hundred cubits long, fifty wide and thirty high, [1]
with four rows of cedar columns supporting trimmed cedar beams. 3 It
was roofed with cedar above the beams that rested on the columns-forty-five
beams, fifteen to a row. 4 Its windows were placed high in sets of
three, facing each other. 5 All the doorways had rectangular frames;
they were in the front part in sets of three, facing each other. [2]
6 He made a colonnade fifty cubits long and thirty wide. [3]
In front of it was a portico, and in front of that were pillars and an
overhanging roof.
7 He built the throne hall, the Hall of Justice, where he was to
judge, and he covered it with cedar from floor to ceiling. [4]
8 And the palace in which he was to live, set farther back, was
similar in design. Solomon also made a palace like this hall for Pharaoh's
daughter, whom he had married.
9 All these structures, from the outside to the great courtyard and
from foundation to eaves, were made of blocks of high-grade stone cut to size
and trimmed with a saw on their inner and outer faces. 10 The
foundations were laid with large stones of good quality, some measuring ten
cubits [5] and some eight. [6]
11 Above were high-grade stones, cut to size, and cedar beams. 12
The great courtyard was surrounded by a wall of three courses of dressed stone
and one course of trimmed cedar beams, as was the inner courtyard of the temple
of the LORD with its portico.
The Temple's Furnishings
13 King Solomon sent to Tyre and brought Huram, [7]
14 whose mother was a widow from the tribe of Naphtali and whose
father was a man of Tyre and a craftsman in bronze. Huram was highly skilled and
experienced in all kinds of bronze work. He came to King Solomon and did all the
work assigned to him.
15 He cast two bronze pillars, each eighteen cubits high and twelve
cubits around, [8] by line. 16
He also made two capitals of cast bronze to set on the tops of the pillars; each
capital was five cubits [9] high.
17 A network of interwoven chains festooned the capitals on top of
the pillars, seven for each capital. 18 He made pomegranates in two
rows [10] encircling each
network to decorate the capitals on top of the pillars. [11]
He did the same for each capital. 19 The capitals on top of the
pillars in the portico were in the shape of lilies, four cubits [12]
high. 20 On the capitals of both pillars, above the bowl-shaped part
next to the network, were the two hundred pomegranates in rows all around. 21
He erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. The pillar to the south he
named Jakin [13] and the one to
the north Boaz. [14] 22
The capitals on top were in the shape of lilies. And so the work on the pillars
was completed.
23 He made the Sea of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten
cubits [15] from rim to rim and
five cubits high. It took a line of thirty cubits [16]
to measure around it. 24 Below the rim, gourds encircled it-ten to a
cubit. The gourds were cast in two rows in one piece with the Sea.
25 The Sea stood on twelve bulls, three facing north, three facing
west, three facing south and three facing east. The Sea rested on top of them,
and their hindquarters were toward the center. 26 It was a
handbreadth [17] in thickness,
and its rim was like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held two thousand
baths. [18]
27 He also made ten movable stands of bronze; each was four cubits
long, four wide and three high. [19]
28 This is how the stands were made: They had side panels attached to
uprights. 29 On the panels between the uprights were lions, bulls and
cherubim-and on the uprights as well. Above and below the lions and bulls were
wreaths of hammered work. 30 Each stand had four bronze wheels with
bronze axles, and each had a basin resting on four supports, cast with wreaths
on each side. 31 On the inside of the stand there was an opening that
had a circular frame one cubit [20]
deep. This opening was round, and with its basework it measured a cubit and a
half. [21] Around its opening
there was engraving. The panels of the stands were square, not round. 32
The four wheels were under the panels, and the axles of the wheels were attached
to the stand. The diameter of each wheel was a cubit and a half. 33
The wheels were made like chariot wheels; the axles, rims, spokes and hubs were
all of cast metal.
34 Each stand had four handles, one on each corner, projecting from
the stand. 35 At the top of the stand there was a circular band half
a cubit [22] deep. The supports
and panels were attached to the top of the stand. 36 He engraved
cherubim, lions and palm trees on the surfaces of the supports and on the
panels, in every available space, with wreaths all around. 37 This is
the way he made the ten stands. They were all cast in the same molds and were
identical in size and shape.
38 He then made ten bronze basins, each holding forty baths [23]
and measuring four cubits across, one basin to go on each of the ten stands. 39
He placed five of the stands on the south side of the temple and five on the
north. He placed the Sea on the south side, at the southeast corner of the
temple. 40 He also made the basins and shovels and sprinkling bowls.
So Huram finished all the work he had undertaken for King Solomon in the temple
of the LORD :
41 the two pillars;
the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the pillars;
the two sets of network decorating the two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the
pillars;
42 the four hundred pomegranates for the two sets of network (two
rows of pomegranates for each network, decorating the bowl-shaped capitals on
top of the pillars);
43 the ten stands with their ten basins;
44 the Sea and the twelve bulls under it;
45 the pots, shovels and sprinkling bowls.
All these objects that Huram made for King Solomon for the temple of the LORD
were of burnished bronze. 46 The king had them cast in clay molds in
the plain of the Jordan between Succoth and Zarethan. 47 Solomon left
all these things unweighed, because there were so many; the weight of the bronze
was not determined.
48 Solomon also made all the furnishings that were in the LORD's
temple:
the golden altar;
the golden table on which was the bread of the Presence;
49 the lampstands of pure gold (five on the right and five on the
left, in front of the inner sanctuary);
the gold floral work and lamps and tongs;
50 the pure gold basins, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes and
censers;
and the gold sockets for the doors of the innermost room, the Most Holy Place,
and also for the doors of the main hall of the temple.
51 When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the LORD
was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated-the silver
and gold and the furnishings-and he placed them in the treasuries of the LORD's
temple.
Footnotes
-
7:2 That is, about 150 feet (about
46 meters) long, 75 feet (about 23 meters) wide and 45 feet (about 13.5
meters) high
-
7:5 The meaning of the Hebrew for
this verse is uncertain.
-
7:6 That is, about 75 feet (about 23
meters) long and 45 feet (about 13.5 meters) wide
-
7:7 Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew floor
-
7:10 That is, about 15 feet (about
4.5 meters)
-
7:10 That is, about 12 feet (about
3.6 meters)
-
7:13 Hebrew Hiram , a variant
of Huram ; also in verses 40 and 45
-
7:15 That is, about 27 feet (about
8.1 meters) high and 18 feet (about 5.4 meters) around
-
7:16 That is, about 7 1/2 feet
(about 2.3 meters); also in verse 23
-
7:18 Two Hebrew manuscripts and
Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts made the pillars, and there were two
rows
-
7:18 Many Hebrew manuscripts and
Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts pomegranates
-
7:19 That is, about 6 feet (about
1.8 meters); also in verse 38
-
7:21 Jakin probably means he
establishes.
-
7:21 Boaz probably means in
him is strength .
-
7:23 That is, about 15 feet (about
4.5 meters)
-
7:23 That is, about 45 feet (about
13.5 meters)
-
7:26 That is, about 3 inches (about
8 centimeters)
-
7:26 That is, probably about 11,500
gallons (about 44 kiloliters); the Septuagint does not have this sentence.
-
7:27 That is, about 6 feet (about
1.8 meters) long and wide and about 4 1/2 feet (about 1.3 meters) high
-
7:31 That is, about 1 1/2 feet
(about 0.5 meter)
-
7:31 That is, about 2 1/4 feet
(about 0.7 meter); also in verse 32
-
7:35 That is, about 3/4 foot (about
0.2 meter)
-
7:38 That is, about 230 gallons
(about 880 liters)
The Ark Brought to the Temple
1 Kings 8
1 Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the
elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs of the Israelite
families, to bring up the ark of the LORD's covenant from Zion, the City of
David. 2 All the men of Israel came together to King Solomon at the
time of the festival in the month of Ethanim, the seventh month.
3 When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the priests took up the
ark, 4 and they brought up the ark of the LORD and the Tent of
Meeting and all the sacred furnishings in it. The priests and Levites carried
them up, 5 and King Solomon and the entire assembly of Israel that
had gathered about him were before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and cattle
that they could not be recorded or counted.
6 The priests then brought the ark of the LORD's covenant to its
place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, and put it
beneath the wings of the cherubim. 7 The cherubim spread their wings
over the place of the ark and overshadowed the ark and its carrying poles. 8
These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in
front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are
still there today. 9 There was nothing in the ark except the two
stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the LORD made a
covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.
10 When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled
the temple of the LORD . 11 And the priests could not perform their
service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple.
12 Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he would dwell in
a dark cloud; 13 I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a
place for you to dwell forever."
14 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king
turned around and blessed them. 15 Then he said:
"Praise be to the LORD , the God of Israel, who with his own hand has
fulfilled what he promised with his own mouth to my father David. For he said, 16
'Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city
in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built for my Name to be there, but I
have chosen David to rule my people Israel.'
17 "My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for
the Name of the LORD , the God of Israel. 18 But the LORD said to my
father David, 'Because it was in your heart to build a temple for my Name, you
did well to have this in your heart. 19 Nevertheless, you are not the
one to build the temple, but your son, who is your own flesh and blood-he is the
one who will build the temple for my Name.'
20 "The LORD has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded
David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the LORD
promised, and I have built the temple for the Name of the LORD , the God of
Israel. 21 I have provided a place there for the ark, in which is the
covenant of the LORD that he made with our fathers when he brought them out of
Egypt."
Solomon's Prayer of Dedication
22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the
whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven 23 and
said:
"O LORD , God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on
earth below-you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue
wholeheartedly in your way. 24 You have kept your promise to your
servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand
you have fulfilled it-as it is today.
25 "Now LORD , God of Israel, keep for your servant David my
father the promises you made to him when you said, 'You shall never fail to have
a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons are careful in
all they do to walk before me as you have done.' 26 And now, O God of
Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David my father come true.
27 "But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the
highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! 28
Yet give attention to your servant's prayer and his plea for mercy, O LORD my
God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence
this day. 29 May your eyes be open toward this temple night and day,
this place of which you said, 'My Name shall be there,' so that you will hear
the prayer your servant prays toward this place. 30 Hear the
supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward
this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.
31 "When a man wrongs his neighbor and is required to take an
oath and he comes and swears the oath before your altar in this temple, 32
then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, condemning the
guilty and bringing down on his own head what he has done. Declare the innocent
not guilty, and so establish his innocence.
33 "When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy
because they have sinned against you, and when they turn back to you and confess
your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple, 34
then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them
back to the land you gave to their fathers.
35 "When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because
your people have sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place and
confess your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them, 36
then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel.
Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land you gave your people
for an inheritance.
37 "When famine or plague comes to the land, or blight or
mildew, locusts or grasshoppers, or when an enemy besieges them in any of their
cities, whatever disaster or disease may come, 38 and when a prayer
or plea is made by any of your people Israel-each one aware of the afflictions
of his own heart, and spreading out his hands toward this temple- 39
then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with each man
according to all he does, since you know his heart (for you alone know the
hearts of all men), 40 so that they will fear you all the time they
live in the land you gave our fathers.
41 "As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people
Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name- 42 for
men will hear of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched
arm-when he comes and prays toward this temple, 43 then hear from
heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that
all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own
people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.
44 "When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever
you send them, and when they pray to the LORD toward the city you have chosen
and the temple I have built for your Name, 45 then hear from heaven
their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.
46 "When they sin against you-for there is no one who does not
sin-and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes
them captive to his own land, far away or near; 47 and if they have a
change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead
with you in the land of their conquerors and say, 'We have sinned, we have done
wrong, we have acted wickedly'; 48 and if they turn back to you with
all their heart and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and
pray to you toward the land you gave their fathers, toward the city you have
chosen and the temple I have built for your Name; 49 then from
heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their
cause. 50 And forgive your people, who have sinned against you;
forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their
conquerors to show them mercy; 51 for they are your people and your
inheritance, whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace.
52 "May your eyes be open to your servant's plea and to the plea
of your people Israel, and may you listen to them whenever they cry out to you. 53
For you singled them out from all the nations of the world to be your own
inheritance, just as you declared through your servant Moses when you, O
Sovereign LORD , brought our fathers out of Egypt."
54 When Solomon had finished all these prayers and supplications to
the LORD , he rose from before the altar of the LORD , where he had been
kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven. 55 He stood and
blessed the whole assembly of Israel in a loud voice, saying:
56 "Praise be to the LORD , who has given rest to his people
Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he
gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the LORD our God be with us as
he was with our fathers; may he never leave us nor forsake us. 58 May
he turn our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways and to keep the commands,
decrees and regulations he gave our fathers. 59 And may these words
of mine, which I have prayed before the LORD , be near to the LORD our God day
and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his
people Israel according to each day's need, 60 so that all the
peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God and that there is no other. 61
But your hearts must be fully committed to the LORD our God, to live by his
decrees and obey his commands, as at this time."
The Dedication of the Temple
62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before
the LORD . 63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings [1]
to the LORD : twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep
and goats. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated the temple of the LORD .
64 On that same day the king consecrated the middle part of the
courtyard in front of the temple of the LORD , and there he offered burnt
offerings, grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings, because the
bronze altar before the LORD was too small to hold the burnt offerings, the
grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings.
65 So Solomon observed the festival at that time, and all Israel with
him-a vast assembly, people from Lebo [2]
Hamath to the Wadi of Egypt. They celebrated it before the LORD our God for
seven days and seven days more, fourteen days in all. 66 On the
following day he sent the people away. They blessed the king and then went home,
joyful and glad in heart for all the good things the LORD had done for his
servant David and his people Israel.
Footnotes
-
8:63 Traditionally peace
offerings ; also in verse 64
-
8:65 Or from the entrance to
Sketch of Solomon's Temple by Isaac Newton
Other drawings of the Solomon's Temple:
Decoding of the Solomon's Temple
Copyright 2003 by aiwaz.net_institute
Reprinted with permission.
The exact description of the temple is questionable
since the Biblical references are partly vague in description,
allowing a few different overall plans of the architectural
composition. But the description of the main part of the temple
building is carefully preserved, bearing a special significance. The
main part of the King Solomon's Temple is according to the
description in 1Kings 60 cubits in
length, 20 cubits in breadth, and 30
cubits in height. Inside this space a cube measuring 20
cubits is constructed for the most sacred part of the sanctuary,
Holy of Holies, or Devir (DBIR) in Hebrew, leaving 40
cubits for the length of the main hall of the temple, Hikal,
and 10 cubits for the difference of
the heights between Devir and Hikal.
|
Main composition of
Solomon's Temple
consists of values from 1 to 7
|
A special property of such composition are the two diagonals that
have rational values, 50 cubits for
the diagonal of the walls of Hikal, and 70
cubits for the diagonal of the whole solid. Both diagonals
together with the main dimension encode the first seven prime
numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. The sum is 1+2+3+4+5+6+7=28 (or
280 cubits), which is the second perfect number following 6. 28 is
also the number of days in the lunar cycle. SInce such sacred
compositions are always a representation of the heavens as perceived
by the ancients, seven also corresponds to seven planetary spheres.
|
Diagonals and the length
of the sanctuary
reflect the three paths of the Tree of Life
leading to Tiphareth
|
Carefully planned relations of the spatial composition of the
Sanctuary reflect a certain situation, crucial in all magickal
practices, that is, obtaining 'knowledge and conversation from
above'. This crucial step on the path of every adept is mapped on
the Tree of Life. Tiphareth is the sixth sphere of Sephiroth and
it's celestial attribution is Sun. This sephira is in a way the
center of Sephiroth, and qabalist usually attribute it to 'mind'.
A
'human mind' is connected - via the third path, Gimel - to Kether,
the most abstract concept of God, and is considered as the 'true
oracle of the highest'.
|
Three paths Nun, Samekh,
and Ayin
leading to the sixth sphere of Tiphareth.
|
There are three paths leading to this sephira from below, namely:
Nun, Ayin, and Samek. These Hebrew letters have corresponding
gematric values, which are:
- N, Nun = 50
- O, Ayin = 70
- S, Samek = 60
The arrangement of these measures ruling geometry of Sanctuary is
strongly suggestive, indicating that both diagonals represent the
paths N, Nun = 50 cubits, while O, Ayin = 70 cubits. Both paths are
on the original scheme of Sephiroth also entering Tiphareth from the
side pillars. The third path (literally the floor of the temple)
that follows the Middle Pillar is S, Samek, with gematric value 60
which is the same as the length of the sanctuary, 60 cubits. These
three measures, 50, 60, and 70 cubits represent the three paths, N,
S, and O, with the same gematric values entering Tiphareth, the
sphere of Sun, which is represented in Devir the cubical Oracle. A
cube is traditionally a symbol of Tiphareth, since it has six
planes, and 6 is the number of Tiphareth.
Once in a year the High Priest entered the main hall of the
temple and symbolically transversed these paths to enter the Oracle,
Holy of Holies, which is a symbol of Tiphareth, in order to receive
the prophecy.
Copyright 2003 by aiwaz.net_institute
Reprinted with Permission.
Source: http://www.aiwaz.net/judaica/solomon/pathson.htm
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