Wilmshurst wrote about the floor: “The dualism of these opposites governs us in everything, and experience of it is prescribed for us until such time as, having learned and out­grown its lesson, we are ready for advancement to a condition where we outgrow the sense of this chequer-work existence and those opposites cease to be perceived as opposites, but are realized as a unity or synthesis.”. In “The Meaning of Masonry”, chapter 3 (Available at: http://www.bradford.ac.uk/webofhiram/?section=meaning_of_masonry&page=ChapterIII.html )

I think that the chequered flooring is crucial to the understanding of good and evil, as if one side didn’t exist then the other wouldn’t exist. This is why, within some Christian interpretations/denominations, the idea of “good” (i.e. God) created the idea of bad (i.e. fallen angels, such as the Devil). So, it’s not just in eastern philosophy/religion that we see a Yin/Yang type metaphor, but we also see it in Abrahamic faiths (such as Christianity) too.

Therefore going back to the flooring of Freemasonry, it says that in nature there are always going to be ups and downs, goods and bads… and we have to deal with that. We have to keep on working towards that smooth ashlar.

Once again, great article.

All the best,

Bro. Daniel Lewis
* St Vincent Lodge 1404 (Province of Bristol, UGLE). (p.s. at the time of writing this, I’m an Entered Apprentice)