{"id":14857,"date":"2019-08-14T15:44:23","date_gmt":"2019-08-14T20:44:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/themagicalbuffet.com\/blog1\/?p=14857"},"modified":"2019-08-14T15:44:23","modified_gmt":"2019-08-14T20:44:23","slug":"memory-palace-and-masonic-lodges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/themagicalbuffet.com\/blog1\/?p=14857","title":{"rendered":"Memory Palace and Masonic Lodges"},"content":{"rendered":"

Okay folks, this might be a pretty specific niche that I\u2019m talking to today, but I\u2019m going to tell you about \u201cMemory Palaces and Masonic Lodges: Esoteric Secrets of the Art of Memory\u201d by Charles B. Jameux. Freemasonry baby!<\/p>\n

Firstly, it\u2019s important to differentiate between speculative and operative Masonry. Operative Masonry is referencing Masons who physically work with stone. Speculative Masonry, which obviously evolved out of operative, doesn\u2019t work with stone but instead use the operative trappings as metaphoric tools for self-improvement. Knowing this helps greatly with understanding the text.<\/p>\n

$\"\"$ Next up are memory palaces. You might have seen references to these in popular culture. It\u2019s a mnemonic device that allowed speakers to remember key points for their talks by associating them with a different part of the building in which they\u2019re speaking. When it was rediscovered, the process evolved, and the elements of these memory palaces were not intended to trigger the memory but would transform into talismanic objects with knowledge entirely new to the seeker.<\/p>\n

\u201cMemory Palaces and Masonic Lodges\u201d is a response. The author, Charles B. Jameux, had an article published in 1995, where he detailed that the art of memory wasn\u2019t unknown to Masons and that they grafted it onto their own practices. This, in and of itself, wasn\u2019t in much dispute, however Jameux puts the time of this earlier than most scholars had previously thought. Obviously, there was much debate after its publication, so \u201cMemory Palaces and Masonic Lodges\u201d is a thoughtful response to criticisms that were made after the first article\u2019s release.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not overly familiar with Freemasonry, like myself, you\u2019ll find this book to be an eye-opening look at some of the history and practices of Freemasons.<\/p>\n

You can learn more here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Shop your local indie bookstore<\/a><---This is an affiliate link to IndieBound, which supports independent bookstores throughout the United States. If you use this link to purchase the book, I will make a small commission at no additional cost to you.\n\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"