tive
religious systems, it was afterwards continued, when in the advanced stage
of the human mind, the previous necessity no longer existed, is equally
undoubted. It thus came to constitute a kind of sacred language, and
became invested with an esoteric significance understood only by the
few."--_The Serpent Symbol in America_, p. 19.

T

TABERNACLE. Erected by Moses in the wilderness as a temporary place for
divine worship. It was the antitype of the temple of Jerusalem, and, like
it, was a symbol of the universe.

TALISMAN. A figure either carved in metal or stone, or delineated on
parchment or paper, made with superstitious ceremonies under what was
supposed to be the special influence of the planetary bodies, and believed
to possess occult powers of protecting the maker or possessor from danger.
The figure in the text is a talisman, and among the Orientals no talisman
was more sacred than this one where the nine digits are so disposed as to
make 15 each way. The Arabians called it _zahal_, which was the name of
the planet Saturn, because the nine digits added together make 45, and the
letters of the word _zahal_ are, according to the numerical powers of the
Arabic alphabet, equivalent to 45. The cabalists esteem it because 15 was
the numerical power of the letters composing the word JAH, which is one of
the names of God.

TALMUD. The mystical philosophy of the Jewish Rabbins is contained in the
Talmud, which is a collection of books divided into two parts, the
_Mishna_, which contains the record of the oral law, first committed to
writing in the second or third century, and the _Gemara_, or commentaries
on it. In the Talmud much will be found of great interest to the masonic
student.

TEMPLE. The importance of the temple in the symbolism of Freemasonry will
authorize the following citation from the learned Montfaucon (_Ant._ ii.
1. ii. ch. ii.): "Concerning the origin of _temples_, there is a variety
of opinions. According to Herodotus, the Egyptians were the first that
made altars, statues, and temples. It does not, however, appear that there
were any in Egypt in the time of Moses, for he never mentions them,
although he had many opportunities for doing so. Lucian says that the
Egyptians were the first people who built temples, and that the Assyrians
derived the custom from them, all of which is, however, very uncertain.
The first allusion to the subject in Scripture is the Tabernacle, which
was, in fac