Author’s Preface

In the mid-1990’s, I came into possession of The Temple Book attributed to the late Max Skousen as author.   At the time, I was a devoted member of the LDS church and a veil worker in the Toronto temple.   I had been through the endowment ceremony enough times to have it memorized verbatim, but I knew relatively nothing of what the endowment means.   In my conversations with others, I found that most admitted little understanding of what is meant by the endowment.   I also encountered a strong reluctance to talk about the endowment, even inside the walls of the temple.   I was eager to learn more about what it might mean and reading The Temple Book felt like getting a breath of fresh air, despite it being an underground publication considered by the authorities to comprise forbidden literature.   The Temple Book helped me to look at meanings of the temple ceremony in new ways and, ultimately, led to writing the narratives found in this book.   It is because of the existence of The Temple Book that I have titled the present compilation The Temple Book 2.    In spite of the name, this compilation should not be taken to be a continuation of the ideas presented in The Temple Book.

The narratives in this book do not pretend to comprise a definitive exploration of the symbolism of LDS temples or their ritual endowments.  There could never be such a definitive work in the first place, nor should there be.   It is important that seekers undertake their own explorations and experience the joy of personal discovery first hand.   Any sort of definitive work, presuming it is feasible in the first place, would defeat the purpose of what we are about.     

In the endowment washing and anointing ceremony, there is an admonition to ”let your bowels do their proper function.”   This admonition is a symbolic metaphor about allowing ones spiritual bowels carry out their function in sifting (digesting) truth.   It seems strange that LDS are prone to believe that they have been doing that all along when the reality of it is that they have not because they have been allowing others to do the digesting.    In truth, most of us as LDS have been partaking of a shared illusion.  The symbolism of the endowment tells us so, notwithstanding few are able to perceive it.     The purpose of these writings is to help others get started in their own searches by uncovering the meaning of old doctrine in new ways.   However, it is important in this process that these writings are not taken as the final word.    Above all, these writings should not become part of an organized belief system or be used to generate new doctrine.    One reason for errors in these writings is to discourage such.

The endowment is popularly considered to be a pinnacle of LDS experience.   However, it seems that endowed LDS know relatively little about what it means.    This includes those in the highest leadership positions.   There is a purpose and reason for this universal failure to understand, but why it is this way may not become clear until one has let go of old notions to see the LDS temple and its endowment for what they truly are:   tokens, names, and signs.   One will need to comprehend fully what are tokens, names, and signs as well as understand why and how they came to be.

The title of this compilation includes a clause about a meaning beyond the LDS endowment ceremony.   It’s hoped that readers will consider that the meaning they are seeking in the endowment is beyond it rather than in it.   The temple and its endowment, like all symbols, point to something else that is beyond the symbol.   Yes, there are multiple levels of understanding in regard to all symbols, but there is only one level of true meaning.   It is very important that seekers do not obsess themselves with the LDS temple, its endowment, or books such as this one because doing so is missing the point.  

            As I was putting this book together, an interesting event occurred.   I was at home writing the paragraphs above when I received a phone call from a fellow in Utah asking about the meaning of the name given at the veil ceremony.   He seemed to think that my writings suggested the higher things are gotten inside of the LDS temples and giving back the name of the second token was a sign to the temple workers.   He interpreted my writings to say that when one gets the meaning of the name figured out, they would give a different name back in the veil ceremony rather than repeat the prescribed sentences verbatim as expected.  The caller felt that such an act might be a signal to the temple workers that you understood it and were now ready for more.  Doing such a thing would result in being taken aside by the workers and secretly ushered into higher endowment rituals that are unknown to those passing the veil in the usual way.   He seemed to think that this is how one gets a calling and election made sure.  When I tried to explain to him that he was missing the point of what I wrote and that such a deed would likely get him persecuted rather than rewarded, he abruptly hung up on me.   This fellow seemed to think that the way out of illusion is by achievement and advancement, like one might move from high school to college.    However, that was never what I meant.    To get beyond illusion, we must get out of it, not build upon it.  

            In the endowment ritual, Adam partakes of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, representing the entrance into illusion, and thereafter claims to be looking for messengers from his Father.   Although Adam doesn’t realize it, this mistaken notion is part of what keeps him imprisoned in illusion.   Adam will need to realize why he doesn’t need messengers.   To do this, Adam will need to know himself first.   He will find that the truth is within, where it has always been.   Adam will also come to recognize that he doesn’t need to test messengers to see if they are from God because all messengers come from God with no exceptions.   Most importantly, Adam will come to comprehend how and why it must be like this.  Emerging from illusion is not accomplished by building on erroneous notions of the past, but as a result of a complete and thorough yielding up of them.   Adam will need to give up seeking in the wrong places.

Undoubtedly, there will be some who will find my presentation of symbolism in the endowment to be highly offensive.   This seems to derive from a culture of secrecy operating under a guise of sanctity.   Readers may want to consider the possibility that hiding what is supposedly sacred is living a lie.    If you would have others give freely unto you, then you must freely give unto others.    Again, one of the greatest secrets of the temple endowment is that one gets by giving up.   Until this happens, it may help to consider books such as this one.   As one who has traveled this road, I claim from my own experience that finding true meaning is always done by removing what covers it to reveal what is already present.   This book is intended to assist with that, but not substitute.  To uncover the meaning, one will need to go beyond all appearances, including their manifestation as tokens, names, signs, leaders, endowments, temples, scriptures, veils, angels and messengers in all of their variant forms.   When that happens, there will be no need for someone else to explain it to you because you will have experienced it yourself.   

Legal stuff:    Copyright is retained by the original author.   Permission is granted to copy this book and distribute it freely as long as no alterations are made to it and no money is charged for anything beyond reimbursement for copying expenses.   Permission is also granted to post this book on websites as long as no alterations are made to it and no money is charged for viewing or downloading this book.

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