The Freemasons Lodge, ‘Light of the North 1308 E.C.’, Dalhousie, District, Chamba, Himachal Pradesh is one of the early lodges brought to India by the British. Especially for the benefit of the natives; it holds a position peculiar to itself.
The first Masonic lodge in India was established in 1730 by East India Company officials in Fort William, Calcutta, just 13 years after the Grand Lodge of England was founded in 1717.
Records show that the majority of the lodges in India were on the Register of the United Grand Lodge of England (English Constitution). ‘Light of the North..’ is also the one.
- The Craft’s success has been in fostering fraternal bonds by ‘bringing together men of every rank and file, annihilating prejudices of creed and profession, reconciling opposite temperaments, and cultivating goodwill and brotherly love’.
The Craft also has brought together the different communities within India, something acknowledged at the time high and low, rich and poor, member and visitor meet in a fraternal manner that magnetizes and knits heart to heart, and forms friendships and establishes connections never to be broken.
Freemasonry spread the principle of friendship and unity. Across the sub-continent, the Lodge provided a unique environment in which Indians of different religions and communities, and Indians and Europeans, could interact.
- The Brotherhood traces its roots in India in the early years of the 18th century. The Grand Lodge of England was established in 1717, 13 years before the first lodge in India. It provided an escape valve in an otherwise highly structured colonial culture, enabling Indians to be ‘citizens of the Empire’ and achieve brotherhood with the British.
Freemasonry is spread all over the world. The English Constitution, or the United Grand Lodge of England, is one of the three Grand Lodges that control Freemasonry in Britain.
- It was in 1983 that I attended a lodge near Haslav (Denmark); only to come to know later that in 1807 Lodge “De L’amour Fraternelle” (to Brotherly Love) was founded at Tranquebar in Tamil Nadu with a warrant granted by the National Grand Lodge of Denmark. Other countries and Masonic jurisdictions visa-vis the Irish, Scottish, and French had also established Lodges in India.
The Grand Lodge of India (GLI) is the main governing body of Freemasonry within India; it was officially constituted on Friday 24 November 1961.
- The Constitution of the Freemasons is a book written by an anonymous author that delves into the history and principles of the Freemasonry organization.
The Indian Constitution came into practice on January 26, 1950. It borrowed many features from the British Constitution but differs in its written and federal nature.
The Square and Compasses remains a popular symbol on Masonic rings. There’s another, lesser-known Masonic symbol drawn from nature: the beehive. “Masons were originally working men who were supposed to be as busy as bees,” says Jacob.
Owing to the vagaries of weather, the building housing the ‘Light of the North 1308 E.C.’ is in Shambles; more so the roof has virtually given way. We need help from ‘Masonic Fraternity’ to put it back in order.
https://hillpost.in/2022/07/jadu-ghar-dalhousie/117872/
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Prof. (Er.) Chander P Mahajan is an art critic & a free lance journalist. The Environmentalist stays in Shimla and Dalhousie, Himachal Pradesh, India.
