Masonic Temple (Lahore)
| Prince Albert Victor Lodge 2370ec[1] | |
|---|---|
 Masonic Temple Lahore No. 2370 | |
| Location | 90 Mall Road, Lahore, Pakistan |
| Coordinates | 31°33′33″N 74°19′28.29″E / 31.55917°N 74.3245250°E |
| Founded | 1860 |
| Built | 1914 |
  Location of Prince Albert Victor Lodge 2370ec[1] in Pakistan | |
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Lahore Masonic Temple in the
The building has not been used for masonic purposes since the lodges were disbanded in 1972, when then Prime Minister of
Lodge of Hope and Perseverance No. 782
The first Masonic Temple of the Lodge of Hope and Perseverance was built in 1859 at Anarkali, Lahore.[3] Its site on Lodge Road is now occupied by Lady Maclagan Government High School.[4]
The second Masonic Temple was built in 1914, using the foundation stone from its predecessor,
Rudyard Kipling
The author and poet Rudyard Kipling was made a Mason in the Lodge of Hope and Perseverance in 1885, at the original lodge building, under a dispensation allowing him to be initiated before his 21st Birthday. He served as secretary of the Lodge following his initiation.[7] He remained a member of the lodge for three years, demitting in 1889.[8] He wrote of his time in the Lodge of Hope and Perseverance in "Something of Myself" and in a letter to the Times, describing "decorating the bare walls of the Masonic Hall with hangings after the prescription of King Solomon's Temple" and meeting members of many different religious faiths, including Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and Jews.[9] Kipling also references the original 1859 building in the opening scene of his novel Kim, describing it as "the big blue and white Jadoo-Gher—the School of Wizards, as we named the Masonic Lodge."[10][11] One plot line in the book relates to a piece of paper in Kim's possession, a "clearance-certificate", which shows that his deceased father was a Mason. In 1914, long after Kipling had left India, the lodge demolished the building that Kipling described, and replaced it with the current one.
Current status
In 1972
In the late 1980s the Heritage Foundation Pakistan and concerned citizens of Lahore started a project to renovate the heritage buildings on the Mall road, including this building.[14]
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 978-969-35-0944-1.
- ^ a b "Masonic mystique " - Dawn.com
- ^ "Laying the Foundation Stone of a Masonic Hall at Anarkullee" - The Freemasons' quarterly (magazine and) review, p. 356, 5 November 1859
- ^ Majid Sheikh (21 September 2003). "Walking to Charing Cross". Dawn. Pakistan. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
- ^ Majid Sheikh (21 September 2003). "Walking to Charing Cross". Dawn. Pakistan. Retrieved 31 August 2010.
a map of the Charing Cross area, drawn by the British in 1867, makes interesting reading. The area from the crossing, going eastwards, has nothing but gardens on the right. Where today stands the Masonic Hall has a beautiful 'circular garden'
- ^ Naz, N.; Z. Ashraf (January 2008). "Transformation of Urban Open Spaces of Lahore: From Charing Cross to Faisal Square" (PDF). Pakistan Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences. 2: 65–78.
- ^ Kipling and Freemasonry---MWBro. Robert A. Gordon PGM - G.L. P.E.I.
- ^ Masonic biography of Joseph Rudyard Kipling, Grand Lodge BC&Y
- ISBN 978-0-8065-2662-1.
- ^ Rudyard Kipling (1922). Kim. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page and Company. pp. 2ff.
- ISBN 978-0-19-283513-0.
the Masonic Lodge: this is the lodge ('Hope and Perseverance no. 782 E.C.') to which Kipling was admitted in 1885....
- ^ "The office of this organization was set up at Free Mason [sic] Hall, which had been taken over from the Masonic Society. This building is now known as 90-Shahrah-e-Quaid-e-Azam and the offices of the Chief Minister are located therein. ..." 50 years of Lahore Arts Council, Alhamra by the Alhamra Council
- ^ "Evaluation of Seventh Five Year Plan, 1988-93" by the Pakistan Planning Council, p. 151
- ^ Lari, Y. (2003). Lahore - Illustrated City Guide. Karachi, Pakistan: Heritage Foundation Pakistan 2003
External links
- Masonic Lodge, RNoor website