Masonic Acclamation the Recovery of the Word
By: Valton Sergio von Tempski-Silka
Over the centuries, the original word that composed our ritual greeting was forgotten, replaced by another of similar sound but obscured meaning. Thus, the gesture remained, but the symbol was emptied.
When the word falls silent and the gesture no longer carries its true significance, the ritual risks becoming mere repetition.
For this reason, in the name of the Light we seek and the Truth we venerate, we propose to restore the meaning of the acclamation, elevating it to its highest purpose: to affirm, with full awareness, our commitment to the Work.
The Ritual is the golden thread that unites the invisible to the visible.
The Word, when pronounced with pure intent, transcends sound and becomes Action. Emerging again from a past veiled by the delicate fabric of time’s passage—where echoes dissolve, words are corrupted, and meanings fall asleep—comes the proposition to restore a forgotten greeting.
Not as mere ritual archaeology, but as a living gesture of reconnection to the essence of the Labor—not through lack of use, but from excess of noise.
As tradition holds, at the beginning and end of our labors, we exclaim three times words such as:
“Huzzah!”, “Huzzé!”, “Houzzai!”, or similar variants.
And we do so with enthusiasm, vigor, and joy.
However, we propose something beyond exultation. We propose meaning.
We propose continuity.
We propose the remembrance of who we are.
The word Huzza, used as a ritual exclamation in the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite (A⸫A⸫S⸫R⸫), has an uncertain origin according to all known references, from remote antiquity to the present day.
It does not appear in the earliest symbolic rituals from 1804, but emerges in 1820 in Belgian rituals under the form Houzzai, a French phonetic transcription of Huzzah, an English term.
In 1872, Albert Pike adopts the form Huzza, and Mackey records it as a Masonic salutation, though he is imprecise regarding its origin and meaning⸫
According to dictionaries in various languages, huzzah is an interjection of joy, encouragement, or greeting—typically traced back to naval and military usage in the 17th and 18th centuries, comparable to hurrah.
In the Masonic context, the acclamation may have been inherited from the Rite of Heredom, linked to Jacobite exiles and the troops of Frederick II of Prussia.
While there are esoteric interpretations of its effects within the Temple, historically it is simply a ritual exclamatory cry, much like “Vivat, vivat, vivat” or “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity” in other rites.
This Piece of Architecture is a search for semantic and phonetic unity between sacred texts and ritualistic practices.
I. The Word “‘Oséh” (עֹשֶׂה) – The Recovery
Although not a religion nor a sect, Freemasonry operates on the symbolic plane. For this reason, it draws from narratives, characters, and expressions taken from the Scriptures—especially the Old Testament—as vehicles of moral, ethical, and initiatic instruction.
The Bible, known as the “Volume of the Sacred Law” in Freemasonry—particularly in the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite—is regarded not necessarily as a confessional sacred text, but as a traditional book of wisdom, a reference for moral law, and a repository of symbolic archetypes.
It is one of the “Three Great Lights of Freemasonry,” alongside the Square and the Compass.
IMAGE credit: author’s Collection (CC BY 4.0)
Consider the following verses:
Psalm 115:15 — “Blessed are you of the Lord, who made (עֹשֵׂ֣ה – ‘oséh) heaven and earth.”
Jeremiah 10:12 — “He has made (עֹשֶׂה – ‘oséh) the earth by His power, He has established the world by His wisdom, and stretched out the heavens by His understanding.”
And further:
Deuteronomy 10:17–18 — “He who executes (עֹשֶׂה – ‘oséh) justice for the orphan and the widow.” (Tanakh)
“‘Oséh” comes from the Hebrew verb עָשָׂה (asáh), which means: maker, builder, doer, agent, operator, restorer — that is, a state of ongoing creation.
In its masculine singular active participle form (‘oséh’), it literally means “he who does,” “the builder,” or “the one who acts.”
However, when pronounced in unison by all the Brethren of the Lodge, it transcends the singular grammar to assume a collective and symbolic value.
That is to say, “‘oséh” is not a proper name, but a functional designation of the Great Architect of the Universe as creator in action—unlike “El” (God as Being), “Adonai” (Lord), or “Elohim” (plural potency).
Scripture tells us:
“Blessed are you of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 115:15):
בְּרוּכִים אַתֶּם לַיהוָה, עֹשֵׂה שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ
בְּרוּכִים (Berukhim) – Blessed – אַתֶּם (Atem) – You – לַיהוָה (LaYHVH) – of the Lord,
עֹשֵׂה (‘Oséh) – who made, – שָׁמַיִם (Shamayim) – heavens, וָאָרֶץ (Va’aretz) – and earth
“He has made the earth by His power, He has established the world by His wisdom, and stretched out the heavens by His understanding.”
(Jeremiah 10:12):
עֹשֶׂה אֶרֶץ בְּכֹחוֹ, מֵכִין תֵּבֵל בִּתְבוּנָתוֹ; וּבִתְבוּנָתוֹ נָטָה שָׁמָיִם
עֹשֶׂה אֶרֶץ בְּכֹחוֹ (ʿōśê ʾāreṣ bəḵōḥō) – He makes the earth with His Power מֵכִין תֵּבֵל בִּתְבוּנָתוֹ
(mēkônēn tēbēl bəḇināṯô) – He establishes the world by His wisdomוּבִתְבוּנָתוֹ נָטָה שָׁמָיִם (ûbiṯəḇûnāṯô nāṭâ šāmayim) – And by His understanding, He stretches the heavens
“He who executes justice for the orphan and the widow.”
(— Devarim (Words) / Deuteronomy 10:17–18 – Tanakh):
עֹשֶׂה מִשְׁפַּט יָתוֹם וְאַלְמָנָה
עֹשֶׂה (‘Oséh) the one who acts – מִשְׁפַּט (mishpát) justice / judgment – יָתוֹם (yatóm) orphan
וְ (vê) and – אַלְמָנָה (almaná) widow
In these verses, the term ‘oséh’ is used to describe the Great Architect of the Universe as the active Agent, the Sacred Builder of Creation, the Restorer.
Yet, this very term also designates the righteous man, the sage, the one who acts with uprightness — the Initiate.
II. The Esoteric Meaning of “‘Oséh”
In the effort to present an initiatic acclamation (rather than an exuberant shout), ‘Oséh offers a powerful symbolic value—especially when inserted into the ritual language of Freemasonry:
|
Word |
Origin |
Possible Esoteric Value |
|
Huzza! |
Archaic English |
A cry of action, an affirmation of will (exoteric) |
|
‘Oséh! |
Biblical Hebrew |
The one who acts, who creates – the divine artisan (esoteric) |
III. An Initiatic Parallel: From Myth to Acclamation
|
Stage |
Character |
Word |
Meaning |
|
Realization |
Hiram |
‘Oséh |
The forging of Creation |
Thus, an initiatic acclamation is formed—transformative in nature, rather than merely commemorative. It becomes a contained cry of continuity—a signal among Initiates that the Work is still underway.
The e clamation (‘Oséh), repeated three times as a Masonic proclamation— perhaps once practiced by Speculative Builders and even by ancient Operatives—was overlaid by Huzzah, in a symbolic and sonic palimpsest that now reveals, beneath a new garment, the echoes of the ancestral verb.
Yet its reintroduction respects not only the rhythm and phonetics proper to the rites, but also restores a profound sense of continuity and creative purpose, in contrast to acclamations detached from authentic roots.
IV. The Triple Repetition
For this reason, we propose that instead of a generic acclamation, we repeat in unison— with strength and vigor—the exclamation “Oséh!”, thus becoming the voice of the entire Lodge, proclaiming: “We act,” “we are doing,” “we are builders.” The action of each Builder merges with the greater action of the Lodge, in a collective effort of moral, spiritual, and symbolic edification.
Oséh! Oséh! Oséh!
(עֹשֶׂה – עֹשֶׂה – עֹשֶׂה)
(We labor! We labor! We labor!) Each repetition marks a degree:
· The first “Oséh!” is Intention, Tradition (ritual work, inner alchemy),
· The second “Oséh!” is Action, Continuity (“labor” was common among both
the Ancients and the speculative founders),
· The third “Oséh!” is Consecration, Elevation, and the Exaltation of the
perseverance of the Builder who understands that the Work is infinite.
V. The Challenge of Action
In Kabbalah
· The root ע-ש-ה (Ayin–Shin–He) is associated with the world of Assiyah (עשיה)—the World of Action, the “lowest” of the four kabbalistic worlds: Atziluth, Beriah, Yetzirah, and Assiyah.
· Assiyah is the plane where the Divine force is materialized. It is there that the Initiate acts.
In kabbalistic terms, ‘Oséh is the conscious being acting in the world of Assiyah, co- creating with the Eternal.
According to Kabbalah, we live in the world of Assiyah—the world of action, matter, and choice. It is in this world that the Freemason reveals his Light.
By proclaiming “Oséh! – Oséh! – Oséh!”, we do not celebrate a victory — we affirm a Commitment.
This is not a mere salutation, but a itual affi mation of th Ma on’ activ i ntity. It is the awareness that the Work is not finished, that the Temple is still being raised — within us and among us.
Thus, by e claiming “Oséh! Oséh! Oséh!”, we reaffirm our mission, in the Temple and beyond its walls still laboring — in the world, in silence, upon the stone.
We remind ourselves that the Lodge does not close:
It continues in each of our gestures out there,
in every just word,
in every stone we leave less rough than yesterday.
In the affirmation of the one who knows the Temple is not complete, but that it continues to rise,
stone by stone, silence by silence, by hands that labor.
‘Oséh! ‘Oséh! ‘Oséh!
Footnotes
References
Sources:
King James Bible; The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania; Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry – Albert Pike, 1872; An Encyclopaedia of Freemasonry and its Kindred Sciences – Albert G. Mackey, 1873 and 1878; various (Port.; Eng.; Fra.) Rituals of the AASR. AI-generated illustrations.
⸫ “Hoschea (Hōšēa: heb., הוֹשֵׁעַ), (a proper name meaning “Salvation”- A.N.). The word of acclamation used by the French Masons of the Scottish Rite. In some of the Cahiers it is spelled Ozee. It is, I think, a corruption of the word huzza, which is used by the English and American Freemasons of the same Rite.”– Albert G. Mackey, p. 350, 357.
Article by: Valton Sergio von Tempski-Silka
von Tempski-Silka, Valton Sergio (78) – Past Master A⸫A⸫S⸫R⸫, State of Paraná G⸫ R⸫ A⸫ C⸫ Past Gr. Scr., M.M.M. York Rite, Past Gr⸫ Sec⸫ F⸫ RRel⸫ on G⸫L⸫P⸫ – Or⸫Curitiba-PR, Brazil – https://mitosesimbolos.blogspot.com/
© von Tempski-Silka, Valton Sergio – 2025 – 11903 – REGISTRO DE OBRAS FBN E60701190202506050100DY52OTRIVVI –All rights reserved
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