Knocks

Te become a Mason requires a total of nine knocks in groups of three.

Three to Enter.
Three to Pass.
Three to be Raised.

The three knocks are symbolic of ask and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find, and knock and it shall be opened unto you.

There is a concept of three groups of three knocks each in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition that refer to progress in past, in the present, and in the future.

The three knocks may be indicative of the ancient notion of three in one, the positive, negative and balancing forces.  These three forces have been considered the basis of the universe.

Christianity also has three as one. Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

The compasses divide an area into three parts.  The space inside the circle, the circle itself, and the space outside the circle.

The day is divided into three parts.  Eight hours for your normal vocation, eight hours for you devotions to God and to your fellow man, and eight hours fro rest and refreshment.