Temple Symbols - Ursa Major (The Big Dipper) and Polaris

Temples built by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints contain many symbols. The constellation Ursa Major (The Big Dipper) is carved onto the Salt Lake Temple's west central tower.  This symbol has a lot of meaning and is used in a few other temples.  I'd like to highlight the symbol's meaning and how and where it is used.

The first temple to have this symbol was the Salt Lake Temple.  The west central tower lacks windows on the top story allowing for the big dipper sculpture.  While there are other stars depicted on the temple, this sculpture uses them differently.  The stars are six sided instead of the other stars which are five sided.  They are also arranged in a group.  On the Salt Lake Temple the big dipper stars point towards the actual north star.

The big dipper's symbolism can be understood in several ways.

1. The big dipper points to the north star, Polaris, the only star that doesn't move during the night.  As the big dipper is used to find the north star, the temple is used to help us find God who doesn't change.

2. As the big dipper helps us find our way, the temple guides us through life and to eternity.

3. The symbol can represent progression if used in conjunction with other temple symbols.  The temple lowest stones are the earth stones (originally to show the earth rotating through hours of a day).  The next stones are moon stones going through phases which can represent days and months.  Next up are the sun stones.  The sun goes through seasons so it could represent seasons and years.  The big dipper sculpture is higher on the temple and hints at Polaris, the star that doesn't change.  It represents infinity, eternity.  So as we go up we get hours, days, months, years, and finally eternity.  As we progress in the temple we approach the infinite and eternal.

4. The eternity symbolism can also represent going from a temporal, mortal state to an eternal, immortal, resurrected state.

5. The big dipper as a guiding constellation can be seen as a symbol for the Holy Ghost which guides us through life.

The next temple (I know of) to display the big dipper is the Washington D.C. Temple.  This temple is a stylized version of the Salt Lake Temple.  The symbolic sculptures from the Salt Lake Temple were depicted in the detailed doors of the Washington D.C. Temple.  Among the panels is one on the bottom right corner showing the big dipper and the north star (over the Seal of Melchizedek).  Because this temple also depicts the north star, it hints that the symbol is supposed to be understood with the north star.  I'm glad they added this symbolism to the Washington D.C. Temple.

The Anchorage Alaska Temple also contains the big dipper symbol.  The Alaska state flag is just the big dipper and north star.  So including the big dipper symbol from the Salt Lake Temple was one way to make this temple fit in locally.  The stars are eight sided on this temple and are carved into the stone rather than projecting out of it.  You can see the big dipper and north star carvings in this photo.  You will need to look closely.  The north star is on the left top and is larger than the other stars.  The next star is a little more than half way down the wall on the other side of the first window.  It may take you a minute, but you can find all the stars.  The last two are at the top of the wall with one between the last two windows and the other to the right of the last window.  I think the carvings are on the celestial room wall, but I may be wrong.

The Winter Quarters Nebraska Temple also includes the big dipper and north star (see this Church News article).  They are in the stained glass in one of the dressing rooms and are positioned as they would have been on April 6, 1830, the day The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized.  Here is a photo showing stars, although I don't think this is the big dipper one (it has too few stars).

I don't know of any other temples that have used the big dipper symbol.  If you know of any others please comment.  Comment also and let us know what you think of this symbol and how it is used on temples.  I am glad that the church has used this symbol on more than just the Salt Lake Temple.  I hope it continues to be used from time to time.

Temple Additions

At the request of The Tolmans who commented on my last post, I'm going to talk a little about temple additions.

The St. George Utah Temple had a stair addition on the rear of the temple.  This didn't alter the symmetry (as other temple additions have) and blends in fairly well with the temple.  It isn't a perfect addition.  Details such as window style give away that it is a 1970s addition.  There is also an annex with dressing rooms, etc. that is white, but otherwise doesn't match the original temple.

The Logan Utah Temple has been completely gutted and rebuilt on the inside.  At the same time a stair tower was added to the center of the north side.  Unfortunately, this ruins the original symmetry of the temple, and the windows don't match the original temple.  The stone is a fairly good match.  The temple originally jutted out slightly in the same location as the current stair tower (I'm not sure if this was from an earlier stair addition).  In that case, the extension had a circular window that looked nice.  The original annex also matched the stone of the main temple and was castellated.  I'm not sure why they replaced that annex with a cream 1970s style annex that obviously doesn't match the time period of the original temple.  But when the Logan Temple was remodeled in the 1970s, little, if any, attention was paid to historical details or matching styles.  This is painfully apparent on the inside which looks nothing like the exterior would suggest.

The Manti Temple used to have a drive through tunnel beneath the east towers.  This has been blocked off now and parts of it can be seen near the current women's dressing room.  Otherwise I am only aware of the current annex addition with dressing rooms.  In this case, it matches the temple stone and the annex interior matches the styles present in the rest of the temple.

The Salt Lake Temple has had a sealing room annex added (on the right side in this picture).  This addition is 2 stories tall and is found on the north side of the temple.  This ruins the symmetry of the original temple, and the windows don't quite match those found on the original temple.  Even so, this addition blends fairly well and was needed to increase the number of sealing rooms from 3 to 14.

The Boise Idaho, Chicago Illinois, and Dallas Texas Temples were overcrowded upon opening.  Each was remodeled within a few years.  The additions present some problems.  In at least Dallas and Boise you go to the chapel and then you go back through the dressing rooms to get to the endowment rooms.  This is awkward and obviously wasn't the original plan for the building.  Boise's addition isn't the most balanced.  I remember Dallas' addition doing a better job of preserving symmetry.  In addition, one of the formerly detached spires is now in a lobby with glass skylights providing a nice view.  I haven't been to the Chicago Temple, so I am not sure how the addition works there.

Currently, the Buenos Aires Argentina Temple is being remodeled.  Two wings are being added that match the original temple architecture and preserve the original symmetry.




The Monticello Utah Temple was originally built with just one endowment room, one sealing room, the celestial room, and a baptistery.  It was so small because it was a test small temple.  Shortly after completion, the temple was expanded and now looks like most other first style small temples, although the window elevations change along the building, giving away that there is an addition.  Similarly, the Anchorage Alaska Temple was originally built small and has since been expanded.  This gives it a different look.

I've surely missed some temple additions.  I've noticed that most additions haven't done the best jobs of preserving the original architecture (they ruin symmetry, windows don't match, rooms and corridors don't flow right afterwords). Still, most aren't overly offensive, and a few work.

Comment and let us know what you think.