Texas Entered Apprentice (EA) Practice Test

Self-control is the guiding idea here. The compasses symbolize circumscribing one's desires and keeping passions within proper bounds, a mental reminder to regulate impulses and act with measured restraint. In Freemasonry teaching, this symbol calls members to temper their emotions and appetites, choosing balance over excess. By contrast, the square is tied to upright conduct with others, the level to equality, and the plumb line to straightness of character—concepts about how we behave rather than how we restrain inner impulses. So the compasses are the emblem that reminds Freemasons to regulate their passions.