The ZODIAC IN OUR GENES Ancient Astrolog [PDF]

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The “switching-on” of human symbol-making capacity between approximately 100,000 and 40,000 years ago was the tipping point towards a particular way of thinking that set the stage for the subsequent behavioural, cultural and religious evolution of humankind. What caused this momentous change, hitherto unparalleled in the history of life on earth, is considered by scientists as the greatest riddle in human evolution.

The ground-breaking discoveries pointing to the likely cause are so astonishing they will force a radical rethinking about the origins of culture and religion. Some may not be ready to accept what is being revealed, but we need to set aside our preconceived ideas. An objective examination is necessary, since a new understanding may just provide some of the answers we have long been searching for.

Containing fascinating insights, this book explains how these may have conditioned the human brain to evolve within the structure and limitations of an ancient celestial worldview blueprint. It provides an understanding of how complex cosmological ideas have been passed down through the ages within diverse cultures, and demonstrates that these are still having an impact on how we behave and why we adhere to culture and religion. With this book I hope to achieve an innovative and widespread appreciation of ancient cosmology, anticipating that this will revolutionise thinking about ourselves and nature; and enable acceptance of the common psychological and cultural threads which bind us, releasing the enormous potential within our commonality to create a new humanity devoid of centuries of brainwashing.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without permission from the publisher.

© Rachmond Howard, 2013.

First published in 2013 by Porcupine Press www.porcupinepress.co.za

E-Book ISBN 978-1-920609-53-5 Designed and produced by Porcupine Press Set in 11 point on 14 point, Times New Roman

…deep down in me I used to say that though God may be Love, God is Truth, above all… But two years ago I went a step further and said that Truth is God. Mahatma Gandhi

When the mob governs, man is ruled by ignorance; when the church governs, he is ruled by superstition; and when the state governs, he is ruled by fear. Before men can live together in harmony and understanding, ignorance must be transmuted into wisdom, superstition into illumined faith, and fear into love. From age to age the vision of a perfect civilization is preserved as the ideal for mankind. In the midst of that civilization shall stand a mighty university wherein both the sacred and the secular sciences concerning the mysteries of life will be freely taught to all who will assume the philosophic life. Here creed and dogma will have no place; the superficial will be removed and only the essential be preserved. The world will be ruled by its most illumined minds, and each will occupy the position for which he is most admirably fitted. Manly P. Hall

DETAILED CONTENTS Preface 13 Introduction 19 Chapter 1

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The Chimera Kaleidoscope The Orion Cluster – The Floating Aztec Jaguar’s Head – The Northern Celestial Door/ Gate – The Baal Monster – The Red Dragon – A Giant Mountain, A Volcano, and A River – The Double-Headed Volvine

Chapter 2 The Magic Rectangle

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Observation of the Magic Rectangle

Chapter 3 The Goat/Sheep-Fish and the Sacrificed Lamb/Bovine

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The Goat/Sheep-Fish – The Sacrificed Lamb/Bovine – Symbolic representation of these images in ancient cultures – The Great Bear-Fish – 1-Iku and the Rectangle – The Western Celestial Door/Gate

Chapter 4 The Fabulous Great Phoenix

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What is the phoenix? – The phoenix and its associations – Its association with the calendar – Its symbolism in different cultures – Its link with life, death, resurrection and immortality – Its association with incense – Incense practices that have survived – The story in the stars – The Phoenix: The Heron – Recollections from my experience of the heron – My own observations of the Phoenix – Lifting the veil – The significance of all of these ideas and symbolisms

Chapter 5 Batman / The Jade Emperor / The Eldest Son

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Observing the Jade Emperor – The mythological Confucius – Batman and his magic cloak – Batman in Mesopotamia – The Lid of Palenque and Batman – Batman in the Bible

Detailed contents __________________________________________________________________ – Antares associated with a bat – Further changes of the Jade Emperor – Bes and his many colours – Origin of Bes and subsequent changes of his name – Bes and the clown’s collar – Bes as a cherub and his association with femaleness – Bes the warrior/soldier – Bes and the Pygmies – Bes the “Master of Animals” – Bes, Min and Amon/Amun connections – “Little people” in ancient ideas and traditions – Ancient Egypt – Little people in European mythology and folktales – The Fänggen – Domovoi – Gunderstrup Cauldron – The Cyclops – Tiki/Teko/Teka and Tikal – Tokolosi – In the Bible – Eldest Son / Jade Emperor association with the mouth, protruding tongue and laughing conceptions – The Screeching Swallow/Kite – The Sacred Kiss – Other attempts to represent the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor – As Jupiter – As a clown – The Eldest Son conceptions – The Eldest Son / Jade Emperor as a two-faced being associated with evil – The Eldest Son: the demon – The Eldest Son as the Flying Boy / Eldest Son pose – Other ideas and traditions inspired by the Eldest Son image – The Eldest Son as the Frog Prince

Chapter 6 The Fowl-CHICK and the Leopard Skin

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Chapter 7 The Day of the Horus Falcon and the Celestial Tree

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The Fowl-CHICK alias Chicken Little – The Pharaoh and the magic chicken – The Leopard Skin – The Leopard Skin and Leprosy – Little Ram/Goat/Monkey / Lion’s Head alias the Golden Calf – Lions and more lions

Chapter 8 The Great Bow & Arrow / Excalibur / The Phallus

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My observations – The bow & arrow, knife and sword in ancient ideas and traditions – Mesopotamia – Turkey – Africa – Koisan – Egypt – Mali – China – The Americas – Britain – Northern Europe – Spain – In religion – Mithraism – Hinduism – Islam – The penis as symbolic of the Sword/Knife – The Sword/Knife/Penis as a “person” and birth – The Horus Child / Chosen Son conceptions – The Horus Child as the archetype for the tiny mighty men idea and his link with the Celestial Tree – The Horus Child as the archetype for Aquarius the Water Carrier – The Horus Child and Abraham – The Horus Child as the archetype for the twin rivalry conception – The different meanings of the word sword – Making sense of a bewildering number of images and ideas

Chapter 9 Ra’s Ship of Millions of Years

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Sailing vessels in religious texts – Sailing vessels in other ancient artworks – Boat/ship

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ conceptions and traditions in various ancient cultures – The Ark and ‘God Boat’ motif – The boat motif on the Dilmun button seals – Boat ideas and traditions in Ancient Egypt – The Barque of Millions of Years – The funerary boat – Buried boats – Other boat motifs – The Vikings and funerary boats/ships of the ancient Scandinavian countries – Boats/ ships in Greek mythology – Boats/ships in Celtic mythology – Boats/ships in Germanic and Norse mythology – Boats/ships in Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia – Miscellaneous interchangeable representations for the “sailing vessel” conception – A kettle/helmet as a “sailing vessel” conception – A ladle as a “sailing vessel” conception – A wooden tub as a “sailing vessel” conception – The crescent moon symbolic of a “sailing vessel” – My celestial observations

Chapter 10 The Venus Lady and the Kiss

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The Venus Lady – The big-bummed “Bushman” woman – Identicality as opposed to similarity – Comparison of the San Venus Lady with the European Venus Lady and their relation to celestial images – The use of clothing to depict the Venus Lady features – The use of the drum to depict the Venus Lady features – Cloaked Passionate Kissing Lady – To summarise

Chapter 11 Angelman

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Description of Angelman – Angelman and his False Beard – False Beard representations in Ancient Egypt – False Beard representations in the Americas – False Beard representations in the British Isles – False Beard representations elsewhere in Africa – False Beard representations in the Greco-Roman cultures – False Beard representations in the Middle East and Asian cultures – Qadesh – Figurines from the temple at Tell Asmar – A seal from the Agadean Period – A seal from the Agadean Period – False Beard representations in China – Prior transitional forms of the False Beard and its subsequent variations – Beards as religious symbolism and their connection to the stars – Alternative interpretations and representations of the False Beard image – The elephant trunk and the elephant symbolic of the False Beard – Other objects symbolic of the False Beard image – Horns and associated traditions and ideas symbolic of the False Beard – The “shaman” horns in Mexico – The horns of Moses – Horns and initiation – Drinking horns – Horns in the Bible – The cornucopia: the “Horn of Plenty” – Horns and music – The horn and its connection with stars – The ancient human’s use and the religious symbolism of bones, cowries and conch shells – Cowries and conch shells symbolic of the False Beard – The smoking-pipe symbolic of the False Beard – The question mark sign symbolic of the False Beard – Dangling objects from the mouth to symbolise the False Beard – Miscellaneous items as symbolic representations of the False Beard – The “headdresses” of Angelman – Headdresses of types 2 and 3 – The true headdresses of Angelman – The various designs

Detailed contents __________________________________________________________________ in different societies of the Greco-Roman comb-helmet symbolic of the Question Mark – Greco-Roman cultures – Celtic and Irish cultures – Nordic cultures – Africa other than Egypt – The Americas – Asia – The skullcap, conical and complex headdresses of Angelman – The Question Mark as a non-headdress symbol – The crook and flail as dual symbolisms for the False Beard and the Question Mark – The sickle and fish-hook as dual symbolisms for the False Beard and Question Mark – Other representations of dual symbolisms for the False Beard and Question Mark

Charts and Figures

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Chapter 12 Angelman the One-Eyed, One-Armed, One-Legged, Egg-born Bandit

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The left and right convention – Angelman as the one-eyed bandit – The mysterious“eye” conceptions in Ancient Egyptian and other ancient societies – The Wadjet or Ujat, meaning “Whole One” eye – The “Eye of Horus” – Ra’s eye – The Eye of Providence – King Philip II and his missing eye – The “eye” conceptions in religious texts – The INYO long-arm imagery – Long-arm imagery in Ancient Egypt – Variations of the long-arm symbolism – The flail – A long sleeve – Robing or draping over one shoulder/arm – Other methods used to draw attention to the conception of one arm – The hand of God – The Arm/Shoulder as a heart, tongue and wings – The one prominent leg alias Ancient Egyptian sceptre alias arrow in the leg/foot alias nail in the hand/foot – The one-legged conception – The one leg as the “wounded leg” – Alternative representations of the one leg conception – Jesus’ feet – The prince who stood on one leg – Ancient rituals of one leg enacted by secret societies – Other symbolic significance of the Crux-Rigel Kent-Hadar – As the was sceptre – As the letters L, h, b and d – As a mace – As an axe/hammer – As a flag-like symbol and the letter P – Y-slingshot and the letter Y – As zero and one – As a diamond and an egg – Angelman as Humpty-Dumpy, the jar-born and the egg-born – The “fatness” conception in an ordinary sense – Vessels symbolic of “fatness” and other related conceptions and traditions – Egg symbolisms and Angelman – The egg as a mystical, religious symbol – The egg as zero and 1 – San folklore about the egg – Jack and the Magic Beanstalk and the Giant’s Golden Egg

Chapter 13 Angelman the Wounded Man and his Dark Twin

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“The wounded man” conception and its link to Angelman – Angelman’s dark twin alias the volvine-winged horse alias Pegasus – The Dark Twin and ancient conceptions around this idea – Dark-light as a twin conception – The double as a twin conception – The goodbad duality as a twin conception – Other representations of the twin conception – The Black

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ Madonna as a twin conception and related ideas and traditions – The rival twin conception – The reconciliatory twin conception – The Black Madonna and ancient “pagan” ideas and traditions linked to the ancients’ cosmology – The horse aspect of Angelman – Horses in cave and rock art and other horse artifacts in the archaeological records – Horse burials and related traditions – Different mytho-religious conceptions of the horse – Greco-Roman horse conceptions – The winged horse – The knight’s horse traditions in the rest of Europe – The horse and religious symbolisms – The prominence of the horse in the Hindu religion – Christianity and horse symbolism – Other significant representations and symbolisms of the horse – The horse’s association with royalty and good fortune – The horse’s mighty head: the incomplete horse – The prominent association of the horse with water and drinks – The horse and twins – The horse and sex – Black-footed and Black-headed Ones and horse stealing – Concluding remarks

Chapter 14 The Celestial Bovines

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Ancient and modern ideas and traditions linking bovines with religious conceptions – Customs associated with bovines – My Observations of Celestial Bovines – Goat-Sheep/ Bull/Cow/Horse’s Head – My Observations of Celestial Bovines – Goat-Sheep/Bull/Cow/ Horse’s Head – The Rabbit Man alias the Wild Bull of Heaven – Distinguishing between the two bulls – The Reclining-Sitting Cow and the False Orion Belt Stars – The Red Heifer in Jewish thinking and its bovine connection

Chapter 15 The Divine Serpent

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Snakes in Asia – Snakes in Ancient Egypt – Snakes in the Greco-Roman world – The staff that turned into a snake – Snakes in China – The Israelites and snakes – The Great Snake and the Dragon – Snakes in the Americas – The wormwood that makes the water bitter – My observations

Chapter 16 The Indian Chief and Other Celestial Images

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Orientation and positioning of celestial images in the night sky – The Indian Chief and his multiple representations in ancient cultures – Cernunnos – Pashupatis – Horned deities in Mesopotamia – Hathor as an Egyptian Cow Goddess – Io and Hera – Thor and his Mighty Hammer – Other Symbolic representations of the V-Horns and related ideas – The vase as symbolic of V-Horns – Serapis/Sarapis – Cybele – The Moon a symbol for horns – Feathers as a symbol for horns – Horned helmets – Other representations of horns – Horns as symbolic of Demons/Satan/Devil – The Monster Humbaba – Ideas and cultural expressions based on the “tooth” aspect of the Indian Chief – Reasons

Detailed contents __________________________________________________________________ the Indian Chief, the Eldest Son, and the Jade Emperor became associated with evil – The Great Sphinx – The Sphinx-Owl link and evil – The Indian Chief and Large Ears – Additional transformational images resulting from the “Horn/Rabbit Ears Stars” – Monkey/Dog representation of Thoth – Green man and his Mexican Hat – The broadbrimmed hat of the Green man as a religio-cultural icon – Death and X representations and their symbolisms – The hanging motif and the head motif in ancient ideas and traditions – The Templars and Baphomet – The head conception in the Grail Romances – The head on the Turin Shroud – The Roslyn Church and its mysterious heads – Ancient Egyptian head conceptions – Greek head conceptions – The Olmecs – Beheading: once an honourable practice for the nobles – Skull ideas and traditions symbolic of the severed head – The mysterious supernatural Unicorn – The antelope-deer creatures – The “Pole Cat” – What about the cat-walk? – Celestial images which served as the archetypes for the different “creatures” – What celestial image gave rise to these creatures? – The Pole Cat – The white antelope/deer-like creature – The peacock – The duck – Further interpretations and explanations of these particular celestial creatures – The Human-Flesh-Eating Pig – Ancient Greece – Celtic and Norse – Ancient Egypt – The pig and hog as celestial creatures – The hog-hippo connections – The African Woman – The Celestial Lions – In cave art and ancient statues – In San folktales – Ancient Egypt – Jewish ideas – Differentiating the Celestial Lion images – The Lion/Crocodile and the Dragon – The Holy Grail Goblets – The “Cup of the Last Supper” – The Giant Cup with blood – The Alabaster Jar, the Trophy/ Pot and the Martini glass

Conclusion 669

I would like to dedicate this book to the following people: To my wife Sumaya and my daughter Sasha. Sasha, dont be afraid to be different. To the ‘Bushmen’ who may have been the originators of the foundation of all knowledge which subsequently influenced human development. To Giorgio De Santillana and Hertha von Deschend, the authors of Hamlet’s Mill, for being brave enough to challenge the conventional academic approach. Hamlet’s Mill has been an invaluable source in writing my book.

PREFACE Some day you will know the whole truth and the truth will set you free. The Bible – John 8:32

This book, perhaps too incredible to believe, is indeed a profound revelation. It seeks to reveal the stellar phenomena that gave rise to all ancient cultures and traditions, including religious1 ideas and practices. It tells how the interpretation and the practice of these cosmological ideas transformed the animal into “humankind”, as we know ourselves today. It reveals the key to the mysteries which went missing with the last of the ancient thinkers, yet survived into our modern times under various distorted or misunderstood cultural ideas, traditions and customs. This book is not about religion but the findings in this book raise interesting questions about the origin and meaning of religion. While the intention of this book is not to shock, it may nevertheless upset many people since it touches the core of what, for centuries, we have held to be true and divine. Readers may feel they have been woken from a 70,000 year-long dream, but we should all realise that the truth, in most cases, is not comfortable. The nineteenthcentury German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer, noted: All truths pass through three stages: first, it is ridiculed; secondly, it is violently opposed; and thirdly, it is accepted as self-evident. I may add that when the truth becomes self-evident we are often stupefied as to why, earlier, we were unable to see the obvious. Once we recover from the initial shock we can appreciate the ingenuity and creativity of our ancestors, and realise our enormous potential for the formation of a truly new humanity, devoid of lies, deception and brutality. It is also interesting that this revelation comes at the beginning of the twenty-first century when humankind faces: a global financial collapse, a loss of confidence and belief in religious and political institutions, an increase in political unrest, and natural



1

For the sake of simplicity, the term religion will be used as a collective term encompassing all ideas and practices of spirituality, exoticism, mysticisms, ancestor and divine ruler “worship”, and any other form of worship including conventional religion as defined from a western perspective. Religion is part of culture, and culture includes ideas, behaviour and the practice of traditions, rituals, customs and norms. Hence the use of the word culture interchangeably with religion will include all of these.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ disasters worldwide that include tsunamis, floods, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, droughts, the melting of the polar ice and unprecedented climate changes. Already the impacts of these natural disasters are causing severe famine, food shortages, homelessness and water shortages for various communities around the world. But humans are not the only ones who are feeling the initial impact of climate change; animals and plants have also been hard hit. If the worst predictions of climate change are realised, then these current events are but an insignificant start to the final Armageddon. The environment, which we humans have taken for granted and abused, is likely to change drastically for the worse, threatening the near total extinction of plants, animals and humankind. Is it possible that we are entering just another catastrophic world or cosmic cycle, about which our ancestors attempted to warn us in the myths and religions which we have inherited? Moreover, is it likely that all their knowledge, including their knowledge of the catastrophic world cycle, is an encoding of star “mythology”? Is it perhaps this knowledge, which may have originated from about 70,000 years ago and which was first depicted in simple rock and cave paintings, signs, symbols and in other artefacts, possibly first in Africa, that has gradually assumed an increasing complexity that has culminated in the dead-letters of our religious texts and in other cultural expressions? The initial interest of the ancient peoples in the stars may have started as human curiosity. But over time this curiosity developed into a type of “science” which they used not only as a tool to transform the human animal into a civilised being, but also possibly to warn future generations about natural disasters. Indeed, their attempts to civilise humankind have arguably succeeded, but the diseased roots of their tree of the knowledge of good and evil unfortunately persist. Today this “disease” finds expression in religious and cultural intolerance, and in the oppression and exploitation of those perceived as other, and drives an insatiable need to dominate people and to exploit nature without any concerns about the well-being of the planet and all living things. This corrupt knowledge is today a root cause of the exploitation of the ignorant masses by ruling classes together with the clergy. This is evidenced by religious conflicts, wars and violence in the world, ethnic cleansing, the physical and sexual domination and exploitation of women and children, and religious fundamentalism. While these brief points about violence, wars and other atrocities imply that religion is to blame, common knowledge suggests that humankind’s insatiable material greed, obscenely promoted by Machiavellian capitalism and the super-race ideologies of 14

Preface __________________________________________________________________ the West, has also played a role. What is even more disconcerting is that despite the advances made in education and the progress of civilisation, there appears to be a dangerous backlash and resurgence of archaic, unquestionable traditions, under the guise of recovery and reassertion of cultural identity. If such practices are allowed to flourish, humankind may return to the Dark Ages, which were characterised by human sacrifice, cannibalism and extreme bloodlust. These ideas and practices should fill every civilised person with disgust. While I did not intentionally set out to prove the astronomical/cosmological theory behind culture, including its religious aspects, the available information leads to this conclusion. However, the idea that astronomy/cosmology is the basis of all myths and that all religions are merely the reworking of selective myths, is not a new idea. Long after I had made my observations and started writing this book I stumbled upon the translated work of the French academic and savant, Professor Charles Francois Dupuis. His twelve-volume magnum opus, dated 1795, was way ahead of its time. The Origine de tous les Cultes, ou la Réligion Universelle (The Origin of all Religious Worship) appears to be the first coherent attempt to establish an astromytho-religious theory. In the abridged, translated version, Dupuis advocates the common origin and unity of ancient “astronomy” and the myths of all nations. He sought to demonstrate that this astro-mythology, together with their experience of the natural world, served as the basis of the culture of ancient people, and informed their religious ideas, traditions and customs. Even though my own observations led me to agree with this theory, nevertheless, I don’t think Dupuis understood which stellar phenomena served as the archetypes for such ideas and traditions. I am convinced that ancient people gradually perceived a periodic relationship between certain observable celestial images and nature, especially natural disasters. This information helped them construct a type of “cosmic calendar” linking observable cosmic changes to terrestrial events in periodic cycles. In this context it is easy to see why certain celestial images were considered to influence terrestrial events and, consequently, particular stellar images eventually assumed the identity of gods and goddesses, superheroes, spiritual ancestors or cosmic rulers. And our ancestors based their terrestrial lifestyles on the appearance and the “behaviour” of these celestial configurations. And yet, as pointed out: over time the custodians of these legends may have realised the value of such knowledge, (i) to warn human beings and protect life on earth and (ii) for the development of humankind, and thus promoted this knowledge to this end. 15

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ My approach in this book is completely different from the academic approach of Dupuis. I did not start by attempting to prove a specific theory; instead, a purely accidental observation motivated me to study the night sky more closely and enabled me to see a relationship between specific stellar images and ancient ideas. This perception led me to try and explain the correlation between these stellar images and the idea of culture described in literary sources, in religious texts and in archaeological and anthropological findings. Thus I describe real observations of stellar configurations and their “actions”, and for each image I provide information and ideas from various sources which seem to relate to a particular image and its “behaviour”. The implicit argument is that there exists an association or relationship between a particular stellar arrangement and a particular set of facts and ideas, which in most cases can be found in archaeological, anthropological and other literary sources. As I investigated these relationships between images and facts, I gradually recognised correlations and patterns among ideas, customs and traditions from various ancient societies which would normally escape our conditioned, modern, narrow, disciplinespecific, educated way of looking at the world. I came to understand that certain elements that on the surface appear to have no relationship, do indeed have a connection or an association. To my mind these ideas and actions are just different interpretations derived from the same stellar images and their “behaviour” (the archetypes), and are different attempts by ancient societies in an evolving process to simulate these astral phenomena in their cultures. Essentially, I have explored expert scientific findings together with literary sources and discerned a common astral thread which weaves through and entwines divergent cultures. This book presents information, facts and ideas from various sources that illustrate a specific association, or emphasise a particular insight. I anticipate the criticism that these constitute arbitrary and coincidental associations. This is valid criticism, with which any researcher is all too familiar, although I would ask: “How much information must be presented in order to convince others?” The evidence of my approach is not simply a question of the amount of information, facts or examples presented, it is about providing a framework (a sky-crane) on which the totality of evidence and other information on ancient ideas can be supported. It is precisely this framework, “the celestial imagery as a blueprint for culture”, that is being uncovered by my explorations. It reveals the ancient cosmic worldview and introduces a new way of seeing the unitary relationships within the knowledge we already have concerning the mythology, religions, traditions and customs of ancient societies, and shows how these are related to contemporary cultures.

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Preface __________________________________________________________________ I hope this framework will become the main focus of any criticism, as opposed to the critique of individual examples, or facts, or bits of information. I will be satisfied if this book, as a working hypothesis, convinces people of the stellar archetypes behind human cultural developments. I also hope that my hypothesis will be challenged by experts in the fields of astronomy, astrology, archaeo-astronomy, linguistics, comparative cultural and religious studies, archaeology, history, anthropology and even ancient and classical art and music! Furthermore, in this book you will see, firstly, the relationships among ancient pictures, signs, symbols, first captured in the cave- and rock-art of pre-historic times, and the symbols depicted in present-day zodiacs, of which the Western Zodiac is probably the most familiar. The celestial phenomena presented here overturn interpretations by experts of ancient cosmology and constellations, and Western ideas about the origin, meaning and purpose of what has been distilled into the now popular “Western” zodiac, which is wrongly used for personal astrological divination. These are the same cosmic “mythology” ideas which are encrypted in the work of the so-called famous sage, Nostradamus, who could apparently see into the future! Secondly, you will see that ancient artworks, some depicting deities, were not imaginative constructs but copied from real celestial images. You will meet a variety of fabulous, fascinating, celestial images which have formed the basis of popular “myths”, legends and folktales – the stuff of our dreams and nightmares – our gods and devils! This book will show that at least some of the religious ancient artworks, especially those of Ancient Egypt, including the fabulous Horus Hawk and the “ships/boats of the gods”, are actual cosmic images. It will also show that other artworks, for example, a human with the head of a ram, are attempts to show connections linking actual stellar images, and that some signs in the sacred writings of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics are actual celestial images. An explanation of the cosmic ideas behind the fabled, winged horse Pegasus and Jackal-head god Anubis will be given, as well as the reason why humans were buried with dogs, horses and other animals, as revealed by archaeological finds, some of which date back to 10,000 BCE. Assorted images will be presented, including those which inspired ideas of the fabulous phoenix, its many different aliases, and its eventual evolution. The veil will be lifted on mysterious creatures like the unicorn and her many aliases. I will show the relationship between the Hindu Elephant-Headed God and the “False Beard” of the Egyptian Pharaohs! These are only some of the many fascinating images and ideas which you will discover. 17

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Lastly, the archetypal images which inspired the establishment, traditions and behaviour of priest and rulers (kings, queens, chiefs, etc.); gender identities and sexual behaviours (e.g., of eunuchs, bisexuals, sodomites, homosexuals): and practices such as human sacrifice, especially of first-born children, and animal sacrifice rituals, will be introduced. This theme will be explored in greater depth in Book 2. I am convinced that it is only through an understanding and an appreciation of all the information (some of which may be contentious) in this and the books to follow, that we will fully understand the complex ideas and cultures which we have inherited. This inheritance continues to have an impact on how we behave in the present day, and why we adhere blindly to culture, even when this defies common sense, logic and scientific advances. An explanation for this may be found in the notion that ancient ideas, from about 70,000 years ago, “shaped” the human brain so that it evolved to function within structural limits, and that these limits are enforced by a stellar ideological blueprint (the sky-crane or archetypical framework) developed by ancient people. In other words, most of us, even those who are educated by modern standards, are programmed like computers and cannot function outside the ancient stellar software, hence the idea of the zodiac as a genetic imprint. I am also convinced that understanding and appreciating the revelations of ancient archetypical cosmology, as presented in this book, will revolutionise our thinking about ourselves, others and nature so that we will come to see the common thread which binds us all together, and we will perceive the enormous potential we have for the creation of a new humanity. We are standing on the threshold of a new consciousness, bubbling under the surface, its energies waiting to be united and unleashed. It is my hope that this book will be the beginning of this process. Yet, who knows, before the joy, great pain may first be experienced by planet earth and all living beings.

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INTRODUCTION As long as there’s no find, the noble brotherhood will last. Woe, when the piles begin to grow! B. Traven, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

In the biting cold of winter, I stood, eyes frozen upon the heavens. Puzzled! An electrifying feeling of awe bolted through my body as I beheld one of the most splendid, mysterious enigmas of the ancient world. It was as if all the pictures I had ever seen, and all the poetry I had ever read, which depicted and described the Fabulous, Elusive Phoenix, ignited within me, cascading like a billion light particles throughout the eternal void. Was it Real or just a Dream? Journey with me to uncover the truth.

A paradox of our age is that we live in the best of times and in the worst of times. Our scientific and technological discoveries and inventions have provided us with a quantum leap of progress and human advancement. As far as materialism is concerned, no age has been better than ours. Yet we suffer an emotional angst that the best of “drugs”, in whatever form – workaholism, sex, travel, alcohol, hard drugs, entertainment and recreation, and a fanatic commitment to different beliefs or ideals – cannot cure or repress. There is no certainty in the myriad institutions which once formed the bedrock of our modern age. The almost instantaneous, mysterious disappearance of the dinosaurs, that once were masters over nature, undermines the master race ideology and certainty of our collective human species. And death, the great equaliser, that lays waste all our great achievements and material wealth, is a constant reminder of our individual fallibility. Something is amiss – but what? Lindsay Clarke, in Parzival and the Stone from Heaven, weaves a beautiful wordtapestry that best captures the spirit of our age: But all the ancient mysteries have been profaned these days. There are no such accessible rites of passage, no universal accepted myths. It’s a time for openness, for sceptical questioning, a time where nothing can be taken on trust. In such a time the activity of the intellect has put enormous powers at our disposal, yet most of us feel paradoxically impotent within a scarily fissive world. Our technological skills present us with choices for which we are ill-prepared, and ingenious things get done in the name of scientific enquiry which leaves us ill at ease. We find it hard to trust in the virtue of our politicians, our judges, our religious leaders, our doctors, our 19

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ artists, our intimate relationships, the food we eat, the water we drink, sometimes even the air we breathe. Some of us recoil from the uncertainty and bewildering moral relativities of this situation into the consoling absolutes of one or the other form of fundamentalism – each of which tends to be violently opposed to another. Meanwhile much of the population of the earth erodes the natural environment in a struggle for profit or subsistence, and in the prosperous north-west, like a deep bass-note trembling under everything, there is a sense of impending disaster. We know we’ve got things wrong. We don’t know what to do about it. And so, apart from occasional upsurges of charitable outrage, we shut our eyes against the suffering and aridities of the wasteland time, and hope for the best. Yet this is not the whole picture, for we also live in a time when two hopeful and apparently contrary motions of the human spirit are seeking to converge. The first of these is the widespread need for the discovery and assertion of the personal identity that has emerged in recent years. For all the vanities and delusions that may attend the many various regimens of self-development, there has never previously been a time when so many individuals have made such a vigorous commitment to the difficult process of self-transformation. Each of them is a knight errant seeking their own path through the dark wood, and in the process they are discovering new, imaginative ways to come together...[There is] an ever-increasing awareness that we are all in this together, and that our decent survival as a species finally depends on the welfare of the entire planetary community…Like all transitional times ours is an age fraught with perils and possibilities, but so high are the stakes these days that the outcome is full of doubt.1

Yet, what shaped our destiny has always been in front of us, like an open book. Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. (Matthew/Prometheus 13:13-14).

We do have the power and the ability to create a new humanity, free from the evils generated by the bad aspect of the tree of the knowledge of good and bad. A quick reflection on modern advances in communication, medicine, computers, transport, energy, building technology, the production and supply of food and clothing, space travel, etc., should convince any sceptic of the importance of science and 20

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ technology. And yes, science and technology have also been used for evil purposes – weapons of mass destruction and industrial waste pollution are ready examples. One could equally and justifiably argue that what we consider as advances in most of the areas mentioned above have come at a hefty price to the environment. This is only because of human greed – the “get rich quickly, by any means necessary”, Machiavellian mind-set and actions, which have spread throughout most of the world. Underlining science is the scientific method, a specific structured way of thinking, discovering and deriving conclusions (facts and informed opinions) from evidence – evidence and conclusions which can be validated independently from the researcher/ claimant. The study of science is not perfect, as adequately demonstrated by Professor Kuhn in his landmark book The Structure of Scientific Revolution.2 Nevertheless, to date, science and the scientific approach remain humankind’s most powerful, reliable means for investigating the physical world and testing most of the ideas, opinions and beliefs that humans have about themselves and about the physical universe. Studying science is hard, time-consuming work – far more challenging and demanding than most people appreciate, since it often requires several years of honest, dedicated research – searching for evidence to prove or to refute an idea, an opinion or a belief. But science, not for the lack of trying, has been unable to answer a particular category of human ideas, opinions and beliefs, which, for lack of a suitable all-encompassing term, I call metaphysics. I am fully aware that metaphysics is a multiple and complex concept. On the one hand, metaphysics of physical sciences deals with the nature of matter at the quantum level, for example, the nature and behaviour of sub-atomic particles, anti-matter, etc. On the other hand, metaphysics deals with the “philosophical speculation beyond the current or even seemingly possible limits of science, and the development of more or less abstract systems intended to explain origin and purpose, phenomena of mind and matter, and the place of man in the universe”.3 Incumbent in this metaphysics are ideas and beliefs in divinely endowed, non-material, supernatural entities (soul or spirit or both) which abide within a human being or within nature (trees, rivers, animals, stones, etc.); or the existence of supernatural entities (e.g., gods, angels, demons, devil, etc.) as transcendental forces or powers. This particular worldview is often accompanied by irrational behaviour, ceremonies, rituals and a myriad of other cultural expressions. For example, human beings will prostrate themselves in front of objects or even other humans (kings, queens, chiefs, clergy, etc.,) whom they somehow perceive to be endowed with divine powers and who must be respected, appeased or even worshipped (in the Christian sense of this word). These people are willing to degrade themselves and suffer personal 21

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ pain and the loss of material comfort, and may even be willing to lose their lives or take the life of others, in order to exalt chosen human beings, who are just like themselves except, perhaps, in the sphere of material opulence. One can understand this behaviour when it is evinced by closed societies who lack outside experiences and insights, and who may have been culturally indoctrinated, often with the threat of force or rejection by their societies. But how is one to explain similar behaviour in free, highly educated societies which promote individualism, human dignity and the equality of all humans? I give as an example the veneration by some people, including the educated, of the crowned heads of Britain and other countries in Europe, which is really no different from the veneration of a tribal chief in other parts of the world – which European culture has labelled as primitive and backwards. Another widespread belief, accompanied by similar thinking and behaviour as in the example above, is a belief in the existence of divine, transcendental forces or powers. Most often this force or power is vested in a god or a goddess. This is said to constitute religion proper, and the belief in one god/goddess is regarded as surpassing other belief systems involving many gods. Other people imbue the “spirits” of their dead ancestors with this force or power and believe that their forebears, like other deities, are omnipotent, able to shape and influence every aspect of their lives. Libraries around the world are full of scholarly attempts to explain this particular metaphysical thinking and behaviour of humans, especially with regard to God. The God theory/hypothesis deals with whether God exists or not. This is a fundamental question which has occupied the greatest of minds. Arguments, and not empirical evidence, for and against the existence of God have been proposed by philosophers, theologians and even scientists for thousands of years. It is still today a fiercely, often emotionally-loaded, debated matter among scholars and others. And the matter has not been settled either way. For me the fundamental question should not be whether God exists or not but where the God conception came from in the first place. I am not going to engage in this debate, but I want the reader to reflect on this question in view of what is revealed in this book. While this educated discourse rages, masses of educated and uneducated people continue in their beliefs and traditions. Frequently, people are unwilling to question or challenge themselves about their beliefs, and some are even willing to kill other people in order to keep their beliefs alive. When caught in this conundrum, it is easy to conclude that this is an insurmountable problem and then adopt the laissez faire attitude of “to each his own” – after all who has the right to tell others what to believe? Unfortunately this nice-sounding attitude is unacceptable. 22

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ Humankind has been plagued by violence, wars, and the oppression and exploitation of others. These atrocities were and are promoted and justified in the name of one or other metaphysical force or entity; in most cases these are portrayed, ironically, as peace-loving and all-encompassing. The need to prevent humanity from slipping into the dark, and the atrocious lives of those societies who are still living in ignorance, should be sufficient reason not to blindly follow culture and tradition – just saying something is “one’s culture” should not mean uncritical acceptance. After all, many evils have been and still are committed in the name of culture and religion – which is in fact part of culture. If science, thus far, is the most powerful and reliable method invented by humans to investigate nature and ourselves, then what has it proved about the origin and nature of humans? Scientists accept that there are still questions and disputes about some aspects of the origin and nature of the human species, but what scientists know is at least based on evidence as opposed to theological-philosophical arguments, or dogmatic beliefs. In the scientific community there is an overwhelming acceptance of the large body of paleontological and genetic scientific evidence that the human species evolved from a common primate ancestor several millions years ago.4, 5, 6 Simply put, we share a common ape ancestor among the creatures we call primates. This fact is in direct opposition to the Judeo-Christian belief of the unique creation of humans, separate from and master over other species, based solely on the six-day creation story found in the Bible in the Book of Genesis. Other religions have their own explanations; for example, in Hinduism there is “The Wheel of Samsara” conception that incorporates the notion of the unity and relatedness of all aspects of nature, including the evolution and the digressions of both living and non-living things in an endless entwining cycle. In his thought-provoking book, Hancock7 explains that despite a few incongruities experts have agreed that our hominid predecessors did not behave symbolically during the first five to seven million years of evolution. In other words, during this period there is no evidence of any form of representations (signs, symbols, art, artefacts) nor any creativity, building or production which demonstrate the ability of our hominid predecessors to manipulate ideas and translate these into visible outputs which we can associate with even a rudimentary level of thinking nearing that of modern humans. Their crude stone tools show neither change nor innovation for hundreds of thousands of years, thus we infer that their behaviour patterns were stultifying and repetitive and essentially no different from the behaviour of other animals.

23

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Evidence suggests that hominids reached “full anatomical modernity” about 196,000 years ago, meaning that by then they were anatomically indistinguishable from the people of today. And yet even though they had large, complex brains similar to those of modern-day people it was only about 100,000 years ago that they began to show signs of symbolic abilities. As John Fleagle, of Stony University in New York State, pointed out: “there was a great time gap between the appearance of the modern skeleton and ‘modern behaviour’”. Mysteriously it appears that these developments only took place in Africa. In Asia a species known as Homo erectus, a direct ancestor of modern humans, has been found, but with a smaller size brain. This species only started to show behavioural changes about 50,000 years ago. Neanderthal man, classified as Homo neanderthalensis, inhabited Europe as early as 250,000 years ago. Despite more robust anatomy and larger brains than Homo erectus and modern humans, Neanderthals appear to have had no knowledge of symbols until they made contact with modern humans approximately 50,000 years ago. Archaeological records show that it was only between approximately 110,000 years and 90,000 years ago that symbols were first used by our predecessors. This evidence was found in southern Africa, where fragile bone tools were discovered that must have had important symbolic value to their owners since they were hoarded and exchanged rather than used.8 Another big landmark in symbolic thinking was found at Blombos Cave in the Cape. This is the “earliest uncontested example of symbolic art so far found anywhere in the world – an abstract geometrical composition inscribed on a small block of red ochre”.9 Also found at this same site is the earliest uncontested example of personal adornment found anywhere in the world – a set of minute drilled shell beads. Both the artwork and the beads were found in a stratum dated to 77,000 years ago.10 In 2008, Blombos Cave yielded another earliest invention to date, an ochre-production and storage toolkit – “A 100,000-Year-Old Ochre-Processing Workshop at Blombos Cave, South Africa”.11 Given this gradual development in Africa, common sense dictates that the oldest most sophisticated art should be found in Africa, but this is not the case; the oldest cave art, more than 40,000 years later, appears in Europe. Another anomaly is that while Australia was colonised by modern humans as early as 60,000 and even 75,000 years ago, evidence of modern humans dates back to less than 40,000 years in south-east Asia, including the overland route that migrants from Africa would have had to follow to reach Australia. So how did modern humans, from 24

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ Africa, reach Australia? Since there is no evidence of their reaching Australia via land, they must have travelled across the hazardous oceans from Africa to Australia, a feat that required organisation, planning, intent and motive, craft building and navigation skills, all of which required advanced symbolic abilities. There are also controversial claims of rock art in Australia, featuring simple geometrical patterns, some more than 40,000 years old and others even 75,000 years old.12 It appears that the “switching-on” of modern human symbol-making capacity between approximately 100,000 and 40,000 years ago was a tipping point towards a particular way of thinking that set the stage for the subsequent behavioural and cultural evolution of modern humans. We are therefore obliged to ask why it was that humans with identical brains, looks and genes to ours nevertheless behaved so very differently from us for the first 100,000 years of their existence (i.e. from roughly 200,000 to roughly 100,000 years ago) – so differently, in fact, that they seem almost like another species. And why did they then embark on an immense behavioral metamorphosis – that would not hit critical mass until around 40,000 years ago – to become innovative and artistic, symbolic and cultured, religious and self-aware? What caused the momentous change of direction and destiny, hitherto unparalleled in the history of life on earth that gave birth to modern human culture?13

For Ian Tattershall of the American Museum of Natural History the problem posed by this gap – from the appearance of modern anatomy to the “switching-on” of symbol making and what happened to our ancestors during this period is “the question of questions in palaeoanthropology”. Professor David Lewis-Williams of the Rock Art Research Institute at the Witwatersrand University in South Africa describes the same problem as “the greatest riddle of archaeology – how we became human and in the process began to make art and to practice what we call religion.”14 There are intriguing questions to be asked. For example: Why did the production of symbols first start in southern Africa, even though human species with bigger brain capacities existed outside Africa? What inspired our ancestors to produce symbols and artefacts which did not have any practical application for their basic survival needs such as food, water, shelter, health and defence? The facts discussed above suggest that the production and transmission of symbols are directly linked to the rapid cognitive and cultural evolution of our hominid predecessors into human beings who displayed a range of ideas, emotions, creative abilities and actions which today we recognise as being part of human culture, encompassing: 25

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 1. a mental dimension (i.e. ideas, the knowledge that we produce from these ideas and the value we attach to the ideas/knowledge); 2. a communication dimension (i.e. the common signs, symbols and sounds we have developed to communicate in a meaningful manner among ourselves); 3. a creative/creation dimension (i.e. items and institutions that we develop for our basic needs, amusement and for the benefit of some “supernatural” entities); 4. a behavioural dimension (i.e. how we make or do all the aspects of the other dimensions, the value and justification we attach to these, the emotions we have and display, and all our physical actions e.g., our manner of sleeping, giving birth and raising our young, disposing of our dead, and our actions towards ourselves and others, etc.). Studies have been conducted on individuals who were abandoned at birth, or very young children who have had little contact with other people, in some cases raised by animals. Such individuals lacked most of the human cultural attributes which we take for granted as the defining aspects of humanness, thus demonstrating that culture is learned. Culture is transferred by humans to humans. It is commonly recognised that what differentiates humans from animals, fundamentally, is the evolution of symbols and signs as part of our thinking and the use of these in our communication and creative/creation cultural dimensions. When, how and why this symbol “switching-on” occurred and whether symbolmaking is the root of human consciousness and religion are fundamental questions which we need to answer in order to understand ourselves. I have found Richard Leakey’s reflection on these complex matters refreshingly clear and concise. Leakey is a renowned palaeontologist. Attempts to understand these matters have been dominated by Western scholars, focusing mainly on Europe rock and cave images. He, like me, and even Hancock, expresses concern about the undervaluing by Western scholars of the significance of Africa when studying and interpreting ancient symbols and art. In his book The Origin of Humankind, in a chapter titled “The Language of Art”, Leakey starts by describing his observation of 30,000 year-old art in the famous Lascaux cave in south-west France, and the 15,000 year-old art in the cave of Tuc d’Audoubert, also in France. In later chapters of my book you will see which celestial archetypes inspired this art.

26

There [in Tuc d’Audoubert], one sees the figures of two bison, superbly sculptured from clay, resting against rocks…Measuring about one-sixth normal size, they are perfect in form, full of movement in their motionlessness; they encapsulate life. The skill of the artist who sculptured these figures 15,000 years ago is breathtaking… After they had finished, they carefully cleared away most of the debris of their work, leaving only a few sausage-shaped pieces of clay. Once interpreted as phalluses or horns, these are now thought to have been samplers, on which the sculptors tested the plasticity of the clay [these may have indeed been both]. Most intriguing, however, are the heel prints, probably those of children, around the figures…15

In your mind’s eye you can see this pre-historic work of art with the meticulously crafted bison standing on the rock while around them, perhaps, children are playing or dancing. And the words of the South African archaeologist David Lewis-Williams come to mind, “Meaning is always culturally bound.” And you wonder if a ritual in which a bison played a central part is being portrayed in this artwork? Lewis-Williams, in his search for meaning in prehistoric art, studied the art of the !Kung San people of the Kalahari as well as art from the Ice Age in Europe and came to “recognise that artistic expression may form an enigmatic thread in the intricate weave of the cultural fabric of a society and that mythology, music, and dance are also part of the fabric: each thread contributes meaning to the whole, but by themselves they are necessarily incomplete”.16 As an illustration of this conclusion, he draws our attention to the fact that if we were to witness a slice of the Upper Palaeolithic life, as illustrated in cave art, we would in all likelihood not fully understand the meaning thereof. It is the same with the cryptic symbols of modern religions; they are only fully appreciated within the culture to which they belong, outside the culture they are meaningless. For example, the image of a man holding a staff with a lamb at his feet – Christians would relate to this image of Jesus, but non-Christians would not. Leakey also supports the fact that we moderners are limited in fully comprehending the meaning of ancient representations; even though it is true that the ancient images found in caves are fragments of an ancient history, we have to accept that not only are there limits to our understanding thereof, there are many biased perceptions of pre-historic art, especially in the Western world where very little attention was in fact given to “prehistoric art of equal and sometimes greater antiquity found in eastern and southern Africa”, and where interpretations of ancient art are influenced by the modern Western conception of “art for art’s sake”.17 Noting these limitations, Leakey nevertheless continues to explore ancient images and their meaning to dispel the notation “of art for art’s sake” and to demonstrate that this art had deeper cultural significance. As far back as 34,000 to 30,000 years ago, 27

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ people devoted a lot of their time to making small ivory beads and carving exquisite ivory figures of humans and of animals. At Vogelherd, in Germany, six ivory figures of mammoths and horses were found. The horse figure, perfectly carved, seems to be found throughout the Upper Palaeolithic. And from Abri Blanchard in south-western France, a small bone flute provides evidence of the importance of music during that period. During the Gravettian period, 30,000 to 22,000 years ago, the people made clay figures of humans and of animals for the first time. However, not many cave paintings have been found from this period. Yet what is interesting is the number of negative handprints found on a number of cave walls. It is as if someone had placed their hands on the wall and paint was blown around the edges of each hand. At the site of Gargas, in the French Pyrenees, more than two hundred handprints were found and almost all of them had one or more parts of the fingers missing. In Altamira, cave paintings were found that date back 17,000 years. These paintings included images of “twelve bison grouped in a circle, two horses, a wolf, three boars, and three female deer around the periphery. They were red, yellow and black...”18 André Leroi-Gourhan, the French pre-historian, saw the Ice Age images as “the origins of western art”, which suggests the notion of art for art’s sake. Bahn describes these Ice Age images as “simply idle doodlings, graffiti, playing activity: mindless decoration by hunters with time on their hands”. He claims that his interpretation stems from art for art’s sake. John Halverson also supports the art for art’s sake interpretation of ancient images. However, there are a number of aspects to ancient art which challenge this interpretation. 1. By the end of the Ice Age, 10,000 years ago, representational art of the earlier periods practically all disappeared, and were replaced by schematic images and geometrical patterns illustrating the transformation of their art into what appeared to be more abstract. Enigmatic images and geometric signs were found on the roof and walls of the caves that were strangely not reflected in any real life situations of our ancient ancestors. Interestingly many of the techniques, perspectives and their sense of movement, as portrayed in Lascaux, had to be re-invented in Western art with the Renaissance. Hence there was no continuous development of an art form from the Ice Age to the representational art of the West as suggested by André Leroi-Gourhan. 2. The image, far from being simplistic and representational of their environment, is purposely ordered, suggesting intent and motive to convey 28

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ specific meaning. Leakey rightfully observes that there is far more to this art than the “first halting workings of the modern mind” and discusses a few examples in support of his view: a. The simple drawings of the Upper Palaeolithic people depict ordered mysterious scattering of geometric patterns or signs which include dots, grids, chevrons, curves, zigzags, nested curves and rectangles “that perhaps were not only organised perceptions of their worlds but also an expression of their spiritual cosmos”. Interestingly, David Lewis-Williams has interpreted this art to be telltale signs of shamanic art, saying they are images “from a mind in the state of hallucination”.19 b. In the cave of Trois Frères is an image of a human/animal chimera, known as the Sorcerer, and in the Hall of Bulls in Lascaux, there is a a unicorn, a human disguised as an animal or perhaps a chimera. There are many such drawings, enough to prove they “were greatly mediated by cognitive reflection”. c. These images interpreted against the natural environment in which these ancient people lived suggest that this art is far more complex. There is nothing like a true landscape painting. Archaeologists noticed that some animals were far more prominent in the artwork than in the landscape occupied by these people, it was as if certain animals in their art had special significance. Nor was it just a question of this art reflecting their diet – the “hunting-magic” theory – since there was no significant correspondence between animal remains, likely reflecting diet, and those depicted in their art. Hence this art had deeper meaning, but solving the mystery behind this ancient art remains a challenge especially when you reflect on the following additional points. Firstly, why do the caves show hand-prints with one or more finger joints missing if these were just simple paintings of idle-minded people? There is a relationship between these hand-prints and actual ritualistic amputation of a finger-joint, which was common among the hunters, and at least some evidence exists that this practice was part of “worshipping” or venerating celestial phenomena since anthropological studies of the !Kung, an ancient southern African people, and this ritualistic amputation recorded the !Kung’s view that “we sing to the sun and stars, as well as to the moon.” The anthropologists conclude: “Nor do we know what were the symbolic associations of amputating a finger-joint, a practice which was widespread among the hunters.”20

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Furthermore, the amaBomvu, a tribe conquered by the Zulus, also cut off the last joint of the little finger on one hand; this practice may have some relationship to the Tom Thumb traditions and folklore of the Zulus (see chapter 5). Secondly, why do some of these paintings show transformation of humans into some known or unknown animals or animals with human body parts? According to David Lewis-Williams’ shaman theory, these are the various forms which a shaman undergoes in his visions. Apparently such hallucinogenic visions are experienced when in a state of ritualistic trance, whether induced by drugs or not.21 But is it indeed so? Thirdly, why are some images purposely painted in specific locations in some of the caves and why do they appear in colours that do not resemble the natural colours of the terrestrial animals that were familiar to the ancient artists? From the discussions above, the art for art’s sake theory seems unlikely. Two other mainstream theories have been advanced to explain the purpose and meaning of this art, namely the hunting-magic theory, and the shaman theory. The French scholar Breuil was the most influential scholar of the hunting-magic theory. This theory is based on the hypothesis that the art was part of the magical totemic rituals performed to increase the success of the hunt. The hunting-magic theory suffers from a number of weaknesses; chief among these is that the images depicted very often did not reflect the diet of the Upper Paleolithic painters. Moreover, the French anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss noted that in the art of the San and the Aborigines “certain animals were depicted most frequently not because they were ‘good to eat’ but because they were ‘good to think’.” If the purpose was to increase the success of the hunt than every animal successfully hunted would have been represented each time and the cave would be filled with animals which made up the diets of the people who made this art, and this is not the case. The shaman hypothesis was first proposed by Lewis-Williams. From his extensive studies of southern African rock paintings and ethnographic studies on contemporary Kalahari San culture he came to the conclusion that the rock paintings depicted and incorporated in their forms the experiences of the medicine people or shamans, in trance. He later extended this work to include neuropsychology and produced a more extensive model – the neuropsychology “shamanistic model”. According to this model, rock images reflect visual experiences apparently common to all modern humans in altered states. It further suggests that no matter what our cultural background is, our brains are “hard-wired” in similar ways to give rise to similar 30

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ visual experiences in this altered or trance state. This model is popular but has provoked bitter confrontations.22 The suggestion that we humans share similar visual experiences in an altered or trance state since we are hard-wired to do so, is a fascinating theory. There appears to be congruence between this aspect of the neuropsychology model and my working hypothesis that suggests that celestial images are the “software” of the human mind. I arrived at this working hypothesis independently and accidentally, long before I had heard of Lewis-Williams and his theory. R. Dale Guthrie, Professor Emeritus at the University of Alaska, has made an extensive study of the Paleolithic era (ca. 10, 000 to 40,000 years ago) and concludes as follows: 1. Across a span of 30,000 years and despite the many different cultures that may have existed in western Eurasia during this period, their art “displays a striking unity and is readily distinguishable from later, post-Pleistocene tribal art.” 2. The art, contrary to other theories, “does not bear any obvious imprint of ritual and magic, but expresses more casual and earthy themes.” 3. The art, contrary, to the shaman theory, was made by both sexes and people of all ages and not only by senior adults who were more likely to be shamans. 4. There is an overtly sexual nature to this art, suggesting that this art might be some form of stone-age pornography reflecting sexual fantasies, especially of adolescent males.23 Even though researchers of today entertain a diversity of explanations for the art of our ancestors, and emphasise the important role of the cultural context of the artwork, they have still not solved the intricate mystery of human consciousness entwined in the fabric of culture – “although we cannot yet be sure of the process by which modern humans evolved, however, we do know that it involved the emergence of the kind of mental world each of us experiences today.”24 Furthermore, and apart from these rock and cave images, studies focusing on people closer in time seem to support a theory of a shared human culture despite the geographic separations and apparent differences and variations among societies. This idea of differences produced from one common source can best be explained by looking at the inheritance material called DNA. All living things (plants, birds, humans, animals, insects, bacteria, etc.,) share this fundamental life-forming material and yet there are significant and fundamental differences among these life forms. It is the “DNA” of culture that we looking for. 31

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The renowned anthropologist Sir James Frazer concluded, to the dismay of the white world of his time, that humans are essentially the same, culturally speaking. By the late twentieth century we took our sameness for granted, and furtively probed for difference, whereas the late Victorians took their otherness for granted and were proud of it. But Frazer was much less interested in otherness than in sameness, and it was this preoccupation that got him into trouble. The notion that all humans possessed an “essential similarity” was at one level very threatening to the Victorian mind. Hence the notoriety of Frazer’s comparative study of culture and belief when it was first published in 1890.25 I bought a copy of Frazer’s Illustrated Golden Bough in 1996; since then I had taken cursory glances at it, and I have quoted and described material from this book. But, after I had almost completed writing about my observations I acquired the new, soft-cover, un-illustrated version – which I read with gusto. Only then did I realise how common and similar were culture, traditions and customs among the different people across the world. Secondly, I realised that many of these cultures, traditions, and customs are explainable within the context of my own stellar observations and interpretations. Another scholar, also far ahead of his time and who received the scorn of the white world, was Dr Albert Churchward, a Freemason. In 1910 Churchward published his book Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, in which he presented, analysed and demonstrated the commonality in ancient signs and symbols. He may have reached the right conclusion that Africa is the place of origin of these primordial signs and symbols, and that subsequent African traditions and customs, modified over time, spread to the rest of the world and permeated Freemason traditions, rituals and ideas. However, he was certainly wrong to assign fabulous time periods to certain aspects of the human paleontological record and pre-historic times, and to conclude that pygmies are the oldest race, from whence these ideas and traditions originated.26 Lest we forget, as is often the case in Western scholarship, we have the first and probably one of the greatest African scholars, Professor Cheikh Anta Diop, who has made an enormous contribution to the debunking of Eurocentric interpretations of the origin of culture and civilisation. Using the disciplines of linguistics, cultural and physical anthropology, history, chemistry, and physics, he forged new theoretical pathways and revealed new evidence in the quest to uncover the ancient origins and unifying principles of classical African civilisation…Civilisation or Barbarism is Cheikh Anta Diop’s magnum opus and the last of his great contributions to the clarification of the African world history…and its influence and development of civilisations beyond what we now know as Africa, separated from the rest of the world by imposed geographic and ideological demarcations.27 32

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ Proto-religion Let me remind you that we started this long journey to explore what science has revealed about human origin and nature, hoping to distil some fundamentals about our metaphysical thinking and behaviour, especially with regard to a “god conception” as defined at the start of these discussions. Remember there is no single “god conception”; this conception varies from society to society and takes on the identity of the culture of a particular society, for example, a Christian “god conception” is fundamentally different from a Hindu or Buddha conception. This means that a “god conception” is culturally bound; it is bound up with and transmitted by culture. A cursory reflection by each person who ascribes to a religious orientation, on when and how they arrived at a “god conception”, will confirm that such ideas came from knowledge learnt, often as children, from older people in the culture. However, we also know of people who claim to have a “god conception” which came mysteriously to them from transcendental powers or forces and not from fellow humans. The only problem with this is that such people were raised in a society and one cannot negate the possibility of indirect influence on such people. Also, when one studies the socalled revealed knowledge it is not fundamentally different from what is already known, often imaginatively enhanced. And human inventions and discoveries put to shame the knowledge revealed by these highly advanced transcendental powers/ forces – surely they can do better than us mere mortals! But having derided this idea, I have a nagging feeling that there is perhaps something else to us humans which we are yet to discover. The insight derived from science about the origin and nature of humans suggests that our human consciousness (which would include our “god conception”) intertwined with our culture is somehow linked with the symbol-making software mental imprint of our modern human ancestors. I think Lewis-Williams’ neuropsychological model poses the essential claim that symbol-making as represented in ancient images is at the core of human consciousness and the creation of culture, which includes religion.28 Professor Miguel García Guinea of the University of Santander also sees a connection between Upper Palaeolithic art and religion: the images are hieratic profundity, full of religious force, and thus can clearly be classified as Sacred Art, the first in the history of humanity. Works such as Altamira or Niaux surpass the label of simple works of art and must be seen and valued from the point of view of philosophy and the deep problems of Humanity.29

While it is important to value the informed opinions of scholars, in this case the 33

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ insight of the ancestors of the ancient art creators should also carry weight. Surviving anthropological accounts from the !Kung specifically claim their cave paintings are sacred: What Stow does demonstrate is that in the Queenstown district in the nineteenth century every band used a cave as its head-quarters, and in each of these there was a painting which was sacred and from which a band took its name. One painting was of a python, another of a springbok, another of eland, and so forth.30

Religious aspects of cave art is also suggested indirectly by the work of two other scholars. When André Leroi-Gourhan was researching a number of caves he noticed that there was a definite structure in the art. He also found that you could not study each image in isolation but had to look at the patterns that were repeated as a whole, as it was in these patterns of images that meaning could be found. He noticed, for example, that deer occupied the entrance to the cave, and horses, bison and oxen occupied the main chamber, while carnivores were found in those parts of the cave that were not easily accessible. Despite Hannock’s harsh criticism of Leroi-Gourhan’s findings and interpretations, I think his work on the structural organisation of images within the caves will be important in testing the celestial plan of images revealed in my book. Rather after the fashion of Laming-Emperaire, he assigned gendered symbolism to the first two groups – horses, reindeer and the hinds represented ‘maleness’, he insisted; bison and aurochs represented ‘femaleness’... he divided each cave into four zones – entrance, central area, side chamber and dark ends – and then established what proportion of which groups of animals was found in each zone. From all this maître ... sublimated a grand theory ... that there existed ‘an ideal or standard layout to which the topography of each cave was adapted as far as possible.’ In other words, these caves (like modern churches in which there is also an ideal or standard layout for the sacred art) were ‘organised sanctuaries’ conforming to the blueprint of the religion that lay behind them.31

Reznikoff and Michel Dauvois made the fascinating discovery that sound variations played an important role as to where paintings and engravings were found, some of the most unnatural images being found in the most inaccessible parts of the caves. This highlighted the possibility of early rituals being performed that involved singing and dancing, and perhaps these were indeed a reality at that time. If you think about it, this is in fact no different to music in the modern religious rituals of today, which in Western churches nowadays include the clapping of hands, and singing from hymn or prayer books, accompanied by choirs, organs and other musical instruments.

34

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ The celestial image–culture connection Professor Anthony Aveni, an archaeo-astronomist,32 presents evidence from three great ancient cultures which suggest that there are links between some yet unknown images that the ancients saw in the night sky and their culture. To explain his observations he refers to the Maya epigrapher, Linda Schele, who recognised “a pattern in Mayan celestial iconography that could be related directly to the ancient sacred text, the Popol Vuh.”33 For example, the story of the creation of life is a sky story in which the Milky Way provides the background for the tale: The imaginative story begins with the lighting of the heath (lower region of Orion including the Orion nebula) by First Father, who is reborn out of the shell of a cosmic tortoise (the belt of Orion). He raises the great World Tree (the Milky Way), which is in the shape of a crocodile. The Pleiades, which come next, represent the handful of seeds which, when planted, grow into the fertile World Tree seen passing prominently through the north-south-overhead zones a few hours after the Pleiades have crossed the zenith. What is so compelling about this Genesisin the-sky story is that so many of these sky patterns and events are bolstered by what we find in ancient Mayan writing and sculpture. While scholars are not in complete agreement about details of the sky story, this much is clear: For the Maya horizon astronomy was only a part of the picture. What happened high up in the sidereal heavens mattered too…by demonstrating similar correlations between astronomical cycles and the life cycles of the animals represented in the stars, anthropologist Gary Urton concludes ‘the universe of the Quechuas is not composed of a series of discrete phenomena and events; instead there is a powerful synthetic principle underlying their perception of relationships between objects and events in the physical environment.’ Dark cloud constellations are not unique to Peru. Anthropologists Claude Levi-Strauss and Gerardo Reichel-Dolmatoff have described them elsewhere in South America. And similar celestial constructs have been identified by the Australian aborigines and peoples of Java34 and Africa.35

Aveni also presents a drawing of a part of the cosmology of the Mayan depicting some interesting images they saw in the Milky Way: a partridge, a fox between Scorpio and Sagittarius, a baby llama, a toad near the Southern Cross and a snake between Centaurus and the Southern Cross.36 The images in the creation story and cosmology of the Mayan are relevant to the celestial images which I discuss in this book. While the experts are correct about the relationship between star images and culture, they have not understood what these starry images are and how the ancients interpreted these in their traditions, customs and rituals. The evidence for this assertion will be found in this book.

35

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ In closing, what I have attempted to do is to provide a wide context in which the significance of my findings should be interpreted. My approach and its limitations I was not able to follow the conventional, empirical, scientific approach of first developing a hypothesis and then amassing evidence to prove or refute the hypothesis. Instead, this book presents descriptions of my naked-eye observations of actual celestial images and stellar bodies, and uses illustrative examples from the source materials which I have in my possession. This is a minute drop of the enormous pool of information that is readily available, and which will reveal the relationship between these facts and my own observations. I am fully aware of the limitations of “not being an expert” in any of the diverse fields from which relevant information and facts have been sourced. There may also be justifiable criticisms about the number of examples used and the “cherry picking” of particular examples in support of a particular point. As already noted, examples came from sources which were readily available to me and there was no intention to use selectively, or to bias my selection in favour of one or the other person or theory. Indeed, my fear of accusations of bias in the selection and extraction of information and facts caused me, at times, to extract more information than was necessary, so that readers can draw their own conclusions. Today’s scholars rightly place a high value on facts and information, and on the informed opinions of experts as presented in peer-reviewed articles and within the narrow specialisation of dissertations and theses. As a result we are confronted with mountains of knowledge, and yet we are unable to weave it together to find a common thread that leads to the original cause which set humankind on this cultural development path. Why? As scholars we have been trained to think and to investigate within the narrow confines of specialised areas of study, an approach which has advantages and disadvantages. The major disadvantage can best be illustrated by an analogy: several discrete groups of individuals are unknowingly isolated within distinct caves within the same mountain, so while each group may be able to describe and to explain almost everything within their own individual cave, they are unable to see or to understand that their cave is part of other caves, and all of these are part of the larger structure, namely, the mountain. Seeking a single cause is the desire of all experts within particular fields, but the diversity, complexity and enormity of information and facts, and the undesirability of biased attitudes (for example, wanting to advance a particular ideology, especially 36

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ of superiority) make this an almost impossible mission. I am convinced that, because I am not an insider or an expert with a particular bias or a vested interest in a particular ideology, and because of the manner by which my observations were reached, I have found the “mountain” which, in a single stroke, will explain the origin of culture, including religion. I certainly do not expect a warm welcome from fellow scholars, but rather a fierce “fight”. At the end of the day I am convinced that the subsequent work of various experts will confirm my central conclusion, namely, that the stellar images presented in this work are the first causation of humankind’s cultural developments. This will lead to an intriguing question: why did this start with one particular group of our primate ancestors? In addition, I have not engaged in extensive arguments to show how and why my observations support the possibility of an African origin, based on the stars, of primordial culture including religion. Nevertheless, the observations, analysis and interpretations contained in this book (and subsequent books) will lend support to this possibility. Here begin the terrors. Here begin the marvels. I heard, but did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will be the outcome of all of this?” He replied, “Go your way, Daniel, because the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end.” (Dan. 12:8-9).

The road to discovery An accidental discovery in the night sky spurred me into enquiries which led me down a path so profound that, when it first dawned on me, I felt goose-bumps all over my body. I still shudder when I think of the consequences. I am convinced I have re-discovered the key to a Great “Mystery”37 of humankind. In this book I will attempt to unravel this mystery, hoping to demonstrate the stellar archetypical framework which formed the basis of understanding and behaviour of our ancient ancestors, and to show how these continue under various guises in our contemporary society. At the time I was living on a smallholding in the northern part of South Africa in Limpopo province, latitude -23.9000, longitude 29.4500; altitude 1281 metres, Lat. (DMS) 23o 26’60S, Long.(DMS) 29o 26’3 60E, time zone UTC+2. Because the area is still largely undeveloped, with fewer human settlements than in the cities, light pollution is limited. This affords ample terrestrial space canopied by clear open skies stretching for kilometres into the unbounded celestial space. And because of this, the heavenly lights are arrayed in their full splendour and magnificence. Over the years I had fallen into the habit of just strolling in the grounds in the early evenings, admiring this beautiful display of night lights. Like so many others, I knew very little 37

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ about the night sky. I could not tell one planet from the other; I did not know the difference between a planet and bright stars, except for book knowledge that planets move whereas stars are fixed. Neither could I, except for Orion and the Southern Cross, discern any of the formal constellations which are so wonderfully illustrated in astronomy and astrological books. To me, the night sky was simply a beautiful, incomprehensible world. Also, being a scientist, I had no romantic ideas about the heavenly bodies: these were just distant objects of gas, dust, stone and light. Yet the moon seems to have had an unknown influence on me, which I still cannot explain. My first inexplicable experience occurred when I was about twelve years of age. I saw a floating fiery ball rolling along in mid-air, approximately two metres (estimated against the wall height of the small, one-roomed house in which we were living at the time) above the ground, crossing horizontally approximately three to four metres in front of us. My sister Monica, who is two years younger than I am, was with me when this happened but she did not see the fiery ball. The sight filled me with fear, raising the hairs on my neck. I bolted for the door with my sister following suit, not knowing what had happened and clearly bewildered by my behaviour. My mother immediately responded by slamming the door behind us. She claimed to have seen the “thing” moving into the forest, which was approximately 100 metres from the door. I remember clearly that on that particular night a full moon was in glorious display in the cloudless azure night sky. For years this experience haunted me and I could not find any rational explanation for it. When I was about fifteen years old I came across a book in the community library which discussed strange experiences recorded by people from all over the world. It provided scientific, rational explanations for such phenomena, and in it I found an explanation for my “fire-ball”: it was just a fire caused by gas emission from the earth! However, there were no explanations for a number of aspects from my early experience: Why did the ball float in a purposeful, directed manner? Why did my sister not see it? Why did it instil so much fear? Although I had no answers for all these questions I had found a rational answer which laid to rest the issue of the unexplained “fire-ball”. For years after this event I took little notice of the moon. Occasionally, I would look at the full moon in wonderment, especially when it hung low over the horizon, sometimes as a big round yellow ball and at other times as an orange-red ball. At times I would wake up for no apparent reason, and then not be able to sleep again. I noticed that all too often these periods coincided with the full moon. It was as if “something” was nudging me to look at the night-sky. My wife habitually and jokingly still remarks that I am troubled by the moon. But, because it was not a regular occurrence, I did not pay much attention to it. To my scientific, educated 38

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ mind, the moon was a lifeless, rock satellite orbiting the earth. After all, this had been convincingly demonstrated by Neil Armstrong and his teammates when they landed on the moon in 1969 (when I was four years old). In an act which typified the possessive nature of humankind, they planted the American flag on the moon, demonstrating ownership and domination in the name of all mankind: That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind. I was also puzzled by the depiction of zodiac images within modern astronomy’s constellations and astrological illustrations. Each constellation is depicted by dots representing stars, joined by lines. These stars are supposed to have some connection and the emerging images are given descriptive names, e.g., Leo, the Ram, the Crab, etc. The modern constellations bear no relation to their names or to the fabulous depictions by the ancients of such images in their zodiacs and other artworks, or to their glorification of such images. Even more disconcerting is that locating these constellation images in the night sky is just as mind-boggling. There are probably as many possibilities for joining the dots (stars) into images as there are people with imagination. This, in essence, was the sum total of my knowledge and experience of the night sky. But things changed dramatically at around two in the morning on January 2, 2006. On the afternoon of January 1, 2006, we had visitors to celebrate the New Year. I was not looking forward to this visit: first, I wanted to finish a steel-work project – I had started building a verandah on December 31, 2005 and I wanted to finish it by January 1 or 2; secondly, one of them is a person who is obsessed with God. For him everything is about God and faith, yet his actions are in stark contrast to his religious talk. Nonetheless, he is no different from the many religious bigots I have met in my lifetime. After all, talk is cheap. According to him, as with many other Christians, Muslims and Jews whom I have met, the religions of all other peoples are just nonsense, only their own God is the right, true God. If quizzed as to whether they have read about, or had any experience of the religions of other people, the answer is a definite no! This is followed by the quick justification: “If you know our particular god there is no need to learn about other religions or gods,” often said in a manner that disavows belief in the notion that any other religions or gods could possibly exist. And you are viewed as if possessed by the devil himself. In such situations, I have often experienced eerie suspicions that these gentle sons and daughters of their respective faiths, if transported back to the Dark Ages, would 39

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ be the self-same people who would have brutally slaughtered and burned innocent people in the name of their gods, all the while grasping their religious books under their arms, just like the educated, Christian colonialist infused with religious fervour, or the Islamic fundamentalists who perpetuate atrocities without a moment’s reflection on the contradictions of their deeds committed in the name of their gentle gods and rulers. Indeed, the bigot in my own family is not unique. I have encountered many people, both educated and uneducated, who have become prisoners within their own world. These people are unable to accept that their perceptions and opinions are limited, since these have not been related to, or critically compared with, differing views and facts about the ideas, practices and scholarly works of other religions. Frequently, people deliberately choose to avoid ideas which conflict with their own religious indoctrination or call into question their chosen beliefs. They would rather drown in their ignorance – after all, as the proverb says: “Where ignorance is bliss, ’tis folly to be wise”. The meaningless tenets of faith and belief that most religions propagate have always disturbed me. The earlier visit from my relative had intensified and renewed my discomfort with these concepts. I have often wondered whether these notions have become a comforting excuse for people afraid to use their minds – a panacea that induces mental laziness. I have also wondered why people have minds, why they educate themselves, when all of this is pointless, since all you need is faith – faith which allows the belief that the world is hunky-dory. Yet the world is not hunky-dory, even for those who do believe and do have faith. Why would God have bothered to give humans a brain if they were not supposed to use it, to question this God? I cannot help but think something is wrong with these concepts. Readers may immediately assume that I am fiercely opposed to religion and do not understand and appreciate the importance of religion in society. I grew up in a Christian home and in my first year at university I became, for a short while, a so-called reborn Christian. But when I discerned the evils committed, especially by the white apartheid state whose prescripts were grounded in Christianity, under the guise of religious conviction, I became totally disillusioned. However, I continued reading about various doctrines, including those that fell outside the narrow Western definition of religion. I know from experience that for many people religion is the only thing that makes life worth living, and who am I to remove this psychological crutch? I can still remember a first year philosophy lesson during which the lecturer presented a discourse between a Greek philosopher and a Catholic priest. The philosopher asked the priest why he continued to tell people that God is a good God, knowing 40

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ that those who preach the gentle Jesus way of life are leading the slaughtering and exploitation of innocent, poor peasants all over Europe, and that the priest knew that God did not exist. The priest responded: what would happen to these poor people (who bear all this earthly suffering and exploitation with humility, in the false belief that these are only tests set by their God, and that someday they will be greatly rewarded in heaven for having endured), if their belief changed? My understanding of this exchange is, first of all, that the priest was admitting the non-existence of God, but feared that if humanity learnt the truth their entire existence would become meaningless. Secondly, the ruling class, which was supported by the priesthood, would lose valuable material resources and a workforce who willingly risked life and limb to bolster the extravagant lifestyles of the ruling class, in the ignorant belief that they were advancing God’s cause. Today there are, many so-called atheists around the world who live perfectly normal lives, and who are, in most cases, more humane, more socially conscious and more morally sound, than many so-called religious believers. Someday, a child has to realise that the wonderful fairy tales read at bedtime to ease his/her nightmares are not real. I believe we are at this crossroads in our development, and that the “human child” has matured enough to deal with the truth. Thus you will understand my apprehension about the New Year visit from my relative – but I played the perfect host and at about two in the morning we were still talking, eating, drinking and listening to music. I started clearing some of the litter from the dinner table, and because the indoor bin was full I went to empty the rubbish into the outdoor bin, which is in a northerly direction about 13 metres away from the kitchen. At that moment I looked up and there, hanging in the sky, was a clear image of a jaguar’s head, surrounding the outline of modern astronomy’s Orion. I immediately associated this image with pictures I had seen of the jaguar of the Aztecs. This was the turning point – the beginning of my journey, the end at that particular time - was still unknown to me. As I looked up at the image I wondered if there was not perhaps a relationship between the starry sky and the many myths, religions, images and symbols of ancient societies which I had read with interest over many years. I looked at the empty rubbish bin in my hand, shook my head – perhaps it was just my fanciful imagination induced by the New Year festivities? My guests stayed for almost a week and all week I thought about the image I had seen. After their departure I began to examine the night sky with renewed curiosity and intensity. I began to read books on astronomy to familiarise myself with the 41

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ stars, and I started sketching some of my observations on pieces of paper. These later culminated in a hard-cover book containing my attempts to cast these images within modern astronomy’s classification of constellations and stars. In the chapters that follow I have, as a non-expert, described in layman’s terminology, my naked-eye observations of certain celestial images, my attempts to locate these in modern astronomy’s classification of constellations and stars, and my efforts to relate these images to various ancient ideas and actions as captured in literature, artworks, architecture and other artefacts. While my explanation makes use of well-known, modern cardinal direction terminology, this was not arrived at by using a compass, but was estimated relative to the positions of sunrise (east) and sunset (west). The other two cardinal points were derived from the position where the Crux rises (south) with the opposing position designated north. At best these four positions are crude directional markers. Directions such as south-east, conventionally written as SE, are at times written as ES to indicate east as the starting point; these are mid-way between south and east. My use of these midway directional designations does not mean that any celestial image lies precisely at these midpoints. Images which are slightly distant from the crudely-estimated midpoint are noted as lying at the mid-point, so as to avoid the use of complicated directional descriptors. From time to time I use terminology such as “Eastern wall” to refer to a direction along the eastern point to the southern point. See the diagram below.

Southern Wall

W

S Eastern Wall

Western Wall

E

N Northern Wall

42

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ Throughout this book I have attempted to discuss the celestial images in the sequential manner in which these were observed. However, in an attempt to show the relationships between images and to assist with certain discussions, there are times that images observed much later are discussed with images which were observed much earlier. I hope that my “revelation” will show the link between our modern ideas and our actions, as demonstrated by our behaviour and our beliefs, especially with respect to religion in the broader sense. However, I cannot help thinking that the haunting, persistent fear displayed by ancient societies in their thoughts and actions is a telltale sign of something much deeper. However, at this stage I will attempt only to explore the topography of their archetypal ideas.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Lindsay Clarke, Parzival and the Stone from Heaven – A Grail Romance Retold for Our Times (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2001), 226-227. 2. Thomas Samuel Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolution, 2nd ed. (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1970). 3. Richard L. Gregory, ed. The Oxford Companion to the Mind (United States: Oxford University Press, 1987), 481. 4. Stephen Oppenheimer, Out of Africa’s Eden – The Peopling of the World (South Africa: Jonathan Ball Publishers, 2003). 5. Alan Walker and Pat Shipman, The Wisdom of Bones – In Search of Human Origins (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1996). 6. Richard Leakey, The Origin of Humankind (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1994). 7. While there are many expert books on the origin and nature of humans, Graham Hancock has given one of the best overviews. It includes a simple and concise summary of present scientific knowledge on the subject and it discusses issues and questions about symbols, signs, art, artefacts and their relationship to the development of humankind. I present this summary as both a starting point for and an overview of some of the questions and issues which arise in my book. 8. Graham Hancock, Supernatural – Meeting with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind (United Kingdom: Century, 2005), 28. 43

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 9. Ibid. 10. Ibid. 11. Christopher S. Henshilwood, Francesco d’Errico, Karen van Niekerk, Yvan Coquinot, Zenobia Jacobs, Stein-Erik Lauritzen, Michel Menu and Renate Garcia-Moreno, A 100,000-Year-Old Ochre-Processing Workshop at Blombos Cave, South Africa (Science, 14 Oct 2011, vol. 334, no. 6053), 219-22. 12. Hancock, Supernatural, 29-30. 13. Ibid., 30-31. 14. Ibid., 31. 15. Leakey, The Origin of Humankind, 101-118. 16. Ibid. 17. Ibid. 18. Ibid. 19. Gregory, ed. The Oxford Companion to the Mind, 481. 20. Monica Wilson and Leonard Thompson, eds. A History of Southern Africa to 1870 (South Africa: David Phillip Publishers (Pty) Ltd, 1985), 54. 21. Hancock, Supernatural. 22. Pippa Skotnes, Claim to the Country – The Archive of Wilhelm Bleek and Lucy Lloyd (Ohio University Press: Athens, and Jacana: Cape Town, 2007), 155-157. 23. An Excerpt from The Nature of Paleolithic Art (www.press.unchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/311260). 24. Leakey, The Origin of Humankind, 101-118. 25. James George Frazer (1854-1941), in his impressive comparative study of cultures, a 12-volume magnum opus, The Golden Bough. 26. Albert Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man (United States: Kessinger Publishing, 1963). 27. Cheikh Anta Diop, Civilization or Barbarism – An Authentic Anthropology (Chicago: Lawrence Hill Books, 1981), 1981, xiv. 28. Hancock, Supernatural, 158. 44

Introduction __________________________________________________________________ 29. Ibid. 30. Wilson and Thompson, A History of Southern Africa to 1870, 50. 31. Hancock, Supernatural, 152. 32. An archaeo-astronomist is an expert in the interdisciplinary field of ancient astronomy and ancient monumental sculptures, buildings and decorations. 33. Popol Vuh (the title translates as “Book of the Community”, “Book of Counsel” or “Book of the People”) is an ancient sacred Mayan codex which records the “myths”, beliefs and culture of the Mayans. It is a mytho-historical text. This codex should be seen as no different from the Bible, the Rig Veda or any other religious text. 34. Java is probably from Ya-va/Y-ava. 35. Anthony Aveni, Stairways to the Stars – Skywatching in Three Great Ancient Cultures (United Kingdom: John Wiley and Sons, 1997), 49-50. 36. Ibid. Figure 2.15. 37. Mystery. Here, I am using the word mystery to refer to something that is not known, something which escapes any rational explanation and has puzzled mankind for a long time. The other usage of mystery is experiences which are paranormal. These experiences e.g., extra-sensory perception (ESP), which are exceptionally rare, do not conform to what we experience in our everyday life and there is no scientific explanation for such experiences. The esoteric meaning for mystery from Isis Unveiled (volume I, pp.xxxvii) refers – “Greek teletai, or finishings, as analogous to teleuteia or death. They were observances, generally kept secret from the profane and uninitiated, in which were taught by dramatic representation and other methods, the origin of things, the nature of the human spirit, its relations to the body, and the method of its purification and restoration.” Our modern conception of mystics are people involved in diverse activities involving things such as spirit awaking, astrology, fortune-telling (by various means including tarot and palm reading), alchemy, numerology, sacred geometry, “witchcraft” and “satanism”.

45

Chapter 1

THE CHIMERA KALEIDOSCOPE Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are, Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. This chapter starts with a description of the night sky using the modern Orion Constellation as a recognisable marker. The term “Orion Cluster” is used to refer to a much bigger pattern of stars, including the Orion Constellation, which forms a recognisable unit of multiple-layered and form-changing chimeric images. The Orion Cluster, with the stars in the vicinity of the Orion Constellation as a head, attached to the tail the Milky Way, is described as a dynamic “interlinked” unitary structure that moves. Multiple images are identified and described in the vicinity of the Orion Cluster and also in this unitary structure. The Orion Cluster January is a summer month in South Africa. At about 6:00 to 7:00 pm when the night sky begins to fill with stars, a higher concentration forms a band, stars dispersed against a whitish background, which arches from south to east to north. This band is called the Milky Way. At this particular time the Milky Way can be described as resembling the outline of the body of a fish, with the dipping “tail” low on the southeasterly, more southerly horison. It then broadens out from the tail and seems to terminate in the north-east, a point marked by modern astronomy’s prominent Orion Constellation.

Orion is mostly distinguishable by the yellowish star called Rigel and the three stars of Orion’s Belt. The scattering of stars beyond the Orion Constellation is sparse, giving the impression that the Milky Way terminates at this head point. Also, there is a very low concentration of stars beyond the Milky Way. On examination of the region marked by the Orion Constellation and surrounding stars, several interesting images become visible, with the striding Orion Man as the central prominent image (see figure 1.1)1. This entire region, including the Orion Man, will henceforth be called the Orion Cluster. As the night progresses the Milky Way appears to swing anticlockwise, with the tail-end moving upwards from the low horizon more to the SE, and with the “body” and the “head” being repositioned so that the entire Milky Way appears to align itself from the SE to the NW points, forming an almost straight line. Finally, some stars within the Orion Cluster appear to fade and disappear into the western horizon. I have noticed that in the early morning, from 1:00 am onwards, 46

1 : The chimera kaleidoscope __________________________________________________________________ some of the stars (especially those in Orion’s Belt) appear to rise again in the southeast. Even though it is NOT TRUE, I will continue referring to this until I have explained the observation that leads to this false conclusion. The Floating Aztec Jaguar’s Head The Jaguar’s Head is the image that initially set off this chain of observations. The Aztecs’ obsession with human sacrifice, blood and human skulls is well recorded in archaeological evidence.2, 3, 4 What is also noticeable in Aztec art is the prominence of human heads on feline bodies and those of bird-like creatures. Interestingly, the jaguar with its prominent teeth is a major feature of Aztec artworks. For example, the skull of a jaguar with a jade-coloured ball between its teeth was discovered in the Great Temple5 and the aristocratic Order of the Eagle as well as the Jaguar Knights had supreme standing in the Aztec Empire.6The jaguar was the totem of the fierce, “ennobled” Aztec Jaguar Knights, and was directly associated with the ruler, being his patron, that is, guide and protector. Figure 1.1 outlines the sky region and stars adapted from the star map7 within which the Floating “Aztec” Jaguar’s Head was observed. Figure 1.2 is my attempt at plotting and drawing this image as I observed it. It was a well formed profile of a robust head facing east, with only one dim yet distinctive pointed ear, and with Rigel forming the prominent, brightest of the two eyes, furthest from the observer. The head also bore some resemblance to the head of Bast/Bastet, the cat/lion-goddess of Ancient Egypt.8, 9 As I was typing this, I wondered if it was just a coincidence that eight years ago I bought two large concrete cast statues of Bast/Bastet for my garden, and painted them in Egyptian colours. And now eight years later my journey of discovery was initiated by a feline creature. This is just one of the many coincidences which you will find throughout this book. The question is: was it my familiarity with these statues that imprinted images in my subconscious mind, readily allowing me to recognise a similar pattern in the stars? The head also bore resemblance to a Chinese bronze vessel (ca. 1760-1520 BCE, Shang period) of a strange “tiger” devouring a human.10 This creature has several features, including its ear and prominent eye, which suggest that the artwork may have been created using the celestial jaguar as a blueprint. The Northern Celestial Door/Gate As night fell, at about 6:00 pm on an evening in January, I watched the appearance of stars in the Orion Cluster. The stars did not all appear at once, but appeared 47

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ progressively: first visible were the brightest stars followed by the less bright stars. The first stars to rise were Rigel, Betelgeuse and Bellatrix (g), Salph (c) and the three stars that form Orion’s Belt.11 They clearly formed a vertical rectangle resembling a door, with the three belt stars being the door-handle (see figure 1.3). Since this “door/ gate” appeared in the night sky at the NW point, I called it the Northern Celestial Door/Gate. I called it a “door” and a “gate”, because this same Orion Cluster is associated with the Orion Man that “uses” the “door” and later I will describe various animal images identified in the same star cluster, hence the notion of a gate. I am of the opinion that references in religions text and myths about mysterious doors or gates through which bad or good deities, heroes or mysterious animals enter or exit are symbolic of this celestial door/gate and subsequently its position changed to be the Western Celestial Door/Gate, see later. But the Orion Cluster stars, including the stars which form this “door/gate”, also rise in the east, hence one can also speak of an Eastern Door/Gate. In later chapters you will encounter some examples of such mysterious doors or gates. I was intrigued when I began to notice, more often than not, the chameleon effect of the star images. They were constantly and unobtrusively “changing” as one form merged into another or as they doubled up to form yet another image as they connected to other stars. It was as if the images were moving and alive. But at times multiple forms within a “static” star cluster were observed, giving the impression that several forms existed in one Orion Cluster. The stars in the Orion Cluster demonstrated these two effects: form-changing due to “movement” and “association” with other stars, and multiple forms in one static star cluster. Throughout this book various examples of star images created by these effects will be encountered, but for now I want to describe multiple forms observed in the Orion Cluster. The Jaguar began to take on other images – it was as if an entire scene played out in front of me in the starry night sky. I saw: the Baal Monster; the Red Dragon with a funny tiny wing; the heart-eating two-legged bird; and the mountain within a mountain alias the fiery volcano, alias the hidden cave and alias the spring with two colourful streams. How had this happened? The Baal Monster On January 2, 2006, I started watching the stars around the Orion Cluster with more interest. For two weeks I repeatedly noticed only the Jaguar Head and Northern Celestial Door/Gate in the Orion Cluster. Then on January 29 my vision field seemed to expand and I could discern a much larger image which I initially named the Baal Monster. 48

1 : The chimera kaleidoscope __________________________________________________________________ It was between 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm that I observed this image in the NE region, but further north. I saw a line of faint stars, starting from Rigel and proceeding downwards gently curving until the Hyades Constellation.12 I noticed that without Hyades this faint line of stars resembled a long, bent walking-stick, held by the striding Orion Man. But viewed as an expanded image consisting of Hyades, the bent walking-stick, the Jaguar Head and other stars (shown in the sketch), it formed a new image that resembled a giant monster with a strong, square, jagged chin and an exceptionally long, curved neck-back ending in a tiny “wing” (formed by the Hyades Constellation). This jagged, square “chin-teeth” face, formed by the three stars in Orion’s Belt, gave this monster an uncanny resemblance to the Beast in the animated Walt Disney movie Beauty and the Beast. The Red Dragon Fascinated, I watched as an overlapping image seemed to be forming as I viewed the star pattern from a different angle. It was another monster flowing down from the chin, almost at the heart of the Orion Man where the stars Betelgeuse, Bellatrix and Heka doubled as the triangular head/beak to form the image of a winged creature that extended to and included the stars of Gemini, Procyon, Castor and Pollux. This outline created the impression of a huge monster with a bulky tummy, and as I was writing this section and re-looking at my sketch, I realised that it had the appearance of a dragon, especially the type with a tiny wing, comically depicted in some Walt Disney animations. Then because of red Betelgeuse and red Aldebaran I gave the Baal Monster a second name – the Red Dragon. The bird-like creature appeared to be pecking away at the heart of the monster. Its wing was not outstretched from the side of the body but instead formed a single rounded shape. Around its neck two layers of stars appeared as beaded necklaces with two frontal hangings. The first string was at the level of Gemini and Alhena13 and the second level was around Procyon. The legs of this winged bird creature slanted towards the east with Castor and Pollux forming the ends of the legs. Looking at the wings, the long bent neck, the ears and the bulky tummy of this monster I thought it was uncannily similar to the features of the Shang artwork. It also dawned on me that dragons feature prominently in Chinese culture. Is it perhaps another coincidence that on the day I first noticed the Baal Monster I listened to a news broadcast to learn it was also the day of the Chinese New Year and that each of the twelve Chinese years is said to correspond to a zodiac sign? So, from sheer interest, I wanted to see what Chinese year it was. An Internet search revealed that it was the “Year of the Dog” and also a Leap Year. During a Leap Year the Chinese add an extra month to their typical twelve-month year, placing this thirteenth month immediately after the usual seventh month, so, the “Leap Second 49

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Month” began on August 24, 2006. At the time I recorded this information, even though it did not seem to have any bearing on my observations. I just felt it necessary to record it. Is there perhaps a relationship or a link between this period and the star images that are unfolding? A Giant Mountain, A Volcano, and A River On February 21, 2006, at 7:30 pm, the region around the Baal Monster’s neck and the bird-like creature became a giant mountain, a mountain within a mountain. The larger mountain involved the stars around the Auriga Constellation. The peak of this mountain was formed by the triangular mouth of the bird. This mountain top by red Betelgeuse was also interpreted as a volcano. The second mountain was encapsulated within the larger one. When visualised differently, the large mountain could also be perceived as a large cave; alternatively, viewed from the bird’s beak and following the Red Dragon’s wing-stars downwards, it looked like two streams of water, flowing down a mountain and culminating in a double steam of white (Castor) and yellow (Pollux) waters. I wondered what these changing star pattern images meant and how they connected to ideas captured in our cultures. Interestingly I learnt of streams of water, the socalled fountain of youth, in Ancient Greek mythology. I wondered whether these Greek ideas did not play on imagery the Orion Man and streams of water. Is there also a connection between this celestial imagery and another mythological body of water, the river Styx? The Styx in Ancient Greek mythology is one of the six rivers of the underworld. It wound nine times around the Hades (presumably a word related to the name of the modern Hyades Constellation). It is told that an oath taken on the waters of the Styx was the most binding oath that could be taken by any god. When an oath was sworn in Olympus, Isis, the goddess of the rainbow, sped to the Styx to fetch a golden cup of water. “Those who drank the water and swore a false oath were punished with a year of sickness and silence, starved of nectar and ambrosia, and were then banished from Olympus for nine years.”14 The word Styx also appears to cognate with the word sty; that is, a pen for pigs. Hyades is the Latin equivalent for the Greek word Huades, probably derived from hūs, pig. One of the celestial pigs (see chapter 16) also appeared in this region of the night sky. Hades is the original name for Pluto, the God of the Dead, and again this region is also associated with the dead, see later. The Double-Headed Volvine When I first saw the Baal Monster, it seemed to be the largest celestial image in this region of the sky, but it was soon upstaged by another image whose “body” encompassed all the images I have described and which towered at the head. This 50

1 : The chimera kaleidoscope __________________________________________________________________ image had a double head resembling a chimeric animal with mixed canine (dog/ wolf/fox) and equine features, which I have named the “Volvine”. In later chapters I use the label volvine to refer to celestial forms with predominant canine features mixed with other features. Figure 1.4 is a representation of this image, focusing mainly on the head area. The prominent head faced east and had one vertically pointed ear and an extended snout. The facial extremities of the main volvine were composed of the stars of the Lupus Constellation.15 The front line of the thick neck was curved, sloping into the shoulder area and extending into a wing/arm in the direction of Sirius. A much smaller head appeared at the rear end of the main volvine’s neck area. I termed this second head the “Pale Fox”. It was certainly more fox-like in appearance than the main volvine image. The Double-Headed Volvine image together with other volvine images will be discussed in Book 2. Perhaps this volvine image is the archetype for the crucified equine-headed carving on a pillar in Rome (193-235 CE) that carries the caption “Alexmenos worships his god”.16 But suggesting, at this stage, that there is a relation between these celestial images and the ideas and artworks of the ancients must be regarded as highly speculative. I hear you exclaim: “He must be high on something!” I can assure you that I do not do drugs and seldom take alcohol. “What about an overactive imagination or temporary insanity?” While I cannot rule out my imagination and I do not have a history of mental illness, I will still grant you these possibilities. Bear with me and you will see that even these possibilities become highly improbable. I am convinced I have stumbled on important celestial information which explains various cultural ideas and behaviour, first depicted in cave and rock representations, which evolved over time into our so-called sophisticated culture including the religion of modern times.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1.

Albert Jansen, Star Maps for the Southern Sky: An Easy Guide to the Night Sky (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2004), 15.

2.

Geoffrey Parker, ed., Times Illustrated History of the World (London: Times Book, 1995), 172-181. 51

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 3. Dale M. Brown,. Lost Civilization – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 474-491. 4. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, eds., Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 474-491. 5. Brown, Lost Civilization, 102. 6. Ibid., 89. 7. Albert Jansen, Star Maps for the Southern Sky: An Easy Guide to the Night Sky (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2004), 14. 8. Veronica Ions, Egyptian Mythology (Middlesex: Hamlyn Publishing Group, Ltd., 1968), 15. 9. Manfred Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson Ltd., 1980), 32. 10. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996), 172. 11. Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion, Collins Pocket Guide: Stars and Planets, 2nd ed. (United Kingdom: HarperCollins, 1993), 190. Bellatrix (g) and Salph (c)were identified using this reference. 12. Jansen, Star Maps for Southern Sky, 14. 13. John Woodruff and Wil Tirion, Philip’s Southern Starfinder – A Month-by-Month Guide to the Night Sky (Great Britain: Phillip’s, 2002). 17. 14. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 112. 15. Jansen, Star Maps for the Southern Sky, 14. 16. Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, The Jesus Mysteries – Was the Original Jesus a Pagan God? (United Kingdom: Element, 1999), 64.

52

Chapter 2

THE MAGIC RECTANGLE The image I call the “Magic Rectangle” is part of the Orion Cluster but I prefer to discuss it separately because of the different conceptions it took on in various ancient societies. The epithet “magic” is used to reflect the Magic Rectangle’s properties of changing positions, shifting from a horizontal to a vertical alignment and finally disappearing. At this point I will not discuss representative conceptual examples from societies to underpin this conclusion, but instead I will just mention a few of the prominent conceptions based on the Magic Rectangle, since some of these will emerge at appropriate places in later chapters and books. I am of the opinion that the rectangle, rectangular objects and ideas about these were conceived of as having “links” with the Magic Rectangle. Some of these conceptions are: the position-changing beds found in the Grail Romances; the Double Square alias the Stone Tablets of Moses’s Ten Commandments, alias the Book alias the Celestial Ladder; the manger in the story of Jesus’ birth; and Aladdin’s Magic Carpet. It was also conceived of as a cultivated piece of land or walled garden and this influenced the much misunderstood ancient idea of a flat earth. It was also conceived of as a tomb. As a bier or table it finds expression in religious and mythological ideas and traditions such as the Banquet Table and the Table of the Last Supper. Finally it was also conceived of as a rectanglular foundation, a wagon, an island and much more! Once symbolic representational forms of the Magic Rectangle are contextualised with reference to other celestial images and ancient ideas, a fuller understanding will emerge for associating it with these conceptions. For now I will only describe my observations and the stars which form the Magic Rectangle. Observation of the Magic Rectangle Along the NE line, below and slightly to the right (from the observer’s perspective) of the legs of the modern Orion Man, I observed a large, very distinct rectangle with an outer perimeter of six prominent stars (see figure 2.1): one star at each corner and two almost in the centre line opposite each other.1 Moving from the bottom left up to the right in an anticlockwise manner, the stars were Regulus, Alphard, Procyon, Alhena, and Castor-Pollux (treated as one because of their close proximity to each other in one corner) and another unknown “star”. These stars gave the impression, 53

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ more or less, of a perfect rectangle. This rectangle appeared perfectly divisible into two equal squares by drawing a line from Procyon to the unknown star. Consequently, the rectangle was also a “Double Square”. The problem with this unknown star was that, according to the sky maps, there is no star in line with Procyon at this position. The Star Maps for Southern Africa marks this exact position in the Cancer constellation as a gray spot – but this was indeed the area where I observed a distinctive, yellowish, bright star. I was plagued by this observation, thinking that something was wrong with my observations, or with the Star Maps. Another aspect which puzzled me was that, even if a star was present within the Cancer constellation on the star map, the lines joining these points would yield an unusual shape – because of the manner in which the stars are represented in the map. However, from my observation the arrangement of stars, without any effort, naturally formed the familiar shape of a large rectangle. During this period of uncertainty I was scanning the Internet for other southern star maps to see if there were any that represented these stars differently. This was when I came across the website of Auke Slotegraaf, offering a free download version of his workbook, which contains basic star maps that can be used as an aid to assist with recognising modern astronomy’s southern constellations.2 Due to some unknown problem, the Internet file of the workbook would not download or print. I retrieved Auke’s e-mail address and wrote to him, requesting a copy of his workbook. Within minutes of sending the e-mail I received a reply, enquiring what the problem was and indicating that he had posted a hard copy to me. Wow! I immediately replied, thanking him and telling him how impressed I was with his prompt helpfulness. I was pleasantly surprised when, two weeks later, I received not only a copy of his workbook, but also a free copy of Sky Guide Africa South 2006: Astronomical Handbook for Southern Africa.3 Again wow! Because of his generosity and prompt assistance I felt comfortable to ask him about the unknown “star” at Cancer. I remember starting the e-mail as follows: “Please pardon my ignorance but is there a bright star at Cancer, other than the well-known stars?” Auke replied, “Congratulations, you have just identified Saturn.” Saturn is not a star but a planet, that is a celestial body, the largest of modern astronomy’s seven planets that move around in our galaxy. Once again my ignorance of the night sky was evident – but it did not invalidate my observations. I have gone into considerable detail with this account of identifying the unknown “star” and consequently the Magic Rectangle because the latter must have inspired various conceptions as highlighted in the introduction to this chapter. Also Saturn’s position at this particular point and period is highly significant in understanding the ancients’ ideas around “planetary” alignment, “alignment of the 54

2 : The magic rectangle __________________________________________________________________ poles”, cosmic cycles, numerology, and other ideas associated with the ancients’ cosmology. These ideas and the role of Saturn in such ideas will be discussed in Book 3. The brightest star, Sirius, outside the perimeter of the Magic Rectangle, was almost directly in line with Procyon and Saturn, when this Magic Rectangle was along the NE line. The alignment of Sirius as described was in agreement with the Star Maps for Southern Africa.4 The right square of the Double Square had a hazy dim star cluster within it. Auke’s correspondence and Sky Guide Africa South5 refer to this cluster as “The Beehive”, but it is labelled “Hydra” in the Star Maps for Southern Africa.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Albert Jansen, Star Maps for the Southern Sky – An Easy Guide to the Night Sky (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2004), 25. 2. The Astronomical Society of Southern Africa, Discover the Deepsky for Yourself(An Observing Project of the ASSA Deepsky Section) – Workbook 1 (Naked eye and binoculars). It also contained some information on the Koisan “constellations”. The Koisan are an ancient tribe of small, “dwarf-like” humans in southern Africa who are commonly referred to as Bushmen, an appellation that is derogatory. 3.  The Astronomical Society of Southern Africa, Sky Guide Africa South 2006: Astronomical Handbook for Southern Africa (Cape Town: ISSN 0571-7191). 4. Jansen, Star Maps for the Southern Sky, 25. 5. The Astronomical Society of Southern Africa, Sky Guide Africa South 2006, 7.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Chapter 3

THE GOAT/SHEEP-FISH AND THE SACRIFICED LAMB/BOVINE Have you ever wondered why some zodiacs depict a chimeric sign of a goat or a sheep with the body and tail of a fish! Where did such an idea come from and why is it explicitly linked with the celestial phenomena that the zodiac represents? The celestial image that served as the archtype for this idea is revealed in this chapter. This is a rather more complex image consisting of several images which have given rise to some interesting conceptions; chief among these are the ideas and traditions of animal sacrifice, which I will explore. The Western Celestial Door/Gate and the Great Bear-Fish images are also discussed. The Goat/Sheep-Fish The Milky Way, which initially curved from the south-east in a northerly direction, appeared to transform itself and straighten out, with the connecting line running from the SE point to the NW point. Then from late February onwards, the NW side of the Milky Way seemed to be almost fixed at the NW point, while there was still movement at the tail end. It was at this time, when the Milky Way as part of the Orion Cluster was aligned as a straight line, that I noticed it assumed the image of a large, unusual fish-like creature with its tail at the SE point and a non-fish-like head, involving the Orion Constellation, at the NW point. When I looked along this line at the NW region, I observed the image of a head that alternatingly resembled a twisted sheep or goat head, see figure 3.1. On closer observation of the entire image running from the SE to the NW I noticed it bore an uncanny resemblance to the Goat-Fish Zodiac sign termed Capricorn – but with two exceptions: the head was twisted in an upwards direction, and it had a band around the neck. In Book 3 I will discuss this celestial image in relation to the Capricorn sign of the Western Zodiac. Once again, as with the other celestial images, I immediately recognised this image as the Goat-Fish without requiring any random connection of stars. As I watched this image intently I noticed it not only had the outline of the GoatFish, but also featured a single straight “leg”, hence it looked strangely similar to the goat-fish in the Dendera Circular Zodiac (see figure 3.2)1. I acquired this zodiac almost two weeks after I had made the above observation and after studying it more intently, while comparing it with the image I had observed, I came to the conclusion 56

3 : The goat/sheep-fish and the sacrificed lamb/bovine __________________________________________________________________ that the front part of the Dendera goat-fish is strongly outlined because the artist wanted to draw attention to this specific area, almost as if to convey the message of its being separate although joined to the other part. Hence the Goat/Sheep image not only resembles the Dendera goat-fish in form, but there is also a reason why the front part of the Dendera image is depicted as it is. The stars which form the straight front leg of the Goat/Sheep are suggestive of a similar structure in the Dendera Zodiac, the star cluster of the Little Bear/Bull’s Hind Leg. These stars not only form the leg, they also form a distinctive ring around the neck area of the Goat/Sheep-Fish. Intriguingly, in the Dendera Zodiac, the image of a rear-facing bull meets a rear-facing, recumbent goat-sheep with one straight leg, and at their junction is a goat-ram bust (head and neck) with the “moon” on its head and a “ring-boat” at its base. Interestingly, this image looks like a typical animal-headed chess piece. The head of the Goat/Sheep-Fish does not have a fish-tail when it starts at the eastern point and the head resembles the head of a cow or bull or horse in form. It is more cow or horse in form at the eastern point and distinctly more bull, because of the horizontal horns, when it detaches from the Goat/Sheep at the NW point. To capture all these features this head is henceforth termed the Goat/Sheep/Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head image. The connection between the Goat/Sheep-Fish and the Goat/Sheep/ Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head is another important observation that supports my case that the Goat/Sheep image is the archetype for the Dendera goat-fish. So, the Goat/Sheep-Fish image is related to the goat-fish image for three main reasons. Firstly, the NW point can be seen as the point where the Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head is “transformed” into the head of the Goat/Sheep, and it appears that the meeting of the bull and goat-sheep in the Dendera Zodiac is an attempt to convey this same idea. The rear-facing features of the bull and goat-sheep is an attempt by the artist of the Dendera Zodiac to convey the idea of the upward turned inverted head of the Goat/ Sheep-Fish. Secondly, behind the goat-ram bust in the Dendera Zodiac is a lady sitting on her heels, followed by a tiny pig. In chapter 16, I discuss two main pig-like celestial images, one of which is found at the NW wall, a region consistent with the head of the Goat/Sheep-Fish, while the other is seen with the pig and goat-ram bust. Thirdly, the “ring-boat” base of the goat-ram bust appears to be an attempt to highlight the prominent ring around the celestial Goat/Sheep-Fish. It may also have been an attempt to convey the idea of “cut-off/twisted-off and removed”, a conception of sacrifice. 57

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The Sacrificed Lamb/Bovine As the night progressed, it appeared as if the Goat/Sheep-Fish’s head was “twisted off” from its body. This may have conveyed the idea of celestial sacrifice which in turn has inspired terrestrial sacrifice rituals and traditions. The image of the head is more sheep-like when the Milky Way lies SE to NW, as this gives the neck region of the image a pronounced fleecy appearance. When I looked at the head only, ignoring the fleecy neck, it also looked like the head of a goat. And as the night progressed, the head region, which had started as a “door/gate”, that is, the Western Celestial Door/ Gate (see below), gradually underwent further changes and became the Sacrificed Bull’s head. This association between a “door/gate” and the Goat/Sheep/Cow/Bull/ Horse’s Head image may explain macabre traditions where skulls of a goat, sheep, cow, bull or horse were hung on doors or gates. Symbolic representation of these images in ancient cultures While the goat-fish is a common sign within the Dendera Zodiac and even within the Western Zodiac, there are perhaps other representations of it which might not readily be seen as related to these images. For example, there are several interesting rock paintings or ground paintings which might be symbolic representations of these images. The first is a complex, abstract, ground drawing of the Wollunqua, a native Australian tribe, found at a place called Ununtumurra.2 In this context, they depict a head as four concentric circles within each other, with the outer circle having “horns” and a long “detachable tail”. I presume this is a celestial image representing a bull-serpent, where the “circles with horns” is symbolic of the bull’s head, that is, the Goat/Sheep/ Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head image. The serpentine feature is perhaps symbolic of the Milky Way in association with the Orion Cluster as explained in chapter 1, or it could be representative of the celestial snakes (see chapter 15). The assertion that the ground drawing is inspired by celestial phenomena is supported by Churchward, who rightly observes that the Wollunqua’s rituals and culture are based on their cosmological worldview. There are even suggestions that there might be a link between Egyptian ideas of Horus the Hawk/Falcon, a celestial conception, and the Wollunqua’s hawk ideas. Also noteworthy is that the two cultures have similar words for fire. In the chapters which follow, I argue that “fire” is also symbolic of certain stars. The Wollunqua practise circumcision (presumably influenced by the phallus conception, see chapter 5) and the initiates, who are restricted to males, are taken through various stages in which ground drawings, as part of their totemic ceremonies, are used to convey secret cosmological conceptions related to their rituals and culture. “The Wollunqua, in its wanderings, meets two hawks, named Warapula and Kirkalanji, and these two hawks made fire for the first time”. The tribal 58

3 : The goat/sheep-fish and the sacrificed lamb/bovine __________________________________________________________________ word for fire is the same as the Egyptian word mahateti. Minurka signifies giving of fire and warmth.3 The second is presumed to be a depiction of the Loch Ness Monster, found at “Serpent Mound of Loch Neel, near Oban, Scotland”.4 And the third is a 600-footlong painting of a serpent produced by Native American people and found at Water Greek, Great Serpent Mound, Ohio, USA.5 The Great Bear-Fish As this image transformed further I focussed on the tail-end of the image, where the aquiline body flowed to the SE point and terminated in a fish-like tail. The terminal point of this tail was formed predominantly from the association of the Crux (True Cross) Constellation with the Hadar (white) and Rigel Kent (yellow) stars, henceforth called the “Fish-Tail”. Interestingly, as I watched the transformation it became clear that from the tail to approximately the SW point was another fish-like creature which I termed the “Great Bear-Fish”. And its head, which is the False Cross Constellation, resembled the gaping mouth of a fish. My night sky observations on January 22, 2007, at 9:43 pm, and again on April 14, 2007, at 6:42 pm, suggested that the head of this Great Bear-Fish (see figure 3.3) was composed of the stars around and including the False Cross when it lay horizontally in the SW region. I realised that when the same False Cross stars initially arose at the SE line, they resembled the head of a large bear, hence the epithet “Great Bear” to differentiate it from the “Little Bear”, alias the Bull’s Hind Leg. These epithets should not be confused with constellations of the same names used by modern astronomy. However, looking at the head and the partial body, this celestial image certainly gave the impression of a standing bear. Surprisingly, the Dendera Zodiac does not have an image of a bear, presumably because bears are not native to Africa. But I want to suggest that its hooded human-creature might be a representation of this Great Bear. The Dendera Zodiac shows both a bull-man holding a large implement and a lion blocking “water” (see chapter 16). Just above these figures is the image of a hooded human-creature which can also be visualised as a medieval executioner with a sack over his head. Since the head of this image looks like the head of a bear in one position, and later resembles the head of a gaping fish, I called this celestial image the Great Bear-Fish. When one wants to represent the Great Bear and its transformed form as the Great Bear-Fish showing that they are connected and linked by the fish-tail stars, then the Great Bear can be depicted in a vertical position and the Great Bear-Fish horizontally, with their “fish tails” intersected or knotted. Alternately, it is possible to stress the fish-like nature of both celestial images by representing both images as fishes, one 59

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ vertical and the other horizontal and with their tails knotted. But remember the fishtail is also apparent within the image of the Goat/Sheep-Fish, which itself can be visualised as a very large fish. Linking these two images can be achieved by drawing the Great Bear-Fish as a fish that is vertically joined by the second Goat/Sheep-Fish, also drawn as a fish. I think it is these ideas and connections which are represented in ancient zodiacs as Fishes or Pisces: “An ancient constellation represented two fishes tied by their tails, the knot being marked by the star α (alpha) Piscium.”6 In Hamlet’s Mill the Babylonian and the Egyptian constellations show two different interpretations of the Fishes. In the first picture, from the Babylonian constellations, two Fishes are represented, one vertical and one horizontal, with their tails tied by a long “band”. The band shows a shorter vertical arm meeting the much longer horizontal arm to form a knot. Between the bodies of the Fishes are stars which form the so-called “1-Iku square”. The legend to this picture notes: “The Pegasus-square, called 1-Iku (i.e. the standard field measure of the Sumerians), with the circumjacent constellation, as reconstructed out of the Mesopotamian astronomical texts. The Fishes, then, must have had a larger extension than in our sphere.”7 The second picture has more detail than the first, and carries some interesting additional constellations. The representation is the same as the Babylonian constellation but it is “inverted with respect to the usual order of the star maps” – the fishes are depicted in the same manner as in the first picture, but inverted in orientation. The fishes and the square are entirely surrounded by “water” on all four sides. The vertical fish meets head to head with a swallow in flight, and at the top of the swallow’s tail is a small reclining ram/goat (?). On the right side, where the swallow meets the vertical fish, a human figure appears, holding a downward-facing isosceles triangle. The triangle is presumably symbolic of the “plough”, that is, the Bull’s Hind Leg. On the right side of the “ploughman”, from the tip of the wing of the swallow to the bottom of the water, is a large, muscular, half-horse with a prominent single wing and a bearded human face. Presumably this figure is the archetype for the famous Greek winged-horse, Pegasus, and the zodiac sign of Sagittarius. According to Allen, the “band” or “knot” is related to the stars and has been differently named by various cultures: ‘Al Rescha, or Al Rischa, derived from the Arabians’ Al Rishā8 the Cord, is 20o south from the head of Aries, 2.7o north of the celestial equator, and marks the knot [namely the star Alpha] in the united cords of the Fishes; the same title being applied to β Andromeda. This word originally may have come from the Babylonian 60

3 : The goat/sheep-fish and the sacrificed lamb/bovine __________________________________________________________________ Risksu, Cord. Hipparchos and Ptolemy designated, the Knot of the Fishes, or the Threads, varied by Aratos and Geminos in Δεσμός; these words being transcribed by Germanicus and the scholiasts as Sundesmos and Desmos. They were rendered by Cicero and other as Nodus, Nodus coelestis, and Nodus Piscium; by Pliny as Comissura Piscium; and in the 1515 Almagest as Nodus duorum filorum. The Arabians translated these by ‘Ukd al Haitain, which, as Okda and Kaitain, are not unusual titles now … Cicero called them Vincla, the Bonds…The Arabians knew the cords as Al Hait al Kattaniyy, the flaxen Thread; and Al Asma‘ī, about 800, mentioned them in his celebrated romance Antarah as a distinct constellation, but Pliny had done the same long before him.9

Olcott quotes Frothingham’s translation of Aratos,10 which mentions the Fishes as phenomena linked to the stars: The Fishes shine one higher than the other, From each of them extends as ’t were a band That fastens tail to tail, as wide it floats, And one star large and brilliant clasps its ends, The Heavenly knot ’t is called.11

The “knot” is associated with a prominent star. While Allen discusses other stars that also seem to take on this designation, this “knot star” is Alpha, and is described as “pale green and blue”.12 Olcott expands on the green nature of a point in Pisces – “The vernal equinox, or the point where the sun crosses the equator in the spring, is situated in Pisces and this point is often referred to as ‘the Greenwich of the Sky’.”13 One candidate for this star is blue-green Canopus. The Egyptian constellation consists of two different representations of the Fishes. The Round Dendera Zodiac depicts the two Fishes with their tails linked, surrounding a “water” rectangle. To their right is a rear-facing, seated goat-ram where it meets a vertically “falling” bull. The Rectangular Dendera Zodiac shows two large fat fishes, facing the same direction, with the same rectangle between them. 1-Iku and the Rectangle From the above discussions it can be seen that some four-sided geometric figure is associated with the Fishes. In the Sumerian depiction it is called 1-Iku and is said to have been used as the standard field measure. While it said to be a square or cube, it is depicted more as a geometric shape that resembles an isosceles trapezoid. What is suggested to be a structure similar to the Sumerian 1-Iku, in Egyptian representation of the Fishes is clearly a rectangle.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The 1-Iku is association with some interesting ideas. It represented “Paradise” and the “Exalted Courtyard” and was important in the Babylonian New Year celebrations: “They raised high the head of Esagila equalling Apsu.” And concerning this Esagila14 (or Esagil) we hear in the ritual text of the New Year festival in Babylon that the Urigallu-priest “shall go out to the Exalted Courtyard, turn to the north and bless the temple Esagil three times with the blessing: ‘Iku-star, Esagil, image of heaven and earth.’…The helical rising of 1-Iku – precisely, beta-Pegasi, coincided with the winter solstice of 4000 BC.”15 It is the “home” and “Way” of some deity: [it] is called “the habitation of the deity Ea, the leader of the stars of Anu” [and this idea is linked to the “Ways of Anu”]…Mesopotamia is by no means the only province of high culture where the astronomers worked with a tri-partition of the sphere – the “Ways” of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades, as given by Homer. The Indians have a very similar scheme of dividing the skies into Ways, and so have the Polynesians…The Polynesians’ megalithic sanctuaries (maraes) gained their imposing state of holiness (taboo) when the Unu-boards were presented, these carved Unu-boards representing the Pillars of Rumia, “Rumia being comparable to the ‘Way of Anu,’ where Antares served as ‘pillar of entrance: (among the other pillars: Aldebaran, Spica, Arcturus, Phaethon in Columba)’.”16

It is or is linked to a “foundation stone”. Olcott provides the same Babylonian star map of the 1-Iku and Fishes and just below this is a picture of the Fishes tied by their tail and the “knot” tied by a “stone”. This is presumably the so-called “foundation stone” which is briefly discussed by de Santillana and von Dechend, who suggest that it might be related to the 1-Iku and Gilgamesh’s cube – “Since the ark disappeared there was a stone in its place…which was called the “foundation stone,” i.e., Eben Shetiyyah, that covered the abyss, this cubic ark, the floor space of which was one iku…”17 Two significant pointers suggest that the “foundation stone” or Iku might be associated with the Jade Emperor (see chapter 5 and Book 2) as “two-faced, half royal, half dog”: “Sagittarius…the zodiacal Sagittarius of the Mesopotamian boundary stones had, indeed, the tail of a Scorpion: but we just must not be drowned in the abyss of details of comparative constellation lore, and the least of all in those connected with Sagittarius, two-faced as he is, half royal, half dog…Sagittarius and Gemini still mark the solstices in the closing years of the Age of Pisces…But the coming of Pisces was long looked forward to, heralded as a blessed age. It was introduced by thrice-repeated Great Conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter in Pisces in the year 6 B.C., the star of Bethlehem.”18 From the information presented above the 1-Iku and the foundation stone may or 62

3 : The goat/sheep-fish and the sacrificed lamb/bovine __________________________________________________________________ may not be the same conception. There are three other celestial images which could have formed the basis for these ideas: the Door/Gate images, the Magic Rectangle and the Bull’s Hind Leg. The Western Celestial Door/Gate From late February onwards the Orion Man did not rise at the NE point. As indicated, the Milky Way was now aligned from the SE point to the NW point, so that the Orion Man stars lay along the Western wall, as if the upright celestial man had fallen with his face (the star Regal) downwards. At this time of the year, late February, the stars began to appear at around 6:00 pm. I looked up at the night sky and noticed that the first image to emerge resembled the shape of a door composed of the stars which formed the Northern Door/Gate. However, this door, instead of being vertical like a normal house door, was horizontal. The ancients refer to netherworlds and underworlds, sometimes separately and at times interchangeably. Experts are not in agreement as to whether netherworlds and underworlds are the same conceptions. Also it is not clear whether the netherworlds and underworlds are indeed the “places of the dead”. It is at this stage premature to enter into discussions about these complex conceptions since such discussions will only make sense once the full cosmology of the ancients has been revealed. However, the west is where the Orion Man “disappears”, so it is one likely candidate for the netherworld/underworld regions associated with the dead. In conclusion, the goat-sheep-fish representation in ancient ideas such as in some zodiacs is derived from a real celestial image: the Goat/Sheep-Fish. The head of the Goat/Sheep-Fish has multiple forms: that of a sheep, goat, cow, bull or horse. The “twisting-off” of the head inspired animal sacrifice rituals and traditions. The tail was identified as the Crux-Hadar-Rigel Kent star cluster. In exploring the tail of the Goat/Sheep-Fish, two further images were identified, namely the Great Bear and the Fishes. The Fishes were associated with two prominent ideas: the Knot or Band, which may or may not be the same thing, and the square or rectangle. I am of the opinion that one Knot or Band conception, especially when a large ribbon is knotted with a small ribbon, is symbolic of the Milky Way (as the large ribbon when it is at the NW point) and the Magellanic Clouds (small ribbon) when the stars appear to move clockwise (this will be expanded on later). There are three possible images – the celestial doors/gates, the Bull’s Hind Leg, and the Magic Rectangle – that may have inspired conceptions around the square, rectangle or “foundation stone” associated with the Fishes. Lastly, I identified the Northern Celestial Door/Gate and I am of the opinion that together with the “twisted63

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ off head” it inspired macabre traditions of displaying animal skulls or stuffed heads on doors and gates and even in foundations or around the perimeter of foundations of buildings.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Dendera Circular Zodiac. (insert Dendera Zodiac). The sculptured Dendera Zodiac (or Denderah Zodiac) is a widely known Egyptian bas-relief from the ceiling of the pronaos (or portico) of a chapel dedicated to Osiris in the Hathor temple at Dendera. This chapel was begun in the late Ptolemaic era; the pronaos was added by the emperor Tiberius. According to the experts the relief dates from 50 BC since it shows the stars and planets in the positions they would have occupied at that time. This date may not be correct because the experts do not understand which celestial phenomena are captured in this zodiac. If the phenomena captured in this zodiac are in reality the celestial images that I am discussing in this book, there is a need to relook at the dating. 2. Albert Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man (United States: Kessinger Publishing, 1963), 82. 3. Ibid., 83. 4. Ibid. 5. Ibid. 6. Giorgio De Santillana and Hertha von Deschend, Hamlet’s Mill – An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and its Transmission through Myth (Boston: David R. Godine Publisher Inc., 1977), 434-435. 7. Ibid. 8. Rishā cognates with the word Rishi, a seer or holy man in the Hindu religion. 9 Richard Hinckley Allen, Star Names – Their Lore and Meaning (New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1963), 342. 10.  Aratos lived from 310 to 245 BC and wrote the poem “The Phainomaina” or “Phainomena” (Heavenly Phenomena, or Appearance), which encodes the cosmological knowledge of the ancients. 11. William Tyler Olcott, Star Lore – Myths, Legends, and Facts (United Kingdom: Dover Publications Inc., 2004), 308-313. 12. Allen, Star Names, 434. 64

3 : The goat/sheep-fish and the sacrificed lamb/bovine __________________________________________________________________ 13. Olcott, Star Lore, 309. 14. Esagil may be the root for biblical names such as Esau and Ezakiel/Ezekiel. 15. De Santillana and von Deschend, Hamlet’s Mill, 436-437. 16. Ibid. 17. Ibid, 435. 18. Ibid., 244.

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Chapter 4

THE FABULOUS GREAT PHOENIX Instead of delving directly into describing my observations, as in previous chapters, I want to share with you some background information about the legendary, elusive phoenix, as captured in literature and art, so that you can understand and appreciate the reverence of ancient peoples for this fabled creature and for the mystique surrounding it. I also hope that this background will set the stage so that you can appreciate the puzzlement, and the electrifying feeling of awe I felt when I confronted this creature for the first time. It was as if all the pictures I had ever seen, and all the poetry I had ever read, which depicted and described the phoenix, ignited within me, cascading like a billion light particles throughout the eternal void. On April 20, 2006 at 1:00 am, I woke from sleep for a bathroom visit and, as has become my custom, at least since the start of 2006, I took a quick peek at the night sky through my bedroom window. My bedroom had a small window (about 1.5m×1.2m) facing the Western Wall and a big glass-and-wood sliding-door (about 3m×2.1m) facing the Southern Wall. As I drew the curtain I was immediately struck by something unfamiliar on the Southern Wall, something resembling a wing and a fanciful tail cascading into the distance. I quickly dressed and rushed outside thinking to myself: It’s the elusive Phoenix – it must be! I looked up into the night sky – and there, filling the heavens, was this gigantic bird-like creature. It seemed to subsume the entire sky, gathering almost all the stars into it. A distinctive red star, standing out against the white background, and mostly bluish-white stars marked the “eye” region of a head that reached into the heights of heaven, seeming to peck at the centre of the universe. A wondrous cascading, swirling tail flowed deep down into the low distant horizon, ending in the greenish/ blue, glittering, brilliance of Canopus. The Phoenix? I was still wondering. Could it be true? Was I seeing things? Perhaps the phoenix was termed elusive and mysterious because it was spoken of by ancient people in countries from the East to the West. And what makes it even more intriguing is that no matter the country, or the medium used to describe the phoenix, whether it be myths, folklore, poems or paintings, every medium tells a similar story although from a different perspective. But who or what is the phoenix?

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4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ What is the phoenix? In Greek the word phoenix refers to a “mystical bird” and it also means “shining red”.1 The Egyptians called this mystical bird the Bennu, while the Chinese name for the phoenix, feng huang, can be translated as “Crested Love Pheasant”. In Chinese etymology it is emphasised as the “Emperor of all birds”. The phoenix is said to have originated in the East. Accounts from Herodotus, said to be the father of history, and Plutarch indicate that it came from Ethiopia. According to Arab tales, Mount Kaf, a pole and the centre of the world, was the only place upon which the phoenix could settle. This extraordinary bird rose at dawn from the waters of the Nile, like the sun. Early Greek historians depicted it at the prow of many of the sacred boats which were launched “into the vast gulf of light”. Many strange accounts of the phoenix are told in the myths and folklore gathered from many cultures.2 For example; Herodotus and Plutarch portray it as a mystical bird of matchless splendour and extraordinary longevity.3 Herodotus, from his visit to Egypt, describes what he learnt about the phoenix. It is another holy bird and resembles an eagle in both shape and in size; its feathers are part red and part gold. Even though he thought the story told by the priests “too good to be true” he felt there might be some credibility to it. Every 500 years it travels from Arabia, its country of origin, to Egypt. The purpose of its journey is to bury its father whose body is embalmed in myrrh. Before burying its father it cleverly moulds an egg using myrrh. It places its father’s body in the centre of the egg, covers the body with myrrh and buries it at the Temple of the Sun. Interestingly its father is spoken of as being human.4 An ancient Roman poet, Ovid, explains that the Assyrians described the phoenix as an individual that reproduces itself. It lives on frankincense and odoriferous gums and not on fruit and flowers. After a lifespan of 500 years it builds itself a nest in either an oak tree or on the top of a palm tree. The nest is built from cinnamon, spikenard (a fragrant ointment) and myrrh and when it is complete it lies down and breathes out its last breaths amidst these aromas. A young phoenix is born from its dying body. When this phoenix is strong enough it lifts the nest (its own cradle and its parent’s tomb) with its father’s body covered in myrrh, off the branches, and flies to Heliopolis, to the Temple of the Sun where it leaves the nest to be consumed in the flames of the fragrances. It too, as its predecessor, lives for 500 years.5 Other writers add a few more particulars, mentioning the appearance of a small worm that transforms into a young phoenix: The myrrh is compacted in the form of an egg, in which the dead Phoenix is enclosed. From the smoldering flesh of the dead bird a worm springs, and this worm, when grown large, is transformed into a bird.6 67

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Tradition has it that only one phoenix at a time could live in our world; its true home was Paradise, a land of unimaginable beauty lying beyond the distant horizon towards the rising sun. The phoenix journeyed westwards across the jungles of Burma and the torrid plains of India until it reached the scented spice groves of Arabia. Here it collected a bunch of aromatic herbs before setting course for the coast of Phoenicia in Syria. In the topmost branches of a palm tree, the phoenix constructed a nest from these herbs, and awaited the coming of the new dawn which would herald its death by fire. But in the ashes of the funeral pyre a tiny worm stirred. Within three days the worm had grown into a new phoenix, which spread its wings and flew east to the gates of Paradise.7 In the first century after Christ, Clement, one of the ante-Nicaean fathers, describes the peculiar nature and habits of the phoenix in this way: There is a certain bird which is called a Phoenix. This is the only one of its kind and lives five hundred years. And when the time of its dissolution draws near that it must die, it builds itself a nest of frankincense, myrrh, and other species, into which, when the time is fulfilled, it enters and dies. But as the flesh decays a certain kind of worm is produced, which, being nourished by the juices of the dead bird, brings forth feathers. Then, when it has acquired strength, it takes up that nest in which are the bones of its parent, and bearing these it passes from the land of Arabia into Egypt, to the city called Heliopolis. And, in open day, flying in the sight of all men, it places them on the altar of the sun, and having done this, hastens back to its former abode. The priests then inspect the registers of the dates, and find that it has returned exactly as the five hundredth year was completed.8

There are also numerous pictures and artworks of this elusive phoenix that not only endorse the myths but also add to them by fascinatingly depicting celestial images portrayed in the star patterns of the night sky.9

The cover of a Russian book, dating from 1909, shows a fiery bird reaching for the topmost fruit on a tree. At the base sits a young boy-man dressed in an over-sized overcoat with one arm and one leg exposed. The one leg and the one arm (see chapter 11) are clues which suggest that this painting is a depiction of my celestial “phoenix”. Another picture by an anonymous artist shows a young boy dressed in red attempting to pin down a swan-like bird with bright colours and a red comb. The most dazzling of these pictures is the Chinese picture titled “Feng-huang”; it depicts a grand, majestic bird with a red comb and one green tail feather, swooping towards a great mountain. 68

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ Other beautiful and interesting artistic renditions of this bird-creature include paintings by Sir Peter Robson (2001)10 and Dimitri Mitrokhin (1883-1973).11 Robson’s picture is titled “Rise of the Phoenix” and depicts an eagle-like bird in dazzling colours, clasping a yellow circle and something like a measuring rod in his claws while rising with outstretched wings from a blazing fire against a blood-red sky. It appears to triumph over the fire but is simultaneously consumed by it. In Mitrokhin’s painting the fiery colours and grandeur of this bird are captured once again. In this painting a ghastly wind-blown horse pins the brilliant bird’s blood-red, right wing against the dazzlingly white snow, while the bird looks in bewilderment at its impaler. The phoenix and its associations The phoenix has also been celebrated in many poems, often providing mystical descriptions of the celestial images illustrated in painting. But the mystery surrounding the phoenix deepens when you wonder about its association with things such as trees, angels, fire, unicorns, dragons, heaven or paradise, the Temple of the Sun, turtles, a queen, a swan and the odoriferous scents from myrrh and frankincense, etc., as depicted in myths and endorsed by poets. In essence the phoenix was associated with peace and prosperity. In China, the male bird was a symbol of happiness and the female an emblem of the empress. Male and female phoenixes together were emblems of happy marriage. The Empress of China used it as a highly decorative motive in her ceremonial costumes. It was also used as ornaments in ladies’ headdresses.12 It was a phoenix which guided Pien-ho to the Ch’u Jade Dynasty, jade being a symbol of immortality.13 In China the phoenix appeared when reason prevailed in the country, hiding itself at other times; and two were never seen together. Yet William Shakespeare described this elusive bird as “a shrieking harbinger, Foul pre-curser of the fiend, Augur of the fever’s end.” It becomes more intriguing when he associated it with unicorns, a throne and a tree and endorsed the myths of long ago, as in his poem “The Tempest”: Now I will believe That there are unicorns, that in Arabia There is one tree, the phoenix’ throne, one phoenix At this hour reigning there.

In Chinese mythology the phoenix is interestingly described as a creature composed of different parts, one of the parts being a tortoise (see Book 3). Shakespeare similarly associated the phoenix with the turtle in his poem “The Phoenix and the 69

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Turtle”. Could it be that in the night sky they perhaps observed the transformation of the phoenix into a turtle? Phoenix and the turtle fled in a mutual flame from hence. So they lov’d, as love in a twain had the essence but in one; Two districts, division none: number there in love was slain. Hearts remote, yet not asunder; distance, and no space was seen.

Also, as with the accounts by Herodotus and Ovid, and the illustration on the cover of the Russian book described above, a tree is emphasised in relation to the phoenix. The Ancient Egyptians also associated the Bennu with a sacred Persea tree: “The Bennu bird created itself from the fire that burned on the top of the sacred Persea tree in Heliopolis.”14 The phoenix has also been associated with a queen. It seems to begin its life as a female but die as a male and then again in death it gives birth. This association is highlighted in Shakespeare’s “The Phoenix and the Turtle”: ’Twixt the turtle and his Queen [female]; but in them it were a wonder. So between them love did shine, that the turtle saw his right Flaming in the Phoenix’ sight. Either was the other’s mine.

In the seventeenth-century poem written by John Dryden, he also speaks of this association with a queen:

So when the new-born Phoenix first is seen Her feathered subjects all adore their queen, And while she makes her progress through the East, From every grove her numerous trains increased; Each poet of the air her glory sings, And round him the pleased audience clap their wings.

In the following excerpt from Paradise Lost, Book V, John Milton, the English poet and scholar, compares the Angel Raphael (i.e. a divine winged being) with a phoenix: … Down thither, prone in flight He speeds, and through the vast ethereal sky Sails between worlds and worlds, with steady wing, Now on the polar winds, then with quick fan Winnows the buxom air; till within soar 70

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ Of towering eagles, to all the fowls he seems A Phoenix, gazed by all; as that sole bird When, to enshrine his relics in the sun’s Bright temple, to Egyptian Thebes he flies.

In the poem “Bird of Passage” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), he associates the phoenix with fire. This is another consistent theme, but here it is interestingly associated with a “heath”, “the earth” and “the rock”. When every spark was quenched on every heath Throughout the earth, I brought to man the fire, And all its ministrations. My reward Hath been the rock and vulture.

The poem “The Eagle” by Tennyson was one of my favourite primary school poems and, as with the Chinese imagery, the emphasis is on magnificent heights, invariably depicted as mountains or towers. The idea of height is no different from the depiction of the Bennu perched on the tallest Ben-Ben or obelisk stone: “AtoumKhepri, as a hill thou dominatest, thou rises like the bird Bennu from the rock BenBen in its abode of the Bennu at Heliopolis”15 These are different symbols, some of which replace the tree aspect, while others attempt, specifically, to capture certain other celestial associations. The Eagle He clasps the crag with crooked hands; Close to the sun in lonely lands; Ringed with the azure world, he stands. The winkled sea beneath him crawls; He watches from his mountain walls, And like a thunderbolt he falls.

China is the home of the dragon, yet the phoenix was also seen there, so it stands to reason that the phoenix and the dragon are pervasive in Chinese literature, in which the two are constantly compared. However, the one aspect that stands out is that the phoenix is adorned with everything beautiful among birds. And the stories woven around this “strange bird” are all similar to the ones already told, for example:

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Strange Bird By Yuan Chi, AD 210-263 The strange bird makes its abode in the woods: Its name is “Phoenix”. In the morning it drinks at the honeyed spring, At night it seeks rest on the hillside. Throughout the land there rings its shrill note. Neck-craning, its eye reaches all corners of the earth. There sweeps along a gust of west wind, Wherefore it causes the plumage to be impaired. Then it flies westward toward the K’un-lung Mountains, And who knows whether it will return? Now a great regret seizes upon my mindIf only I had my home in a different place!

Perhaps this extract of the “Feng-huang” translated as “Crested Love Pheasant” is the all-encompassing description of this mysterious bird, the phoenix: In [Chinese] poetry many covert allusions to sexual pairing are intimated by reference to the inseparable fellowship of the feng and the huang. It is described as resembling a wild swan before, and a unicorn behind, it has the throat of a swallow, the bill of a fowl, the neck of a snake, the tail of a fish (having twelve feathers, except when in leap years there are thirteen), the forehead of a crane, the crown of a mandarin drake, the stripes of a dragon, and the vaulted back of a tortoise. The feathers have five colours, which are named after the five cardinal virtues, and it is five cubits in height; the tail is graduated like Pandean pipes, and its song resembles the music of that instrument…Like the unicorn it will not peck or injure living insects, nor tread upon living herbs; it alights only upon the wu t’ung tree [the only tree it would alight on is an ornamental species, which grows to great height very rapidly, and has a bell-shaped flower, white and reddishbrown within. The leaves are very large; they open early and commence to fall at the beginning of autumn. The seeds of this plant are used in making mooncakes eaten by the Chinese at the autumnal festival of the eighth month], or Dryandra cordifolia, feeds only on the seeds of the bamboo, and quenches its thirst only at the sweet fountain. It resides in the Vermillion Hills, where it eats and drinks at its pleasure, waiting for the time when peace shall pervade the country. It is associated with the birth of Confucius, and is usually represented as flying in the air, while the unicorn ranges on the hills where the mother of Confucius stands in the foreground. The phoenix is often seen rudely depicted on the sterns of jugs, standing on one leg and spreading its wings.16

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4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ The phoenix not only occurs in Zulu folktales but actual rituals are performed around this mysterious bird and there is a definite indication that such ideas and traditions are linked with the stars. The phoenix-female association is also evident in the Zulu tradition, “for a goddess’s ‘star animal’, a huge monstrous bird of living gold in whose belly the beautiful goddess travelled through the cosmos.”17 In the initiation of a particular type of medicine man – the “Heaven-herd” – the Zulu doctor (diviner, sage, medicine man) “uses a variety of medicines, including barks, herbs [this may have been the forerunner of frankincense and myrrh] and animal fats. The most important ingredient of all is, however, fat and feathers of the bird of heaven (inyoni yezulu).”18 This bird is believed to be real – a very wonderful bird in the lightning – the thunderbird is said to be very fat and is remarkable to look upon: “a man may think it is red; again he sees that it is not so, it is green. But if he looks earnestly, he may say, ‘No, it is something between the two colours’.”19 This bird is also described as having a red bill, red legs, and a short tail like fire. Furthermore, this medicine man’s mixture also contained further tell-tale celestial ingredients: fat from a python, uMonya20 and the skin of a rock-rabbit and tortoise.21 “Heaven birds” are used in rain-making rituals conducted by Zulu people: “To induce heavens to melt and fall as rain, Zulus go and look for an insingizi bird (the bird that does not fear thunder). This they will kill and throw into a pool of water, whereupon the heaven becomes soft…and ceases to be hard; it wails for it by raining, wailing a funeral wail…Another heaven-bird, for the death of which heavens will mourn, is the iNgqungqulu (a reddish-brown eagle, larger than all other birds). Hence it, too, is killed for rain.”22 Its association with the calendar The lifespan of the phoenix is said to be 500 years. The ancient people equated this to a cosmic cycle: “A Phoenix cycle appears...to be 500 years long.”23 It was also affirmed by the great sages “that the Phoenix dies, and then is born again when she draws nigh to her 500th year. In her life, she feeds not on herbs or grain, but only on the tears of incense and ammonium; and nard and myrrh are her last winding sheet.”24 In this way the phoenix has been associated with the calendar in many different cultures throughout the world. In Egypt, China, India and Persia, the phoenix has been associated with the Great Year Cycle.25 A great cycle was believed to begin at noon on the day when the sun entered among the stars of Aries. In Egypt, it was associated with the Sothic Period when the sun and Sirius rose 73

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ together on July 20. In 139 AD, during the reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius, a new Phoenix Period was said to have started and this event was recorded on coins bearing the face of the Emperor. Ptolemy adopted the year 138 AD, the first of Antoninus, as the epoch of his catalogue. In Chinese history the phoenix appeared at the time Confucius was born. Its first recorded appearance is during the reign of Huang Ti, some 2600 years BC. It showed itself again during the next reign when two phoenixes nested in the palace of Yao [YA-O], in about 2350 BC, but it is not until the Han Dynasty that it was worshipped. Its last appearance was at Feng-huang fu in Anhui, where it scratched at the grave of Hung Wu’s father26 and the imperial power passed into the hands of Hung Wu. This town now sends out enormous numbers of pictures of the phoenix to all parts of the country.27 Its symbolism in different cultures In practically every myth, poem or artwork about the phoenix or the “strange bird” fire is emphasised, either as a fire, or the sun, or the “fiery” colours of red and yellow (gold). However, some interesting and perhaps contradictory information is provided about the Ancient Egyptian phoenix. The description of this phoenix resembles that of the grey heron and, according to Rundle Clark, it is predominantly represented in Egyptian art as a grey or a white bird. Yet has fabulous colours linked with the “sacred” colour purple, which is linked to red: “Since, in Ancient Egyptian, the bird concerned was the purple heron, this suggests the alchemists’ ‘red art’. Taoists called the phoenix the ‘cinnabar bird’ (tan-niao), cinnabar being red sulfur of mercury. The predominance of fire with this bird suggests colours of fire yellow and red.”28 Its link with life, death, resurrection and immortality The association of this creature with the sun or sun colour is once again similar to the Ancient Egyptian idea that connects the bird specifically with the City of the Sun, Heliopolis. The City of the Sun is where the work of creation began, and where the Ben-Ben stone or obelisk, the dwelling place of the Bennu bird, was found. This city is also associated with Ra and Osiris. There is also a link between the Bennu and the Duat (netherworld or place of the dead). The Book of the Dead contains formulae to transform the deceased into the Great Bennu. Here, the deceased says, “I am the Bennu, the soul of Ra, and the guide of the gods in the Duat.” The phoenix was the bringer of the life-giving essence, the hikế, a concept akin to our idea of magic, which the great cosmic bird carried to Egypt from a distant and magical land beyond the earthly world. According to Rundle Clark this “was ‘the 74

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ Isle of Fire’…the place of everlasting light beyond the limits of the world, where the gods were born or revived and whence they were sent into the world.”29 The Bennu was also regarded as a manifestation of Osiris and was said to spring from his heart as a living symbol of this god.30 In ancient mythology the story is told of Osiris who is killed by his brother Set. The only part of Osiris’s dismembered body that his sister-wife, Isis, finds is his wooden phallus which she uses to impregnate herself; she then gives birth to Horus who becomes known as the Horus Falcon. Because Horus is born after the resurrection of Osiris he was regarded as the representer of new beginnings and the vanquisher of the evil Set or Heru-ur, the ultimate victor. The soul of Osiris was identified as the king of the underworld and the god of reincarnation. Rundle Clark describes the symbolism invoked by this strange and least understood myth of Ancient Egypt: One has to imagine a perch extending out of the waters of the Abyss. On it rests a grey heron, the herald of all things to come. It opens its beak and breaks the silence of the primeval night with a call of life and destiny, which ‘determines what is and what is not to be’. The Phoenix, therefore, embodies the original Logos, the Word or declaration of destiny which mediates between the divine mind and created things…In a sense, when the Phoenix gave out the primeval call it initiated all those [calendrical] cycles, so it is the patron of all division of time, and its temple at Heliopolis became the centre of regulation.31

Bauval and Gilbert argue that there is a link between the phoenix and the pyramid as timekeepers of the stars of Orion and, by extension, “the ‘soul’ of the Osiris-kings. In the Book of the Dead (Chapter 17) the question is asked: ‘Who is he?...I am the great phoenix which is in Heliopolis…Who is he? He is Osiris…’, leaving us with little doubt who was the Egyptian phoenix.”32 Isis says to her son Heru: “Thou art the Great Bennu who was born on the Incense Trees in the house of the Great Prince in Heliopolis” (Metternich Stele). In Pyramid texts (ca. 25 BC), the pharaoh is described as being Horus in life but Osiris in death where he is reunited with other gods in the underworld. On earth he is succeeded by new incarnations of Horus in the form of new pharaohs. Professor David Rohl, a renowned archaeologist and bestselling author, describes the arduous journey the Followers of Horus had to take, and links such ideas to the death, transfiguration and rebirth of the pharaoh. Interestingly, and relevant in this 75

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ context, is the transformation of the pharaoh into another type of bird – a falcon, not the phoenix, even though the process is similar to the journey of the phoenix. Their deceased ancestors (of Followers of Horus) must journey eastwards from the west to complete the cycle…Down in the dark tomb I stood before the very last scene of the Amduat – the culmination of the long journey through the twelve hours of night. Here the empty shell of the king (his mummy) is discarded, propped up against the curving wall of the underground cavern. Rise up, O Pharaoh! Take your head. Collect your bones. Gather your limbs. Shake the earth from your flesh! [Utterance 373] Here, again, we see very ancient connections with the burials at Nakada. Remember that Petri found the elite graves contained disarticulated skeletal remains with detached skulls…Here also lies a possible explanation for the mysterious heb-sed rite of the severing of the head just prior to the king’s rebirth. The final moment of the Amduat sees Pharaoh transformed into Re-Harakhty – the rising sun. The red disc is being pushed above the eastern horizon in a blaze of glory by Khepri, the sacred beetle. The Blessed Isle is lit by the glow of the dawn as if on fire. The king has reached his final destination and boards the day-barque of the sun-god, his transfiguration and rebirth completed. I [Pharaoh] arrive at the Island of the Horizon-dwellers. I go out from the holy gate. [Spell 17] Ferried is this pharaoh to the eastern side of light-land. Ferried is this pharaoh to the eastern side of sky. His sister is Sothis, his offspring the dawn. [Utterance 263] I [Pharaoh] have gone in as a falcon-bird, I have come out as a phoenixbird, the god who worships Re. [Spell 13].33

It is these Ancient Egyptian ideas, the killing of Osiris, transfiguration and rebirth (resurrection), which were later reworked in the Jesus story with the addition of the wooden cross, that is, the tree in a different disguise. Remember Osiris (ruler and son of the God Re/Ra) was killed in a wooden coffin, another tree symbol. It is also in this context that we should understand why “throughout the Middle Ages, the phoenix was made the symbol of Christ’s resurrection and sometimes that of his divine nature.”34 For the same reasons the mystics and alchemists used the phoenix as a symbol of immortality and regeneration: To the ancient mystics the phoenix was a most appropriate symbol of immortality of the human soul, for just as the phoenix was reborn out of its own dead self seven times seven, so again and again the spiritual nature of man rises triumphantly from his dead physical body. 76

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ Mediaeval Hermetists regarded the phoenix as a symbol of the accomplishment of alchemical transmutation, a process equivalent to human regeneration. The name phoenix was also given to one secret alchemical formula – pelican of the Rose Croix degree, feeding its young from its own breast. In the Mysteries it was customary to refer to initiates as phoenixes or men who had been born again.35

Its association with incense The phoenix was associated with beauty and prosperity, and with scented aromatic herbs (myrrh and frankincense) burnt as incense, which just added to the mystery surrounding it. the phoenix. And yet Dante also associates the phoenix with the gas ammonia – a colourless, repugnant gas – that is extremely soluble in water. The combination of ammonia and water gives water a milky appearance, that is, it turns water into the “white stuff”: “the tears of incense and ammonium; and nard and myrrh are her last winding sheet.”36 However, in my opinion, two aspects of ammonia are symbolically linked to the phoenix. First, the milky white colour of ammonia in water may have fascinated ancient peoples, especially because white (expressed in various forms – milk, snow or smoke being the dominant forms) has a particular significance in ancient cosmology, and the turning of water into milk should be considered together with the story of the Israelites’ Promised Land – the Land of Milk (white) and Honey (yellow). Secondly, the Inferno is largely concerned with death, the so-called “infra” or dimensions of the dead; the phoenix is also associated with death, therefore it is likely that this odious deadly gas was used symbolically to indicate the link between the phoenix and death. What made incense so significant to the phoenix? Incense, derived from the gum and resin of trees, was a lucrative business for the Arabs, because both frankincense and myrrh were prized possessions in the ancient world, having more value than many precious gems and metals. And as told in myths, what made incense more sought after was that the trees grew on a small piece of forbidden ground high up in the mountains surrounded by swirling mists that were said to cause deadly diseases and fatal epidemics. These trees were guarded by fierce red snakes that leaped into the air to inflict fatal bites on any intruder. These trees were regarded as sacred to the gods and reserved for divine worship. By 1000 BC, myrrh and frankincense were widely distributed throughout the Old World. Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, Persia, Rome, Greece, and China all imported these resins, to be used as temple incenses and as important medicines. The key to understanding the reverence of these two incenses is linked with the fact 77

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ that they came from trees and remember that trees were also strongly associated with the phoenix. Frankincense is tapped from the aromatic gum-resin of the Boswellia frereana tree. The name frankincense is Arabian in origin. The Arabs called the milky sap of the frankincense tree al lubán, from the word for milk. The same word gave rise to the name of Lebanon,37 whose mountains were always capped by milky snow. Al lubán became anglicised to olibanum, which is another name for frankincense. The word frankincense means the true, or frank, incense. Boswellia freana only grows in Northern Somalia, where the locals call it maydi,38 the king of all frankincense.39,40 Frankincense seem to have links with names like Franks, Frank, Franciscan monks, Francis and French.41 In ancient Israel, it was compounded with other aromatics to make incense (Exod. 30:34-38), used as an element in offerings to Yahweh (Lev. 2:1-2, 14-16), and displayed with the bread of the Presence (Lev. 24:7). In the New Testament, frankincense is one of the symbolic gifts of the Magi to the infant Jesus (Matt. 2:11). Throughout antiquity frankincense was an object of lucrative trade between southern Arabia and the Levant.42 The Ancient Egyptians used frankincense in many religious rituals. In the Jewish religion it formed part of the “Jewish incense of the sanctuary” and it is also mentioned in the Pentateuch, the first five books in the Bible. It was also regarded as an antidote for hemlock poisoning. Even Avicenna, the Iranian physician, recommended it for a number of ailments, while the Chinese used it in both internal and external remedies. The West, however, found it had no significant medicinal value. Today it is used in incense, fumigants and fixatives in perfumes.43 Myrrh is tapped from the aromatic gum-resin of the Commiphora myrrha, a tree that is native to southern Arabia and eastern Africa. Two main varieties of myrrh are grown, herabol and bisabol. Herabol myrrh is obtained from C. myrrha, which grows in Ethiopia, Arabia and Somalia, while bisabol myrrh is obtained from C. erythraea, which is an Arabian species of similar appearance. Myrrh trees are found on parched rocky hills and grow up to 3 metres tall.44 Myrrh trees of Punt (Somalia) appear in fifteenth century BC Egyptian royal tomb reliefs. The name myrrh is derived from the Arabic word murr, meaning “bitter”, possibly because its reddish-yellow gum tastes bitter. The myrrh tree is a thorny tree that grows in thickets and it has red-yellow flowers that appear just before the rain. It bears brown fruits about one and a half centimetres long that taper into a pronounced beak. And its bark has a silvery sheen that tends to peel in small pieces.45 This thorn bush became the basis for three biblical ideas: the ram caught in the 78

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ thorn bush at Abraham’s sacrifice of his son, the burning bush (symbolic red-yellow flowers) of Moses, and much later the crown of thorns worn by Jesus. According to the bible, myrrh was traded from Canaan to Egypt (Gen. 37:25, 43:11). “Liquid myrrh” (myrrh-scented oil) was a cosmetic (Esther 2:12, Song of Sol. 5:5) and in special formulation was used for cultic anointing (Exod. 30:23-25). In the New Testament, myrrh was one of the gifts of the Magi to the infant Jesus (Matt. 2:11). It was mixed with wine (Mark 15:23) and used to anoint corpses before burial (with aloes, John 19:39).46 Myrrh is associated with names such as Myriham/Myrhiam/Miriam. The story of a female (symbolic of the name myrrh being associated with women’s names) anointing Jesus’ feet with costly oil is perhaps a reference to the myrrh-scented oil which was used for cultic anointing. From King’s Dispensatory the following information is obtained: “Commiphora Myrrha (Nees), Engle – (U.S.P.) Balsamodendron Myrrha, Nees has a pale-grey bark (recall the grey heron of Ancient Egypt) and a yellowish white wood.” Linked to this is the nature of the juice which flows naturally from the tree: “… at first it is soft and pale-yellow, but drying becomes hard, darker and redder.” Remember the yellow-red colour is also linked to the fiery nature of the phoenix. Commiphora myrrha (Holmes) leaves are trifoliate,47 that is, they occur in bunches of three, which makes a link with the sacred three-leafed clover that has such prominence in Irish mythology and traditions. In addition, the juice forms what are called “tears”, presumably because of the tear-like shape of the droplets. The word tears appears in the verse extracted from Dante’s Inferno and later you will see several mentions of the “tear of Isis”, which perhaps suggests a link between the tear of myrrh and this mysterious Ancient Egyptian expression. Incense practices that have survived Some of these ancient practices around the use of incense still survive, with their origin and meaning long lost, most noticeably within eastern religions and traditions, in the Jewish faith and in the Catholic Church. Explanations in the Oxford Companion to the Bible provide examples across various cultures of just how ancient such practices in fact are. In the Ancient “near East” incense was not only used in perfumes and in numerous medicines but also in “religious rites as a sacrifice or as a means to drive away demons”.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The Hebrew Bible describes three uses for incense: First, it supplemented the grain offering (Lev. 2:1). Second, its use in censers was part of Egyptian ritual, and was included in Israelite worship. Finally, as part of the sacrificial system, it was burned on the golden altar within the sanctuary; it was burned regularly twice a day (Exod: 30.1-10). This offering was restricted to the priest who officiated according to a roster (1Chron. 24:1-19; Luke 1:8-9). On the Day of Atonement the High priest entered the holy of holies with a censer (Lev. 16:12-13) to cover the mercy seat with a cloud of smoke, lest he be exposed to the presence of God and die. Its use in worship from the 5th century onwards probably derived from its ordinary use to show respect for eminent persons, who were sometimes preceded by servants with censers. It is therefore significant that it has been used especially in the Eucharist to cense the ministers, the people, the gospel book, the altar, and the Eucharist elements, all of which are regarded as representations of Christ himself… incense symbolises the prayers of God’s people.48

The story in the stars Where would the seeds have been planted for the appearance of the phoenix and the birth of these myths, poems and illustrations that have grown into cultural religious rites and rituals, many of which are currently still practised? There are several important clues to this creature’s celestial identity, which will become apparent when I describe the phoenix which I observed. Firstly, its link with Antares. One of the brightest stars in the Milky Way galaxy is Antares, the red superstar also called Antar. According to Beigel, Antares is the Arabic equivalent of “shone”, and was “identified with the seventh antediluvian king…or Udda-anxu, the Day-heaven-bird [the phoenix].”49 The red aspect becomes increasingly important in various features of the cosmology, religio-mythology and various cultural expressions of ancient and modern peoples. In modern times the red carpet is the preserve of royalty and other very important people! And don’t Christians drink the red blood of Christ symbolised by the wine! Secondly, its origin in the east and “residence” in the south. Even though ideas about the creature’s origin (east) and journey (westwards) display consistency, they do not reveal a specific settlement position that can be aligned with modern cardinal directions. Chinese sources, gleaned from Phoenixmoon, indicate that the journey it embarked on was once again westwards, while other sources claim, significantly, that the Phoenix resided in the southern quadrant. From Chinese poetry (Yuan Chi, 210-263 AD as translated by Yang Chi-sing and Li-Po ca. 58 AD) we see, first, that the bird climbs the tower at Chin-ling, and 80

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ Chin is also the burial site of the Great Lords of Chin. The bird disappears flying westwards towards the K’un-lung Mountains. In China it is the second among the four supernatural creatures, the first being the dragon, the third, the unicorn and the fourth, the tortoise. It resides in the southern quadrant of the heavens. While these directions appear to correspond to our modern cardinal directions, it may not be strictly so. Thirdly, it is associated with the mystical unicorn, a celestial creature that is discussed in chapter 16. Fourthly, it is associated with green either as green grass and trees, or green tail feathers and jade. This is certainly a reference to the blue-green star called Canopus. Lastly, it is associated with trees. This is a reference to the celestial tree (see later in this volume), and it is also within this context that we should understand why certain terrestrial trees were chosen as symbols of the celestial tree with the phoenix. At this juncture it is difficult to explain fully why particular trees were associated with the phoenix and certain traditions. However, the ancient world held a particular worldview – “As in heaven so on terrestrial earth” (see Book 3). This particular worldview was an all-embracing concept that linked all terrestrial practices with celestial conceptions to the extent that everything which ancient humans did was an attempt to copy and live by these celestial conceptions. This insight can be understood and appreciated only when the celestial worldview maintained by ancient peoples is unravelled as completely as possible. It suffices to note that, as with many other matters, particular trees were selected based on their relation to certain celestial conventions. I can think of several properties which, collectively, may have influenced the selection of particular trees as representative of the celestial tree. These include: (1) the colour of the tree and its flowers, fruit and extracts; colours such as white/silver, gold/yellow, green/blue, and red all correspond to colours related to stars and other celestial phenomena of ancient cosmology (see Book 3); (2) the habitat of a tree, including its growth on mountain/rocks (to express the idea of height and permanency) and its association with water (for example, the palm tree and its association with oases); (3) the time of year at which a tree flowered or when extracts from its bark could be collected; (4) the correspondence between the terrestrial region and the celestial region in which trees grew; 81

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ (5) the characteristics of the tree, including the number and the arrangements of leaves, fruit and flowers, the height of the tree, and the years taken to reach maturity, etc.; (6) the nature of substances extracted from trees, for example, ancient peoples may also have found it significant that resins produce white smoke with a pleasant scented odour when burnt. While the white smoke had specific cosmological significance (as with white milk), the aroma was merely an added advantage and may have been the basis for colourful expressions like “sweet paradise”, “wonderful heaven”, etc. The New Testament Book of Revelation presents the strange idea of wormwood which makes water bitter. We have learned that myrrh is bitter and that the phoenix is associated with a tiny worm, so this may have been an attempt by the writer of Revelation to preserve these associations. The Phoenix: The Heron Despite all the wonderful descriptions and fanciful pictures of the phoenix, the Egyptian representation of the Bennu (on papyrus dated ca. 1075-727)50 shows a rather drab, simple bird – a heron – albeit a regal one. This depiction does nothing at all to support the fanciful claims and colourful descriptions and representations of the phoenix. Why these contradictions? The bird shown on papyrus standing on a rectangular box (presumably representative of celestial door/gate or the Magic Rectangle) is outlined in red against a predominantly yellow-gold colour, amplified by the gold colour of the papyrus itself. On its head is the Atef crown, similar to the one worn (predominantly) by Osiris.51 It is a combination of the crown of double plumes (worn by Cow-headed Isis52 and the crocodile god Suchos53) and the Upper Egyptian crown (a white crown which represents Upper Egypt). The Atef crown worn by the phoenix displays the double plumes in grass green with a yellowish Upper Egyptian crown at their centre. Close to the front of the bird is something resembling a flower-pot with a hooked flame-like object projecting from it; this is indeed a flame offering.54 A large, longstemmed flower bearing three blooms (perhaps the Nile lotus) projects from a reddish vase at the rear of the heron. Recollections from my experience of the heron The heron, the bird the Ancient Egyptians designated the Bennu, that is, the phoenix, has fascinated me since early childhood. Three distinct experiences with these birds at the age of about five or six are etched in my memory. The first experience to captivate me was the arrival of these birds, like bright white 82

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ ghosts, appearing from nowhere. They would hover and then alight on our cattle, and proceed ever so gently to pluck the ticks and fleas from the livestock. It’s an image that returns to me repeatedly: a beautiful scene of cattle against the green pasture, with these ghostly white beings moving effortlessly among them. My second memory is of a large, dead bluegum tree in the pasture, its topmost branches colonised by the herons who surveyed the scene in complete silence, as though the tree was filled with some strange white fruit. My third recurring memory is the orderly pattern in which these birds flew away, sometimes in a straight-line, or at an acute angle, as if following the setting sun into the west. Apart from the bird’s colours and other characteristics, I am of the opinion that all these aspects, especially the association of the heron with cattle, may have led the Ancient Egyptians to choose this specific bird to represent the celestial phoenix. Recently I paid more attention to herons in my immediate environment. The species found in this region have snow-white feathers, orange/yellow beaks, long yellowish legs, and long, gently curving necks. When feeding on insects the bird raises its neck and gently swings it from side to side, almost like a mechanical device, searching for insects in the vicinity. When an insect has been located, the bird strikes rapidly, like an attack from a snake. These three movements resemble the strike of a cobra, and the Chinese make specific mention of the phoenix having the head of a snake. There is a further reason for the link between bird and snake, which will be explained later. Incidentally, about a year ago, since observing the celestial images more closely, I noticed a single white heron with only one leg beginning to make regular visits to the southern side of my yard. I felt pity for the poor bird, which was struggling to find food. Both the single leg and the heron’s position on the lawn where it was feeding bear some similarities to the celestial image of the Angelman (see chapter 11), which is particularly associated with the phoenix. Since the disappearance of this one-legged heron no other herons had visited my property until three months ago when, while writing this section, three herons began making regular visits to my yard again. This morning, Saturday July 7, 2006, at 11:00 am, while writing this section on the phoenix, I went outside to turn on the sprinkler and found a white heron on the lawn. This heron reminded me to put in this small commemorative paragraph. My own observations of the Phoenix The body of the celestial creature that I saw on April 19, 2006 at 1:00 am appeared to be filled with cascading, glittering, white smoky substances which swirled from the uplifted left wing towards the breast, and reached towards the tail, thus giving it a three-dimensional, lively effect. Now I was sure it was the Phoenix! And just like the 83

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ proverbial Rising Phoenix, it appeared to be towering, rising from the earth, uniting with the heavens. Breathless and reeling with mixed emotions, uppermost of which was awe, I stood glued to my view of this image; that mysterious bird-like creature – the Phoenix! The biting cold of winter and endless space disappeared for an instant. Deep down in my inner being I had registered that this was the legendary, mysterious Great Phoenix. There was no second guessing. I gazed at it in wonder and as rationality crept in, I asked myself if I was just seeing things. Was I simply dreaming? I shook my head and looked up at the star pattern again. It was still there. I dashed indoors to fetch my recording book and dashed out again. While racing indoors I was overwhelmed with fear that the image would disappear, but this did not happen. Once outside I was again confronted by the wondrous spectacle. I looked at the icon and was overcome by hopelessness – the image was just too, too, too enormous for me ever to do justice to it. But I knew I had to make an attempt. Slowly but steadily I managed to sketch an outline of the image and then stood for what appeared to be an eternity, marvelling at this enigma. Gone was the biting winter cold, gone was my need to relieve myself. All that remained was silence, and dazzling, awesome beauty. Inside the house again I looked at my sketch and laughed at my childish attempt. It could never bring to light the magic, the wonder and the awe inspired by the celestial image of the Great Phoenix. I will describe some details of the bird-like creature I witnessed, in an attempt to reposition it from the realm of mystery into the domain of reality. To do so, I will reconstruct the Phoenix using information from several subsequent nights of observations. I will include descriptions of other stars, celestial bodies and diverse phenomena which are not elements of the constituent parts of the Phoenix, but are nevertheless presented here to provide a context for the night sky leading to and during my initial observation. Lifting the veil Although this enigma was awe-inspiring, what I saw bore no resemblance to depictions of the Bennu nor did it conform to the many illustrious descriptions of the phoenix in the myths of ancient peoples. The nearest pictorial resemblance I could find to “my” celestial image was an Indian painting.55 This painting56 depicts a scene from the epic Hindu religious poem from the Ramayana in which the heroic Indian prince, Rama, is searching for his beloved Sita. There are many interesting aspects to this painting, suggesting that it is an attempt to represent ancient cosmology, inspired by celestial images similar to that which I had observed. Conversely to the Bennu and other depictions of the phoenix, the Indian painting displays a massive, fat, white dove-like bird sitting on a green mount. (Remember that the Zulu description 84

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ specifically refers to the fat nature of their bird of heaven.) Conspicuous in this painting is the bird’s wonderful, cascading white tail, red-orange beak, broken redorange legs and disproportionate, uneven wings. The question arises: If this is the legendary phoenix, why does it not conform to all the amazing descriptions and pictorial representations of ancient peoples? Were the ancients displaying symptoms of an over-active imagination – the same error for which I might stand accused? I don’t think so. Despite its lack of resemblance to all the wonderful paintings, illustrations and descriptions, I think I understand why the phoenix was represented in such brilliance of colour and splendour, and all the mysterious, fanciful descriptions attached to it. The significance of all of these ideas and symbolisms A striking feature of the celestial Phoenix which I observed, very similar to the Indian painting of the bird, was the disproportional size of its wings. These comprised a huge left wing (to my right when I stood facing the SW line) projecting to the west (or so it seemed), with a much smaller right wing on the south-eastern side. On the early morning of April 20, 2006, at 1:00 am, when I first observed the Phoenix, a half-moon was due east. On the night of the April 20-21, 2006, I began watching the night sky at the close of day, hoping to see the Phoenix again and fill in the missing pieces. But the sky became progressively overcast and at the “appointed” hour of 1:00 am, it was too cloudy to discern any images. You can imagine my disappointment. On the morning of April 21, 2006, my wife Sumaya and daughter Sasha left for Cape Town on holiday. On the same day, from 7:14 pm onwards, I began observing and recording various celestial objects in the night sky, in an attempt to understand what was happening. High in the eastern sky I observed a star formation resembling a rather strange-looking bird or object, which I later determined was the Corvus Constellation.57 This strange bird/object reminded me of the strange item atop the head of the goddess Selket.58 This Corvus “bird” caused me a lot of puzzlement because, as the night progressed, it appeared to move from the east, to the centre of the sky, and then to the west, all the while moving almost diagonally across the sky. At the western end it seemed to occupy the position near the west wing of the Phoenix. Far lower than Corvus, on the horizon and towards the SE point, was the planet Jupiter. On the NW line I observed two interesting celestial images. First, the stars that form the hanging bull’s head (Goat-Sheep/Cow/Bull/Horse Head image, see 85

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ chapters 3 and 14), appeared to look like an image I call the “African Lady” (see chapter 16). Secondly, the characteristic stars forming the Magic Rectangle were completely vertical, rather than horizontal; that is, the Magic Rectangle had become the Celestial Ladder. It appeared as if the stars of Hyades, led by Aldebaran, had curved in such a way that they almost entered the lower end of the Magic Rectangle.59 Subsequent observations, made after April 21, revealed that reddish Aldebaran seemed to move upwards through the Magic Rectangle. To my relief I discovered, by reading the Sky Guide 2006 – Africa South, that what appeared to be a moving Aldebaran was actually the planet Mars, which according to this book, had been in the Hyades cluster since March of that year. At about 9:08 pm, along the SE line, yet more towards the SE point, I noticed a Batman-like figure. One of the stars in its “wing” was similar in colour to the red star seen at the head of the Phoenix. I labelled the Batman-like image the “Jade Emperor”, but as you will see in chapter 5, it has a number of aliases. At about 9:30 I was completely exhausted and went to bed, hoping to rise at 1:00 am, the hour of the Phoenix. I woke at 12:30 am and immediately ventured outside. And, yes, there she was! Not as spectacular as the first night that I saw her, but nonetheless, there she was. What a relief! So I was not imagining things after all. I have already mentioned that this image seemed to subsume almost all the stars, giving rise to a rather complex image that is not easy to unravel into known constellations by a novice, greenhorn, untrained sky-watcher, barely four months into the game. But I will attempt to piece together the information I have gathered over subsequent observations and correlate this with information in the sky maps. Starting with the beautiful cascading tail, most noticeable was the greenish/blue (jade) of Canopus, almost at the end of the tail. Moving upwards from Canopus was another noticeable star pattern, namely the False Cross. At first it was difficult to identify it as such, because another bigger “rectangular” pattern, resembling the False Cross, was occupying more or less the same region. Consequently, I was aware of two False Crosses – boxes or wheels, depending on how you looked at these. Moving towards the lower body section of the bird I could make out the Crux Constellation in close association with a “double” star.60 Identifying the names of these two stars, one a bright yellow and the other a white-blue star, was a real challenge, and yet this pair, together with the Crux, played such an important role in the formation and definition of many other interesting images that I will discuss later. It was as late as May 10, 2007, that I finally identified these stars, using information obtained from the Internet. These two stars turned out to be a prominent bright yellow star called Rigel Kent, also known as Alpha Centauri, and a white-blue star called 86

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ Hadar, also known as Beta Centauri. The Star Maps for Southern Africa designates these stars as Alpha and Pointers, respectively. However, Philip’s Southern Star Finder makes no mention of Alpha and Pointers, but refers to two stars which seem to correspond in their relative positions to the Crux and which in terms of their colour were designated Rigel Kent and Hadar, respectively.61 (These are more or less similar to some positions that I have recorded for these stars in relation to the Crux.) Another complicating factor was that two other “double” stars, which are blocked in the accompanying star map in Star Maps for Southern Africa, were also closely associated with the Crux and certain other celestial images. Thus I was concerned that I might be confusing these stars. However, the beautiful Phoenix tail stars were probably composed of a number of different stars from the constellations of Musca, Carina, the False Cross, Volans, Vela and Puppis. Figure 4.1 provides some indication of the stars involved, and a sense of the cascading tail. Turning to the upper body of the Phoenix: as mentioned before, the head was marked by a distinctive red star. Initially I thought this was Mars or Betelgeuse. Betelgeuse was the more likely choice since it had disappeared from the western horizon, and, like this star, it was a red star and was also associated with three other stars (the three stars in Orion’s Belt), only in this instance it rose differently on the SE line compared to how they were displayed on the Western Wall. As you will have noticed, there are many instances where my ignorance of the celestial bodies is quite laughable, but it might just be that this ignorance helped me to understand this very interesting and complex ancient cosmology. I will let you be the judge – once you have read the entire book. Mars was ruled out as a candidate for the red star since it was in the Magic Rectangle. Again it was only around May 2007, the following year, that I began to figure out the true identity of the red star. In the meanwhile, continuing with observations made in 2006, I noticed that the Phoenix was transforming, as if undergoing subsequent metamorphosis. As already alluded to, the star pattern that contained the red star started low on the SE horizon line with the head facing the direction of the sun; that is, true east, and moved progressively upwards. At about 9:00 pm, together with other stars, it formed the Jade Emperor alias Batman image (see chapter 5). The wing slowly changed as it swirled towards the SW point and the image took on the shape of what appeared to be an enormous bulbous creature resembling a great whale or dolphin in a vertical profile. To picture this, think of a dolphin leaping vertically from the water. Perhaps this has some relation to the legendary tale of the Great White? 87

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Next this entire star pattern, forming the head and body, swirled and associated with the tail stars to give rise to the legendary phoenix at the SW point. From 2:00 am onwards the tail began to disappear, seemingly into the SW horizon, while the head and body continued to swirl towards the west. In doing so, this structure became a pronounced, sharp, shoulder-arm/wing/tongue-like projection of another interesting being that I termed the Angelman (see chapter 11). This wing, when viewed differently, also looked like a large bear’s paw, or, alternatively, a pyramid hanging westwards, when viewed facing the SW line. When viewed along the NW line, moving the head completely upwards as if one is standing underneath the large paw, I observed, at 4:00 am on the April 22, 2006, the outline of the head of a large ape/monkey/baboon. Viewed together with the large bear’s paw, this gives the appearance of a primate wearing a skull-cap. This “primate” image resembled the leader monkey with a red hat, as depicted in the Indian Myths and Legends,62 but the face was not as round. Significantly, in this picture, most of the monkeys are in yellow, and the one that appears to be the leader is wearing a large yellow scarf and a yellow earring with two pearls, as if the artist wanted to emphasise the yellow nature of this particular monkey. The leader is wearing red shorts with a white waistband. A large yellow scarf runs from just above the waistband across the monkey’s left shoulder. I suspect that this image and the play with colours have to do with celestial images and the colours of certain other stars. The preponderance of yellow could be a way of stressing yellow planets, such as Saturn, whereas the red hat may be an emphasis on the red star I was attempting to identify. There are certainly enough images in this Indian painting which correlate with celestial images from my own observations. This suggests that this painting, as with several other Indian paintings captured in the same book, is a representation of the celestial conception of Ancient Indian peoples. It was only sometime in May 2006, between 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm, that I saw the same large bear’s paw image along the ES line, at a position more or less where the Bull’s Hind Leg had previously been, but hanging very low on the horizon. It also resembled an umbrella with the handle slanting upwards (to the south) and the canopy facing downwards (at an easterly slant). As the night progressed the handle became longer and the canopy moved upwards until the image eventually looked like a budding flower. While studying the Sky Guide, I got the impression that the red star might be Antares, a star that is part of the Scorpius Constellation. Yet three things puzzled me. First, both the Sky Guide and the Star Maps for Southern Africa noted that this constellation 88

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ becomes visible in May – remember, I had already observed this red star in April. Secondly, Philip’s Southern Star Finder, which was useful for the identification of Rigel Kent, depicted Antares as an orange-yellowish star, whereas the Star Maps for Southern Africa specifically notes: “The brightest star in Scorpius, Antares, is strikingly red.” This was in agreement with my own observations. Thirdly, Scorpius is always illustrated as a scorpion and described thus: “Scorpius, an easy constellation to spot because of its impressive size and bright, curved tail.” Now clearly I did not observe a scorpion. It was only once I had downloaded some articles from the Internet that I could confirm that Antares is indeed a reddish star, anything from pinkish (satin) red to a much deeper red colour. Philip’s Southern Star Finder is not technically wrong in depicting this star as orange-yellow in colour. It is the association of the Scorpius Constellation with other constellations such as Sagittarius, Corona Australia, Telescorpium, Lupus, Hydra and Centaurus (according to Star Maps for Southern Africa) which jointly appeared to “move”, swirling or turning clockwise and finally forming the body and wing of the Phoenix. Significantly, Antares occupied three different positions; SE, the centre of the sky canopy, and finally the western side. I am convinced from these movements of Antares (with Antares being regarded as significant by many different cultures, as reflected in their myths, beliefs, rituals and customs), that the SE point was conceptualised as a turning point. I hope you felt a bit of the awe and puzzlement I felt as you read this chapter. The mysterious elusive phoenix that captured the imagination of the ancients has been unveiled much “alive” as a celestial image. It is this image which took on many other identities such as the Celestial Tree, the Great Serpent and the Venus Lady, which will be discussed in subsequent chapters. In discussing ideas and traditions around the phoenix, we encountered other birds confusingly mixed with the phoenix. In chapters 5 and 6, I will discuss other celestial birds which may have contributed to this confusing mixture of ideas and traditions. The Magic Rectangle, identified in chapter 2, displayed its “magic” when it shifted from being horizontal as usual to vertical and in this orientation I termed it the Celestial Ladder. Ladders loom large in myths and in religion, from Jacob’s ladder in the Bible to the board game Snakes and Ladders. In Book 2 I will discuss the association of a great dog with a ladder as a celestial conception, and finally ladders are still associated with a number of irrational superstitions which I think were derived from this Magic Rectangle / Celestial Ladder. 89

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Lastly, we have seen that the Phoenix formed as the stars and the “white stuff” swirled from the SE to the SW to westerly in what appeared to be a clockwise movement. The Orion Cluster, as discussed in chapter 1, swirled in an anticlockwise direction. Some people represented these movements symbolically by a wheel and developed ideas about spinning wheels.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1.  Mythology and History, http://www.gravity.org/mythology. 2. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, eds., Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 10. 3. Phoenix, http://winshop.com.au/annew/Phoenix.html. 4. Herodotus, The History of Herodotus, vol. II, George Rawlinson, translation (classics. mit.edu/Herodotus/history.html), 73. 5. The Phoenix, www.phoenixmoon.org/thephoenixbackground.html. 6. Ibid. 7. Phoenix, http://winshop.com.au/annew/Phoenix.html. 8. Ibid. 9. Beautiful illustrations and additional information on the fabulous Phoenix can be found at: www.phoenixmoon.org/thephoenixbackground.html. 10. Laurence Gardner, Lost Secrets of the Sacred Ark – Amazing Revelations of the Incredible Power of Gold (United Kingdom: Element, 2003), photo-section. 11. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 261. 12. The Phoenix, www.phoenixmoon.org/thephoenixbackground.html. 13. Phoenix, http://winshop.com.au/annew/Phoenix.html. 14. Robert Bauval and Adrian Gilbert, The Orion Mystery (London: Arrow Books, 1998), 206-207. 15. Ibid. Pyramid Texts, 1652 as quoted. 90

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ 16. The Phoenix, www.phoenixmoon.org/thephoenixbackground.html. 17. Eileen Jensen Krige, The Social System of the Zulu (South Africa: Shuter & Shooter Publishers, 1936), 312. 18. Ibid., 320. 19. Ibid. 20. Umonya seems to be a composite of Min + Ya, and is probably the root for Mona as in the Mona Lisa. 21. Krige, The Social System of the Zulu, 320. 22. Ibid., 320. 23. Bauval and Gilbert, The Orion Mystery, 206-207. 24. Dante’s Inferno XXIV, line 97, from The Phoenix, www.phoenixmoon.org/thephoenixbackground.html. 25. Phoenix, http://winshop.com.au/annew/Phoenix.html. 26. This is a different take on the idea held by the Ancient Egyptians that the Phoenix transports its own dead father. 27. The Phoenix, www.phoenixmoon.org/thephoenixbackground.html. 28. Phoenix, http://winshop.com.au/annew/Phoenix.html. 29. Bauval and Gilbert, The Orion Mystery, 207. 30. Ibid., 206-207. 31. Ibid., 207. 32. Ibid. 33. David M. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation (London: Arrow Books Limited, 1990), 422-424. 34. Phoenix, http://winshop.com.au/annew/Phoenix.html. 35. Ibid. 36.  Dante, Oxford World’s Classics, The Divine Comedy, translated by C.H. Sisson (London: Oxford University Press, 1998).

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 37. There is an almost mystical reference to the tall cedars of Lebanon which appears to be an attempt by ancient peoples to keep alive the associations of height (towering) and green. 38. Maydi is probably a composite from May + Den/Din which became maiden and eventually ended as May. 39. Frankincense, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankincense (Boswellia – Wikipedia). 40. Boswellia frereana, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boswellia_fereana. 41. Fr in these words may just be a corrupt or deliberate change of Pr, that is pr, a word for house in the Egyptian language. 42. Bruce M. Metzger and Michael D. Coogan, eds., Oxford Companion to the Bible (New York: Oxford University Press, 1993), 232. 43. Encyclopaedia Britannica. 44. Encyclopaedia Britannica. 45. Encyclopaedia Britannica. 46. Ibid. 47. Myrrh: botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/m/myrrh-66.html. 48. Metzger and Coogan, Oxford Companion to the Bible, 538. 49. Beigel, http://users.winshop.com.au/annew/Antares.html). 50. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 290. 51. Manfred Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson Ltd., 1980), 62. 52. Ibid. 53. Ibid., 117. 54. Ibid., 62. 55. James George Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 181. 56. Painting, 1780, National Museum of India, New Delhi. 57. Albert Jansen, Star Maps for the Southern Sky – An Easy Guide to the Night Sky, (South 92

4 : The fabulous great phoenix __________________________________________________________________ Africa: Struik Publishers, 2004), Cape Town, South Africa. Lower star pattern on pages 26-27. 58. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 106. 59. Hyades and Aldebaran were identified using Jansen, Star Maps for the Southern Sky. 60. Double star does not refer to our modern astronomical usage of the term: in my layman’s terminology I use it to indicate two stars which always seem to move together. 61. John Woodruff and Wil Tirion, Philip’s Southern Star Finder – A Month-by-Month Guide to the Night Sky (Great Britain: Phillips, 2002). 62. Kathleen. E. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends (Great Britain: Brockhampton Press, 2004), 11.

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Chapter 5

BATMAN / THE JADE EMPEROR / THE ELDEST SON This celestial Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son image at the Eastern Wall is perhaps one of the most complex images since it consists of multiple overlapping images and undergoes various transformations. It is also at the Eastern Wall that multiple other important images were observed and these are associated with the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son image in different ways, thus adding to the complexity. The different images have been dealt with in an amazing number of different ways by various ancient cultures, in their stories, traditions and artistic representations, intriguingly surviving in various disguises even in contemporary societies. Have you ever wondered what inspired ideas and traditions of riches, merchants, boat owners, kingship and the sacrifice of the king? Why was the king the shepherd, the hunter and the hunted? The Venda king owns a sacred forest, no different from the many sacred forests of royalty in Britain, Europe and other places in the world. The sacrifice of the eldest son was common in the ancient world; why was it practised? Where did the idea of Batman come from? God tells Abraham “This man [Ishmael] will not be your heir, but a son [Isaac] coming from your own body will be your heir” (Gen. 15:4). Have you ever pondered on the real meaning of these words or have you accepted the dogmatic explanation? The Greek god Cronus eats his children, an idea which inspired cannibalism, what is the meaning of this? These are just some of the many interesting aspects whose celestial imagery is explored in this chapter. For simplicity’s sake, the designation Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son is at times shortened to the Jade Emperor. Observing the Jade Emperor In chapter 4, I described my observations of the April 21, 2006 and among the images 94

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ I observed is an image that I called Batman / Jade Emperor. Little did I realise then that this image has multiple aliases which have given rise to a myriad of ideas and traditions. It was at 9:08 pm that I instantly recognised the wings and the head of the Batman image on the Eastern Wall. The serenity of the head captured my attention – the features of the face resembled those of a noble, wise man with a medium-sized, bushy beard. For some strange reason my mind immediately registered “The Jade Emperor” and I had a distinctive recollection that this image was linked to the Chinese Emperors. It was only later, when writing this chapter, that I stumbled upon a very interesting Chinese painting of the great sage Confucius,1 and noticed that the illustration strikingly captures the celestial ambience of the image I had dubbed The Jade Emperor. In this Chinese painting the bust of Confucius is outlined in pale silvery-white paint against a powdery, grey-blue background. Daubs of silverywhite around the head give a glittering, starry quality to the face. The artist’s focus appears to be on the face, as if to emphasise the nobility and wisdom consistent with writings about the sage. On his head is a boat-shaped hat while his broad shoulders are covered with a typical Chinese robe, resembling a kimono. The mythological Confucius Even though I had heard and read about Confucius, especially about his happy couplefamily-society philosophy, and I had glanced through his summarised philosophies in Great Thinkers of the Eastern World, I do not recall having seen any pictures of the sage. When I read more about Confucius in Mythology I was struck by a number of aspects, in both books, which seem to suggest that he may have been a mythohistorical creation.2 We have already seen him mentioned in relation to the phoenix. Later we will see more of his characteristics related to other celestial images. If he was a real person he is portrayed as someone with distinct celestial characteristics, which corresponds with the worldview of ancient peoples “As in heaven so too below”, meaning in this case that a real person embodies characteristics of celestial images or is portrayed as a celestial being. Confucius, a Latin form of the Chinese name K’ung-Fu-tzu, is said to have been a renowned and influential philosopher and advisor to the Zhou Dynasty. Master K’ung was born in 551 BC in Lu Province in China and died there in 479 BC. The area is nowadays known as Shandong or Shantung. Confucius impressed people with his integrity, honesty and particularly his pleasant personality, and with his enthusiasm as a teacher. Over three thousand people came to study under him and over seventy became well educated. His ideas became the national ideology of the Han Dynasty during the second century AD. He is regarded as one of the most significant figures of Chinese history and was honoured as “The Ultimate 95

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Sage-Teacher”. His philosophical ideology (a blend of political, sociological and esotericism) spread to other Asian countries such as Japan, Korea and Singapore.3 Many classic writings are attributed to him, yet most scholars agree that only the Analects (lunyu/Lu-yü) represent his ideas. The Analects are a collection of notes and quotations written down by his disciples and edited after his death. This circumstance parallels that of Socrates (born c. 470 BC), the mysterious Greek sage who also did not record his theories and whose (presumed) ideas were documented by his pupils after his death. Similarly Jesus and Mohammed did not record their ideas; they were recorded by their followers. This idea of a “sage who speaks but cannot write” is too frequent to be mere coincidence; perhaps a particular celestial conception is being conveyed? The legendary Lao-tzu (Laozi), who is linked with Confucius, was supposedly an older contemporary of Confucius.4 According to some accounts he died and was buried in China whereas in others he is immortal. In his immortal state he apparently became restless and decided to leave China to travel westwards and mysteriously disappeared. But a border guard recognised him and would not allow him to leave China until he had committed his wisdom to writing. It took Laozi two or three weeks to write the “Duode jing, a slim volume of eighty-one short chapters consisting of a little over 5,000 Chinese characters”.5 This he gave to the guard and then he disappeared westward mounted on his bull. His riding of a bull associates him with Mithra, another mythical-religious deity, who is shown riding a bull and slaying it. Remarkably, pictures and statues of Laozi riding a bull are still popular throughout East Asia. 6 The connection between Loazi and Confucius is highlighted in a Chinese painting showing both men wearing several layers of large oversized robes, with Laozi looking particularly old and ragged.7 Is his appearance perhaps suggesting that he has taken on multiple disguises and was ready to be replaced by a newer being? Laozi’s bare feet are prominent while Confucius’ legs are entirely covered with flowing robes. Only the tips of his strange turned-up shoes are visible. Confucius is gently holding a bare-bottomed baby close to his own face. The baby has a conspicuous, unusual hairstyle: his head is entirely bald except for a round tuft of hair on his forehead, a red horizontal line bisects the circle of hair, and behind his ear is a single curl of hair with a similar red line. The chubby baby is characteristically depicted with his arms and legs stretched out to the front, in what I call the Eldest Son pose. He is wearing a bright red top; the colour stands out against the pale clothing worn by the two sages. It appears that Confucius is “handing over” the baby to Laozi. While the artistic rendering of this chubby baby – the naked bottom, the red line and top, the unusual hairstyle with the single curl – are suggestive of the Horus Child, the posture 96

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ of the infant and its close proximity to the face of Confucius remind me of artworks showing Coronus eating his eldest children. This suggests to me that this picture is a euphemistic rendition of a similar idea. The chubby baby depiction should also be seen in the context of the chubby angels, the cherubim, commonly depicted in European art. According to the legend, this painting is a symbolic representation of the link between Confucius and his contemporary Laozi – the creator of Daoism. The child represents Buddha, who was educated by Confucius. “Confucius’ teachings impacted on Chinese mythology by creating culture heroes, that is, men that were worshipped as gods.”8 Several characteristics of this painting suggest the dramatic rendering of celestial images, with Laozi (presumably) being portrayed as the Orion Man or “Indian Chief” celestial images, and Confucius assuming the role of the Jade Emperor. The Chinese paintings and some of the so-called historical information suggest, indirectly, a celestial basis for Confucius and his ideas. However, there are further direct suggestions of a celestial nature, highlighted in bold, in the following extract from the Analects: K’ung8 said, “The ruler who governs the state through virtue is like the pole star, which stays put while the other stars revolve round it.” K’ung said, “All of the three hundred odes in the Classic of Poetry can be summed up in one of its lines: ‘Have no wrong thoughts.’” K’ung said, “At fifteen my mind was fixed on learning. At thirty my character had been formed. At forty I had no more confusions. At sixty it was easy for me to hear the truth. At seventy I could follow my desires without transgressing what was right.”

The idea of one star having prominence – “like the pole star, which stays put while the other stars revolve round it” – should be seen in the same cosmological context as Joseph’s dream in which the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to him (Gen. 37:9), the star of Judas Iscariot,9 and the Star of Bethlehem which announced the birth of Jesus. Reading more about Confucius in Mythology I came upon a direct reference to the Jade Emperor couched within mythological imagery, which resonates with celestial imagery that is constantly shifting and being transformed.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The fourth century BC Daoist work attributed to Zhuang Zhou or Master Zhuang (Zhuangzi) opens with a myth of the world in constant transformation. In the northern abyss there is a fish. Its name is Kun.10 It is gigantic, and no one knows how many thousands of li (a mystical measurement) it stretches. It is transformed and becomes a bird called Peng with a back so large that no one knows how many thousands of li it is wide. Peng springs into the air and flies, and its wings are like clouds floating in the sky. This bird floats above the waves towards the Pool of Heaven. This may be a product of Zhuang’s extraordinary imagination, but it reads like a cosmological myth.11 Interestingly it is only recently that an array of spirit beings in the scriptures of the ancient people is being revealed and explored. And what makes it more fascinating is the fact that their link with celestial imagery is becoming more evident. It is told that Daoism became an organised religion from the second century AD. It had its own priests, disciplinary and moral rules, rituals and “a pantheon of gods and goddesses” with the ruling “trinity comprising the Celestial Venerable of the Original Beginning, the Jade Emperor, and Lord Lao up in Heaven, who was none other than Laozi.”12 A prominent feature of Daoism was the emphasis they placed on the female, possibly learnt from Laozi, who in his words of wisdom recorded “the source of all as the gateway of the mysterious female”. This should also be seen against the mystery of the Jewish Shekinah, the Virgin Mary and Isis. The female aspect is again reflected in the evolution of a cult who believed the Queen Mother of the West knew the secret of immortality. She lived on a very high mountain in a nine-storey palace built of jade. The Peach Tree of Immortality grew in her magnificent garden, which was home to many immortals that lived “in an endless series of amusements and banquets”. This idea should be seen as similar to the Greek Olympian deities, who are further portrayed as being violent, cunning and diabolical. “Daoism also developed the mythology and iconography of the Eight Immortals which have become an integral part of popular Chinese religion. Daoists believed that human beings can become Immortals (xian) through special practices, and many of these Immortals were revered.”13 Batman and his magic cloak As I was watching the entire region, from the ES point to the south, I saw what looked like a giant moth against a bright light, then I noticed the outstretched wings and the image began to resemble an ascending flying Superman with a cloak. No, it was Batman! In fact, this celestial image in its many transformations became the basis for the Great Bow and Arrow alias the Great Sword/Knife alias the Screeching Swallow image (chapter 8), and also, incredibly, the Venus figurines (chapter 10) as 98

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ well as other aliases. It is no wonder there are so many myths and traditions related to this Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son celestial image. Perhaps these transformational images initiated the different interpretations attached to this celestial batman-like image, giving rise to fanciful ideas such as Batman, vampires (which presumably became Ampire and later Empire/Emperor), flying witches on brooms and angels. Similar ideas with very ancient roots are found in the stories, traditions and artistic representations of various ancient cultures, in an amazing number of slightly different guises. Such ideas survive in various disguises even in contemporary societies. Batman-with-wings and Superman-with-a-cloak (symbolic of wings) are part of modern fictional culture and are considered to be recently invented characters, but in fact they are reworkings of ancient ideas. It is the same Batman-like imagery, especially the winged aspect, which found expression in the wearing of cloaks by priests, nuns, magicians and nobles. In Eastern nations it evolved into wide-spreading gowns such as the kimono. It is apparent, as with magicians of today, that the cloak had some ritual significance. Here is one example supporting this claim. In her account of Zulu rituals, Krige notes that during the ritual sacrifice of a goat or a bull, all the cattle are assembled in the kraal and the ancestral assegai (spear), which is passed on from father to son, is used to slaughter the bull or the goat. Krige adds: “In every well-regulated kraal there was, in the old days, a large ceremonial isiPhuku (cloak) in the hut of the oldest woman, usually the mother of the kraal head, and this was reserved for sacrificial occasions.”14 In this ceremony the goat or bull represents the celestial image Goat-Sheep/Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head (chapter 3). This is the same “spear” that the man called Boötes of the Boötes Constellation is carrying and it is also the spear that the Roman soldier plunged into the side of Jesus! Appreciating the link between the wing and the cloak explains why mythological figures such as the Jade Emperor, as we have seen with Confucius, are normally depicted in Chinese art as buxom figures wearing this type of dress. Even more subtly, these same images gave rise to the depiction of other mythological figures such as Buddha, for example, in a squatting pose. This squatting pose was adopted by various cultures when eating, praying or meditating. A more common representation of the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son image was the creation of paintings or statuettes as busts of certain individuals – a bust being a representation of the upper part of the human figure, especially the head and shoulders. This is an important art form in various ancient societies, where the wings of Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son are represented by large rounded extensions of the shoulders and chest areas. While most of this may seem just too incredible to believe, I hope you will see how 99

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ all these, and other speculations, will eventually make sense as we proceed. Batman in Mesopotamia The character of our modern-day Batman, popularised first through comic books and later by the Hollywood film industry, appears to have a factual basis in archaeology. Among the many artefacts and objects excavated by the archaeologist Sir Leonard Woolley at Ur in Mesopotamia, seat of the Sumerian civilisation, which is regarded as one of the oldest civilisations in the world, was a beautiful stringed musical instrument resembling a harp.15 The head of this harp-like instrument depicts a golden bovine with prominent ivory horns and a human beard. Fascinatingly, all nine finger-like strands of the beard end in a clockwise swirl, an aspect which is presumably symbolic of the clockwise swing of the celestial images at the ES point (chapter 1). But the focus is on a bat-like creature, also known as the “Master of Animals”, which appears on the breast of the harp in four separate scenes. From top to bottom, the first scene is of a batman with checkerboard wings and a body sitting/ rising between two goats standing back-to-back on their hind legs. The next scene depicts two upright bovines, each with a single horn, standing back-to-back. The third scene depicts the Master of Animals standing upright on the hind legs of an animal with a tail, possibly a horse, holding two leopards turned upside down, one on each side, with their heads at his feet. Lastly, we have a calf-like animal being devoured or hugged by a lion-man. The Lid of Palenque and Batman Maurice Cotterell,16 an internationally acclaimed writer, engineer and pioneering scientist, worked at deciphering a mysterious code found in the tomb of a prominent priest-king leader, Lord Pascal of the Mayans, who reigned in AD 750. Cotterell summarises his findings and presents some interesting pictures which he decoded from the “Lid of Palenque” from the sarcophagus of Lord Pascal. Cotterell is correct in remarking that this lid “reveals the secrets of life and the universe…The secret stories of the Lid of Palenque describe the purpose of life, and death; the journey of the soul through the underworld; and how the soul of man can return to the creator purified, or diminished, returning to earth later for another try at purification through suffering…”17 I agree with his interpretations; however, such ideas, essentially about life, death, reincarnation and resurrection, must be understood in the cosmological context and not in our modern, abstract and fanciful religious doctrines which portray reincarnation and resurrection as real processes. Reincarnation and resurrection are common themes of the ancient world and they survive today in certain contemporary societies, most noticeably Christianity (resurrection) and Hinduism (reincarnation). Further, these ideas are not deep mysteries but are derived from an ancient worldview, 100

5 :Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ interpreted from various celestial images. Cotterell is also correct in noting that the scenes and objects depict various transformations of Lord Pascal, from a baby quetzal bird into Quetzalcoatl (quetzal, a beautiful green-feathered bird, and coatl meaning snake thus giving a green-feathered bird-serpent), which “represented the soaring spirit, rebirth, resurrection and everlasting life.”18 And somehow the bat also seems to feature in these transformations since a bat-faced god (plate 4), which is nothing like my Batman, is part of the scene. In decoding the images on the Lid of Palenque, Cotterell demonstrates that what initially appears to be a simple, single picture is actually a multi-layered holograph which reveals several other intriguing pictures. It seems that in this form of artistic representation the artist was attempting to convey the notion that while these are different images, they are in fact multiple forms of one image. Because these were associated with Lord Pascal, there is a further suggestion that he was all of these, or would become all of these through his transformations. While this is a puzzling concept for modern people, we are faced with similar ideas. For example, the threein-one concept of the Christian Trinity – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, separate but one. This is precisely what I am describing when I list the many aliases of the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son. Several other interesting images, recognisable as celestial images discussed in this book, emerged from decoding the Lid of Palenque; these include a cat (chapter 16) and a Great Bear (the Great Bear/Fish is discussed in chapter 4), which is a very interesting representation. The Great Bear is interpreted by Cotterell as “Yaotl, god of the North”. “He was the bad god, who lived in the northern sky. Deprived of light…hence associated with darkness and deceit and so became known as Two Faces. Legend has it that the good god Quetzalcoatl fought Yaotl, who fell from the sky into the Ocean.” Plate 6 appears to depict a battle between Quetzalcoatl and Yaotl. Quetzalcoatl is the man with wings, depicted as a squatting man with his hands clasped behind his head (rather like a person doing sit-ups). Above his head is the strange image of Yaotl. This image certainly seems to relate to the Jade Emperor. Plate 9 apparently depicts a boy wearing a hat, and on his head is a second image of a boy, that is, a “double face”. Once again this suggests the face of the Jade Emperor. According to the author this boy is thought to be the boy-king Lord Pascal. He has a forked tongue, and consequently is also a feathered snake. The feathered snake is actually the Phoenix (chapter 4, but see also chapter 15 for the Celestial Snakes). 101

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Plate 11 shows a composite scene of the Olmec head, and most interestingly it contains an image that resembles the face “of a jade figurine, of a bearded white man”. The figurine is of a dwarf-like, squatting, old man with a haughty, little projecting tongue. Plates 12 and 13, which I interpret as relating to my Phoenix-Snake, are briefly discussed by Cotterell. The legend to plate 12 notes: “At the top of this composite picture [is] the eagle with forked tongue…Beneath, a snake rears its head… this snake tells us that the eagle above…is also a snake…the flower shape in the centre represents the Maya symbol for completion.” Describing Plate 13, Cotterell notes: “Here the head of the eagle with the forked tongue is replaced by a very tiny head of Lord Pascal…Above the bird…the eyes of Lord Pascal …watch over the creation of Quetzalcoatl. This reveals that Lord Pascal created himself …Beneath the eagle, [is] a large Olmec head…The Olmec head is therefore also Quetzalcoatl. The lower part of the face is covered by an approaching bat…In the same way, a bat covered the face of Lord Pascal…” Furthermore Cotterell notes that “the large seashell of the conch snail was used as a trumpet.” The celestial significance of the conch shell in relation to another celestial image, Angelman, is discussed in chapter 11. Batman in the Bible We even have a biblical “bat” linked to a rather strange story surrounding an “alien” boy who is none other than the prominent biblical figure Noah,19 who was born of a woman with the letters for “bat” in her name. These fantastic events were encoded in the Lamech Scroll and have been decoded and explained in the book Chariots of the Gods. Sadly numerous paragraphs in the text have been lost over time, but the message deciphered in the remaining text is worth retelling. Lamech20 was greatly disturbed on coming home to find his wife with a strange boy whom she presented to him as his child, saying “that the seed came from him, and not from a soldier or a stranger or one of the ‘sons of heaven’”. What disturbed Lamech was that this little boy did not resemble anyone in the family let alone himself or his wife Bat-Enosh. Distraught he sought advice from his father, Methuselah, who in turn went to see the wise Enoch. It was not an easy journey but “the cuckoo in the family nest was causing so much trouble that the old man accepted the hardships of the long journey”. Methuselah explained to Enoch that this “cuckoo” looked more like “a son of heaven than a man”. After listening intently to Methuselah’s story, Enoch sent him back with extremely worrying news that a great judgment would come upon the earth and mankind and that all “flesh” would be destroyed because it was sordid and dissolute. But the strange boy of whom the family was suspicious 102

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ had been chosen as the progenitor of those who would survive the great universal judgment. Therefore he ordered his son Lamech to call the child Noah.21 Although it may sound bizarre, this idea of linking a woman with a bat, namely Bat-Enosh, seems to be a different or an alternative version of Isis crying like a “Screeching Swallow” (see later). Antares associated with a bat Antares is the most prominent star in the “tail” of the modern Scorpio Constellation and this tail structure is also part of the prominent wing of the celestial image Jade Emperor / Batman. The following information, which associates Antares with a bat, is therefore highly supportive of my assertion that a celestial image in the vicinity of the Scorpio Constellation was interpreted by the ancients as a bat – “It (Antares) pointed out to the Babylonians their 24th ecliptic constellation, Hurru,22 of uncertain meaning, Antares itself being Ur-bat…Some said that the word Antares signifies a ‘Bat’, which, as Vespertilio, Sophocles perhaps called it; but Bayers erroneously quoted from Hesychios…a ‘Rebel’, and ‘Tyrannus’.”23 These various titles for Antares are not necessarily erroneous; these may just be different designations for the multiple transformational images of the Jade Emperor / Batman, who is associated with Antares. Further changes of the Jade Emperor I started describing the Jade Emperor / Batman by focusing on his face and wings, and soon discovered that this image is an extremely complex, multi-layered image that can be interpreted in many different ways, depending on how one views the image. It was only by piecing together a number of observations made after April 21, 2006, that I uncovered various other features and aliases of the Jade Emperor / Batman. On April 22, 2006, at about 6 pm, while gazing along the SE line, I recognised a strange bird which I termed the “Fowl-CHICK” (see chapter 6). The rear end and the wing of this Fowl-CHICK was the star configuration that transformed into the head of Batman / Jade Emperor. As this head rose in the night sky, the lower position (previously occupied by the head) was Scorpio’s tail. At about 11:30 pm the head was high up on the SE point, sitting on the “squatting body” formed by a collection of stars from the constellations of Scorpius, Sagittarius, Ara, Triangulum, etc., and by this time the image of Batman / Jade Emperor was fully formed. The star map shown in figure 5.1, taken from Star Maps for Southern Africa, provides some indication of the stars involved.24 As I watched intently this image slowly underwent various transformations which 103

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ could be visualised as different images. The head area fascinated me the most. It was on May 28, 2006, while looking at the stars on the SE line and trying to understand the stars involved in the western wing of the Phoenix, which I initially thought was composed by the Corvus Constellation, that I began performing time sequence observations, starting when the stars became visible at about 6 pm. At 6:25 pm, I noticed that the Scorpio Constellation lay low against the SE line and that stars in the region of the Centaurus and Lupus constellations (see the star map of the Jade Emperor), which formed the head of Batman / Jade Emperor, were above and joined to the Scorpius Constellation. By 7:30 pm, the stars forming the head moved south, giving the impression that the entire Batman complex was turning in a clockwise direction. Then on July 15, at 6:21 pm, as I recorded the image of the Jade Emperor once again, it struck me that the head-neck area of the Jade Emperor seemed to resemble Bes, a strange, deformed, dwarf-like god venerated by the Ancient Egyptians. As I watched the star patterns I observed an appearance of chubbiness in the area around the chin and neck, alternatively resembling the collar of a clown, and a medium-length, cropped beard, giving the celestial face an uncanny similarity to the face of Bes as seen in different pictures. For lack of a better description of the appearance around the chin and neck, I will refer to this as a “clown’s collar”. Bes and his many colours According to Budge and Churchward, Bes, an Egyptian deity, was “purely Egyptian” in origin, dating to the very early Pre-Dynastic period. Bes is usually presented as an ithyphallic dwarf-like being with a huge bearded head, a protruding tongue, a flat nose, shaggy eyebrows and hair, large projecting ears, long arms and short, bowed legs that look deformed. The big head with pointed ears reminds one of European ideas around the so-called Hobbit.25 He wears a tiara of feathers on his head, and around his body he wears the skin of a panther with the head and tail still attached. The tail dangles onto the ground behind his back. All these features suggested to Budge a savage or semi-savage origin for Bes.26 Considered the oldest Egyptian god, Bes was known as the “Old Father” and being a primary form of Horus I in the Lunar mythos he “never became lost but merged into Horus I” during the Stellar Mythos. Churchward argues that Khensu-Nefer-Hetep,27 one of the gods of Egypt from the Lunar Mythos, was the original Horus I and by extension Bes. He further notes that Nefer-Hetep28 is Khensu-Nefer-Hetep, who wears a distinguishing cross – hung around his neck by a “collar” – an insignia of Bes.29 He furthermore claims that “perhaps one of the best examples that can be found of prehistoric Crosses is seen on the ‘God Bes’, with a chain of beads around his neck, the same as the Roman Catholics wear round their necks.”30 104

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ Bes appears to be one of the oldest gods of Ancient Egypt and it is my contention that this god took on various aliases in different cultures across the globe. Origin of Bes and subsequent changes of his name The first intriguing possibility is that the name Bes is a switch of Seb (seB) or sAb (jackal). Seb or sAb is linked to another Egyptian god, Geb, who is also considered one of the oldest gods of Ancient Egypt. “Geb, sometimes written as Seb [who is pictured as a young man sitting on the low throne], was the son of Shu and known as the ‘father of the gods’. Although God of the earth, he was god of the dead because of his association with the buried.”31 Secondly the name Bes may be a change of Ur-BAT, where the letter “t” was substituted with an “s”, probably to designate the male form of Ur-BAT. Bes/Bas/Bus may also be related to Bastet, a possible root for the word bastard, a cat goddess regarded as the mother of the “savage-faced” lion-god Miysis who bore the epithet “Lord of Slaughter”. Bes is also associated with lions and in his warrior nature he could also be considered the Lord of Slaughter. The hieroglyphic signs that spell Bes’s name, from left to right, are: a leg, a folded towel sign (like a bent walking-stick) and a short semi-squatting man with his arms to the side, while a large dangling object, suggesting a penis, rests on his thighs and between his legs. On his head is what appears to be a five-plumed crown. Most of the features depicted in these hieroglyphic signs are similar to the features of the Sudanese Bes.32 The word Bes may also be the base for the words bees and baas (Baas as in Boss, the word black South Africans used when addressing a white South African man). The association of Bes with bees is not just wild speculation. Honey had some sacred value to the Egyptians, the Israelites are promised the land of milk and honey by their god, the Pygmy attaches great value to honey, and in the New Testament the diet of John the Baptist was locusts and honey. It is my contention that this association of bees with Bes is the result of conceptualising the Leopard Skin (and its many aliases) as a honey-comb (see later). There are two representations of Bes in the Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt. The first is a carved sandstone relief within the temenos of the temple at Dendera. It dates to the Ptolemaic Period (after 116 BC) and depicts a grotesque, feline-like dwarf with a small, protruding tongue, wearing a clown’s collar. The emphasis is on the head with broad shoulders “separating” the lower torso, with a visible breakline. The torso is again separated from the tiny legs by another break. These breaks 105

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ appear to be part of the design of the actual artwork.33 This would make sense in view of the shifting, component parts of the Jade Emperor celestial image. I suspect the ridiculously tiny legs of the statue were to emphasise their insignificance, since the archetype image does not really have any legs at all. Alternatively, these tiny legs (which could be a single leg) suggest an attempt to represent the “leg stars” (chapter 12). The feline appearance and the large size of the head probably denote the transformation of the Jade Emperor into a lion’s head. But Bes has also been represented as a lion rearing up on its hind legs. The second representation of Bes, a small bronze cippus from the late Ptolemaic or Roman period (Musée d’Art et d’Historia, Geneva), is the one that I initially associated with the Jade Emperor. Unlike the relief just described, the cippus bears several features which more closely resemble the celestial image. These include the facial features (human as opposed to feline), the grotesque, chubby, Father Christmas-like head with a beard, and the position of the head just above the head of a naked Horus Child with a side curl.34 From these two artworks we see that Bes was depicted with either a beard or a clown’s collar. Bes and the clown’s collar It is my contention that this same clown’s collar motif was later modified and incorporated into the dress of kings, queens, other royal persons, some priests and even some dogs, in Europe. For example, one of van Dyck’s paintings, “Portrait of a family” (1621), said to be of a bourgeois35 family, depicts a lady wearing a dress with a modified clown’s collar.36 Later paintings by van Dyck suggest that there may be more to this style of dress than just the fashion of the period. His painting of “Madonna and Child with Donors” (ca. 1635) shows similarly dressed individuals, yet their clothing is now associated with religious imagery. The painting shows the Madonna seated with a child on her lap. This child is baby Jesus, naked except for some cloth covering his private parts; with one hand he is touching the pointed beard of an elderly male depicted close to an elderly female. The elderly man and woman are similarly dressed, all in black except for their white clown’s collars and white cuffs. An intriguing aspect of this painting is that above the heads of this elderly couple are two chubby baby angels, cherubim,37 one of whom has two red roses in his hands.38 Another example of this motif is the ironically termed “Self-Portrait” of Marie-LouiseElisabeth Vigeé-Lebrun (1755-1842, Paris).39 This painting depicts a young girl wearing a clown’s collar while painting a barely discernible Queen Marie Antoinette. 106

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) explores the same motif in two interesting paintings. The first, “Self-Portrait with Isabella40 Brant” (his wife), shows the artist seated, with his legs crossed and clad in conspicuously yellow stockings. Below him, also seated, is Isabella, wearing a large cowboy-like hat and a large clown’s collar.41 In his second painting, “The Four Philosophers” (ca. 1611/12),42 presumably representing the four faces of the Jade Emperor, four males are depicted sitting at a table. The most prominent of these figures (apparently a representation of the important philosopher Justus Lipsius) is wearing a smaller clown’s collar and, significantly, a black coat with a massive leopard-skin collar. The portrayal of both the clown’s collar and the leopard-skin – both insignias of Bes – on one character is highly meaningful. Then as if to further emphasise that Lipsius is the most important of the four men, just behind him is a massive spotty coloured pillar. The spotty pillar is symbolic of the Leopard Skin. Between and above Lipsius and another male, shown lower down with a dog at his side, is a bust of a serious-looking male with a fluffy beard, holding four flowers. One flower is red, another yellow, and both are still in bud form. The other two are white with red stripes and are in full bloom. On his right, seated lower down, is a young man also wearing a large clown’s collar, his hand crossed with the hand of Lipsius. The crossing of their hands, and the fact that both of them are wearing clowns’ collars, seems to emphasise a connection between the two figures. An earlier painting by Sánchez Coella, “The Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia” (1579),43 depicts a very young daughter of Phillip II clothed in a magnificent, regal dress with a brilliant clown’s collar. She is wearing a hat with pearls and two feathers. What is interesting about these paintings is that, in most cases, youths and women are associated with these pronounced clowns’ collars. There appears to be a contradiction in this because if these are symbolic of the Bes, a male, then these collars should all be worn by males. Why this contradiction? Bes as a cherub and his association with femaleness Yet when I looked more closely at Bes, as depicted on the bronze cippus from the late Ptolemaic or Roman Period, I became aware of the fact that it was not only the physical similarities which give me the impression that Bes was a representation of the Jade Emperor. Another aspect which supported this idea was the portrayal of Bes’s head above the head of the naked Horus Child. As we have seen, baby Buddha is depicted naked, baby Jesus is often depicted naked and so are the cherubim.44 The baby, youth, birth and even femaleness of the Bes conceptions relate to three associated celestial images: the Jade Emperor, the Eldest Son, and Jade Emperor 107

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ giving birth to the Horus Child, Angelman (see later). Once you understand which celestial image served as the archetype for the Horus Child, you will comprehend its relation to Bes as depicted in this artwork. The Egyptians revered Bes as the protector of households, in particular mothers, children and childbirth. He was seen as a dwarf-like spirit with deformed legs, and the cheeky face of a good-natured, jovial, old man. He was often depicted with a protruding tongue. His jovial nature was emphasised by depicting him with musical instruments. Is it perhaps these particular features (the cheeky face of a goodnatured, jovial, old man) which are preserved in the traditional appearance of Father Christmas, who is also associated with children? Similarly, depictions of Buddha as an old, chubby, laughing man may be an attempt to portray him as Bes. In the Eighteenth Dynasty Bes is shown with wings. Here you might see the start of the winged chubby angelic babies of European art. In the Late Period he was associated with the “birth house” at Dendera on the roof of the temple in Mammisi. “Here the annual mysteries of the birth of the divine son were celebrated.”45 This “birth of the divine son” is another indication that Bes was symbolic of the Jade Emperor in the celestial birth conception described above. This “birth of the divine son” inspired similar ideas in many ancient societies including the “divine or special births” of the Horus Child, Jesus, Buddha and Krishna. As with other celestial ideas, this idea gave rise to traditions in which the birth and sons of persons conceived as representing the Jade Emperor were revered and celebrated. It’s also within this context that we should understand the claim of royals to divine ordination. Bes, being the protector against evil, was among the gods who presided over birth, which took place in the birth house, a place where two goddesses were believed to live in a special kind of stone. Interestingly, this stone was used to make two tablets, presumably symbolic of the Magic Rectangle, which was used for birth purposes: Two tablets made of this stone were laid down on the spot where it was arranged that the birth of the child should take place, the Hebrew women also used such tablets. These were called hâobhnayim, literally, “the two stone tablets.” When the son of a king was born several of the old gods and goddesses were believed to come into the birth-chamber to protect the child, and among these were Heqt or Heqit, the Frog-goddess, Taurit, the Hippopotamus-goddess, and the very ancient god, Bes. Both Heqit and Taurit were goddesses of fertility and birth and Bes was supposed to be disarmed by their jests and drolleries and laughter the less harmful of the evil spirits, and to attack with his sword and put to flight the demons who would injure the mother and her child.46

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5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ Bes’ image was worked into head-rests, beds, mirrors and especially cosmetic pots, as unguents and cosmetics were used not only to ward off the evil eye but also for beauty care.23 Cosmetic pots and mirrors are mainly associated with females and I think these items were symbolic of Bes’ feminine nature – a man who gives birth. Bes the warrior/soldier This little man, Bes, was also depicted wearing a lion skin around his shoulders with the tail and ears still attached to the skin. At times he was depicted in a soldier’s tunic. Both the soldier’s tunic and the animal skin indicate the warrior instinct – to ward off evil spirits. After the Late New Kingdom this little man was adorned in a panther skin with the head and claws still attached. The claws were placed across his breast; it is this crossing which gave rise to the X sign, at times represented by crossed bones, as a symbol of Bes. Of particular significance is his association with the lion skin, or the panther or leopard skin. Lion and leopard skins are still symbols of royalty and warriorship in some African tribes. In the second largest African Church, the Shembe Church in South Africa, the leopard skin is a symbol of “holiness” reserved for the Elders (men only). This has prompted concerns among conservationists about this animal, which is among the endangered species. The panther and jaguars had similar significance among some of the native South American tribes. The lion skin must also be understood in the context of other celestial “lions” (see chapter 16). The celestial image of a Leopard Skin, which is actually the head of the Jade Emperor, is a significant image with many aliases (see chapter 6). A special form of Bes was called Aha,47 that is a “fighter”, and in this form he is seen throttling two serpents (see chapter 15) with his bare hands or seizing hold of a Sethian gazelle (see chapter 16).48 Both these creatures were associated with evil and femininity. This warrior/soldier/fighter/violence aspect of Bes is probably symbolic of the fierceness of the felines with which he was associated, but is also connected to the knife, symbolic of the celestial Knife/Sword/Phallus image (chapter 8). A deity linked to the Egyptian Bes combines the good nature and fighting/violence aspects. In contrast to the shortness aspect which is a typical feature of Bes, Budge’s book presents a sketch of a tallish Bes labelled “Bes, the Sudani49 god, wearing plumes” – five, V-shaped, rib-like structures, similar to those on the head of Bes. “He was the god of mirth and jollity, and as a god of music plays a harp. He also appears in the form of a jovial soldier.”50

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ In the sketch, Bes is wearing, or sitting on, a low fish-tailed skirt or sofa, with one foot placed firmly on a rectangular block, and he has a long tail. In addition, as if to emphasise his jovial musicality, he is playing a large harp. His face and beard are more or less similar to the features of Bes. Bes is also associated with two other symbols: • Pillows with motifs of the heads of Bes. “Pillows of wood were frequently ornamented with ivory inlay, and on the rounded portions beautifully carved figures of the head of Bes are often found.”51 The head motif and its celestial significance are discussed in chapter 16. • The sa, symbol of protection. Bes and the Pygmies Interestingly, in the Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man a definite connection is made, not only between Bes and the Pygmies, but also between the Pygmies and many Egyptian ideas and traditions which were captured in the earliest mythology and traditions of Old Egypt. While Churchward is wrong about the Pygmies being the oldest race and all religious ideas and related cultural practices emanating from them,52 there is some substance in his observations of the similarities between these two cultures with regard to Bes. Churchward notes that the Pygmies in facial appearance and dress resemble Bes. They wear a headdress of a yellow plume of feathers, the la-gou-ma, the Horus lock, and a green and yellow dress with the tail of a leopard hanging behind. He asserts, furthermore, that the Pygmies preserve some of the principle features of the earliest mythology of Old Egypt, and of Bes who was at first their “Chief of the Nomes”.53 Churchward is convinced that the Egyptian hieroglyphic referring to Bes presents Bes as a “race of little people”, that is the Pygmies. This he asserts in contradiction to Maspero’s claims that the same hieroglyphic referred to dwarfs. Churchward discusses several points of arguments which, according to him, demonstrate that the Egyptians in various ideas and traditions were indeed referring to Pygmies and that they made a distinction between Pygmies and dwarfs. Some of the ideas he presents certainly refer to cosmological ideas, but I would be surprised if such ideas did not find terrestrial expression – for example, that a terrestrial mystical land was identified which corresponded to the celestial land in cardinal orientation and inhabited by little people conceived of as ancestors of Bes. Firstly, he looks at the Egyptian reference to “South of Punt” and is convinced that the little people coming from “South of the land of Punt” is a reference to the Pygmies and their land in the south. I refer to this mystical Punt54 in various contexts 110

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ in this book. But, according to Maspero, “all that lay beyond Punt was held to be a fabulous region, a void or intermediate boundary land between the world of men and that of the gods – the Island of the Double”.55 This region was also called “Land of the Shades, where the living came into contact with the souls of the departed,” and it was inhabited by the Dangas,56 tribes of the half-savage dwarfs whose grotesque faces and wild gestures, who knew the dance of the gods, reminded the Egyptians of the god Bes. Secondly, he discusses evidence of two pharaohs who had purchased Pygmies. King Assi of the fifth dynasty (3000 BC) purchased a Pygmy from Punt whose dance impressed the royal court57 and hence must have been a Danga. Seventy years after Assi, Pepi II of the sixth dynasty instructed his officer, Heru-Khuf, “to bring back a Pygmy alive, and in good health, from the land of the great trees, away to the South.” That this Pygmy was a Danga from the south was later recorded in an inscription at Karnak which identified the “Land of Shades” as “Khui Land” – “the Land of the Spirits and Gods…which was first mapped out in the Heavens and later as part of Amenta (lower earth, which was represented by a passage hollowed out of the earth), and which was represented terrestrially by the Egyptians by the islands and lakes at the head of the Nile, where these men, so to speak, first sprang forth, and it was here again that the souls would return.”58 Interestingly, Churchward asserts that the sign for Khui Land is very old, and evidence of it is found all over the world including on the Australian boomerang, on stones in Ireland, and on the backs of negroes in West Africa belonging to secret societies, to cite but a few examples. Thirdly, he asserts that the Egyptians made a distinction between Pygmies who were Dangas and belonged to an African tribe, and dwarfs (Anti), the deformed, who were kept in the houses of the rich for amusement. A nome (district) inscription from the temple of Philae, of the time of Ptolemy IV, mentions dwarfs as distinct from Pygmies. The inscription “begins with the nome of Nubia, where we find the words: ‘I give my bow to His Majesty that he may subdue the Anti…the dwarfs of the countries of the South bring their tributes to his palace.’”59 Fourthly, he is convinced that an inscription on sculptures which describe a great festival, in the temple of Bubastis,60 is a clear reference to Pygmies – “we see a procession of priests, among whom are three small men, marching along, and holding long canes. They have a title...‘guards,’ ‘beadles,’ something connected with the police of the temple. These guards are neither children nor dwarfs; they are certainly Pygmies.”61 Fifthly, he asserts that Ptah, the Great Architect of the universe, a deity of ancient Egypt, was a Pygmy, who with his Pygmy assistants created Amenta or the lower 111

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ earth. He shows the resemblance between Bes and the Pygmies by presenting a picture, “The God Bes”, which he claims is a primitive human form of Horus I, BesHorus being the earliest type of the Pygmy Path.62 The origin of this picture is not mentioned. It has all the common aspects of Bes: shortness, large head with large ears, and a beard, which is represented as individual strands resembling classical smoking pipes – drawn to give the impression of the “stripes” in the clown’s collar. It also has the following additional features worth mentioning. First, this black Bes, naked except for a belt around the waist and arm bands, has a crown of bright white feathers with five plumes. Secondly, between his legs is a bright white projection which appears as a stream of urine and reminds me of those favourite European garden statues of a little boy urinating into a pond. I think this represents the Sword/Knife/Penis image of the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor and the “white stuff”, the celestial water. Thirdly, attention is also drawn to his two halfoutstretched arms – each hand has five painted white nails and in each he is holding a flower, which may be the lotus flower. When you read Churchward’s account of the link between Bes and the Pygmies together with many of the ideas discussed in my book, it would appear that the Pygmies had the very same cosmological conceptions as any other ancient societies. More specifically, they conceptualised themselves in their beliefs, behaviour and other cultural aspects, perhaps because of their small stature, as Bes, that is as the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor. Presumably the Chinese, Japanese and Koisan did the same because of their small stature. Bes the “Master of Animals” The representation of Bes and the Horus Child together demonstrates a link between the two that is further supported by the designation “Master of Animals”. Apparently this appellation originated in Sumeria. The Gebel el-Arak knife handle (Louvre Museum) found in Egypt is an interesting archaeological object, dating from the Nakada II or III periods (3050-2850 BC or ca. 2850-2781 BC). Professor Rohl argues that it is Sumerian in origin and bases this on various aspects of the figures displayed on the knife-handle.63 He points out the recurrent figure of a bearded man who wears his hair in a bun and has a thick rolled band tied around his head. He dresses in what appears to be either a kilt or a skirt that crosses over in front. He re-occurs in various forms, thus he is referred to as the priest-king because “he plays an important part in ritual, he feeds stylised plants to flocks, he takes part in hunting and he is shown in battle with prisoners.”64 When you consider the different roles he plays then it is understandable that scholars have named him “Master of Animals”, as he controls nature. In this regard the biblical Adam can also be regarded as the Master of Animals, since he had dominion over all the animals. 112

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ According to Rohl, the similarity between the images on the Gebel el-Arak knife and the scene of the Mesopotamian god Gilgamesh on seals are glaringly suggestive of the fact that this knife, though found in Egypt, was inspired by the Mesopotamian design. He further notes: “It is only in later times that the Egyptians themselves adopt the iconography of the ‘Master of Animals’ in representations of two of their gods – Bes and Horus the Child – both of whom are protector-deities from chaotic forces of nature – the wild animals of the marshes and deserts.”65 It is interesting to note that Rohl further suggests that this aspect of mastery over animals relates to the character of Noah. Remember the association of a Noah with a bat, which I suggested also links him to Batman, another alias of the Jade Emperor, the celestial archetype for Bes. The links between Batman / Jade Emperor and the “Master of Animals” and hence with Bes are further supported by the “bull-man” motif (Plate 57), that is also found on the Ur lyre.66 While the Egyptian Bes is dwarf-like, the man on Gebel el-Arak appears to be average in size; however, like Bes, he is associated with lions – he stands between two large robust lions. The Master of Animals motif is also depicted on a Persian earring. On this earring a short, stout, seated being with a strange face (perhaps a goat or dog) and prominent pointed ears is depicted.67 He is wearing a five-plumed crown and has a prominent projection between his legs, similar to the Sudani Bes and as depicted in the hieroglyphic sign. And as in the Master of Animals motif on the Gebel el-Arak and Ur lyre soundboard, he is flanked by animals that he is holding on to, in this case buck-like animals with a single, curved horn who themselves are each topped by the “Great Cackler” facing the “sun”. According to the legend, the sitting being is Ahura Mazda,68 the supreme god who “eclipsed all other divinities because he was the god of kings. He was seen as the god of gods, master of the heavens, and creator of all creatures. He is usually pictured surrounded by a number of noble beasts.”69 Below this earring is a picture of a wall relief portraying a winged Ahura Mazda as a short male dressed in a long highly decorated coat (squares in groups of four and five are prominent) and standing on a prominent lion, with one of his legs exposed, up to the knee. His claw-like hands hold a shallow “wine cup” (as suggested by the legend) and a plant object in the shape of a cone. The cone reminds me of those held in the hands of Sumerian gods, the difference being that this cone is not engulfed by the hand but appears to be held by an extended “stick”. Interestingly, while the first legend notes that Ahura Mazda was a supreme deity, the second legend tempers 113

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ this idea: “Despite being a supreme deity…he is not seen as an all-powerful god. He is sometimes portrayed doing human tasks, such as herding animals, or making offerings.”70 Bes, Min and Amon/Amun connections As noted, one special form of Bes is Aha. Rohl introduces a thought-provoking aspect equating Aha to Menes, and the Egyptologist Dr Seidlmayer confirms the relation between Aha and Menes.71 Would this then mean that Bes is Menes? Rohl’s findings prove to be interesting. He found that Menes was the birth name of the king. But during the Early Dynasty the kings were called by their “Horus name” – “the name they took only on accession to the throne and bore by virtue of their royal role”. Thus being born during this period known as Dynasty 0, King Menes was actually the “Horus Aha”, meaning warrior. “His tomb lies in the necropolis of the First Dynasty Kings in Abydos, and is named in many contemporary documentary records.” The “Horus name” is possibly derived from a ruling initiated a few generations before Menes, when the motif of the Horus Falcon was displayed on a “stylised façade” with the king’s name inscribed in it. These kings or rulers were recorded as Dynasty 0. The last ruler of this dynasty was Namer.72 What makes him significant is that he was the predecessor and father of Horus Aha, also known as King Menes. And it is recorded that during his reign he successfully “achieved political unification in the country”. During this period of unification many changes were introduced, especially in the art, which showed a definite Mesopotamian influence. Burial traditions also changed. For instance, the tomb of Horus Aha comprised three very large tombs and thirtysix secondary tombs, whereas previously rulers had two sunken chambers that lay side by side – presumably symbolic of the Magic Rectangle / Double Square image. Evidence showed that the additional tombs were required for a burial ritual that lasted up to the end of the First Dynasty – members of the royal household, including women and dogs, were killed and buried with the king to accompany him on his journey through the “Land of the Shades”. A group of lions were buried with him as a symbol of royalty. Another interesting fact was exposed – the presence of dwarflike people in the tombs.73 Perhaps the king saw some aspect of himself in the little people, or he had procured them for his amusement. Or had he felt that, as they came from the South, they would best accompany him to Punt? Logic suggests that if Bes and Menes are each associated with Aha then Bes must be associated with Menes. But the name Menes may be a different form of other names, especially Min or Men, as suggested by the following: “The high state of Egyptian civilisation under the early kings of the first Dynasty is well illustrated 114

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ by the monuments which have been recovered from the tombs of Narmer and Aha, neither of whom may have been the Menes of Manetho, for each adopted ‘Men’ or ‘Mena’ as one of his strong names.”74 “Men” in all likelihood is “Min”, since both can be derived from “Mn” – remember that vowels as we understand them today were not used in Egyptian writing. It is also possible that Men/Min was another name for Bes, as used by another nome or tribe or used to distinguish a transformational character of the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor as an alias of Bes. Alternatively, Min and Bes may be discrete entities but they could still have a connection if they are derived from the same celestial image – they could be differentiated in transformation. Min became Min-Horus during the Middle Kingdom. He was a god of fertility, in animals as well as in people, and he was a god of vegetation. He was shown as darkskinned. In human form Min’s attributes were: legs placed tightly together to give the impression of being one single leg and an erect phallus, while in the hand that is facing upwards he is holding a flail – referring to the authority of the Pharaohs. At times he is depicted wearing a skullcap with two lofty feathers and two streamers hanging down his back. He has also been depicted wearing a feathered crown and with a red ribbon tied around his head that trails to the ground behind his back – said to represent sexual energy. His other attributes were a white bull, a barbed arrow (interpreted as a lightning bolt and also as the “union of man and woman”), a bed of lettuce (believed to be an aphrodisiac), and “a round hut before which were bull’s horns tied to a pole – possibly an ancient sanctuary of Min”. His chief celebration was the so-called “festival of the staircase” at which the god on his “staircase” received at the king’s hand the first ears of corn that had been harvested. The staircase may have been a stretcher for the divine image, or a threshing floor.75 This description of Min suggests that this deity is in direct contrast to Bes, as only the fertility, the phallus and the flail seem to relate to Bes. This is supported by the features of Min, which are very different from the features of Bes. This view is supported by the artwork on a sandstone block from a dismantled temple of Queen Hatshesput (1503-1482 BC) at Karnak.76 In this relief Min is depicted as a tall, short-haired youth who appears to be clean-shaven, or may have a slight false beard. On his head is a small skullcap (presumably the forerunner of the kippa or yarmulke, the Jewish skullcap), with two tall, vertical plumes attached to the 115

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ back of the cap. His left arm appears almost amputated at the shoulder, while his right arm is stretched out horizontally, bending at the elbow so that the forearm is vertically upwards. In this hand he is holding a triangular whip-like flail. His thin body terminates in a “single” leg, joined to a rectangular block. It may be that he has two legs held tightly together. His penis is prominently erect, just as with Ptah, but in contrast to the downward projecting penis displayed by Bes. Like Bes, his body bears a noticeable X sign and he is wearing a large collar around his neck – not the clown’s collar. It is clear that while Min and Bes share some features, they have many more characteristics that differ from each other. However, while their differences seem to refute the notion that they are one and the same, this may not necessarily be so. In ancient times different groups/tribes/nomes who wanted to show their distinction from rivals added attributes, including different names, to the same celestial image. This would have led us, in modern times, to believe that separate entities were involved. We have already seen instances of this regarding the Phoenix and other images discussed in previous chapters. This insight is supported by Veronica Ions, who shows that while four great cult centres – Heliopolis, Hermopolis, Memphis and Thebes, each with their own particular ideas and traditions – existed in Ancient Egypt, at times they seem to overlap while at other times they appear completely different.77 On the surface, the ideas, deities and institutions appear to be unique for each cult centre, yet when investigated more deeply, they appear to be different interpretations of the same celestial images. Each cult centre developed new names for the same deities, and sometimes ascribed the same or different attributes to these deities. It is within this context that we should look at Bes and Min and their relationship to Amon/Amun (A-mon/mun). Do Christians perhaps give devotion to Amon/Amun in the ending to their prayers – Amen – which is often, tellingly, repeated? Amon, which means “hidden”, apparently the chief god of Thebes under the centralised government in the New Kingdom, had absorbed the indigenous god Mont (Mn-t). Also during this period he fused with Amon in the deity Min-Amenkamtef (Min-Amen – Bull of his Mother. He was God of the Wind – representing the primordial element of air or invisibility. And as the Protector of the poor or the less fortunate he upheld truth, justice and goodness. He was also the Protector of the road, assisting the travellers. He was one of the most widely worshipped Egyptian gods; he became “an all in one God”, and like many deities of ancient Egypt he took on or absorbed many forms. For example, when Egypt conquered Kush, the Kush deity was depicted as the head of a ram with curved-horns, significant of Min, the 116

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ god of fertility. A-mon fused with Min, or absorbed Min, to become a god of fertility – this was the only definite feature Amon had in common with Bes. Other attributes of this god are evident in the following extract: Like Atum, Amon created himself: there was no other god to create him, and he had neither father nor mother. He was invisible, born in secret. All the other gods came into being after he had performed the first creative act. Just as Ptah was said to embody other gods as facets of his own divine nature, so the Theban Amon embraced whole cosmologies as aspects or phrases of his creative activity. Thus the first of his forms was said to be the Ogdoad of Hermopolis; his next form was as Tatenen, the primeval mound of Memphis, in which form he created the first gods. Amon then left the earth to abide in heaven as Ra (a Hermopolitan belief). He also took the form of the divine child revealed by the opening petals of the lotus78 in the midst of Nun. Like Ra or Horus, his eyes lit the earth. Like Thoth, he was the moon. He made men and created the gods…The priests of Thebes also claimed that their city was the birthplace of Osiris, no doubt because by this time Osiris had attained such popularity and was associated with the well-being of the royal house and the fertility of the land.79 There is a stronger association between Amon and Min, both creator gods, in their connection with the ram80 – a symbol of virility. Amon once distinguished himself in the head and skin of a ram which he had flayed and beheaded when Shu, God of Air/Wind, begged him to come out.81 The flayed and beheaded ram is certainly a reference to the Goat-Sheep/Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head celestial image which appears at the NW point when the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor appears at the SE point, whereas the skin in this case may be the Leopard Skin celestial image. In human form he is represented as an ithyphallic, dark-blue -skinned man who wears a headdress with two tall vertical plumes, and sometimes, like Ptah and Min, he is represented as a mummy. His dark-blue skin may have been an inspiration for the Hindu God Vishnu, who is at times similarly represented.82 Being “an all in one god” he was able to take on many forms; he identified with Mont, as “Bull of his Mother”, and he became a war-god for the Theban princes, helping them resist foreign influences. As his cult following grew he identified with the sun god Ra, who was worshipped in other regions during that period; he fused or merged with Ra and became Amon-Ra. He wore all the symbols of the supreme power of Ra, his head sometimes shown with a uraeus (snake). As his empire grew he became known as the greatest of all gods – the universal: “Lord of the Thrones of the World”. 117

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ “He was called the face of Ra and the body of Path. And as the god ‘he who abides in all things’, he was imagined as the soul (ba) of all phenomena.”83 Interestingly his name may mean water and, like Geb, he is also associated with a goose –Amun was chiefly worshipped as a goose. In the Libyo-Berber language, aman is a word for water.84 Another being who is mainly associated with water is John the Baptist; was John crafted on this being? In a silver statuette with gold details, Amun is depicted as a young male of medium height and slender build, with a prominent false beard, standing on a rectangular platform. He is wearing a crown surmounted by a sun-disc and two tall plumes. One hand is clenched in a fist, the arm held tightly at his side, while his other hand is holding a straight stick.85 Once again his appearance can hardly be said to resemble that of Bes. Min and Amon appear to be composite characters whose attributes are a combination of various other celestial images, including the celestial Bes. “Little people” in ancient ideas and traditions Various examples of “little people”, especially in view of Bes, have been discussed. In this section further interesting examples of “little people” ideas and traditions in ancient Egypt will be discussed and from here the discussions will shift to other societies. We will see how these ideas still capture the imagination of contemporary society, especially with regard to the malevolent entity called the tokolosi, an entity of witchcraft that instils great fear in certain African tribes. Is this entity real, or the working of the subconscious mind on the archetype celestial image which gave rise to such an idea? And what about Little Foot? Ancient Egypt While relatively recent archaeological evidence indicates that the Egyptian short, little people were dwarves, what is indisputable is that these “small” people were indeed held in high esteem. Why were they buried with pharaohs/kings? Archaeologists in Egypt had identified the remains of fifty dwarfs by 1990. They also revealed the skeleton of a dwarf who had been a cupbearer, possibly to King Khafre, as it was found in the tomb near the Kings pyramid on the Giza plateau: On the tomb’s north side housed in a mastaba, stood an 18-inch-tall basalt statue of a seated dwarf clutching a staff [a picture of the statue of this dwarf shows him carrying a long stick] and bearing the inscriptions, Pyrnyankhu, he who pleases His Majesty everyday in the Great Palace’.…Examination of Pyrnyankhu’s remains shows him to have been a hunchback with a large head and very short legs.86

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5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ Is this hunchback tradition perhaps the basis for the fabled “Hunchback of Notre Dame”, the story of a short, deformed boy, a bell-ringer and a beautiful Gypsy, Bella? Is there perhaps a hidden message in this story, especially since the focus is on a corrupt priest who does everything in his power to rid the church of these two main characters? A wall relief depicts “The King and Queen of Punt” (ca. 1470 BC).87 Punt, as already mentioned, is this rather rich, mysterious land, which may suggest that even these royalties are fictional. The relief depicts three people, two males flanking a grotesque, strangely deformed female “dwarf” with a grossly exaggerated behind who appears to be the main focus of the art since her size and presence overshadow the two males. Their physical features and the indication that they come from the mysterious Punt are further tell-tale signs that this is a different depiction involving several different celestial images. Firstly, both the female and one of the males, with an Egyptianstyle false beard and a large sword/knife in his belt, are holding one arm across their chests (see chapter 11). Secondly, the female has a necklace with three prominent artefacts, with the centre one (although not very clear) appearing to be a bird motif. Thirdly, the third person, who has a much shorter beard, is holding a large dish with a yellow base and some red stuff (presumable spice). Fourthly, all three beings are partially naked, with the males covering only their private parts and the female exposing her body parts. The one with the sword/knife appears to have been rendered in red (the paint has faded), which is another significant aspect suggesting the red of Antares. So far only three artworks which appear to be representing Bes portray Bes as female; the rest are male. This particular female representation is interesting, because as we will see these grossly exaggerated behinds seem to tie in with prehistoric representations of females with large buttocks, of which the famous, mysterious Venus figurines (see chapter 10) are well publicised. Although most of the images I have seen of Osiris are of a tall slender individual, there is one image, namely the corn-Osiris in typical mummified pose, where he is depicted as a smaller size male.88 While strictly speaking Osiris is not the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor, in another sense he is, which will become apparent, and this dualistic depiction of a short and tall being will also eventually make sense. Not only did Pygmies and dwarfs act as entertainers and guards in the royal court, but they also served the priesthood in religious rituals that made use of dancing and related skills. And dwarfs known as nmiu, native-born Egyptians who were differentiated from the dng (the Danga, African Pygmies), attended the pharaohs in 119

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ jobs specifically reserved for them, such as looking after domestic animals, caring for the king’s food and clothing and making jewellery.89 These traditions and ideas of a “little people” are not unique to the Ancient Egyptians and the Pygmies. I can conclude with a degree of certainty that all small, at times grossly fat and short artistic representations, found either in ancient art forms or expressed in literary sources or myths, are derived from and based on the “little people” conception, which is most likely based on the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor celestial image. Little people in European mythology and folktales European mythology and folktales are filled with small-being imagery ranging from dwarfs, gnomes, fairies, pixies and hobbits to little, strong, wild, bearded men carrying large stone or wooden clubs. It not necessary to discuss all these types of small beings; instead I want to start looking at a rather strange idea involving “little people” called Fänggen/Fanggen and other small beings where the main focus is on a “bull’s thigh” or “shoulder blade” traced to celestial phenomena. Slav mythology tells of a rather strange, dwarf-like “house guardian” called Domovoi. This entity, also called a house spirit, will be explored, especially because the features of this being suggest a relationship with a small, African being called uTikoloshe. And finally, we will explore ideas around small, strong men called Cyclops. The Fänggen Fänggen (sing. Fangga or Fanggin), also called Fänken, Fenggen and Fanggen, are creatures and legendary figures in southern Germany, Austria and South Tyrol. They are a kind of “Little People” (or giants), dryads or tree spirits or demons, whose existence is bound to trees, so that the felling of a tree would annihilate a Fangga. They were once willing to live with peasants in the form of housemaids and would bring blessings to the home, but generally they show revolting habits, such as eating children or pulverising them into snuff. Despite their small size, they were very powerful and would vanish unaccountably.90, 91 De Santillana and von Dechend discuss aspects related to the Fanggen as housemaids/ witches. In this account the witches boiled and consumed a fellow witch and then miraculously, after the meal, revived her, but her rib was missing and had to be replaced by a hazel branch. They see parallels between this aspect of the story and an ancient Greek story: it is simply a rehearsing of the archaic tale of Pelops, son of Tantalos, the Titan,92 who had been boiled and served for dinner by his evil father at the table of the gods. The gods...kept away from the food...except for Demeter, who...absently ate 120

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ a shoulder blade believing it to be mutton. The gods brought the child back to life. But a shoulder blade was missing and it was replaced by ivory.93

De Santillana and von Dechend appear to suggest that the missing “rib” of the Fangga is actually the shoulder blade of an ox, and also the shoulder blade of a sheep. The shoulder blade of an ox which is simultaneously the shoulder blade of a sheep suggests a play on the Bull’s Thigh alias the Bull’s Hind Leg image of the Goat/Sheep/Cow/Horse’s Head image at the SNW region. This idea should also be seen in the context of the Gilgamesh story where Enkidu cut off the hind leg of the Bull of Heaven and flung it at the face of the queen of heaven, Innana/Ishtar. De Santillana and von Dechend trace this “shoulder blade / thigh” to various societies and the Ursa Major constellation and also link it to some “strong boys”, “Son of the shoulder-blade”, presumably the wild, little men: There is not only “moskhou94 omon chryseion,” the golden shoulder of the ox in the hands of the Mithras (Egyptian Maskheti, the Bull’s Thigh, Ursa Major), and Humeri,95 an antiquated Latin name of Orion, as we know from Varro; the highest god, Amma, of the West Sudanese Dogon (or Clarias senegalensis, the shadfish, an avatar of the Dogon’s “Moniteur Faro,” whose emblem is the very same as that of the ithyphallic Min, the Egyptian Pan) carries in his humeri the first “eight grains” and these 8 sorts of grain (stereotypically including beans) play their cosmogonic role from the Dogon to China…There is also the tale from modern Greece…of the son of the shoulder blade, one of those “Strong Boys”…96

Domovoi In Slavic mythology there is a dwarf-like “house guardian” called Domovoi, from dom meaning house.97 It was said that “members of the household often affectionately referred to him as ‘grandfather’”. This word dom may have been linked to the word king, to give us the word kingdom. The Domovoi was depicted as a small old man who was rarely seen. “He was interestingly entirely covered in hair, even on the palms of his hands and the soles of his feet. He may also have had horns and a tail.” His wife, who lived in the cellar, was known as Domovikha; she would warn the owners of the house about coming disasters. “When someone in the household was about to die, the Domovoi could be heard crying at night. He was also said to pull a woman’s hair to warn her that her husband was about to beat her. Domovikha (his wife) would tickle lazy children to wake them during the night.”98 The black and white painting “Domovoi, A Spirit of the House” (Ivan Bilibin, 18721942)99 depicts a hunchbacked, hairy, old man with a long, flowing beard, crawling into the picture from the side, so that his hind-parts are not shown. The hairy nature 121

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ of the Domovoi and even of some of the Fänggen appears to be linked with the volvine conception which is discussed in Book 2. Gunderstrup Cauldron The silver Gunderstrup Cauldron relief (first century BC), found in a peat bog in Denmark, depicts “scenes of gods, druids, and animals, which suggest its magical properties…”100 The cauldron is just another alias of the Celestial Boats/Ships (see chapter 9). In the centre is a figure with a large head with a beard and raised, strong arms, but without any other body parts. The fact that he is controlling animals suggests that he is also a Master of Animals: this together with his large head suggests that he is the Danish version of Bes. At the right of the figure is a semi-circular wheel, significantly with eight spokes, and the figure is flanked by two animals of indeterminate species. However, they are noticeably depicted in what resembles the Leopard Skin. There are three claws on each foot of each creature and the number of claws on each foot is similar to the number of toes of TekoTeko (see later). The sum total of all these aspects, some of which will be discussed in various other contexts, strongly suggest that we dealing with another depiction of the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor, but now probably as occupying the ES to SW regions. The Cyclops While I have asserted that the Jade Emperor image served as the archetype for Bes and that Bes was subsequently transformed into the naked, chubby baby angelic beings often depicted with bows and arrows in Greek and subsequent European artworks, the same celestial image must also have been the basis for Greco-Roman ideas and artworks of one type of a mythological, typically one-eyed being called Cyclops. Two small Roman artworks found at Naples are reported as being representative of Cyclops.101 These artworks represent small, naked, baby-like old men with fluffy medium beards, two normal eyes and a third eye. Only the head part of the torso and one arm, on which he reclines, remain of one artwork, which seems to be a broken-off piece of the second. In the second artwork the Cyclops has a prominent, carrot-like, erect penis and is strangely depicted as “standing-sitting” with crossed legs, with, however, only one leg and foot prominently in front. It then appears that the same figure is depicted in other positions, one half reclining as in the first artwork and the other, with distorted facial features, totally reclining under the prominent foot of the “standing-sitting” Cyclops. All these positions suggest that they are only transformational scenes of the same being, moving from the SE to the SW regions. Next to the head of the “standing-sitting” Cyclops is a large trophy-pot held by another standing being whose side profile face seems similar to the Cyclops but who is more slender and taller than the Cyclops. The features of these types of Cyclops 122

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ are similar to Bes, except for the one eye or extra eye. Temple also reproduces a picture from a very ancient Greek pot, preserved in the Louvre. He suggests that the degenerate Roman idea of the Cyclops is derived from the Greek idea of the Polyphemus Cyclops which appears in Homer’s Odyssey. In this picture a fat, naked, black being with a medium beard is shown in a sitting-falling pose. His prominent, large one eye, which sits on his forehead, is being “poled out” by a large tree “stump”. At his head is a “thigh” sitting on some unknown object, below this object is an eye and below the eye, three cow-like animal heads with single eyes are depicted. But this Cyclops is much larger and I am tempted to suggest that it is actually Angelman (see chapter 11). Temple writes as follows regarding the Greek Cyclops: The original Cyclops are from an “earlier generation” of mythological figures, preceding that of the Olympian gods. By the time of The Odyssey, they had become stock characters which could be utilised for storytelling purposes; what Homer has to say about the Cyclops named Polyphemus is of little mythological consequence. The earlier legends relating to the Cyclops connect them with massive stone walls and edifices, hence the name which we sometimes use for these: “Cyclopean”.102 It was the Cyclops who built the walls of the Argos and Tiryns, and of Midea and Mycenae for Perseus (mythical founder of Mycenae) – in other words, of the typical Mycenaean cities. Probably the Cyclops were a Minoan [Min-O-An] tradition. Even Polyphemus in The Odyssey is associated with massive stones and is a giant. Echoes of the megaliths are always heard when the Cyclops are mentioned. Specific optical aspects to the Cyclops are that one of them was named Brontēs.103. And we have already seen this is a reference to thunderstones, since brontēs means “thunder”. But the association was even more specific than that, for it was the Cyclops who actually fashioned the thunderbolts for Zeus. And it was the thunderbolts which produced thunderstones, so what could be more obvious? And the Cyclops also made for Hades, the god of the Underworld, as a prized possession – a “helmet of invisibility”.104

It is perhaps the CY as “ shape pointing westwards. I am convinced that it is this shape and the red colour of Antares which the ancients wanted to preserve in calling this structure a “tongue”. And it is this wing-tongue at the SW which descended as “tongues of fire” on the heads of the kneeling apostles. In Book 2, I explain the celestial images which served for the “priest/apostle” conception, and once you see which images were involved, you will understand why I am making the latter assertion. But unbelievably this same shape and colour of the “wing-tongue” was also interpreted as resembling other human organs, for example, the heart. In these associations what is being conveyed is the idea that the heart and tongue were the organs of creation, for it was by means of his tongue that the Creator brought to life that which he had conceived in his heart. The fact that a “heart” was linked to Scorpio and Antares is confirmation of my assertion that a celestial image was indeed interpreted as a “heart” – “Arabic Kalb al Ákrab, the Scorpion’s Heart, Latin Cor Scorpionis; Greek Kardia Skorpiou; ‘The Scorpion’s Heart’. Antares alone constituted the 16th Arabic manzil, Al Kalb, ‘the Heart’.”136 The Screeching Swallow/Kite I have indicated that the Jade Emperor apart or seen in combination with his “penis” is a very complex image which lends itself to being visualised as several different images. I want to briefly mention other images or ideas which may also have been derived from this particular celestial image. When one views the fantail (T1, T2, T3, T4, T5 and T6 in figure 5.1), the wings (Scorpius, the main wing) and Ara + Triangulum Australe (stars in these regions form the smaller wing) and the neck stars (N1 - N6) and the head stars (“beak stars”) marked H8 and H11 (figure 5.1), one has an image of a large soaring bird with a fantail. This bird, as with the Phoenix, could have been associated with and named after any large soaring bird found in the particular environment of a society which discerned this celestial image. A number of significant aspects of this celestial image and its association with other celestial images and specific stars would have played a role in choosing the type of terrestrial bird to represent it. Some of these aspects would have been the colours (red, white, green, yellow). It would also be a nocturnal bird; a meat-eating bird (remember it is the same image that “becomes” the Phoenix and which appears to 133

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ “consume” all the other images); a bird with a fantail in order to emphasise the resemblance to the important “tail” region of this celestial “bird”; and, lastly, a bird associated with water and fish, since this region, as you may recall, is where the Celestial Fishes are. In chapter 9 I will also discuss the Celestial Boats/Ships, the main parts of which also reside in the SE sky region, which is why the SE region was also conceptualised as one of the celestial “water” regions. I am of the opinion that this celestial bird is the “screeching swallow/kite” referred to in the so-called myth in which the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis transformed herself into a raging swallow/kite. The “raging” aspect, namely its cry, is also linked to another goddess, Ishtar. After the gods have destroyed man in the flood, “Ishtar cried out like a woman in travail; the lovely-voiced lady of the g[ods] lamented… ‘How could I command (such) evil in the assembly of the gods? How could I command war to destroy my people, for it is I who bring forth (these) my people…’”137 In the story of Isis there are several aspects (highlighted in bold below) which, considered collectively, convince me that this is a celestial story derived and based on the celestial images which I observed. This rather strange story of Isis relates to the killing of Osiris, her brother-husband, by Set, the brother of Osiris, and his 72 conspirators. I have extracted the story from the point when Osiris was put in a coffin, which was then nailed down and cast into the Nile, and Isis began searching for the coffin and her husband. Remember the only significant part of Osiris which she later found was a wooden penis, with which she impregnated herself to give birth to the Horus Child; in other words, the penis is the Horus Child, just like “Tiki is Tāne’s penis”. Moreover wood is from a tree hence this “wooden penis” must relate to the Celestial Tree which is also part of the “body” of the Jade Emperor. When she heard the news, Isis put on widow’s weeds, cut off half her hair and, weeping, set off to recover the chest and the body of her husband. She wandered through the land, asking everyone she met if they had seen the chest, and eventually came across some children who told her that they had seen it drifting towards the sea along the Tanitic branch of the Nile. Divine revelation now informed Isis that the chest had been carried across the sea to Byblos in Phoenicia where it had been washed ashore at the foot of a tamarisk tree. This tree had grown round the chest, enclosing it completely. The king of Byblos, Malacander, admiring the great size of the tree [the celestial tree, see chapter 7], had it cut down and used as a pillar in his palace. Isis went to Byblos. The queen, Astarte, had recently given birth to a son and Isis made friends with her maids. The maids returned to the palace imbued with the heavenly scent of Isis, and Astarte, noticing this, asked for her to 134

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ be summoned. She appointed Isis to be nurse to her newborn son. Isis attempted to use her powers to confer immortality on the child, suckling it with only her finger and, at night, singeing it with a sacred purifying flame in order to burn away the mortal quality of its body. But one day the queen surprised her new nurse, who in the form of a swallow was flying round and round the great tree [the same tree that was cut down?]. Her cries of alarm broke the spell and the chance of immortality for her son was irretrievably lost…One reason for the violence of her grief was the fact that Isis had borne Osiris no son, so that there was no heir to the throne to defeat the purposes of Set. By her magic, however, Isis was able to conceive by her dead husband, some said while she was perched in the form of a kite mourning over his body.138

Since observing the Jade Emperor and realising its connection to the swallow of Isis, I began to watch swallows in an attempt to understand why a swallow may have been a choice to represent this celestial bird, since the relationships between the celestial image and the swallow are not that obvious. Even two or three years before making the first of these celestial observations, I had noticed that on occasion swallows would “play” around a particular point as if moving around some invisible force. Secondly, just before it rained they would soar high into the sky as if to herald the rain. Thirdly, when in flight swallows do actually resemble the celestial image the “Bow and Arrow” (see chapter 8) another alias for the “wing” and “penis” and the stars which formed the beak of the Celestial Bird. One can visualise a swallow in flight as a bow pointed upward to shoot an arrow vertically into the sky, with the arrow’s tail-end tied with feathers to resemble the fantail, symbolic of the three False Orion Belt stars. Fourthly, the swallow, at least the species that I have observed, is mostly a shimmering blue-black (the colour of the night sky) with some white on the underside and interestingly some brownish-red on its head. Fifthly, swallows build nests with mud (remember it is mud/clay from which the first humans are said to have been made); this would certainly have been seen as significant in the context of the bird using mud from the sacred Nile, and who knows may even have inspired humans to build huts with mud. I am suggesting that all these aspects may have endeared the swallow to the Ancient Egyptians. The Sacred Kiss What also intrigued me about the stars that formed the head of the Jade Emperor is that when one views the stars and “structures” described as the “screeching swallow” in relation to stars marked H2, H3 and H4 (the upper mouth), it does appear as if the bottom being with head tilted upwards (H8 and H11 bottom mouth) 135

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ is “kissing” the top being. This “kissing” aspect, which is probably the origin of kissing behaviour in humans, is played with in various ways in ancient art and religious ideas. For example, there are several kissing scenes of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, which according to the experts are just scenes of domestic bliss.139 These scenes represent the first major break from the rigid, emotionless art of Egypt. Of particular interest in this context is a certain limestone sculpture (in my view deliberately unfinished) depicting Akhenaten holding a child (his daughter) on his lap in a typical Isis-Horus pose; however, unlike pictures of the latter, he is “affectionately kissing his daughter”. When one focuses on this “kiss”, it is very suggestive of the celestial kiss. The Zohar is full of incidents of sages kissing. And lest we forget, there are two other famous “kisses” which have caused much misunderstanding, namely, Jesus kissing Mary Madeleine on “her mouth” and Judas’ kiss of betrayal of Jesus. Other attempts to represent the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor Apart from the artworks and ideas discussed above there must have been various other attempts to interpret and copy the “face” of the Jade Emperor and other associated star patterns, especially the stars around (H2, H3, H4), H1, H5, (H8, H11), H9 and H10 (see figure 5). I am of the opinion that facial marking, including tattooing, face painting, masks, tying objects to the face or even cutting male beards in a particular manner, were attempts to imitate the face of the Jade Emperor. For example, Hindus make a red mark on their foreheads that has dual symbolism; the mark represents H2, H3 and H4 (hence the third eye of the Cyclops) so that together with the two eyes (H1 and H5) you get the visual effect of the top part of the Jade Emperor’s face. The nose (H4 and H8), which together with the mouth (H11), often emphasised by drawing or attaching objects at either side of the mouth to represent stars marked H6 and H10, and H7 and H9, produces the visual effect of the lower region of the face. When viewed collectively these would produce the appearance of the Jade Emperor’s face. As Jupiter There is an ingenious attempt to reproduce the same effect in a painting by Jean Baptiste Dominique Ingress (Musée Grant, Aix-en-Provence) that depicts a stern, sitting god, Jupiter, and his mistress Thetis (mother of Achilles). Thetis is sitting towards his right side so that her body and robe fuse with the lower body and robe of Jupiter to produce the Batman cloak effect. But most significantly, she is reaching up to Jupiter’s face with two fingers, one on either side of his mouth, so that when you view this face you get the impression of the Jade Emperor’s face. I glimpsed these aspects from a reproduction of this painting shown in The Illustrated 136

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ Golden Bough.140 But I was captivated when I saw the actual painting on display in an art gallery in Manchester in 1996. There are further hints that this painting may indeed be representative of the Jade Emperor but depicted in the sitting pose of Angelman (chapter 11): the fact that the main character is the god Jupiter, and the fact that this mistress, as white as ivory, is tellingly noted as Achilles’ mother. One interpretation of Achilles suggests that in some aspects he is actually the Chosen Son, that is, the Horus Child. As a clown Another example is the clown face where the mouth area is stretched with paint so as to curl up on either side, producing the appearance of the lower face of the Jade Emperor. Alternatively, prominent red spots are painted on the cheeks. It is also my opinion that the moustache which curled to the sides was a later attempt to create this same appearance. Not only does this facial painting of the clown suggest an attempt to represent the Jade Emperor but as we have seen shortness and gaiety, for which dwarf clowns in the circus and rulers’ courts were renowned, also tie in with ideas of the Jade Emperor as Bes. In some ancient communities a reproduction of this “face” on humans took on an abstract traditional expression which resulted in face scarring. For example, in the Venda tradition deep marks are cut on each side of young males cheeks as part of their initiation rituals; sometimes there are two marks on each cheek, giving four in total. I watched the most recent British film based on Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, which fired my imagination as a child. This book seems to emphasise beings of two sizes, namely very large and very small, while there is a subtle play on several transformations of celestial images and artistically distorted ancient names and words. The strange clown, the one Gulliver displaces in the Empire of the gentle, black female giant race, is relevant in this context. He is a typical court jester and interestingly he is portrayed at times standing on large wooden legs (the Celestial Tree) and at times without legs. The story is of Lemuel Gulliver (Semuel, i.e. Samuel, and Gulliver = Gall-liver or even Yellow liver/river) who embarks on a journey into the unknown. He is caught up in storms and, shipwrecked, finds himself cast up in several strange lands or worlds. The first land he finds himself in is Lilliput (Lillith + pot/pun, home to a little war-loving people whose royalty lives in filthy richness and opulence but who are demented – have “lost their heads”). When he wakes up he finds himself a prisoner of the arrogant self-important little people in Lilliput. When he captures a fleet of ships from Blefescu [Blue + fez/face], intent on invading their country, 137

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ he, the Man-Mountain, wins their favour. But when he urinates on the Emperor’s palace to extinguish a fire he falls into disfavour. He escapes when he learns of a plot to imprison him, and embarks on another journey. This time he finds himself in Brobdingnag, a land of giants, where a nine-year old “little” girl, Glumdalclitch, takes care of him. This time he is at risk, finding himself exposed to all sorts of “dangers and indignities such as getting his head caught in a squalling baby’s mouth”. He finds the giants’ small physical imperfections (such as large pores – symbolic of the leopard skin) disturbing. Thankfully he manages to return home after being rescued by an eagle and dropped into the sea. Next he visits the floating island of Laputa, where he is slightly bewildered by the absent-minded inhabitants who are constantly in danger of accidental collision because they are so preoccupied by higher speculations. “He visits the Academy of Lagado (a travesty of England’s Royal Society), where he finds its lunatic savants engaged in such impractical studies as reducing human excrement to the original food.” This should be seen in the same context as one of the Israelites’ prophets who was instructed to cook his food on a fire made with human excrement; there is a cosmic reason for this idea. He also meets the Struldbruggs, a race of senile immortals, in Luggnagg [(lug) light + (nag) night]. Finally he arrives in Utopia, the land of the Houyhnhnms (hound + hymns, literally the howling hounds) – grave, rational, and virtuous horses. He also meets the Yahoos, a race of disgusting human beings, not easily tolerated by the Houyhnhnms, who use them for menial services. He discovers that he is just a more advanced Yahoo. But they reject him and he returns home, where he realises that he can no longer tolerate the society of his fellow human beings.141 Interestingly, the tale Gulliver tells about his adventures, which all along were considered to be the hallucinations of a madman, is only confirmed when a tiny white sheep is found in a matchbox. This is a play on the celestial Sheep, another alias of the fowl-CHICK and the Magic Rectangle (the matchbox) where the matchbox is meant to also symbolise fire (Antares). The Eldest Son conceptions When one views all the head stars as numbered and where these “came from” you get the impression of three other images or ideas which also feature prominently in the myths, religions and cultures of various ancient societies. The Eldest Son / Jade Emperor as a two-faced being associated with evil 138

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ The first “two-faced” image is depicted on the Lid of Palenque (plate 11). The Eldest Son / Jade Emperor celestial image may also have been represented as “doubleheaded”. “Two-faced” or “double-headed” conceptions eventually ended up representing evil. A further example of a “two-faced” god is found on a Sumerian/ Akkadian cylinder (ca. 2300 BC). The Eldest Son – the demon Consistent with the idea that the “double-headed” or “two-faced one” or the “Eldest Son” inspired ideas of evil is an interesting artwork which depicts a woman from whom a demon is being exorcised. According to legend, this is “Saint Zeno exorcising a woman of a demon”,142 a picture from a twelfth-century bronze door of the San Zeno church in Verona, Italy. In this artwork a young woman in a wide spreading dress or skirt, with her round tummy revealed, is flanked by two males (one of whom I presume is Saint Zeno, which is presumably a play on the word Zero or Zorro). Her head is tilted upwards and out of her mouth is emerging a boy (the demon) – depicted in the typical Eldest Son pose. Apart from the boy, the three figures and the wide dress that fans out, there is another hint that this is based on celestial imagery: Saint Zoro is wearing a priestly garment which resembles a cloak, while on his head is a hat that looks like the head of an open-mouthed fish. While the short beard and the cloak suggest the Jade Emperor alias Batman, the fish-like hat reminds me of the Mesopotamian god Enki, who is depicted in a fish skin, with the head of the fish over his head, suggesting that this priest might be the “Great Bear-Fish” described in chapter 3. Demon possession is pervasive in many religions and there is a fair share of such ideas in the Bible; one such an account is where Jesus cures two men possessed by demons (Matt. 8:28-34). The “two” appear to be a dualistic play, that is, “two-faced”, and the two and Jesus also make the very significant three. Now, quite tellingly, the demons enter pigs whereupon the pigs fall from a steep bank into water and are killed (see chapter 16 for the celestial pigs). The Eldest Son as the Flying Boy / Eldest Son pose The same celestial image also lends itself to the visualisation of a little boy being gently tossed into the sky, thus resembling a “flying” boy with outstretched arms and legs. This I call the Eldest Son pose. It was and still is a common practice among both women and men, when playing with small children, to toss them upwards and then catch them again; both child and adult find this amusing. Is this another behavioural remnant of our ancient past? Other ideas and traditions inspired by the Eldest Son image 139

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ I am convinced that the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor face has given rise to various interesting ideas around a so-called “elder son”, which features so prominently in myths, religion and other cultural ideas and traditions of various ancient people, especially as a rival to the “younger son” or the Chosen Son, the Horus Child. Quite frequently these images have given rise to ideas where the elder and the younger are passed off in various disguises as twin sons, or just two brothers or two sisters, or as rivals where one is good and the other evil, or even as one boy and one girl – as brother or sister, or just two relatives. The Eldest Son is an image separate from the Jade Emperor prior to joining it and after separating from it – the latter is the head of the Jade Emperor which “comes off” in the SW (more W) region. Interestingly, this idea of “twin” is associated with a twin mountain, and an “eldest son” seems, as expected, to be somehow linked with Scorpio and Antares. De Santillana and von Dechend, in their attempt to figure out the Mesopotamian cosmology, note: Concerning the Mashu mountain (Mashu = twin) watched by the Scorpion-men, the GE says: “Whose peaks reach to the vault of heaven (And) whose breast reaches to the nether world below,” this “nether world” being Arallu. We knew all the time, that we were up to Scorpius (probably with a part of Sagittarius), but the huge constellation offers sufficient space for more than one way of descending. It is for this reason particularly that we hope for a better understanding from the Indian lunar mansions (1) lambda upsilon Scorpii, alias “the root,” alias “the tearer out of the root,” alias “Yama’s two unfasteners,” and (2) Antares, “the eldest,” alias “who slays the eldest”; in the sense of Precession, the sting of the Scorpion antecedes Antares…“begetting” is done up there might begin to ponder over the Hurrian texts, where MAR.GID.DA, the Big Dipper (alias the Seven Rishis), begets twins on “the Earth”.143

In the Chinese painting discussed at the beginning of this chapter, where Confucius is holding the baby Buddha as if about to pass the child over to Laozi, the baby Buddha is depicted with his arms and legs stretched out in front, which is the Eldest Son pose, strongly suggesting that in this case Buddha represents the celestial Eldest Son; but remember I have also indicated that Buddha might be the Horus Child, hence it is best to think of Buddha as a dual celestial being. This depiction of characters with outstretched arms in front of the chest or partially stretched out to the side (as in Muslim prayers or some Christian sects’ manner of praying while standing) suggests an attempt to symbolise the Eldest Son pose. I am not just making claims that Buddha is a celestial conception based on visual 140

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ comparisons of artworks with celestial images; there are so-called factual religious ideas which further persuade me that Buddha is a play on these celestial images. Prof. Ninian Smart, an expert on comparative religions, provides information on Buddha which refers to other celestial imagery (highlighted in bold) which is congruent with images I have discussed thus far and others which will follow: The Buddha’s story is legendary: onto some historical facts were glued some wondrous stories. This fact means that it is hard for us to get to what may be called the “historical Buddha”144 … His life as an individual never really began, for, like us all, he was, in the Buddhist view, a beginingless wayfarer in the round of samsāra. There are many wondrous and edifying tales told of him in the scriptures about how he was a snake, or a hare, or a king, or whatever, in previous births… Immediately before his birth in this world as a human and more-than-human teacher and liberator, the Buddha-to-be, or Bodhisattva, resided for millions of years in a heaven, called Tusita, enjoying great happiness like a god. But he had to give this up to help living things…The birth itself was miraculous, according to legend. His mother dreamed that the Buddha-to-be took the form of a white elephant and entered her womb, and she ceased to have any wish for sex. So though she was not a virgin, having borne other children, it was in a loose sense a virgin birth; and it occurred at the time of full moon in May at the park Lumbini. The young Siddhartha grew up in some luxury, but eventually, after he married and had become father of son, he was impelled to leave the worldly life, and to take up that of a wandering recluse. He had been struck by the four sights of a very old man, a sick person [leopard skin], a corpse being taken to the burning-ground [death], and finally a holy beggar [fall from riches to begging at the feet of Angelman]…145 The last four characters are probably different “personalities” of the Buddha himself.

The Eldest Son as the Frog Prince This same Eldest Son image also looks like a jumping frog. I am once again convinced that this is the basis for the fabled prince who was turned into a frog. We also have a religious disguise of the same story, namely, the seventh plague of the ten plagues that the Jewish God wrought on the Egyptians (Gen. 8) for refusing to let the enslaved Israelites leave. But where is the prince? You find him in the tenth plague (Gen. 11) or it is Moses himself: So Moses said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘About midnight I will go throughout Egypt. Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the slave girl, who is at her hand mill, and the firstborn of the cattle as well. There will be loud wailing throughout Egypt – worse than there has ever been or ever will be again. But among the Israelites not a dog will bark at a man or an animal. Then you will know that the Lord makes a 141

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ distinction between Egypt and Israel (Gen. 11: 4-7).146

My assertion is that the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor was the archetype for Bes and, as we have seen, Bes was accompanied in the birth-chamber, when the king’s son was born, by Heqt or Heqit, the Frog-goddess. Heqit is a goddess of fertility and birth and disarmed Bes by jests and laughter. In the following extract we note that the frog identified as Heket (Heqet, Hekat, Heqat) is indeed very old since she appears in the Pyramid Texts, is specifically linked with the stars, and has several other interesting transformational forms and traditions. The various names and forms of this goddess are meant to reflect the various “personalities” associated with the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor celestial image: From these (texts) it follows that she is helpful to the king in his ascent into the sky (to the stars). In addition she helps the god Chnum (“animating Bildner”) as its counterpart and is awake as “Entbinderin” over the births. In order to be protected during the birth procedure, the Mrs. Amulette and Skarabäen [scarab] with the portrait of the frog goddess…Midwives are called “maids of the Heket”. As “Lebensspenderin” (“Entbinderin” with births) Heket is assigned to the God circle around Osiris of Abydos and receives from therefore the surname “lady from Abydos” (Nebet147 Abdju). In the grave of the Thoth priest Petosiris148…is an inscription, in which from a Procession to the honours of the goddess Heket is reported as a “Lady of the Herwer (Herur)”. Here the goddess asked for renovation of the temple in Herwer as well as for future protection of their sanctuary before further Nile inundations. In the temple of Sethos I, in Abydos, is represented Heket, how you by his Pharaoh a wine victim are brought. On a relief from the temple Rameses II in Abydos appears the goddess Heket (Heqat) in human shape, while she is mostly represented in the form of a frog or also froschköpfiger [frogheaded-figure] people shape.149

In The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt we find additional information which again confirms that we are dealing, not with a terrestrial creature, but a celestial creature. And in contrast to the above extract where the frog is almost exclusively female, here the frog’s maleness is emphasised. This gender duality is reflective of the duality of the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor. In the above extract the frog’s epithet is “lady from Abydos” and the frog was also regarded as a chthonic animal that brought life into being. It is these two ideas which were combined in the Egyptian “Lady of Life” conception. Male primeval gods of Hermopolis were often represented with frog heads. The frog statues of faience, stone or ivory, which were found in great numbers in 142

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ the most ancient area of the temple of Khenti-Amentiu at Abydos, could have been votive offerings to Heket thus suggesting worship of the Frog-goddess. One of the insignia of Bes is the knife, the celestial symbolism of which was explained above; similarly in the Middle Kingdom an image of a frog was applied to magical knives which were laid above the wombs of women or on new born children as a protection. In later representations the frog was the companion of the Nile-god Hapi, who assured fertility. Finally, it is interesting to note that the symbol of the frog was also adopted by the Christians. “In the Late Period the image of the frog became a symbol of rebirth, and was thus adopted by early Christians with the epithet, ‘I am the Resurrection’.”150 There are certainly many aspects in the above extracts which indication that Heket represents the Eldest Son and his many aliases. Churchward expands on some of the ideas that were held by the Egyptians about the frog and interestingly links such ideas to traditions of native Indians in North America and other societies. The celestial nature of such ideas is evident since the “moon” features prominently. The link between the frog and the wolf is once more an indication that the Eldest Son is the frog, since one transformational form of the Eldest Son is that of a “wolf”, as will be explained in Book 2. The Frog or Toad is frequently portrayed in Central America Codices, and the tradition of N. America (among the Indians) that a Frog in the Moon was followed by a devouring Wolf who was in love with the Frog, means the Frog was a type of transformation, and was applied to the changing moon in sign language: - Ptah was depicted as a Frog, and a Lamp was found in Egypt, with a Frog on it, with this written in hieroglyphics: “I am the Resurrection”… The Lamp here is equivalent to the Rising Sun, and the Frog on it is the type of Ptah, who is his Solar character was the resurrection and the Life in the Mythology before the image passed into Eschatology, when the god who rose again as Solar, became the Light of the World in a spiritual sense. The Frog here was a Zoo-type representation of Ptah in Amenta, or lower Earth, or Nether World, or Earth Eternity… The Frog in Egypt was a sign of “Myriads” as well as “transformation.” In the Moon it would denote “myriads of renewals” when periodic repetition was a mode of immortality. The Goddess Heket represented the Moon and its transformation amongst the Andaman Islands and 143

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Australian aborigines, and also the Iroquois N.A.I. They make the Frog “The Great Monster which drinks up all the water”; hence the Frog plays the part of Apap Monster, and we see thus the idea was also held by the Mayas…151

Churchward also reproduces a very interesting picture from Mexican Antiquities which shows a frog-faced man, the “Apap monster”, lying on his back with a spear (three circles around its handle) in his side, a chain around his neck and a little dog looking directly into his face. All of this may suggest that the frog-man is wounded or slain. The chain is made of three small interlocking circles with a fourth circle, much larger than the others, looking like an earring. Churchward labels the picture “Sut bound and chained and wounded by the Horus’ spear” and he briefly discusses the picture as follows: “…The text (ritual) states that “he has a chain of steel upon him”152 and “thou art pierced with hooks.”153 The frog face is also the little dog and the wolf (see Book 2), which might suggest that the “Apap monster” is the Jade Emperor; however, the manner in which the Apap monster is depicted suggests that this is actually the Eldest Son, “independently” depicted from the Jade Emperor, being pierced by the spear. Perhaps this is the same spear with which the Roman soldier AHA pierced the crucified Jesus in his side – we have already alluded to the celestial spear depicted with Boötes. Another example that frogs/toads were of mythological importance in the Americas is two large toads depicted sitting on a pedestal in front of five stairs leading to Tlaloc’s shrine, underlining their significance as religious icons.154 Tlaloc is an important Aztec god of rain and his priests carried out human sacrifice. The legend to this archaeological site notes that “a pair of frogs symbolise earth, water, and fertility. They were also associated with the underworld, since they burrowed in the mud during the dry seasons.” The innocent symbolisms of fertility and birth associated with the frog were hideously distorted. In her book Mary Magdalen, Susan Haskins, in discussing the gradual demonisation of women, notes that Luxury, who was often depicted in the guise of Venus accompanied by Cupid and Jest, is often depicted in Christian art as suffering eternally in hell as a feminine model of libidinous desire. Then as illustration she describes a twelfth-century sculpture on the portal at Moissac, which includes a toad – “[it] shows her [Luxury] as a scrawny, naked female figure, her breasts and vulva attacked by serpents, her mouth by toads. In the abbey museum, a female devil squats, her knees wide apart, her vagina a deep and hideous hole.”155 The description here has aspects in common with the diabolical Celtic “Sheela-na144

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ gig”, frequently found in Ireland and sometimes in Britain. Sheela-na-gig is some sort of frog-like, moon-headed boy-man who is seen as a mother goddess with Kalilike destructive and creation powers.156 This artwork depicts a large-headed male with prominent eyes and nose, large arms, and a tiny body with tiny legs. With his large hands he is pulling open his square or diamond shaped “vulva”. He has the typical Eldest Son pose and his smallness is perhaps representative of Bes. And Sheela-na-gig’s square or diamond shaped “vulva” is likely to be representative of the Crux Constellation. This same frog idea can also be seen in the epithets “hopping ones” or “jumping ones”, an example of which is mentioned in the following extract, where these epithets are linked with religion and celestial phenomena: Heimdal shares [the idea of being born from nine mothers] only with Agni157 in the Rigveda, and with Agni’s son Skanda in the Mahabharata. Skanda (literally means “the jumping one” or “the hopping one”) is the planet Mars, also called Kartikeya, inasmuch as he was borne by Krittika, the Pleiades…[In the footnote] The least which can be said, assuredly: Mars was installed during a more or less close conjunction of all planets…it is stressed that the powerful gods assembled all poured water upon Skanda, even as the gods had poured water on the head of Varuna, the lord of waters, for investing him with dominion. And this ‘investiture’ took place at the beginning of the Krita Yuga, the Golden Age...158 Hallinskidi and Heimdal are quoted among the names for the ram. Heimdal is the “watcher” of the much-trodden Bridge of the gods which finally breaks down at Ragnarok; the “head” measures the cross of the ecliptic and the equator at the vernal equinox in Aries, a constellation which is called “head” also by Cleomedes, and countless astronomical illustrations show the Ram ruling the head (Pisces the feet).159

We have seen the frog motif displayed on knives used at births, but in the tradition of the Hopewell Indians pipes were made with frog motifs. The legend to one such pipe notes: “In Native American mythology frogs were sometimes the demonic guardians of fresh water, or they could represent more positive things such as cleaning, regeneration and fertility.”160 The fact that the frog is depicted on pipes gives me further confidence that this Eldest Son was indeed seen as a frog because, as will be seen in chapter 11, the smoking pipe is an alternative image for the “false beard” that links up with the Horus Child and Angelman images, which are also associated with the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor. Just as with the Tiko,161 in Zulu practices the frog is associated with “sex”, disease 145

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ and even blood. In the treatment called “barring” of diseases believed to be caused by spirits, the medicine man uses several methods. One is to scarify the patient over the most painful spot, and to put this blood in the mouth of a frog, which is then abandoned in some faraway spot. In cases of venereal diseases, a live frog may be placed against the afflicted parts and then thrown into a stream. Here we find the idea of a scapegoat, which is shown more clearly still in the practice of making a goat lie against the patient, treating it with medicine by means of incisions in the neck and chest, and then taking it to some distant spot.162 Zulu folklore about a prince and a frog is more extensive and may be the inspiration behind not only the European tale of the Frog Prince but also the biblical tale of Salome and John the Baptist’s head. In this story the father is likened to Herod the Great and the daughter, Mxhakaza, to John’s head or perhaps even to the Indian Chief. Mxhakaza is a beautiful girl but she does not seem to like the sun. So she makes her father promise that when she reaches puberty he will darken the sun. But sadly on this day, because she could still see the sun, nothing seemed to satisfy her, not even the number of cattle her father had killed in an attempt to darken the sun. He had obtained the cattle from expeditions against the tribes of his enemy, uSilosimaphundu, – a huge monster with a rock-like head and a big red mouth that resembled the great fish of Sinbad the sailor. It was not long before uSilosimaphundu came looking for his cattle. When he entered the kraal163 of his enemy, he saw Mxhakaza and her sister in the garden while all the people were digging in the garden. He did not speak but the leaves of two trees (the imidoni) spoke for him. They asked Mxhakaza’s sister to fetch him some water from the river. But when her calabash was full she became spellbound – she couldn’t move. The leaves then ordered Mxhakaza to take care of the monster. She cooked food for him and he devoured everything that was of value except the pot (which became the silver platter for John’s head) which was filled with her ornaments and bracelets. Then they told her to climb onto the monster and he ran off with her. In the meanwhile, the sister had recovered and found her mother. They had a feeling something was wrong and hurried home where they found everything in chaos and Mxhakaza gone. The king and his army pursued the monster but not even the spears of his warriors could deter the monster. He took Mxhakaza to his cave [the prison in which John was put, I guess], explaining to her father that he had carried her off merely as payment for the cattle he had stolen from him. He would have to forego the lobola he was expected to pay. This became the basis for the carrying-off tradition still prevalent among the Zulu and Xhosa tribes in South Africa, and is also related to 146

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ the story of Benjamin, where the tribe of Benjamin were allowed to carry off women. Mxhakaza was visited by the amadlungandlebe while she was imprisoned in the cave. These were strange beings like men but with only one arm and one leg. Eventually they carried her off to marry their chief. She was kept in a “black isigodlo” and fed well until she became so fat that she couldn’t walk, and when she sat down she left a pool of fat behind – which her husband drank. The people began to complain and urged the chief to melt her down. But when Mxhakaza heard this plan she called on the heavens to send thunder and rain to extinguish the fire, whereupon the storm not only put out the fire but also killed many people. When they again attempted to kill her she again called on the heavens but this time her husband was killed. And without his protection the people fed her so little food that she became thin enough to walk properly again. She packed all her belongings in her basket and went home, where she was warmly welcomed by everyone. Even though many princes asked for her hand in marriage her father declined, not wanting to lose her again, until a prince sent an old man. But when the old man entered the forest he turned into a frog. Mxhakaza agreed to go with the frog. It did not take long for the men who were carrying her belongings to tire and return to the kraal. When they reached the end of the forest the frog changed back into the old man. He decided not to take Mxhakaza to the prince; instead he called the beasts of the forest to devour her. He could control the beasts (the Master of Animals). Mxhakaza called out; “Open, my head, that I may put my things inside.” She then climbed into a tree that enfolded her in its branches to hide her from these beasts. (This reminds me of the tree which closed in on Osiris’ coffin.) The beasts left when they couldn’t find her and the old man decided to take her to the prince. He did not understand why her head had become so big. The prince invited her into his kraal. But because her head was so deformed (presumably she had become the “Indian Chief”, Ugly Leah of the Bible), he did not want to marry her. One day, while they were bathing at the river, the prince’s sister asked her why her head was so large. Mxhakaza asked her head to open. And while her friend watched in astonishment she unpacked her belongings and adorned herself with her ornaments and bracelets. When they returned to the kraal everyone was amazed by her beauty. The prince fell in love with her, and the old man was killed for his treachery.164 Interestingly, when I was a youngster, there was a common conception that a young girl with freckles on her face had been kissed or spat at in the face by a frog – see this idea in connection with the frog and the Leopard Skin (the freckles) in the next chapter. * * * 147

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The complexity of the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son image has taken us on a long journey exploring ideas and cultures as difficult and multifaceted as the image itself. In summary, this celestial image has the following major aliases: Batman, Confucius, Bes, God devouring his son, the Loud Screeching Swallow (a form of Isis), the Clown’s Head, the ‘Elder Son’, the Frog Prince. It is also my contention that this image was conceived of as the Witch’s Cauldron alias the silver platter with John the Baptist’s head, alias the Witch on the Broomstick and alias the Great Bell. The many fascinating ideas and traditions based on the “tongue and mouth” have also been revealed. Although this Batman / Eldest Son / Jade Emperor image, as with many others, has various aliases in the ancient world, it also became associated with terrestrial rulers and wealth, particularly with kings and queens and even priests (see Book 2). When you pause awhile to observe the stars and gaze in wonderment at the star patterns that constantly change as the earth turns, you realise that as these patterns change so the myths and folklore change. But what is even more fascinating is that no matter where on earth you are, you will find that each people, in each country, has a similar story to tell – t’was as if they perceived the same or similar star patterns at some time and through human ingenuity created ideas and cultures so complex and fascinating and yet at times ghastly. Then to keep the beliefs based on these stories alive, they introduced rituals and rites which they passed on from generation to generation – many of which are still practised today. Just think about it.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, eds., Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 352. 2. Ian P. McGreal, ed., Great Thinkers of the Eastern World (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1995). 3. A brief history of Confucius and some of his works and ideas are covered in McGreal, Great Thinkers of the Eastern World, 3-8. 4. Ninian Smart, The World’s Religions – Old Traditions and Modern Transformations 148

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ (London: Cambridge University Press, 1989), 105. 5. McGreal, Great Thinkers of the Eastern World, 9-10. In Book 3, I discuss the numbers and mathematics which seem to have formed the basis for these numbers. To arouse your interest, perhaps one of the numbers, 5,000, has the same basis as the 5,000 people Jesus fed with five loaves of bread and two fishes (Mat.14:13-21). The two fishes should be seen in the context of the two “fishes” discussed in the previous chapter. Bread is associated with wheat, which is commonly depicted with the astrological sign of Virgo. 6. Ibid. 7. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 351. 8. K’ung is cognate with !Kung, a San tribe, and with King. 9. Herbert Krosney, The Lost Gospel – The Quest for the Gospel of Judas (Washington D.C: Natioanl Geographic – Krosney Productions, Ltd, 2006), 279. 10. Kun seems to be a different rendering of Nun, with the letter K having replaced the N, which also means fish. 11. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 355. 12. Ibid. 13. Ibid., 355-356. The text proceeds to list the eight and their various mythological transformations. 14. Eileen Jensen Krige, The Social System of the Zulus (South Africa: Shuter and Shooter, 1977), 290-293. 15. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996), 145. 16. Maurice Cotterell’s book The Mayan Prophecies was released in 1995 and became an immediate international bestseller in more than sixteen languages. He published another bestseller, The Tutankhamun Prophecies – the Sacred Secret of the Mayans, Egyptians and Freemasons, in 1999. 17. Maurice Cotterell, The Tutankhamun Prophecies – the Sacred Secret of the Mayans, Egyptians and Freemasons (United Kingdom: Headline Book Publishing, 1999), 11. 18. Ibid., 9-11. 19. Noah is presumably a corruption of NA/AN or a combination of ON/NO + AHA. 20. Lamech is presumably composed from Lu + Me/a/o + (s/c)hu. 21. Erich von Daniken, Chariots of the Gods – Unsolved Mysteries of the Past (London: 149

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ World Books, 1969), 64-66. The first English translation of this German book caused quite a stir. 22. Hurru is presumably related to H-ur-ra or Hu-r-ra and Horus. 23. http://users.winshop.com.au/annew/Antares.html. 24. Albert Jansen, Star Maps for Southern Sky: An Easy Guide to the Night Sky (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2004), 67. 25. Hobbit is cognate with Robbits = Robbers = Rabbits = Rabbi. 26. Albert Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man (United States: Kessinger Publishing, 1963), 356. 27.  Khensu-Nefer-Hetep, Khensu may be the origin for the title Khan and Kuhn, a Jewish word for priest. 28. Nefer-Hetep is depicted as a male sitting on a low throne. He has a false beard, a long single plait of hair and a snake-ring around his forehead, and is wearing the Pschent (Double) crown. Around his neck is a cross similar to the cross of bravery and in his left hand is the Ankh, while in the other hand, positioned directly vertically over his single leg, is the sceptre. 29. On some Egyptian artworks of Bes there is an X sign, while the cross referred to and represented here is a “+” sign, alone or within a circle; the X or + are important identifiers of the celestial orientation of ancient peoples. Also, the cross sign was at times represented by crossing over the front leg of the skin which Bes wore. The same cross was inherited in some regimental wear for soldiers, where weapon belts were crossed either at the front of the chest or the back of a uniform. This cross was also represented by the crossing over of the arms. 30. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 154-159 31. Cotterell, The Tutankhamun Prophecies, 50-51. 32. Ernest A. W. Budge, The Dwellers on the Nile: The Life, History, Religion and Literature of the Ancient Egyptian (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1977), 165. 33. Manfred Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson Ltd., 1980), 33. 34. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 67. 35. The ‘bou’ part of the word bourgeois is presumably derived from Bau, from the Sumerian dog goddess Bau Bau. 36. Christiane Stukenbrock and Barbara Töpper, 1000 Masterpieces of European Painting 150

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ from 1300 to 1850 (Germany: Könemann, 2005), 295. 37. Cherubim, those plump, naked, angelic babies, are a recurrent theme in European artworks and suggest a different version of the chubby Bes. 38. Stukenbrock and Töpper, 1000 Masterpieces of European Painting from 1300 to 1850, 293. 39. Ibid., 930. 40. Isabella is presumably composed from Is-Abel-la/AL/EL. 41. Stukenbrock and Töpper, 1000 Masterpieces of European Painting from 1300 to 1850, 792. 42. Ibid., 793. 43. Ibid., 817. 44. Cherubim may have been composed from S/Che-Ra-Bens. 45. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 32-33. 46. Ibid., 67. 47. “Aha” might even be related to the thrilling sound made by the ibis and, as you know, the ibis is related to the god of wisdom, Thoth. 48. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 32-33. 49. Sudani, presumably a reference to Sudan, which may even have been derived from Shu-Dan/Din or Sa-Din/Dan. 50. Budge, The Dwellers on the Nile, 163. 51. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 58. 52. Ibid., 133-167. 53. Ibid., chapter vii. 54. Punt: it is probable that this name, rendered as Pun-t, became the base for the name Pan as in Pan Piper and Peter Pan and was preserved as “pun”, the humorous use of a word or phrase with a double meaning. 55. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 154-159. 56. Dangas may have been modified from Dan/Din (mighty) + gal (head) and was probably 151

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ shortened to Dan, whose root is still recognised in names such as Dingo and Dingaan. 57. This is interesting because in later European courts dwarfs were kept for the same purpose. This tradition was eventually transferred to the modern circus. What was not understood was that, according to the cosmology of ancient peoples, the dwarf was actually one type of king, emperor, tzar, chief, etc. 58. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 154-159. 59. Ibid. 60. Bubastis, a word which may have become Baptist. 61. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 154-159. 62. Ibid., between pages 154 and 155. 63. David M. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation (London: Arrow Books Limited, 1990), 272-278. 64. Ibid., 274-275. 65. Ibid. 66. Ibid. 67. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 332. 68. Ahura appears to be a composite word derived from Aha + Ra or from Aha, where Ur was inserted, Ah-UR-A. 69. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 332. 70. Ibid. 71. David Rohl, A Test of Time – The Bible - From Myth to History (New York: Century Ltd., 1995), 18, 31. 72. Namer: a name which may have become Namera and later Nimrad, i.e Nimrod. 73. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Egypt – The Land of the Pharaohs (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 22-30. 74. Budge, The Dwellers on the Nile, 2. 75. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 80-81. 76. As described in Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient 152

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ Egypt. 77. Veronica Ions, Egyptian Mythology (Middlesex: Hamlyn Publishing Group, Ltd., 1968), 37-38. 78. This Child from the Lotus Blossoms is cognate with the Lotus Child, Buddha. 79. Ions, Egyptian Mythology, 37-38. 80. I will discuss the complexity of the celestial ram image in more detail in Book 3, but information discussed thus far strongly suggests this particular ram is another alias for the fowl-CHICK since this image has close proximity to the Eldest Son / Jade Emperor, who appears to be an archetype for Amon in this case. 81. There two ideas here, which may have become the basis of two ideas in the Homer Epic. The first is that the skin of a ram became the basis for the story of Jason (Ya + Son) and the Golden Fleece. Secondly, Achilles is another being with a penchant for hiding. There are periods when Jesus “hides”, that is, he disappears and only reappears later in the story of his life! 82. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 343. 83. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 25-26. 84. Ibid., 25-26. 85. Ibid., 25. 86. Brown, Lost Civilization: Egypt, 58-59. 87. Regine Schulz and Matthias Seidal, eds., Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs (Germany: Könemann, 2004). Western Thebes, Deir el-Bahari, mortuary temple of Hatshesput, Eighteenth Dynasty ca. 1470 BC, Cairo Museum, JE 14276. 88. Ibid., 379. Late Period, sixth/fifth century BC, Hildesheim, Pelizaeus-Museum. 89. Ibid. 90. Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill – An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and its Transmission through Myth (Boston: David R. Godine Publisher Inc., 1977), 277-281. 91. Fänggen, de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fänggen. 92. Presumably from TiKane/TiDan/TiTane i.e. Titan. 93. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 280.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 94. Moskhou – could this word be the root for Moscow? 95. In Book 2, I discuss humeri/humus and its associated words in connection with agriculture and how this relates to the rejection of Kane’s offering and the eventual killing of Abel by Kane in the biblical story. 96. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 281. 97. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 263. 98. Ibid. 99. Ibid., 269. 100. Ibid., 216-217. 101. Robert Temple, The Crystal Sun – Rediscovering a Lost Technology of the AncientWorld (United Kingdom: Arrow Books, 2000), 592-594. 102. It is probably from this word that we derived the word cyclone – a strong outwardspiralling wind motion, with the winds rotating clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Southern (Encyclopedia Britannica). 103. This reminds me of Charlotte Bronte, which is wordplay on Brontēs and Sharlot. Sharlot may be a modification of the word Harlot. It is perhaps Brontēs that modified to Bren, Bran or Brent. 104. Temple, The Crystal Sun, 592-594. 105. Vampire appears to be related to ubir meaning “undead”, or Upir, a type of werewolf. See the significance and relation of this to Jade Emperor in Book 2. 106. This possibly became the wood (tree), the cross on which Jesus was hung. 107. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 414-415. 108. Nana Banchie Darkwah, The Africans Who Wrote the Bible – Ancient Secrets Africa and Christianity have never told (San Francisco: Aduana Publishing Book, 2002), 194. 109. Ibid. 110. Ibid. Basia may have been shortened to Asia. 111. Interestingly, the name Tane resembles the biblical name Kane or Cain. 112. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 408-411. 113. Ibid., 377. 154

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ 114. Ibid., 413. Ha-i-tiki presumably gave rise to the name Haiti. 115. The first Heitiki was said to have been born by Hine-te-iwaiwa (Woman of Subtle Light). Hine-te-iwaiwa appears in many myths. She is often associated with the origins of female action songs, and is one of the several female personifications of moonlight, linking the cycle of the waning moon with that of female menstruation. 116.  Norman Bancroft Hunt, Historical Atlas of Ancient America (Dublin: Thalamus Publishing, 2001), 15. 117. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Aztecs – Reign of Blood and Splendour (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 52. 118. Hunt, Historical Atlas of Ancient America, 14-15. 119. Ibid., 13. 120. Krige, The Social System of the Zulus, 354-355. 121. Remember the walls of Jericho which miraculously fell down at the sound of trumpets! These walls, similar to the walls on which Gilgamesh stands, are cosmological concepts, and in chapter 11 I discuss the celestial archetype for the trumpet. 122. Cotterell, The Tutankhamun Prophecies. Figurine of “[a] bearded white man” (Plate 11). 123. James George Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 71. 124. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 99. 125. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 409. 126. Ibid. 127. K-Ali may have been shortened to Ali, and Ali was modified to become the name for the mythological Alice in Wonderland. 128. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 68-69. Victoria and Albert Museum, London. 129. “Speaking in tongues”. The latter suggestion is not based on these points only. In Book 3 I will demonstrate what the spirit or Holy Ghost was in terms of ancient cosmology, until it was distorted to mean what it does today. 130. Krosney, The Lost Gospel, 304-305. 131. The Bau part of the name Baubo is probably from Bau Bau, see Book 2. Iambe may be a “corruption” of Impi, and Iambe may even be the root of Lambe i.e., Lamp and lamb. 155

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ And perhaps this lamp/lamb connection is being played with in the term “The lamb, the light of the world”, which a reference to Jesus. 132. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 424-426. 133. Ibid., 315, in footnote. Great-Night-Hina: “Hina” may have been derived or modified from the name China. 134. There are several celestial candidates for this “rock idea”; for example, we saw Bes associated with stones. This stone/rock idea is pervasive throughout the Bible in different disguises. For example, the stone on which Jacob slept and had a dream (Gen. 28:10), the stone tablets of Moses, and the bread/ stones of Jesus’ temptation. The same stone idea should also be seen in connection with the stone children that Cronus ate! 135. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 124. 136. http://users.winshop.com.au/annew/Antares.html. 137. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 298. 138. Ions, Egyptian Mythology, 58-60. 139. Brown, Lost Civilization: Egypt, 91-93. 140. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 10. 141. Encyclopaedia Britannica. 142. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough. 143. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 450-451. 144. Buddha is presumably derived from Bus+DD+AHA. 145. Smart, The World’s Religions, 55-56. 146. Firstborn of Pharaoh = The Eldest Son, The Prince; “...her hand mill” see Hamlet’s Mill for various discussions of the mill conception; “the firstborn of the cattle” is a conception linked to the celestial bovines; “loud wailing” is a reference to the wailing of Isis; “not a dog will bark”, see the dog ideas in Book 2. 147. Nebet is cognate with Nabi, prophet, see Book 2. 148. Petosiris is presumably from Petra/Petro + Osiris. 149. Pyramid Texts in Gottheiten (4), www.pernefer.de/gottheiten2. 150. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 53. 156

5 : Batman/the jade emperor/the eldest son __________________________________________________________________ 151. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 102-103. 152. “he has a chain of steel upon him”: Ba metal, Ba, in Ancient Egypt is some divine force/ soul. 153. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 102-103. 154. Brown, Lost Civilization: Aztecs, 114. 155. Haskins, Mary Magdalen, 151-152. 156. Peter Berresford Ellis, The Druids (London: Constable, 1995), photo section. 157. Agni: a name which may have been derived from the Egyptian or Mesopotamian name Ani or An. 158. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 157, 159. 159. Ibid. 160. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 432, display an example of such a pipe. 161. Tiko is just another designation for God with some black South Africans. 162. Krige, The Social System of the Zulus, 333-334. 163. Kraal: a word which may have become graal, i.e., grail. 164. Krige, The Social System of the Zulus, 350-351.

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Chapter 6

THE Fowl-CHICK AND THE LEOPARD SKIN The palace hall is filled with excitement when the Pharaoh Cheop’s dwarf introduces the Chief Magician. The dwarf, doing the dance of Bes, shouts: “Amazing! The greatest spectacle on earth, tonight you will witness an act never before performed in Egypt!” The tall, dark-skinned magician, dressed in a black cloak covered with the moon and stars, steps onto the stage. The smoke of white frankincense effervesces all around him. A crowd on knife’s edge whispers with feared excitement. They have heard that this magician, one of a kind in the whole of Egypt, can detach a human’s head – then replace it with the same head or an animal’s head and bring the person or creature back to life. The magician’s assistant presents him with a bowl of water. Dark, fear-inspiring, ancient unknown words of the magician thunder through the hall, as he waves his hand over the water. Out comes a white chicken, rising from the water until it suspends itself in mid-air in front of the magician’s face. Cluck! Cluck! Cluck! echoes through the silent hall. More magical words are said and the crowd watches in amazed silence as the head moves from the body of the chicken and lands on the foot of the magician while the body remains suspended motionless in the air. “Look, it is dead!” shouts the dwarf. The crowd, fearing the mysterious powers of the magician, remain fearfully silent, gripping their heads with their hands. Then the magician chants some other mysterious words and the head slowly moves and re-attaches itself to the body of the chicken. Cluck! Cluck! Cluck! echoes once more through hall as the chicken flies and settles onto the shoulder of the seated Pharaoh. Then it mysteriously vanishes. In 800 BC, Homer, revered as the greatest Greek poet, writes the fascinating tale of Jason and his voyage into mysterious lands to retrieve the magical Golden Fleece. Homer only records a story that was 3000 years old. Is there a relationship between this Golden Fleece and the Leopard Men secret society that existed in Çatal Hüyük and Ancient Africa and whose leopard totem can be traced back to 6000 BC?

The Fowl-CHICK alias Chicken Little For several years, whenever I looked at Egyptian hieroglyphics (sacred writing), I was amusingly puzzled at one hieroglyphic character, namely the character of a yellow over-sized chicken, with one tiny wing, standing erect on two red legs.1 158

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ I remember at times just giggling with amusement at this rather odd-looking pictogram of a bird that is a cross between a full-grown fowl and a baby chicken and wondering: “How on earth did they come up with this?” In my amusement I called it the Fowl-CHICK. Little did I know that one day, on April 22, 2006, between 6 and 7 pm, I would encounter this Fowl-CHICK and all its intriguing metamorphoses, drawn in indelible celestial ink, facing southwards along the ES line. When I first saw it, as with several of the other celestial images, the recognition was instantaneous – the Egyptian Fowl-CHICK! But as I watched the Fowl-CHICK, I was puzzled because the rear “wing-body” (head-neck stars of the Jade Emperor in figure 5.1) appeared to move upwards as the night progressed, giving rise to other images (see chapter 5). However, figuring out which stars were involved took several subsequent observations until I was able to identify the following stars as constituting this image: the Crux Constellation formed the beak/head, the stars from the Centaurus and Lupus constellations made up the wing-body, while the stars labeled Pointers and Alpha formed the single leg. The image outlined in Star Maps for Southern Skies (see figure 6.1) provides a sense of the stars involved.2 In order to visualise what I saw, one has to picture the image of this “bird” slanting slightly upwards from the rear to the head/beak along the ES line, exactly as it is drawn in Egypt – The World of The Pharaohs.3 In form, this celestial image does resemble the Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic, but it has only one leg. However, the representation of this “bird” with its specific colours and two legs does make sense when seen against all the information discussed in chapter 5, where the red of the legs are symbolic of Antares, and the yellow of the entire body is representative of the yellow/gold colour of Saturn, Rigel Kent and the Crux Constellation. When one considers the Fowl-CHICK, the “Batman bird”, in relation to the Phoenix, which is also composed of the stars in this region, it is not difficult to understand why the Mayans represented Lord Pascal (see chapter 5) as transformations from a baby quetal bird, presumably the Fowl-CHICK, into, finally, Quetzalcoatle the feathered serpent, who is none other than the Phoenix (see chapter 15 for the connection between the phoenix and the serpent). The Pharaoh and the magic chicken When writing this chapter, I recalled having read an interesting Egyptian story from the Westcar Papyrus about the son of the Pharaoh Cheop/Khufu,4 builder of the Great Pyramids and Sphinx at Giza, and a mysterious old man that could magically cut off the head of a chicken and reunite its parts again to resurrect it, that is, bring it back to life again. This old man with the magic powers was Teta,5 the sage who lived in Ten-Seneferu. He was one hundred and one years old and every day he 159

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ ate five hundred loaves of bread, the shoulder of an ox (possibly the Bull’s Hind Leg) and a measure of ale.6 After hearing that this sage had the power “to fasten on again to its body a head that hath been cut off…to make a lion follow him [another transformational form of the Fowl-CHICK, see later] whilst his snare is trailing on the ground; and…knoweth the number of the aptet [another epithet for Taweret/Tuart, the hippopotamus goddess] of the sanctuary of Thoth”, Khufu requested Herutataf, a learned man, to fetch this sage to perform his magic in his presence. Herutataf travelled along the Nile River and across land to meet with Teta. He found him in his courtyard “lying upon a basket-work bed, having his head shampooed and his feet rubbed”.7 He agreed to meet with the king. The Pharaoh on meeting him asked him why he had never seen him, upon which he answered: “O Prince [note he calls the Pharaoh ‘Prince’, a title that actually belongs to the Pharaoh’s son, because the Pharaoh and his son are ‘one’], he who is called cometh; and since thou hast called me, behold, here I am.” The Pharaoh asked him to perform his magic act on a prisoner – “Let a captive who is shut up in prison be brought”8 – but Teta disagreed saying; “Nay, my lord the king, let not this ‘thing’ be performed upon man, but upon some creature that belongeth to the sacred animals” (which reminds me of the Jewish animals which could be sacrificed). They first brought him a goose (this goose is the “Big Cackler” whose head is a transformation of the Fowl-CHICK). He cut the head off and placed it on the east side of the colonnade; the body he placed on the west side. Then he uttered some magic words and the body and the head slowly started moving towards each other until they joined and the bird stated to cackle. He repeated this magic act using a Khet-aa bird (the Fowl-CHICK). Then to prove he had power over all the animals they brought him an ox. He cut off its head (the Sheep/Goat/Cow/Horse’s Head) and it fell to the ground, upon which Teta said the magic words and the ox stood up and walked away as if nothing had happened.9 When you place specific emphasis on this bird, it fascinatingly becomes the basis for the nursery tale of Chicken Little and the Acorn – where the acorn is really the head of the Fowl-CHICK, that is, the Crux Constellation. In this rather senseless story an acorn falls on Chicken Little’s head signalling the end of the world (see Book 3 for this conception of the end of world ages or cycles). Several aspects highlighted in this ancient story, recorded as historical fact involving a real Pharaoh, suggest that this was not an actual event but a cosmological event related to the several celestial images. Thus, given the ancients’ worldview “As in heaven so on earth,” we should not be surprised that these cosmological ideas gave 160

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ rise to people claiming such feats as magic or miracles which eventually degenerated into the so-called diabolical satanic dark arts. The Leopard Skin In Mythology – Myths, Legends & Fantasies, some majestic, black spotted, bright yellow ivory leopards from Benin are depicted; they are associated with the legendary Obas (presumably O-Bes), Kings of Benin.10 Another Obas artwork of interest is a bronze cast of a strange leopard with the mouth/teeth of a rabbit/rat (?) surrounded by “flowers”.11 In a third artwork, these same Obas are shown holding a rather strangelooking animal with pin-point marks covering its entire body.12 The leopard skin, also a common motif in Aztec art, is mostly associated with the warrior dress of the fierce Jaguar Knights.13 An Aztec God, Mixcoatl, is shown poking fire arrows into the rear end of a strange looking leopard-like creature that is trampling a red man.14 A Celtic water goddess, Morgan la Fée, is shown dressed in multi-layered robes and dresses, including a leopard skin.15 Oni (demon), a large fierce being with a trident, is depicted in a Japanese painting skewering the blood-dripping heads of several creatures and the head of a human. What is relevant in this context is that around Oni’s shoulders is the spotted leopard skin from a strange wolf-like creature with one open eye and a nose-ring.16 There is an interesting picture of Dionysus entitled “The Triumph of Dionysus”, who according to the legend as told by sailors was “associated with lions, panthers and tigers” and “often dressed in the skin of a wild animal”. This would also make Dionysus a type of “Master of Animals”. In this picture, a leopard in the foreground is drinking from a bowl, and a naked male is shown with what appears to be a leopard skin.17 The Festival and Theatre of Dionysus discusses the origin and nature of drama, pointing out that in ancient Greece drama incorporated religious elements and was only performed at certain religious functions. An analysis is given of the drama festival of the god Dionysus, who is described as follows: the god of fertility, wine, growth and ecstatic states of mind who is portrayed on vases as a handsome youth with long curled hair, dressed in a long robe and a leopard-skin, his hair bound by a fillet of ivy18 a staff called a thyrsus bound about with ivy in his hand. He sometimes carries a wine-cup. He is accompanied by maenads, or ecstatically frenzied women, their hair unbound, clad in animal skins and holding small animals, dancing wildly in his honour. There may also be satyrs, half-man, half-goat, in attendance.19 161

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The entire article is filled with cosmological information relevant to the celestial images discussed in this book, and it is worth repeating a little more from this text. This illustrates how these celestial ideas became part of culture, were refined over time and ultimately took on various disguises in modern classical theatre and most importantly in religious traditions and rituals. Two strong themes are seen: (1) the phallus (its celestial significance was discussed in the previous chapter and its other aliases are discussed in chapter 8) and (2) killing, the sacrifice conception. At first sight it may appear that the timing of the festivals was rather odd: the Lenaia was in January, the City Dionysia in late March: would one not have expected them in summer?...The City Dionysia always began on the night of the 8th day of Elaphebolion20...Dionysus was known as ‘Eleuthereus’ (= ‘man of Eleutherai’) – but ‘eleutheros’ in Greek also means ‘free’ and this was one of Dionysus’ titles.21 He was represented there by a wooden cult statue… The earliest remains of a temple of Dionysus in Athenes date from that time (6th century). There is also a ‘myth’ of the arrival of the worship of Dionysus in Athens. The god came to the city: as at Thebes, he was not recognized: he sent a plague which attacked men’s genitalia, and this convinced the Athenians of his power… The Athenians, appealing to Delphi, were told to organize a procession featuring this organ. They did, and the plague left them.



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A few days before the festival, the cult statue was taken from Athens to the Academy, a “university” where Plato taught, just outside Athens on the way to Eleutherae. It was placed in a shrine there, and was the object of sacrifices and offerings. On the evening of the 8th day of Elaphebolion it was brought home to Athens by a torchlight procession. On the first day of the festival there was a general holiday, during which even prisoners were allowed out on bail. There was a procession...Panathenaia, including dancing and singing of “satirica” (= rude?) songs. High-born Athenian girls carried baskets of offerings. Citizens (male, over 30, citizen father and Athenian mother) wore white and carried bottles of wine called askoi, metics (resident non-Athenians) wore red and carried trays of offerings called skaphia. Huge phalluses carried in the procession symbolized fertility, as did the bulls led to be sacrificed when the procession arrived at the theatre precinct. One high-born maiden – the kanephoros22 – carried a basket piled high with first-fruits. Men carried loaves shaped like roasting-spits and named obeliai after them, on their shoulders…The climax of the procession was when it arrived at the altar at the theatre of Dionysus and the slaughter of victims – often over 200 of them. Beef all round that night! There was plenty of wine – the final event of the night was a komos or byevel, in which the men went out into the streets with torches, flutes and harps to sing and dance until dawn.23

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ There is another interesting picture on a vase (ca. 460 BC) showing Phrixus escaping on a speckled ram.24 How can a ram be a leopard? Is this perhaps the origin of the idea of the Golden Fleece? While I discuss the complexities of the goat and ram images and their related stars in Book 3, this Fowl-CHICK may nevertheless also have been conceptualised as another goat and ram, and maybe in this form the Leopard Skin became the archetype for the Golden Fleece of the Greek myth involving Jason (Yason) and Argonauts. The wearing or depiction of leopard skins is also a common art motif in Ancient Egypt, as, for example, in two tomb scenes, one depicting Kiki25 and his wife (ca. 1250 BC) and another from the burial chambers of Sennefer. Sennefer wears a leopard skin covering the front of his body. The tail of the leopard skin dangles between his leg like a penis.26 On the famous Ani papyrus The Book of the Dead, which is in the British Museum, there is a male which I presume is Ani adorned with a leopard skin.27 In one of the oldest tomb paintings found at Hierakonpolis, dated ca. 3300 BC, is the depiction of what appears to be a leopard skin “shield” and another human dressed in the same “skin”.28 The leopard skin also appears to have been present in the Hindu religion, for example, in the painting depicting “The Holy Family of Shiva and Parvati on Mount Kailas”, one of the gods is adorned with a leopard skin and the holy family is sitting on another large leopard skin.29 In the previous chapter I referred to the dress of Pygmies, which includes the wearing of a leopard skin as part of their sacred ceremonies. As will be explained, the celestial image that I termed the Leopard Skin rises at the ES point (more easterly) and finally settles at the SW point (more westerly). When it settles it takes on the appearance of a volvine, see Book 2. I think the idea of the rising of the Leopard Skin on one side of the Jade Emperor, or the “fall” of the Leopard Skin / Volvine on the side of Angelman (chapter 11) is preserved in a Zulu mythological idea – “Mburu had once been a leopard hunter until a leopard mauled his right arm, paralyzing it forever”30 – since both these celestial characters have only one prominent “arm”. This Leopard Skin or leopard conception seems to be very ancient indeed. There is an interesting example of San rock art depicting a rather strange therianthropes which is labeled “A man transforms into a lion”. It forms part of the numerous examples of San cave/rock art that is scattered throughout Southern Africa and is thought to date 163

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ from 10000 to 100 BC.31 However, when one looks at the therianthrope it certainly does not resemble a lion but a finely spotted animal with the hind leg of a human. I suspect the finely spotted image is related to the same imagery, that is the FowlCHICK, with the spots indicative of the Leopard Skin. The single tail seems to be the false beard (see chapter 11) and the front leg the stars Rigel Kent and Hadar. The text above this San art picture is also highly significant since several of the artistic images can be linked to my celestial Leopard Skin and the SW point: Other transformation figures favoured by the San artists include elephant-men [see chapter 11], jackal-men [see Book 2], some spectacular bird-men [see the phoenix], an archer with the head and tail of a baboon but legs and arms of a human [see below, and chapter 9], “up-side-down” therianthropes with animal heads emerging from the buttocks of headless human bodies, and, inevitably, lion-men [see below and chapter 16].32

Information quoted by Ruth Barker suggests that the leopard was an important totem33 animal and that the practice of initiating members of a tribe into a secret leopard society is very ancient indeed: “The so called Leopard Men of Çatal Hüyük and the African continent were a secretive and tribal society who practiced ritual initiation into a leopard-totem hunting group of formidable reputation...Earliest evidence of their existence comes from wall paintings of circa 6000 BC, while they were still in existence into the earlier years [of] the twentieth century.”34 Interestingly, in the Zulu tradition discussed by Krige we have the association of a king and his army35 and the leopard skin. After various rituals, including the fortification of the king, spurting the sun, strengthening the army, white medicine, the ritual bath, and feasting, the king – the Great UmKhosi – reviews the army: The next day or on the same day as the feasting, there is a grand review of the army, at which the king appears, dressed up in his finery, which in the Amafunze36 tribe consisted of leopard skin and other skins. His face was covered with a piece of leopard skin with two holes for the eyes, round his throat he had ox-tails, and suspended down his chest was the complete tail of a leopard [symbolic of the penis] On his head was a cap, somewhat like a fez, of silver monkey skin [see the symbolisms of this, later] with side flaps coming down over the ears while he was fully armed with shield, assegai [the celestial spear] and knobkerrie [Crux-HadarRigel Kent].37

These are but a few examples of the numerous ancient artworks, ideas and traditions emphasising the ancients’ mytho-religious conception of the leopard skin or animals with similar spots. In relation to the Fowl-CHICK we have seen that this “wing-body 164

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ structure” is the same as the Leopard Skin discussed in chapter 5. I am reasonably convinced that this Leopard Skin is the stars from the constellations Centaurus and Lupus, especially regarding the Fowl-CHICK and the face of the Jade Emperor. But interestingly, on September, 20, 2006, at 3:44 am, along the SE line, I saw another image resembling a leopard skin, and according to the Star Maps for Southern Africa these stars turned out to belong to the Crux and Carina Constellations.38 We have seen that in terms of the Phoenix, the Carina and the False Cross were near to the bottom part of the Phoenix. This opens up the possibility that the large second leopard skin, on which the Hindu holy family is sitting, might be representative of these constellations. The Leopard Skin and Leprosy In Mythology there are several interesting artworks from various societies, depicting humans and other creatures with spots. For instance, a Yoruba wood carving labeled “Mother and Child” depicts a large female with a child on her back. She is holding a large hen over the heads of a dog and two kneeling humans (male and female) which are interlinked. The legend notes this is an Orisha,39 a spiritual being to whom offerings were made to ensure fertility. The female is spotted in white spots. Another example, from the Aborigines, is of three spirit beings covered in fine orderly dots.40 And lastly, there is a painting by Theodore de Bry (1528-1598), “El Dorado, the Golden Man”, which depicts a naked Chibcha man-being covered with sticky resin and gold dust so that the latter forms speckles on his body. The gold dust is being blown onto the body by a man with a blow-pipe. Two attendants are wearing skirts made of bird feathers but arranged so as to give the appearance of fish-scales. The naked man and one of the attendants are wearing feathered headdresses. According to the legend, this scene depicts a chieftain performing a ritual: after being dusted with gold the naked man (the chief-to-be) would sail down Lake Guatavia to make offerings to the god who lived at the bottom of the lake. “In another myth, the offerings were made to a monster that was holding the spirit of an earlier chieftain’s wife captive in the depths of the lake.” I have already referred to the images in the wall painting at Hierakonpolis dated ca. 3300 BC and to the human with spots. Moving even further back in time, to what is now claimed to be the oldest civilization, Çatal Hüyük in Turkey,41 we find an interesting mural of a dancing man. This young man is rendered in red and is holding a bow, and covering his private parts is a large black spotted object in the shape of a large bow – as in tying a knot.42 Is this perhaps the idea that the Dionysus drama represented with regard to the “plague which attacked men’s genitalia”? In contemporary society, Tswana and Xhosa women in South Africa still decorate their faces by painting several spots in a pattern. Moles on the face are called beauty 165

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ spots. I have already referred to the frog and freckles. In an Indian painting depicting the siege of Lanka in which Rama is fighting demons, several demons are depicted with spots. Quite tellingly, most of the spotted demons have straight, gentle, backward curving horns and their facial features vary from bird, monkey or ape-like, or human, to other unknown creatures.43 I am convinced that these images are composite images, with some incorporating the bird aspects of Phoenix, Fowl-CHICK, Batman bird and the human aspects of the Jade Emperor and the “Chosen Son”, while others have features from the Fowl-CHICK in association with other celestial images. What I am attempting to illustrate by these examples is that the Leopard Skin idea, focusing on the spots, was transferred to include other conceptions that would not be readily identified with the ancient leopard and the celestial image of the Leopard Skin. Still focusing on the spots of the Leopard Skin, I am of the opinion that these became associated with diseases. The genitalia disease associated with Dionysus has been mentioned and I want to suggest further that “spotty” diseases, where humans develop mostly red or yellow spots or blisters or nodules on their bodies, were seen as being spots of the Leopard Skin, that is, that the celestial images associated with the Leopard Skin “caused” such diseases. In some cultures such diseases were seen as being a blessing while in others cultures this resulted in the vilification of the celestial images that were seen to “cause” such diseases. This association was another reason why certain celestial images (eg. Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son) and their terrestrial counterparts became associated with badness and evil in some ancient societies, whereas it is not difficult to understand why in other cultures, since the Leopard Skin was associated with images dually conceptualised as archetypes of certain rulers and priests (Book 2), rulers and priests were regarded as possessing the power to heal these “spotty” diseases in humans and even in certain animals. It is within this context that we should understand the so-called miraculous “healing powers” of Jesus, especially the healing of people with leprosy. Leprosy, Lep-rosy, is presumably derived from the word “lep”; that is, leap, and in this context it would also explain expressions such as “leap of faith” or even “leap-frog”. We even use the term Rosaela for one of the diseases that produces a rash of rosy spots. In Genesis 4:6, we read of an interesting account of Moses’s hand becoming leprous: “Then the Lord said, ‘Put your hand inside your cloak.’ So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was leprous,44 like snow.”

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6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ Today we know that leprosy is an infectious disease caused by microorganisms called Mycobacterium leprae, but this was not known in the remote past, since the understanding of the link between certain infectious diseases and pathogenic microorganisms is relatively recent in the prolonged span of human history. Until such links were made it was common among ancient people to attribute disease to the working of malevolent spirits or gods. And despite the scientific knowledge that has shown the link between certain diseases and “germs”, there are certain contemporary societies who still persist in believing that such diseases are caused by spirits or gods as punishment. Leprosy results in body lesions and untreated cases result in the severe deformation of body parts. Such deformations may have been interpreted as a human undergoing transformations akin to the celestial archetype images. Little Ram/Goat/Monkey / Lion’s Head alias the Golden Calf It was interesting to see how the Fowl-CHICK metamorphosed over subsequent observations. I noticed, after several observations, that between 6 and 7 pm onwards the Fowl-CHICK assumed the appearance of a young ram or a goat. I made a note of this on April, 26, 2006 that reads “big Chicken and Ram are one”. But it was only on May 14, 2006 that this transformation of the Fowl-CHICK took on the appearance of a sprightly, prancing little ram or a kid (baby goat), which stretched along the ES line with its head facing in a southerly direction. The same stars that composed the fowl-CHICK now assumed the latter appearance because instead of slanting upward from tail to head they were now almost horizontal along the ES line. Two very prominent bright stars, which form part of the head of the Fowl-CHICK, could also be visualised as two straight horns or long straight ears sloping backwards. In the star map provided (see figure 6.2) to show the Fowl-CHICK, I have marked these two stars as 1 and 2. These stars also appear to be the γ and δ Centaurus stars respectively. I am convinced that it is these stars which formed the basis for the straight, backward, sloping horns depicted in various ancient artworks and ideas, as for example in the Indian painting of the spotted beings. On the theme of goats and rams and these horns, there are two interesting Mesopotamian artworks worth mentioning. The first, made of gold and precious stones, depicts a rather strange animal with straight horns.45 It is standing like a human at an “offering stand” with a horizontal pole projection in the middle, which on either side culminates in long finger-like projections with four branches, some with flowers. Once again we see two sets of four giving a total of eight. I think the centre pole with the branch projections in the form of a U is symbolic of the “Bow and Arrow” image (see chapter 8). And perhaps it is this Mesopotamian object that was modified into the seven-branched, Jewish religious icon the Menorah (Hanukkah) or 167

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ candelabrum, which also symbolises the celestial tree and the Boats/Ships. This Mesopotamian artwork is said to be a “ram caught in a thicket” whereas to me the animal has the facial appearance of a ram or a goat. When reading the legend, it is quite tempting to see the link of this “ram in a thicket” to Abraham’s ram caught in the thorn bush, which was sacrificed in the place of his son. We should also remember that in the Islam tradition of the Abraham story, the ram is said to be a goat. It is this association of the ram and sacrifice of a son that is the basis of the “sacrificed lamb, son of God” epithet of Jesus. The second artwork is that of Gaap, the “cardinal demon”.46 There are several aspects to this black and white sketch which confirm it is a play on various celestial images. Apart from the straight horns, it has two large bat-like wings – Batman in a different disguise – and each wing has four claw-like projections at the bottom, once again giving the numbers four and eight. The front wing has three claw-like projections on top and the other wing has two, giving a total of five (see Book 3). Riding on the neck of Gaap is a young man who could represent either the Eldest Son or the Horus Child. In front is a sigil (magic symbol) of the demon that emphasises the four and the infinity-like ∞ symbol. The face of this Little Ram/Kid, defined by the Crux Constellation, can be visualised as the face of other terrestrial creatures including an ape or monkey, which certainly seems to have been another favourite interpretation among the Hindus. This is but one of three possible monkey/ape celestial images. Representations of monkeys/apes, presumably based on these archetypes, are very ancient indeed; there is cave art, some dating back between 17,000 and 30,000 years, of therianthrope beings with ape/monkey and human-like features, for example, the “Wounded Man of Pech Merle”, the “Bison-man of Gabillou” and the “Sorcerer of Trois Fréres”.47 The mere fact that these are not just apes or monkeys as we know them suggests that they cannot just be representations of terrestrial creatures. The attachment of human parts to these apes/monkeys and to the other creatures mentioned above (e.g. the bird-humans, ram/goat-humans) are explainable in the context of the Jade Emperor, the Eldest Son and most importantly the Chosen Son (see chapters 11, 12 and 13) and various other transformational celestial images. These same animal-human transformational forms are not only seen in artworks, where human parts are attached to animals or vice versa. These metamorphoses were also conveyed in story-telling, where terrestrial counterparts of celestial creatures were made to exhibit human behaviour (e.g. standing, talking, writing, etc.) and humans aped animal behaviour. For example, the Mesopotamian goat/ram at the 168

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ offering stand described above is depicted like a priest delivering a sermon, while in the Bible we have a talking ass. Such ideas gave rise to the circus and to our modern cartoons in which animals are made to exhibit human characteristics. I suspect that the same image, namely the Little Ram/Kid, was also seen as a calf (see Book 3). In Indian Myths and Legends there is a painting that includes a cheeky, sprightly looking brownish-red calf with white patches and two horns.48 It is not only the calf, but the fact that the entire picture represents a number of cosmological symbols, that leads me to make the claim that this calf is the Little Ram/Kid / FowlCHICK. We see four ladies, of which two are curling their red finger-tips towards their mouths (a modification of the young Horus’s finger or side curl). One of the ladies is wearing a prominently red spotted sash and veil, and the other is holding a long red stick. A dancing Krishna, who seems to be the focus of the scene, is also depicted. All the features of this avatar indicate he is depicted as the Horus Child / Angelman (see chapter 11). So the sum total of aspects in this painting are once again suggestive that the Fowl-CHICK may have been the archetype for this calf and presumably also for the Golden Calf in the Bible. While we assume that there is only one golden calf in the Bible, there appear to be three. The first is fashioned by Aaron at Sinai to replace Moses and Yahweh (Exod. 32; Deut. 9.8-21; Ps. 106.19-20; Neh. 9.18; Acts 7.39-41). This is the infamous golden calf that the Israelites worshipped in the Sinai desert and which led to their God’s anger and to Moses dropping the stone tablets containing the original Ten Commandments. The second and third are a pair commissioned by Jeroboam, leader of the northern secession, to replace the ark; they were worshipped respectively at Dan and Bethel (1 Kings 12.26-33). Hebrew ‘gel is generally rendered “calf”, but a more mature beast may be intended. On the one hand, ‘gel can be a prancing (Ps. 29.6), untrained (Jer. 31.18) one-year-old (Lev. 9.3; Mic. 6.6). On the other hand, the feminine ‘gel can denote a three-year-old heifer (Gen. 15.9), trained (Hos. 10.11) for plowing (Judges 14.18) or threshing (Jer. 50.11).49 In chapter 14, I briefly discuss the red heifer, presumably another “calf” idea which has resulted in these confusing conceptions. The attachment of ideas such as “prancing”, “three-year-old”, “feminine”, “house” (cultivated as opposed to the other heifer), “threshing” (emphasis on walking around as in milling) are ideas consistent with the celestial imagery of the Fowl-CHICK, but we will see that there is another candidate for such ideas (see chapter 16). From the biblical story of the Golden Calf in Sinai (Exodus 32) we learn that this calf is 169

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ associated with sin. In chapter 5 and in this chapter it is clear that the region in which this celestial image occurs was associated with “bad” and “evil” (“killing”, “perverse sexual ideas”, “riches”, “war”, etc.,) thus lending further support to my contention that the Fowl-CHICK image might be the infamous “Golden Calf”. But also keep in mind that the Leopard Skin associated with the Fowl-CHICK may also have been conceptualised as the Golden Fleece, hence golden is a common denominator in the ideas of Fowl-CHICK and the Goldn Calf. The stars involved in the formation of the Fowl-CHICK “moved” into the SE and SW corner as depicted below. These stars then regrouped to give an outline of a male lion’s head with a prominent mane. S

W

E

The face of the lion is formed by the Crux Constellation and Hadar-Rigel Kent. So, whereas Rigel Kent-Hadar formed part of the front leg of the “Little Ram/Kid”, these stars now moved upwards, almost to the back of the Crux, and became part of the face of the lion. The impressive mane is formed by the Fowl-CHICK’s wing stars (stars around Lupus and Centaurus, i.e., the face of the Jade Emperor and the Eldest Son). But another lion is also visualised when one considers Hadar-Rigel Kent as forming part of the lion’s mouth with the “mane” stars remaining the same. However, because the same stars are involved I designated it as one lion. But, from my observations, there are three celestial images that lend themselves to being visualised as lions: the African Lady (see chapter 16), the Crouching Lion / Crocodile (see chapter 16), and the Lion’s Head, the current “fowl-CHICK/Lion” under discussion. Only the last of these three has a prominent “mane”, thus if we look at ancient representations this feature should stand out. We can also use all the characteristics mentioned in chapter 5 and in this chapter (e.g. lion with water, young boy/girl, ram/goat, horns, spots, boats, club, mane, human features), to identify which celestial lion is being referred to. We now look at at a few examples of lion conceptions in the ancient world, with reference to some of these characteristics. Lion conceptions In a Mesopotamian cylinder seal impression dated to the Early Dynastic II Period (Shuruppak), the so-called “Master of Animals” is depicted as a strange human-like 170

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ figure with a gaping mouth (which reminds one of the extended tongue of Bes) and long wild hairof the.50 This figure, the wild man, is flanked by two identical standing lions which he is keeping apart. One of the lions is on the side of a boat; there are fishes, a bird and most significantly a scorpion-like image and a large man with a long beard (suggesting he is Angelman, see chapter 11). Another interesting aspect is that the images in this scene are depicted with one prominent eye. A single prominent eye may be because of the side-profile representation of the art or it may be an emphasis on the persistent “single eye” representations and ideas of the ancients, such as the single eye representation in Ancient Egyptian art or the missing eye of Horus or Ra (see chapter 12). In the Witches of Eastwick, originally a novel by John Updike, a single eye is passed between three blind witches. From all these aspects it is clear that this particular lion belongs to the celestial image which is the focus of this chapter, namely, the transformational form of the Fowl-CHICK. Prof. Rohl is correct in claiming that the motif (man flanked by two lions) on this seal is exactly the same, although the images are not identical, as on the Gebel el-Arak knife handle and on a painted scene at tomb 10 at Hierakonpolis (ca. 3300 BC) in Egypt.51 However, interestingly, the Hierakonpolis artwork does not actually depict lions. One animal resembles a large rat with clear emphasis around the triangular mouth, while the other animal has two very short horns that resemble those of a cow/ bull. Why the same motif, and yet different animals? The same motif is found on a beautiful gold plaque from Rhodes (seventh century BC, British Museum, London) depicting the Greek goddess Artemis flanked by two small standing lions. Interestingly while the other three artworks depict a male figure this one depicts a female. From chapter 5 until now, except for the two dwarf Beslike female figures, all the artworks described capture male images. So what is the reason for using a female figure? I have suggested that one of the lions is formed from the stars composing the Jade Emperor, that is, Bes; as one would expect, there is an artwork, a white alabaster carving from Tutankhamun’s tomb, that depicts Bes as a standing human-lion with a large raised prominent paw and a red extended tongue: [this is] the ‘dwarf’ (mutant) god Bes, wearing a lotus blossom hat [which looks like the five rib-like hats]. His left hand rests on the Sa, symbol of stability…His tongue is extended like Tonatiuh in the story of Cosmogonic Destruction. He was often shown like a lion, with a mane representing the sun’s rays...The lion, with raised paw, became one of the most revered symbols of Freemasonry. However, the underlying symbolism of this story…must predate the building of Solomon’s temple by around 350 years, as the same symbols of Freemasonry are to be found inside 171

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ the tomb of Tutankhamun…Moreover, the lion’s mane, from the earliest times, was associated with the rays of the sun. Hence, the alabaster model of Bes, who was the guardian of women during childbirth, the depiction of Tonatiuh, flanked by the two solar babies…and the two mummified fetuses, found in the tomb of Tutankhamun, bring together the various schools of sun-worship, fertility cult…and Freemasonry, showing they are all derived from a common source.52

Short people, previously identified with the “little people” conception, are associated with lions and shortness is also associated with the leopard skin. Can we find an artwork which captures all three associations (namely shortness, lion, and leopard skin’)? One such is a Hittite artwork depicting a small boy-man holding on to the tails of two flanking large lions, which are drawn as if to suggest that they are standing humans; the heads of these lions are spotted, suggestive of the Leopard Skin. Also of significance (see chapter 16 and Book 2) is that the lion on the left (from the viewer’s perspective) is depicted with a hog’s face (see chapter 16) and below this head is a partially spotted volvine (Book 2).53 In a Sumerian seal there is a dwarf-like, wily, wide-eyed, bearded old man depicted in close association with and transformation into a lion-horse-bovine creature; next to him is a young man with a spotted neck embracing a buck standing like a human (see chapter 16).54 The round Zodiac of Dendera is a very complex rendering of constellations and signs (see Book 3). Although I can identify a number of the images, our immediate focus is on the two lions represented in this zodiac. One of the lions with an extended protruding tongue is blocking “water” and it appears that the artist was deliberately emphasising the head-mane part of this lion since there is a line that seems to separate the head from the body. This lion is looking backwards (see chapter 16). The tongue (a reminder of Bes) and the “water”, if it is indeed water, and the head-mane strongly suggest this lion may be the transformed Fowl-CHICK/Lion. Above this lion’s head is a hooded human-creature, which I have suggested is another rendering of the Great Bear (see chapter 3), and its positioning would further support that this lion is the transformed Fowl-CHICK. Moreover, there is some imagery depicted under the second lion which is associated with the same transformed Fowl-CHICK/Lion celestial image: the snake-bark, Isis with the Horus child, and another female with a large bow and arrow. Olcott presents an image apparently obtained by connecting certain stars, which depicts a man with a short beard, a raised club and a large sword, holding a lion skin 172

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ with a prominent head. According to Olcott this is a depiction of our modern Orion Constellation; however, all the aspects just noted strongly suggest that this is not our modern Orion Constellation and the lion may be the transformed Fowl-CHICK/Lion (Book 3).55 An ivory figure (32,000 years old) of a therianthrope from Hohlenstein-Stadel, Germany, depicts a lion-man. The fact that this figure is made of ivory, which is white and also a symbol for the elephant (see chapter 11), and depicts a standing human with a lion-head strongly suggests that it may be a representation of the transformed Fowl-CHICK/Lion, but this does not rule out the possibility it might be the African Lady (see chapter 16) or both. The figure has a prominent single eye almost on top of the mouth (it is not possible to say whether there is another eye since this is a side profile view) and a gaping mouth with a “tongue?” If indeed the latter features are correct, they would further support the deduction that this figure represents the transformed Fowl-CHICK/Lion.56 On May 18, 2007, I purchased a book, San Tales from Africa, by Raffaella Delle Donne. The author was then an archaeological student completing a PhD in comparative religions and her studies were based on San folktales and rock art. The tales and format of the book give the impression that these are imaginary stories for children. But many of the characters in the book are derived from and based on folktales embedded in the culture of the San. In my opinion these folktales are an extension of the rock art, which is celestial in origin. The author notes: “Although these San stories appear in the form of a children’s book, it is by no means implied that the myths and their characters are the product of a childlike imagination. In fact, many of the stories were meant for an adult audience. Despite their seemingly nature, the stories are infused with meaning related to the San’s religious and social life. Many of the stories are about the First People, or People of the Early Race who existed before the San.”57 All the stories are based on anthropological recordings, except for the first one where Delle Donne takes the characters mentioned in these San folktales and constructs her own story. From the close association of certain characters one can get a sense of which celestial images are involved. The lion and the ostrich are associated with fire. The fire conception is in reference to the red star Antares. The ostrich here may be the celestial peacock (see chapter 16). The association of the lion and the ostrich as the peacock, especially with fire, and the further association of these with several other recognisable characters strongly suggest that this story refers to images found at the ES celestial wall. Moreover, the Jackal, which I suspect became the Great Dog, Anubis (see Book 2), is closely associated with the lion. The duiker with its two small horns is another alias for the Fowl-CHICK (see chapter 16). 173

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The monkey is also associated with the lion, because he is the one who laughs the loudest and mocks the lion’s wife over the Jackal’s claim that the lioness’ husband is his servant.58 Thus we have the lion, the duiker and the monkey together, which would be consistent with my interpretation that the celestial Fowl-CHICK/Lion and the monkey are related. Further confirmation that one of the lions can be seen in stars associated with the Fowl-CHICK can be found in Allen’s Star Names – Their Lore and Meaning. Here we read that two stars, Rigel Kent and Hadar, were associated with two men and two lion-men: “The Bushmen of South Africa knew them (these two stars) as Two Men that once were Lions; and the Australians natives as Two Brothers who speared Tchingal to death, the eastern stars of the Cross [Crux] being the spear points that pierced his body.”59 In chapter 16, I discuss the link between lions and stars as related to the San. * * * There is continuity in our story as celestial aspects discussed in earlier chapters, especially the previous chapter, also feature in this chapter, collaborating many of my claims. The Fowl-CHICK and its transformations were identified as having inspired several interesting ideas and traditions. The “wing-body” part of the FowlCHICK was identified as the Leopard Skin which was responsible for the leopard ideas and traditions, and the spotty aspect of the leopard / Leopard Skin gave rise to the fantastic idea of the Golden Fleece, but unfortunately also to ideas based on spotty diseases, especially leprosy. We also explored the Fowl-CHICK as an alias of the Little Ram / Kid, which inspired the ideas of the Golden Calf and Lamb of the Bible. The subsequent transformation of the Fowl-CHICK produced other celestial creatures: the Monkey/Ape and the Lion’s Head with the mane. Parts of the FowlCHICK were identified with other celestial creatures, ideas and traditions, which will be explored in later chapters.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Ernest A. Wallis Budge, The Egyptian Book of the Dead (the Papyrus of ANI) Egyptian Text Transliteration and Translation (New York: Dover Publications, 1969), ixxxviii, 223. 2. Albert Jansen, Star Maps for Southern Sky: An Easy Guide to the Night Sky (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2004), 47. 174

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ 3. Regine Schulz and Matthias Seidal, eds., Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs (Germany: Könemann, 2004), 223. 4. Cheop: a Greek name for Pharaoh Khufu who reigned in the 4th Dynasty (2575-2465 BC). Cheops appears to be a composite name from S/Chi/e + Cyclops. 5. Was Teta perhaps changed to Teka/Tiko/Tiki, where the letter “t” was changed to “k”? 6. He was one hundred and one years old and to this day he ate five hundred loaves of bread, the shoulder of an ox (possibly the Bull’s Hind Leg) and a measure of ale. Perhaps it is this idea which inspired two stories in the Bible, the feeding of five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fishes, and the Last Supper, where the bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ, a different version of the bread, meat, and ale connection. 7. “...having his head shampooed and his feet rubbed”. It is possible that this phase was mistranslated and actually meant having his head and feet anointed with oil. In this form the idea is more recognisable as the story where a woman (who is suspected to be Mary Madeleine) anointed Jesus’ feet with costly oil and wiped it with her hair (the head idea differently put). 8. “Let a captive who is shut up in prison be brought” is an idea that takes on many forms in ancient texts, for example, the Prince in an Iron Mask, and Barnabas who is released from prison while Jesus is condemned. 9. Wallis Budge, Egyptian Magic (United Kingdom: Arkana, 1988), 16-19. 10. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, eds., Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 316. 11. Ibid. 12. Ibid., 304. 13. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Aztecs – Reign of Blood and Splendour (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 90-93, 155. 14. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 488. 15. Ibid., 274. 16. Ibid., 366-367. 17. Ibid., 94. 18. “Hair bound with a fillet of ivy.” Ivy is poisonous hence its association with the head may be symbolic of the idea that the head is bad, or poisonous. And this symbolism should be seen within the context of the cutting-off of heads discussed in chapter 16. 175

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 19. The Festival and Theatre of Dionysus, www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/creativedevelopmentprogrammes/production/Iphigenia. 20. Elaphebolion is presumably a composite of Elephant-Bau-lion. I am also just wondering whether Eli was not eventually shortened from Elephant? 21. Eleutheros in Greek also means “free” and this was one of Dionysus’ titles. This idea of freedom also makes sense if one considers that Angelman (chapter 11), that is, the “Elephant Man” or the Horus Child, was first a “slave” under the Jade Emperor and eventually “escaped”, i.e. became a free man and triumphed over his master/father. 22. Kanephoros is probably Kane’s light. 23. The Festival and Theatre of Dionysus. 24. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 137. 25. Kiki is cognate with Tiki with the “t” replacement. And is it perhaps Kiki that was changed to kinki, as in kinky sex? Remember there is a strong association between sex and words/names based on Tiki. 26. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs, 256. 27. Ibid., 478-479. Ani papyrus, 1250 BC, EA 10470. 28. Ibid., 15. 29. Kathleen. E. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends (Great Britain: Brockhampton Press, 2004), 101. Painting in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. 30. http://00.gs/Zulumythology.htm. 31. Graham Hancock, Supernatural – Meeting with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind (London: Century Publishers, 2005), 92. 32. Hancock, Supernatural, 92. 33. totem: a concept, in view of my findings, that should be used with reservation. It is not the animals, plants or natural things that were revered/worshipped as having some spirit or force but rather the celestial “things” of which they are symbolic. The terrestrial things are only “revered/worshipped” “indirectly”. But as a culture lost the realisation of the celestial origin of such ideas, the practice degenerated into direct reverence/ worship, as is the case in so-called high religions which have lost the plot completely. 34. All Wolves are not of the Same Sort – A New Critical Analysis of the Image of the Wolf, www.ruthbarker.com. 35. Killing and violence in the ancient conception were a single idea; we have seen these 176

6 : The fowl-chick and the leopard skin __________________________________________________________________ ideas associated with Bes in his form as AHA and this was said to underline his warrior or soldier nature. It also in this context that we should see the army, which legitimises killings and violence. And just as Bes was associated with the king so were soldiers, warriors and the army under the command of the king. In modern times where the king replaced by modern leadership – presidents or prime ministers – they have become “Commanders in Chief”. Old wine in new bottles. 36. Amafunze may be related to the word funda, to learn and umfundisi, preacher. 37. Eileen Jensen Krige, The Social System of the Zulus (South Africa: Shuter and Shooter, 1977), Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, 258-259: the fortification of the king (p.254); spurting the sun (p.255); strengthening the army (p.257); white medicine and the ritual bath (p.258); and the feasting (p.258). UmKhosi: Khosi is a term for both king and God. 38. Jansen, Star Maps for Southern Sky, 18. 39. Orisha, is presumable a composite of Osirius + Aha. 40. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 392-393, 400. 41. Catal Hüyük in Turkey: some structures were dated to around 6250-5400 BC by British archaeologist James Mellaart in the 1960s. 42. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996), 69. 43. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends, 48-49. 44. From the footnote: “The Hebrew word used for various diseases affecting the skin, not necessarily leprosy”. In modern medicine leprosy is the name of a chronic disease of humans caused by the Mycobacterium leprae bacillus. The disease is characterised by lesions of the skin and superficial nerves. The disease may also involve the eyes, testes, and mucous membranes of the nose and the pharynx. Destruction of the peripheral nerves by the bacillus leads to a loss of sensation, which, together with progressive tissue degeneration, may result in the extremities becoming deformed and eroded. 45. James G. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough – A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 83. Mesopotamian artwork from the Royal Cemetery at Ur, Iraq, ca. 2600 BC, British Museum, London. 46. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 114-115. From a manuscript derived from Dictionaire Infernale by Collin de Plancy, 1864. 47. Hancock, Supernatural. For example, the “Wounded Man of Pech Merle” (p.20); the “Bison-man of Gabillou” (p.79) and the “Sorcerer of Trois Frères” (p.80). 48. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends, 68. 177

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 49. Bruce Manning Metzger and Michael D. Coogan, eds., Oxford Companion to the Bible (England: Oxford University Press, 1993), 257. 50. David M. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation (London: Arrow Books Limited, 1990), 358. 51. Ibid., 366. 52. Maurice Cotterell, The Tutankhamun Prophecies – the Sacred Secret of the Mayans, Egyptians and Freemasons (United Kingdom: Headline Book Publishing, 1999), 195, plate 29b. 53. Zecharia Sitchin, Divine Encounters – A Guide to Visions, Angels, and Other Emissaries (New York: Avon Books, 1995), 58. 54. Ibid., 12. 55. William Tyler Olcott, Star Lore – Myths, Legends, and Facts (United Kingdom: Dover Publications Inc., 2004), 75, 274. 56. Hancock, Supernatural. 57. Raffaella Delle Donne, San Tales from Africa (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2007), 8. 58. Delle Donne, San Tales from Africa, 33. 59. Richard Hinckley Allen, Star Names – Their Lore and Meaning (New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1963), 154.

178

Chapter 7

THE DAY OF THE HORUS FALCON AND THE CELESTIAL TREE On April 23, 2005, late on Sunday afternoon at about 4 pm, I was listening to Radio Metro and once again attempting to make sense of the numbers in the Book of Revelation. I was particularly interested in solving the puzzle regarding the beast and his number 666 (Rev. 13:11-18) and also the number 144,000 that represented the number of “sealed” from the tribes of Israel (Rev.7), that is, those who will be saved at the “end of time”. The number 144,000, commonly interpreted as meaning the number of the “chosen Christians”, specifically refers to the so-called chosen Jewish people. I have always been interested in the apocalyptic books, especially Revelation and Daniel, because I guess like many others I felt that these books, despite their incoherence and downright confusing and meaningless statements, have a hidden coded message for the “End Times”. This Sunday was certainly not my first attempt at breaking this code but I felt confident that the observations I had made thus far could be used to make sense of these stories. Strangely, I felt an unexplainable enormous sense of serene peace and calm, something which I had felt only twice before in my entire adult life. I was at that crucial point; just when I thought I had found some clue to the number 666, when the world around me suddenly went completely dark. A massive freak thunderstorm, with a heavy downpour coming from a westerly direction, broke loose resulting in a power failure and the lights in the house going off. Power failures are not unusual in this area, so being prepared I lit some candles, glanced at the clock which read 5:30 pm and continued puzzling over the numbers. The storm lasted for about 10 to 15 minutes and then just as suddenly as it had started it subsided again, but the sky remained overcast. Thinking back, while writing about this event, I can recall two strange or shall I say unusual aspects of this storm. Firstly, in my experience, having lived here for 17 years, it is unusual to have rain at this time of the year in Limpopo. Secondly, the sudden nature of the storm was totally unexpected, from fairly good, clear skies one moment to complete darkness the next, with thunder and lightning followed by the heavy downpour. At around 6 pm the power came on again, and at 8 pm I switched on the television to see if there was anything worthwhile watching on one of the channels. I seldom watch television; however, on a Sunday evening I sometimes watch a film if the write-up is interesting. One of those Chinese karate films that we call spaghetti movies, entitled 179

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, had just started. I last watched spaghetti movies when I was a teenager, but because I was bored with reading and listening to the radio I decided to watch it. And it turned out to be another interesting coincidence, as the film contained not only a number of interesting scenes but also a story-line relating to the observations I had made thus far. It seemed to be a dramatisation of ideas related to celestial images. I have since attempted to get hold of the book on which the film is based, but without any success. At about 9:30 pm I retired for the night. I don’t know for how long I had been sleeping when, in a vision, not a dream, I saw a surreal gigantic “chart” (not a material object) suspended and spread out in space. The chart was made of intriguing luminescent pale orange light with mathematical equations and numbers “on” it. I was standing on a very high double-storey tower and the chart was spread out horizontally in front of me. I don’t know how to state the next aspect of this vision, but it was clear to me that this “chart” had been brought by aliens who wanted me to understand it. Yet there were no aliens, that is, little green men or tall brown Martians, and no space machines in this vision; it was just a sense of “alien contact”. One can dismiss this experience rationally as probably being triggered by the sense that I had of “solving” the numbers in the Bible. However, I can recall having had a similar vision when I was in the UK. Here the vision of the luminescent “chart”’ was a candescent pale greenish light and there was no tower and no connection with aliens. I also felt the presence of a similar, yet less powerful force, but I was stricken with great fear. What was different about the vision this time was that I seemed to understand the mathematical code. But as I was formulating the meaning behind the numbers, the second floor of the tower on which I was standing started collapsing and this startled me “awake”. There was serene peace in the room, and I could sense the presence of a very powerful force. But for some strange reason I felt no fear this time. Yet, there was nothing to see. Not even an alien! In a zombie-like state I put on my tracksuit pants, socks, a jersey and slippers. It was as if I was responding to “something” that wanted me to see something. I went to the sliding door in the bedroom next to mine and pushed it open. This in itself was rather unusual because I would usually take a quick peek through the windows first to see if there was something interesting to look at in the night sky, and only if there was, would I proceed outside. This was a habit cultivated after my first observations in 2006. I carefully slid the door open and the icy breeze, like ice-cold water, gushed into 180

7 : The day of the horus falcon and the celestial tree __________________________________________________________________ my face. My eyes froze, feasting upon a glorious sacred space. And in the swirling, churning, glittering, moist, white smoke I came face to face with Horus, the wildhaired, bird-like man, right where I had first seen the Phoenix. I don’t think there are any adjectives which could aptly capture that moment, when with awe and puzzled fascination this image and I for a few brief moments “became” one, as the rest of the world dissolved into non-existence. Once I had unlocked my gaze from Horus, my eyes shifted to take in a panoramic view of the sky. Just as with the Phoenix, all the stars seemed to have been subsumed into this gigantic image against a background of an almost dark, dull, overcast sky shrouded in an enormous celestial tree of starlight and a haze of swirling, churning, glittering, moist, white “smoke”. Through the smoke I could see the huge image like a quacking duck just below the bird Horus. I just knew it had to be the Ancient Egyptians’ goose, the Great Cackler. It looked as if the smoke was emerging from the tree, swirling upwards horizontally in multiple columns towards the NW and NE lines, with more intensity towards the NW point, yet more northerly. I moved to the NW direction to observe what was happening. And there in front of me stood another gigantic image within which several beings, including another more composed bird-like enormous Horus image, seemed to stand in silent gaze facing the bird-Horus image on the other side. This image was not as distinct as the other bird-Horus image; it was just an outline of some “being” and yet the swirling white smoke flowed like some “fierce” exchange between the two images. Puzzled, I moved between the images trying to figure out what was happening. I must have been outside for about five minutes before it dawned on me to record all this. I rushed indoors, collected my record book, jotted down the time, 10:18 pm, and rushed outside again. Perplexed I stood for a moment not knowing where to start because the images were just too enormous and too complex to record – “I cannot record this and without a record no-one will believe my story” Even though I was feeling slightly despondent I nonetheless sketched an outline of the Tree and tried to draw in some of the more recognisable stars (see figure 7.1). On the same page I wrote: “It’s all too beautiful and too big!” Sadly I was not able to capture the “sacred” celestial magic of that moment in my sketch, and my artistic incompetence was even worse with the second Horus and his Watchers. Apart from Cappella (?), there were no recognisable stars or constellations which I could use to contextualise the celestial images of the Horus and his Watchers, who reminded me of some characters in the Dendera Zodiac at the region marked true south. In the image of Horus and his Watchers I noticed the chimerical images were interconnected; they appeared to be single images yet were shifting perspectives of one composite image. The most recognisable of these images was a large bird, to my 181

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ right, co-joined with a large Anubis-like image. Within this Anubis-like image was another bird-headed Horus, but much larger and with a different appearance from the first bird-like Horus, because at the end of what I assumed to be Horus’ feet was another rather strange bird-like creature. What stood out was that the large bird, including the second Horus and the Anubis-like creature, had a very distinct “headdress”, which seemed to resemble the headdress worn by Muslim Arabs. It reminded me of the headdress worn by the late Palestinian leader Arafat. Another very intriguing aspect of this experience was the sky on this particular night. It was mostly dark, dull and overcast and contained quite a bit of moisture. Yet I was able to identify Jupiter with an accompanying star at the far western end and a very low crescent moon that hung in the east. When I referred to the Sky Guide – Africa South to see if any significant events had been forecast for this particular night, I noted that on this day the Pi Puppid meteor shower was said to be at its maximum.1 For some unknown reason I had jotted down “Pi Rameses meteor shower?” I did not see any meteors. And I don’t know whether this has anything to do with the images I saw. I eagerly awaited the next day, April 24, 2006, hoping to confirm my previous night’s observations in order to fill in additional details, but the sky was mostly overcast especially around the area where I had seen the Celestial Tree and the other Horus. Gone was the glorious celestial magic – leaving very little trace of its true identity! It would be too time-consuming to repeat the vast information on trees in so-called mythology, religion and even in traditions, for example, the construction of shrines under trees, talking trees, humans which are trees, the Christmas tree and the holding of meetings under trees. Many of these ideas and practices still survive in contemporary societies. Here is just one ancient Mesopotamian example to show that such tree conceptions are rather strange and cannot refer to terrestrial trees. The ideas expressed here will only be fully understood in the context of the discussion which follows. Era is sternly reprimanded by Jupiter/Marduk for having sent his weapons forth to destroy what remained after the Flood (Era once spoke in the same vein to Enlil after the earlier flood) but Marduk saved seven wise ones (ummâni) by causing them to descend to the Apsu or Abyss, and to the precious mes-tree by changing their places. “Because of this work, O hero, which thou didst command to be done, where is the mes-tree,2 flesh of the gods, adornment of kings?” He asks Era: where are the lapis lazuli, the gods of the arts, and the seven wise ones of the Apsu? He might well ask where is Gilgamesh himself, that deceptively human hero, now transformed into a beacon of light, a mes-tree of other-worldly dimensions.3 182

7 : The day of the horus falcon and the celestial tree __________________________________________________________________ Mes is a transliteration of an ancient Mesopotamian word from the Gilgamesh Epic. There is disagreement among experts about the real meaning of the word or what type of tree is being referred to. Later in this book there are some discussions about this tree that also suggest that it is not a terrestrial tree but a cosmic tree. What I am suggesting is that this mes-tree is indeed the Celestial Tree which I observed, since most of the aspects quoted can be explained within the context of the celestial phenomena that I am discussing. This Celestial Tree is just a transformation of the Phoenix at the NW wall. The Great Cackler is explained in another context, but the Horus Falcon still escapes identification.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Auke Slotegraaf, ed., Sky Guide – Africa South, Astronomical Handbook for Southern Africa (South Africa: The Astronomical Society of Southern Africa, 2006), 14. 2. Perhaps mes was combined with other words to produce messiah i.e., MES + Sa + AHA and the name James was derived from Ja/Ya + mes. 3. Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill – An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and Its Transmission Through Myth (Boston: David R. Godine Publisher Inc., 1977), 324.

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Chapter 8

THE GREAT BOW AND ARROW / EXCALIBUR / THE PHALLUS Excalibur, the magical, glorious sword of the legendary King Arthur and his Round Table, has captured the imagination of modern people. The French virgin, Dianalike, prophetic Joan of Arc (“The Maid of Orléans”) uses a sword that appeared to her miraculously when she was a child, lying in a field of flowers, to defeat the British. The same sword takes on a modern dramatic reinvention as the “lightsabre” in the Star Wars films. These are just some of the numerous references to a sword. In this chapter I will argue that the sword and ideas and traditions around it are reworkings of much more ancient ideas around the bow and arrow alias the knife alias the phallus/penis. You may have noticed a persistency in ideas around the penis and sex from chapters 5 onwards. In this regard two strange ideas were revealed: “Tiki is Tāne’s penis” and the creation of the Horus child from the wooden penis of his dead father (Osiris). Is there any relationship between these ancient ideas and two biblical stories involving Abraham and his son. God tells Abraham: “This man [Ishmael] will not be your heir, but a son [Isaac] coming from your own body will be your heir” (Gen. 15:4). In another story the same son is to be sacrificed by his father with a knife at God’s command. There is a persistency in ancient stories about a special elected son, the “chosen son”, often in rivalry with another son. In previous chapters I have used the Chosen Son and Horus Child epithets interchangeably and here the identity of this Chosen Son alias the Horus Child as a celestial image and the “rivalry” aspect are explored. The idea of tiny people whose lives are bound to trees (eg. the Fänggen) (chapter 5) also becomes clearer, as we explore this Chosen Child conception against the background of the Celestial Tree identified in chapter 7. My observations In chapter 5, I discussed the image of the Jade Emperor, alias Batman, mentioning that the first thing that struck me about this celestial image, on April 21, 2006, was the “noble head”. Then on April 22, 2006, this image assumed characteristics of Batman. It was only on April 25, 2006 that I saw this image as a chimerical “holographic” image consisting of several other different interesting images. The night sky had at first been overcast, but at about 11:00 pm, when it started clearing, I noticed that the 184

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ Antares-arm of Scorpius, that constituted the head of the Phoenix, formed one of the larger wings of an image that looked like a large bird-like creature. It appeared to be nested between the SE and SW corner in ascending flight. It was at this point that I became aware of two aspects of the Batman image that I had not previously noticed. The part around the “beak-head” and a very distinguished tail in alternative visualisations can be a “fantail”, a “sword’s/knife’s blade” and a “hook”. Depending how you viewed the alternating images in the “head-beak” region in relation to the “swinging body/wings” and each of the various tail images, a number of different images could be seen The image of an ascending soaring bird can be visualised. From the star map (see figure 5.1), stars EW1 to EW10 and SW1 to SW5 constitute the swinging body/ wings, and the three False Orion Belt stars constitute the tail of this soaring bird that I call the Screeching Swallow/Kite (see chapter 5). This “Screeching Swallow/Kite” also gives the impression of a “cloaked lady” kissing some being “above” it. But this same image also looks like a bow and arrow, with the “body/wing” forming the bow, the “bird’s beak” forming the arrow’s head, and the three False Orion Belt stars forming the “fantail” or “feathered tail” of the arrow. When you looked at the stars that formed the Jade Emperor’s head, in relation to the “body/wing” and the stars marked T1 to T19, you got the impression of a giant sword and yet one can also conceptualise this as a sword in a scabbard. Alternatively, when you viewed the “head,” the “wing” and the later stars, but ending at T10 and T8, when the other stars are still below the observation horizon, you got the impression of a large hook like a classical ship’s anchor. When I saw the celestial Giant Sword, my mind immediately connected it to two swords. The first was the magical sword Excalibur (presumably From EX+KALI+BOAR) of the legendary King Arthur (ARK-THOR), that has given rise to so many different stories and films. It is essentially a story about the “boyking”, Arthur. He did not know he was a King’s son, and was acting as Sir Ector’s (presumably derived from Hector) oldest son’s squire. But he was the only person who could draw the sword from the large rock/stone, thus proving he was the legitimate king.1 Apart from the play on ancient ideas around rival sons, there are many fascinating aspects to this story which clearly point to ancient stories based on celestial images. One example is an illustration taken from King Arthur’s Knights, with paintings by Walter Crane. This picture shows Arthur dressed, as expected, in red, drawing the sword from a rock, while two warriors with swords around their waists watch as he draws the sword.2 Red is persistent in ancient ideas not only as 185

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ fire but also as blood and Antares has been suggested as a strong candidate for the source of these ideas. In chapter 5 Bes was associated with warriorship and a stone/ rock. The second connection that I made was with the sword in the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, discussed in chapter 5. On April 23, 2006, this film was a precursor to my observation of the spectacular Celestial Tree (see chapter 7). Little did I realise then that I would see the “sword” – a beautiful, rare double-edged sword belonging to the Master-Supreme Warrior-Priest (played by Yun Fat). The main theme of the film centres on a mysterious sword, “Green Destiny”, and a wandering Master-Priest who knows himself to be the sword’s rightful owner. However, he regrets that it is so and tries to return the sword to the governor for safe-keeping, only to unleash a series of dramatic events. It is an intriguing sword of many intricacies involving not only its ownership and its appropriate place of rest, but also its being much sought after and even its theft by a beautiful young royal girl who is in cohorts with a mysterious hag, Jade Fox, who is also her master and her maid. Both the Jade Fox and young girl are in constant battle with the Master-Priest and his lover, whose love he cannot honour because of his oath as a priest and because of the curse of the Green Destiny. The sword should have really been called the Jade Destiny to be consistent with the Jade Emperor ideas explored in chapter 5. The two are really “doubles” of each other (this assertion will be explained later). Once you understand the various celestial images and their relationship to the celestial sword you will certainly recognise that the many characters and events from this film are a play on celestial archetype images. The bow & arrow, knife and sword in ancient ideas and traditions The significance of bows and arrows, at first, and then later, knives and swords, in the lives of the ancient people, is clearly highlighted in various artworks found in cave and rock art, on vessels and on walls. Also, such objects have been found in burial sites and are persistent in numerous mythological and religious ideas of old. These have given rise to a number of unanswered questions around the purpose and ritual significance of these objects, especially when mentioned or depicted outside their commonsense functional use. Let us briefly explore a few examples. Mesopotamia In chapter 9, I will discuss the strange rock art at Wadi Wadi, Abu Markabr el-Nes of the “boat people” – so called because there is a persistency of boat images in their artwork. But in the present context, we are interested in a large figure in black carrying a large bow. He has two tall plumes on his head, probably symbolic of the celestial birds and “horns”. He is called the chieftain and is supposedly hunting. There are also other men depicted with bows. The various other objects in this art suggest celestial imagery hence the bows and arrows must be interpreted similarly.3 186

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ There is an interesting Behistun relief of Darius I, in which two other smaller figures (possibly two transformational forms of the larger Darius) are depicted. They are twin male figures; one carrying a large spear and the other a bow. Darius I is holding a bow over “the pretender to the Persian throne” and has one foot on the chest of this male. “The pretender to the Persian throne” is lying on his back with one of his arms depicted in the form of a large erect phallus. “Before him a row of nine rebel governors, from the far corners of the empire, are shackled and tethered around their necks to meet their fate.”4 Darius I has a stumpy beard while four of the captives in the line have curved “false beards” similar to “the pretender to the Persian throne”, who is naked except for a loin-cloth. Their beards are like that of Angelman (see chapter 11). This scene might commemorate a real battle victory of Darius I, but interestingly, hovering above the heads of the “nine rebel governors”, is a short male deity with a fish or bird fantail (?) inside a circle with wings, but where the wings also look like platforms of a reed sailing raft. His beard and the manner in which he is holding one arm echo those of Darius. A common theme in Mesopotamian art is the depiction of gods or kings in “wingedsun-disks”, similar to the deity in this Darius artwork, holding large bows.5 On an Uruk stella the “Master of Animals”, the Great Hunter, is depicted with a massive bow and arrow.6 In a Sumerian or Akkadian seal (ca. 2300 BC) one of the Gods, Enki, with the Horus child side-curl, is holding a large bow and a large spear while a lion is at his left side. Enki and his rival brother Enlil are two ancient Sumerian gods. Rohl describes Enki as being a “bit of a wily prankster”, an idea that links him to the “joking” aspect discussed in chapter 5. He is clever, yet cunning and mischievous. He is also a nonconformist on whom his fellow deities placed a ban, preventing him from directly communicating with humans. He, however, circumvented the ban by whispering to humans through reed walls. He is thought to be the protector of humankind and the creator of humanity. He is considered to be a fertility god and the provider of the life-sustaining sweet water. In illustrations Enki is depicted with the “legs of a goat, complete with cloven hoofs, while his upper body is covered in fish scales”. Many of these aspects can be compared with those of the Greek god Pan or the eternal youthful mythological man; Peter Pan of Never-Never-Land.7 The fish-scales and his goat characteristics would certainly link this being with the celestial images on the SE line, where his fish scales are symbolic of the celestial fishes (chapter 3) and his “goat legs” symbolic of the Goat-Sheep image or the FowlCHICK as a Goat (Kid) (chapter 6). 187

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Rohl links Enki to the Egyptian Pen,8 who turns out to be the ram-headed Ancient Egyptian god Khnum, who in turn is linked to another ram-headed being, the great creator god, Re-Atum. This name, A-TUM, might be the root of the name Tom and subsequent designations such Tom Thumb. Pen’s dwelling place is within the sacred precinct of the first temple identified as early Eridu. This settlement is later associated with Enki. Rohl draws the comparison between Enki, the “Lord of the Abyss”, and the god the Egyptians called Pen – “This One”, who lived within a sacred pool in the heart of the Island of Aggression. He is a god of the primeval spring water. Like Pen and Enki, the ram-headed Khnum9 of Aswan and the ram-headed creator-god ReAtum, who descended into the underworld, are also associated with water.10 The sun god Shamash is depicted cutting through two peaks or holding a huge knife in his left hand.11 A large bow is swung over the left shoulder of the god Ninurta and in the same hand he holds a large knife which he plunges into the Zu bird. Zu, also called Anzu or Imdugud, is represented in various forms in Mesopotamian religio-mythology. It is represented as a massive human-bird that breathes fire and water and is responsible for stealing the “Tablets of Destiny” from the god Enlil. The Zu could either be Batman or the Phoenix. The “Tablets of Destiny” are presumably what became the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments and I think they are symbolic of the Magic Rectangle as the “double square”. Lastly, on a Sumerian cylinder seal, next to the “Lord of the Earth,” is a large sword.12 Turkey In chapter 6 I referred to the Çatal Hüyük mural depicting a red man, dubbed the “dancing man”, with a strange boat/bone-like image around his lower torso and a red bow.13 The god Teshub was depicted by the Hittites brandishing a large axe, lightning rods (“weapons of brilliance”) and a large sword.14 Africa Koisan Art in a San cave found in South Africa, in Western Cape, portrays illustrations of strange-looking creatures including several fish- or bird-like humans. One of the fish/bird humans, at the bottom of the “celestial boat”, is depicted holding something in bowed arms resembling a “bow” with its body bent as an “arrow”. At the tail end of the fish/bird are two upside-down joined figures with three prominent dots next 188

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ to them. Many experts have hypothesised about whether these are fish-tails or birdtails: “They [these figures] have human heads, arms and upper bodies, but in place of human legs they have the tails either of fish or perhaps of birds – swallows have been suggested.”15 Although the above extract is in agreement with the Screeching Swallow/Falcon image discussed in chapter 5, the fish characteristic could be related to the celestial fishes (see chapter 3). There are other examples of San cave and rock art resembling bows.16 It has been said that the Khoi-Khoi link our modern Orion and Pleiades constellations to a bow and arrows and to hunting. Despite the wrong “constellations” being mentioned, this nevertheless shows that even to these people, these “objects” and hunting were more than terrestrial things, they were indeed celestial things: In a Khoi-Khoi myth preserved by Hahn, the Aob [which may have become J-Ab i.e. Job] is sent out by his wives [to] stalk…zebras. Hahn depicts Aob in this way: Aldebaran represents Aob himself; the stars p1 and p2 Orionis comprises his bow; δ and ε Tauri are his sandals, //haron; γ and θ Tauri form his kaross or coat. The stars θ, ι, and 42 Orionis form Aob’s arrow. A full centaury after Hahn’s account the / Gwi Bushmen describe stars in the vicinity of Orion as khwe g=ei!ui, or ‘a man shooting a steenbok’…In an interview, Louis Mungomba of the !Xu17 community of Schmidtsdrift spoke of the Belt stars as a man, his dog and a buck.18

Another African tribe associates stars with an arrow, but again these stars have been wrongly interpreted as our modern Orion’s sword stars: “The Ju/Wasi tell of the god, old/Gao, who was hunting in the skies. He spotted three zebras, the stars of Orion’s Belt, and shot an arrow at them. But missed, falling short. The arrow is Orion’s Sword. All three zebras escaped onto the Earth, as can be seen when they set in the west.”19 How can an arrow become a sword? I am quite confident that the information presented above indeed relates to stars; however, the conclusion that these relate to modern astronomy’s constellations is not correct. The Bow and Arrow and the Sword/Penis are all at the SE line. The zebras mentioned here may actually be the Bull’s Hind Leg alias the forerunner of the donkey or even Angelman’s twin horse, the volvine (Book 2). Egypt Several knives dating from Ancient Egypt have been recovered. From the Naqada II period (second half of the fourth millennium) knives have been recovered from only a small number of tombs, these were “not meant for everyday use… However, 189

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ we cannot tell for certain what kind of people were distinguished by having them as grave goods.”20 In chapters 5 and 6 I discussed the Gebel el-Arak knives, from the Late Predynastic Period (ca. 3150 BC), in connection with the “Master of Animals” motif. The handles of these knives were made of hippopotamus ivory. At the top of one is the “Master of the Beasts” with a lion on either side, “a subject encountered earlier in the Painted Tomb of Hierakonpolis. In this case the figure is wearing Mesopotamian costumes.” The area below the “Master of Beasts” depicts “hunting scenes”. On the back of the same knife “there is a frieze of battle scenes; below them are two rows of ships with dead men drifting among them in the water.”21 Rohl uses these knives as part of the evidence, not only to advance his argument that Ancient Egypt was founded by invaders from ancient Mesopotamia, but also to point out that these scenes depict some of the earliest historical battles between the invaders and the original inhabitants. However, these scenes do not depict “historical battles” but “celestial battles”, which ultimately served as the model and inspiration of terrestrial battles and wars, the scourge that is still plaguing modern mankind. These knives have also been analysed by Degreef and he has argued that these knives depict astronomical data.22 My observations certainly support Degreef’s “astronomical” hypothesis regarding these objects and the imagery they depict. There are several wall reliefs and paintings in temples and tombs depicting pharaohs with large bow and arrows, some in so-called “battle scenes” and others in ordinary life. On the western façade of the Festival Temple of Thutmosis III at Karnak, temple of Amun-Re (ca. 1450 BC), is a depiction of Thutmosis (Thot + Moses) with a large bow and arrow on a two-wheeled cart drawn by two horses. The temple of festivals was called Akhmenu and was built to the east of the inner sanctum of the temple of Amun. The name Akhmenu is noteworthy; it “refers to this establishment’s function as the place of ‘transfiguration,’ where divine and royal powers combine to preserve creation.”23 In the western Thebes tomb of Userhat, New Kingdom, Eighteenth Dynasty, reign of Amenophis II, ca. 1410, a similar scene depicts Userhat dressed in red with horses and a cart. He is shooting at various animals. The margins surrounding this scene are significantly in green, while three prominent red rectangular designs are on the margin behind the pharaoh. Interestingly, this scene is supposed to be a “hunting scene” in the desert. But bucks are not animals which one would commonly associate with deserts. Rameses II at the battle of Kadesh, in the funerary temple of the king, ca. 1270 BC., is depicted in the same manner.24 All three artworks depict the Pharaoh, his cart, horses and bow and arrow in almost identical rigid poses! 190

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ The last Ancient Egyptian artworks that I want to discuss are those of the famous boy king, Tutankhamun. In two artworks he is depicted with a large bow and arrow similar to those in the other artworks. In the first he is sitting on a throne, with a woman sitting on a cushion on the floor at the base of the throne. This is hardly a hunting scene, perhaps it is a commemoration of hunting? In the second artwork he is shown on a two-wheeled cart drawn by two horses.25 This is supposed to be a scene depicting the king hunting ostriches, presumably a representation of the celestial Peacock, see chapter 14. Mali In Jenne-Jeno, Mali, in Africa, several 25-cm high clay statuettes were unearthed. The one shown in the Atlas of the Past Worlds is headless.26 It is sitting in a posture where the left leg and the feet are exposed and the right arm forms a triangular shape as it rests on the body. This posture is suggestive of the Angelman (see chapter 11). On the right upper arm is a prominent dagger in a holster. The bottom part of the holster has strong parallel lines in three groupings of three. A patch on the same forearm has three small triangles. One of the two bracelets on the arm has three lines and similarly the thumb has three markings. There must be some significance attached to the number three on this elaborately decorated statuette, as on Bes (see chapter 5). From the legend the author suggests “it is possible that [the statuettes] were fashioned in the likeness of dead individuals and revered as ancestors.” The dates of these statuettes are not provided but excavated settlements in Jenne-Jeno are dated at around 1000 AD. China In Beijing, China, there is a stone statue of a warrior guarding “The Spirit Path” leading to the Ming Tombs. There are several interesting things about this warrior. His “scaly” front is covered by an elaborate bow ending in two tassels in the form of snakes. A characteristic Angelman’s false beard (see chapter 11) lies across the two tassels of his upper garment forming a shape like an upside-down letter E and on his right side is a large sword. White, broad-blade knives with turquoise inlays have been recovered from the Shang bronze culture (early second millennium BC).27 The Americas There are several interesting Aztec artworks depicting knives in Aztecs: Reign of Blood and Splendor. The first is a flint knife of approximately 20 cm, and like the Shang Bronze knives the colour green is emphasised – a significant colour in the cosmology of the ancients (Book 2). It has a greenish-blue turquoise handle with the prominent features of a human-bird, that is, an “Eagle warrior”. The knife is said 191

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ to have been used in sun-god worship ceremonies.28 Various Aztec codices show the ritual sacrifice, involving the cutting-out of the heart of the sacrificed victim using a flint knife.29 The association of the knife with the heart is significant in view of the heart as symbolism for the “wing/tongue” discussed in chapter 5. There is also a rather strange stone knife, with a prominent single eye and three upper and three lower parallel teeth. This was one of several knives which had been left as a religious offering.30 Britain Stonehenge is surrounded by several mound burial sites.31 It is believed that underneath one of these, the Bush Barrow, a little way south of Stonehenge, is the tomb of the chief architect of Stonehenge. He was buried with several ornate weapons, including two “fearsome daggers” with wooden handles and bronze blades, similar in design to knives from the Shang Bronze Culture.32 At Flag Fen, in England, several Late Bronze (1000 BC) swords and daggers and spearhead have been recovered. These are believed to have been periodically thrown into the waters as part of some yet unknown worshipping ritual.33 Yet when you consider the link between the celestial Sword/Knife and celestial “water” then throwing these weapons into the water does make sense. It is perhaps this tradition that inspired the saying “cast your weapons into the sea”, used to encourage peace among warring parties. Northern Europe A sixth-century Viking helmet plaque shows the god Balder34 thrusting a sword into a large bear-like creature while holding a prominent dagger. This is part of a “Norse creation myth, in which cataclysmic events followed the death of the god Balder and the earth was reborn.”35 There are interesting wood carvings in the Hylestad stave church in Setesdal, Norway. One depicts a man in a triangular helmet, licking his thumb. It is suggestive of the Horus Child sucking his finger and also symbolic of Tom Thumb. In front of this image is another old man carrying a huge sword. According to the legend, the man licking his thumb is Sigurd roasting a dragon’s heart. “On tasting the magical blood on his finger (probably a recalling of when a finger joint was sacrificed), he gains the power to understand the speech of the birds.”36 Spain These celestial images, like many others, were not only fashioned into terrestrial objects but the name for such images were incorporated into the titles of terrestrial kings or royal houses. For example, Peter IV was born on Sept. 5, 1319, or Sept. 15, 192

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ 1317, in Balaguer, Catalonia. He died on January 5, 1387, in Barcelona. His name was Peter the Ceremonious, or Peter the Cruel (in Spanish Pedro el Ceremonioso, or Pedro el Cruel), or El del Puñal (He of the Dagger), king of Aragon.37 Puñal appears to be a composite word from Pan/Pun/Pen and AL or EL and we have already met the god Pan/Pen/Pun. In religion In the examples above we have seen some of the bow and arrows, knives and swords depicted with deities, suggesting a connection with religion, while others had some ritual significance which is unclear. The next section will explore these objects within traditions connected with religions, thus establishing a definitive link between these objects and religion. Mithraism Mithraism was a mystery religion practised in the Roman Empire from about the first to the fourth centuries AD. It was particularly favoured among the soldiers. In chapter 3, I argued that their religious icon, the god Mithra slaying a bull with a dagger, is linked to the celestial slaughter/sacrifice of the Goat/Sheep/Cow/Bull/ Horse’s Head image. And in chapter 5 we explored other aspects of this deity. The large dagger which he uses, like the the bull, is symbolic of the celestial image which I call the Sword/Knife. Hinduism There are several illustrations of gods and other beings with large bows, quivers and swords in the book Indian Myths and Legends, which is based on the Hindu religion as expressed in the religious texts of the Vedas (the Rg or Rig-Verda, the oldest sacred Sanskrit text, 1400-1200 BC), Mahabharata, Ramayana (i.e. the small Rama) and others. In an Indian painting comprising various scenes, Lord Rama is depicted in one scene with a large red bow in his right hand and two arrow-bags on his back.38 His upper body is naked and he is wearing a pair of prominent yellow balloon “pants”. He is drawing an arrow to “shoot”’ at an animal with a red, white-spotted faced and two horns (features which suggest the Ram/Goat alias the fowl-CHICK discussed in chapter 6). In another scene, “Searching for Sita” (discussed in relation to the Phoenix in chapter 4), which depicts Rama in white with a silhouette of Lakshman, both are carrying red bows, arrow-bags and large swords. Both are naked except for their skirts, which are made of feathers or leaves sewn together to create the impression of fish-scales. The artist created different dimensions by placing certain scenes in different sections. 193

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The central scene is the “phoenix” next to a broken wheel, a rolling pin, two donkeys “turning” in opposite directions and a large book (alias the stone tablet). Below this scene, and almost to the left, is Lakshman dressed as before, but gently reaching out to a fawn-coloured deer, alias himself as the ram/goat (see chapter 16). And strangely enough a distance away from this latter scene is a small part of a sword’s blade in red, a presentation suggestive of a penis. In another scene far removed, across the suggestion of a river, is a large fire with a man (the same colour as Lakshman) sitting near it. Once again almost all the aspects in this Indian painting make perfect sense in terms of my interpretation of the ancients’ cosmology, except for two scenes, namely, the man across the river and the piece of sword/penis represented alone. The representation of the sword on its own reminds me of the wooden penis of Osiris, the only part of Osiris that Isis found and which she used to impregnate herself to give birth to Horus. Is this the first crude version of the tale of the Virgin Birth? In 1998/9, on a local Indian television programme, Eastern Mosaic, a serialised drama was shown of the fatherless boy (widower’s son), man-king-lord Krishna, who was living with one of his uncles. He and his nephew undertook all sorts of holy adventures. Several series were based on his evil uncle/king (I think he was named Yama) and a huge bow that the gods had placed on earth. Yama, always an adversary of Krishna, challenged the young boy (because the people claimed Krishna to be a god) to pull the huge bow, knowing that nobody in his kingdom could accomplish such a feat. The young Krishna pulled the bow to his uncle/king’s disbelief, and a major battle ensued between the two, with Krishna finally being the victor. This is actually the same story as that of King Arthur, except the sword is now a bow and arrow. But, unlike with Arthur, where the story increasingly focuses on war, here the story is used in a “religious” sense. And the fact that the story involves a bow and arrow as opposed to a sword suggests the Krishna version to be the older of the two. Krishna is the newer and younger god of the many gods of the Hindus, and like all younger gods, for example, Osiris, Marduk, Jesus and Buddha, they “displaced” the older gods in popularity. Krishna is regarded as an avatar, one of the many forms of the god Vishnu. Vishnu may be a composite name linking fish (Vish) with Nu, and Nu, in turn, with crocodile since Ur-Nu is a “land crocodile”.39 But remember, the biblical Abraham was also from Ur! Highlighted in the following extract are some indications of the celestial nature of the myth regarding Krishna as a child, and his capacity to disguise his true form as the most powerful god in the universe.

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8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ Balarûma [Krishna’s nephew] and Krishna used to play in the village, crawling into the fields, and come back to their mothers covered in mud. But their mothers loved their sons, and would hug them and put them to their breasts. When they were boys they used to play tricks on the village animals, and when Krishna was a little older, he became the leader of the group of youths who used to get up to all sorts of pranks. The wives of the cowherds would tell Yashodha, Krishna’s mother, that he had been untying calves, stealing curds and milk, and was being a general nuisance. One day the older boys told Yashodha that Krishna had been eating dirt. [Twice this aspect of dirt is emphasised, first he is ‘covered in mud’ and now he eats it?]. He denied this, and told her to look in his mouth. When she looked into his gaping mouth she saw the whole eternal universe, including heaven, the regions of the sky, and the earth with its mountains, islands, and oceans. She saw the whole universe in all its infinite variety, with all forms of life, and time, nature, action, hopes, her own village, and herself. Then she became afraid and confused, wondering, “Is this, a dream or an illusion wrought by a god? Or is it a delusion of my own perception? Or is its some potent of the natural powers of this little boy, my son? I bow down to the feet of the god, whose nature cannot be imagined or gasped by mind, heart, acts, or speech; he in whom all of this universe is inherent, impossible to fathom. The god is my refuge.”…Instantly, his mother lost her memory of what she had seen, and the fear and confusion she had experienced, and lovingly took her son on her lap.40

Islam The sword has a strong presence in the Arabic and Muslim cultures. It is still used today in Saudi Arabia and other Muslim countries as a “religious” weapon to punish offenders. Hisham Ibn-Al-Kalbi, on the subject of idol worship in the Arabic world, discusses the idol of Manah (Min+Aha), said to have been two swords linked to the Prophet Mohammed and to Ali (a name shortened from Kali). The Quraysh as well as the rest of the Arabs continued to venerate Manah until the Apostle of God set out from Medina in the eighth year of Hijrah…the year in which God accorded him victory…When he was at a distance of four or five nights from Medina, he dispatched Ali to destroy her. Ali demolished her, took away all her [treasures], and carried them back to the Prophet. Among the treasures which Ali carried away were two swords which had been presented to [Manah] by alHarith ibn-abi-Shamir al Ghassani, the king of Ghassan…The one sword was called Mikhdham and the other Rasub. They are two swords of al-Harith which Alqamah mentions in one of his poems. He said: “Wearing two coats of mail as well as Two studded swords, Mikhdham and Rasub” 195

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The Prophet gave these two swords to Ali. It is, therefore, said that dhu-alFaqar, the sword of Ali, was one of them. It is also said that Ali found these two swords in [the temple of] al-Fals, the idol of the Tayyi, whither the Prophet had sent him, and which he also destroyed.41

These could refer either to real swords which were destroyed, or to celestial images. Even if they were real objects we need to ask why they were venerated. Consider the following story about the idol Dhu-al-Khalash, related in the same book: “They came to defend their shrine, only to find Lions who brandished swords clamoring for blood….” One could easily say that this is just figurative speech, as such ideas are usually interpreted, but this is not the case here. We have already seen the association of Bes/Mn-Aha with knives, killings (blood) and lions. And in these Arab ideas we see Manah associated with the same “objects”. This idea of lions brandishing swords also seems to relate to the Cherubim with flaming swords placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden to guard the way to the Tree of Life after the fall of Adam and Eve and their banishment from the Garden (Gen. 3:24). You might well argue that since bow and arrows, swords and knives are common items with practical functions, these numerous occurrences are just an indication of the ancient peoples’ appreciation of the useful role these items played in their lives. This is a logical and reasonable supposition. However, when these items are depicted with “gods” and celestial images and are connected to bizarre traditions and rituals, then they must have other non-functional meanings. It is the latter connections and the ancients’ worldview – “As in heaven so on earth” – which lead me to assert that these were not merely practical useful objects, but objects of “religious” significance based on celestial imagery, and despite their many varied representations and contexts in various cultures, they are all somehow connected. The penis as symbolic of the Sword/Knife Another suggestion is that the Sword/Knife was also seen as a penis. The question now becomes: “Can we find any evidence of such symbolism in the ancient world?” In the following extract we find explanations that link the penis to some weapons and which bring together several objects, including the phallus, in a rather strange way. Intriguingly, the phallus was also an object of worship. The Akkadian term that is loosely translated “eunuch” is assinnu, literally meaning penis-vagina” – a bisexual being rather than a castrated male (which is what “eunuch” means). That this was the true nature of the creature or creatures that baffled Ereshkigal, is evident from actual depictions of them in the form of statuettes that have been discovered by archaeologists [Sitchin shows two sketches of such assinnu], they appear to possess both male and female organs and thus, by 196

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ implication, are of no real sex. Holding a wand or a weapon, these androids belong to a class of emissaries called Gallu – usually translated “demons” – whom we have already encountered in the story of the death of Dumuzi, when Marduk sent the “sheriffs” – the Gallu – to seize him. In a tale dealing with how a son of Enki, Nergal, had come to espouse Ereshkigal, it is related that to safeguard his son on his visit to the dangerous domain, Enki created fourteen Gallu to accompany and protect Nergal. In the tale of Inanna/Ishtar’s descent to that domain, it is told that Namtar tried to prevent the escape of the revived goddess by sending Gallu to block her ascent. All these texts point out that although the Gallu had neither the face nor the body of the divine Sukkals42 that served as emissaries between the gods themselves, they did “hold a staff in their hands, carried a weapon on their loins.” Not flesh and blood, they were described as beings “who have no mother, who have no father, neither sister or brother, nor wife or child; they know not food, know not water. They flutter in the skies over Earth like wardens.43

In Book 2 I will expand on the link between the phallus, sex, eunuchs, bisexuality,

etc., how these tie in with other celestial images and their relationship to priesthood and related traditions. We constantly see Bes with a large penis (see chapter 5), and given the frequent references to the prominence of large phalluses, it is no wonder the penis became an object of worship and inspired “religious” orgies. And when this got out of hand, counter-sexual ideas took root. Numerous books have been written about ancient penis worship, which according to Darkwah originated in Ancient Egypt. Historical and archeological evidence is provided that the Jewish people worshipped every Ancient Egyptian God: the Ancient Egyptian bull, the serpent and even the penis.44

Darkwak claims that the Afrim people continued to practise phallic worship after they the left Egypt. He highlights the fact that “in Hathor’s Temple of Dendera, Isis [Asaase] is depicted in the form of a kite perched upon the phallus of the mummified Osiris”, while numerous allusions to and illustrations of sexual acts can be observed in other temple artworks.45 The “kite perched upon the phallus” is really the Screeching Swallow/Falcon “sitting” on the Sword/Knife/Penis celestial image. In the Greek drama/religious festivals phallus images were carried around (see chapter 6). When the foreskin of the penis is pulled back, you can certainly see the resemblance to the dome and the tower of temples in some contemporary societies. 197

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The lingam or phallus is the most basic and most common object found at the shrine of Shiva, who is normally associated with a bull is one of the oldest gods in India. But the Phallus “worship” seems to go back even further (roughly 12000-10000 BC) to the Mureybetian culture, near the Euphrates in what is now Syria. Here polished stone batons, identified by experts as symbolic of phalluses, were common throughout the Mureybetian culture.46 There are elaborate myths in Hindu legends suggesting that the great lingam (phallus) arose out of the sea (remember the celestial water conception from ealier discussions) and then burst open to reveal Shiva inside. If you consider the Jade Emperor and the Sword/Knife/Penis it would imply that the sword is also a human being. While this flows from my observations, the question remains: “Did the ancients also make this incredulous association?” Indeed there is some evidence – the “head idea” (chapter 16) and “wolf idea” (Book 2) corroborate my interpretations of the ancients’ cosmology and its subsequent translation into culture: Now Heimdal and Loke47, perpetual enemies as they are, kill each other at Ragnarök48, but Heimdal’s death is accomplished by means of a very strange weapon, i.e., by a “head.” Snorri’s Skaldskaparmal…offers an ambiguous kenning: “Heimdal’s head is the sword, called “miötudr Heimdaler,” and that is, according to Jacob Grimm, measurer (sector, messor).” Thus, Heimdal measures – or is he measured? – by means of a sword that is also said to be his own head. Strange goingson, indeed! Ohlmarks declared the sword to be the Sun. [Regarding the head, de Santillana and von Dechend note as follows: “…the English translation says ‘the wolf’s head, with which Heimdal was killed,’ but the original (Deutsche Mythologie)...does not mention a wolf.”]49

The Sword/Knife/Penis as a “person” and birth Remember that the Bow & Arrow/Sword/ Knife/Penis image is also part of the celestial images which constitute the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son (man/ woman) and the Celestial Tree / Phoenix (another man/woman image) and their multiple forms. And these images are part of the “white stuff”, the so-called celestial water which has many aliases. It is these associations which the ancients attempted to preserve in their various stories about people coming or being born or associated with water, trees, swords, knives and phalluses. In chapter 5 two rather strange ideas were revealed: “Tiki is Tāne’s penis” and the creation of the Horus child from his dead father’s wooden penis. In myths related to the prominent Hindu God Shiva, it was noted that the great lingam (phallus) arose 198

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ out of the sea and then burst open to reveal Shiva inside. The same idea is disguised as a man “giving birth” to a son in the biblical story of Abraham and his son Isaac. This same idea has also been brilliantly disguised by depicting male figures with large tummies, for example, Buddha, or by referring to a special virgin birth or to a chosen son. This context might explain an interesting idea recorded about Rameses, namely that he has a “god in his limbs”. Apparently in a battle with the Asiatics, Rameses, like the Jews, was outnumbered and battled when the sun stood still. At the point of defeat: Ramses suddenly realised that “His Majesty was alone with his bodyguard”; and “when the king looked behind him, he saw that he was blocked off by 2,500 chariots” – not his own but of the Hittites…Ramses turned to his god, reminding him that he finds himself in this predicament only because he followed the god’s orders. And his majesty said: “What now, my father Amon? Has a father forgotten his son? [this reminds me of Jesus’ last cry on the cross.] ….Reminding the Egyptian god that the enemy was beholden to other gods, Ramses went on to ask: “What are these Asiatics to you, O Amon? These wretches who know nothing of thee, O God?”… Amon heard when I called him. He held out his hand to me, and I rejoiced. He stood behind me and called out: “Forward! Forward! Ramses, beloved of Amon, I am with thee!” [At their defeat, the Hittites called out:] “This is no mortal who is among us: this is a mighty god; his deeds are not the deeds of a man; a god is in his limbs.”50

The Horus Child / Chosen Son conceptions The Horus Child features prominently in Ancient Egyptian mytho-religious ideas – the son of Osiris and Isis conceived from a wooden penis. There are several versions, which may just be transformational forms of the celestial archetype of the Horus child. However, I want to focus on the Horus Child as conceived from the wooden penis. The Horus Child is often depicted as a male child with a side curl – the “Horus lock”, a long plait of hair running down one side of his face – or with his finger in his mouth. In this form I am convinced that he is derived from the celestial image I call the Horus Child or the Chosen Son – these epithets are used interchangeably. In this section I will be looking at the Horus Child within four conceptions: as a tiny mighty man; as the water-carrier; within the rivalry twin conception; and the link with Abraham. But first let me identify the image I called the Horus Child. 199

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ When I viewed the stars forming the Sword/Penis I recognised an image of a tiny being which I immediately associated with the Horus Child with his finger in his mouth. The stars composing this image are: EW1 to T19 (see figure 5.1) with his finger / side curl represented by stars T1 to EW10 to EW1. But the side curl might be symbolic of the false beard of the Horus Child’s transformed form which I called Angelman, that is the adult Horus, see chapter 11. The Horus Child as the archetype for the tiny mighty men idea and his link with the Celestial Tree Tom Thumb and the Gingerbread Boy, who could also be associated with the Eldest Son, are characters in seemingly meaningless nursery stories I read as a child, yet such stories have echoes in folklore and are linked to ancient cosmology and traditions around tiny beings. The tiny man was by no means a diminutive, weak man as he played a significant role in the felling of an oak tree to stop its destructive growth. De Santillana and von Dechend turn to the Finnish folklore, Kalevala, and explain that this oak could “not grow until four or five lovely maidens from the water, and a hero from the ocean, had cleared the ground with fire and planted an acorn in the ashes; and once it had started, the growth of the tree could not be stopped.”51 It was then that Vainmoinen asked his divine mother for help. And the help she sent him was in the form of a tiny man. And, according to my observations, this tiny man becomes the greatest (Angelman, see chapter 11). Meanwhile, the oak tree and other similar trees are linked with the Milky Way and the stars: Then a man arose from ocean From the waves a hero started, Not the hugest of the hugest, Not the smallest of the smallest. As a man’s thumb was his stature; Lofty as the span of woman.52

In this folktale, the tiny man who arose from the ocean had hair that reached to his heels and a beard that reached to his knees. He had been called upon to get rid of the oak tree as its growth was becoming out of control. He felled it and in the process it fell over the Northland River forming a bridge into the abode of the dead. According to Holmbrook, the oak tree was the Milky Way, an indication that the oak was in fact a cosmic tree.53 This is the same diminutive man who single-handedly slew a huge ox, “the bull”. He could also be related to hairy Enkidu, the “twin” of Gilgamesh, because of his hairy 200

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ nature. Enkidu felled the cedar in the great forest of the god Enlil. Like the tiny man in Kalevala, Enkidu grows to enormous strength. This suggests that the oak and the cedar may be related. Now in what appears to be nonsense, the tiny man is also said to be “lofty as a span of woman”. If lofty is interpreted in this context as lordly or mighty, it might simply mean that as the phoenix interpreted as a woman rises to “lordly or mighty” heights so too does this tiny man. And “span” may mean as spread out as a fat woman. The acorn which gave rise to the mighty oak in the Kalevala in indeed linked to stars; and remember in chapter 6, I identified the acorn as being the Crux Constellation. An Estonian version tells the story of a young girl (a damsel) who plants an acorn called taivon tähti, that is, sky-star. But this fast-growing tree, that seem to be a huluppu-tree, becomes a danger to the sky because it tries to “tear the celestial luminaries, or to darken them.” So she asks her brother to help her to get rid of this tree.54 He chops it down and from its wood he makes gifts for the relatives of the bridegroom. He also makes a chest or “kist” for the bride in which she can keep the trousseau she collects. Today this tradition of a “kist” is still applicable in many cultures. And this kist idea should immediately point in the direction of the wooden coffin of Osiris, and the ideas of Pandora’s Box. De Santillana and von Dechend discuss further examples to demonstrate that all of these tree ideas and traditions are related and are somehow celestial in nature. These trees must be seen in the context of the Celestial Tree (see chapter 7). It is actually the Phoenix in another disguise. In Hamlet’s Mill we find telling information that links the celestial or cosmic tree with a stone and the “blue sea” and many other unexplained phenomena that only makes sense within the celestial framework that is unfolding.55 In showing the relationship between Celtic traditions regarding the oak and tree worship in ancient societies, Ellis notes that the Hindus considered the pipal tree (ficus religiosa) as a sacred tree in which the god Brahma dwelt, with Vishnu inhabiting the twigs of the tree. With regard to the oak he notes the following: The worship of the oak tree, or the oak-god, appears to have been shared by all branches of the Aryan stock in Europe, that is by the people who descended from the Indo-Europeans ...the oak frequently symbolised the ‘father of the gods’ in various societies...in other words, the oak was an ancient phallic symbol...The Lithuanians, or Aistians, associated the god of thunder, Perkunas, with the oak tree and came to believe that when they died their souls would take up residence in such trees. To 201

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ get good crops...they sometimes ‘sacrificed’ an oak by ritual burning. Estonians smeared the blood of animals on oaks, sacred to the god Taara, to be assured of rain and good harvest...In France, Christianity has partially claimed the oak, for we have ‘Our Lady of the Oak’ (presumably a reference to Mother Mary).56

Another interesting aspect of the tiny man is that, in ancient literary sources, he is associated with the idea of blindness. “Blindness” is an unexplained celestial phenomenon. De Santillana and von Dechend note: No one could deny, in the case of the Amlethus-Samson epiphany, that this fierce power, or momentary combination of powers, wears here the figure of Orion the Blind Giant, called also Nimrod the Hunter, brandishing the Hyades, working the Mill of the Stars, like Talos, the bronze giant of Crete...Orion was blind, the only blind figure of constellation myth. He was said to have regained his sight eventually, as befits an eternal personage. But this is how legend portrays him; ‘wading through the rushing flood of the whirlpool at his feet…guided by the eyes of little Tom Thumb sitting on his shoulder,’ whose name, Kedalion...57

In Book 2 I discuss how specific celestial images eventually gave rise to concepts such as seers, prophets and priests and how ideas of “blindness” and “good of sight” are used with regard to these figures in the Bible myths. Similar ideas of “blindness” and “good of sight” are played with in The Theban Plays, where the plot centres on King Oedipus (“Swollen Foot”).58 The themes in this play are used to throw light on the idea of priests, prophets and seers and their relationship to “eye” conceptions. Perhaps the “swollen foot” epithet is just another disguise for the penis? The Tom Thumb characters and stories, which appear to be purely imaginative creations in fairy tales, folklore and myths, have apparently been derived from traditional practices probably going back to the earliest hunters. Lange tells the story of Mbadlanyana,59 the Zulu Tom Thumb, who has numerous names of praise because he is so adventurous. One day while out hunting he killed a bird, but before he could eat it a cannibal took it from him and ate it. Mbadlanyana was not impressed so he contracted himself and jumped into the cannibal’s nose, causing him to sneeze violently. He begged Mbadlanyana to get out; he even told him he could have his bird back. But Mbadlanyana just stayed where he was, making the cannibal sneeze. Eventually Mbadlanyana did crawl out, but the cannibal died.60 This reminds one of the cannibal giant in Jack and the Beanstalk, who smells the blood of an Englishman (Jack). 202

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ Another traditional practice linked to the Tom Thumb concept is the amputation of a finger joint. It was a traditional practice widespread among hunters including the San and the amaBomvu, who were conquered by the Zulus. Thus the “Tom Thumb” idea survived in Zulu culture and is associated with ideas which seem to be related to or connected with Bes (see chapter 5). It is just possible that this amputation may have been used in some ancient counting system connected with the lunar calendar and with blood, related to red Antares and the celestial hand/“Hand of God” (Book 3). There also appears to be a link between the Tom Thumb character, Mbadlanyana (the small man), and an actual practice performed by thumb-diviners: The “inzinyanga zesithupa”, or thumb-diviners61 cannot proceed without the assistance of those who inquire, which is given by striking the ground with sticks. When the doctor is not correct, they strike the ground gently with the izibulo (divining-rod), but when he is correct they strike the ground violently62 saying, “Hear, or True,” and pointed to the diviner in a particular way with the thumb...It is said that in cases where the possessed person is to become a thumb-diviner, the spirit manifests itself by afflicting him with whatever disease to cause its own death…The spirit always brings about illness or abnormality in those whom they wish to be diviners; a spirit frequently makes a woman sterile or turns a man into a hunchback, in order to make clear the fact that he or she is possessed ...A curious legend bearing a striking resemblance to the story of Christ is one which is called “The Wise Son of the King.” This prince is born of a young girl who has not yet reached puberty and becomes a great doctor, beloved by all, who goes about healing diseases but never requires payment...The Zulus, with regard to the Moon, have conceptions of the moon as becoming as thin as a man’s nail – “It used to be said the moon dies utterly, but it is not so – the days devour it and it diminishes till it is as thin as a man’s nail.63

The Horus Child as the archetype for Aquarius the Water Carrier The Horus Child may also be the archetype for the Water Jug or Water Carrier (Aquarius) idea. The Horus Child has the shape of a jar similar to the one depicted in Mesopotamian art carried by Alalush.64 Sitchin gives the following description of Alalush, presumably translated from the Hittite text: Once in the olden days, Alalush was king in heaven Alalush was seated on the throne; The mighty Anush65, First among the gods, 203

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Was standing before him He would bow to his feet Set the drinking cup66 in his hand. For nine counted periods, Alalush was king in Heaven. In the ninth counted period, Anush gave battle to Alalush.67

Apart from structural similarities, the assertion that the Horus Child may also be the Water Carrier is also supported by two other points: Firstly, the celestial region from where Bes and the Horus Child originated is one of the “water” regions in ancient cosmology (Book 3). Olcott shares my interpretation that the Horus Child may be both the Water Carrier and the Water Jug, since aspects of Aquarius captured below strongly suggest imagery in the region of the ES to SW. He points out that, with the exception of the Arabians, astronomers throughout the world have adopted the constellation Aquarius as being a man pouring water from a jar or a pitcher. The ancients, for some unknown reason, believed that the part of the sky belonging to Aquarius contained a great celestial sea. Interestingly, animals related to the sea are found in this region: the Whale, the Fishes, the Dolphin, the Southern Fish, the Sea Goat, the Crane (a wading bird) as well as Pegasus or the star Markab, known as Alpha Pegasi by the Arabs, which signifies a ship or vehicle (see chapter 9). At times the source of Eridanus, the River Po (the same as the celestial sea), can be visualised as being in the Waterman’s bucket. According to Ideler, it’s because the sun passes through this part of the sky during the rainy season of the year that it is referred to as “The Sea”.68 In an Egyptian myth it is told that the Water Bearer is responsible for the flooding of the Nile every time he sinks his big urn into the fountain of the river to fill it. This constellation represents the rainy period during the Egyptian winter. Olcott also implies that this idea of rain in winter suggests that the Egyptians inherited their cosmological ideas from another nation because it does not rain in Egypt during winter. Secondly, the myth of the Water Carrier boy and Zeus (in the form of a large eagle), where the boy is carried off to become “the water-boy” of the gods, appears to be an attempt to link the Horus Child, The Screeching Swallow/Kite (Jade Emperor) and the Phoenix, and what happens to the Horus Child (see chapter 11) in the “transformation” of these celestial images. Olcott explains that in Greek mythology, Aquarius represented Ganymede, the cupbearer of the gods: 204

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ He was a beautiful youth of Phrygia, and the son of Tros, King of Troy. He was taken up to heaven by Jupiter as he was tending his father’s flocks on Mt. Ida, and became the cup-bearer of the gods…In February, the Aquarius month, the sun entered the Peruvian sign known by the name “Mother of Waters” and “Eagle Bridge.” The Water Mother was figured as a sacred lake location in the Southern Fish and the Crane. On very early Babylonian stones Aquarius is represented “as a man or boy pouring water from a bucket or urn…his right arm is stretched backwards over almost the entire length of the constellation Capricornus, which bounds Aquarius on the west. The significance of pouring water from the urn into the mouth of the Southern Fish is also unaccounted for…Strangely enough…Aquarius has always been shown as pouring forth his stream of water into the mouth of a fish...according to Norse mythology, Aquarius was considered Wali’s69 palace, and it was supposed to be covered with silver. In the Indian zodiac, the name of the constellation is “Kumbha,” meaning “Water Jar.”…Kumbha is from χομβη, or storm-god…Aquarius in the Hebrew zodiac represented the tribe of Reuben, “unstable as water.” In Babylonia this constellation was associated with the 11th month (Jan.-Feb.), called “Shabatu,” meaning “the Curse of Rain,” and the Epic of Creation has an account of the Deluge in its 11th book…In that country an urn seems to have been known as “Gu,” meaning a water-jar overflowing…Plunket tells us that “Gu” is possibly an abbreviation of “Gula,” the name of a goddess…In the cuneiform inscriptions of the western Asia we read: “The planet Jupiter in the asterism of the Urn lingers... when the sun was in conjunction with Aquarius at the time of the winter solstice, [Plunket] has described the fire of the celestial sun as “hiding in, being born in, and rising out of the celestial waters of the constellation of Aquarius”.70

From Hamlet’s Mill we see an association between a knife, an oar, a ship, and ham (pig meat) and the sea – “From the Narrenspiel the account of Hamlet’s ride along the shore is worth a second look. He notices an old steering oar (guber-naculum) left over from a shipwreck, and he asks what it might be: ‘Why’, they say, ‘it is a big knife [a sword is a big knife].’ Then he remarks: ‘This is the right thing to carve such a huge ham’ – by which he really means the sea.”71 One of the celestial pigs is also in the region of the Sword/Knife/Penis, see chapter 16. From the association between pigs and the sea, and the idea of diseases discussed under the Leopard Skin, we can see why Jesus drove the illness of a man into pigs and then the pigs into the sea. The Horus Child and Abraham A number of these celestial conceptions find congruence with several ideas in the Bible story of Abram/Abraham, where the Lord came to see him in a vision and 205

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ told him not to be afraid as “He was his shield”. Abram was concerned because the Lord had not blessed him with a child and therefore his estate would be inherited by his servant Eliezer of Damascus.72 But the Lord assured him that this man would not be his heir “but a son coming from your own body will be your heir.” He tells Abram that he can compare the number of his offspring to the number of stars he can count in the heavens. Abram believes the Lord, who tells him to “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.” Abram brought all these to Him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half. Then when the birds of prey came down to scavenge on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a “deep sleep” (a reference to the so-called “deathless dead”) and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him (Gen. 15:1-19). The Lord tells Abram that his descendants will live in another country where they will be ill-treated as slaves for 400 years. The nation that enslaves them will be punished, but in the end they will come out with great possessions. Only in the fourth generation will his descendants return to their homeland as the sins of the Amorites had not yet reached their full measure. “When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking brazier [the ‘white stuff’] with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram.” Interestingly the idea of servant is sometimes played with as a maid, a nurse – the woman who feeds the baby instead of his mother – or a sister. Why is the Lord indicating the child will come from Abram’s own body? This should raise eyebrows because we know that children are born from women. This is said to be figurative speech, but this is a cosmic truth and has to do with the Horus Child being “born” from the Jade Emperor (man-woman). The celestial connotation is suggested in the number of Abraham’s offspring being compared to the number of stars he can count in the heavens. Another hint can be seen in the reference to the heifer, goat and ram and the dreadful darkness that came over him. The smoking brazier is a reference to the “white stuff” – the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds. Abram became Abraham after the Covenant of Circumcision (Gen. 17). God did bless Abraham with a son – Isaac. But then in Genesis 22:1-14, God challenged Abraham by ordering him to take his son to the region of Moriah where He would point out a mountain on which he was to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering. The name Abram may be a composite of Ab father and ram to give father ram. The name could also be AB (Cow, in Babylonian cuneiform) and ram. The name Abraham may be a modified form of Abram where “ham”, as in pig, was added (see chapter 16 for the celestial pigs). Abraham also seems to be cognate with names 206

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ such as Ahriman and Brahmins. The knife with which Abraham was about to kill Isaac, which we find in more ancient sources, is the “sword”, indicative of the fact that some stories predate the time when swords were first made and named as such. The Horus Child as the archetype for the twin rivalry conception In most of the stories “two” is emphasised. In terms of the cosmology of the ancients’ the emphasis on “two” could have been to force the viewer, when thinking of their cosmology, to think dualistically: Firstly, to connect what is happening at the NW point to what is happening at the SE point, or to make a connection between the SE and the SW (and if three celestial regions were seen as being connected the emphasis would have been on three). Secondly, and specifically in reference to the SE point, to see several images or ideas as dual – male/female, king/queen, father/son, mother/ son, father/daughter, mother/daughter, brother/ sister, pleasure/pain, slave/king, death/life, small/large and goat/sheep. Yet this is also a region where celestial images appear to occur in twos – the two fishes, the two volvines (Book 2), two brothers/two sisters, the two ships, the two crosses (the Crux and the False Cross), the two stars (Rigel-Kent and Hadar) – and where one celestial image changes into another (e.g. Jade Emperor into a lion or ape), etc. In chapter 6 we saw that the San and the Aborigines (native Australians) associated stars in a particular celestial region with two men or two brothers, respectively. Yet nowhere is this emphasis on two more dramatically displayed than in the Noah story – “the animals went in two by two”. The story of Jacob and Esau in the Bible is based on the theme of “rival brothers”: Ishmael, the son of a slave girl, and Isaac. It’s an old theme found in different disguises in folklore and myths as well as in the “history” of various societies, for example, the founding sons of Rome. However the human sacrifice aspect has been silenced in the Jacob and Esau story, probably because it has since been realised that the actual sacrifice of sons was encouraged in the story about Abraham and his son. In fact there is ample of proof of son sacrifice, just like father/king sacrifice, in the ancient world (see Book 2). The focus shifted instead to hunting, which is another form of killing or sacrificing associated with “wildness”. The “wildness” idea is a reference to the SE–SW region since a number of celestial “animals” are found in this region. There are several aspects in the Esau-Jacob story which reveal that it is the same celestial images which are being played with as in the story of Isaac, son of Abraham.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan73 Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean (notice the persistency of ram in these names). But she was barren, just like Sarah, Abraham’s wife, so Isaac prayed to the Lord for a child and she became pregnant. The baby jostled inside her and when she asked the Lord why it was so very active, He told her: “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other and the older will serve the younger...” (in the New Testament, this “jostling” in the womb is associated with John the Baptist). When Rebekah was sixty years old she gave birth to twin boys. The first born was named Esau, possibly also meaning “hairy”, because he was red – his whole body was covered in hair like a garment. His twin brother emerged holding on to his brother by the heel and was named Jacob meaning “he grasps the heel”. Figuratively speaking it also means “he deceives”. Esau, who thrived in the open country, grew up to be a skilful hunter, whereas Jacob was the quiet one who preferred to stay at home – in the tent. Isaac loved Esau more and Rebekah favoured Jacob. One day Esau came home famished. He begged Jacob for some of the red stew he had cooked. But Jacob said he would sell it to him in exchange for his birthright. Esau sold his birthright under oath to Jacob for some bread and lentil stew. He is said to have despised his birthright (Gen. 25:19-34). Notice the emphasis on “red” as in the red Esau and the red stew. While it is common to depict the “youngest son” as “red”; here the “eldest son” is “red”. Red, in many different guises, can be suggestive of killing, soldier, warrior, hunter, blood, etc. However, in the Cain and Abel story it is the older that does the killing, that is, the “red” one. In other ancient cultures where the followers “worshipped” the “younger son”, I suspect they became increasingly bloodthirsty since celestially speaking it is the youngest son (the Horus Child) who “triumphs” over his “elder brother” (the Eldest Son). Yet it is the same “son” that occurs below them, who is first “downtrodden” by his eldest brother/sister or his father/mother. This being downtrodden or enslaved is just another take on the “birth” idea. But when one translates this imagery back to Abel and Kane/Cain, it is the elder who kills the younger, so it seems the Jewish people were playing around with two contradictory conceptions regarding the same imagery. We also know that according to the Bible, Cain is credited as the first builder of a city: “Cain was then building a city and he named it after his son Enoch” (Gen. 4:17). This may suggest that Cain is also linked to Nimrod. Like the several names 208

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ for their god, the Jews appear to have created characters and ideas which are not always consistent. For example, this can be seen with Cain and Abel, and also when a person with the same name as Cain’s son, Enoch, becomes an important person (Gen. 5:21-24): “…Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” This would imply he is the son of a sinner. Now you might argue that he is probably a different Enoch, but is he really? It is perhaps such ideas which gave rise to the idea of redemption, in that the sinner is forgiven. The same contradiction is apparent when you read the ideas around Canaan (Gen. 9.24): “When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said: ‘Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.’” But it is the cursed land, Canaan, that is the promised land of milk and honey – quite a contradiction! (See Book 2). In Genesis 4, almost all the aspects of Cain fit the Horus Child, the younger, and those of Abel the “Eldest Son”. However, the biblical writers may also have subtly incorporated a “third person” into the Cain personality, who I suspect to be the modern Orion Man as seen from the Southern Hemisphere, hence Cain became the eldest and Abel, presumably derived from the Eldest Son image, became the younger. I am not alone in suggesting that these ideas around “brothers”, which at times are played with as “twins”, are almost universal in nature and cosmic of origin. Here is an extract from Hamlet’s Mill that attempts to trace the idea back to Sumeria. It is also of significance that one of the brothers is regarded as a volvine (Book 2). Actually, the hairy partner of the Twins [w.r.t. Gilgamesh and Enkidu], the “Dog,” is the prototype of the older one who is cheated out of his primogeniture in various ways: Esau, the hairy, is the first born; so is Hono-susori no Mikoto…who, together with his offspring, after having been passed by the Japanese “Jacob”, had to serve as “dogs, clowns, playactors, guardians of the imperial palace for eighty generations; at New Year and during coronation”s these Hayahito had to bark three times. Particularly obvious is the case in Egypt, where we learn from H. Kees…: “wtw means ‘jackal’ and ‘the eldest,’” and it happens that Kees made this remark when dealing with a classical case of cheating: when Geb/Kronos declared Horus the eldest, cutting out Seth/Typhon completely, as reported in the Shabaka Inscription. Actually Geb claims Horus to be Upuaut, the Opener of the Way – Upuaut being the Upper Egyptian Jackal or Wolf. The complex of the “Dog-Twin” is, however, of such weight that it cannot be attached here. A particularly relevant and revealing case of inseparable “twins” comes our way in Cherokee mythology, where the thunder-boys are called “Little Men.” At the beginning we hear of one boy only, born in the proper wedlock by “The Lucky Hunter” and “Corn,” but soon the 209

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ boy “finds” his “Elder Brother” in the river, and the latter has the name “He-whogrew-up-wild.” These two arrange the world and human life as it is now, model cases of what ethnologist call “heroes of culture.” Gilgamesh and Enkidu all over, they were asked to give “verdicts,” alias oracles, after they had finally left the earth.74

What is of significance is that we see these ideas specifically associated with red Antares and Scorpio, that is, the region and the star consistent with where I am locating one of my own “twin” conceptions: “Yama’s two unfasteners, i.e., the Sting of Scorpius (lambda upsilon Scorpio) – in Babylonian astronomy mul ŠAR.UR and mul ŠAR.GAZ, the weapons of Marduk in the ‘battle’ against Tiamat; and the nakshatra containing Antares (alpha Scorpii) which bears the names ‘the oldest, or who slays the oldest’ – in Tahiti: ‘parent pillar of the world’.”75 I have suggested that the idea of human sacrifice, as in the story of Abraham and Isaac story, is similar to “animal sacrifice” but where “animal sacrifice” should be seen as “hunting”. The central idea in both human sacrifice and animal sacrifice is the taking of life, that is, killing committed by humans. In the Abraham and Isaac story the two are equated, human sacrifice is substituted by animal sacrifice. Also, hunting should not be understood in our modern sense, the barbaric killing of wild animals to satisfy a sadistic sense of pleasure. The ancient peoples revered animal life as much as they valued human life, and hunting, as we have seen, was a “sacred” ritualistic activity – only engaged in for necessity. And killing in various forms was also associated with Bes, who in turn was closely associated with the Horus child. When we link hunting and killing as one conception and further explore the Cain and Esau link with Bes and the Horus Child then the hunting/killing motif brings us to an interesting biblical character called Nimrod, who like Cain is accredited with the building of cities. Is there perhaps a link between them and Gilgamesh who proudly walks on walls and is from the city? In chapter 6, I mentioned a Mesopotamian cylinder seal; the “Master of Animals”, dated to the Early Dynastic II Period. Rohl argues that the “Master of Animals” on this seal is linked to Nimrod as a great mighty hunter. In Hebrew Nimrod literally means “we will rebel” or “let us rebel”. He is described as a “mighty hunter before Yahweh” in Genesis 10.8-12 (cf. 1 Chron. 1.10) and he is regarded not only as a warrior but also a cult hero, often referred to as the Ruler of the Universe.76 Like Nimrod, Cain is a rebel – he rebelled against God and killed his brother. This same Nimrod appears to be none other than the Mesopotamian deity Enmerkar, who according to the historian Josephus, as quoted by Rohl, is no other than King Nimrod who built the infamous Tower of Babel to avenge God for destroying their forefathers. Nimrod, being the rebel his name implies, incited rebellion in the People 210

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ of Shinar in contempt of God. He vowed he would avenge himself on God if He was to “drown the world again” and therefore he built a tower he believed would be too high for the waters to reach. As a side note, we see that this “Master of Animals” also pops up in other stories, like the biblical Adam (master over all animals), and this is probably one of the reasons why humans came to believe they are superior to animals, an unfortunate belief that is the root of most modern humans’ beastly acts towards animals and nature in general. In chapters 5 and 6 the “Master of Animals” was discussed. Rohl links the “Master of Animals” to several other characters, some of whom appear to be historical while others are thought to be mythical. One such character of interest is the biblical Noah, who is also as a “Master of Animals” linked to Nimrod and by extension to Cain, who appears to be a historicmythological character. In biblical imagery Noah had power over the wild beasts of the earth, and in biblical tradition Nimrod, who has been identified with Enmerkar of Uruk, is remembered as the great hunter. Thus both Noah and Nimrod/Enmerkar are the “Master of Animals”. “Interestingly both Noah and Enmerkar/Nimrod are of the same heroic age – the late Ubaid, Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods. Gilgamesh too is probably portrayed in Early Dynastic glyptic art as the victor in human-animal contests. The former Keeper of Egyptian Antiquities at the British Museum, Eiddon Edwards, is in no doubt about the origin of the Arak Master of Animals motif.”77 A common feature of the “Master of Animals” is the bun hair-style,78 which reminds me of the Sikhs’ “holy” hair style; like Samson, Sikhs are not supposed to cut their hair. Rastafarians have a similar belief. Also of significance is that a Sikh wears a “holy” knife around his waist. On a stone relief the Persian God, Ahura Mzada, is wearing a similar hair-style/hat and quite tellingly he is standing on a lion (see chapter 5). This image, depicted on an earring, suggests that he is Bes. Moreover, on the earring depiction, he is dressed in a kilt or a skirt which is probably a different rendition of the Egyptian triangular-skirt, which eventually became a popular traditional dress, such as the kilt of the Scots. Rohl’s conclusion supports the fact that Bes and the Horus Child were conceived of as “Master of Animals” because “…so closely does the composition of the scene resemble the so-called Gilgamesh motif, frequently represented on Mesopotamian seals, that the source of its inspiration can hardly be questioned. It is only in later times that the Egyptians themselves adopt the iconography of the Master of Animals in representations of their two gods – Bes and Horus the Child – both of whom are 211

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ protector-deities from the chaotic forces of nature – the wild animals of the marshes and the deserts.”13 All that we can deduce from this information is that Cain is somehow linked to Nimrod and both of them appear to have some association with Bes and the Horus Child. But when we further explore the “Master of Animals” motif from a EuropeanIndian perspective we end up with Lord Shiva, who as we have seen came from a phallus that rose from sea. And in this regard he is symbolic of the Horus Child image. The “Master of Animals” motif is directly associated with gods in Celtic and Hindu stories, as noted by Peter Beresford Ellis.79 As an interesting side-note: the Celts shared many of their religious ideas, such as the importance of the oak tree, with other ancient peoples, as can be glimpsed in the following: “In the Celtic culture the father of nearly all the Irish gods is known as Dagda,80 yet he is also named Eochaidh Ollathair (Father of All), Aedh (fire) and Ruadh81 Rofessa (Lord of Great Knowledge), which make him a triune divinity.”82 As the patron of Irish Druidism, Dagda is “visualized as a man carrying a gigantic club which he drags on wheels. One end of his club can slay while the other can heal. He has a black horse named Acéin,83 or Ocean, and his cauldron [the celestial boats/ships, see chapter 9], called Undri, is one of the major treasures of the Dé Danaan, brought from the fabulous city of Murias. It provides food so that no man goes away from it hungry. It is the ‘cauldron of plenty’ which later generations of Christianised Celts developed into the Holy Grail of the Arthurian myth.”84 Just like the Bes association with the harp, Dagda also possessed a magic harp. Is it perhaps the same harp that Jack of Jack and the Beanstalk stole from the giant in the sky? There is a connection between the name Eochaidh (father) and the Sanskrit of “Pasupati”, which is one of the names of the Hindu god Shiva, the supreme spirit who is also known as Mahadeva85 (the great god).86 The Dagdha has also been associated with the Cernunnos cult found in Britain and Gaul. Cernunnos (Lord of the Beasts) is represented as holding a club, like the Dagdha, and is sometimes depicted as sitting in the characteristic Buddha position. However, Cernunnos is usually depicted with a stag’s antlers while in his left hand he clasps a serpent with the head of a ram (see chapter 16). In chapter 5 we have seen Bes strangling a stag and holding two serpents. He is surrounded by numerous and diverse animals.87 This has led some scholars to claim him as “Lord of Animals”. As previously mentioned Dillon has shown that Shiva was also known as Pasupati, 212

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ meaning “Lord of Animals”, and when the archaeologist Sir John Marshall was excavating at Mohenjodaro, in north-west India, he found a seal on which Pasupati was represented. “The general resemblance between the Cernunnos panel and the Mohenjodaro seal (now in the Delhi Museum) is such that one can hardly doubt their common origin”.88 In India, this motif of the “Master of Animals” goes back to the Harappan Civilisation, Mojenjo-daro (Pakistan), of the Indus Valley, established about 5,000 years ago. One of the best known Harappan seals, identified by archaeologist Sir John Marshall as Shiva Pashupati, the Yogic “Lord of Beasts”, has a number of features in common with the other “Master of Animals” seals. Nik Douglas presents a picture of this seal:89 (See figure 8.1 on page 358.) Richard Grant rightfully observes that Shiva, on this seal, has something in common with the Celtic deity Cernunnos depicted on the famous Gundestrup cauldron, identified on a fragmentary inscription as the Celtic deity also known as “Lord of the Beasts”. On this cauldron the figure resembles the Prot-Shiva. So strong is the resemblance, that it is difficult not to conclude that it is one and the same deity, Cernunnos. The curious fact about this image is that Cernunnos “is seated in a yogic posture [the Buddha posture] and appears to be in a meditative state”, possibly a “shamanic trance”.90 Ellis provides further interesting facts on the Celts which lead to the name “Bres” (probably a root word for Breast and Beast) that is very similar to the ancient Egyptians’ Bes, but with an “r” added. He mentions that when the Children of Danu91 arrived in Ireland, Nuada was their leader and not Dagda. During battles with Fomorii, Nuada’s hand was severed, but the god of medicine, Dian Cécht, replaces it with a silver one and then Miach, the son of Dian Cécht, replaces it with a real one. Finally Nuada is slain in another battle. He is not to be confused with Nuada the Chief Druid of Cahir Mór, the ancestor of Fionn MacCumhail. Nuada could not lead the Childen of Danu, because of his injury, so he is replaced by Bres, who is the son of Elatha, a Fomorii king, and a woman of the Dé Danaan who became consort to the goddess Brigit, a daughter of the Dagda. Bres is a tyrant and is soon deposed, fleeing to Fomorii. After these events the Dagda becomes the leader of the gods and goddesses and remains so until they are driven underground. Even though linguistically I have no justification for suggesting that Bres is Bes, or that Bres became Bran or Brân, however, Bran and Bes as the Jade Emperor share one important aspect which supports this view, namely that the head is said to be a wondrous severed head. This head is really the severed head of the Jade Emperor / Bes (see chapters 11 and 16). But unlike Bes, Bran is gigantic, an aspect which is most likely a reference to Angelman. 213

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The Celtic meaning of Brân is “raven”. In a collection of medieval Welsh tales (The Mabinogion), he is a gigantic Celtic deity who featured as the “crowned king over this Island” that is, Britain. He lived in a tent as no house had ever been built big enough to accommodate his height: The most important aspect of Brân’s myth concerned his wondrous severed head. The ancient Celts worshiped the human head and believed it to be the seat of the soul, capable of independent life after the death of the body. They thought that it possessed powers of prophecy and was symbolic of fertility. They also believed that one of its functions was to provide entertainment in the otherworld. This is presumably a reference to the laughter aspect associated with Bes. According to the myth, Brân had been mortally wounded and requested his companions to cut off his head. He instructed them to take the head with them on their wanderings, telling them that opening a certain forbidden door it would not only provide them with marvelous entertainment and companionship ...Eventually, they were to take the head and bury it on the White Mount in London. All happened as Brân had prophesied, and his companions passed 80 joyous and delightful years. The head was buried in London ... [Brân is also the hero of the Voyage of Brân, an idea that links him with the celestial boats/ships (chapter 9)].92

The different meanings of the word sword When you consider all the celestial images discussed so far and the multiple meanings of the Greek word “sword” you will be able to see various correspondences and understand the reasons for these confusing, multiple meanings. In a discussion related to the ancient practice of divination from entrails, Robert Temple notes: But the full elucidation of the cosmic associations between entrails and the planets is not yet possible. Despite the vast labours of Thulin and Deecke, details of Greek, Roman and Etruscan extispicy are still vague. Weinstock has listed in passing the Greek terms for parts of the liver. They bear such colourful names as: God, Dioskuri, Charioteer, Head, Tongues, Nails, Sword Doors, Tables, Heath, Mirror, Basket, Knot, River and Tomb. But some of these may be inaccurate translations, or at least inapt ones. The Greek word machaira meaning ‘sword’, for instance, also means ‘knife’. An alternative word for the same feature of the liver, according to Suidas, is spathē, which can mean ‘oar-blade’, ‘spatula’ [fan-tail] or stem of a palm frond’. How are we to choose?... The indentation [space between the lobes] was known to the Babylonians and the Assyrians as the ‘Palace Gate’. In Geek it was simply the ‘Gate’ – and it may be 214

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ no coincidence that the Greek god Hermes93, who is the Roman god Mercury and identified with the planet Mercury, had an epithet in Homeric times of pylē-dokos, ‘Watcher at the Gate’…In the notes to my translation of the Epic of Gilgamesh, I explain in detail how the references to ‘gates’, ‘doors’ and even ‘blows’, in connection with Hermes/Mercury are astronomical and anatomical references, not merely vague or abstract mythological ideas.94

According to Temple’s translation of the Epic of Gilgamesh the reference to “gates” and associated terms are references to the cosmos, and in terms of my own observations such ideas refer to the celestial door/gate images discussed in chapters 1 and 3, thus supporting Temple that such ideas are most certainly related to the cosmos, but more specifically to the cosmology of the ancients. Temple is also perturbed that the word sword could have several, unrelated meanings. In fact I think the translators actually left out several more bizarre ones, which they probably felt were completely absurd, such as “penis”, “praying man”, “birth” and “sex”’. But it suffices to say that the liver, because of its red/purple colour and its tongue-shape, was associated with the major top “wing” structure of the celestial image of Batman/Sword (see chapter 10). In Book 3, I discuss some aspects of astrological divination, but it was the association between the “wing/arm/sword” and the liver which gave rise to liver divination. It is not entirely correct that the liver was seen as the sword, the actual sword was the sternum, that is, the little knife/sword-shaped cartilage in the middle of the chest. The reason for this is that the liver was seen in relation to the sternum and the lungs, thus the structural similarity to the sword. In certain esoteric ideas the sternum is specifically referred to as the “white sword”, which according to certain practices can gradually be developed into a large sword with which the initiate can slay the red dragon. When one looks at the Ancient Egyptian ritual of storing certain parts of the decreased in Canopic jars, we see that one of the four “sons” of Horus associated with the liver is Imsety (man). On the Imsety jar the face of a man is painted. This jar contains the liver. It apparently also stood for South and was associated with Isis.95 Making sense of a bewildering number of images and ideas The larger picture that is beginning to emerge in view of observations thus far is as follows. Firstly, the Bow & Arrow/Knife/Sword/Penis is really another conception of Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son (see chapter 5) who has many aliases and transformational forms. At times Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son was conceived of as a man or a woman, or as two men or two women. In this regard it was sometimes conceived of 215

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ as the association of a young woman/girl/man/boy with an old woman/man. Also the prominent “wing/arm” of Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son is the Phoenix/Tree/ Snake (for the snake ideas see chapter 15). However, the Phoenix itself has also been interpreted as male and female. This combination of the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son idea with the lying down Phoenix (as a male/female) could be interpreted as the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son with its Knife/Sword/Penis “penetrating” the male/female Phoenix as if it were human. Secondly, the blade of the Sword/Knife is a young child, the Horus Child; “still in birth”, but who grows to become a larger character, whom I call Angelman (see chapter 11). This Horus Child has a twin – Angelman’s Dark Horse / Volvine (see Book 2). The Horus Child and Angelman are part of a larger multi-complex structure composed of various images. Thirdly, the same Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son image is also the Screeching Swallow/Falcon-Hawk, an aspect of Isis (see chapters 5 and 10). The face of the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son is also a tiny volvine (see chapter 5 and 11). And above the Jade Emperor’s “head” is Anubis (Book 2). Fourthly, from the position of the Horus Child “below” the Jade Emperor, various ideas emerged in time such as the Jade Emperor and its various aliases giving birth to the Horus Child or “sitting” on it, enslaving it. Lastly, the SE region is part of the celestial boats/ships (chapter 9) which in turn are part of the body of Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son. This region is also the “source” of “water” and the Fowl-CHICK with its various aliases. It is these complexities which are being played out in the various ancient ideas and traditions. But there are several more images which add to this complexity. If you link all the celestial aspects discussed in previous chapters with the discussions in this chapter you will see the links among sword, penis, trees, birds, man/woman, water and birth and why these are linked in the stories of ancient peoples and subsequently inspired certain cultural ideas and practices.

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NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, eds., Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 274-281. 2. Ibid. 3. David M. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation (London: Arrow Books Limited, 1990), 9. 4. Ibid., 92. 5. Zecharia Sitchin, Divine Encounters – A Guide to Visions, Angels, and Other Emissaries (New York: Avon Books, 1995). See the front cover of this book for an example of such a representation of a Mesopotamian deity in a winged-sun-disk. 6. Rohl, Legend, plate 60. 7. Ibid., 358-359. 8. Writing the name PEN in reverse renders NEP which when combined with Tane/Dane become Neptune, the water god. Neptune, like Enki and Pen, is strongly associated with water. 9. Khnum: a picture of this god depicts a ram-headed sitting human with horizontal horns creating two naked beings with prominent Horus side curls on a potter’s wheel (see Book 2). Khnum may have been shortened to Khn, the root of names such as Khane and Khan/Khun (priest), which may have become Kane, as in Kane in the Bible. 10. Rohl, Legend, 358-359. 11. Giorgio De Santillana and Hertha von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill – An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and Its Transmission Through Myth (Boston: David R. Godine Publisher Inc., 1977), 444. 12. Zecharia Sitchin, Wars of the Gods and Men – Book III of the Earth Chronicles (New York: Avon Books, 1985), 79-80. 13. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996). 14. Sitchin, Wars of the Gods and Men – Book III of the Earth Chronicles), 74. 15. Graham Hancock, Supernatural – Meeting with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind (London: Century Publishers, 2005), 90-91. 16. Ibid., 101, 115. 17. Was !Xu perhaps changed to Zu of the ancient Mesopotamians? 217

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 18. K.V. Snedegar, Stars and Seasons in Southern Africa, vol.39 (Vistas in Astronomy, 1995), 529-538. Belt stars as a man, his dog and a buck. This is a clear indication that these are not related to our modern Orion (Book 2). 19. Ibid., 529-538. 20. Regine Schulz and Matthias Seidal, eds., Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs (Germany: Könemann, 2004), 19, 26. 21. Rohl, Legend, 271-283. 22. Three Archaic Egyptian Constellations used as seasonal markers? – catchpenny.org. 23. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt, 161, 337. 24. Ibid. 25. Bahn, The Story of Archaeology, 34. 26. John Manley, The Atlas of the Past Worlds (United Kingdom: Cassell Publishers Ltd., 1993), 160. 27. Bahn, The Story of Archaeology, 174, 169. 28. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Aztecs – Reign of Blood and Splendour (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 93. 29. Ibid., 107, 109. 30. Ibid., 113. 31. Mounts are man-made, small, hill-like structures, often used as tombs. 32. Manley, The Atlas of the Past Worlds, 21-22. 33. Ibid., 62-63. 34. Balder is presumably derived from Bas/Bes or Bau and adder (snake) or elder. 35. James George Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 51. 36. Gwyn Jones, The Vikings (New York: Oxford University Press, 1968), photo section between pages 346 and 347. 37. Encyclopedia Britannica. 38. Kathleen. E. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends (Great Britain: Brockhampton Press, 2004), 40. 218

8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ 39. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 412. 40. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 344. 41. Nabih Amin Faris, The Book of Idols (Translation from the Arabic of The Kitab-AlAsnam, 1952), http://answering-islam.org.uk/Books/Al-Kalbi). 42. Sukkals is probably the root of Jukkals which eventually became jackals and still later was shortened to Jack. 43. Sitchin, Divine Encounters, 277-278. 44. Nana Banchie Darkwah, The Africans who Wrote the Bible – Ancient Secrets Africa and Christianity Have Never Told (San Francisco: Aduana Publishing Book, 2002), 215. 45. Darwah bases his ideas on scholarly works which he mentions in this extraction, including Grant Allen, The Evolution of the Idea of God (1897); the Afrim people also practised phallic worship after the biblical Exodus, according to Cliff Howard in Sex Worship (1902); L Manniche, Sexual Life in Ancient Egypt (1987). 46. Peter Watson, Ideas – A History from Fire to Freud (United Kingdom: Orion Books Ltd., 2006), 82-83. 47. Loke may have become the name for the New Testament book Luke, namely the Gospel of Luke. 48. Ragnarök is presumably a composed from Rg-NA-Roc. Roc is an Arabic word for the phoenix, and Roc might also be a derivation of the English word rock. 49. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 387. 50. Sitchin, Wars of the Gods and Men – Book III of the Earth Chronicles, 8-9. 51. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 446-448. 52. Ibid. 53. Ibid. 54. Ibid. With regard to this tree conception, De Santillana and Von Dechend points out that it becomes evident that these “ ‘mythical trees’ are not of terrestrial provenance, and that we cannot cope with the different specific tree individuals under the heading ‘the world tree’ – but because they are ‘cosmic’ trees – as could have been expected by everybody who spent time and thought on the tree of the Cross; on Yggdrasil (and Ashvatta); on the “Saltwater-tree” of the Cuna Indians; on Zeus’ oak, part of which was built into the Argo; on the fig tree at the vortex which saved Odysseus; on the laurel which did not yet mark the omphalos of Delphi, when Apollo slew Python…”

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 55. Ibid., 391. “A remarkable amount of information about submarine creatures is contained in Mansikka’s inquiry into Russian magic formulae…this much can be said, however: in the middle of the ‘Blue Sea’ (or ‘middle of the whole earth’), there is either (a) an island – most of the time called Bujan, from the same radical as buoy – ‘the center of celestial power’, upon which there is a tree, or stone, or a tree upon a stone, sometimes the cross or the ‘mountain of Zion’ itself,…or there is (b) the ‘White Altar-Stone,’ which is the ‘fiery’ one, lying in the navel of the sea without being supported by an island; under this stone is ‘a green fire, the king of all fires,’ or an ‘eternal, unquenchable fire’ that has to be procured from under the stone.” 56. Peter Berresford Ellis, The Druids (London: Constable and Company Ltd., 1995), 3941. 57. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 177-178. Kadalion is presumably a composite from Kid (a) + lion. 58. The Theban Plays was written by Sophocles the Athenian , born 496 BC. King Oedipus (“Swollen Foot” in Greek) is also rendered as Oidipous Tyrannos – Latin: Oedipus Rex. 59. Mbadlanyana: yana in Sotho means small/tiny. 60. Eileen Jensen Krige, The Social System of the Zulus (South Africa: Shuter and Shooter, 1977), 300-303, 356, 410. 61. Thumb-diviners: diviners must be seen to be related to conceptions such as seers and prophets. 62. This “strike the ground violently” reminds me of Moses who, contrary to God’s instructions, struck the rock violently with his rod. 63. Krige, The Social System of the Zulus, 300-303, 356, 410. 64. Sitchin, Wars of the Gods and Men – Book III of the Earth Chronicles, 84. 65. Anush may be another candidate for the origin of the name Enush, i.e., Enoch. 66. Mysterious drinking vessels are pervasive in ancient ideas. This might be the bitter cup that Jesus asked his father to remove from him. This is also the cup of David that “runneth over” Ps. 23. There are many other examples in the Bible of the cup or jug, disguised in many different stories, but see chapter 16 for other possibilities. 67. Sitchin, Wars of the Gods and Men – Book III of the Earth Chronicles, 84. 68. William Tyler Olcott, Star Lore – Myths, Legends, and Facts (United Kingdom: Dover Publications Inc., 2004), 30-35. 69. Wali is presumable a corruption of Bali, i.e., flower.

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8 : The great bow and arrow/excalibur/the phallus __________________________________________________________________ 70. Olcott, Star Lore, 30-35. 71. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 23-24. 72. Damascus in the New Testament conveniently became the place where Paul/Saul had his awakening – a new take on an old idea! 73. Paddan might be the word from which the Dutch word Padda (frog) is derived. 74. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 405-406. 75. Ibid., 444. 76. Rohl, Legend, 358. Z 77. Ibid. 78. The bun hair-style also seems to be a representation of the Jade Emperor’s head. But the same hair-style may later have become stylised as hats with a pom-pom or a round dome on a brim, presumably to give the wearer a resemblance to or identification with the Jade Emperor. There are many different versions of such hats, but the Greeks turned this symbolism into a scholar’s cap, which millions of today’s graduates wear during graduations. And consistent with Batman, they wear cloaks or Angelman’s gowns, that is, graduation gowns. From all these collective aspects it is clear that we are dealing with the Jade Emperor / Batman. 79. Peter Beresford Ellis is a noted scholar on Celtic history and culture, and has written several highly regard works on the Celts. In 1989, he received an Irish Post award in recognition of his work on Celtic history. He was chairman of the first Scrif-Celt, the Celtic languages book fair and the Celtic League 1988-90. In 1987 he was made a bard of the Cornish Gorsedd. While it is clear that he knows his field of study it is also clear he is attempting to whitewash certain undesirable aspects of the Celtic history and culture, but this is not our concern at this point. 80. Dagda appears to be a modification of Danga, where the letter “n” was dropped and the Da in front was repeated at the back of the word. 81. Ruadh is probably a reworking of Rudra, thedestroyer-archer who is linked to the sting of Scorpio. 82. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 444. 83. Presumably young Hercules’ winged horse, Pegasus, Zorro’s horse etc. We will meet this horse later, and it has nothing to do with modern astronomy’s Pegasus. 84. Ellis, The Druids, 122-123 85. Mahadeva - Deva may be the root for David and Eva, while Deva + El may have become Devil. 221

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 86. Ellis, The Druids, 123. 87. This is apparently how Cernunnos appears on the Gundestrup Cauldron (National Museum, Copenhagen). This figure also occurs on a silver coin of the Belgic Remi, now in the British Museum. 88. Ellis, The Druids, 123-124. 89. Nik Douglas, “Tantra in Ancient Times”, extracted from Spiritual Sex: Secrets of Tantra from the Ice Age to the New Millennium, 1996. 90. Richard Grant, www.hindunet.org. 91. Danu looks like another modification of Dan, which in chapter 5 was associated with an Egyptian Ruler of the First Dynasty. Presumably Dan became the root for Daniel i.e., Dan-I-EL. 92. Encyclopedia Britannica. 93. Hermes is probably a composite from Hera + Meshu. Interestingly, “mes” in Afrikaans, from the Germanic root, means “knife”. 94. Robert Temple, Netherworld – Discovering the Oracle of the Dead and Ancient Technique of Foretelling the Future (London: Century, 2002), 242-244. 95. Manfred Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson Ltd., 1980), 37-38.

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Chapter 9

RA’S SHIP OF MILLIONS OF YEARS Ra, usually depicted as a human form with a falcon head, crowned with the sun disc encircled by a cobra, is one of the most important Ancient Egyptian gods, the supreme power in the universe. Ra or Re rode across the sky in a golden boat/ship called the “Barque of Millions of Years”, bringing light and warmth to all creatures. Ra, the Divine One, hid himself from his gods, and his seat in the Boat of Millions of Years was empty. The righteous have the choice of two heavens in which to live: the Sekhet-Aaru of Osiris or the Boat of the Sun-god Ra. Those who chose the Boat of Ra sailed with him over the skies, they fed upon light, and were arrayed in light, and were finally absorbed into the light of the god himself. Sailing vessels – ships, arks, boats, canoes and floating baskets – are pervasive in religious ideas and in numerous myths and folktales. In this chapter we will look at some of these vessels and reveal the celestial images behind such ideas. But it is my contention that the same sailing vessels were often disguised in forms such as the Talking Teapot and Saucer with the Giant Ladle, Aladdin’s lamp, a giant tub, a cauldron/pot, a silver platter with a human head on it, a Persian shoe, a banana, a boomerang, a large bow as in bow and arrow, large sea shells, a floating log or plank, and even the Menorah as a dual symbol for the sailing vessel and the Celestial Tree! Sailing vessels in religious texts Sailing vessels have been captured in myths and religious text, illustrations, paintings and other artworks found in many different places around the world. In the Bible we read of the Ark that God instructed Noah to build. Yet, what is not that well known is that he built it according to specific cosmological numbers. However, the ship or boat motifs found in other sections of the Bible are of a less dramatic form and are assumed to represent everyday things. For instance there is the ship on which Jonah travelled to escape from the Lord (Jonah 1:3, NIV). Jonah is also swallowed by a large fish – another disguise of Enki covered in the body of a fish. Christians will remember Jesus’ disciples on a boat in a terrible storm, and Jesus walking on the water to calm the storm (Matthew 14:22-34). Then there is the 223

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ shipwreck in which Paul was involved (Acts 27:27). And in Revelations, the final book of the Bible, reference is made to two ships: “And the second angel sounded a trumpet and as it were, a great mountain burning with fire [the Moses burning bush in a different disguise] was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood [the red sea that was split by Moses]; and the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, had died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed” (Rev.8:8-9). In relation to the destruction of Babylon it is noted: “For in one hour so great riches come to naught. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, and cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying: What city is like unto this great city” (Rev.8:17-18).

Reference is also made to ships in the Holy Qur’an: And his [Allah’s] are the ships Sailing smoothly through the seas, Lofty as mountains.1

We have met this “lofty as a mountain” idea previously in relation to the phoenix. The question arises: Are these merely references to our modern idea of sailing vessels, and if so why are they specifically mentioned in religious texts? While myths and cultural practices regarding “sailing vessels” are found in many cultures, I want to illustrate anomalies which suggest that these were not necessarily our “sailing vessels” being referred to by the ancients. In fact archetype celestial images inspired the construction of real sailing vessels and the subsequent strange cultural practices of various peoples across the globe regarding such vessels. The Khoisan drew numerous pictures of “sailing vessels” in their art, specifically associated with the ancestors or some “deity” in the sky, and it is assumed that this is because they actually saw sailing vessels: San living in the Drakensberg painted boats which could only have been seen near the coast, a hundred miles away, and mounds of shells from shellfish have been found on Middens fifty miles inland…One oral tradition collected from the Khoikhoi herders refers to their ancestors traveling with their faces towards the setting sun until they reached the “great water”, and then traveling southward down the Atlantic coast; another tradition refers to the movement eastwards to the 224

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ Zuurveld,2 after the arrival of the Dutch. There is an obscure reference in the early tradition to the Khoikhoi having arrived in Africa in ‘un grand panier’ (basket),3 but whence and when they came we do not yet know; nor do we know whether these traditions refer to the whole Khoikhoi-speaking population or, as is more likely, to a small group of immigrants absorbed by them. It is the eastern origin that is emphasised. Hahn reported: “Every Nama4 from whom I inquired told me that this Heitsi-eibib is their great grandfather, and a great powerful rich chief. He lived originally in the East and had plenty of cattle and sheep. Therefore they make the door of their huts towards the East, where the sun and moon rise. This custom is so peculiar to them that those who possess wagons always put these vehicles alongside their houses, with the front towards sunrise. All the graves are directed towards the east, and the face of the deceased is also turned in that direction [later we have the Prophet Mohammed teaching his people to pray facing towards the east and bury their dead facing east].”5

The second part of this extract might not seem relevant in this context but it certainly is. Firstly, we see that the origin of the “basket” is said to be the east. This is commonly interpreted that the Khoisan may have seen sailing vessels of the Arabs coming from the east. If one follows the discussions from chapter 1 until now, then you might understand why the east is being emphasised. Other cultures also represented “boats” in eastern regions, see later. You will also see that from my own observations celestial vessels cover the eastern wall. Secondly, we see that the “basket” is from the east and they also associate the east with some rich leader/ancestor/deity, Heitsi-eibib, who possesses sheep and cattle. Hence there must be some connection between the basket and Heitsi-eibib. I have already discussed the celestial images which became the archetypes for sheep and cattle and the celestial idea about riches. I think that these are the connections which the Khoisan wanted to convey among the ideas of the east, the “basket”, sheep and cattle and a rich leader/ancestor/deity. Also, Heitsi-eibib is associated with celestial phenomena and some “religious conception”, hence logic would suggest that even the “basket” is a celestial “object”. Just an important side note: I have seen Khoisan artwork which represents strange animals on “floating” platforms; in one such representation there are even dog-like creatures on board, perhaps precursors of the Egyptian, dog-headed god Anubis.6 With regard to Heitsi-eibib, who should best be understood to relate to the Khoisan’s cultural-religious context linked with stars, Wilson and Thompson again quote from Hahn:

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Hahn speaks of “an offering to the deceased or the Supreme Being”, and of the amputation of a finger as an “offering to //Guanab”7...They were concerned also about the graves of their ancestors: Hahn tells of a women he knew praying at the grave of her father, for she said: “We Khoikhoi always, if we are in trouble, go and pray at the graves of our grandparents and ancestors; it is an old custom of ours.” But most of the rites on which we have evidence relate to founding heroes, not immediate ancestors. Cairns of stones associated with the hero Heitsi Eibib, who “came from the east”, are common in Namaqualand, and Tsuni-//Goam (Tsui-// Goab)8 was another founding hero, a “powerful chief”, “the first Khoikhoib from whom all the Khoikhoi tribes took their origin”. Their heroes were sky gods, who were identified with the Supreme Being, and it was they who controlled the rain, in Khoikhoi thought. Rain was something holy…and the most important communal ritual was a sacrifice and prayer for rain, when the Pleiades appeared in spring.9 The Khoikhoi also danced at moonrise at the new moon and full moon, and they respected the mantis as a sign of “grace and prosperity”. If one alighted on a man they killed an ox as a thank-offering.10

Sailing vessels in other ancient artworks Rohl discusses the rock art of strange boats found in two different countries, namely Sumeria and Egypt. He uses this as another piece of evidence that the two ancient civilisations were linked, but more controversially that Sumeria, the place of the biblical Garden of Eden, was where civilisation first started and from where it spread to Ancient Egypt. One “Site 24B” Wadi Mineh11 on the west leading towards the major site, “Site 26”, the mysterious valley of the boat people, located in the Eastern desert of Wadi Abu Wasil (now known as Wadi Abu Markab El-Nes) was first photographed, sketched and described by the German ethnographer and explorer, Hans Winkler, in 1936-1937. At both sites Winkler recorded several recognisable images, signs and symbols. At 24B: “Giraffe, asses, ibexes, Boats. In one boat stands a woman with upraised arms. Men, archer, dancers – Hieroglyphic inscriptions, boat, Min. – Greek, Latin, Himyaritic and Nabataean inscriptions, sailing boat, cattle, Blemyan signs...” At 26: “Geometrical designs. – Elephants, giraffe, asses, ibexes, ostriches, crocodile; cattle, dogs. Boats, some towed. Men with bows, man with club, men with lassoes, dancers. Ancient signs. – blemyan signs, camels. – Arab wusum, camels, fighting men.” At both sites some other things were found: “Some flints and late potsherds on 226

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ the surface” (24B) and at 26 “Some potsherds, implements of flint and quarts. Tombs?”12

In 1905, the archaeologist Arthur Weigall was the first to record that in WadiAbbab, in the eastern desert of Egypt, similar art with a strong boat motif had been found. Several reproductions of the original boat art and later recordings thereof are scattered throughout Rohl’s book. These artworks share several motifs with those of Mesopotamia. Significant among these are the strange boats, the unusually tall, stretched humans and some bird-like creatures. The “stretched-out-ness” of the humans reminds one of the tall humans found in other ancient rock and cave art across the world, one example being the now popular “Bushman” art. Rohl also shows a few comparative boat sketches from these Egypt and Mesopotamia. He provides the following summary of some of the most significant similarities: (a) Many vessels have what appear to be animal heads on the prow. These heads have either long horns or antlers and/or pendant palm fronds. (b) There is often a central cabin or a shrine on the deck of the boat. (c) Some have a large figure of a woman represented with arms raised aloft as if dancing or performing an act of prayer. Others show rows of dancing figures. (d) A number of scenes show a man carrying a composite bow or a throw-stick or, in one case, a mace with a round head. This male figure is regularly illustrated with two tall feathers rising from his head. From now on we will refer to him as “the chieftain”. In some cases he is accompanied by two other figures, smaller than himself. As Michael Rice notes in his book Egypt’s Making this constant repetition of the boat with three occupants is too frequent not to be especially significant. (e) The more complex drawings show several oarsmen/oars (sometimes as many as sixty or seventy), indicating that at least one of the ships (perhaps frequently represented) was a very large vessel. (f) Several show an object hanging down from the prow which appears to represent a stone anchor (familiar to marine archeologist from all parts of Near East). (g) A few illustrations represent a ship with a single, large, rectangular sail. (h) Perhaps the most extraordinary feature is that, in an ever-increasing number of drawings, the boats are being pulled or towed by their crews with the chieftain occasionally shown directing operations from the deck of the boat.13

Some of these observations are also evident in a wall painting, in Tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis Naqada II-c Period (ca. 3300 BC) (see chapters 5, 6 and 8). In this tomb scene, five white canoe-like boats with their decks loaded with red cargo, and one black boat with a very high raised prow or stern are depicted. A single oar 227

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ dangles from the black boat. The red cargo on the deck is usually in two pieces. However, there are some strange aspects to this painting; firstly the colour yellow emphasises the water and secondly the water does not flow continuously but is broken into cloud-like sections interspersed with the prominent yellow colour. We saw this emphasis on yellow on the Egyptian papyrus depicting the phoenix in chapter 4. And we have a similar colour emphasis in the Yellow River ideas of the Chinese. I have already suggested that the colour yellow is associated with gold when one interprets ancient ideas. In the introduction I mentioned that Ra’s boat was golden. The people on these boats are mostly depicted as being red, which is hardly an appropriate colour for actual humans. In these two countries people recorded that in the remote past “boats” had been seen in the deserts. Why the desert and not along areas where water was present? Was the depiction in the desert perhaps another emphasis of the “yellow” or red desert sand, and a way of the ancients attempting to send a message into the future to reminder us of the fact that these celestial boats had nothing to do with terrestrial water? And why the emphasis on three occupants, one of which is normally a tall dancing woman with outstretched arms? Rohl also draws attention to the various animals, the large bow, the round knob-kierrie (plate 4), the tall plumes, and the punkish hair-styles of some of the characters depicted in these artworks.14 While Rohl is only interested in advancing his theory and thus rightfully focuses only on these two civilisations, boat-like structures appear in other cave and rock art. These are in addition to the basket-like “boats” already mentioned, examples of which are in ancient San art scattered throughout southern Africa.15 San art is difficult to date because these people already used “high-tech” mineral pigments compared to the “low-tech” “European”(?) art made using datable charcoal.16 In Europe, sailing vessel representations are also evident in cave art in Spain. In Altamira the art has been dated to between 16,500 and 14,500 years old while in El Castillo the art has been dated from 30,000 years old.17 In The Archeology Story a picture is shown of Aboriginal rock art that is probably more than 20,000 years old, depicting imprints of human hands (remember the hand imprints in the French caves – an emphasis on the number five). Amongst these are canoe-shaped objects said to be boomerangs.18 The materials available to me provided only a glimpse, but there might be many more representations of “sailing vessels” in rock and cave art throughout the world. These would be easily identifiable, especially in the light of this book.

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9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ Boat/ship conceptions and traditions in various ancient cultures This section deals with some interesting yet out of the ordinary boat/ship representations, ideas and traditions to further support my theory that such “vessels” and their associated ideas and traditions are not to be understood in the modern sense of sailing vessels. The Ark and ‘God Boat’ motif Mesopotamia, or modern day Iraq, is Greek for “the land between the rivers”, namely, the Tigris and Euphrates. Here some of the earliest cities (ca. 3500, Bronze Age) were established in the low plains and marshes of southern Mesopotamia, in a place called Sumer. Shumerum is an ancient name for Sumer, which in biblical times became “Land of Shinar”. The Sumerians laid the foundations of the Mesopotamian civilisation. Apart from the rock art in this region we also find the “oldest recorded story”: The Gilgamesh Epic, recorded on 12-clay tablets during the Early Dynastic Period, ca. 2900-2700 BC, involving a Noah-like person, a flood and an ark.19, 20, 21 De Santillana and von Dechend suggest that the boat in The Gilgamesh Epic is the same boat, the so-called “God-Boat”, depicted on Mesopotamian seals.22 As a comparison they also provide a copy of a Maya Codex Tro-Cortesianus (following the Mesopotamian seals) and a sketch of an ancient Arabian globe (following the Maya Codex) depicting various zodiac-like signs. They argue that these all carry similar “God-Boat” motifs, suggesting that they were all based on similar cosmological ideas. There are some very interesting aspects to these pictures. The first picture of the Mesopotamian seal has two levels, each with separate scenes. The top level depicts a horned-bird-human-headed boat “measuring” the hind part of a “bull” with a prominent front leg. Above the bull’s rear end is a “fish-like” or “jug-like” structure, followed at the back of the bull’s hind leg by a large “bull’s horn-like” structure suggestive of the “severed head” of the image I termed Sheep/Goat/Cow/Bull/ Horse’s Head at the NW point. The horned-bird-human-headed boat has several downward projections, suggestive of oars in the number divisions 6+1+10, with the 1 being a single prominent “oar/penis-like” object different from the others. A large “bird-like” creature is in the centre, just above the boat. If my interpretation of the images is correct, then the “bird” is the Phoenix or the “Screeching Swallow/Falcon” or the Fowl-CHICK. The fish/jug-like structure may be the “fishes” discussed in chapter 3, and the bull’s horn-like structure may be related to the celestial Sheep/Goat/Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head at the NW point (see chapters 3 and 14). When one takes all these aspects into account collectively, there is a strong suggestion that the images, including the “God-Boat”, are celestial images 229

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ very similar to the ones I observed. However, the orientation of the individual images relative to each other is difficult to relate to the orientation I observed. The scene on the lower level depicts a “sitting” baby-bird-like being with a cross “X” (a prominent feature of Bes) below his/her back-side and a square-like structure at the level of the torso. This being is raising something that resembles a crude right-angled triangle, as if to hand it over to another being standing facing him/her. Following the latter are three beings, two of whom are carrying large round objects on their heads, which reminds me of the “suns” on the head of some beings in the Dendera Zodiac. Next is a four-storey tower; above this is a square within a square (presumably the “double square”) and on the other side is another bird-like being. All these bird-humanoid beings, including the horned-bird-human, have one prominent single eye and appear to be wearing reed or feather-skirts. According to legend, this seal shows the building of the ziggurat, presumably the first tower pyramid; that is, the tower of Babel, with comb-like levels, with varying numbers of comb “teeth”: 7 (first level), 6 (second level), 4 (third level) and 3 (fourth level), which significantly add up to 20. It is also suggested that the upper scene depicts the bringing of the me (measure of creation) from Eridu-Canopus to be used in the construction of the tower in the scene below. Another picture on the same page, presumably from a different Mesopotamian seal, shows several images. A “God-Boat” has a double-headed-bird-human being, with horns and two “heart-like (?) objects” between the horns, forming the stern of the boat. The being is holding a single oar. Inside, at the rear of the boat, is another double-headed-bird (or bird-bull)-human with horns and two small similar heartlike objects. This being is holding a long “rowing pole” that forms a large cross “X” sign under its rear end. At the rear end of the boat there appear to be fine projections suggestive of “green grass”, followed by what the legend notes as a lion. But to me it looks like a lion with a bird’s head. The lion has five downward projections in its mane. Next to the lion, and towards the centre of its body, is a large jug (suggestive of the water-carrier jug as noted in the legend). Next follows a bird-fishbone-scorpiontailed human with crab-like pincer hands, and at the tail are two prominent circles followed by a crescent moon-like structure, identified in the legend as the moon. The legend notes that the bird-fishbone-scorpion-tailed human is Scorpio; however, from this description and the other images described, it seems to be a composite of Scorpio, the Fishes and a Crab or lobster (as suggested by the pincers). But unlike the other pictures described above, the orientation of these images appears to make sense in terms of my observations, if they are indeed derived from celestial images similar to those I observed. When reading these images (bird, fishbone, scorpion and 230

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ human) from left to right then their arrangement is consistent with the SE region with each successive image moving towards the SW point. This would also make the large jug consistent with Aquarius as suggested in chapter 8, and the lion also consistent with the fowl-CHICK lion described in chapter 6. Above the stern of the “God-Boat” is a bird in flight that may be suggestive of the Phoenix, followed by a one-footed one-eared calf-fish-boned-like image with two large V-horns, which may suggest a combination of the fishes and the wild bull (see chapters 3 and 14). The human-head boat motif is repeated in the Maya codex, where a wily old man with a curved beard, single eye, and four “feathers” at the back of his head, is holding up a prominent hand-“finger” in the air. At his chest are two long projections which end with heart/lung-shaped projections presumably indicative of the Wing/ Heart/Tongue (see chapters 5, 6 and 8). Around his neck is a necklace with three projections, presumably symbolic of the three False Orion Belt stars. At the rear end of the boat is a one-eyed young man with similar lung/heart projections at his chest and a very prominent large curled finger suggestive of the Horus Child finger/curl. Although there are some recognisable aspects that relate to my observations discussed in the previous chapters, it is not possible to orientate the image in relation to my observed celestial images. These images, like many other Mayan and Aztec illustrations, are beset with composite “holographic” images which are ingenious, yet extremely difficult to decode. In the Arab globe, the stern of the “God Boat” is represented as a human-faced horse-necked being with two sickle-shaped legs, one of which is prominent with a sword-like handle with writing beneath it (as if it is writing). Next we have a horse and then a one-armed man with a dog at his side. The orientation of these images, in the above sequence, is consistent with my observed celestial images and suggests a SE to SW orientation. According to de Santillana and von Dechend, Suhayl (Canopus) is written below the prominent “oar/sword”. The oar/sword seems to be a representation of the Sword/Knife/Penis. There are several features of the young man with the dog which convince me he is the equivalent of my Angelman (see chapter 11): the long-sleeved arm, the “Roman” head-dress, the dog, the emphasis around one extended leg and the cross/sickle suggestive of a combination of the False Beard and Bes cross. All three “God-Boat” images have features in common with celestial images discussed in this book, suggesting that they were based on similar observations and 231

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ therefore, like the cave rock and cave art, these “sailing vessels” must have been inspired by the ancients’ cosmology. The boat motif on the Dilmun button seals Two “Dilmun button seals” from Dilmun Sumeria or Dilmun Bahrain are discussed by Rohl.23 The first depicts a canoe-like boat with a mast-like frame, on either side of which two beings are standing. The one on the left of the mast-frame is standing on one leg, holding the mast-pole with one arm, and there is a strange large object, perhaps a penis, dangling between his legs. The being on the opposite side is standing on two legs, holding the mast-pole with an extended “strong” arm and has a rather strangely shortened arm. This might be the Jade Emperor / Horus Child (on the left) and his transformation into Humpty-Dumpy Angelman (on the right) (see chapter 12). Below the boat are two “oars” and a large scorpion/lobster whose length extends the length of the boat. If this is indeed a scorpion, or a lobster, then this must be a celestial image, since the scorpion and the lobster are zodiac signs. What the seals may have wanted to depict is that the boat and the “people” are all made up of the scorpion or lobster “constellation”. The scorpion may also represent certain celestial numbers (see Book 3): 6 (legs), 2 (pincers), 1 (tail), totalling 9, or 10 when the body is taken into account. So the images described (boat, people and the scorpion/ lobster) all suggest that this button is depicting celestial images consistent with my interpretations. What is puzzling is the two “oars”, which should be on the left, at the side of the Jade Emperor / Horus Child. On the other seal, two beings are once again depicted standing on a boat. But this time the beings are much taller and have more or less the same features, except that the one on the left has a longer, disproportional right arm and the other’s arms are bent like “wings” and his/her legs are thinner and longer. Unlike the first seal, the central single mast-pillar has a fish-tail top. There are also two branches on either side of the boat (with 9 and 10 leaves, respectively). There is no scorpion but a w-like sign that is presumably symbolic of the wave-like nature of water. I wonder if the letter “w” is not just a simplification of the wavy lines used to depict water commonly seen in Egyptian art? It is also interesting to note that the words woman, womb, weapon, war and warrior, which all seem to be linked to one of the so-called “water”-regions of the sky, start with a w. And it may just be that the w turned through 180o became M.

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9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ Since these buttons come from Dilmun it is perhaps relevant to look at what is known about Dilmun. Rohl discusses the possibility that Dilmun, a mysterious mythological “land of the living” mentioned in Sumerian epic literature, was an actual place in Bahrain. After weighing up all the facts he comes to the conclusion: “There were perhaps two Dilmuns: an original ‘prehistoric’ (mythological) Dilmun beyond the Zagros Mountains and ‘historic’ Dilmun island which was later founded by the descendants of the ancestral Dilmunites originating from the mountains.”24 Interestingly, in his translation of the Sumerian Paradise Myth, Kramer describes the mythological Dilmun as: ‘pure’, ‘clean’ and ‘bright’, the ‘land of the living’ ‘which knows neither sickness nor death but initially lacked fresh water…‘The great Sumerian water-god, Enki, therefore orders Utu, the sun god, to fill it with fresh water brought from the earth. Dilmun is thus turned into a divine garden, green with fruit-laden fields and meadows’. This earthly paradise of the Sumerian literature is surely the very same garden in which biblical Adam existed before the fall…In Dilmun, the raven [presumably Corvus] utters no cry. The ittidu-bird utters not the cry of the ittidubird. The lion kills not. The wolf snatches not the lamb...25

The last two sentences were re-worked in the New Testament to read something like the place where the lion and the lamb are at peace. The lion-lamb association is presumably a reference to the fowl-CHICK conversion into the lion. This paradise, according to the Old Babylonian flood epic, was created by three gods and one goddess, who also created the Sumerian people: “After Anu, Enlil, Enki and Ninhursag had fashioned the blackheaded (Sumerian) people, vegetation luxuriated from the earth; animals – four-legged (creatures) of the plain (Edin) – were brought artfully into existence.”26 According to the Babylonian version of the story of their hero-king, Gilgamesh, the “Land of the Living” that lies across seven mountains ranges is the same land where Gilgamesh meets Utnapishtim27, who has the appearance of a man, alias Ziusudra28 alias Noah. The Bible is filled with similar phraseology, namely “the appearance of a man”, which might just mean that a particular celestial image has the shape of a human, that is, resembles a terrestrial human being anatomically, or it might refer to the fanciful interpretations that were later attached to this conception – man, like god, is superior and lords over other terrestrial living things, as the Adam myth perpetuates. The “Land of the Living” is also the place where Ziusudra is transfigured into a god following his sacrifice to the gods: “Ziusudra, the king, prostrated himself before 233

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ An and Enlil. An and Enlil cherished Ziusudra; life like a god they gave him; breath eternal like a god they bring down for him. Then Ziusudra the king, the preserver of the name of vegetation and of the seed of mankind, in the land of crossing, the land of Dilmun, the place where the sun rises, they caused to dwell.”29 There are more, interesting details about this mysterious place: it was the “home of the gods” and also a “faraway land across mountains where the sun rises”. According to Kramer, that meant “the great chain peaks which rose magnificently out of the Mesopotamian plain on its eastern horizon”. Moreover, Dilmun itself was often referred to as “Mount Dilmun” (Akk. Kur-Dilmun), suggesting a highland region.30 Peter Cornwell used a series of arguments to challenge Kramer’s theory that Dilmun was a mythical place. In arguments summarised by Rohl, he claimed that the historical Dilmun was located on the island of Bahrain: (1) Sargon II of Assyria (721-705 BC) states that the king of Dilmun ‘lives like a fish, thirty beru (double-hours) away in the midst of the sea of the rising sun’. Another Assyrian king, Ashurbanipal,31 informs us that Dilmun is situated ‘in the midst of the Lower Sea’ – otherwise well established as the Persian Gulf. (2) The journey to Dilmun by sea takes sixty hours (thirty beru)…32

Once again there are several tell-tale signs, highlighted in bold above, of what this Dilmun is in terms of my observed celestial images and the interpretations of the ancients’ view of the night sky. Among these are numbers which provide further confirmation that Dilmun is a celestial place similar to Punt (see Book 3). According to the ancients’ worldview –“as in heaven so on earth” – there should also be no doubt that there were actual geographic places called Dilmun corresponding to the celestial Dilmun. Boat ideas and traditions in Ancient Egypt The Barque of Millions of Years Like the Bible, Ancient Egyptian religious texts have several references to “sailing vessels”, whether arks, ships, canoes or boats. And there are rather bizarre traditions around these “sailing vessels” which cannot be reconciled with modern ideas about our own sailing vessels. Hancock observes that there are many references to sailing boats in religious texts, specifically linked to gods, yet for some unknown reason the boats were buried in the desert: “We might also pay closer attention to the many unmistakably maritime references in the Pyramid Text [the world’s oldest religious text]. And there could be important new inferences to draw from ancient Egyptians’ religious art in which the gods are shown traveling in beautiful, high-prowed, streamlined boats, built to the same advanced ocean-going specifications as the pyramid boats at Giza and the mysterious fleet moored in the desert sands at Abydos.”33 234

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ There appears to be a connection between these boats buried in the sand and the rock art drawn in desert areas. Boats are mentioned in other texts, and paintings of boats are found on tombs and other buildings and in artworks. These include fascinating stories about boats that journey through time – for example, Ra had his Morning Boat and Evening Boat.34 There is even an example of the Night Boat of the Sun-god (Ra) on the great river of the Tuat (underworld) in the Book of the Gates.35 This depicts a high-prowed, canoelike boat with two prominent oars at one side. The non-functional occupants are four identical false-bearded males with naked upper parts and “skirts” (notice the number 4) and accompanying these men is a dog-headed male dressed in the same style. In the legend he is identified as Hekan [AHA + KANE]. Also depicted in this scene is a hippopotamus-headed female goddess, with one prominent open eye, horizontal horns and the “sun” on her head, canopied by a large serpent, Mehen. In her hand she is holding a snake-headed rod. Perhaps Moses’ rod that became a snake? There are also three individuals: a mummified female, the “Lady of the Boat”, fully clothed with vertical horns and the sun on her head, and two fully clothed young males, Up-uatu and Saa. Then there is the beetle Khepa or Khepera, with the telling hieroglyphic sign of a “door”, and a vertical bar with two short horizontal bars projecting an equal distance from Khepa, one on each side, a dot in the centre, and above this entire structure a large circle, presumably representing the Moon. When I relate this to my celestial observations it appears that the artist is representing a three-dimensional sky in two dimensions. The oars are on the SE point and Khepera on the NW point and the lady canopied by the serpent Mehen is at the SW point. The four identical men at the oar side represent the number four, with the dog (which is celestially real) making it five. “The Lady of the Boat” is suggestive of Isis with her two sons. But the fact that the beings are clothed implies they have undergone “transformations.” Below are two extracts which underline the religious sense of the ideas of Ancient Egyptians around their Ra boats: And the divine one [Ra] hides himself from his gods, and his seat in the Boat of Millions of Years was empty.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The righteous have the choice of two heavens in which to live, viz the Sekhet-Aaru of Osiris and the Boat of the Sun-god Ra…Those who chose the Boat of Ra sailed with him over the skies, they fed upon light, and were arrayed in light, and were finally absorbed into the light of the god himself.36

The funerary boat Another interesting ship/boat-canoe that is very different from the Ra boat, but is nonetheless a different representation of the same celestial images and ideas, is labeled “The Funerary Barge”.37 Budge informs us that the boat is crossing from east to west, which technically should be from SE to SW, to the west, or from SE/SW to north, to the west. There are several interesting aspects in the sketch that Budge presents. These include nine women (commonly interpreted as hired professional wailers) who dominate above the central “cabin”. Five are kneeling and four are standing. They are all clothed with just their breasts exposed, symbolising milk, i.e. “the white stuff”. There are nine oarsmen with naked torsos, one of which is depicted like the others but without a rowing paddle. At the end, with a prominent large steering oar that reaches non-functionally up to the women, the boat curls upwards into a flower shape with a prominent ribbon with three lines. This suggests the SE point where the flower may be a representation of Scorpio’s “tail”, and the three lines in the ribbon are suggestive of the three False Orion Belt stars. Also on this side are two males; one male with a naked torso is “working” the large steering oar while the other, fully clothed, stands in the background. Interestingly, despite the fact that he is in the background, he is larger than the foreground images; that is, he is drawn out of perspective. It thus appears as if these same individuals, with two large “boxes”, depicted as large beings, one fully clad and the other naked, are waving good-bye as they presumably enter the Duat in the western side of the sky. Buried boats There are many more such “sailing vessels” in literary texts, on walls, tombs and other objects, and it was thought that these, like many other ancient artworks and ideas, were just mythological conceptions, until two major archaeological discoveries actually uncovered real boats/ships which conformed in their structural appearance to these “mythological” depictions. However, instead of clarifying the mystery of these “sailing vessels”, many aspects of these boats, including where they were found, only deepened the mystery. I had heard of the large “sailing-vessel” which archaeologists unearthed from the Great Pyramid of Pharaoh Khufu at Giza, before I came to know about another 236

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ major find of boats buried in the Egyptian desert. However, I am going to start with the latter. I first read about a fleet of 5,000-year-old royal ships buried in the Abydos desert in the Fingerprints of the Gods. The information Hancock quoted about these highprowed ships came from The Guardian, 1991. This article notes several facts, in particular, that there were 12 large wooden boats and they were among the earliest boats found anywhere: The experts say the ships, discovered in September, were probably meant for burial so the souls of the pharaohs could be transported on them…The notion of their being moored was taken so seriously that an irregularly shaped small boulder was found placed near the ‘prow’ or ‘stern’ of several boat graves. These boulders could not have been there naturally or by accident; their placement seems deliberate, not random. We can think of them as ‘anchors’ intended to help ‘moor’ the boats. The boats were of wood and covered in Nile mud and then painted white.38

When I first read about these boats they had not yet been dated and there was still speculation about the pharaoh who was linked to them. In 2007, I decided to check the Internet to see whether any progress had been made regarding the dating of these vessels. I found additional information in a press release of the University of Pennsylvania Museum, about a Yale University expedition, which indicated that a team of archaeologists, working in the desert sands of Abydos, more than eight miles from the Nile River, were excavating a fleet of the oldest wooden boats, dating from 3000 BC. They had salvaged 14 large vessels estimated to be between 60 and 80 feet long. Dr O’Connor, one of the archaeologists working on the project, remarked that these boats had provided him with insight about Ancient Egyptian boats that existed earlier than the reign of Khufu, one of the greatest Fourth Dynasty pharaohs. They had also confirmed his speculations that these boat graves contained actual viable boats intended for a king’s use in the afterlife. And in meaning and function they were the direct ancestors of the famous boat recovered at Khufu’s Great Pyramid, predating it by as much as 300 years.39 As early as 1991 archaeologists realised boat graves existed, adjacent to the massive funerary enclosure for Pharaoh Khasekhemwy of the late Dynasty II (ca. 2675 BC). During the 2000 excavation a team of expert established that these boats were probably intended for the afterlife journey of a much earlier dynasty ruler: Aha, a First Dynasty I (ca. 2920-2770) ruler of Egypt, who had been trampled to death 237

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ by a rampaging hippopotamus while hunting. King Aha had been known as “The Fighter”. The following speculative burial rites, to account for the archaeological evidence, may have taken place: his burial procession was led by priests in flowing white gowns. The funeral retinue included the royal family, vizier, treasurer, administrators, trade and tax officers, and Aha’s successor, Djer.40 The procession stopped at a monumental wall. Inside the wall, the priest waded through clouds of incense towards a small chapel where they performed cryptic rites to seal Aha’s immortality. On the outside of this walled enclosure were six graves. In a final act of devotion, or coercion, six people were poisoned [or strangled as indicated by another expert later in the article] and buried along with wine, beer and food including loaves of bread41 to take into the afterlife. One was a child of just four or five, perhaps the king’s beloved son or daughter [most likely the eldest son/daughter, see above and Book 2], who was expensively furnished with ivory bracelets and tiny lapis beads…Besides his tomb more than 30 graves were laid out in three neat rows. As the ceremony climaxed, several lions were slain and placed in a separate burial pit. As Aha’s body was lowered into a bricklined burial chamber, a selected group of loyal courtiers and servants also took poison and joined their king in the next world.42

Egyptians believed that at his death the king, or pharaoh, joined the sun god Ra, sailing in his boat down the heavenly Nile. The most famous and elaborate of these boats – featuring carved prow and stern and a deck cabin – was found in a boat grave at the Great Pyramid of Giza, attributed to the Pharaoh Khufu (ca. 2500 BC).43 There is professional disagreement as to whether these boats were only symbolic or whether they were actually used. According to Dr O’Connor these boats were not just symbolic, they were usable, yet there was no evidence that any of these boats had actually been in water.44 Until these findings, archeologists had not been sure just how realistic these boats were, as the only evidence previously found of these boats was in the form of illustrations on pottery and tomb walls. “The rarity of the royal boat burials suggests that kings’ burials might have more often included boat models, magically empowered substitutes for the real thing.”45 Dr O’Connor also noted that in the tomb of Tutankhamun, who lived much later, 35 boat models were found. He also pointed out that boats of one sort or the other have a “much deeper history”. For example in Denmark, dugout boats from about 6000 BC have been uncovered. And thousands of years ago, perhaps as early as 50,000 years ago, the people who settled in Australia may have used rafts and reed vessels. Dr Freed of the Boston Museum commented that “virtually everything the Egyptians did on this scale was religious”.46 238

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ What is interesting is the number of sacrificial burials found linked to the Pharaoh Aha, the pharaoh associated with the boat burials at Abydos. The number of graves, the number of occupants, the positions they were in and the orientation of the grave and the boats should provide clues to the celestial worldview on which these traditions were based. It is also noted by the experts that this is further confirmation that the so-called humane Egyptians, in their earliest progress to “civilisation”, as with many other ancient peoples, were involved in human sacrifice. Again this makes sense in terms of the celestial images on which such traditions were based; the background to these sacrifices will be discussed in chapter 16 and Book 2. According to Dr. Laurel Bestock, a New York University archaeologist on the dig, many of the graves were not of insignificant servants but of extremely rich people whose names had been inscribed on some possessions. Dr O’Conner said that one of the two ritual enclosures that had been uncovered belonged to Aha, as his seal and name, written in the image of a falcon, a symbol of royalty, were found in the ruins. He was possibly the son of the famous king Narmer of Predynastic Egypt. Interestingly no evidence of human sacrifice had been found before Aha. The practice apparently ceased before the end of the First Dynasty even though the concept of the afterlife remained virtually unchanged. 47 John Galvin’s observations about human sacrifice, especially of the elite, raise an interesting question about the reasons for this grim ritual. In his comment you will also notice the absence of any mention of human sacrifice in European regions now consider part of the Western world, but we know that it occurred! All of the 1st-dynasty tombs, and most of the enclosures excavated so far, are accompanied by subsidiary graves – hundreds in some cases – containing the remains of elite officials and courtiers. By 1902 the Frenchman Émile Amélineau and his English rival Sir Flinders Petrie had excavated all the 1st-dynasty desert tombs. Yet each tomb had already been heavily looted and very few royal remains had been found. During the 1920s and ’30s, at excavations led by Sir Leonard Woolley at Ur in modern-day Iraq, hundreds of sacrificial graves were revealed dating to 2500 BC. They were also related to the burial of Mesopotamian kings and queens. Further evidence of sacrificial burials had also been found in Nubian, Mesoamerican, and several other ancient cultures.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Then in the 1980s German archaeologists uncovered the remains of at least seven young lions. In Egypt enthusiasm for the grim practice seems to have waned quickly. Aha’s subsidiary graves are the earliest to be found, and his successor, Djer, embraced the practice with fervour – more than 300 graves flanked his tomb, and another 267 surround his mortuary enclosure. But Qaa, the last ruler of the 1st dynasty, had fewer than 30 sacrificial graves besides his tomb, although his enclosure remains lost. And in the 2nd dynasty the practice simply stopped. However, the question of whether ancient Egyptians practised human sacrifice has intrigued archaeologists since the late 1800s. Egyptologists have long speculated that these graves might hold victims of sacrifice but also acknowledged that they could simply be graves reserved for the king’s staff, ready to use as each person died naturally.48

We now turn to the boat recovered from the southern base of the Great Pyramid at Giza. This was an exquisitely crafted cedarwood boat measuring approximately 150 feet. This boat was estimated as being 4,500 years old.49 Van Sertima claims that it is recorded that the black African Pharaoh Sneferu, at the close of the Third Dynasty, in one year made sixty boats.50 The number sixty is a persistent number, even in Mesopotamia (see Book 3). In discussing the Egyptian– Phoenician link, van Sertima states: “In fact we know about ancient ships from the huge ritual boats that were buried with some of the Pharaohs. The walls of tombs and temples abound with paintings of them, from sixty-oared predynastic boats found on inscriptions in the tomb of the Pharaoh Menes at Abydos to the fresco of a squadron of five ships belonging to the fleet of Queen Hatshepsut in the temple of Deir elBahri.”51 Other boat motifs There is also an interesting scene from a tomb at Bani Hasan (Twelfth Dynasty), which is supposed to represent an ordinary fishing trip by the “Nomarch52 Khnemuhetep”. A “giant” Khnemu-hetep with a typical false beard (see chapter 11) is holding a large fishing spear from which one white and one black fish dangle. He, however, dominates the small boat. In the distance a “sandal-bearer” holds a single oar in a rather non-functional, uninvolved manner. The top of the reeds are dominated by birds, nothing unusual, but there are also unusual fox/hyena-like creatures on the reeds. At the bottom of the boat are five fishes.53 Below the boat, in the water, from left to right, is a “Sethian” like animal, presumably 240

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ a hippopotamus, predominantly black, five non-identical fishes and then a white crocodile-like creature. The lower panel depicts three smaller boats with three black occupants, one of whom is struggling to get on board – this is supposedly a scene depicting “boatmen playing games and amusing themselves”.54 Another interesting boat scene is found in the Mastaba tombs of Ti at Sakkara, Old Kingdom, depicting males in a central canoe-boat made of “reeds” (Fifth Dynasty, ca. 2380 B.C).55 The rear end of this canoe overlaps with a small part of another canoe-boat. In the background stands a tall man with one of his arms crossed in a characteristic Angelman pose (see chapter 11). And standing in front of this man is one of four, naked boy-men with a long paddle reaching down to one of the five hippopotamuses below the boat in the water. Three of the boy-men have ropes reaching down to other hippopotamuses; two of the four have spears ready to spear the hippopotamuses. Two of the ropes end in rings; one ring is caught in the mouth of a hippopotamus biting a large crocodile whose tail reaches out of the water and up to the end of the boat. Another hippopotamus is sitting with a large ring in its mouth; this ring is tied to a rope with three more ropes and is being pulled by the last boyman (see chapter 16). The legend notes that both the crocodile and the hippopotamus signified evil elements to the ancient Egyptians. In the case of the crocodile, I think its vilification may have been relatively recent in the context in which these ideas first emerged. I have purposely described four depictions of Ancient Egyptian boat motifs: the Ra boat, the funerary boat and two artworks. On the surface the four motifs appear to be completely unrelated, yet they are a play on the same celestial images and other ideas which will become clearer as we proceed. The hyena, because of its spotted skin, may be an alternative representation of the Leopard Skin. And from these pictures we also have a sense of where other celestial images were located in terms of the Egyptians’ cosmology. In this regard I am especially referring to the “reed-marshes” (water plants)56, the dog, the rings and the hippopotamus. The Vikings and funerary boats/ships of the ancient Scandinavian countries You might think that this unusual tradition of boat burying was restricted to the “crazy” Ancient Egyptians, but this is not the case. We find this strange culture among the Vikings, on a land mass and at a time widely separated from the Ancient Egyptians. Furthermore, the boat/ship burial practices of the ancient Scandinavian countries also had connections with “weird” religious ideas and practices. In fact myths about boats, ships or other seafaring vessels are prominent in societies throughout the world. Archaeological evidence of actual and symbolic burials of Viking “sea-faring-vessels” 241

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ and the setting alight of people within these vessels has been found belonging to the late Bronze and early Iron Ages. “The dead were now thought of as having to make a voyage, or at least as having need of a boat.”57 Oseberg, Gokstad and Lindholm all boast spectacular boat/ship burial sites.58 In Lindholm, there are several boat burial sites marked by stones. In one of the pictures shown of such a boat burial, the stones are arranged in an interesting circle or boat shape with a tall head-stone and a prominent heel-stone, reminding one of the Stonehenge. The Oseberg ship was moored to a big stone. The big ships, like the small ones, and like the graves marked out in boat-shapes by means of stones, were above all symbolical. They enabled the dead man’s spirit, not his physical frame, which all experience showed must moulder wherever it was laid, to transfer to the world of the dead, and inasmuch as the ship was a fertility symbol, be reborn there. The evidence is nowhere clearer than in the cremation graves at Lindholm Hǿje near the eastern exit of the Limfjord in northern Jutland.”59

According to Jones, the manner in which the boats were laid out and the ideas associated with such boat burials were remarkably similar to the Ancient Egyptian boat burial traditions and their associated ideas such as stones found with the boats and the association with the afterlife and human sacrifice. It is interesting that Jones makes the statement that the ship was connected to a “fertility symbol; that is, to be reborn” as if it were common knowledge and makes complete sense. Why this connection between fertility/sex and rebirth? These boat burial practices often went hand in hand with fertility rites: If the deceased is a poor man they make a little boat, which they lay him in and burn. If he is rich, they collect his goods and divided them in three parts, one for his family, another to pay for his clothing, and a third for making nabīd,60 which they drink until the day when his female slave [or sacrificial bride] will kill herself, [or be killed by an old woman (the hag), called the Angel of Death] and be burned with her master.61

During all this celebration and excessive drinking and before the killing the “friends of the dead man had sexual intercourse with the sacrificial bride or slave girl.”62 This practice is actually sacred whoreship in a different disguise, and no different from the traditions of a harem where the king has several wives. In Book 2, I discuss these and other sexual traditions. 242

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ Similar boat burial practices are found in other places. For example, in Sumeria, Ur, one of the royal tombs (ca. 2000 BC) contained a model of a 60 cm beaten-silver canoe-like boat with three strange protrusions, together with an interesting oval golden bowl with handles.63 Perhaps to convey the message that the boat is a bowl? A memorable feature of a typical Viking boat/ship is the prominent prow of a dragonlike creature. This dragon-like prow reminds me of the more ostentatious prows of the Chinese dragon boats. A splendid illustration of a similar Chinese boat is portrayed in the Golden Bough displaying its four primary colours: a green “mane” with a touch of white, a golden body, a red tongue and “beard”, two yellow, redspotted horns, and white teeth.64 A typical representative of the Viking ship/boat is depicted on the front cover of The Vikings, and the design is based on the image taken from the “Pendant from Birka”.65 It is in a rather complex, typical and beautiful Viking style with many interesting, flowing inter-linking images. The outer image is that of a large dragon biting its own tail, displaying six teeth, three upper and three lower. Along the body of the dragon various scenes are portrayed. The most interesting of these scenes, moving clockwise, are as follows. First, the emergence of a man from a fish, which reminds one of Vishnu emerging or being reincarnated from a fish.66 We know that the Sumerian god Ea/Enki was also commonly depicted as a man in fish-wear. These ideas should also be seen in the same context of the fish themes in the Bible, which are constantly associated with Jesus; and also with Jonah and the large fish. For example, the following story in Luke 11:29 about Jesus notes: “And when the people were gathered together, he began: “This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall be no sign given, but the sign of Jonah the prophet.” The biblical writers wanted to convey that the Jesus fish stories are a different disguise of the “Jonah swallowed by a fish” story, and as I have attempted to illustrate these are based on very ancient ideas. This is followed by a batman-bird-fish-like being, followed by a scene of four identical swordsmen; one is shown with his head cut off, thus there are really only three. This is followed by a singled eyed “hawk-man” holding a large bird with its beak above the head of the man. This may be to convey the idea that the hand “is” the bird – perhaps the Phoenix and Wing/Arm celestial image; the living falconry tradition among the Arabs is a continuation of this idea. The bird, almost bigger than the man, is held in such a way that it covers the length of the man’s arm while its head hovers over the head of the man. 243

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ This scene is followed by another scene of a man whose left leg is being bitten by a feline creature. The penultimate scene is that of a triumphal bird with a large sword in front of its breast. Four snakes surround the blade of the sword. The last scene comprises a head with one eye closed and one eye open flowing back into the mouth of the dragon. In the centre of the circle formed by the dragon biting its tail is a three-spoked “dragon wheel” and underneath it are Viking runes, followed by a typical large Viking boat carrying seven swordsmen and once again the prominent single oar. Below the boat, in the water, is a slain man, holding up two arms, each with four fingers. A large sword has pierced the middle of his body. This man, with a sword through his middle, recalls the bird with a sword through the front of its breast. Such similarities suggest that they are the same idea; that is, the Phoenix with the Penis/ Sword/Knife through its middle. Two fishes and an octopus with six tentacles are also shown. I have gone into some detail regarding this Viking artwork because you will notice congruence in these artistic images with several aspects discussed thus far. Boats/ships in Greek mythology Greek mythology is littered with “sailing vessel” stories, but the one that captures the imagination is that of Jason and the 50 Argonauts and their voyage to retrieve the “Golden Fleeces”.67 There is an interesting picture showing two high-prowed, canoe-shaped boats of the Minoan Fleet (ca. 1500 BC), one on top of the other. The legend notes: “After the first Minoan civilization was destroyed, a new Minoan race began, said to be the children of the Argonauts and the women of Lemnos.”68 Once again, as with the rock-paintings and other boats discussed, a prominent oar is depicted. And as in the other coloured pictures described, red is the prominent colour. The images are still fresh in my mind of “thousands upon thousands” of Agamemnon’s ships on the blue ocean, anchored to attack Troy – a scene from the Epic film Troy, starring Brad Pitt as Achilles, based on the Homeric classic The Iliad.69 Boats/ships in Celtic mythology In Celtic mythology we have The Voyage of Bran which predates Christianity in Ireland and seems to have been the basis for the story of the Christian St. Brendan. There are two interesting artworks depicting St. Brendan. One is a picture from the Sailing with St. Brendan the Navigator Manuscript (ca. 1200 AD). 244

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ A large green fish is depicted with three unusual items on its back, the first being a pot on the fire aerated by a white young man kneeling on the head of the fish. The other two are similar air-blowing holes emitting fire, each in three divisions. On top of the fish is a large yellow, plank boat with a prominent “dragon-like” high prow, once again with a single prominent oar. The occupants of this vessel are five, two dressed in red and three in green. Three ghoulish beings are holding the robes of a prominent green sail. The background of this picture is brownish red in colour. The other artwork is a 15th century woodcut, depicting a boat with five occupants, a prominent oar and a mermaid with a three pronged crown; in the distance is a floating box.70 A small “gold/bronze (?)” model ship dating to 100 BC from Broighter, Derry, believed to be a votive offering to the mythological Mananna Mac Lir, King of the Sea, was recovered from the sea. This king “used mist to shroud his land and gave the Tuatha the gift of invisibility and sanctuary in the underground.”71 Boats/ships in Germanic and Norse mythology In Germanic and Norse mythology we have Thor’s Fishing myth, a story that was known at least 400 years before it was retold in the poem “Hymiskvitha” in the Edda (ca. 1100 AD). I have extracted a few lines from this myth since it has a number of aspects, highlighted in bold, that relate to my celestial observations. Thor leaves Midgrad in the disguise of a young man. When he reaches the abode of the giant Hymir, he spends the night there and the next morning accompanies the reluctant giant on a fishing trip. When he is told to find his own bait, he pulls off the head of one of Hymir’s bulls. Thor rows out further than the giant wants, then fastens the head of the ox to a sturdy fishing line, and the Midgard serpent bites at once. Thor pulls on the line with such might that his feet break through the planks of the boat and, standing on the bottom of the sea, he drags the monster up to the boat. The sight of the serpent fills the giant with terror; Thor tries to strike the serpent with his hammer weapon, Hymir cuts the fishing line and the monster sinks back into the sea. Thor throws his hammer after it, and, as the Edda says, “some people say that the hammer cut off its head at water level. I believe that the truth is that the Midgard serpent is still alive and out there in the seas which surround the world.” “I warn of his tree, while seeming slight, harmfully hurled…will slay Odin’s son.”72

There is even a picture depicting this amazing fishing trip. The occupants of the boat are prominently in red. In this case the tongue of the Midgard serpent replaces the prominent oar seen in the other boat images. The legend to this boat picture 245

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ reads as follows: “The serpent is usually shown circling Midgard, its tail in its mouth [the snake of the Viking is also biting its own tail]. On the day of reckoning, the serpent will emerge from the water for one final battle with Thor. The god will manage to kill the terrifying creature but its poison is too great: Thor will also die.” There can be two interpretations of this myth. Either Thor is the Horus Child and he meets himself as the giant Hymir (as Angelman), or he is the modern Orion Man which is strangely linked to the Horus Child. This aspect will have to wait for Book 3. The monster may be the serpent (see chapter 15) or the Milky Way culminating in a serpent’s head. I am biased towards the serpent being the phoenix-serpent, since the Edda mentions Thor and the tree almost simultaneously with the snake. The serpent and the tree are one, and the NW Bull’s Head and the Wild Bull’s Head(see chapter 15) are the heads of Hymir’s bulls. You might justifiably react by exclaiming that in the Northern Hemisphere they would not have seen the Southern Hemisphere stars and constellations. This is also an issue which puzzles me, not only with this example but with several others. This is an issue which I will attempt to address in Book 3. Boats/ships in Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia Canoes are important symbols within the myths of the island of Oceania, signifying movement and survival. On many of the islands throughout Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia, ancient canoes have been found besides rock paintings, and represented the travel and migration of ancestors.73

Some exquisitely crafted canoes are found among the Maori. An example is the prominent carved prow of a canoe with human legs and feet, and a prominent humanlike head with a large tongue sticking out (see chapter 5). This tongue seems to be in the same position as the prominent single oar found in the other seafaring vessels described above. This is supposed to be a Rangi and Papa carving of a war canoe’s prow. Ideas of light and knowledge and of the god of wind and storm are associated with this carving.74 Another ritual war canoe is supposed to have been used by both gods and demi-gods. These boats were more than just artistic works; they were also linked to religion. “The spirits of the ancestors were consulted before the building and carving began.”75 Other interchangeable representations for the “sailing vessel” conception I have discussed ideas, representations, actual objects and traditions around things which we can discern as meeting the criteria or shape of sailing vessels, but I also mentioned, in the introduction to this chapter, several other ideas and things which would not conventionally be considered as sailing vessels. We have seen a Maori 246

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ canoe with human legs and feet, and a prominent human-like head with a large tongue sticking out. Although the shape conforms to that of a sailing vessel, the other features do not. It is these unconventional “sailing vessel” examples that I want to focus on. It is my contention that because of the forms of the celestial images constituting the “sailing vessels” and associated celestial images and ideas several other interchangeable representations for the “seafaring vessels” were also used. Prominent among these were the: kettle/lamp, huge spoon, bathing tab, bucket/basket, dish, the Persian shoe, water-jug/jar and several others mentioned in the introduction. A kettle/helmet as a “sailing vessel” conception Van Sertima shows a boat on the head of a Semitic figure from a stele in Campeche and notes that these strange cultural items were studied closely by Constance Irwin, who observed that “the blacks wore dome-shaped covers on their heads, which looked like ‘football helmets’ or ‘unturned kettles’.” The large Caucasoid figure (nicknamed Uncle Sam) wore “turned-up shoes”. These “turned-up shoes” led Irwin to suspect some link between the Olmecs and the Phoenicians. To investigate this link further she turned to an Assyrian source which described Phoenician ambassadors and servants coming to pay tribute to the Assyrian court (ca. 849 BC). The source describes the headgear of the servants as “kettles on their heads like caps”.76 Remember the Egyptian sandal-bearer and the kettle? Is there a link between these Olmec and Phoenician kettle representations and this Egyptian artwork, and what is the meaning of the kettle? According to van Sertima, these “kettle caps” are a type of battle helmet that was worn by the Nubians and the Egyptians during the contact period. “This may be demonstrated by a relief, from the Temple of Ramses III at Medinet Habu, Thebes, where a naval battle is in progress between the Egyptians (who wear these helmets with earflaps), while the enemy wear crested (the Philistine soldiers) and horned helmets (the Sherden soldiers).”77 This led to various interpretations by Irwin, which van Sertima challenges. There is a suggestion that this kettle representation is linked to naval battles hence these is a link between such items and “sailing vessels”. And it is also worth noting that an item that has the shape of a boat, the turned-up shoes normally associated with the Persians, is also somehow linked to these kettles and thus presumably to “sailing vessels”. When we turn to another source we notice that this ancient kettle conception does not conform to our modern idea of a kettle; it is a rather bizarre object pointing to the ancients’ cosmology. In a Japanese myth which is also graphically illustrated, 247

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ one individual in the distance is dancing wildly, the dance of Bes, moving on a halfsuspended “carpet” (suggesting the Magic Rectangle). Next to the carpet, on the ground, is an empty pot, while in the foreground is a raccoon-kettle with a spotted skin (suggesting the Leopard Skin) laughing at a frightened Japanese man wearing a prominent belt. The next scene shows the raccoon-kettle holding an umbrella (another symbol for the celestial flower) while walking a tight-rope, and a Japanese man underneath the tight-rope holding a Chinese fan. These two characters are on a stage in front of an audience who are visibly amused. The legend notes that these scenes are about: “The accomplished lucky tea kettle. An abbot brought a tea kettle. When water was boiled this kettle turned into a raccoon, and ran about the room [scene one]. The savvy abbot decided to take it around the country side as a performing show [scene two]”.78 A ladle as a “sailing vessel” conception An artwork depicting the Maori myth related to the Sky father and the Earth mother shows a large wooden spoon with an overt sex scene on the handle (remember the fertility rites of the Vikings associated with ships/boats). The myth describes that in their tight, loving embrace they kept the light away from their children. Yearning for a break from the darkness, the children separated the couple and brought light into the world.79 We notice that a ladle is associated with ideas that we would not associate with such an object, and in another source there is a suggestion that ladles are associated with water and a boat. De Santillana and von Dechend, in an interesting analysis of the Kalevala stories, note: Setšlš reports a version where the child is sitting in the midst of the fire, holding the (golden) hook in his/her hand. While stirring the fire he/she tells Utamo’s servant that he is going to avenge the death of his father. Kullervo is thrown into the sea. After three days they find him sitting in a golden boat, with a golden oar, or, according to another version, he is sitting in the sea, on the back of a wave, measuring the waters. Which perchance might fill two ladles, Or if more exactly measured, Partly was a third filled also.80

There are two points worth commenting on. Firstly, the “golden hook” is a different representation of the stars forming the Sword/Knife/Penis. Secondly, I suspect that the two ladles in this context refer to the Crux-Hadar-Rigel Kent as one ladle and the False Cross with some other stars as the other. 248

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ A wooden tub as a “sailing vessel” conception A tub does have the shape of a boat/ship and it is not difficult to see it as a symbolic representation of a “sailing vessel” only with the water inside. In this context, I want to turn to a weird tub story and its graphical representation. Arthur Ransome (1914-1967) travelled to Russia to report on the Russian Revolution of 1917, and while there he compiled a collection of 21 Old Russian fairy tales. Some of these tales involved a shape-changing witch with the gift of prophecy. In Russia she was called Baba Yaga (baba meaning “old woman” and yaga “hag”). Interestingly “baba”, in some cultures, is the word for baby and in others it refers to father. The same witch was called Jezda in Poland, and Jazi Baba in the Czech Republic. A painting by Dimitrii Mitrokhin (1883-1973) depicts Baba Yaga as a one-eyed old hag with a yellow veil on her head. She is wearing a white blouse with a blood red over-dress and an orange skirt. She has a single prominent skeleton leg (see chapter 12) in a pinkish slipper. In her male arms, in the left hand (from the viewer’s perspective) she is holding a huge club, and in the right hand she is holding a broom on which she is “flying” (typical of the witch on a broomstick so prominent in myths and folktales) while sitting in a large wooden tub. The broom appears to take the place of the oar that features prominently in the other boat scenes. The large wooden tub appears to be the “boat”. Underneath the broom is a large dog (see Book 2 about the volvines) and up on a hill is a large thatched wooden cottage standing on two chicken legs (symbolic of the fowl-CHICK), each with three toes.81 The following additional information is revealed about Baba Yaga and the aspects highlighted in bold refer to celestial imagery discussed in this book: Baba Yaga’s house is one of the most evocative creations in the tales that involve her. It sits upon four chicken’s legs [the picture depicts two] – one in each corner – which allows it to turn and move about. Baba Yaga herself is often depicted inside a spinning wheel (originally spinning thread from the innards of the dead).82 Some legends say that her teeth, nose, and breast are made of iron and that her hair is a knot of writhing snakes. Baba Yaga also has the gift of prophecy and can impart great wisdom. Those who wish to benefit from these gifts must undertake an arduous journey to Baba Yaga’s house, which is in the most remote and inaccessible part of the forest. They must then survive Baba Yaga’s demanding tasks and tests. The fence surrounding her house is made of the bones of those who failed to ask the right questions83 or to satisfy her ruthless test of motives. Each picket is adorned with a skull [remember the skulls of the Hindu goddess Kali; and the “hill of skulls”, Golgotha, on which Jesus was crucified].

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Despite many academic analyses, Baba Yaga continues to be an enigma. As one commentator has said, “Baba Yaga hails from a place where fear and wisdom meet, she straddles the gap between life and death and holds the secrets of both.”…In the Christian era some myths that recorded Baba Yaga’s unpleasant habits were altered to make them less gruesome. Some later legends even confused her with Mary, Mother of Jesus – very strange to anyone who knows the original tales [Not strange at all when you understand the celestial archetype imagery that inspired both the Mary and Baba Yaga stories].”84

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The crescent moon symbolic of a “sailing vessel” In closing I want to speculate that at times the crescent moon was a simplified representation of this celestial boat image that probably eventually became our letter “U”, or maybe even “V” (although V may also be symbolic of the V-shaped horns, see chapters 15 and 16). Finally, I have always been fascinated with the roofs of Chinese houses and it is my opinion that these are also based on the celestial boat images with the additional possible symbolism that the “boats” are above, meaning above in the sky. My celestial observations There were not many changes in the night sky after the Phoenix, the celestial tree, and the other less spectacular celestial images. My attention was focused on getting more detailed information on the stars composing Angelman (see chapter 11). But, on May 29 or 30, 2006, at 8.30 pm, I went outside and the first thing that I noticed was that the star scattering looked different. At more or less the SW point was a giant “standing” dog-headed human with something that resembled a chain around its neck. And moving along from this image the stars seem to concentrate from the SW to the SE to the NE direction. As explained, from late February onwards until now, the star concentration was along the SE to SW to the W. Looking along the SW-SE-easterly to NE, I immediately discerned huge images which looked like multiple “ships/boats” stretching along the direction just mentioned. The gigantic flowing streams of the “white stuff” created the illusionary celestial magic of magnificence and the splendour of multiple ships drifting along the heavens. I stood zombified watching these celestial vessels. And as with the Phoenix and the Celestial Tree, time and space disappeared for what seemed an eternity. Inwardly, I knew I was watching the “celestial ships journeying through time” – “the Barque of millions of years”. When I finally came to my senses I began sketching what I had observed. Once again my childish prattle can never do justice to these images, or to the awe-filled feelings I experienced at the time. 250

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ Out of the “magical” world into reality: data from the initial observation, together with later observations from July 10, 2006 at 6:06 pm, July 15, 2006 at 6:21 pm and July 16, at 7:18 pm, have been used to describe these celestial vessels. However, although “illusionary” images of multiple ships/boats were seen, more analytical, closer observations revealed two or three interlinked vessels. The smaller uppermost one was “connected”, at certain points, to the longest lower vessel. The longest, shallowest vessel appeared to stretch from the SW to SE to easterly, curving almost to the northerly point. But when one looked at the smaller vessel, in relation to the SE, to the easterly part of the longer vessels, you had the impression of a third middle vessel. The more expressive of the two/three vessels was the smallest. It simultaneously formed the “central” part of the longest vessel. The sketch (see figure 9.1) is an attempt to show these vessels in relation to the cardinal directions in the sky. This sketch represents these “vessels” when the larger vessel seem to be “moving” – swirling more towards the north to NW (July 15-16, 2006) and appearing to be separating from the smaller vessel(s). The longest vessel’s NE-N end was marked by a bright yellowish star, which I suspect to be Capella. Starting from the SE to the SW, the stars and constellations were more recognisable, since in reality, these were stars and constellations which formed the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son image slanting from the lower SE towards the SW. At the “head” of these celestial vessels, towards the SW point, the ships/boats appeared to join, to form the impressive, gigantic image of a dog-like creature which I attempted to draw (see my sketch in figure 9.2). An alternative image of these celestial vessels viewed from the SE to SW was a giant teapot-saucer with the milk, foaming like steam, emerging from the teapot. Alternatively the smaller one looked like a giant ladle (the sword-handle) and the small and middle-sized ones together looked like a classical, Persian up-turnedshoe-like lamp that resembled the Arabian lamps I have seen, not only in children’s story books, but also in Walt Disney’s animated film of Aladdin. In conclusion, what I have attempted to demonstrate with all these various examples is, firstly, that the idea of “sailing vessels” is found in various ancient societies around the world, and was first depicted in rock and cave art, from whence it gradually assumed various traditions and complexities. Secondly, the way these “vessels” are represented and their associated ideas and traditions point to the fact that they were inspired by the ancients’ cosmology. Thirdly, I have tried to demonstrate that there are several unconventional representations of the “sailing vessel” conception in the ancient world. Finally, 251

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ I revealed the celestial images which served as archetypes for all these ideas, representations and traditions of the “sailing vessel” conception of the ancients.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. The Holy Qur,’an, Yusuf Ali translation, in Sura 55:24, 1475, page 9. 2. Zuurveld is literally “sour field” and may have been named thus to convey the idea of green (symbolic of Canopus) – green things are sour. Alternatively, it could be Vuurveld, i.e., “fire field”, wrongly translated as Zuurveld. 3. The idea of travelling in a basket should be seen in the same context as baby Moses travelling down the river Nile in a basket. 4. Nama is cognate with the Hebrew word Na’amah (see later), meaning beautiful. 5. Monica Wilson and Leonard Thompson, eds., A History of Southern Africa to 1870 (South Africa: David Phillip Publishers Ltd., 1985), 41-62. 6. Graham Hancock, Supernatural – Meeting with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind (London: Century Publishers, 2005), 117. 7. Guanab: the nab ending may have become nabi, meaning prophet, see Book 2. 8. Goab seems to be related to the Ancient Egyptian god Gab and may have given rise to the word Goat. 9. “Rain was something holy”. This idea still persists in contemporary African beliefs. In the Limpopo Province there is even a Rain Queen, who is believed to be responsible for rain-making. It is perhaps this idea which may have evolved into the ideas of holy rivers/seas, and the Christians’ baptism with holy water, which is the holy ‘river’ idea in a different disguise – that is why John baptised people in the River Jordan. 10. Wilson and Thompson, eds., A History of Southern Africa to 1870, 41-62. 11. The word Mineh is perhaps related to Manah. 12. David M. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation (London: Arrow Books Limited, 1990), 2, 6. 13. Ibid., 268-270. 14. Ibid., 9.

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9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ 15. Hancock, Supernatural. See examples on pages 90, 114-118, 125 and 180. 16. Ibid., 85. 17. Ibid., 111-113. 18. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996), 188. 19. Ibid., 142. 20. John Manley, The Atlas of the Past Worlds (United Kingdom: Cassell Publishers Ltd., 1993), 24. 21. Rohl, Legend, 29. 22. Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill – An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and Its Transmission Through Myth (Boston: David R. Godine Publisher Inc., 1977), picture between pages 300 and 301. 23. Rohl, Legend, 237-247. 24. Ibid., 245. 25. Ibid., 239-243. 26. Ibid., 240. 27. Utnapishtim is probably composed from UT/R-NABI-SHI-TUM). 28. The first part of the name Ziusudra appears to be the root for Zeus, a prominent Greek god. 29. Rohl, Legend, 240. 30. Ibid., 239. 31. Ashurbanipal may be the root for Nepal (in India) and Naples (in Italy). 32. Rohl, Legend, 243. 33. Graham Hancock, Fingerprints of the Gods – A Quest for the Beginning and the End (United Kingdom: Mandarin Paperbacks, 1996), 465. 34. Ernest A. Wallis Budge, The Dwellers on the Nile: The Life, History, Religion and Literature of the Ancient Egyptian (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1977), 100101, 207.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 35. Ibid. 36. Ibid., 207, 280. 37. Ibid., 134. 38. Hancock, Fingerprints of the Gods, 431-432. 39. www.geocities.com/TimesSquare, and www.abc.se. 40. Djer – it is presumably a switch to jr in Djr that gave rise to rj, namely raj, a common title for ruler/king in India. Djser/Djoser, the builder of the red pyramid, may be the root for the name Joseph. 41. “buried along with wine and food”, which included bread, may be the origin of the wine and bread associated with the dead in the Christian ritual of the Eucharist, the Last Supper – said to be symbolic of the blood and body of Christ. 42. John Galvin, Abydos – Life and Death at the Dawn of Egyptian Civilization (www.nationalgeogrpahic.com). 43. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Egypt – The Land of the Pharaohs (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 60-66. 44. John Noble Wilford, Early Pharaohs’ Ghostly Fleet (The New York Times, October, 2000) (www.library.cornell.edu) 45. Ibid. 46. Ibid. 47. With Escorts to the Afterlife, Pharaohs proved their Power, www.nefertari.be. 48. Galvin. Abydos (www.nationalgeogrpahic.com). 49. Brown, Lost Civilization: Egypt, 60-65. 50. Ivan van Sertima, They came before Columbus – The African Presence in Ancient America (United States of America: Random House, 1976), 58. 51. Ibid., 60. 52. It seems that Nomarch was derived from M/Nin + arch/ark and eventually became the title Monarch. 53. Remember the five loaves of bread and two fishes when Jesus was feeding the multitudes (Mark 6:30-43) which later became seven loaves with some small fishes (Mark 8:6-7)? Is there a link between the five fishes and those in the Bible? I suggest that these biblical ideas are a transformation of these Ancient Egyptian symbols. 254

9 : Ra’s ship of millions of years __________________________________________________________________ 54. Budge, The Dwellers on the Nile, 137. 55. Manfred Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson Ltd., 1980), 63. 56. These “reed-marshes” in various forms are once again symbolic of the celestial water. The depiction of humans with reed-skirts, or the living traditions of girls in reed-skirts, for example the annual festival of the maiden reed dance in front of the Swazi king and the Zulu king, are a continuation of this idea of the reed-mashes and simply convey the idea that these girls “come” from the “celestial waters”. An alternative symbolism to the reed-marshes is the holy lotus, another water-plant, from which Buddha was born. 57. Gwyn Jones, The Vikings (New York: Oxford University Press, 1968). Oseberg and Gokstad are in Norway and Lindholm in Denmark. These are all places that were inhabited by the Vikings and where Viking ship burials have been found. 58. Bahn, The Story of Archaeology, 132. 59. Jones, The Vikings, 314. 60. Nabīd, an intoxicating drink, perhaps beer; this might be another candidate for the Arabic word nabi, see Book 2. In the Egyptian boat burial wine and beer was found with people buried with or near these boats. Here we see that alcohol also played a part. 61. Jones, The Vikings, 409-414. A sacrificial bride, p.305. 62. Ibid., 305. Further details of this gruesome Viking tradition are found on page 413. 63. Manley, The Atlas of the Past Worlds, 29. 64. James George Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 36. 65.  “Pendant from Birka” from Sweden (ninth century, Statens Historiska Museet, Stockholm/Werner Forman Archive). 66. Kathleen. E. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends (Great Britain: Brockhampton Press, 2004), 61. 67. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, eds., Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 136-148. 68. Ibid., 209. 69. Homer, The Iliad (United States: Wordsworth Classics, 1995). 70. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 230.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 71. Ibid., 231. Mananna is presumably a composite derived from Min + Inanna. And MacLir may have become Mac and Lear in Shakespeare’s stories. 72. Ibid., 246-247. Odin is probably derived from O (circle) and Dan/Din/Don/Dun. 73. Ibid., 381. 74. Ibid., 405. 75. Ibid., 415. 76. Van Sertima, They came before Columbus, 149-151, Plate 14 77. Ibid., 153. 78. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 366. 79. Ibid., 377. 80. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 28. 81. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 259. 82. “Spinning thread from the innards of the dead” – innards are presumably “intestines”. In chapter 16 I discuss some interesting ideas around the celestial “intestine” conception. For now it suffices to note that “intestines” is yet another alias for the Leopard Skin. 83. “Those who failed to ask the right questions” – this same idea is also present in the Holy Grail Romances – Parzival and the King fisherman (chapter 16). 84. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 259.

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Chapter 10

THE VENUS LADY AND THE KISS Archeologists throughout Europe have unearthed statuettes of clay, stone or ivory,

dating from ca. 25,000, and have labelled them “Venus figurines”. The typical small, portable objects depict voluptuous females; however, similar objects have been found representing men, children and even animals. Their distribution throughout the continent is unique among the Ice Age art forms, and may be an indication of a large population movement at the beginning of the final major cold period of the Ice Age.1 Some examples of these unique artworks, of yet unknown meaning, concentrating on the Venus Lady, will now be explored and the celestial archetypes for these discussed.

The Venus Lady In History of the World there is a picture of a good colour limestone example of such figurines, labelled “Venus of Willendorf”. Even though these figurines depict females of a variety of ages and physical characteristics, they nonetheless share several common features. They have grossly accentuated sexual characteristics: huge Pamela Anderson breasts; the plump, swinging, tummy-bum anatomy of the infamous Saartjie Baartman; and exposed genitalia, while their arms and faces pale into insignificance as if the artists did not regard these as being important.2 In the Venus of Willendorf, for example, the face is completely covered by what appears to be a woollen hat. In comparison, the figurine found at the Kostenki, along the Don River in Russia, has her face covered by a mammoth’s shoulder-blade, while her eyes, nose and mouth are not distinctive, despite a larger head than other Venus figurines. The arms are also tiny with the emphasis around the large tummy and huge, closely set thighs, presumably to create a “single leg”. But what is quite noticeable in this Kostenki figurine is the absence of breasts. Apart from the Venus figurines there is also an interesting plaque of a female form with large swinging buttocks, with a fish-like creature enclosed in her body. This is one of 400 engraved plaques dating back 12,600 years which were excavated at Gönnersdorf in Germany. The head of this fish-like creature also seems to double as a breast with a nipple, while the section from the “neck” upward is again deemed insignificant.3 It is my contention that the Venus Lady artwork is based on much older art forms in Africa. 257

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The big-bummed “Bushman” woman The San are an ancient people whose presence in southern Africa stretches back into a remote past that cannot be determined with any degree of certainty. Yet various experts have identified tell-tale traces of these peoples’ ancient past everywhere in southern Africa. These range from skeletal remains, the food they ate, their hunting tools and most significantly their rock and cave art. This entrancing art, particularly the tall humanoid forms, immediately captured my interest when I first saw pictures of it. And, as with other rock and cave art found in several places in the world, experts are divided not only on what is being represented, but also on what influenced such cultural expressions.4 Yet unlike the cave art in Europe, which was created using dateable charcoal emulsions, the San art is not directly dateable because of its mineral pigment composition.5 However, indirect evidence suggests that the oldest San art, at ApolloII Cave in Namibia, is around 27,000 years old, with more prolific works resurfacing around 10,000 years after approximately 17,000 years of “absence”.6 Although no expert that I am aware of has made any connection between San art and the Venus figurines, I am nevertheless certain that there is indeed, not only a connection between the two, but also a connection with all ancient rock and cave art found throughout the world, because they are derived and based on celestial images similar to the ones I am discussing in this book. Identicality as opposed to similarity There are, however, many reasons why such connections cannot be made. Hancock discusses some possible reasons for this in his book Supernatural, under an appropriately headed chapter – “The Shabby Academy”. In my opinion one of the principle reasons is that experts are looking for “identically” in such artworks as opposed to “similarity” in form and in other aspects such as the colours used. Identicality is the expectation that two things must show a high (statistically significant) degree of sameness. While this is good in a scientific context, such an expectation of modern scholars of ancient art is unreasonable, because it seems to rely on the assumption that our ancient ancestors knew about our future intention to analyse these artworks in a scientific manner. Knowing this, they would have rendered all the art in the same manner. But from our own experiences we know that no two persons would render any object, in art, identically. Similarity refers to art that is representative. Here the artist is trying to reproduce an “object” that is as near to the original “object” in appearance as possible. It also refers to artworks that are interpretative works, for example, some of the artworks are composites, capturing in one image all the metamorphoses that such an image 258

10 : The venus lady and the kiss __________________________________________________________________ has gone through, for example, the fowl-CHICK could be a chicken with a ram/ goat head and a lion’s mane. And in some instances, instead of representing an actual celestial image, these artworks are drawn to convey a particular message. For example, one way to convey the idea of the revolution of celestial images at the ES point would be to draw a figure with a wheel or a spiral shell, or to depict something standing on its feet, then lying on its side and finally standing on its head. Yet, some composites may have nothing to do with the transformational form of a particular image. From my own observations I can suggest two other composite creations which the ancients used in their art. The first was to capture, in a single image, different parts of different celestial images which are completely “unrelated” but which are nonetheless seen to have something in common; for example, to depict the “relationship” between the “two spinning poles” (NW and SE) one might render the Jade Emperor (SE) with the “falling Bull’s Head” (NW) or a female goddess at SE giving birth to a Bull’s Head. The “falling Bull’s Head” or Bull’s Head is actually the Sheep/Goat/Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head previously discussed. Secondly, they could also have created positional composites, for example, the “Bull’s Hind Leg” celestial position on the SE line is more or less where the Scorpion and the Jade Emperor later come into being. Therefore, to show that all these images are related in terms of sharing the same position, they could create an image which is composed of parts of these various images. All these artistic representational forms were later expressed in words. The individual names for each image were linked in various combinations to show various associations and ideas that the ancients wanted to convey about the “behaviour” of such images. Various stories were created to express such linked ideas. These are the complexities which we see in various ancient artworks and stories. And all these different types of representations became the basis for their various dramas and other cultural expressions. One way of determining whether there is any correspondence between celestial images and rock and cave art and artworks on temples and tombs is to determine their orientation relative to the night-sky celestial images. Now that I have identified specific celestial images and their relative orientation it would be interesting to conduct such investigations, since the findings would be another way of disproving or proving certain aspects of my underlying working hypothesis, namely, that these celestial images are the basis of all cultural expressions including religion.

259

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Comparison of the San Venus Lady with the European Venus Lady and their relation to celestial images “Venus Lady-like” images are also present in San art, although not seen as such by the experts because of supremacy ideological bias. When one compares a picture of San rock from the Cedarberg, South Africa with the European Venus figurines we see that the Cedarberg image has the same accentuated bum.7 Emphasis is also placed on the swinging nature of the buttocks, the definitively large swinging breasts, tiny arms and a neck-like protrusion suggestive of a head, thus once again making the head insignificant. The possibility is that some of these Venus-like artworks are composites of the different images discussed. Perhaps the insignificant face conveys various ideas of the “hidden” nature of the Jade Emperor. This hidden nature may be the ancients’ way of conveying the idea that the Jade Emperor, alias Batman, is “male-female” and that the female is hidden; or that the Jade Emperor finally loses his/her head; or that certain celestial images on which these Venus-like figures are based become “hidden”, that is, cannot be observed when some stars which form these images are below the observation horizon. The Kostenki artwork confirms the suggestion that these Venus-like figurines are based on and derived from the Jade Emperor, alias Batman. Firstly, the female figurine in this artwork is specifically associated with a fish-like creature, and in terms of my observations such an association points to the SE line where the celestial fish and the Jade Emperor are found. Secondly, it is also significant that this figurine was covered with a mammoth’s shoulder blade. The shoulder blade has two possible significances: firstly, its white colour is an emphasis on the “white stuff”, and secondly, it may have been used to indicate where the celestial archetype of the Venus figurine is found. The mammoth’s shoulder blade could be representing the “Bull’s Hind Leg” on the ES line, or could be another representation of the “oar”, but this time representing the “fantail” of the Screeching Swallow/Falcon. There are further suggestions that these Venus Lady figurines are somehow associated with celestial bodies since a Venus, at Laussel France (ca. 22,000 BC) depicts a voluptuous, naked “female holding in her right hand, the symbol of a crescent [moon]. Although some suggest that she is merely holding a bison’s horn, the symbolism of a celestial connection (here the Moon) is inescapable, no matter what material the crescent was made of.”8 This crescent moon may symbolise four possible celestial images:

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10 : The venus lady and the kiss __________________________________________________________________ (1) the celestial Bull’s “horns” of the bovine images discussed in chapter 16; (2) celestial sailing vessels as discussed; (3) the crescent moon; and lastly (4) the celestial “pincers”, namely the Crux, see chapter 11. Several researchers, such as Johannes Maringer in The Gods of Prehistoric Man, believe that “it appears highly probable that the female figurines were idols of a ‘great mother’ cult, practised by non-nomadic Upper Stone Age mammoth hunters”.9 Others, like Marlin Stone in When God Was a Woman, considered the “dawn of a Stone Age Garden of Eden” and linked this worship of a Mother Goddess to the later goddesses of the Sumerian pantheon. One of the goddesses is the cow-headed Ninharsag/Ninmah (see chapter 14); with regard to this goddess Sitchin notes: “One of the nicknames of Ninmah10, who had assisted Enki in the creation of Man, was Mammi; there is no doubt that it was the origin of the word for ‘mother’ in almost all the languages.” Mammi may actually be a composite word created from the “moo”, the sound of a cow and “me”, the sound of a sheep. This Venus at Laussel, France, is an interesting Venus since the ancient artist represented this female as if to suggest that she is actually composed of different individual parts. Her face is proportionally insignificant with her thick “hair” flowing to one side. Her right arm is so depicted that the hand is the crescent moon and the arm in a crude s-shape flows into a breast. When one looks at this entire moon-armbreast structure, it seems as if it is supposed to represent a fish-like creature. And this “fish” feature links this figure with the Venus found at Gönnersdorf, discussed above. The left leg of the Luassel Venus, flowing up to her left side, seems to be in the form of a one-legged being clutching her breast. This might be some early form of what ended up as the Isis and the Horus Child, which Christian art eventually turned into the famous Mary and baby Jesus pose. The accentuated buttocks and breasts may be Batman’s “wings”, first shown as buttocks to indicate that these “wings” are low on the ES line, “swinging” upwards to become “breasts”. Alternatively, such representations could be of the Humpty Dumpy Angelman (see chapter 12) with the “breasts” being a much earlier representation of the “wings”! But also remember these images are also part of the celestial sailing vessels (chapter 9) and perhaps this connection is why, even in contemporary times, we speak of a ship or boat as female. We have seen repeated reference to this “white stuff” in various preceding chapters. I have suggested this fascination with white has got to do with the Milky Way and the Megalithic Clouds. The breasts, because of milk, are symbolic of the “white stuff” and share this feature with a cow’s udders, hence the accentuated breasts in the Venus Lady may have been to capture these ideas – big breasts to provide the 261

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ celestial “milk”. As we proceed you will see how a fascination with this “whiteness” was translated into many intriguing ideas. The large tummy and buttocks carried two symbolisms: firstly, they were symbolic of sex/fertility and secondly, they represented the rear-end of an elephant/mammoth since the Batman / Jade Emperor / Eldest Son “upon” the Phoenix (as a female) gives “birth” to the Horus Child who becomes Elephant Man alias Angelman (see chapter 11). Just to show how these very ancient representations and ideas of accentuated breasts, tummy and buttocks as symbols of sex/fertility and birth were transformed, and even survived into modern traditions, which we might not at first associate with the original ancient ideas, I present the following examples. A baked clay mother goddess figurine, a “common feature” of the Neolithic cultures of the Near East, from Çatal Hüyük, depicts an enormous obese woman sitting between the armrests of a chair made of feline creatures.11 The woman is completely naked, with large hanging breasts, huge tummy, and “iron” straps over each large, round shoulder and an “iron” ring on her head. Once again, the face, while being proportionate to the woman’s body size, displays insignificant facial features (eyes, nose and mouth) and between her reddish thighs is some “object”. The legend notes that “this represents a naked woman giving birth while seated on a chair supported by two lions.” In chapter 6, I discussed the lion image, which will be continued in chapter 16. The lion chair suggests that this artwork is related to the Venus figurines, and the “object” between her thighs, which is said to be “birth”, may be the “birth” of the celestial “Chosen Son”: the Horus Child. Another example is the “domestic bliss scenes” of Akhenaten and his daughter.12 The first scene depicts Akhenaten kissing his “son”, while Nefertiti (Akhenaten’s wife) is kissing her “daughter”. In several ways Akhenaten is depicted rather strangely; the area around his hips downwards is strangely large and rounded, almost female-like in appearance.13 The artistic focus then shifts to the breast area, with arms crossed and folded (suggestive of Bes’s X) in a manner to deliberately expose a left “breast”. The head is once again rigid, strange and elongated disproportionately in comparison with the broad breast and hips. This rather strange depiction of a pharaoh and of the so-called domestic bliss scenes represented a break with Egyptian artistic traditions. These unusual features of Akhenaten have attracted the attention of Maurice Cotterell. He argues that these abnormalities of Akhenaten and his children were real and as a result of some catastrophe caused by a change in sunspot activity.14 Apart from this representation of Akhenaten, and those that I discussed in chapter 5 regarding the 262

10 : The venus lady and the kiss __________________________________________________________________ “kiss”, there are several other aspects which, when considered collectively, suggest that Akhenaten is represented in a similar form as the Venus figurines where the artist probably wanted to display the dualistic (male-female) nature of the celestial images that formed the basis for Akhenaten and his family. Akhenaten may even have been a third gender, see Book 2. In a few artworks interesting aspects are depicted which suggest Akhenaten and his family as celestial images. A limestone block carving shows three children; one child is being kissed by Akhenaten, the other two children are with Nefertiti. There are two things about these children that are strange; firstly they look unreal, like limp, rubbery, lifeless, miniature zombie-like replicas of fully grown adults. Secondly, the smallest of the three children is hanging on the left shoulder of Nefertiti in a rather strange unsupported manner.15 A bust of the beautiful Nefertiti shows a face where the sculptor has deliberately omitted the left eye. I discuss the one-eye conception in chapter 12. A torso statue of Nefertiti in dark red sandstone is depicted; this red, as we have seen and will see, is persistent in ancient traditions.16 The name of Nefertiti translates as the “Beautiful One has Come”, an idea best suited for the Phoenix. The features of the Venus lady have survived into contemporary times, taking on different cultural expressions that on the surface appear to have nothing to do with such figurines. I have already mentioned the fat, laughing Buddha figurines; they are no different from the “nappy”-wearing, ritual Japanese sumo wrestlers. In both these cases the tummy is accentuated – they are “pregnant” men. Several modern cultures have preserved the “insignificant face” and accentuated tummy-bum features of the Venus Lady. The use of clothing to depict the Venus Lady features In Christianity, women were required to cover their heads only when attending church and when getting married, whereas in Islam it is still strictly required that women always cover their heads, even though the Koran does not prescribe this tradition. Thus the head “disappears”. In some Muslim countries, such as Arabia, women are required to cover their entire face with only their eyes showing. This ties in with traditional Indian women wearing 263

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ saris or dresses which spread widely so as to cover their legs. It is clear that as this traditional dress gives the same visual effect of rendering the head area insignificant while “stretching” the rest of the body, albeit in a covered form. The use of the drum to depict the Venus Lady features In my opinion the “swing wing” aspect of this celestial image found further representation in culture as humans with drums, where the drum is “part” of the human body, thus creating a similar visual effect as a large “torso-bum”. I have seen several depictions of this in African and Inuit art. In the modern art piece “The Singing Tadpole”, or “The Pig in the Pond”, five male figures are depicted in very expressive dancing postures, holding musical instruments. This painting, according to the legend, is said to be “evoking incantantional witchcraft and showing shamans”.17 One of the swatting males has a drum between his legs; the drum covers his tummy and private parts. In a sacred drawing on a Torne-Lapp drum of the Finno-Ugric people, several strange black figures are depicted with “bulging swingness” around their shoulders and hips while once again the arms and legs are insignificant. The Finno-Ugric people, particularly the Lapps, were renowned for shamanism and magic. The sacred drum was a powerful part of the shaman’s equipment.18 As we know, several ancient societies considered the drum as sacred, as do some contemporary ones. The reason for this, apart from the visual “fatness” appearance that a drum gives when dangling around the lower torso, is that it was used to convey the conception of celestial movement, which induced human movement and which eventually developed into dance. In other words the original dance displayed movements, features and transformational aspects of various celestial images. As a side-note, “drunkenness” was also used to express “movement” so as to convey the idea of the “abnormal” movement of the celestial images at a particular time. For example, the drunkenness of Lot (Genesis 19:30), which quite tellingly led to intercourse with his firstborn daughter, is just such a play on the movement and the associations of certain images; but there should also be no doubt that such ideas eventually ended up as cultural practices – where fathers slept with their firstborn daughters. In Book 3, I discuss how the wine/beer-making process is related to a certain celestial region and in that context you will understand how ideas such as “drunkenness” and wine could also be associated with celestial ideas. Cloaked Passionate Kissing Lady In chapter 5, I discussed the “kiss” – also associated with the Jade Emperor celestial 264

10 : The venus lady and the kiss __________________________________________________________________ image – and identified the stars involved. In chapter 8, I discussed the sky conditions on April 25, 2006, which permitted me to see only certain stars from 11 pm onwards. This was the date and time when I not only saw a number of images discussed in chapter 8, but was also captured by an interesting image of a “fierce love scene” nested in the corner where the ES and SW lines joined. When viewed differently, for example on July 10, 2006 at 6:06 pm, the image looked like someone in a cloak with head stretched upwards kissing another being above it. I called this the “Cloaked Passionate Kissing Lady”. We do know that kissing is repeatedly referred to in the Bible and other non-canonical books: Jesus kissed Mary on her lips, Judas betrayed Jesus with a death kiss and the Zohar is full of rabbis kissing.19 In the tale of the Frog Prince, the true nature of the Prince is only revealed when the young girl kisses the frog. We also have an idea about a so-called “dead kiss”, which makes perfect sense in the context of the Jade Emperor who loses his head and the “kiss”. To summarise From all that has been described regarding the Jade Emperor and the celestial images observed below it, especially when interpreted in the context of the Venus figurines and other conceptions, you can see there is a very potent mixture of nakedness (originally symbolic of birth); breasts (symbolic of white stuff); music and alcohol (symbolic of movement); kissing; and the celestial tree. It does not take much imagination to realise what transpired next. These erotic cosmological imageries and ideas gave rise to actual ritual orgies practised by “pagans” and “heathens”. It was this that was later “refined” as religious sex in temples and is now solemnised as one of the holy sacraments – marriage, with wine and dancing being part of the celebrations! However, since the Jade Emperor’s “penis” “penetrates” the “Chosen Son” below him, this may have added to all the other ingredients just mentioned, but it would not have taken long to associate such images with the older man having sex with the young boy – sodomy, which is found in Greek ideas. Indeed this is the charge apparently brought against Socrates, one of the mysterious great Greek philosophers. In Book 2, I will also discuss how these same images gave rise to ideas of dual sexuality (male-female) which degenerated into diabolic sexual practices. Also, since this celestial imagery was associated with magic, for reasons already alluded to, it is not difficult to see how ideas of sexual magic arose. I will discuss all these issues later, and also why other rituals, like circumcision and birth taboos, arose from this same imagery. 265

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ As we well know, sex, alcohol, dance and music, as in ancient times, are still deeply embedded in the human psyche and this might even explain why many humans are obsessed with pornography and sex. Unfortunately this was not what the original ideas were intended to convey when first recorded by our ancient ancestors. All subsequent practices, rituals, etc., are a perversion of the original, ancient cosmological conceptions.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996), 64. 2. Geoffrey Parker, ed., The Times Illustrated History of the World (London: Times Books, 1995), 26. 3. Ibid., 57. 4. Graham Hancock, Supernatural – Meeting with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind (London: Century Publishers, 2005), 85-86. 5. Ibid., 85. 6. Ibid., 86. 7. Ibid., pictures on pages 115 and 186 and plate 14. 8. Zecharia Sitchin, Divine Encounters – A Guide to Visions, Angels, and Other Emissaries (New York: Avon Books, 1995), 35-38 and Figure. 11. 9. Ibid., 38. 10. Ninmah may have ended up as Na’amah, see previous chapter and Book 2. 11. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology, 69. 12. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Egypt – The Land of the Pharaohs (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 91. 13. Maurice Cotterell, The Tutankhamun Prophecies – the Sacred Secret of the Mayans, Egyptians and Freemasons (United Kingdom: Headline Book Publishing, 1999), 91, 201 and plate 17. 14. Ibid. 266

10 : The venus lady and the kiss __________________________________________________________________ 15. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Egypt, 92. 16. Regine Schulz and Matthias Seidal, eds., Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs (Germany: Könemann, 2004), 203. Nefertiti in Berlin, SMPK, Ägyptisches Museum, 21300. 17. James George Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 114. Painting by Thessalonius Loyola, 1986. 18. Ibid., 22. 19. Daniel C. Matt, The Zohar – Pritzker edition, vol. I and II (California: Stanford University Press, 2004).

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Chapter11

ANGELMAN What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visitest him? Thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour

The Bible. Psalm 8 : 4-5

A complex image which has the physical outline of a standing-sitting, human being formed at the SW point: this image I called Angelman – a being perfect in human outline but beset with deformities – the lowely man who is exalted to the most high. Angelman is a transformed, “grown-up” form of the Horus Child as he moved from the the ES point to the SW point. With time a slender looking Angelman grows fatter and fatter until he “bursts”. In this chapter I look at his “body parts” first focusing on his false beard and its various aliases and his head/headdresses. In chapter 12 I focus on his deformities: one-eye, one-arm and one-leg features and his “fatness”. In chapter 13 I discuss his Dark Twin Volvine-Horse. In some ancient ideas Angelman was linked not only to the Horus Child but also to the Orion-Man. In other words the Orion-Man is seen to “rebirth” as the Horus Child, who in turn grows up to become Angelman, who returns from “heaven” to “earth” as the strongman – Orion-Man. Description of Angelman Angelman is a complex and intriguing celestial image which I am certain fired intense interest among the ancients. My first encounter with this “being” was on May 8, 2006 at 4 am, while looking from indoors along the SW line. This angel-like image was suspended in the air at the SW point. It reminded me of the floating man in a painting by Miguel Gonzales, the “Creation Painting”.1 This painting illustrates a floating man dressed in a flowing, silky, crimson-yellowish robe that flutes out around the lower part of the legs. The fluted ends brought to mind the oversized gown worn by the Mickey Mouse character of Walt Disney in the Sorceror’s Apprentice. When I first saw this image three things immediately caught my attention. The first was the False Orion Belt stars forming part of the head/hat. The second was his one-eyed “face” flowing into what looked like an elephant “trunk” or alternatively a very long strangely upward curving beard. This “beard” reminded me of the beards of the Chinese “Kung Masters”.2 And, yet, this “beard”, especially 268

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ the manner in which it curled at the ends, was also uncannily similar to the striking, unique false beards worn by the Egyptian pharaohs and for this reason I called Angelman’s beard the False Beard. And finally I was struck by the fluted, yet single leg of this image. Although this image was not as spectacular as the Phoenix, the two Horuses or the Celestial Boat/Ships of Eternity, it became my central focus and for several reasons one of the most recorded images in my note book. Firstly, this image occupied a position where a number of other interesting images had been observed, including the fabulous Phoenix. Thus I was keen to see what other changes would occur at this position. Secondly, this image persisted far longer than the other images; and thirdly, as I became more and more familiar with the image, I could see the connection between it and a number of characters in history, myth and religion. I soon realised that certain aspects of this image could be related to various religious insignia, artworks, dress and even to many symbolic ideas and cultural practices of ancient peoples throughout the world, some of which persist to this day. Figure 11.1 is my attempt at drawing Angelman. The star map (figure 5.1) taken from Star Maps for Southern Sky has been inverted,3 (as figure 11.2) and the stars marked with numbers to provide a sense of the stars which make up Angelman and his Little Dog (the Lupus Constellation). You will notice most of the stars and the constellations previously described for some of the other images at the SE to SW line are once again involved. Prominent among these are the three False Orion Belt stars from Scorpio, forming the head/hat area while the rest of the Scorpio stars form the right “wing” (with regard to the viewer). The single eye is the star marked T3, while the long curved false beard are stars T3, SW1 to SW2. At the bottom lefthand side Rigel Kent-Hadar-Crux formed the prominent “single” leg. When I first observed Angelman on May 8, 2006 at 4 am, it seemed as if he was wearing a triangular-shaped hat formed by the stars marked from T4, T5, T6 and T7, a hat which also seems to give the visual appearance of a skull cap worn by Muslims and Jews. However, on May 25, 2006 at 5 am, with a sliver of the moon due east, I noticed that Angelman was leaning with his head westwards as opposed to vertically.This is when I first saw that the same head/hat area extended to form a typical question-mark (?) or a shape like a fish-hook (stars T7 to T11). And as I studied this image while writing this chapter, I also saw that this top profile gave the outline of an octopus-like creature. On the night of May 28-29, 2006, while observing a time sequence transformation of 269

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ the Jade Emperor, I also recorded that around 2 am, the head of Angelman became visible, but a full profile of this image emerged at the SW point at about 4 am. Then on May 31, 2006 I noticed that the hat had in fact become taller and more irregular as more stars began to become noticeable in this region. Subsequently, Angelman appeared earlier and earlier; for example, on June 8, 2006, I recorded him at 1:15 am, on June 4, at 11 pm and on October 12, 2006 at 8:24 pm. I recorded the head/hat region more closely on June 30, 2006 (the time was not recorded), October 12, 2006 at 8:24 pm and October 14, 2006 at 9:50 pm. The head/ hat looked like some creature that I could not reconcile with pictures or any real animals familiar to me. But, on the latter two dates, when Angelman slanted more westerly, the head/hat, although highly speculative, looked like a strange sword-fishlike creature. Then on June 4, 2006 at 3:30 am, the lower end, or fluted end, also appeared to resemble a rather strange small chair with a short back-rest, while Angelman appeared to be “sitting” rather awkwardly so that you could interpret him as a standing-sitting being. On the June 8, 2006 at 1:15 am, the fluted-end, on the left (with regard to viewer), looked more prominently like a single “leg”, yet it also looked like a small upside-down spear. This prominent leg was formed by Rigel Kent-Hadar and the “foot” (spear-head) by the Crux Constellation. This was also when I noticed that one of the stars in the Crux Constellation was far dimmer than the other three stars. And that by 3 am this dim star had disappeared, so that when you looked at Rigel Kent-Hadar and the Crux, the image uncannily resembled the bottom part of the was, the sceptre4 of Ancient Egypt. On July 3, 2006, at 1:45 am I noticed that on the righthand side (with regard to the viewer), opposite the left “leg”, there was an image like a sitting, howling dog (stars N3, N4, N7, H1 H5, H7, H8 and H11) with the two stars marked H11 suggestive of a “chain” around the dog’s neck. This dog uncannily resembled the howling dog on old His Master’s Voice record labels. This dog I called Angelman’s Little Dog (see Book 2). These same Little Dog stars constituted what also looked like a strange chair on which Angelman was sitting. On July 4, 2006 at 9:35 pm, in the transformation into the Angelman, I also noticed that a strange creature was formed whose facial parts resembled the creature shown in Legend.5 This picture, a copy of a wall relief from the temple of Ninurta at Nimrud (ancient Kalhu, biblical Calah), shows the weathergod carrying lightning bolts, pursuing a “dragon”. According to Rohl this creature has some relation with the cherub that was placed at the eastern gate of Eden. On July 25, 2006 at 8:45 pm, I recorded the head of another creature, which I termed 270

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ the “Wild Bull of Heaven”, who interestingly has several aliases (see chapter 14). It preceded the formation of Angelman. I had first noticed this image two weeks earlier. At the beginning of August, Scorpio stopped rising on the SE line but became more prominent on the SW line. The Jade Emperor was also still visible, and Canopus and Sirius had returned to their original positions along the SE line. The Angelman became progressively larger and fatter, “from having consumed all the animals and other humans,” but he was not as well defined as when I first saw him. He was but an outline, with mostly the hat/head and torso regions visible. The left side of the leg region had almost gone by the August 31, 2006. This image persisted throughout the whole of September and October until November when, “accompanied” by other interesting images, it underwent various transformations. All of these transformations and differenet parts of Angelman will be discussed below under various sub-headings, while his Little Dog will be discussed with other celestial volvines in Book 2. Angelman and his False Beard It is my opinion that Angelman’s False Beard found different expressions in various societies, either as a beard or, alternatively, as various objects which resemble the False Beard in design. I will discuss different examples, randomly chosen and presented in no specific order, of this False Beard in various ancient societies to show the persistency of this idea in its various mutated forms. Some context is provided for most of the examples so that the reader can identify other celestial aspects discussed in this book. It is the context which lends support to the contention that such “beards” were inspired by celestial imagery. False Beard representations in Ancient Egypt I have seen a number of artworks of male Pharaohs with this prominent, unique, funny, sometimes straight and sometimes false beard. A good example of the hockeystick-like false beard is that of Tutankhamun.6 While this false beard is associated with male pharaohs, there is one female pharaoh who is also depicted with such a beard; Hatshepsut (1479 BCE), a female who became the “king”. “She had herself depicted as a man, garbed and bearded like a king, and dubbed His Majesty. Since kings were regarded as demigods, Hatshepsut enhanced her status by attributing her birth to a union between her mother and the deity, Amen, and had her lineage inscribed upon a wall of her funerary temple at Deir el Bahri.”7 There are a number of interesting facts related to Hatshepsut; one of these is the 271

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ significant numbers in her life: “A child of Thutmose I, Hatshepsut was about 30 years old in 1479 BCE when her husband Thutmose II, died. The spirited mother of two daughters became regent for her 12-year-old stepson Thutmose III.”8 This false beard appears to be very old since a relief of Geb one of the Ancient Egyptian gods that dates to ca. 2670 BCE, has a “natural” false beard that is presumably a forerunner of the refined and more elaborate later ones.9 As a side note, it is not inconceivable that, by switching the letter b for d, Geb was changed to Ged/God. There is a reason for suggesting such a switch, see later. This name, Geb/d should also be seen in names such as Gobi, Gel and Gid as in Gideon, that is, Gid-E-ON, and as DOG when written in reverse. Since these false breads were worn by gods and pharaohs their significance was symbolic of “divinity”, in the case of the pharaohs of “divine” instituted rulership. As in the case of the Fowl-CHICK hieroglyphic sign, I was amused yet puzzled by these false beards, thinking: “How on earth did the Egyptians come up with this idea and what was the meaning of it?” Little did I realise that one day I would see the celestial archetype form that inspired the Egyptian false beard tradition, nor did I realise that this False Beard was a persistent representation in various cultures, often explicitly shown to resemble it, and in other cases more subtly implied, having “mutated” into many varied “unrecognisable” representations. False Beard representations in the Americas Here follow a few randomly selected examples of the “false beard” representation in the Americas:  A design on a vase from Chamá depicts six humans and a lion-human (see chapter 16), the so called Red Gods of the Mexicans. According to Churchward, these individuals are performing a ceremony similar to a particular secret Freemasonry ceremony.10 One of the characters, adorned in a leopard skin (see chapters 5 and 6), has an interesting, prominently curved beard. Another has a rope around his neck and a gently curled, three whisker-like beard. The man in the the leopard skin is related to a strange short man opposite and behind the lion-man, because the short man’s hair is tied with a spotted band (presumably symbolic of the Leopard Skin image). The shortness, the spotted band and his position in relation to the lion-man collectively suggest that this short man is the Mexicans’equivalent of Bes.

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11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________  Quetzalcoatl, a favourite Aztec god, is said to have had a prominent beard. This fact is used to argue that Quetzalcoatl was a European, a claim that is refuted by van Sertima, who nevertheless interprets features in Mesoamerican art as being influenced by black African ancestors. With regard to a number of bas-relief figures on large stones, excavated from Monte Alban, van Sertima notes: “Over 140 of these figures, most of them ‘Negroid’ types and Negroid-Mongoloid mixtures, seem to be ‘swimming or dancing in a viscous fluid’. Some of them are old, bearded men. They all have closed eyes, open mouths and are completely nude.”11 Unfortunately, these artworks, like others, have nothing to do with race, but are reflective of ancient cosmological imagery.  Another interesting example is an Olmec sculpture of a man with a goatee (False Beard) and a moustache.12 The Omecs were forerunners of the Mayan, Toltecs and Aztecs, credited with the founding of the Mesoamerican civilization (ca. 800-400 BCE). There are several other interesting artworks from Mexico which depict several humans with this characteristic “false beard”.13 False Beard representations in the British Islands Merlin,14 the old man sage and magician of Arthurian mythology, is depicted in a painting by Eleanor F. Brickdale (1872-1945) with Vivien, who is dressed in a long, flowing dress, prominently green with a bit of white. The green plants at their feet further emphasise green. Merlin’s flowing white beard is gently held by Vivien so as to form a curling beard. This “false beard”, his association with a cunning maiden, and the myths around Merlin, especially his portrayal as a fatherless boy persecuted by a cruel king, together suggest Merlin’s cosmic identity. We first hear of Merlin when King Vortigern sought a fatherless boy to sacrifice at the base of his fort.15 The idea of the “sacrifice of a fatherless boy”, that is, an alternative take on “the widower’s son”, eventually led to the actual sacrifice of boys to “consecrate” buildings. Some rural black Africans in Limpopo still fear this practice, since there is a belief that links the success of a business to the killing of a child whose head is buried under the foundation of a new business building. The celestial nature of this “fatherless boy” is clear from the ideas highlighted in bold: Merlin was such a boy [that is, a fatherless son] – some tales say he was born of an incubus16 – but he revealed that the structure wouldn’t stand because a red and white dragon, symbolic of the Welsh and Saxons, fought beneath it. He further prophesied that the red Welsh dragon would win. When King Vortigern 273

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ asked his name, he responded that he was Merlin ‘Ambrosius’17 – Immortal. Like shamans the world over, Merlin sometimes wore a feathered cape and antlered headdress…He was ‘taken out of himself’ when he prophesied, and like a spirit, knew the history of people long past and could foretell the future. From his birth to his magical sleep, he fulfilled the shamanic role of bridging the human and divine realms.18

False Beard representations elsewhere in Africa I have chosen the Klala Illunga as an example of an African, non-Egyptian “false beard” conception since this story also has the idea of a “fatherless boy”, although differently expressed. The Luba people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo tell the story of Klala Illunga and the Rainbow. The Luba people considered kingship, like many other ancient people, as having divine origin, first founded by Klala Illunga: [He] was born in the court of the rainbow King, Nkongolo [Merlin’s first appearance is with King Vortigern]. His mother was Nkongolo’s sister, and Nkongolo raised Kalala Illunga as his own child, after sending the father away. Kala Illunga became a good runner and dancer, and was so popular that Nkongolo became jealous, and planned to kill him. Kalala Illunga heard about this, and escaped the kingdom by crossing the Lualaba River. He found his real father, who gave him an army to destroy Nkongolo. Nkongolo’s spirit is the serpent [see chapter 13], which is often intertwined with the rainbow.19

“Sending the father away” is a different take of the “fatherless boy” conception, which has many disguises. For example, at times this “fatherless son” was raised by his uncle or an aunt, or a king, or his stepfather or stepmother, who either treated the boy well or maltreated him. Alternatively, the same boy is called the “widower’s son”, a slave, an orphan, or had a miraculous birth as in the case of Jesus or Krishna. In the European occult traditions, Jesus himself is considered a “widower’s son”. But, according to the gospels, Jesus did not have a father, he was miraculously conceived – a virgin birth. The virgin birth was a new take on the idea of the widower’s son. Sometimes the same idea became associated with a daughter maltreated by either a stepmother or a wicked aunt. In another example, Moses’ father doesn’t feature in his life; he was raised by the Pharaoh! Although the Klala Illunga story is said to be a myth, there is nevertheless a wood carving depicting Kalala Illunga as an old man with prominent hands and large feet. In his right hand he is holding a staff and in his left hand a gently curved horn. On his head he has an elaborate headdress with two side “curls” or “horns”; one 274

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ of his eyes appears to be closed, and the other open. On his chin is artificial hair ending with a small plait, also gently curved. The legend to this carving provides further interesting information: “Nkongolo, the Rainbow King, invited his nephew, Kalala, to perform a dance over the pit full of upright spears. Kalala avoided being impaled by uncovering the pit with his own spear.”20 The ideas in bold are alternative takes on similar ideas expressed with regard to the cruelly treated Amleth and Kai Khusrau. Such ideas play around with the “spear” and “bow-arrows” celestial conceptions: “The boy [Kai Khusrau, the boy of great beauty whose father died before he was born] grows up among the shepherds; he becomes a great hunter with a crude bow and arrows that he makes for himself…like Hamlet whittling his stakes.”21 Another example is the Yoruba from Ife in Nigeria, who also have a divine kingship. In the British Museum there is an interesting fourteenth to fifteenth century artwork of the head of a Yoruba King.22 It has a striated-face with holes around the beard area, presumably where an artificial beard was inserted, which has either been lost or deliberately removed. False Beard representations in the Greco-Roman cultures There follow two examples from the Greco-Roman world involving the god-hero Achilles, and Bellerophon and his winged horse, “mythological” characters that you will meet in other celestial contexts:  On an ancient Greek oil flask (fifth century BCE) depicting “the dispute over the arms of Achilles”, three of the male figures have prominent curled beards.23  A relief shows a naked Bellerophon, with a short curved beard, riding on Pegasus.24 False Beard representations in the Middle East and Asian cultures Qadesh A funerary stella from Thebes (ca. 1250 BCE) depicts the Syrian goddess Qadesh standing on a large lion while holding or offering a three stem lotus to the ithyphallic god Min, and two long-stem papyrus to the serious, curved-bearded Syrian god of war and thunder, Reshef.25 Figurines from the temple at Tell Asmar While I have not seen ancient Mesopotamian depictions of their divine beings with 275

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ any false curved beards as obvious as those of the Ancient Egyptians, elaborately plaited beards are, nevertheless, frequently worn by their deities and rulers.26 At the temple at Tell Asmar in the Ancient city of Eshnunna, in Mesopotamia, several small figurines (third century BCE) were discovered with their arms crossed over their chests – a pose seen on several ancient Egyptian artworks and on mummies. This pose is suggestive of the X of Bes. The two taller figures, believed to depict gods, have elaborate beards, and noticeably one of the “gods” has one eye “missing”. The legend notes: “The two taller figures may be deities – represented symbolically by their stature, the size of their eyes, and emblems inscribed at the base of the statues.”27 Also of interest is that one of the sitting beings, wearing a fish-scale skirt, has one stumped arm. This could either have been deliberate, since in Egypt – the World of the Pharaohs there are several “individuals” whose statues appear to have been deliberately designed with only one arm.28 Alternatively, one arm could have been ritually broken when the statues were buried. A seal from the Agadean Period A Mesopotamian seal from the Agadean Period specifically depicts a god with an elaborately curved false beard. On this seal, the long bearded sun-god, Shamash, with a prominent thing between his legs, is standing on one leg. With the other he is kicking another naked god with the lower half of a stag. Shamash is also grabbing this god by his long, up-curved beard while holding a “knife” to his beard or throat. From the legend we read: “[The seal] shows the sun-god Shamash slitting the throat of another god. We cannot be certain which myth is involved here but it may be part of the Atrahasis Epic in which a deity is slain in order to provide the life-blood for the creation of humankind.”29 The Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN) culture Jericho, in the Jordan Valley, is well known to those familiar with the Bible as the place where the sound of Joshua’s trumpet brought down the walls of the city. It is one of the oldest settlements of the Natufian culture, dated between 10500-8500 BCE, at the end of Ice Age. During the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN) period (85007300 BCE), burial sites were beneath the floors of houses. “The skeletons often lacked skulls, which had been separated before burial and used as the base for a death-mask of clay or plaster modeled over bone, often inset with cowrie shells for eyes, and, in at least one case, decorated with a painted moustache.”30 On one of the examples found of such a plastered skull the chin area is damaged and it is possible that a false beard, which would not have survived the long burial period, had been inserted – pure speculation at this stage. 276

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ False Beard representations in China While the Chinese are not naturally hairy people, in their spaghetti karate / Kung-fu movies and artworks, the old masters or sages are depicted with long beards. The Spirit Warrior at Beijing, which I have already described, also has a prominent lower goatee beard, presumably representative of the False Beard. The Han Emperor Wu-ti, whose title means “the martial emperor”, is depicted with a prominent beard that is not curved, while two of his assistants have goatees.31 The Yung-lo (eternal joy) emperor (1360-1424) is shown in a prominent yellow robe. He is adorned with a prominent goatee with two side curls. Prior transitional forms of the False Beard and its subsequent variations The false beards of the pharaohs might not have originally started as such. Two archeological finds of much older artworks suggest that these artworks depict precursor images of the artificial beards. The first is a proto-historical figure of Lord Tera.32 Coincidentally, Tera is also the name of father of Abraham. Darkwah argues that Tera is originally an Akan word tena meaning stay, as tena afim (stay in home).33 But Tera also has links with Mesopotamia through the the name Anu – Tera Neter of the Negro Anu.34 This Anu or An is a frequent title either on its own or incorporated into other composite names of ancient Mesopotamia. Anu was one of the early superior gods and may even have changed to On or vice versa with the Babylonians.35 It is also possible that A-Nu was derived from Ur-Nu, meaning land crocodile.36 This is quite a strong possibility (see chapter 16), since the crocodile was a much more ancient celestial image before it was predominantly interpreted as a Crouching Lion or Rat (chapter 16). Lord Tera, like Bes, is depicted as an ithyphallic Lord with a staff in his left hand; he has one eye and a strangely elongated chin (the chin being the false beard!). There are some “hieroglyphic”-like signs on the artwork – a square where two sides of one corner are joined by a line followed by three prominent vertical lines next to it.37 This seems to be a precursor of the strange Ancient Egyptian throne. Interestingly, the prominence of the chin of Lord Tera Neter finds resemblance in the prominent sharp chins of the megalithic sculptures of Easter Island, “Island of the Sorcerers”, “known to the inhabitants since ancient times as Te-Pito-O-Te-Henua, ‘The Navel of the World’, and as Mata-Ki-Te-Rani, ‘Eyes looking at Heaven’.”38 It is precisely this “sharp-chinned” feature which is stressed in a white male idol from the Naqada I Period, the first half of the fourth millennium BCE.39 It has a long pointed beard that is not curved, and while it is difficult to see clearly in the picture of 277

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ this artwork, it seems as if it has one “open” eye. The legend notes: “The male idols of the Naqada Period are even more mysterious than their female counterparts. The long, pointed beard regularly shown could be a precursor of the artificial beards later worn by gods and kings.”40 The transition to the curved false beard can be seen in very early artworks. In a ceremonial palette, “Battlefield Palette”, dated to the Late Predynastic Period, ca. 3150 BCE (British Museum, EA 20791), there are various scenes of a male (with African “hair”) sporting a prominent curved beard. This individual has a prominent dangling penis and is naked, except for a rope tied around his waist. Of supporting relevance is that his hands are tied behind his back and a large lion (see chapters 5 and 6) appears to be attacking him, while the same man is depicted in another scene as standing behind the lion revealing his behind to the lion’s rear-end. In another scene this man, with his arms tied, appears to be “swimming” among several birds, some of which appear to be attacking the man. There is even a typical falcon-hawk standard. The experts interpret this scene (incorrectly) as depicting some very early battle. Yet it is puzzling, because on the reverse side of the palette are two giraffes symmetrically placed next to a palm tree – “it is difficult to interpret its meaning.”41 I am of the opinion that these giraffes are depictions of the Little Bear/Bull’s Hind Leg. The second interesting artwork, carrying the same curved beard motif, is the famous “Narmer Palette”,42 once again wrongly interpreted by the experts as indicating a battle in which Narmer fought to unify Egypt. There are several images in this palette which point to the depiction of celestial images. Narmer is first depicted as a young boy, that is, the sandal-bearer, with a long “tail” (symbolic of the penis) dangling between his legs; above this boy’s head is a prominent seven-pointed “star” with a “key-hole” below it. The sandals the boy is holding may be the same sandals which Moses left at the foot of the holy mountain. It is this conception which inspired certain cultures to leave their shoes at the door when entering a house or a place of worship. The boy then becomes Narmer, a tall regal figure holding a mace as if to strike a “pen” into the head of a kneeling man with a curved beard. The “kneeling man” is interpreted by the experts as a foreign enemy. The “long-chinned” conception may still be a prominent feature of African artworks. In 2008, I visited Zambia and observed some interesting traditional artworks. Of significance in this regard are two large wooden masks I bought, called “long-face”. 278

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ They were sold as a pair and are probably a play on the twin conception. One is supposed to represent an old man (indicated by his bald head) and the other a young man, but both have very long foreheads, and the rest of their faces, from the eyes, flow downwards as narrow elongated structures. In the Secret Zodiacs of Washington, Ovason argues that Washington was constructed by the American Freemason Founding Fathers, and that subsequent early presidents, who themselves were Freemasons, designed the city’s layout and buildings according to Freemasonry religio-cosmological ideas.43 What is worth noting in this regard is that several of the most significant artworks appear to have been created by Italians, who seem to have been familiar with the “arcane” knowledge presumably gained from the Renaissance. Most of these mysterious layouts and artworks are apparently centered on the mysterious Virgin and her association with the planet Venus (V-Anus). Many interesting artworks are presented and discussed by Ovason, several of which are connected to the celestial imagery I am discussing. For example, there is a winged Saturn, with a long beard, holding a long stick curved at the top which becomes a scythe at the bottom. The scythe’s blade gives the impression of a tail. In another artwork, a youthful Saturn is standing behind a young lady, the “Beautiful Virgin”, also known as the “Weeping Virgin” – the weeping Isis idea. The handle of the scythe he is holding seems to be flowing downwards from his neck in line with his beard.44 In yet another artwork, a playful, devilish, old-man Saturn stands behind a young lady, but the handle of the scythe extends past his face and above his head.45 An intriguing artwork adorning the western façade of the Library of Congress is an interesting fountain with several sculptures. In his discussion of this picture, Ovason describes the central figure as that of Neptune.46 The sitting Neptune is depicted as a naked, old man with a heavy long beard and long hair.Yet despite his being described as “an old man” his physique is very powerful, youthful and athletic. His long beard and hair intertwine to give his face an almost lion-like appearance. His one leg and one arm are prominently projected forward. To Neptune’s lower left is a very athletic young man drinking from or blowing on what looks like a large conch shell. In the distance, on Neptune’s right, emerging from its own arch, is part of a horse with a rider, presumably Angelman’s Dark Volvine-Horse Twin, see later. It is worth digressing here to examine the fountain and its surroundings in more detail. The architecture of the Library of Congress in America has not only fascinated Ovason but has attracted numerous favourable comments. But, as Ovason remarks, “what is not generally recognized, however, is that the library is the hub of an arcane symbolism...”47 In the description he provides, there are several recognisable arcane symbols that are discussed in this book: 279

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The façade is the Library’s most exotic display, with the beautiful carved spandrel figure…The richly designed fountain, which shores up the stepped courtyard to the west and represents a court of the sea-god Neptune surrounded by watery nereids... The group recalls both Plato and Ignatius Donnelly, for the latter had noted that the former had surrounded the great statue of Poseidon…with the image of 100 nereids, seated on dolphins. In…Washington DC, the god (Neptune) leans forward in animated contemplation of the world beyond; around him are fish-men Tritons and voluptuous nymphs riding seahorses…In the water are dolphins and turtles… To the east, above the second-storey pavilion windows, are a number of keystones, each sculptured to represent the face of one of the major races of the world… The significance of these ethnographic heads is distinctly arcane, for there is a symbolism in their number. Although there are 33 heads: they are representative of the 33 degrees of the Scottish Rite Masonry…All of these heads – the 33 types and the 9 personalized geniuses – look out towards the four quarters of space. What are they trying to tell us?The bearded Neptune, alert and poised in Perry’s fountain, gazes towards the south-west, as though there is something of interest in that direction (figure 20). His gaze seems designed to symbolize direction, and therefore space – with the same insistence as the 42 heads (33 and 9) heads above him.48

Also connected to the library, in the southern spandrel of the bronze doors (figure 19), is a beautiful carving depicting a young Virgo with one exposed breast. She is holding a celestial globe under her left arm, emphasised by a robe enveloping it. This arm, with the robe, is suggestive of the Angelman’s wing/arm, see later. In the context of the library, Ovason provides other information about these sculptures that seems to confirm the importance of the South-West point – later you will also see the importance of the South. If I am interpreting the information as Ovason intended then it would confirm my assertion that the SW/South point, because of the many important celestial images, was one of the most important points of the ancient cosmology. It is also highly significant that these images are associated with a library, suggesting that the foundation of knowledge originated from these celestial images, see Book 3. Not only do the various aspects discussed by Ovason suggest a connection to the celestial images I have observed, but very tellingly, the celestial globe depicts only three zodiac signs, namely the Scales, Scorpio and Sagittarius, which not only confirms the celestial nature of this artwork but, consistent with my observations, underlines the importance of these constellations and clearly confirms that these ideas are about the stars.

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11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Although I have not even begun to discuss zodiac signs (see Book 3), it should be abundantly clear from the celestial images that I have related to modern astronomical constellations (Scorpio and Sagittarius) that what the artist is attempting to convey in depicting the Virgo with a globe, is that Virgo is “composed” of these zodiac signs rather than their being separate signs or constellations. Beards as religious symbolism and their connection to the stars In many ancient societies and contemporary societies around the world the beard, looked upon as a symbol of old age and wisdom, was and is an important religiocultural symbol. Even in our contemporary times we still see the importance of beards in various contemporary societies, perhaps most noticeable in the Muslim religio-traditions, and also with some Hindu and Jewish religious sects. But why? I am of the opinion that beards assumed religious significance in the context of the celestial imagery discussed in this book. The question then becomes: Can we find confirmation that beards are linked to stars? Olcott connects the zodiac sign Capricorn with a special festival associated with beards: The Peruvian year, says Hagar, probably began at the December solstice with the celebration of the most important of their festivals, known as “the festival of beard”. During this month the sun is passing through our sign of Capricornus. The corresponding Peruvian constellation is called “Nuccu” meaning “the Beard”. The name refers directly to the widespread myth in which the sun, then at the height of his power in the southern hemisphere, is figured as Capra, “the bearded one”. The beard seems to be characteristically emphasised in connection with the constellation. During the festival the participants in the ceremonial dances wore masks with long beards. The beard is one of the chief characteristics of the goat.49

Similarly, in the “Mysteries of Dionysus”, a large bearded mask representing the god-man was hung on a wooden pole.50 There are two Greek vases (fifth and sixth century BCE) depicting the mysteries of Dionysus.51 On one vase, the pole is “dressed up” with the image of a man with a beard but nothing that resembles the False Beard in shape, whereas on the second vase, a young person with no facial features, prominent ears and a large black collar is depicted against a tree. The man against the tree was probably a forerunner for “Christ against a tree”, where the tree became a wooden cross. This is indeed the hypothesis advanced by Freke and Gandy. I am of the opinion that this long beard has been retained in our modern, Father 281

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Christmas, since several aspects of this man’s appearance and dress, and the traditions surrounding Christmas, point to celestial symbolisms discussed in this book. The attention will now shift to non-beard representations and symbolisms of the False Beard image. Alternative interpretations and representations of the False Beard image We have seen that there were precursors to the false beards of the pharaohs, but are there alternative representations or advances based on the same original celestial archetype? I am convinced that the False Beard imagery did not stop at “beards” but mutated into other forms or was represented in other forms, reflecting the multiplicity of the False Beard imagery. The discussions in this section will focus on the elephant trunk and the elephant, and then on other objects representing the False Beard. The elephant trunk and the elephant symbolic of the False Beard The Hindu religio-cultural representations of their gods and other divine beings, as with the Mayan and Aztec, are complex in that a single deity is composed of a number of images and ideas within a single representation. Churchward does an excellent job of dissecting some of these complex representations.52 I have always been amused and puzzled by the Hindu representation of some of their deities and sages called hierophants. These are often depicted as humans or gods with pink elephant heads or even as floating pink elephants. One such complex elephant-man god is Ganesha, one of the important Hindu gods.53 My contention is that the elephant head attached to the human body, the elephant-man, or just plain pink floating elephants, were primarily to emphasise the long elephant trunk as being symbolic of the False Beard, and consequentially the elephant was revered in traditions and religion. Indeed what became the elephant-man in the Hindu religion was a composite creation seeking to link the elephant trunk (symbolic of the False Beard) with a human-like celestial image. Such an idea must have evolved from the initial representation on the Harappan seal (see chapter 7) of Lord Shiva54, who is depicted with an elephant and a water buffalo at the level of his face. If indeed it is a water buffalo then it is representative of the bovines (see chapter 14). It is also possible that this link of a god with an elephant is why the mammoth, a woolly elephant, was venerated in ancient Europe. The elephant was probably selected not only because of its trunk as a representation of the False Beard, but also to express the idea of the enormous size of the giant 282

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Angelman when it transformed from the “baby” Horus Child / Chosen Son. This might also explain ideas inherent in many myths, fables and folktales about the wisdom of the elephant and the persistent meaningless debate about whether the elephant or the lion is “king of the jungle”. Elephant imagery should also be seen in the religio-mythology of Buddha’s mother being impregnated by a white elephant, which finally resulted in the miraculous, virgin birth of Buddha, another “fatherless son”. These latter ideas are a play with the celestial imagery of the Jade Emperor, Angelman and the Chosen Son (the Horus Child). Apart from the trunk, there are several aspects in Hindu religio-cultural artworks and in their “myths” of Ganesha that hint at his connection to other gods in other religions, and to his celestial identity. Firstly, in one painting he is held as a baby by Pãrvãti,55 the Hindu goddess and the wife of the most important Hindu God, Shiva. She holds the “baby” in a similar manner to Isis and the Horus Child or the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus.56 Secondly, in this painting, his entire body is red except for the head, and he has a single prominent human eye. Pãrvãti is depicted in a similar manner as Shiva, with 10 arm-hands (in Book 2, you will see the significance of the number 10). Shiva is normally depicted with six arm-hands,57 brandishing various weapons including the bow and arrow, the curved sword (see chapter 8) and other unidentifiable objects. Perhaps Pãrvãti is normally depicted with six arm-hands to express the idea that she is a three-in-one being. And it is likely that this three-in-one being consists of various combinations of celestial beings. Another relief shows Ganesha as a squatting human-baby elephant holding the middle finger of his left hand in an “up-your-ass” gesture (symbolic of the Horus Child’s “finger” or the False Beard).58 Between his chest and tummy are three snakes. On his right is a staff with a bird’s head and a prominent eye. The squatting-sitting pose is suggestive of the Jade Emperor / Bes. In the following extract you can see that Ganesha first had a human head, which was replaced with that of an elephant. More information of Ganesha is given in the notes section, which hints at the cosmological identity of Ganesha. You will also recognise other mytho-religious ideas such as: the “beautiful woman who laughs” (remember beautiful Sara, the wife of Abraham, who laughs); ideas around the Mary and Joseph story of the Inn being full; and the presence of the bull and the donkey, which are also associated with Jesus’ birth. 283

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Ganesha was the son of Shiva and Pãrvãti; “he was born from the dew of Pãrvãti’s body, mingled with dust. Shiva, in anger, cut off Ganesha’s human head. In remorse, Shiva replaced it with the head of the first animal he came across – an elephant.”59 There is indeed a suggestion that the elephant head of Ganesha is linked with celestial phenomena and he is also interestingly linked with a rat (“pharaoh’s rat”, that is, the Lion/Rat celestial image, see chapter 14): “....with Rudra, and with the rat of Ganesha (who, by the way, acquired his elephant’s head because the planet Saturn, not being invited to the infant’s ‘baptism’, had looked upon the baby with his evil eye, thus destroying his head which was successfully replaced by that of an elephant)…”60 The cosmic symbolisms of the elephant explain its importance in other cultures: • The Ashante from Ghana consider the elephant as a wise chief. Ashante legend says that this enormous animal can only be defeated with magic. The elephant is also believed to be a human chief from the past. When a dead elephant is found, it is given a proper burial.61 Why is an elephant associated with a chief?

• There are even tribes in Africa who still consider the elephant to be an ancient ancestor.



• In Zulu food taboos, “elephant is not eaten by young people, except in times of famine, because it, in so many ways, has resemblances to a human being that girls fear giving birth to one.”62 This Zulu tradition appears to preserve the idea of an elephant being born from a young girl. This immediately links this idea to the young girl Pãrvãti who gave birth to Ganesha. This suggests that these ideas have a common origin.

• Ifa, a religion of the Yoruba63 in south-west Nigeria, has spread to several parts of the world, most noticeably Cuba and the United States. This is an interesting religion; the little I have read about its doctrines and its sacred artworks has made me realise that they have the same cosmology as other societies, but the beauty of their ideas is that they are still expressed in an uncomplicated form.64

• One of their sacred items is the divining wand. This wand is carved either from an elephant’s tusk or from a piece of wood shaped like one. An example of one of their exquisitely carved, composite, sacred wands depicts a god with one open eye with a “chameleon in the position of an ancestor’s beard”

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11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ gripped by a four-fingered hand.65 There is a further hint that the Ifa’s oneeyed god with the chameleon is a celestial god in that he carries a bow and arrow under the other arm. • I think the chameleon may have replaced the tortoise/turtle symbolism (see Book 3) because like the tortoise it is slow, which is symbolic of the slow passage of cosmological time. “The chameleon, associated with the divinity of moral purity and exemplary character, travels slowly but arrives with the redemptive message.”66 Yet there may have been several reasons for its choice, see the notes section.

• The Akan people have a “proverb” about the elephant: “Rise and never forget that beyond the elephant there is none greater, and you are the elephant.” Apparently an elder gave this advice to Dr. Darkwah.67



• In Limpopo, the Venda people’s capital town is called Thouyandou, meaning “Head of an Elephant”. Dou and Tlou, meaning elephant, are common surnames of the Venda and Bapedi peoples in Limpopo. Interestingly, Thou, depending on how it is pronounced, can mean either head or monkey, which suggests a preservation of the link between the Jade Emperor’s Head and the Lion/Monkey.



• With the Zulus, Nhlovu, elephant (indlovu), is also a common surname.

Other objects symbolic of the False Beard image There are other representations, persistent ideas and actions of various ancient societies which may not easily be recognised as having any connection with the False Beard, yet they do. Some of these persist in various disguised forms in contemporary societies. One of the ways to identify whether an object evolved from the False Beard celestial image or is an alternative representation thereof, is to look for an object with a similar “structural design” as the False Beard, especially when the object is held in the mouth, or is tied to the nose or forehead of a human, so that the human with the “thing” has the visual appearance of Angelman with his False Beard. Since this could cover a wide range of things, additional criteria are required to support the identification of a particular object as derived from, or based on the False Beard celestial image. One such additional criterion is to see whether an object can be connected with other celestial “objects” predominantly found in the SE to SW sky region which can be conceptualised as having some connection with Angelman and his associated images. If an object meets the first criterion (appearance) and can also be seen to be associated with one of the celestial images or its terrestrial 285

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ counterparts, then we can safely assume that it is a representation of the False Beard. Using the approach outlined above, I now describe a few examples of objects, representative of three different categories, which would not ordinarily be associated with beards: 1. One group is of terrestrial objects which “correspond” in form to the various celestial images associated with SE to SW sky regions. Objects which immediately come to mind in this category are white horns from animals such as bovines, elephants, goats or rhino; the bent claws of birds and other animals such as lions and bears; the bent beaks of birds; and single, long, bent thorns from plants. 2. A second group is objects which come from water, such as shells from the sea and reeds from rivers. I have suggested that the lower SE region was conceptualised as one of the water regions. And since Angelman and other images “rise” or “originate” from this “water region”, the ancients would have attached some significance to objects from water which resemble the False Beard. 3. A third category is man-made objects which look like False Beard objects, things such as bent knives/swords, fish-hooks, etc. (see chapter 8), which can also be association with the Horus Child when he is lying at the SE region. It is not inconceivable that objects from all three categories would have been used as representations of the False Beard celestial image. And as humans wanted to preserve more complex idea associations around the False Beard and other associated celestial images, and the “behaviour” (for example, movement) of these, they would have manufactured objects that not only structurally resembled the False Beard, but also evoked particular “behaviour” among people who conceptualised themselves in the image of such celestial images. I have repeatedly referred to the “white stuff” which also resembles white smoke. It is possible that False Beard-like natural things or man-made objects that produced white smoke were based on and derived from the False Beard image. Neither is it difficult to see that when humans progressed to manufacturing objects out of other materials, such as metal, they would have produced a variety of objects which incorporated the False Beard motif, and which also produced particular effects, for example, a boiling kettle with a curved spout. The steam is associated with water, smoke and fire and the curved spout with the False Beard. There is a large range of such mixed objects. 286

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ The question is how are we to know, with any degree of certainty, that such objects or ideas are indeed based on the False Beard celestial image? This will no longer be an issue when one comes to understand the interconnection of the ancients’ ideas and actions within their cosmological worldview. Nevertheless, one can identify such ideas and objects by looking for further associative ideas, representations and other cultural practices around such objects. Firstly, ideas and practices which do not conform to what we would normally associate such objects with, from a functional perspective, can alert us. For example: a trumpet that results in the collapse of walls is not something normal, therefore, when this idea is expressed in association with other ideas that can be connected with other celestial images, it is more likely that this idea is also connected to celestial ideas unless we want to continue believing in fairies and miracles. Secondly, the celestial nature of such objects is revealed when these are associated with gods or other divine beings. Then they cannot be just normal functional objects. In other words, when such objects have mytho-religious reverence that does not tally with our common use and understanding of such objects, then there must be another explanation. Thirdly, when such objects are excavated from tombs of important rulers, for example, a reed flute from a pharaoh’s tomb, then this object’s presence in the tomb must have a particular meaning. When such objects are investigated against prevailing religiocultural beliefs that point to cosmological views, then the only reasonable conclusion is that these objects and the traditions around them are based on celestial archetypes. Therefore, I suggest that when such objects are analysed in the collective context, and against the criteria discussed above, then they must have been derived from celestial archetypes: in this case, the celestial False Beard. In the following examples, I attempt to present the False Beard objects against their particular context so that you can see how the supporting aspects corroborate and support a particular conclusion. Towards the end, I simply list a variety of representative False Beard objects and their references, to encourage you to investigate further yourself. Horns and associated traditions and ideas symbolic of the False Beard Below I discuss various horns in another context. Not all horn objects, ideas and traditions are necessarily representative or symbolic of the False Beard image. However, when the horn in question is a single horn, it gives the impression of Angelman and his False Beard. But you will see that there is another, shorter, single 287

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ straight horn associated with the celestial unicorn (see chapter 16). This section explores horns in their unusual contexts to demonstrate the cultural and religious significance of these objects, which defies our modern understanding of horns. There can be no doubt that horns had a religio-cultural significance starting far back in the ancient world. This is certainly well supported when, for example, one looks at Çatal Hüyük, regarded by experts as the oldest civilisation: Çatal Hüyük holds another constant reminder of death: The Bucrania, pillars with preserved horns of bulls set into plaster, omnipresent in both the city’s houses and its shrines. Some shrines are filled with them – horns, horns, and more horns – even benches on which the priestess could lay are cradled by the huge, dagger-tipped horns of the giant aurochs bull…The horn is always paired with symbols of the Goddess of Çatal Hüyük, and is usually paired with a unique relief that is repeated again and again on temple walls during every stage of the city’s existence. The Goddess of Çatal Hüyük is humanlike, with a head, two arms, and two legs but she appears to float in the void…One Goddess in particular stands out far beyond the rest. Her plaster body is shaped exactly like the many other Goddess reliefs, but her hands, feet, and head are missing, presumably ritually removed by her worshippers when Her shrine was closed and filled in with rubble…68

The “shaman” horns in Mexico In the archaeological region of West Mexico, comprising the modern states of Nayarit, Colima and Jalisco, several tombs from about 200 BCE to 500 AD were excavated and many figurines recovered. One-horned figures, frequently found among the shaft-tomb art, have been identified by art historians as warriors.69 Two examples of these extraordinary puzzling figures, from Penn Museum, are pictured in the reference cited. One represents a male (#60-7-20), from 100-400 AD, with two side “horns” and a single forward-projecting horn. It also appears to have a prominent “one-eye”. His two “arms” and two “legs” are unusually shaped and are without fingers or toes. The arms resemble penguin flaps. He is also noted as wearing a headdress in the form of the sun’s rays. The second figure (#66-30-20), dated to 100-400 AD, is an inter-joining figure of “two small figures curled and turned around each other…each grasping the other by the single horn that protrudes from their forehead.” They have been wrongly interpreted as wrestlers, in our modern conception. Dr. Danien, an anthropologist, 288

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ attempted to unravel the dilemma around these unusual figures, which other experts have labeled as warriors, wrestlers or just plain folk art which has no significant meaning. She explains that based on symbolic criteria these small clay figurines can clearly be identified as shamans as they wear the regalia of a shaman – a kilt, necklaces, a nose ring and a single forehead horn. It is this single forehead horn that commentators have found puzzling. The shape of the horn differs from figurine to figurine; some are little more than a conical knob, others are torpedo shaped and some resemble tongue depressors. They are either straight or curved, or like a pointing finger, an elongated cone or a rounded pyramid. Yet why the one single horn instead of two horns as found in nature?70 Danien also refers to the theory of Furst, who proposes that the use of the single horn originated from observing the native male turkey that has a horn-like wattle above its beak. However, there are also other possibilities, such as the horned serpent or the rhinoceros beetle, which some indigenous beliefs connect to the underworld. According to Furst, a novice is signified by the smaller, knob-like appearance of the horn, whereas a shaman in full possession of his powers [similar to the greenhorn idea] is signified by a larger horn. Danien also refers to the theory of Mark Millar Graham, an art historian, who suggests that the single forehead horn was inspired by the spires of the conch shell. These conch shells are seen as part of the headdress in portraits of Maya rulers and rulers from central Mexico. They are important elements in the art of Teotihuacan. Danien explains there are other possibilities for the use of a single horn, derived from an extrapolation of some additional Maya rulership symbolism: The conch shells found in the Huitzilapa tomb,71 covering the male figure’s loins and placed at his side, suggest that he, perhaps, was just such a shaman chief…The ruler is responsible for the fertility of the land, and his offering of blood drawn from his penis is equivalent to semen. This sense of the ruler as progenitor is brought out most clearly in the name of the founder of the dynasty of the Maya site of Yaxchilan, where his name glyph shows a penis drawn above the jaguar head. The glyph is read as Progenitor Jaguar, or Penis Jaguar. Other rulership glyphs also include the phallus, reinforcing the idea that virility is an essential element of rulership. Might not the single horn be a symbolic statement of masculinity, as well as shamanic power and rulership…? Thus, the two figures…once called the wrestlers, are now clearly seen as shamans, perhaps shaman-chiefs, or shaman-kings. But why do they do battle, grasping each other by their symbols of power? Are they engaged in a struggle for supremacy? Is one shaman evil, and the other good? Is this an event that occurs in a myth lost in antiquity? We will probably never know why these two figures are locked in antagonistic embrace.72 289

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ These figurines are in fact transformational forms of Angelman, where the interlinked rolling figures were meant to convey the idea of Angelman (as the Horus Child) rolling from a foetal position at the SE region to become Angelman at the SW region. So there might be three reasons for the single horn placement on the forehead and the size variations. The first is that the larger horn on the forehead would give the impression of the False Beard, albeit straight. Secondly, you may recall that the Angelman “head” (the Sword/Knife/Penis) star cluster points down on the SE point and rolls over to become Angelman. If you understand this, it is clear that the False Beard stars are also initially below the “head” and gradually also rise. Thirdly, the placing of the horn on the forehead, instead of at the mouth could be due to the viewing angle (see notes).73 The range of shapes and sizes of these single horns can also be explained. The small horn is suggestive, as the expert rightfully noted, to depict the novice, that is; the Horus Child, whereas the longer horn of the full-powered shaman depicts a fullgrown child; that is, Angelman. It has been noted that some horns resembled a curled finger. The curled finger is also associated with the Horus Child. Maybe some horns were meant to capture both the False Beard and the curled finger in one representation. The experts are correct in associating these figures with war, kings, priests and shamans. The horns of Moses The book The Rule of Four74 is a semi-fictional story based on scholarship around an ancient obscure book called the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili.75 Caldwell and Thomason present some extraordinary, bestial and violent pictures taken from the Hypnerotomachia and also spin some interesting tales around ideas from the original book. I want to highlight some aspects to do with horns. One picture depicts an old man with the legs of a goat and a large erect goat penis. He is standing under a tree, holding its branches with one hand (this is to convey the idea that “the hand is the tree”) and with the other hand he is unveiling two baby satyrs (human-goats like the old man). In the forefront lies a woman with her torso naked and her legs folded. This penis jolts Caldwell and Thomason’s memories of some penis that became the horns of Moses in “Michelangelo’s statute of Moses”, an art piece depicted in Hartt’s History of Renaissance Art; “That penis, that misplaced horn, reminded me of 290

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ something. There was a connection to be made. Colonna knew what he was talking about. Someone had given Moses horns…”76 Apparently reading from Hartt’s History of Renaissance Art, Caldwell and Thomason quote the following: The horns have nothing to do with being cuckolded. The riddle was literal: who gave Moses horns? It’s from a mistranslation of the Bible. When Moses comes down from Mount Sinai, Exodus says, his face glows with rays of light. But the Hebrew word for ‘rays’ can be translated as ‘horns’ – karan versus keren. When Saint Jerome translated the Old Testament into Latin, he thought no one but Christ glows with rays of light – so he advanced the secondary translation. And that’s how Michelangelo carved his Moses – with horns.77

This is a neat explanation, but it does not explain the link between a penis and horns, and why two very similar words with only different vowels gloss as horns and rays. And from the following additional information we see that Moses’ “horns” are indeed real and linked to celestial phenomena: “The preceding age, that of Aries, had been heralded by Moses coming down from Mount Sinai as ‘two-horned,’ that is crowned with the Ram’s horns, while his flock, disobediently, insisted upon dancing around the ‘Golden Calf’ that was, rather, a ‘Golden Bull,’ Taurus.”78 We will see that a “penis” does become a “horn”, when we discuss the headdresses of Angelman. When viewing figure (#60-7-20),79 I got the impression that the horn on the forehead was a forerunner for what was to become the “crown of thorns” on Jesus’ head, where horn was just changed into thorn by the addition of the letter t. This is not just pure speculation. You have already seen some significant aspects of the Jesus story which relate to celestial images, and as we proceed you will see other symbolisms. But the thorn idea must also be seen in the context of much older ideas in the Bible, the ram/ goat caught in a thorn bush with regard to Abraham and his son, and the burning thorn bush of Moses. And significantly Jesus himself is depicted and associated with a lamb, that is, a baby ram: the Fowl-CHICK. Horns and initiation African initiation of boys takes takes place in a secluded place in the bush, and among other things, involves the ritual cutting-off of the foreskin of the penis, as practised by Jews and Muslims. In one reported case of Sotho initiation there is a secret rite of passage involving a medicine horn: “Great secrecy surrounds the schools where they still continue. One reason for secrecy was the traditional practice of treating the male 291

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ novice with powder from the medicine horn of their chief. One ingredient of the medicine horn was commonly human flesh and the treatment was thought of as strengthening the novice, and transforming them from boys to men.”80 This use of the chief’s horn is comparable to the annual treatment of the army at the “time of the first fruits” among the Nguni.81 In Book 2 you will find an explanation of the First Fruit tradition, its relationship with Cain and Abel, and why human flesh is involved. Cannibalism among Africans is historically a very sensitive issue, talk of which will only reinforce prejudices against Africans; therefore, it is important to put it in perspective. There should be no doubt that such practices were very common in various ancient societies; Cheikh Anta Diop quotes a lengthy passage regarding the Egyptian King Unas devouring his family members and gods – a passage presumably taken from the Egyptian Book of the Dead. This devouring of people must also be seen as related to Cronus, but restricted to his “eldest sons”. Diop suggests that this passage is very ancient and might have given rise to actual cannibalism: “Unas is the last king of the Vth Dynasty. This text is the most ancient written document that makes the study of vitalistic practices possible that would lead to the myth of the man-eating sorcerer, in today’s Black Africa. They are to be compared with the Osirian rites and with the Christian Eucharist.”82 I agree with Diop’s last point that such ancient traditions formed the basis of Christians’ ritualistic drinking of Christ’s blood and eating his flesh symbolic in the wine and bread of Holy Communion rites. Drinking horns A large horn, a “Silver drinking horn” of the Guild of St. George (1566, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam), mounted on a silver stand, is decorated with beautiful silver trimmings, an interesting image of a sitting person, and a single horse and rider.83 The horse is lifting its front legs towards the sitting person. According to the accompanying text it appears that “drinking horns”, used as ceremonial vessels, were common in Europe: “Ceremonial vessels were usually made from the horn of an ox or a buffalo or the tusk of an elephant, with mounts of metal. The earliest drinking horns date from around the early 7th century. The drinking horn was largely replaced by other, more suitable vessels in the 16th century, but isolated examples were made later.”84 A Welsh warrior-prince-poet called Owain Cyfeiliog (ca. 1130-1197) wrote a famous poem about the “Drinking Horn”. “The only poem that remains of Owain’s compositions is noteworthy for its dramatic presentation. It is set at court, where his warriors, weary from battle, are gathered at the banquet table. Each stanza begins 292

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ with instructions to the cupbearer to pour a drink for a hero; he then bestows praise on the man as the drink is poured.”85 This drinking to the praise of a person continues in contemprory times as drinking a toast to someone! The association of horns with warriors and battles seems to have been a common tradition in the ancient world, and it still survives in modern military traditions. One gets a sense of these traditions from documentaries and other films attempting to enact historical events. A horn-blower announces the commencement of the battle; in some cases the horn is replaced by a trumpet. But the horn/trumpet, as we will see below, was not restricted to war, but was also associated with royalty and their activities such as hunting or the opening of important ceremonies. Horns in the Bible There are several interesting references to horns in the Bible. The blood of sacrificed animals is sprinkled or poured on the “horns of the altar”. The same “horns of the altar” is associated with the throne on which Solomon is anointed as king: “At this, all Adonijah’s guests rose in alarm and dispersed. But Adonijah, in fear of Solomon, went and took hold of the horns of the altar. Then Solomon was told, ‘Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon and is clinging to the horns of the altar.’ He says, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.’” (1 Kings 46-51). And then again with Bethel, that is, the place of God, the “horns of the altar” are cut off: “The prophet Amos witnesses against Israel: ‘Hear this and testify against the house of Jacob,’ declares the Lord, the Lord God Almighty. ‘On the day I punish Israel for her sins, I will destroy the altars of Bethel; the horns of the altar will be cut off and fall to the ground…’” (Amos 3:13-14). The “horn filled with oil” is also used by Samuel to anoint David as the new king.86 In the books of Daniel and Revelation there are associations of horns with kings and kingdoms, with the underlining message that these are evil. For example in Revelation we read: “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of Lords and King of Kings – and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers” (Rev. 17:12-14).

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The cornucopia – the “Horn of Plenty” The cornucopia, also called the “Horn of Plenty”, is persistent in European mythology. It is an idea-pictograph dating from ancient Greece, symbolising abundance, and has become part of Masonry ideas and symbols. This “object” might have been styled on the Sword/Knife/Penis (see chapter 8), the “unicorn’s horn” (the Crux-Hadar-Rigel Kent star cluster, see chapter 16), and the False Beard. But it actually became a fourfold symbol, with its fourth symbolic significance a representation of the Shoulder/Wing/Arm of the Jade Emperor/ Angelman. This is especially so when it is depicted at the side of the Virgin, or is held by the Virgin as a big bouquet of flowers, with the stems held in one hand at the chest, and the flowers lying across the chest, resting on the other arm. This is also presumably where the tradition of giving bouquets of flowers to women originated from. From the following extract you will get a sense of this symbol’s origin, its many representations and various other ideas attached to it. But what is also of significance is its link with the stars, that is, certain zodiac signs: The motif originated as a curved goat’s horn filled to overflowing with fruit and grain. It was probably carried into Masonry from alchemical sources…In classical myth, the infant Zeus was fed by the virgin Amalthea with goat’s milk. Zeus, to show his gratitude for this largesse, broke off one of the horns of the goat and presented it to Amalthea, promising that anyone who possessed it would have an abundance of all things he or she might desire…we saw that one of the great cosmic dualities within the zodiac – that of Cancer and Capricorn – relates to the idea of descent into birth (or life), and ascent into the spiritual realm (or death). The goat-horn cornucopia encapsulates both extremes of darkness and light, of death and life. The alchemist developed this mythology into various aspects of the maternal nature of the milky gift…Amalthea’s cornucopia is said to have contained all the riches of nature and was often shown as pouring forth corn, flowers and fruits. It is perhaps in this image of the cornucopia that we reach into the deeper meaning of one of the rituals in the Masonic cornerstone ceremonies…Plutus…god of abundance or wealth, [is] a personification of ploutos (Greek: “riches”)...[he was] the son of the goddess of fruitfulness, Demeter, and the Cretan Iasion. In art he appears chiefly as a child with a cornucopia. He was sometimes confused with Pluto (Hades), god of the underworld…87

In Japanese mythology the cornucopia, as with Plutus (Plato), is also associated with a child, in this case children, and “Demeter”, who is Hārītī, is a cannibal like Cronus:

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11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Hārītī, Japanese Kishi-mojin, in Buddhist mythology, is a child-devouring ogress who is said to have been converted from her cannibalistic habits by the Buddha to become a protectress of children. He hid the youngest of her own 500 children under his begging bowl, and thus made her realize the sorrow she was causing other parents. Hārītī is usually represented surrounded by children or carrying a child as a pomegranate, or a cornucopia. Her cult traveled north into Central Asia and China, where she is regarded as the special guardian of children and of women in childbirth, and to Japan, where she has sometimes been confounded with a feminine form of the protective deity, Kannon [presumably from Kane-On] Tyche, in Greek religion, the goddess of chance, with whom the Roman Fortuna was later identified…She was often shown winged, wearing a crown, and bearing a sceptre and a cornucopia; but she also appeared blindfolded…Among her monuments was a temple at Argos…Fruits and vegetables mounded in baskets or spilling in profusion out of a cornucopia were types of arrangements used for religious offerings.88

An intriguing seventeeth-century picture depicts Delphic Sibyl [Cy/Sa+Baal] as an enormous male/female (size extending from the earth into the clouds) dressed in multi-layered over-flowing robes ending in a fluted bottom, with just one foot showing.89 Also of significance is that while the face is projected forward, only half of it, with one eye showing, is in light while the other half is in shadow. Thus it gives the impression of two beings flowing into a profusion of long hair that gently curves in front, suggestive of the False Beard. Flowing from the left is a black hand with three fingers and a thumb, while to the rear is a “projectile” covered in cloth bending downwards. Also flowing from the torso region is a large, overflowing cornucopia, with its typical swirling upward-curling end, grasped under the right arm. When one looks at this entire picture, from the left hand, the cornucopia, and the rear projectile, you have an image that resembles the Scorpio Constellation. Sibyl is said to be a woman, and this female aspect is emphasised by the profusion of hair and the dress. Yet in this picture she also has the appearance of a male, emphasised by the “moustache”. She is thus a female-male being, see Book 2. The other intriguing aspect of this picture of Sibyl is her association with Jesus: “The Delphic Sibyl…shows the woman carrying a cornucopia, from which fall fruit and wheat. She is gesturing towards Christ, who sits on a hillside preaching: this image is connected with the mediaeval belief that the pagan Sibyl had prophesied the coming of Christ.”90 The Christ figure with his typical radiant, sun-halo is depicted in the far distance across a divide from the enormous Sibyl figure. He is sitting at the top of a hill 295

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ surrounded by several people, one of whom appears to be blowing on a trumpet (symbolic of the False Beard, see later) while at the foot of the hill is a large crowd. Horns and music The Encylopedia Britannica provides some interesting facts about the origin and the use of animal horns as musical instruments. In music, any of several wind instruments such as trumpets, clarinets, saxophones, etc., sounded by the player’s tensed lips against the mouthpiece of the instrument, are referred to as horns. What is interesting to note is the specific association of these instruments with royalty and their use for purposes other than just entertainment: French Cor,91 German Horn…[was] primarily derived from animal horns blown at the truncated narrow end or…at a hole in the side. Metal construction, at first imitating natural shapes, dates as far back as the Danish Bronze Age lurs, cast in the shape of mammoth tusks, and the Roman buccina and semicircular cornu. Instruments of horn were known in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Israel (the shofar), Greece, and throughout South and West Africa and continue to be played by shepherds in Scandinavia, the Balkans, parts of Spain, and the Sudan. Medieval European ivory horns, imported from Byzantium in the 10th century, were associated with royalty; these ivory (sometimes bone) horns, often richly carved, were called oliphants.92 The ox horns of medieval huntsmen and watchmen sounded but one or two notes of the natural harmonic series...93

Horns also feature prominently in religious traditions. The Shofar was and still is an important Jewish “musical instrument” used for religious ceremonies: Shofar also spelled Shophar, plural Shofroth, Shophroth [it is presumably this word which finally became Sephiroth], or Shofrot, a ritual musical instrument, made from the horn of a ram or other animal, used on important Jewish public and religious occasions. In biblical times the shofar sounded the Sabbath, announced the New Moon, and proclaimed the anointing of a new king. This latter custom has been preserved in modern Israel at the swearing in of the president of the state. The most important modern use of the shofar in religious ceremonies takes place on Rosh Hashana, when it is sounded in the synagogue to call the Jewish people to a spiritual re-awakening as the religious New Year begins on Tishri 1. The shofar can be made to produce sobbing, wailing, and sustained sounds in sequences that are varied strictly according to ritual. The shofar is also sounded on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, as a call for repentance and sacrifice and for love of the Torah.94

It is appropriate at this point to mention other musical instruments used for religious 296

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ purposes. I have seen documentaries depicting Buddhist “priests” blowing on long pipes as part of their religious practices. At the beginning of the Cham (lama ritual dance), Buddhist monks play the gyaling (horn-like trumpets). There is a photo of such an event in a book Tibet, showing a young man and an old man each blowing on their gyaling with the old man keeping one eye closed!95 Is the “one-eye” mere coincidence or does it relate to the persistency of “one-eye” ideas described earlier, which I will discuss later as an aspect of Angelman. Two ancient sources (Völuspá, “Sibyl’s Prophecy”, ca. tenth century, and the Edda of the Icelandic nations) tie the end of the world to the sounding of a horn or trumpet. This idea has congruence with the Book of Revelation. In Revelation, at the sound of different trumpets, various events unfold in sequence towards the final END of the world. Despite the horn/trumpet link to the “end of the world” in the Icelandic sources and the Bible, the stories and the characters are completely different. In the following extracts you will recognise several aspects very suggestive of the celestial images I have been discussing. Heimdall, Old Norse Heimdallrin, from Norse mythology, is the watchman of the gods. He is called the shining god and whitest skinned of the gods and he dwelt at the entry to Asgard, where he guarded Bifrost, the rainbow bridge. He required less sleep than a bird, could see 100 leagues, and could hear grass growing in the meadows and wool growing on sheep. Heimdall kept the “ringing” horn, Gjallarhorn, which could be heard throughout heaven, earth, and the lower world [underworld]; it was believed that he would sound the horn to summon the gods when their enemies, the giants, drew near at the Ragnarök, the end of the world of gods and men…According to those two sources, the Ragnarök will be preceded by cruel winters and moral chaos.96

An old picture of Heimdall, the date not indicated, shows this god with winged shoes, winged “cadeuses” with a human head, wearing a red-maroon winged hat.97 His socks, sleeves and hat are red-maroon in colour. He is wearing a green and white striped “dress” with a prominent clown collar. He is holding a huge trumpet-like horn, in a rather strange manner, in his left hand, as if the artist wanted to lay emphasis on the four fingers. The story that accompanies this picture provides further detail to the myth of Heimdall and Ragnarok, which has a number of identifiable celestial indicators such as winter, the wolf, serpents, the trumpet, the beautiful woman that is the “daughter of the sun” and water: When Heimdall…blows his trumpet, it will sound the beginning of the Ragnarok. The fate of the gods was predestined: at a future time there would be a great battle, 297

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ gods against monsters and giants, and humans against humans, in which most will be destroyed. It is said that the great battle will begin thus: after a winter lasting three years, wolves will devour the sun and the moon. Loki and his children, the goddess Hel and Fenrir the wolf, will be released by earthquakes. With the frost giants, they will sail to meet the gods in battle. Migard serpent, another of Loki’s children, will swell the waves and the water will engulf the land. Warned by Heimdall’s horn, the gods, with the fallen warriors gathered at Valhalla in Asgard, will advance with Odin at the head. Most will die in the battle and a great fire will sweep the earth. Only the sons of Odin and Thor, and the daughter of the sun, will survive. Baldr and his blind brother Hod will be freed from hell and the world will begin again....At the Ragnarok, he [Heimdall] and Loki will fight, and though the victor, he will die of his wounds.98

Note “he will die of his wounds” is the ancient “wounded man” conception which is first depicted in cave art, see later in this chapter. This is a new take on the ancient idea, similar to the “wounded man on the cross”, namely Jesus. An intriguing picture of a Druid priest has several interesting aspects to it.99 The dress, items and surroundings demonstrate that the artist was knowledgeable about the specific cosmology symbolism, some of which could be immediately associated with the Angelman. One such item is a bent “trumpet” on a large, cut, block of rock and on another smaller white rock is a snake emerging from a basket and drinking milk from a flat dish. Although we would expect a horn, or any of its alternative forms, to be represented around the face area, in reality these could be represented in many different forms, not necessarily as we would expect, as long as members of the particular society understood the symbolic meaning thereof. The first musical instruments must have originated by the ancients simply attempting to copy the appearances of the celestial images. Therefore, one can imagine a situation where a person held a piece of grass, a stick, or a reed pipe (particularly preferred because of its association with water) to their mouth to look like Angelman. And it was probably by sheer chance that when the reed pipe was blown it produced a sound. While we now take sound, as with everything else, for granted, one can imagine with what fascination our ancient ancestors greeted their first self-produced sound – a hidden sound stored in the reed! In fact it did not take them long to discover various “dead things” which resembled a characteristic of the deities/ancestors and produced sound. As they blew on these “pipes” and moved a bow-like thing with their teeth, as the San still do today, they must have began to move in different ways, attempting to copy the “movements” of the celestial images. They probably first moved in a circle. 298

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ This connection of sound and movement must have subsequently led to the conceptualisation that sound moves people, therefore, because the celestial images (gods/ancestors) move, they (the celestial images) too must also have sound that moves them. This conceptual association must have been discovered either before or in parallel with intoxicating liquor (see Book 3) and other drugs which also “move” people. Hence, for the ancients these things (music, liquor and dance) were seen as the “products” of certain celestial beings. This might explain how two ideas, dancing and drunkenness, which appear unrelated, are linked in this particular way of thinking, and are persistent in the “myths”, religion and other cultural expressions of various ancient peoples. This mytho-religious and other associated cultural expressions around dancing and drunkenness were the ancient peoples’ attempt to express celestial movement as dancing (normal movement – anticlockwise) and drunkenness (abnormal movement, clockwise) and “coming together” that is, musical harmony (when the main cosmic phenomena resulted in the formation of the Phoenix). And still later these ancients must have realised that some sounds are pleasing to the ear (harmonious), whereas other are not – this subsequently became the “theory of harmonious movement of the heavenly bodies”. Expert information derived from anthropological studies and ancient texts point to the fact that music, like many other things of the ancient world, is claimed to have been “given” to different ancient societies by their gods or ancestors (which should not be understood in the modern sense). Then there is this mysterious interest of different great thinkers linking music with some yet unknown aspect of the universe: Musical instruments are almost universal components of human culture: archaeology has revealed pipes and whistles in the Paleolithic Period and clay drums and shell trumpets in the Neolithic age. It has been firmly established that the ancient city cultures of Mesopotamia, the Mediterranean, India, East Asia, and the Americas all possessed diverse and well-developed assortments of musical instruments, indicating that a long previous development must have existed. As to the origin of musical instruments, however, there can be only conjecture. Some scholars have speculated that the first instruments were derived from such utilitarian objects as cooking pots (drums) and hunting bows (musical bows); others have argued that instruments of music might well have preceded pots and bows; while in the myths of cultures throughout the world the origin of music has frequently been attributed to the gods, especially in areas where music seems to have been regarded as an essential component of the ritual believed necessary for spiritual survival.100

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The same ancient conception of associating music with “spirituality” still exists in today’s worshipping rituals: singing, clapping hands, playing musical instruments, etc. The followers of the great Greek philosopher Pythagoras (580-500 BC) wrote about the mysterious link between sound, numbers and the harmony of the cosmos in a book very revealingly called Tetraktys (“fourness”): The sacred decade in particular has a cosmic significance in Pythagoreanism: its mystical name, tetraktys (meaning approximately “fourness”), implies 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 = 10; but it can also be thought of as a “perfect triangle,”…Speculation on number and proportion led to an intuitive feeling of the harmonia (“fitting together”) of the cosmos (“the beautiful order of things”); and the application of the tetraktys to the theory of music…revealed a hidden order in the range of sound and later Pythagoreans seem to have assumed that the distances of the heavenly bodies from the Earth somehow correspond to musical intervals – a theory that, under the influence of Platonic conceptions, resulted in the famous idea of the “harmony of the spheres.” Though number to the early Pythagoreans was still a kind of cosmic matter, like the water or air proposed by the Ionians, their stress upon numerical proportions, harmony, and order comprised a decisive step toward a metaphysic in which form is the basic reality.101

Contemporary with Pythagoras was Confucius (551-479 BCE), who was also interested in music and a number of fields related to the same cosmological imagery: It is not known who Confucius’ teachers were, but he made a conscientious effort to find the right masters to teach him, among other things, ritual and music. Confucius’ mastery of the six arts – ritual, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and arithmetic – and his familiarity with the classical traditions, notably poetry and history, enabled him to start a brilliant teaching career in his 30s.102

One of his six classics is the Book of Music, no longer extant, but it appears that some of his ideas survived in the Annals of Master Lu, which contain the earliest extant text on ancient Chinese music. Many centuries later Johannes Kepler, the great western astronomer and mathematician, made use of more abstract thinking to express the same celestial ideas. He initially trained as a theologian before becoming an “astronomer”. Interestingly, one of his works, Mysterium Cosmographicum, is not strictly a scientific work since God and royalty feature prominently in this book.

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11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ I have reservations as to whether modern astronomers have fully understood Kepler’s books. In 1619, he produced Harmonice Mundi (Harmonies of the World), which brought together a number of principles to explain the entire universe: geometrical, musical, metaphysical, astrological, astronomical, and issues of the soul. It is my contention that these thinkers knew about the ancient connection of music with the cosmology of the ancients. They also knew that not only did musical instruments conform in shape to certain celestial images, but the design of these instruments expressed some other cosmological ideas that the ancients wanted to preserve. Numerous aspects of modern wind instruments prove that they originated from animal horns. The examples discussed above are mostly of the horn or trumpet, but there are other music instruments that also seem to relate to ancient societies’ attempts to give effect to the False Beard in their traditions. Below I focus on two such examples, the reed pipe and the flute. In a 3000-year-old coffin a pair of ancient Egyptian double flutes was discovered. “He (Flinders Petrie) told me one of these pipes possessed four finger holes, the other three…”103 Both the number of flutes, expressing the dual nature of the Angelman celestial image, and the number of holes are related to the ancients’ cosmology. “Three” may be a symbolic representation of the three False Orion Belt stars or of three beings, the Jade Emperor, the Horus Child and Angelman, or of other three linked celestial beings, or of the three major celestial regions (SE, SW and NW) which “connect” at a particular time to give rise to the Phoenix. “Four”, on the other hand, can also be a representation of four celestial beings which were seen to be linked. You will have noticed the persistency of three, four and five in several of the earlier chapters. But these numbers (3, 4) both apart and in combinations (43, 34, or 7) are part of an ancient calculation system related to their cosmology (Book 3). Surely if a flute was just a musical instrument, why take it to the grave? With the Aztecs we see that the flute, a more advanced reed pipe, has religious ritualistic significance with a number of tell-tale indicators related to the ancients’ cosmology. Far removed from Egypt, and separated from it by thousands of years, we see a flute among the Aztecs which also carries some as yet unknown religious ritual significance. A powdery blue flute with an up-turned end was excavated. It resembles a leg (from the knee down) with a foot. This design is presumably based not only on Hadar-Rigel Kent and the Crux, but also on the False Beard. Underneath the “foot” are three holes, and on the “leg” four identical holes, with a fifth square hole apart and nearest to the mouth-piece. The legend to this flute notes: “The finger holes of 301

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ the Aztec flute…suggest that a pentatonic, or five-note, scale might have been used. Double and triple flutes [which probably gave rise to the panpipes], however, have been found with as many as 16 stops.”104 Additional evidence indicates that music and dance, as still found in many contemporary religions, were an important part of religious ceremonies, but with a dangerous sting that if a mistake was made when playing any instrument it would attract death: At Motecuhzoma’s feats, however, a sad fate might await the vocalist who sang offkey, or the drummer who missed a beat. They imprisoned him and he died… The Atzecs had two sacrificial rituals in which music played a specific part: “Women were sacrificed at a fall festival honouring the mother goddess of growing and ripe maize…They were decapitated, their heads chopped off like ears of corn as they danced in imitation of the divinity. The idea of divine impersonation was taken furthest in the case of a handsome youth chosen annually to represent Tezcatlipoca, arch sorcerer and supreme god of the Aztecs pantheon. For a year the young man was honoured as an incarnation of the deity, walking about in the apparel associated with the god and playing on the flute. One month before his death, he was provided with four maidens representing goddesses to enjoy. When the appointed day arrived, he had to say farewell to them and climb the steps of the temple alone, casting down and breaking a flute at each step as he ascended. Then the waiting priests seized him and cut out his heart… Each spring, the entire nobility of the land, kings and princes, and great lords, took a child of six or seven years and placed him within an enclosed litter so that he would not be seen. The procession crossed Lake Tetzcoco and winded its way to the summit of the Mount Tlaloc, a peak near Tenochtitlan that the Mexicans associated with clouds and rain. ‘If they go along crying,’ an Aztec document preserved in another chronicle records, ‘if their tears keep flowing,’ it was said, ‘indeed it will rain.’ At Mount Tlaloc the child was sacrificed, by the priests, to the wail of trumpets, conch shells, and flutes, and the child’s blood was used to bathe an image of the god.105

The horn and its connection with stars There are significant aspects in the examples I have discussed that suggest a link between horns and the False Beard of Angelman. But in addition to these, it is 302

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ interesting to note a direct link between traditions around horns and a particular star, a star that does not have the shape of a horn, yet is called a horn! I will only highlight aspects from this traditional astronomy, as noted by a well-respected astronomist, without going into detail, as to why a star that has no appearance of a horn is called and linked to traditions around a horn. Sometime in May-June 2006 I was using a computer in a communal office when my eyes fell on a document entitled Stars and Seasons in Southern Africa. The strange thing about this is that except for myself there was nobody that I knew of in the Microbiology Department, interested in stars. The article is by Prof. Snedeger from the Department of Astronomy, University of Cape Town. It discusses the traditional conceptions of indigenous people of southern Africa concerning various stars and constellations. The article was an important find. And it is just another one of several coincidences I have had during this period of observing and unravelling these celestial images. According to Snedeger, Canopus – the second brightest star in the night sky – was traditionally well known to three tribal groups, the Sotho, the Tswana and the Venda106 people, as Naka or Nanga, “the Horn Star”. This star was of great calendric significance to these people, as the Sotho-Tswana people believed Naka [reverse Akan] was the harbinger of winter. He came to “burn up” everything in nature that was green, leaving the veld in shades of brown. Naka/Nangal/Canopus usually made its appearance in the pre-dawn sky by the third week of May. The first person of the Venda people to see it would sound the phalaphala horn from atop a hill. This person would receive a cow as a prize. The Lodebu believed that it was a sign of good luck for the person who first saw Naka. The people would then chant, “Naka has come out, the boy has come out.”107 This “horn star” has been associated with rainmaking and also with with kingship among the Zulus and Swazis. It is interesting that, according to the findings of Snedeger, there is a clear link between a star, a horn, and traditions around a cow, leadership and rainmaking. There is even an old photograph of a Pedi man blowing a phalahala horn.108 The interesting thing about this photo is that the man’s bumpkin costume (hoop or bustle – I don’t know whether the Pedi woman wear these dresses; I have observed such dresses worn by the Shangaans) and the elaborate headdress, including his posture, have several visual aspects in common with the Angelman. The fact of Canopus being a horn, and its association with a boy “coming out”, leadership and rainmaking, make no sense when considered apart from a framework. However, it makes absolute sense in the context of my discussions thus far. 303

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Another interesting point about the Shangaans is that, apart from their traditional dress which is related to the Angelman as Humpty-Dumpy, there is also this persistent idea and suspicion among the other ethnic groups in Limpopo, the Pedi and Venda, that the Shangaan men have magic potions to enlarge their penises to an extraordinary size. Indeed there is a Shangaan tradition that when a boy is born, a little tree is planted, and the young boy must look after this “boy tree” because it is believed that as the tree grows the boy’s penis will grow. These traditions, when understood in the context of the Horus Child (one of the boys) transforming into Angelman (another part of the celestial tree), support the contention that all these ideas, the horn, the dress and the penis, are collectively a confirmation that the Shangaans’ traditions, as with the other tribes, are celestial in origin. In the same province of Limpopo there are remnants of another age-old tradition about the rainmaker, in this case significantly a female dynasty, the Rain Queen, Modjaji. Furthermore, various groups within the different tribes have very telling totemic names such as the Tlou/Dou or elephant and the crocodile or Kwena; the Bakwena are the people of the crocodile. The royal Bafokeng, in Northwest province, of the Tswana tribe, are particularly associated with the Kwena. Not only are these totemic names, they are also popular surnames in contemporary times. All the totemic names and traditions associated with these people point to an ancient system by which these societies were partitioned in relation to some cosmological plan in relation to specific celestial images. Taking all this into consideration, it is clear that they too are dealing with celestial phenomena, no different from what obtained in other societies all over the world. As you will see, all ancient societies played with the same celestial images; however, each society gave “different” interpretations and cultural expressions to the images. Eventually these ideas and traditions were carried over to successive generations who added their own particular “flair” to them so that on the surface they might appear different, yet when fully understood, are seen to be based on and derived from the same cosmic drama. The ancient human’s use and the religious symbolism of bones, cowries and conch shells Cowry and conch shells are also very commonly found in ancient artworks, ideas and cultural expressions, in divination, in personal adornments, and in other uses. As already noted above, skulls with cowry shells for eyes from the Natufian culture (8500-7300 BCE) have been excavated. In a discussion regarding the horned shamans of Mexico figurines we noted a claim that conch shells “… had a long association with rulership in central Mexico and among the Maya. Conch shells appear as part 304

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ of the headdress in portraits of Maya rulers and they are important elements in the art of Teotihuacan”.109 Danien further notes that the conch shells found in the Huitzilapa tomb were covering the male figure’s loins and were placed at his side. Large white cowry shells are a favourite with Indian gods. Vishnu, the god who took on a man’s form and is depicted emerging from a large fish, has four arms and in one hand he is holding a white cowry shell.110 The same Vishnu, in two other scenes, the “Preserver”, and “churning of the sea of milk,” is also holding a white cowry shell.111 I have seen fierce Kali, another form of Vishnu, with a similar shell. In South Africa the nyanga or “witchdoctor” uses bones and cowry shells as part of a divination tool-kit. In the World Atlas of Divination a chapter is dedicated to divination and the use of bones for divination.112 This is a common practice in several southern Africa countries. During the first divination the witchdoctor uses four bones all made of ivory, bone, cattle horn or wood. Alternatively two of the bones can be replaced by pyramid-shaped bones that have been cut from the tips of the hoof of an ox or a cow. This set of four bones is differentiated to represent a senior male, a junior male, a senior female and a junior female. However, if the number of bones used increases (up to 60), a number of astragals (knuckle bones) of various animals can be used and a few objects such as seashells, tortoise shells and special stones can also be included. The most important issue is to have male and female bones from both species. There are a few exceptions, especially among the Lovedu,113 where the antbear (symbolic of the Lion/Rat or celestial Pig): is represented by only one bone as it digs in the ground where the dead are buried and is thus associated with the ancestors…At first the teacher uses his own divining set, but after some time he tells the pupil to kill an ox, from whose bones he carves a set of the four principal pieces…[in preparing the bones the emphasis is on making these white] The process may involve the use of white objects or substances, for example, placing bones under white ash [Remember Job covering himself in ash!, a ritual which is still prevalent in the initiation of young boys in Africa and with gurus in India], or under white leaves on a growing tree beneath white moonlight. In some tribes the apprentice drinks a concoction of water in which the bones plus various roots, powders and the flesh of a white goat have been boiled.114

The objects (type and number) used in this practice are quite interesting and once again point to the cosmological conceptions of the ancients. In the World Atlas of Divination there is a photo of a Tswana man seeking advice from a diviner. The bones, which include one spotted cowry shell, are shown on a 305

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ square newspaper with the four sides deliberately torn off. From what I have heard these bones can be thrown on the soil or on a rectangular grass mat. The rectangular mat, like Aladdin’s magic carpet, is symbolic of the Magic Rectangle. The Yoruba of Nigeria, at home and in diaspora, practise a form of divination called dilogun using cowrie shells. The Encylopedia Britannica provides information not only on what cowry shells are but also on their unexplained significant value: Cowries [are] any of several marine snails of the subclass Prosobranchia (class Gastropoda) comprising the genus Cypraea, family Cypraeidae. The humped, thick shell is beautifully coloured (often speckled) and glossy; the aperturallips, which open into the first whorl in the shell, are rolled and may be fine-toothed. Cowries occur chiefly in coastal waters of the Indian and Pacific oceans. The 10-centimetre (4-inch) golden cowry (C. aurantium) was traditionally worn by royalty in Pacific Islands, and the money cowry (C. moneta), a 2.5-centimetre (1-inch) yellow species, has served as currency in Africa and elsewhere [including China].

Cowries and conch shells symbolic of the False Beard In a painting by Filipepi Botticelli (1445-1510)115 depicting Aphrodite and a naked, sleeping Hermes, three boys with naked torsos and the lower half of a goat are joined by a lance ending in a large cowry/conch shell, which one of the boys is blowing close to the face of Hermes. The latter representation of the cowry/conch shell is suggestive of the False Beard. The boys are also of interest. The one nearest to Aphrodite’s face is completely covered by a large blue helmet with gold trimmings. The cap of the helmet is part of the handle of the lance. The second boy has two tiny bent horns and a tail which splits into three. In front of the tail is the boy without horns, blowing the cowry shell. Their different features suggest the Horus Child’s transformation from being hidden by a large helmet / “horse’s head”, which also emphasises his mining and war-like natures. The boy with horns and the chubby girl/ boy underneath the triangular arm of Hermes appear to share three characteristics that which suggest they are related, namely, pointed ears, protruding tongues and tiny curled horns. Firstly, as discussed in chapter 5, the protruding tongue and the chubbiness are features of Bes / the Jade Emperor / Eldest Son. Secondly, the fact that this little girl/ boy is represented at the bottom of the painting suggests that he/she is symbolic of the severed head, alias the “dog” (see Book 2), a certain transformational form of the Jade Emperor / Eldest Son. 306

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Also interestingly, the right side of this girl/boy is covered by heavy “armour” with a red shoulder band. And he/she rests next to a metal pin, similar to the metal pin on which a finger from the left arm of Hermes is resting. Aphrodite’s right arm, bent into a triangle, rests on a blood-red cushion while her left leg stretches all the way to Hermes. There is an emphasis on this single, shoeless, foot, I guess to emphasise the number five. Both Hermes’ feet are hidden, and his legs are crossed to give the impression of the number four. Hermes is also lying on a red sheet that varies from pink at his lower extremities to blood red under his upper body and left arm. This is certainly an intriguing painting that suggests to me that the artist attempted to “reproduce” the celestial images of the SE to SW regions and the ideas which were held about such celestial images. From Wikipedia on “Conch Shells” we get the following information about the biology, habitat and various uses of the conch, and the associated cultural ideas and practices. Like the cowries, the conches are sea-dwelling snails/molluscs, which belong to the genus Strombus, but other common molluscs such as the Horse Conch are generally also called conches. It is actually very interesting that the Sea Horse is also referred to as conch, but for now I want to focus on the true conches ̶ the Queen Conch (Strombus gigas) and the West Indian Fighting Conch (Strombus pugilis). Sadly most of the Strombus species are extinct probably as a result of over-harvesting by our ancestors. Firstly, the sickle shape of the foot was probably seen as being symbolic of either the False Beard or the Sword/Penis. Secondly, the spiral directions of the shell may have represented the clockwise and anticlockwise movements of the celestial images discussed in this book: “Depending on species (or aberrant growth patterns), shell growth can be sinistral (left-handed) or dextral (right-handed).116 Conches have long eye stalks, a long and narrow aperture and a siphonal with an indentation near the anterior end called a stromboid notch. They also have a foot ending in a pointed, sickle-shaped, horny operculum.”117 Conches have been used for different purposes. In classic Mayan art, conches are shown being utilized in many ways including as paint and ink holders for elite scribes, as bugles or trumpets, and as hand weapons…Some American Indians used cylindrical conch columella beads as part of breastplates and other personal adornment…Conch shells are sometimes made into bugles by removing the small tip of the shell to form a mouthpiece. Such instruments are used in the Pacific Islands as well as in many parts of Asia…The conch shell is a major Hindu article of prayer, used as a trumpeting announcement of all sorts. 307

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The God of Preservation, Vishnu, is said to hold a special conch, Panchajanya, that represents life as it has come out of life-giving waters. In the story of Dhruva the divine conch plays a special part. The warrior of ancient India would blow conch shells to announce battle, such as is famously represented in the beginning of the war of Kurukshetra in the Mahabharata, the famous Hindu epic. The conch shell is a deep part of Hindu symbolic and religious tradition. To this very day, many Hindus use the conch as a part of their religious practices, blowing it during worship at specific points, accompanied by the ceremonial bells…118

Accompanying this information is a picture of a Hindu priest blowing a conch during puja. A photo on the the web depicts two Hawaiian keiki (children) blowing conch shells.119 One shell resembles a large round dish and the other an elongated “dish”. When you look at the entire picture it does not give the appearance of the False Beard. It is this picture that made me think that the conch might be a triple symbol. At this stage I just want to mention two symbolisms which the ancients may have attached to the conch. Firstly I think it was symbolic of the False Beard (the musical aspect). Secondly I think the shape and size was also symbolic of the Celestial Ship/Boat, the body of the Jade Emperor! Hindu conches are associated with a being that appears to be the Jade Emperor. And further information on Hawaiian conches links them to “small Hawaiian people”. This aspect of size links up with the dwarf nature of Bes, which I have argued (see chapter 5) is also representative of the Jade Emperor: Pu,120 a Hawaiian conch shell, is a large seashell played like a ceremonial fanfare trumpet…In ancient times, the Pu was sometimes used to accompany chants [emphasis on the mouth as with poets], and most often used to announce the beginning of a ceremony. There is a story of a group of Menehune,121 a legendary race of small Hawaiian people, who lived in Waolani in Nuuanu Valley on Oahu. Chief Kiha used a conch shell to control the little gods, as the Menehune were often referred to. The Menehune took the conch shell from him and blew it so much at nightthat residents began to complain. A thief retrieved the shell for Chief Kiha, but chipped it on the way back. This very shell is now in display at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu… As the group came through the channel, the Pu announced their arrival, while another Pu on-shore responded with a callout to the North, South, East and West, signifying the gathering of all powers. 308

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Today the Pu is used to announce the opening of the Hawaii State Legislature, presentation of the royal court at hula festivals and traditional ceremonies. The Pu is also a popular commencement tool at weddings and luaus, and also has been used to honor royalty and famous people.122

The sounding of the conch for important occasions is similar to the use of the horn and shofar in other cultures. The ancients attached value to the cowrie and conch for several reasons: • their association with our terrestrial earth’s sea, which in turn was seen as representing the celestial sea; • their “bony” nature – bone produced in water! Later you will see why this interest in bone became associated with white pearls; • their sound feature; and • the idea that the shell’s shape and the soft fleshy nature of these molluscs was symbolic of the female’s private parts. This idea must be understood in the context of sacred sex that is also derived from these celestial images. Interestingly, another sea mollusc, abalone, which is highly valued as an aphrodisiac, is still called by locals in Cape Town by a name that suggest a woman’s private parts. It is for the same reason that even oysters and mussels are regarded as aphrodisiacs. The pear-shaped objects normally depicted in the hands of Mesopotamian deities and kings, such as that held by the Assyrian King Ashurnasipal II, who is standing in front of the “Tree of Life” surmounted by a winged-disk god Ashur,123 may also be a cowry shell, but its shape suggests that it might be representative of the Crux Constellation. The smoking-pipe symbolic of the False Beard In a section below, dealing with Pan and Angelman, you will read about the idea of “milling little people into snuff or fine powder” (which is presumably fine white powder); sometimes the same idea is differently expressed in the idea of “milling out salt”. It is within this context that we should understand the religious significance of salt (see the New Testament), and why certain contemporary societies still practice the tradition of throwing a pinch of salt over their shoulder for their dead ancestors or for good luck. This latter tradition seeks to preserve the link that the ancients made between the white of the celestial sea, the hand-arm (Wing/Arm) and the celestial dead ancestor. This “white powder”, symbolic of the “white stuff”, in what may be seen as a bizarre opinion, was given a different actuality by the ancients in the form of making objects 309

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ shaped like the False Beard, for example, smoking-pipes, which produced white vapoury stuff. I am convinced, as I will explain, that the smoking-pipe became an alternative or an advanced symbol for the False Beard. Not only is it shaped similarly but it also produces white smoke when lit (from fire). This white smoke was symbolic of the celestial “white stuff”, which was an obsession of our ancestors. And this obsession with “white stuff” under various guises still remains in modern religious ceremonies (chapter 4 and Book 2). It is within this context that we should understand why pipe-smoking and a shepherd’s crook (as a walking-stick) were once the mark of a distinguished gentleman in certain contemporary societies! And how ironic that the god’s son was reduced to a pipe-smoking cartoon character with the strength of Hercules, Popeye (one eyed) the Sailorman, who gets his strength from spinach! In fairy tales I have seen pictures of a large stork standing on a roof-top next to a chimney carrying a baby in its beak. A rather illogical explanation is that it was common for parents, when asked about the origin of babies, to answer that a baby was dropped down the chimney by a stork. This same idea translated into the bizarre tradition of Father Christmas “climbing” down the chimney. However, the chimney was only representative of the white “smoke” and fire (Antares). Furthermore, these traditions around Father Christmas and Christmas can be seen as preserving the link between various ancient ideas: a fat, chubby Father Christmas, representing chubby Bes or Angelman, with a long beard, climbs down a chimney to fill a large sock hung behind a door, or tied to a bed with a bow (X), with gifts for the children, who are representatives of the Horus Child, Bes and the Eldest Son! The sock is representative of the leg-foot Crux-Hadar-Rigel Kent; the bed and door preserve the rectangular shape, namely the Magic Rectangle; and the gifts represent the origin of all things of humanity, the “Horn of Plenty”. How ironic that smoking, which was once at the heart of human development, is now killing millions of people. “What has become the king of vices, the sovereign lord of tooth and lung decay, of dentine tartars and pulmonary cancers, was once, from Greco-Roman to medieval times, a sovereign remedy…Thus tobacco began about two thousand years ago as one of the great curers of all ills and evolved into what it is today, one of the great killers of all times.”124 Despite scientific proof that smoking damages the health and kills, educated and uneducated masses still smoke. Similarly, despite the huge amount of evidence around evolution, educated and uneducated masses still believe in Divine creation! Why do we persist in doing “things” that we know are harmful and believing “things” to be true when there is overwhelming evidence to the contrary?

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11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Nowhere was pipe-smoking more revered as sacred than in the Native American and African cultures – at least, these are the ones I am aware of; there might be other societies who shared this reverence. There is a rather strange effigy of Osiris found in the Valley of the Kings.125 The effigy has the head of a mouse/rat-like creature with a single eye, holding a crooked staff that looks like a long upside-down smoking-pipe close to his mouth. This effigy was found wrapped in sheets of linen, presumably white cotton linen, in a box in the “Treasury” of the tomb of Tutankhamun. “When unwrapped it revealed a hollow frame in the figure of the god which had been filled with Nile mud and seeds to make a germinating Osiris, or Corn mummy.” What is quite revealing is that some of the information from van Sertima points to the mysterious nature of smoking.126 Smoking is used in a collective sense to include aspects such as the plants smoked, the smoking implements used and traditional views and practices around smoking. The traditions and interests in smoking are not consistent with it just being a form of entertainment; they appear to be linked with alchemy, religion and scared rituals. There are many hints of a relationship the very same ancient celestial worldview I discuss in this book. Jean Nicot, French ambassador to Portugal, stood on the balcony of his house, looking out on the garden. He was struck by the luxuriance of the new plant which the Keeper of the Royal Prisons in Portugal had sent him. It had come in recently from Florida, a place somewhere in the new dominions of Spain. He heard of a plant like this among the Moors used for curing the Noli me tangere, but he had dismissed this as irrelevant. All he wanted of the plant was for it to adorn his garden. It was almost as tall as a man, full leaves, large and long-bearded. He felt, indeed, as if he had acquired, from some secret garden, a rare and exotic flower of the new-found world.127

This exotic plant, first known as the Ambassador’s herb,128 was sought after, even by ancient peoples, for its healing powers that miraculously cured many ailments. Its leaves were used to wrap around open wounds and cuts while the juice was used to cure itchiness, sores, ringworm, and chronic ulcers. The Amerindians drank the distilled juice to cure shortness of breath. They used the leaves for food; they made little balls which they chewed. They also used the leaf for medicinal purposes. They crushed the leaf into powder form, or made a poultice of the leaf, or extracted the juice from the plant. This juice was a powerful antidote for scorpion stings and the deadly effects of poisonous arrows. A scorpion and an arrow are still part of astrological images! In ancient times people did not regard smoking as a pleasant after-dinner custom. It was believed that the fumes of various viscous substances, derived from fruit 311

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ and herbs, had healing powers. An alchemist burnt these substances in a vessel and the rising fumes were passed through a funnel into a distilling glass or cup where they condensed, after which they were used to fumigate a patient. The distilled and condensed fumes were led through a tube into the mouth, nose or anus of the patient to heat, soothe and clean the affected parts. Interestingly the beginnings of our pipe-stem came from the funneling tube or embocus, as the alchemist called it, and the beginnings of the pipe-bowl came from the cup receiving the distilled fumes/vapours (the ambix or mastarion). The alchemist had rather strange ideas about smoking: The alchemist looked upon their distilling apparatus in a very novel way, as the union of male and female. They saw the mastarion as the uterus (and nipplelike appendages studded this container), the funnel or embocus as a penis, the hot power of the fumes charging up the embocus, the male sperm, which is transformed into the new chemical combination…deposited in the glass vessel at the end of the tube of the mastarion.”129

Proof of the existence of this smoking apparatus became evident when ancient pipes were excavated from Roman graves. Van Sertima also notes that this habit of smoking tobacco orally, as well as the instrument used for smoking, was introduced to the Native Americans by Africans: “some Americans were first seen by Columbus smoking with a Y-shaped reed through the nostrils…” This pastime of oral puffing and inhalation of smoke was indulged in by both African men and women. But it was “a habit only of the American elite, restricted to the Indian chiefs, wealthy Indians with many wives, or Indian priests and medicine men”. The common people were only allowed to smoke on ceremonial occasions, at celebrations and at festivals such as tabaquio, tabaskie (the December feast), and tabaske (feast of the sacrifice).130 The magician’s pharmacopoeia included aromatic plants which were burnt. Smoking was used as a tranquiliser and was also widely used in magic and in sacred rituals. Specific aromatic plants were burnt for the invocation of the spirits during specific ceremonies. Interestingly many of the rituals and divinations used amongst the American Indians are the same as those used amongst the Africans.131 The African influence on medieval American pipes became more evident with the 312

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ excavation of sculptured monitor pipes found in the mounds of the mound builder culture that extends from Florida to the country of Hurons. Amongst these pipes were seven pipes that represent the manati or sea cow. These pipes depicted various African animal motifs such as the mantis, frogs, serpents, alligators, birds and elephants. They also came in an array of colours; some were showered in gold while others were blackened and polished with coal or painted in the white bright powder of chalk. They were decorated with flowers, fishes and eagles and the bowl was often depicted as the vivid heads of these foreign black people or the forms of topical animals.132 Is it pure coincidence that these animals, flowers and other objects feature in the ancients’ cosmology that I am discussing? There is also a significant piece of information from Zulu mythology that links the smoking-pipe to a jackal: “Mpungushe133 (“jackal”) suffered his wife to die “Crushed by a rock” – Mpungushe carried the hollow tubular smoking-pipe – Mpungushe stole fire from the Queen of the Gods.”134 This jackal, like Anubes, is a celestial image (see Book 2), hence smoking must also be symbolic of celestial phenomena. The sacred pipes of the Native Americans had both religious and political significance. They were often referred to as “peace pipes” or “calumets”. These indigenous people believed that tobacco symbolises the wonder of creation. Thus, when smoking the pipe they believed they were showing their respect to the Great Spirit who created all. And as the smoke rose, while puffing on the pipe, the thoughts, feelings, and prayers of this person travelled up to the Great Spirit. If the “‘keeper’ of the pipe lives a good and righteous life, the pipe will reward him with honour and power.”135 This sacred pipe also played a significant role in treaties between European settlers and the Native American tribes. When they smoked the pipe together it signalled an agreement to seek out friendship and harmony between the two cultures. However, the indigenous people regarded it as a supreme insult if the Europeans refused to smoke the pipe. When the North American people entered into a treaty they regarded the Sun as their witness and their guarantee. This tradition was also followed by the Carthaginians in Polybius (many Bes/Bus, that is, many transformational forms of Bes) and also by Agamemnon in Homer. Their allies had to smoke the calumet or peace pipe and the smoke would be blown towards their luminaries or celestial bodies. According to the traditions of the Pawnees, living on the shores of the Missouri, they received the calumet from the Sun.136 An example of a “peace pipe” consisting of a long staff-like pipe with strings and 313

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ feathers tied to resemble the wings of a bird, I guess the Eagle, is depicted in Mythology.137 This is the Sacred Pipe of the Crow people – the leader would sit a distance away from his warriors to smoke his pipe in an attempt to seek advice from the spirits. Interestingly, a pipe still features on the flag of the Crow nation. Just as a side note, we have seen smoke linked with pipes but smoke on its own carries the same celestial symbolic meaning when used in various traditions and practices such as the burning of incense in “holy” places such as temples and churches in contemporary societies. With the election of the latest pope I learnt about an interesting tradition involving smoke, namely that black smoke is released to signal that no decision regarding the next pope has yet been made, while white smoke is released to signal that a consensus has been reached. In The Golden Bough various strange traditions are recorded around fire and firefestivals.138 I have mentioned European traditions of passing animals through smoke and in Book 3 I will return to other aspects of these traditions. Quite tellingly, members of the Azande tribe from southern Sudan pass a newborn baby through smoke as part of their birth purification rituals. The question mark sign symbolic of the False Beard In Mesoamerican codexes, talking is represented as a smoke-like sign shaped like a question mark emanating from the individual’s mouth. An example of this is seen on a Tlaloc mural depicting their paradise.139 An artwork from Mexican Antiquities provides further confirmation that this question-mark-like sign for speech is based on a celestial image since it is couched in recognisable celestial imagery.140 The artwork depicts a male looking upwards with a question mark extended from his mouth. On his head is a “tiara” crown with a prominent eye – the “All-Seeing Eye”. His left arm ends in the head of a bear, while in the other he is holding a box, that is, a “coffin”. Behind his rear end and right leg is a down-facing bovine and a spear (“spade”). In front of this foot, continuous with the single leg of the bovine, is a crab-like image. Above this man is a wily man with only a head, two arms and a prominent rope tied around his neck. A band is tied to the side, around his forehead. It flows into two long strands which look like snakes. This is apparently the “Father in Heaven” of Horus (the lower figure). The legend to this artwork notes: “Horus, who is here represented as speaking to his Father in Heaven, wears the Crown with the “All Seeing Eye”, and above this; Three Rods or Rays of Light. His Serkh is behind with the Three Rods on top, also on his feet. He is giving the sign of – and his Father in Heaven who is represented above is returning the answer – Horus is shown wearing the chain of the 33o with the same emblem, as used during the Stellar Mythos.”141 314

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Churchward briefly discusses this figure in the context of Egyptian astro-mythos, noting: “The Egyptians celebrated ten great festivals or mysteries each year, and we find the Mexican-Zapotecs did the same.The Mexican and Central States of America also ideographed their Astro-Mythology in Uranographic mode, as did the Egyptians.”142 He provides a comparison between the corresponding Mexican and Egyptian ideographic ideas. The aspects just described suggest that we are dealing with celestial imagery. My interpretation is that the young man is likely to be Angelman and the “Father in Heaven” the Jade Emperor, or even the Indian Chief (see chapter 14). This questionmark sign must not be confused with another question-mark sign which I will discuss as one of the headdresses of Angelman. Dangling objects from the mouth to symbolise the False Beard Churchward records an interesting ritual practised among some Northern Aboriginal tribes who insert long hanging things from their noses, for example a white quill, in yet another attempt to look like Angelman.143 A photo is shown of one of the tribe returning to camp after a sacred ceremony called Intichiuma. His left arm is saluting, while his right arm is at his side. In his mouth or nose is a long pipe-like projecting object. His pose and the object in his mouth are certainly suggestive of Angelman. According to Churchward: “All who are initiated must use this sign on their return into camp, which may be interesting to R.A.M.’s [a secret rank within Masonry]. These traditions alone are, we think, proof that the origin and birthplace of these people was Egypt.” Perhaps this same ancient tradition mutated into the habit of some contemporary African and Afro-American males dangling a piece of stick or a toothpick at the side of their mouths? Miscellaneous items as symbolic representations of the False Beard There are several other items and representations which are different symbolic representations of the same False Beard motif. The following have combined symbolisms meant to preserve the link among various celestial images. In some cases such items may have the shape of the False Beard, yet may be representative of the Roman comb-hat, see later. What must also be considered is that while such items may be structurally similar to celestial images, they may be represented thus in order to preserve information about their shape in their initial position, combined with the intermediate and final transformational ideographic forms. In other cases these items might combine the structural features of the two celestial images the False Beard and the bent Knife/Sword/Penis. But they could also be 315

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ intended to preserve ideas about other celestial images associated with them. These are the complexities to bear in mind when examining items and ideographic forms that resemble the False Beard. This consideration also applies to other ideas and objects, for example, the scimitar or bent knife may be representative of the Sword/ Knife/Penis celestial image, but its shape may also be symbolic of the False Beard and the Roman comb-hat. Witches, like Baba Yaga, and the Bella Coola face mask, are often depicted with beaklike, crooked noses, which may resemble a shortened version of the False Beard and/ or the Roman comb-hat. But these artworks may also preserve information about the celestial birds (see chapters 4, 5, 6 and 8). Similarly, the up-turned Turkish/Persian shoes may be symbolic of the False Beard, the Roman comb-hat and the celestial form of the shoe-boat – the old shoe in which an old lady lived with 100 children, where the emphasis on the shoe is meant to convey where such images were located before their transformations. In the Cacxtla mural (ca. AD 800) a human-bird is depicted with the head of a human within the head of a bird, while the lower part of the beak of the bird forms a sharp curve.144 Moving to more “abstract” ideas and representational forms in artworks and objects, the False Beard and the Roman comb-hat celestial images may have become the shepherd’s crook and the bent-handled walking-stick, and finally, in contemporary society, the hockey-stick! In The Rule of Four there is an engraving by Agostino Carracci called “Love Conquers All”.145 It depicts a chubby, naked, single-winged boy standing on one leg. He is wrestling with a kneeling naked old satyr whose one strong arm is holding onto a rock. Between the satyr’s legs is a pen-pipe and at the boy’s feet is a long walkingstick lying horizontally and pointing towards a small mount on which two naked, sexually entwined women are sitting beneath a tree. But in ancient artworks the same False Beard ideograph can be found in unidentifiable objects. For example, a bronze votive figurine, representing a mythological character, from Strakonice in the Czech Republic, first century BCE, depicts a strong man carrying on his shoulder a large object like a short hockey-stick with a disk on the bent part of the “stick”.146 Apart from the bent stick and the disk there are two other aspects about this figurine to connect it with Angelman: the three prominent dot-like objects at his penis are presumably symbolic of the three False Orion Belt stars, while his arm, which ends 316

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ in a large three-fingered hand, is bent in a pose which I term the “triangular pose” of Angelman. The same False Beard imagery is being played with in characters such as Captain Hook and other pirates with an artificial hooked arm. There may be many more ideas and objects derived from the False Beard image. In closing, I also want to speculate that the celestial “structure” that I termed the False Beard has also been conceptualised as “tears” falling down someone’s face, or as a single plait of hair dangling from the head. The “tear-drop” of Isis is one of the famous examples where I think the False Beard was conceptualised as tears, but with the tears also conveying the idea of water, that is, celestial “sea water”. Furthermore, the slight saltiness of tears was symbolic of the celestial “white stuff” and related to the saltiness of the terrestrial sea. Thus the sea may have also been conceptualised as having been formed from the tears shed by deities. The following supports my speculation of linking tears to water: “The Egyptians did not know the cause of the Inundation, and thought that it was due to the swelling of the river, which was the result of the tears of the goddess Isis falling into it, on a certain night called the ‘Night of the tear-drop’.” The Muslims preserved this tradition and kept their great Nile festival on the night of the 11 of Paoni (June 17) which they called “Lēlat al-Nuktah” (Night of the Drop).”147 Another bizarre take on the tear idea is depicted in a wood figurine of the Nootka Indians. It depicts a squatting, naked woman breast-feeding her baby. The legend notes that the image is a sculpture of “Mother and Child” and relates to the Nootka mythology about two brothers rescuing their mother from the stomach of a monster. A related tale makes the strange connection of tears giving rise to a man: “…of a woman whose children have been kidnapped by a malevolent forest deity named Malahas [presumably from Ma + Al + Bas/Bus, which became Malbus with Notradamus]. As she cries, the woman’s tears become a fully grown man, Andaokut, who saves the children by killing Malahas.”148 The “headdresses” of Angelman There are several possible headdresses which may have been associated with deities, divine beings, royalty and clergy who envisioned themselves as or representing various celestial “being” images, for example, the Jade Emperor, the Eldest Son, the Horus Child, Angelman and the Indian Chief. These terrestrial rulers and clergy would dress and behave in a manner resembling the celestial images. Angelman’s “headdresses” can be divided into three groups: 317

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 1. true Angelman headdresses, 2. transformational headdresses, and 3. headdresses meant to preserve and convey the connection between celestial positions and images. Further headdress design permutations arose from mixing designs and styles from these three groups. While discussing examples of “true” Angelman headdresses, I will also elaborate on what I mean by the other headdress groups. 1. True headdresses are integral “features” of a particular celestial image; they are not “imposed” on the image from other images. In other words when one views a particular celestial image, the position and arrangement of certain stars gives the impression of a particular headdress. Similar headdresses were designed for the terrestrial counterpart who identified with the particular celestial being. 2. Transformational headdresses, in my definition, are headdresses which combine features from various associative celestial images. They are then “imposed” on Angelman to demonstrate the connection between him and the other celestial images. These connections may have been made to show that all these images occur at the “same” celestial regions and metamorphed along with Angelman. We shall see that two other images can be derived from the head of Angelman, namely the “horse” and “volvine”, called the Horse-Volvine, since this is a single image with two alternative forms depending on the perspective of the viewer. In his “transformational path” from the Horus Child he is “confronted” by various celestial animal forms, which later disappear as he becomes Angelman. And in the latter form he is associated with other forms, and later as he grows and disappears he assumes other forms. Also remember the Horus Child is “below” various other celestial images; the Sword/Knife/Penis and the Celestial Boats/Ships, the Jade Emperor, the Fowl-CHICK and most importantly the PhoenixSnake-Tree (see chapters 4, 7 and 15). All these complexities need to be considered when analysing Angelman’s headdresses. 3. The third kind, the various mixed headdresses, could also be created from celestial images that existed at positions other than those occupied by Angelman – in order to preserve or to convey ideas of a wider connection between Angelman and these other images. For example, in chapter 1 I mentioned what seems to be a connection between the SE and NW celestial points, so that celestial images which occur at the SW point were associated with images at the NW point. Artworks and other objects, including headdresses, may have been produced to preserve this connection. 318

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ Headdresses of types 2 and 3 In my opinion the Crux, the False Cross, the Sun and the full Moon were all seen as circles by the ancients and these were associated with various celestial beings and their terrestrial counterparts in various ways. The shape of a circle was worn as nose rings, earrings, neck bands, head bands, leg bands, crowns, etc. This ring/ circle finally became the halo that is commonly seen around Mary’s head and her son Jesus’ head. I have also seen similar halos around Vishnu’s head or those of other “divine” beings, for example, Saif ul-Muluk, an Egyptian prince. It is also possible that in its very crude development, or as alternative representations, this ring idea was “actualised” by terrestrial beings, who saw themselves as representatives of these celestial beings, by cutting the hair on their crowns in ring formations, as commonly seen with some traditional Jews. There is even a Chinese painting depicting Laozi [LA/AL + O+ Zu] with such a haircut.149 My South African school history books contained pictures of several tribal chiefs/ kings wearing a solid ring made of wood, beads or metal placed on a bald, shaven head or very short hair. An example is Cetewayo, a Zulu king who defeated the British army.150 I have seen some modern Arab princes wearing a double ring, one on top of the other, but fused together. This is presumably done to represent two rings, namely, the Crux and the False Cross or the Sun and Moon. A ring in combination with the “horse’s or camel’s head” celestial image, that is, the Horse-Volvine, may have been the basis for the Arab princes’ and kings’ headdresses, the ugal (ring/circle) and turban which forms a “mane” flap at the back. Another example which falls into the category of mixed headdresses is the representation of a being with a fish head or, as in the case of Enki, a human head adorning the body of a fish. Because of the complex nature of the celestial fishes, various celestial beings and their earthly counterparts represented themselves as Enki. For example, the headdress worn by Roman Catholic bishops (the mitre) is really a gaping fish head (the Crux or the False Cross) pointing vertically upwards. The true headdresses of Angelman On May 25, 2006 at 5 am, I noticed that Angelman was leaning with his head westwards, but facing backwards, as opposed to being vertical as when I first saw him. This was when I saw that his head extended to form what looked like a question mark (?) or fishhook. This form may also be visualised as a cockscomb, with the bent portion made flatter and elongated. The red cockscomb may have been especially significant to the ancients since its red colour and its position on the head of the bird could be an association with the celestial Phoenix and red Antares. 319

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Immediately upon my observation of this celestial image I connected it with the Roman comb-helmet. The hook part of the question-mark sign can also be straightened out, thus resembling the shape of the symbol for the number seven (7). Henceforth, this Roman combed-shaped, brush helmet will be termed the “Question Mark”. A different viewing of the same head/hat, involving stars numbered T4, T5, T6 and T7, gives the impression of a person wearing a small triangular hat, which may have been the inspiration for the religious hat worn by both Jews and Muslims – the skullcap. But as Angelman transformed, this same head/hat (stars T4 - T7) combined with the False Beard and produced an image which resembled a horse/volvine, or alternatively looked like the ugal-turban headdress. Also nearer to the “death” of Angelman more stars were added to the combed hat thus producing a more complex headdress. The various designs in different societies of the Greco-Roman comb-helmet symbolic of the Question Mark What is popularly taken to be a unique Greco-Roman comb-helmet is not necessarily so; this headdress appears to have been present in various ancient societies but with varied designs which still survive in contemporary times. Greco-Roman cultures It would be appropriate to start looking at early Rome in order to trace the origin of the Roman comb-helmet. According to Western sources, Rome is regarded as one of the greatest, ancient “European” empires whose military and engineering feats spread far and wide beyond what is now considered the geographic and ideological demarcation of Europe. And like several other ancient societies, Rome seemed to be imbued with some divine purpose. And as with many other ancient societies its “historical” germination is attributed to “mythological” beings and forces who are presented in residual physical evidence, for example, in artworks, monuments, texts, etc. This residual physical “evidence” is at times cited as proof that such “mythological beings” must actually have existed. Yet our logic and our understanding of terrestrial life and how nature operates cannot explain the origin of such beings, and their peculiar forms and actions. For example, the founding of Rome is attributed to the twins, Romulus and Remus whose mythological context will be presented. As an interesting side note, both Rom and Rem in the names Romulus and Remus may have been derived from the base word RAM as in Rama (a Hindu deity) and Rameses (an Ancient Egyptian Pharaoh). And Ram in reverse is MAR, as in Marduk 320

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ (an ancient Mesopotamian God), that became MARS/MARI/MARY/MARK. A truncation of the M in MARS gave rise to ARS, that is, ARIES and a reverse of ARS, gave rise to SARA. Rameses may also be the root for the name Moses – the liberator of the Israelities from slavery in Egypt. Romulus and Remus’ mother (a virgin) was raped by the god Mars while she was fetching water from the spring in his sacred grove. This raping of goddesses is a persistent mythological idea. The Sumerian god Enlil with his large phallus raped his nurse. Zeus raped Hera. At times the rape idea is disguised as the “carrying off” of a goddesses or maiden. She attempted to commit suicide but was rescued by Tiberinus, the river god. She was ordered to put the babies in a wooden chest and to throw it into the river (similar to Moses and his basket, or the floating of Osiris in his dead chest down the river). The chest was carried to the Palatine hill where the box was opened and the babies were left stranded under a fig tree (the mystical fig tree of Jhonna and Jesus). There, they were found and fed by a she-wolf. The king’s swineherd – presumably connected with the swine into which Jesus drove the evil spirits – saw this amazing sight and took the babies to his wife, whose own baby had recently been stillborn, and the couple brought up the babies as their own sons.151 There is even a statue of the river god Tiberinus and the she-wolf with the twin boys.152 Tiberinus is completely naked except for a cloth wrapped around one arm. He is holding a large Horn of Plenty and a large oar. A retrieved metal statuette of an Etruscan warrior depicts a slender male with a massive disproportionate comb-helmet, a large shield and a javelin.153 When you compare this Etruscan helmet with subsequent Roman comb/brush helmets of the same type, it is not difficult to conclude that the latter is just a refinement of the former. This helmet features prominently in the artistic works of Romans and Greeks. There are many mythological characters: “real” people – heroes, heroines and royalty – as well as divine beings – gods, goddesses and others – with different designs of this question-mark headdress on their heads and sometimes not necessarily on their heads. Although we are dealing with mythological characters and ideas, nevertheless, material evidence of the existence of such beings wearing/carrying the Question Mark headdress exists in various artworks, texts and on other artifacts such as coins, shields and vases discovered by archaeologists. One such deity, a mythological being, is the warrior goddess Athene, the daughter of Zeus, who is depicted, not only on an undated statue, but also on a coin and on a black vase, wearing two different styles of the Roman brush-helmet.154 Athene 321

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ was regarded as a goddess of war. Her warrior nature is emphasised by the helmet, the lance, the spear and the shield with which she is depicted. But it is clear from additional features, in bold below, that Athene is a celestial being: The legend to the coin notes: “Over her breast she is often seen wearing the aegis, a breast plate made of goat skin with tassels. The Gorgon’s head is painted on the aegis, or sometimes on her shield…”,155 while the legend to the vase notes: “the sea eagle, the cock, the serpent, and the olive oil tree were sacred to Athene, but above all she was mostly identified with the owl.”156 (See chapter 16 for the celestial idea being expressed by the owl conception.) On the vase, her one leg is straight and the other leg is bent – her foot is placed on a short stand, presumably a piece of broken pillar. Her breast plate has a fish-scale design and her left arm is prominently draped with her robe. A small owl called Athene’s (Minerva’s) “Little Owl” can be seen above this arm. It is also noted that Athene was represented with owl’s eyes. The earliest depiction of a human as an owl is with Innana, a popular goddess, in Mesopotamia. In myths, legends and folklore the owl is generally regarded as a bird of wisdom, and also of evil (see chapter 16). Another deity is Ares (derived from Mars), also an important Roman god of war. He is commonly, yet wrongly associated with our modern planet Mars. On what looks like a marble relief, Ares is depicted as a bearded man with a prominent Roman brush-helmet. He is receiving something to drink from Aphrodite, who is unveiling her face slightly. The robe draped over one of his arms and the large shield further suggest his celestial identity. A naked Jason, the hero of the story of the Golden Fleece (see chapter 6), is depicted in a white “marble” statue wearing the brush-helmet.157 A sword is tucked under one arm covered by the Golden Fleece (a sheep head and skin). In the other hand he is holding a large spear. On a vase painting (475-450 BC) of “Heracles and the Argonauts”, one of the soldierlike characters, holding onto a shield, is also wearing this typical helmet.158 Achilles, a popular god-hero from the Homer Epic, is depicted with various Romans. In a painting, “Thetis Giving Achilles His Arms”, Achilles is depicted as wearing a green Robin-Hood like outfit and a waist belt with four golden heads.159 A large sword hangs from his waist in such a manner that it dangles between his legs, representing the Sword/Knife/Penis of Bes. On his head is a Roman brush-helmet, but the brush, 322

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ instead of being red, is a long flowing, woolly, worm-like white “brush”. Another artwork depicts a battle scene between Achilles and Hector with both wearing different designs of the same Roman brush-helmet.160 Hector is the noble, compassionate and courageous eldest son of King Priam, who was destined to die over the ills of his younger brother – an alternative take on the rivalry of brothers as in the Cain and Abel story. In another crude painting on a shield, which certainly looks much older than the battle scene of Achilles and Hector, Achilles has a sharp, curved beard (symbolic of the False Beard), one prominent eye, a large sword and one strangely distorted, disproportionate gun-like arm.161 On his head is an unusually large checked “comb” and interestingly, with his gun-like arm he is grabbing the “hair” of another male, who has a prominent eye and curved chin, so that the “hair” forms a floppy pony-tail in front. Yet, even though several features of this combatant suggest maleness, the legend indicates that it is the Amazon queen, Penthesileia. Also interestingly, on his/ her left, above the arm, is a large ostrich-like bird and what appears to be a fish. The three representations of Achilles’ headdress illustrate the progressive redesign of the same headdress with the last example representing a much older design than the other two. The ostrich is an African bird and according to me was representative of the celestial Peacock (see chapter 16), thus this Greek artwork must have been influenced by Africa. Two different artworks depict scenes related to the Trojan horse.162 In both cases, the horse is the dominant feature. However, the horse in each artwork might be representing different celestial images: the Sheep/Goat/Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head or the Horse-Volvine. In the amphora artwork (seventh century BCE), of which only a portion is shown, there are several warrior-like beings with different types of brush headdresses. In the other artwork (1492–1546 BCE) four prominent males are associated with a large rock. And far removed from them is the construction of the Trojan horse, which stands on a large rectangular wooden frame with its rear towards the four. There is also a sketch, “The Death of Antigone”, where the “brush” is a swirl of feathers.163 The feathers are symbolic of the celestial birds, especially the Phoenix. In conclusion, the Roman brush headdress is very ancient. It varies in design and is associated with mythological characters whose additional features suggest they are celestial beings, hence this headdress must also be celestial in origin. Celtic and Irish cultures The main focus will be on various aspects of Lug since this prominent mythological 323

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ character display the brush headdress, but we will also look at some additional interesting celestial features that are important for understanding the ancients’ cosmology creations. Lug is a favourite mythological character in Celtic and Irish mythology and the name Lug may have given rise to names such as Look, Lok, Lleu, Louis, Luke and even words such as Laughter, as suggested by the following: Lugh (earlier Lug, modern Irish Lú, pronounced /Lu :/) is an Irish deity represented in mythological texts as a hero and High King of the distant past. He is known by the epithet Lámhfhada (‘long hand’), for his skill with a spear or sling, Samhildánach (‘Summer-multi-talented’, ‘skilled in many arts’), Lonnbeimnech (‘swordshouter’) and Macnia (‘boy hero’)…He is a reflex of the pan-Celtic god Lugus, and his Welsh counterpartis Lleu Llaw Gyffes ‘Lugh Strong Hand’.164

In another source his long arm/hand is associated with a magic spear – “Lugh was

supposed to posses a magic spear, but this does not figure in many of the surviving stories, nor does a legacy of warfare.”165

In one story Lugh is linked to the second battle of the Mag Tuireadh. He is specifically said to be a warrior, and like the young biblical David, he attacks an evil-eyed monster (compare with the giant Goliath) with a stone from an enchanted slingshot – “shooting it with such force that it drove the monster’s eye out of the back of his head…”166 There is clearly an emphasis on his “long hand” which appears to be also his “strong hand”. This long hand/arm is also a feature of Achilles in the battle scene Achilles and Hector that was discussed above. This long arm may be a play on the long structure in the modern Orion constellation, the Orion Man, containing the Hades stars (see chapter 1). The Orion-Hades structure is often depicted as a harvesting scythe, commonly carried by a skeleton-like character (the devil) in European art; or the long arm could be Angelman’s False Beard conceptualised as a long dangling arm. The long hand/arm may have also been “confused” with the Arm/Wing of the Jade Emperor and with the single arm of Angelman – see the section below that deals with the “one arm” motif. Lugh is the “Bright/Shining One”, a sun god praised for his many talents. He was a skilled craftsman (presumably a person who could work in wood, that is, a carpenter, a boat/ship builder), musician, poet, sorcerer and warrior. But he was also the grandson of the evil Fomorian Balor, often depicted as the one-legged, one-armed, ugly sea monster, who was malicious and grotesque. Even before Lugh’s birth it 324

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ had been prophesied that he would kill his grandfather Balor. But because Lugh was a sun god he was protected by powerful magic, making it impossible for Balor to kill him.167 Achilles was also impossible to kill, but his heel was his weakness and eventually a spear in his heel resulted in his death. Interestingly, the name of Lugh can be traced back to ancient Sumeria and we clearly see him associated with two persistent ancient conceptions found in mythology and religious texts, namely, the phallus and rape: One can trace the name back to its Indo-European roots. Phonetically, Lugh is equal to lu [may be from Li from Lileth]. Records from the era are syllabic and the sound lu is accounted for. It means “manly, strong, or virile”, prior and simultaneous to the name meaning “bright or shining”. The erect phallus conveys the meaning of virility rather well. Irish mythology reports of a human birth mother for Lugh. His father is a god, Lugh is the product of rape. Here the image is emerging (or born) from the sun. [This last statement seems to be referring to the Inyo image, see later] This name should also be seen as related to Mesopotamian names such as Lagash, place where Eannatum was king (ca. 2500 BC), Lugal – literally speaking, “the great man” and LU, human being. It was presumably in Babylon that LU, human beings, discovered a genius for art, literature, trade, law – and many other new things.168

From the following information we see Lugh being associated with a dog and this association further links him with Angelman since Angelman, as I will explain, is also linked with a dog or dogs (Book 2). There is also the virginity idea and the persistent flower idea and strangely enough Lug’s wife is created from flowers – which is no different from Buddha emerging or being born from the lotus: According to Irish tradition, Lug Lámfota (‘Lug of the Long Arm’) was the sole survivor of triplet brothers all having the same name. At least three dedications to Lugus in plural form, Lugoues, are known from the European continent, and the Celtic affinity for trinitarian forms would suggest that three gods were likewise envisaged in these dedications. Lug’s son, or rebirth, according to Irish belief, was the great Ulster hero, Cú Chulainn (‘Culann’s Dog’). In Wales, as Lleu Llaw Gyffes (‘Lleu of the Dexterous Hand’), he was also believed to have had a strange birth. His mother was the virgin goddess Aranrhod (‘Silver Wheel’). When her uncle, the great magician Math, tested her virginity by means of a wand of chastity,169 she at once gave birth to a boy child, who was instantly carried off by his uncle Gwydion and reared by him. Aranrhod then sought repeatedly to destroy her son, but she was always prevented by Gwydion’s powerful magic; she was forced to give her son a name and provide him with arms; finally, as his mother 325

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ had denied him a wife, Gwydion created a woman for him from flowers.170

The 30-day festival linked to Lugh and his consort is a further indication that he was identified as a celestial being since he seems to have been associated with our modern planet Jupiter. In Book 3 we will see that the number 30 in various forms is more likely applicable to the planet Saturn: He and his nature goddess consort (named variously as Tailltu, Machta or Gaulish Rosmerta171) were worshiped during the 30-day Lugnasad midsummer feast in Ireland as well. Sexual magic during this festival ensured ripening of the crops and good harvest.172 Although the Romans occasionally associated Lugh with Jupiter, as is possible with either of these archaeological finds, the tales from Wales and Ireland that concern Lugh show a many-skilled God of commerce, crafts and the arts, one who could be readily identified with Mercury [Marscuri]. Julius Caesar in The Gallic War states that the God the Celts [Colts] reverence most is Mercury and it was almost certainly Lugh that he was referring to as the Celtic Mercury.173

An interesting painting, “Lugh the Sun God”, depicts him wearing a two-horned helmet, and on top of the same helmet is the Question Mark design in the form of a small dragon. This small dragon design is also similarly depicted on another old male in the background, presumably the old form of the young Lugh.174 Interestingly, in another painting, “Cuchulainn carries Ferdiad across the River”, Cuchulainn, the son of Lugh, is wearing a horned-helmet where the third “horn”, rising vertically in the centre, makes a gentle curve suggestive of the False Beard horn motif which I have previously discussed. Also noteworthy is that he has a very prominent side plait and is carrying a young, wounded man, with red hair and a volvine back-side.175 Another interesting mythological Celtic character is Brigid. A bronze sculptured head of a female deity (first century AD, France) thought to be Brigid, a Celtic goddess, depicts her with two large hollowed eyes (presumably symbolic of the owl).176 On her head is a helmet with a large front projecting curved projectile, which I suggest is the same Roman brush with the crooked part of the Question Mark straightened out. And just beneath this “brush” is a duck insignia (symbolic of the “Great Cackler”). Brigid (or Brigit) has two meanings, firstly, “fiery arrow” – her cult is associated with fire, and secondly, “greatness”. There are additional celestial aspects, highlighted in bold below, indicative of her celestial nature. Noteworthy is the fact that she is also linked to Christianity and possibly also to Bres who is presumably a 326

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ modification of the name Bes where the letter “r” was inserted: Brigid was the daughter of the Dagda, the good god of the Tuatha De Danaan. She was also the wife of Bres, who ruled over the Tuatha De Danaan after Nuada’s injury. Because Brigid’s virtues and skills were so many and varied (she was the patron of poetry, fertility, healing, and childbirth), it is thought that she may even be an aspect of the Great Mother deity Danu. Her dedicated festival is Imbolc, the lambing time when ewes’ milk comes in, signifying nourishment and the end of winter. With the arrival of Christianity, many qualities of the goddess were attributed to St. Brigid who, along with St. Patrick and St. Kevin, is one of Ireland’s best-loved saints. St. Brigid founded a convent in Kildare in the sixth century AD, and was renowned for her hospitality and great kindness to the poor. Her feast day on the Christian calendar is February 1, which coincides with Imbolc. Both Celtic goddess and Christian saint are associated with the purification by fire, and are the keepers of the flame.177

The Yoruba artwork of their king shows the king wearing a headdress with a similar protrusion as the headdress worn by Brigid, but it is worn on the front of the king’s head and is depicted as a “snake” raising itself as if to attack. Nordic cultures In a painting by Olaus Magnus, Thor the son of Odin is depicted with a brush-helmet, but the comb, like a cockscomb, runs flat on the helmet without a mount between the helmet and the comb as on a typical Roman brush-helmet.178 Also of interest is that Frigg [Frog], the wife of Odin, is depicted with a Question Mark flap, but this time created by a piece of cloth tied around her hair. She also carries the unmistakable insignia of the Jade Emperor, namely, a large bow and a sword. Africa other than Egypt In parts of Africa, this Question Mark motif was played with differently; in two examples the curved part faces backwards and in another it faces forward. I think this reverse orientation is an attempt to express the idea that the “head” of Angelman is “twisted” “backwards” while he is appearing to “walk” towards the west. A traditional mask, the “Mask of Gu”, depicts the war god Ogun, Gu or Ogun, also the protective deity of blacksmiths and hunters. He is a deity of various cultural groups such as the Yoruba and the Fon (presumably a corruption of Pon/Pan/Pun or Don/Den).179 The Fon people are a warlike ethnic group with a complex history of fighting, who inhabit a region that used to be called Dahomey (now Benin). According to their Mawu-Lisa “myth”, there is an interesting relationship between “Gu” and Mawu and Lisa, the Moon, and her twin brother the Sun, thus the association of the moon and sun within this context suggests that their ideas are 327

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ celestial in origin: The Fon stories of Mawu and Lisa vary. In one, the use of metal as a source for making tools is told. Mawu sent his ‘child’ Lisa to the earth with a metal sword to show the people how to clear forests, plough the cleared land, and cultivate crops. A metal sword is called ‘gu’, a word that is also associated with the Yoruba god Ogun. Gu is the name of the god of metal to this day among the Fon people. He protects warriors, blacksmiths, and hunters; today he is also the protector of trucks, bicycles, and cars.180

It is interesting that both the sword and their god is gu. This is presumably so named to indicate their god is born from the Sword/Knife/Penis and might also explain their strong reverence of metal objects. There are several interesting aspects to this Question Mark projection on the Mask of Gu. Firstly, it projects from the left side of the mask. Secondly, it comprises three artistically distinctive parts: a small stand topped by a strangely curved questionmark-like projection, and between the stand and the shaft of the “question-mark” is a half-sun with “rays”, presumably representing the idea that Ogun is half of the “Sun”. Thirdly, the curved part narrows down to form a beak-like projection, presumably to represent the celestial bird; this is attached to a funnel-like object placed in the centre of Gu’s head. This is a composite representation, presumably wanting to show the various star-groupings that make the Question Mark at various stages, while culminating in the more elaborate Angelman headdress. Interestingly, this Mask of Gu has a protruding, closed, circular mouth with a hole in the centre. The shape of the mouth and the hole suggest that something may have been attached to the mouth, presumably to create the impression of the False Beard. In southern Nigeria, among the Edo people, there is the marvellous tradition of the carved bronze heads of their Obas or kings. The projectiles on the headdress of the Oba are in the form of plaited “hair” in front of a hair-hat. This plaited “hair”, rising from behind a twirling circular red base, gently curves to the front and ends in a teardrop-like knob. I am of the opinion that this hairstyle is symbolic of the Question Mark. Additionally, I have examined two interesting photos in the World’s Religions. The first is a photo of a current Oba: a male elaborately decorated with beads around his neck and head. There also appears to be two ear-flaps running from the hat to his shoulder – presumably representative of the Horus Lock. His beard, which forms the hat, also forms two-sided horns which are curved and look like small windmills. These remind me of the wings found on ancient European helmets.181 In the centre of the hat is a small tower-like projection. 328

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ The second photo is of a shrine which depicts various beings and other objects. In the middle is a sitting Oba with a large fish-headed spear in his right hand.182 This depiction of a spear with a fish-head is presumably representative of the Rigel KentHadar-Crux stars. On both sides are two large heads, each with a large carved elephant tusk (symbolic of the False Beard). On Oba’s right is an object that looks like an erect phallus on a “drum-base”, and it appears that a bird is perched on the phallus. On the left is a rather strange face standing on two legs, and on top of the face’s head are two other legs. I suspect this is a depiction of the Eldest Son, so depicted so that his face can be made to stand on either set of legs. And it may also be a combination of X and O, that is, the beginning of the Eldest Son and his final position. The Americas A statue of the Mayan Maize God depicts a more complex Question Mark headdress design that seems to incorporate designs of the Ife and Brigid headdresses.183 This Maize God was one of the most revered deities of the Mayans and was called by many names: Hun Hunahpu, Ah Mun [this seems to have been derived from Aha Min, see chapter 5], or Yum Kaax (Lord of Forest). In Mayan myths, the maize was a divine crop and I think this is because of the green leaves (symbolic of Green Canopus), the floppy tuft of “hair” (symbolic of False Beard and/or of the Question Mark headdress), the white and yellow kernels (symbolic of “semen” and certain star colours) and the resemblance of the maize cob to an erect phallus. The Mayan Maize God has a large monkey-like skull, representing the Fowl-CHICK, hanging at his stomach, from beads around his neck. The legend to this statue further notes: “This (the maize god) was a benign, passive god often portrayed as a young man with a ripe ear of maize sprouting from his head. Rituals and offerings to the maize god were of great importance and were performed regularly…So popular was the maize god that it is believed the Maya performed cranial deformation on infants so that their head grew elongated like the shape of an ear of maize.”184 The idea of the maize cob sprouting from the god’s head, together with the idea that the maize cob was seen as a phallus, suggests a link with the phallus on the head conception (see chapter 8), that is, another version of the “Question Mark”. A relief on a stone measuring 10 ft (3m) across depicts a scene of a man with a woman’s breasts, with his legs, arms and head dismembered. This is a scene depicting the dismembering of Coatlicue’s daughter, Coyolxauhqui, after a fight with her half-brother Huitzilopochtli.185 This dismembering must be seen in the same context as that of several of the other beings discussed above. He/she is wearing a helmet with three backward-flowing projections (symbolic of the Question Mark). In addition, the front of the helmet has five prominent dots and four dots on the side. 329

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ He/she is also wearing what appears to be a bundle of feathers in the shape of a fantail, suggestive of the fantail formed by the three False Orion Belt stars. There are two nineteenth and eighteenth century Cuzco School paintings of Pachacuti Inca Yup-anqui186 and of his father Viracocha Inca.187 These two Inca emperors wear hats which seem to consist of only the brush of the Roman helmet. In the case of the son, the brush seems to run from the front to the back of his head, whereas his father’s brush seems to run from side to side. In addition to these brushes, both the son and the father have two curved feathers (one red and one white) on their brush hats. Once again there are several aspects in these paintings suggesting that these Inca kings were not only adorning themselves in a manner corresponding to their interpretation of their particular celestial images, but were also reflecting certain numbers and conceptions of their cosmology that they wanted to preserve. Asia In a painting of Krishna, which depicts him in the John Travolta Grease one-leg dance pose, playing a flute, he is wearing a brush headdress, very suggestive of the Roman helmet with three red dots on the rim, which I assert are symbolic of the three False-Orion Belt stars.188 In another painting Radha wears a similar crown with a Roman comb. The emphasis around sex, the creation of the world and hair is emphasised in the legend with regard to to Krishna and Radha.189 Interestingly, she has a pencil-like thing near her mouth, which I suggest is symbolic of the Horus finger/side-curl. “When Radha made love to Krishna, they made the world, after love making Krishna combed her hair, and walked with her in the moonlight.” Finally, Pãrvãti, the Hindu goddess holding baby Ganesha, wears a hat with the typical Roman brush.190 In most of the cases mentioned the headdresses are often associated with warriors. But the same design is still worn by people in contemporary societies not associated with warriors, as for example in two photos of Buddhists with very similar headdresses.191 The first photo depicts several elderly Buddhists wearing yellow brush hats during the Monlam (presumably the Min + lamb) festival (Great Prayer Festival) in Lhasa. Noteworthy is that the leader has a typical bent walking-stick (symbolic of the False Beard and the Question Mark) and is walking next to another Buddhist dressed completely in black (I presume this is symbolic of his shadow or hidden half, see later when I discuss the twin of Angelman). He is holding his partner’s yellow headdress and a red scarf. The second photo depicts two young, unreformed lamas, sitting side by side, each with a bell and dharam drum. As expected, one arm of each 330

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ boy is heavily draped and they are wearing red headdresses with a prominent curve and two side flaps. In the section above, I focused on helmets or hats containing the identifiable insignia of the Question Mark style in various forms, such as, a full comb, a fish-hook or just as gentle curved projections. It is my assertion that the same celestial archetype was alternatively represented using various other materials and hat forms. I have mentioned a few examples where the Question Mark style was used as a brush together with long dropping feathers. In such cases the feathers were not only emphasising the Question Mark style but also signifying the individual’s attempt to express his association with the celestial birds. These feathers could either be a single feather worn on the head, or several feathers representing certain numbers and ideas associated with the ancients’ cosmology. The same celestial Question Mark image was given effect by human beings tying up or cutting their hair to resemble the Question Mark design, or by representing various beings with their hair in this style. A possible precursor to the Roman brush may have been the spiky hairstyle, especially when the spiky hair runs from the front of the head to the back with the sides shaved off, that is, the Mohican hair style, or what is commonly called the punk hair style. The skullcap, conical and complex headdresses of Angelman This same Question Mark style can be interpreted completely differently by focusing on stars T4-T7. If Angelman is viewed in full, with the latter stars forming his hat, one gets the impression that Angelman is wearing a small triangular hat or a small cone hat. Also, as indicated, the Question Mark hat became more complex as more stars were added. I recorded the complex hat on October 12, 2006 at 8:24 pm onwards. The complex hat form can give rise to various hat designs, depending on how the stars are viewed. Also, when you looked at the Question Mark, the Small Cone Hat and the last complex form, you could generate various hat permutations. The additional stars from the Sagittarius constellation, which you may recall formed the blade of the Sword/Knife/Penis or the Large Hook, and which was the archetype for the ancients’ “large phallus” conception, now formed part of the towering hat of Angelman. Therefore, you can now think of Angelman as wearing a “penis” on his head. In chapter 8 I discussed religious traditions of people wearing representations of penis on their heads and the worship of phalluses. By focusing on stars T8-T19, the star marked T16 is a bright magnitude star that stands out. When one looks at stars T8-T11 in relation to T13-T17, these stars can be visualised as a little sea-horse or as the eye of a little duck, with T12-T17 forming 331

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ the quacking beak or the eye of a fish. One can also view T16 as the topmost star, that is, the tip of the sword. Thus if you extend one line from the star marked number T6 and another line from star T4 so that they meet at T16 you have a long cone hat. This may have become the basis of the Ancient Egyptian pylon that eventually found expression as the steeple of the Christian church.192 Interestingly, a relief of Geb from a shrine to the pharaoh Zoser [Zu + Sa + RA] depicts a large triangle within which is a smaller triangle.193 It may be that the large triangle is representative of the long “cone” hat, and the little one of the small “cone” hat. There are, however, several celestial images which form triangles. In the fresco from the Mayan temple of Bonampak (ca. 800 AD), which depicts humans and various therianthropes, the strange large white headdresses are an attempt to give full expression to the various permutations of the complex celestial “hat” stars.194 As an interesting side note, the three men in this fresco are carrying Y-shaped sticks. This Y-stick has been interpreted in various ways by different societies. For example, ideas and actual artifacts around the slingshot were derived from this Y-shaped stick celsetrial image. Remember the biblical story of the slingshot with five little stones that little David195 used to kill the Philistine giant, Goliath? There are also some aboriginal tribes which carry Y-shaped sticks. I have discussed some smoking-pipes shaped in this form. In a documentary on the Dogon tribe, a Y-shaped stick was shown to be traditionally placed at one side of the door of their little pyramid-shaped houses. I will attempt to identify this “stick” which I think later became the letter Y. Both the triangle and the cone are distinct geometrical shapes. The celestial image of the little triangle on Angleman’s “head” is flat or two-dimensional. This would pose a problem for those who wanted to look like Angelman, because a two-dimensional triangle will fall off the head, whereas a structure made of three triangles, joined like a three-sided pyramid, will be more stable on the head. But it will not fit the round shape of the human head, hence the conversion of a two-dimensional triangle into a conical shape. Another aspect to bear in mind is that while I have interpreted these forms as conical in shape, there is no reason why the same image could not have been interpreted differently. For example, the small cone could simply have become a small dome, allied to the domes on religious buildings such as mosques. Alternatively, the stars T4-T6 could become a beret with star T7 representing a pompom. As with the Roman brush design, the “cone/dome/skullcap” image also found 332

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ different expressions, one of which was tying or cutting the hair to resemble this particular image. A hairstyle with a bun may have been an expression of the latter, but the hairstyle of the Jade Emperor also lends itself to the bun hairstyle. The question is, how to differentiate between the bun hairstyles of Angelman and those of the Jade Emperor? There is no easy answer to this because the ancients continuously created all sorts of design permutations in terms of both images and headdresses. Despite this, there are many subtle hints which point to ways in which one can differentiate between the celestial characters depicted in artworks or copied in traditions. For example, the Horus Child was increasingly associated with violence, therefore, a young ruler carrying weapons and with a bun-hairstyle, or wearing a small slightly conical dish-shaped helmet, with or without the side “straps”, or the Roman comb, is a reference to or an imitation of the Horus Child. The straps of the helmet are probably symbolic of the Horus Lock or volvines ears tied down (Book 2). The same celestial image of Angelman’s Cone, or even the Cone of the modern Hades Constellation, gave rise to conical hat designs. However, the meaning attached to these specific cone hats varied considerably from society to society. The long conical hat is generally associated with wizardry – witches and magicians. A slightly different design, worn by the Dervishes, is symbolic of mysticism,196 while the same hat, not easily recognised as such, is the Hedjet white crown, an insignia of rulership of Upper Egypt.197 An interesting depiction of the Hedjet, with a bent projection in front (symbolic of the Question Mark), is worn by the Horus Falcon.198 Lugh is also associated with a pointed head, suggestively linked with a phallus: The pointed head is a problem no authority of Celtic studies could address, their source of materials were subjected to five hundred years worth of the hammers of Christian zealots. No image of Lugh survived. The pointed head may be related to the pointed hat of a sorcerer…The erect phallus is a subject not covered in any reference to Lugh. Possibly this is due to Christian modesty and effective censoring [it survived in the disguised of a bent horn on the head of Lugh!].199

We also see various conical headdresses on wooden figurines of the Yoruba deities.200 We might even have a more ancient relic of this conical hat surviving in the cultural expressions of the Aboriginals. A photograph depicts six Aboriginal men performing some ritual dance.201 Their naked bodies are painted with different patterns of white dotted lines. Around their knees green leaves are tied – presumably symbolic of Canopus and the Celestial Tree. Their upper bodies are naked and their private parts are covered with matted material to give added expression to this area (the phallus). Although there are six men they are in two groups. In the one group three men, 333

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ wearing long conical hats with turfs of grass on top, are grouped with a man with a natural white beard. The other group is separated so that one of the three seems to be hidden behind the old man with the beard. He is the old man’s “shadow”. This could have been a pure coincidence when the photo was taken. However, I think, as with the Tibetan monks referred to above, this may not have been a mere coincidence, but deliberate. In that photograph all the monks are dressed in maroon robes except for one who is distinctly dressed in black and is accompanying the leader, that is, he is the leader’s “shadow”. I have also seen a documentary of some northern African tribe where boys are paired at a young age and are expected to behave as one until they are “separated” at an important initiation festival. There are several deities with the same long conical hats, specifically depicted as flat triangular hats, on the Mesopotamian seal showing various deities, with the sun god Shamash digging his way through two mountains. These hats have several horn-like side projections and the base has two rims, one suggestive of a ring and the other of a canoe or horns – presumably symbolic of the Celestial Boats/Ships. The same long conical hat, most tellingly in red with a white pom-pom, is associated with Father Christmas and with parties! I am also tempted to suggest that this conical hat not only became the pylon and the church steeple, but was also symbolically represented as the leaning tower of Pisa. This is the famous tower from which the renowned Italian natural philosopher, astronomer and mathematician Galileo Galilei, quite tellingly dropped feathers and heavy objects in establishing the laws of falling bodies. If you think I have just lost my mind by turning towers into hats, now I produce the monumental Greek statue of the Great Artemis of Ephesus to prove that this was indeed the case in the ancient world.202 This is a statue of a woman with “African” features but her nose and lips were defaced and are only partially visible. On her head is a three-storeyed tower which gets progressively larger from the first level to the third level. There are several interesting aspects to this goddess. She has numerous breasts in four levels (of which I can distinguish 29, but I think there must be 30). These are followed by a “chain” of eight wild berries (symbolic of the purplish-red colour) followed by a prominent “necklace”. There are numerous animals, angel-like beings, four-petaled flowers and bees depicted on her dress and shoulders, while on both sides of her arms are lions. All these aspects were probably meant to convey the idea that she is the “Mother of all Living Things”. Artemis was worshipped as a fertility goddess in Turkey. 334

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ I have suggested that the headdress of Brigid gives the impression of a seahorse or duck. But I have also attempted to find other objects which have structural similarities to this Seahorse archetype image. A Mayan stone sculpture depicting Gucumatz as a strange, short, powdery blue, feathered, snake-like creature appears to be a different representation of the stars forming the Seahorse.203 According to the legend, Gucumatz, in association with Hurakan (the “Storm God”), was responsible for the creation of the Mayan world and humans. “He taught the people about civilization and agriculture…” It is interesting that the name Hurakan seems to be cognate with the English word hurricane. This name may have been composed from Hu/a + RA + Kane or Hora (Horus) + Kane and just like biblical Kane, he is credited with agriculture and civilisation (the biblical Kane was the builder of cities). There are two other interesting objects which might be representative of the same Seahorse. These are undated artifacts of the Oceanic peoples in Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. The first object is an emerald green glassy seahorse-like creature called Marakihau, a sea monster. The legend notes: “Marakihau are female sea monsters, and often turn into human women to marry men. When their husbands discover their true nature, the Marakihau are forced to return to the sea.”204 While the folklore seems to speak of a monster, this artwork of Marakihau looks more like a harmless, little, fragile seahorse. The second object, made of tortoiseshell polished to give a glassy, golden-brown effect, is an interesting composite called “Tortoise shell spirit”. It depicts a lionfish-human holding a tortoise in one hand, and in the other hand a fish next to its mouth.205 There are several other interesting features of this creature, all linking it to the ancient cosmology. But the main focus, for now, is the small fish next to the lion-fish-human’s mouth; I think it’s also representative of the “seahorse”, not only in appearance but also in being held on the same side as the tortoise. In Book 3, I deal with the celestial significance of the tortoise. The Question Mark as a non-headdress symbol I have focused specifically on hats, hairstyles and helmets which were associated with the head and which represented the Question Mark. But as with the False Beard there is nothing that would have prevented our ancient ancestors from creating other non-head symbolic representations of this celestial archetype. In the following examples some items may have had dual symbolisms, that is, the False Beard and the Question Mark. The crook and flail as dual symbolisms for the False Beard and the Question Mark 335

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The crook and flail, commonly depicted with Ancient Egyptian gods, goddess and pharaohs; are two items demonstrating authority.206, 207 In Egyptian artworks the crook and flail are generally carried in separate hands with the arms crossed in an X shape at the chest. There are, however, variations in how these are carried. In the Campbell papyrus a standing Osiris is holding these items crossed together with a was (sceptre) and a Djed-pillar.208 Interestingly, in the case of Tutankhamun these are held crossed just below the chin and the crook, which is normally open, is closed.209 The crook, which alternatively or subsequently became the crook shepherd’s staff and the crook walking-stick, were symbolic of the celestial Question Mark and the False Beard. In the Christian tradition the crook became a symbol of the Good Shepherd, Jesus. The sickle and the fish-hook as dual symbolisms for the False Beard and the Question Mark On an eighth century BCE Assyrian stone relief, a heavy bearded Gilgamesh is depicted holding a lion cub in a triangular grip in the one arm and a sickle or boomerang in the other hand.210 In my opinion the sickle/boomerang and the fishhook are representatives of the Question Mark, the False Beard, and the Sword/ Knife/Penis celestial images. The sickle is a well-known symbol of workers. It features together with the hammer on the red flag of the former Soviet Union. We find the same item featured in various artworks. For example, a relatively modern painting, “Baucis and Philemon”, depicts a strange sickle just above and to the side of Zeus’ head.211 It is based on the Ancient Greek story of Zeus and his son Hermes visiting an elderly couple (Baucis and Philemon). The boomerang features prominently in certain sacred rituals of the Aboriginals. Apart from probably representing the celestial images mentioned above, it may also have been used to convey the meaning that “something will return”. Miscellaneous representations of dual symbolisms for the False Beard and the Question Mark I am also of the opinion that at times the Question Mark was subtly conveyed in other ways, for example, in a painting “The Death of Adonis”, two beautiful white swans are depicted with their graceful necks arched in the Question Mark formation.212 The swan is an alternative representation of the celestial Peacock. Another way in which the ancients represented the Question Mark image was by depicting two horns as curved tiny wings on helmets or on the head of divine 336

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ beings.213 The Question Mark image could also be symbolised by tying branches to the head. A good example would be branches of the palm tree, which make beautiful gentle curves. The smoke depicted in the Tlalocan mural is suggestive of the Question Mark, which the experts interpret as indicative of speaking, and is also suggestive of the False Beard. In closing this section on Angelman’s headdresses, I just want to note that these headdresses are very ancient indeed. For for example, the Question Mark headdress is present in very ancient San cave art such as the “San Wounded Man” (in Mutoko and Makoni Zimbabwe) and the man in “Snake Rock”and the “Fallen Rock” (in the Western Cape).214 Unfortunately, these artworks are not directly datable, and while dates are provided for some San art in Supernatural no dates are provided for the ones just mentioned.215

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 334. 2. Kung Masters were always depicted as men of great wisdom, who had perfected ancient kung-fu/karate skills and self-restraint, and who, in these fighting scenes, could effortlessly float into the air, and at times sit in trees or on roofs. This portrayal is perhaps done to convey the idea that such beings are in the air, that is, in the sky. 3. Albert Jansen, Star Maps for Southern Sky: An Easy Guide to the Night Sky (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2004), 57. 4. Manfred Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson, 1980), 127-128. 5. David M. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation (London: Arrow Books Limited, 1990), 64. This celestial image has some relation with the Cherubim placed at the eastern gate of Eden. The word cherub comes from the Babylonian karibu. It appears that karibu is related to Karabo (ape/monkey), a common name given to females in the Bapedi tribe. 6. Regine Schulz and Matthias Seidal, eds., Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs (Germany: Könemann, 2004). On the front cover. 7. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Egypt – The Land of the Pharaohs (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 88-89. 337

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 8. Ibid. 9. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 54. Relief of Geb, from a shrine to the pharaoh Zoser at Heliopolis, III Dynasty, Museo Egizio, Turin. 10. Albert Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man (United States: Kessinger Publishing, 1963), 93- 97. 11. Ivan van Sertima, They Came Before Columbus – The African Presence in Ancient America (United States of America: Random House, 1976), 146-149. 12. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Aztecs – Reign of Blood and Splendour (U.S.A: Time-Life Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 52. 13. Van Sertima, They Came Before Columbus. There are several other interesting artworks from Mexico, in the photo section, which depict several humans with this characteristic “false beard”. 14. The name Merlin is presumably derived from MARS + LIN. 15. Encyclopedia Britannica. Vivien from vixen, a female fox or quarrelsome female. 16. Incubus, a male demon who is believed to have had sexual intercourse with a sleeping woman. Notice the bus on the end of this word; the sleeping woman is actually the Phoenix. 17. This drink seems similar to the gods’ secret drink, the ambrosia of the Hindus. 18. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 275-277. 19. Ibid., 312. 20. Ibid. 21. Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Deschend, Hamlet’s Mill – An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and Its Transmission Through Myth (Boston: David R. Godine Publisher Inc., 1977), 38-39. 22. James G. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough – A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 64. 23. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 179. 24. Ibid., 117 25. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 99.

338

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ 26. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 94. 27. Geoffrey Parker, ed., The Times Illustrated History of the World (London: Times Books, 1995), 38-39. 28. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs, 103, 140, 148. 29. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation, 193. 30. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996), 140-141. 31. Parker, The Times Illustrated History of the World, 78. 32. Nana Banchie Darkwah, The Africans Who Wrote the Bible – Ancient Secrets Africa and Christianity Have Never Told (San Francisco: Aduana Publishing Book, 2002), 216. 33. Ibid. 34. Cheikh Anta Diop, The African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality (Chicago: Lawrence Hill Books, 1974), 12. 35. Darkwah, The Africans Who Wrote the Bible, 216. 36. De Santillana and von Deschend, Hamlet’s Mill, 412. 37. Darkwah, The Africans Who Wrote the Bible, 216. 38. Graham Hancock and Santha Faiia, Heaven’s Mirror – Quest for the Lost Civilisation (London: Penguin Books, 1999), 222-249. 39. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs, 16. 40. Ibid. 41. Ibid., 29. 42. Ibid. “Narmer Palette” from Dynasty 0, ca. 3100 BC, Cairo, Egyptian Museum. 43. David Ovason, The Secret Zodiacs of Washington DC – Was the City of Stars Planned by Masons? (London: Arrow Book, 2000). 44. Ibid., 215. 45. Ibid., 214. 46. Ibid., 622. Neptune: presumably a composite from Hapi + Tena, where the H was changed to an N and vowels were changed, or Nabi + Tena where the b became a p 339

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ and vowels were changed. Poseidon: presumably from Po + Shi/Sa + Din/Den. The “voluptuous” idea should be seen in the same context as the Venus figurines discussed in chapter 9, and see later for the meaning of the horse/seahorse. 47. Ovason, The Secret Zodiacs of Washington DC, 236-241. 48. Ibid. 49. William Tyler Olcott, Star Lore – Myths, Legends, and Facts (United Kingdom: Dover Publications Inc., 2004), 118-119. Nuccu sounds like the Northern Sotho word noko meaning porcupine. 50. Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, The Jesus Mysteries – Was the Original Jesus a Pagan God? (London: Elements, 2003), 62. 51. Ibid., plate 5; photo section. 52. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man. 53. Ganesha, presumably from Tane (where G is substituted for T) + Sha/Shi or from Kane (where G is substituted for K) + Sha/i. 54. Shiva (Shi + Va or Sh + Iva/Eva/Ava). The end of Ganesha’s name appears to retain the sha/shi part of Shiva’s names. Also, the name Eva might be a truncated version of Shiva’s name, namely Iva, and the latter form might have just been modified to Ivan, a popular Russian name. 55. Pãrvãti is presumably from Pr + NA + Ti. 56. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 345. 57. Shiva is depicted with six hands. This signifies a celestial number conception where 6 x 5 = 30, see Book 3. 58. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 345. From the legend to the relief we read “In a city of Jamba there lived a warrior named Sulabha...who constantly sang hymns of praise to the god Ganesha. One day a very poor Brahmin beggar named Madhusudana appeared. Sulabha bowed, but laughed at the Brahmin, who then cursed him to become a bull pulling a plough. Samudrå cursed the Brahmin to become a donkey. She was cursed by the beggar to become an outcast woman. The curses became true, and Sulabha, Samudrå, and the poor Brahmin beggar changed form. Wandering in the city on the day of a festival of Ganesha, Samudrå saw a Ganesha temple. Sulabha’s wife, Samudrå, was virtuous and beautiful…Suddenly a violent storm started up, and the terrified Samudrå approached many houses in the city for shelter but was thrown out of everyone she came to. Despairing, she made her weary way to the temple. Samudrå started a fire with some durva grass [symbolic of green] so she could warm herself. Wind moved a blade of grass and, driven by fate, the grass fell on Ganesha’s head. At the same time the cold, frightened donkey came into the temple, as did the bull 340

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ freed from the plough. The animals ate the woman’s grass, and then fought near the image of Ganesha. From their mouths two blades of durva grass fell onto Ganesha’s trunk and foot, which pleased him. To stop this calamity, Samudrå struck the donkey and the bull with her staff, and then began worshipping Ganesha. Watching the three of them, Ganesha considered that they had worshipped him well enough, and decided to send them to his own special heaven on a remarkable flying vehicle.” Jamba is linked to Jama/Yama, see Book 2. Sulabhais is presumably derived from Sa-L-Ab-HA. A “bull pulling a plough” is a referenceto the Orion bull where the plough is the Bull’s Hind Leg. The donkey is another alias for the Bull’s Hind Leg. “…the terrified Samudrå approached many houses in the city for shelter but was thrown out of everyone she came to.” Samudrå’s virtuous nature is similar to that of Mary, mother of Jesus and the idea of her not finding shelter has a similar ring to it. The flying vehicle or creature is common in Mesopotamian myths. The Prophet Mohammed also made use of a similar vehicle, the Borak. In the Jesus story the vehicle simply became the “white stuff”, namely the clouds. 59. Ibid. 60. De Santillana and von Deschend, Hamlet’s Mill, 365. 61. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 317. 62. Eileen Jensen Krige, The Social System of the Zulus (South Africa: Shuter & Shooter Publishers, 1936), 388. 63. Yoruba is presumably from Ya + Ra + Bas. 64.  John Matthews, ed., The World Atlas of Divination – The Systems. Where They Originate. How They Work (UK: Tiger Book Intl., 1992), 101-109. 65. Ibid., 104-105 66. Reasons for the chameleon’s persistency in myths: Firstly, a chameleon “has all the colours in one.” A similar idea is conveyed by a rainbow or Joseph’s multicoloured coat – just like the night sky that carries different coloured stars; and just like the chameleon the night sky “hides” some colours only to produce these at specific times. Secondly, the chameleon was used to express the idea of change, once again symbolic of the change that happens with these celestial images. Thirdly, it has a long tongue and protruding eyes which can swirl independently. Fourthly it has four feet each with five toes (4 x 5 = 20, see Book 3). And lastly the name chameleon is also of interest. It seems to be a composite of Chem/Khem and leon, that is, lion. There is even a southern constellation called Chameleon. 67. Darkwah, The Africans Who Wrote the Bible, XVIII. 68.  William Carl Eichman, The Religion of Catal Huyuk, www.telesterion.com. This dismembering of a figure must have been done as part of some ritual, preserving the conception of the dismembered divinity, an idea that appears to relate to the 341

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ dismembering of Osiris. 69. Danien, On the Dilemma of a Horn – The Horned Shamans of West Mexico, www. museum.upenn.edu/publication. 70. Ibid. 71. In 1993, an important tomb at Huitzilapa, dated to about AD 200, was excavated;“each chamber contained three bodies. The most elaborate arrayed individual was a male, with a large number of jades, shell ornaments, earrings, and beads. At his side and on his loins were conch shells.” 72. Danien, On the Dilemma of a Horn. 73. See discussion in Book 3 regarding how stars “change” when viewed from different positions from the earth. 74. Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason, The Rule of Four (UK: Century, 2004). 75. Caldwell and Thomason, The Rule of Four, 37, and the historical note on the opening page. Francesco Colonna, Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (Publisher, Aldus Manutius 1499). Its title in Latin means “Poliphilo’s Struggle for Love in a Dream”. It was published around 1499 by a Venetian man named Aldus Manutius. “The Hypnerotomachia is an Encylopedia masquerading as a novel, a dissertation on everything from architecture to zoology…The Hypnerotomachia Poliphili is one of the most treasured and least understood books of the early Western printing…Scholars continue to debate the identity and intent of the Hypnerotomachia’s mysterious author Francesco Colonna.” 76. Caldwell and Thomason, The Rule of Four, 150-151. 77. Ibid. 78. De Santillana and von Deschend, Hamlet’s Mill, 60. 79. Danien, On the Dilemma of a Horn. 80. Monica Wilson and Leonard Thompson, eds., A History of Southern Africa to 1870 (South Africa: David Phillip Publishers Ltd., 1985), 159-160. 81. Krige, The Social System of the Zulus, 249-259. 82. Cheikh Anta Diop, Civilization or Barbarism – An Authentic Anthropology (United States of America: Lawrence Hill Books, 1981), 183-184. 83. Drinking horns, Encylopedia Britannica. 84. Ibid.

342

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ 85. Ibid. 86. Bruce Manning Metzger and Michael D. Coogan, eds., Oxford Companion to the Bible (England: Oxford University Press, 1993), 21-22. 87. Ovason, The Secret Zodiacs of Washington DC, 211-212. 88. Demeter, Encylopedia Britannica. 89. Ovason, The Secret Zodiacs of Washington DC, 211-212. 90. Ibid., 210. 91. Cor was presumably Kor which became Kora/ kore/ Koran/ korn/ korus. 92. Oliphants is an Afrikaner/Dutch word for elephant; the latter may even have been initially or alternatively rendered as Eliphant, and the name Eli may have been derived from Eliphant. 93. Encyclopedia Britannica. 94. Encyclopedia Britannica. 95. Yeshi Choedon and Dawa Norbu, Tibet (India: Roli Books: 1997), 75. 96. Encyclopedia Britannica. 97. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 249. 98. Ibid. 99. Ibid., 228. 100. Encylopedia Britannica. 101. Encylopedia Britannica. 102. Confucius, Encylopedia Britannica. 103. Southgate, “On a Pair of Ancient Egyptian Double Flutes”, www.jstor.org. 104. Brown, Aztecs: Reign of Blood and Splendor, 154. 105. Ibid. 106. The Venda tribe is an interesting group of people since one group came from the Shonas in Zimbabwe and another tribal group considers themselves of Jewish descent, that is, “Black Jews”, and follow the Jewish faith. Interestingly, shona means court or house of 343

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ the chief, and shona in Zulu means shine, as in the shining sun. 107. K.V. Snedegar, Stars and Seasons in Southern Africa, vol.39 (Vistas in Astronomy, 1995), 529-538. 108. Ibid., 532. 109. Danien, On the Dilemma of a Horn. 110. Kathleen. E. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends (Great Britain: Brockhampton Press, 2004), 60. 111. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 342. 112. Matthews, The World Atlas of Divination – The Systems, 94-108. 113. Lovedu is probably composed from Ndhlovu + dou. 114. Matthews, ed., The World Atlas of Divination – The Systems, 94-108. 115. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 56-57. 116. It might be interesting to investigate excavated ancient conch shells to see which type of spiral orientation was preferred by which group of people and to relate this to the relative location of the people and to the celestial movements which I have discussed. 117. Conch, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conch. 118. Ibid. 119. http/www.aloha-hawaii.com/Hawaii/conch-shell. 120. Pu is presumably derived from either Po or Pun/Pan. 121. Menehune is presumably a composite from Min + hound. 122. Ibid. 123. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough – A Study in Magic and Religion, 93-94. 124. Van Sertima, They Came Before Columbus, 209-226. 125. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 40. Effigy of Osiris (1362-1351 BC, no. 62, Egyptian Museum, Cairo). 126. Van Sertima demonstrates true and impressive scholarship. His arguments and claims are based on vast and well researched sources. He devotes an entire chapter to the origin, traditions of “Smoking, Tobacco and Pipes in Africa and America”. 344

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ 127. Van Sertima, They Came Before Columbus, 209-226. 128. Ambassador is presumably derived from A/EM + Bes + SA + door. 129. Van Sertima, They Came Before Columbus, 209-226. 130. Bas in tabaskie and tabaske is presumably from Bes/Bas. 131. Van Sertima, They Came Before Columbus, 209-226. 132. Ibid. 133. M-Pan-gushe, gushi, may be related to goshi meaning chief in the Bapedi language. 134. http://00.gs/Zulumythology.htm. 135. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 450. 136. Ibid. 137. Ibid. 138. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 153-179. 139. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 491. 140. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 101-102. 141. Ibid. 142. Ibid. 143. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 73. 144. Bahn, The Story of Archaeology, 229. 145. Caldwell and Thomason, The Rule of Four, 224. 146. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 258. 147. Ernest A. Wallis Budge, The Dwellers on the Nile – The Life, History, Religion and Literature of the Ancient Egyptian (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1977), 106. 148. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 458. 149. Ibid., 351. 150. John A. Rogers, World’s Great Men of Color (New York: Touchstone, 1996), 286. 345

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 151. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 203. 152. Ibid. 153. John P. McKay, Bennett D. Hill and John Buckler, A History of Western Society, 2nd ed. Vol. 1 – From Antiquity to the Enlightenment (USA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1983), 144-145. “Etruscan warrior” from a collection of the University Museum, University of Pennsylvania. 154. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 25, 63, 66. 155. Ibid., 156. Ibid. 157. Ibid., 136. 158. Ibid., 139. 159. Ibid., 176. “Thetis Giving Achilles His Arms”, by Giulio Romano (1492-1546). Thetis is presumably a disguise of Thebes, that is TH + BAS/BUS. 160. Ibid., 176. 161. Ibid., 177. 162. Ibid., 180 and 181. The first is a large colour painting, “The Construction of the Wooden Horse of Troy”, by Giulio Romano (1492-1546). 163. Ibid., 108. 164. Lugh, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lugh. 165. Peter Watson, Ideas – A History from Fire to Freud (United Kingdom: Orion Books Ltd., 2006), 130. 166. Parker and Stanton, 223. 167. Ibid. 168. Watson, Ideas – A History from Fire to Freud, 130. 169. “Tested her virginity by means of a wand of chastity” - this is a different take on the Zulu virginity testing by the insertion of a finger up the private parts of a young girl. 170. Lugh, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lugh. 171. Rosmerta is presumably derived from Rose + Mari/y.

346

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ 172. Sacred Source – jblstatue.com/pages/lugh. 173. Fincham, Celtic Gods of East Anglia: Then and Now, www.norwichmoot.paganearth. com. 174. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 223. 175. Ibid., 224. Painting by by Ernest Wallcousins (1883-1976). 176. Ibid., 222. 177. Ibid., 223. 178. Ibid., 233. “The Gods of Northern Europe from Historia Gentibus Septentrionalibus” by Olaus Magnus (1490-1557). 179. Ibid., 302. 180. Ibid. 181. Ninian Smart, The World’s Religions – Old Traditions and Modern Transformations (London: Cambridge University Press, 1989), 304. 182. Ibid., 305. 183. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 481. 184. Ibid. 185. Ibid., 488. 186. Ibid., 500. 187. Ibid., 502. 188. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends, 68. 189. Ibid., 72. 190. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 345. 191. Choedon and Norbu, Tibet, 66-67. 192. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 97. 193. Ibid., 54. A relief of Geb from a shrine to the pharaoh Zoser at Heliopolis (III Dynasty, ca. 2670 BC, Museo Egizio, Turin).

347

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 194. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 420-421. 195. David is presumably derived from the Hindu Deva with the addition of a “D” at the end. 196. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 75. 197. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 44. 198. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 122. 199. Watson, Ideas – A History from Fire to Freud, 130. 200. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 38. 201. Ibid., 40. 202. Ibid., 18. Great Artemis of Ephesus (ca. AD 150, Ephesus Archaeological Museum). 203. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 482. 204. Ibid., 374. 205. Ibid. 206. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Egypt, 80. 207. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 43, 62, 93. 208. Ibid., 62. The Campbell Papyrus is from Deier el-Bahari, XXI Dynasty, ca. 1000 BC, British Museum. 209. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Egypt, front cover. 210. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 328. 211. Ibid., 76. Painting by Walter Crane (1845-1915). 212. Ibid., 60. 213. Ibid. See painting and illustrations of: “Medea and the Fleece” (p.145), “Blodeuwedd and Gronw Pebry” (p.219), Valkyrie in the painting entitled “The Ring Cycle” (p.232), Thor (p.243) and the god Heimdall (p.249) for examples of curved tiny wings on helmet representations. 214. Graham Hancock, Supernatural – Meeting with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind (London: Century Publishers, 2005), 101-102, 246 and 281.

348

11 : Angelman __________________________________________________________________ 215. Ibid.

349

Charts and figures

350

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Figure 1.1 : The Orion Man

351

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Figure 1.2 : The Jaguar’s Head

352

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Figure 1.3 : The Celestial Door/Gate

Rigel

Rigel

Orion Belt Sirius Figure 1.4 : The Double-Headed Volvine

353

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Figure 2.1 : The Magic Rectangle

354

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Orion Belt

CRUX S

Rigel NW

Figure 3.1 : The Goat/Sheep-Fish

355

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Figure 3.2 : The Dendera Zodiac

356

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Figure 3.3 The Great Bear-Fish

357

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Norma

Ara

Triangulum Australe

Lupus

Centaurus

Alpha (Pointers)

Apus

(Southern Cross)

Musca

Crux

Nebula

Carina

(False Cross)

Vela

Canopus

Puppis Figure 4.1 : Tail of the Phoenix

358

Pyxis

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Figure 5.1 : The Jade Emperor

359

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Figure 6.1 : The Fowl-CHICK

Figure 6.2 : The Little Ram/Goat/Monkey, Lion’s Head alias the Golden Calf 360

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Antares

Horus Falcon Jupiter Rigel Kent Hadar Pi Ramese Meteor Shower Crux

S L

Viewer

Great Crackler

W R

Figure 7.1 : The Celestrial Tree

361

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Figure 8.1 : Seal of Shiva

362

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

NE

ES

SW Antares RK

Crux

Milk Capella

Milk

Almost N Boats of Ra Figure 9.1: The Celestrial Boats/Ships

Anubis Head FC

RK

H TC

Figure 9.2 : The ‘Head’ of the Celestrial Boats/Ships 363

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Head

Antares False Beard

Little Dog Rigel Kent

Hadar Leg

Crux

Figure 11.1 : Sketch of Angleman

364

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

T19

Corona Australis

Pavo

Triangulum Australe SW4

T2

Ara

T3

T9

T12

T10

T1 EW10

Circinus

N4

N7

Lupus

H11 H8 H10

H4

H3 H2

EW7 Antares EW6 EW5 EW1 EW2

N3

H9 H5 H7

EW9 EW8 Scorpius

Norma

N6 N5

Centaurus

T6 T5

T7

T11

T4

SW3

SW5 Alpha (Pointers)

T17

T13

T8 SW1

T18

Sagittarius

Telescopium

SW2

T15 T14 T16

N2

EW3

EW4

N1

H6 H1

Figure 11.2 : Star Map of Angleman

365

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Figure 12.1 : Pot Burials

366

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Top Image on page 362 A NEOLITHIC BURIAL AT EL KADADA (a) bucrania (symbolic of the celestial bovine) (b) dog skeleton - partly destroyed (symbolic of the celestial bovines) (c) Pottery vessels (d) malachite fragments - in black (e) palette (f) axe (g) broken quartz pebbles

Bottom Image on page 326 POT BURIAL AT EL KADADA (a) decorated vessel containing burial (b) Nile mollusc shell (c) skull (d-e) pottery vessels (f-g) ostrich eggs

367

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Figure 14a

Figure 14b

The Goat-Sheep/Bull/Cow/Horse’s Head

RK Antares

Crux

False Cross

Figure 15.1 : The Divine Serpent 368

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Figure 16.1 : The Indian Chief

369

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Figure 16.2 : The Wild Bull of Heaven

370

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Mexican Hat

RK

Antares

Hadar Crux

Face Eldest Son Stars

Figure 16.3 : The Green Man

371

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

Crux

Hadar

Rigel Kent

ES

Figure 16.4 : The Pole Cat

372

S

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

Half Moon

RK

FC

s Rain Deer Okapi

Canopus

Figure 16.5 : The Deer

373

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________

TC

Peacock

RK

s

Peacock Antelope / Okapi Unicorn

Figure 16.6 : The Unicorn

374

Canopus

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

1

(Southern Cross)

MUSCA

Crux 2

Nebula

Carina

(False Cross)

VELA

Figure 16.7 : The Great Cackler

375

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ N W R

Poodle face Orion Bg

W African Woman

Figure 16.8a

Figure 16.8b The African Lady

Figure 16.9 : The Crouching Lion 376

Charts and figures __________________________________________________________________

TC FC

Bull’s Hindleg

RK Canopus

Sirius

Figure 16.10 : The Great crocodile

377

Chapter 12

ANGELMAN, THE ONE-EYED, ONEARMED, ONE-LEGGED, EGG-BORN BANDIT Three appendages of Angelman, his one eye, his one arm and his one leg, are now discussed. As he transforms (“grows”) from the Horus Child, he becomes a tall, giant being that progressively becomes “fatter” and “fatter”. His “fatness” has given rise to various ideas and traditions which are also discussed. In discussing his appendages left and right descriptors are used and hence I first want to clarify some issues regarding left and right conventions. The left and right convention The convention of designating one side of the body as left and the other as right and using this as orientation and space descriptors is assumedly instinctive or second nature. This convention is also use to describe external objects. Yet when it comes to understanding the orientation of images portrayed in paintings and other works of art and the use of right and left ideas in ancient text it could influence our interpretation thereof. Modern children are taught by their parents and schoolteachers how to distinguish left from right. This subsequently becomes second nature and is generally used for spatial orientation. Personally, I have always had a problem distinguishing left from right and at times I needed to look at my arms to confirm my right from my left. When I was a small child of about three years old, my mother accidentally dropped a pot of boiling water, and being in the way, I was left with burn scars on my left arm and on part of my stomach. I have used this distinction to tell my left from my right. But when I was sketching and describing several aspects of some of these celestial images, aspects I wanted to designate as left or right, the question arose whether to indicate left and right in relation to the viewer or to the image. To clarify, when I look in a mirror the left side becomes the right side of the mirror image facing me. But if I superimpose myself on the mirror image, either mentally, or by standing with my back to the mirror image, then my left and the left of the image are the same. This might seem a trivial point but ambiguity in this regard could result in all sorts 378

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ of misinterpretations, especially if one wants to compare representations among different ancient societies. I am sure that both were used in different ancient societies, in that some societies expressed left and right in relation to themselves as the representatives of the images, whereas others produced mirror images. To avoid any confusion when I am describing images in words, I have used phrases like “from the viewer’s perspective” or “with regard to the viewer” when referring to the left or right of the picture as you look at it, but words such as “in his left hand” when referring to the image’s own left (which would be on the right as you look at it). Angelman as the one-eyed bandit The bust of Queen Nefertiti with one eye missing is a representation of the missing eye conception in Ancient Egyptian art, and I am of the opinion that this missing eye conception is related to Angelman. Nefertiti (“the beautiful has come”) was Pharaoh Akhenaten’s principal wife, and the mother of his six daughters. She was the daughter of Ay (YA), and stepmother to Tut-ank-ha-mun. An interesting side-note: it is likely that “ti-ti” in the name of Nefertiti may have been joined to ka to give ti-ka, which in turn became Tiki or Tiko (see chapter 5). But in Sumerian, Ti means “rib”, “to make live” and “lady”.1 Perhaps it is this rib/ woman/life idea that is being played with in the biblical story of Adam and Eve, where Eve is brought to life from the rib of Adam. The famous painted head of the beautiful Nefertiti,2 found abandoned, by the German archaeologist Ludwig Borchardt, in the workshop of the potter/sculptor Thutmose, has one eye missing: “Apparently Thutmose [who left his workshop in a hurry] had deliberately left the portrait unfinished as a demonstration model, with the empty socket used to show students how a glass eye should be inserted.”3 But Cotterell questions this expert opinion, since he rightfully observed that in another statue even King Akhenaten has a missing eye. Cotterell asks why archaeologists assume the Egyptians were “artistically naive”, just because in certain realistic two-dimensional representations of the human profile their artwork features the “profile eye” as a “full eye”, when it should have been “half an eye”, even though they were capable of carving perfect colossal three-dimensional images of their gods and pharaohs?4 I am sure that the missing eye and eye representations have to do with the single 379

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ “eye” of Angelman formed by the prominent single star (marked as T3 in figure 11.2) immediately under the three False Orion Belt stars. Alternatively, this single eye has to do with the Phoenix’s single “eye”, namely the star Antares. Angelman is “missing” a left “eye” if the image is seen as a full-frontal image. But the head in this image is actually a profile, as if Angelman is standing with his front facing forward but with his head looking over his right shoulder, away from the direction in which he is supposed to be “moving” (towards the western point) while looking south. (I know that this might seem confusing because we are used to west being opposite east, but in this case Angelman is at the SW point of the south to west line and, therefore, the image is “moving” to the west while looking in the opposite direction, namely south.) Hence, if you conceptualise Angelman as a threedimensional human in a similar posture, the one “eye” that is visible to the viewer is actually his left eye and he would be missing a right eye. This situation adds to the complexity regarding the left and right convention and may have given rise to various representations of Angelman. The star that I identified as an “eye”, when seen as a continuation of the False Beard, poses the possibility that the Angelman could also be conceptualised as having no eyes, that is, blind. Blind or “poor of sight” deities, mystical and religious characters (Book 2) are a recurrent theme in many ancient stories and artworks. I am convinced that such ideas may have been a play on this celestial being and even on the Jade Emperor. Remember, the Jade Emperor only gets his head and eyes when the Eldest Son “joins” him. Only then is he “good of sight”, sometimes represented by the big eyes of an owl, hence the symbolism of an owl in ancient representations. If King Akhenaten’s statue is a representation of the pharaoh as Angelman, then the missing eye will only make spatial sense if we orientate the statute as a side profile facing in the same direction as the Angelman. Whereas, the eye of Queen Nefertiti, if we assume she is being represented as “Angelman”, is only consistent with Angelman’s eye if we consider her to be a full frontal view of Angelman. However, we may never know whether the ancient artist intended these artworks to be superimposed images of Angelman, or images created to face the celestial image. But the beauty aspect, which is a complex conception (see Book 2) of the ancients, of Nefertiti cannot be reconciled with Angelman. It is more appropriate for the Phoenix who also has just one “eye”, that is red Antares. But you might ask why two representations (male-female), if Angelman is “male” in appearance? Remember that the Phoenix and Angelman occupied the same position on the SW point, and indeed are just different chimeric forms of the same stars, thus my conclusion that Nefertiti might be a representation of the Phoenix. This 380

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ suggestion is based upon two observations. Firstly, she is wearing a hat with the insignia resembling that of a “bird” reaching the top of the hat; similarly the Phoenix reaches the highest point of the night sky. Secondly, Nefertiti’s name, which means “the beautiful has come”, seems to be suggestive of the phoenix because, as we saw in chapter 4, emphasis is placed on the “beauty” and the “coming and going” of the phoenix. The mysterious “eye” conceptions in Ancient Egyptian and in other ancient societies There are some complex, mysterious “eye” conceptions in Ancient Egypt and other ancient societies which defy our modern understanding of eyes. Several “eyes” are mentioned in Ancient Egypt, but it is not really clear what the Egyptians meant by these “eyes” and whether the words in fact all refer to the same thing. There follows information about these various “eyes”. The Wadjet or Ujat, meaning “Whole One” eye The Wadjet/Wedjat/Ujat is the lunar eye which returned after Seth had stolen it. It was healed by Thoth and then called “the whole one”. It was a symbol of the power of the god of light, and therefore a popular amulet. Some wedjat-eyes had an arm carrying the ankh or the papyrus staff (literally the eye on the arm) symbol that meant “to flourish”. The wedjat-eye was also used as a protection against the evil eye. From the late Old Kingdom two wedjat-eyes were placed on the door recesses of the tombs.5 It is interesting that the wedjat-eye with an arm carrying the ankh or the papyrus staff is referred to as “literally the eye on the arm”, since this depiction of the eye would make the “wedjat-eye” consistent with Antares as an “eye” in the Shoulder/ Wing/Arm. One representation of the wedjat-eye depicts a circle – presumably the pupil – surrounded by conical-like shapes on either side and an eyebrow above, while below the eye is a “stand” (or “leg”). And at an angle of approximately 45o between the eye and the “stand” or “leg” is an object suggestive of the False Beard, which experts identify as the “curled tail symbolic of a sprouting wheat or grain”. The legend notes that the wedjat-eye is the left eye of Horus restored by Thoth.6 Another version depicts the same eye as just described, but with a “teardrop” below the eye.7

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ While the wedjat-eye suggests a single eye, it also confusingly suggests that two eyes and one eye/two eyes are associated with different ideas or objects: In the Pyramid Texts (1266) two “evil eyes” are mentioned which seal the door catch…The uraeus was regarded as the fire-spitting eye of the sun-god. The moon and the sun were the eyes of the god Horus of whom it was written, ‘when he opens his eyes he fills the universe with light but when he shuts them darkness comes into being’. The name of Osiris means “place of the eye” for his name in hieroglyphs is represented as an eye above a throne. Until the Eighteenth Dynasty it was common to adorn the left-hand side of a coffin with a pair of eyes so that the deceased might see his way through heaven. At the end of the New Kingdom and in the Saite Period the eye is found on mummy cases, also in the area of the breast or feet, but with amuletic significance representing rather the eyes of Horus, which were offered to the deceased. Various Egyptologist researchers like to trace Egyptian representations of the eye back to the eye of the falcon god, Horus. A more recent piece of work points, on the other hand, to the bull’s eye, the edge of which was outlined with black and green eye-paint along the nasal bone and the lower eyelids. The unity of the green lower lid and the white iris actually symbolised the unity of the Green (or Red) Crown of Lower Egypt and the White Crown of the Upper Egypt. Lastly, the eye was also equated with the barque: ‘your right eye is the evening barque and left eye is the morning barque.’8

The various different things with which the eye is presumably associated are not necessarily different in our modern understanding of different, but represent celestial images which have undergone “transformations”. But the association with the barque is a clear indicator, as is the “eye on the arm”, that the eye is Antares, since the barque idea relates to the Celestial Boat/Ship, a part of which consists of the Shoulder/Wing/Arm image. The “Eye of Horus” This mysterious eye is somehow involved in battles between Horus and Set. These battles should be seen in the same context as the wrestling Mexican figurines with horns. This exchange of an eye among different deities is no different from the exchange of an eye among the three witches in Macbeth; however, the eye of the witches is actually the Crux Constellation which forms an eye-ear of the Indian Chief and his aliases (see chapter 16). The “Eye of Horus”, referred to below, could be either the Crux Constellation which is part of my own observed Horus Falcon image or Antares, the Jade Emperor’s eyes or Angelman’s eye: The term ‘Eye of Horus’ (singular) is understood to refer to the moon although the distinction between it and the eye of Re, that is, the sun, is no less equivocal. The 382

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ eye of Horus fought the enemies of the light and was itself seen as fire. In the Book of the Dead...the text states that, ‘I am one who is with Sound Eye when closed I am in its protection’. The myth tells how the eye of the moon was lost in a battle against Seth and then recovered [in this battle Horus’ right eye was torn out and Set lost his testicles, a reference to the phallus conception]. It was this eye which Horus presented to his father Osiris, thereby helping him to attain new life… After the New Kingdom the lotus god, Nefertum, was often depicted with the eye of Horus, in one hand, a symbolic allusion to the oblation which usually consisted of food and drink, from where Nefertum derived the name ‘Lord of substance’.9

RA’s eye In one of the transformations the Jade Emperor/Eldest Son becomes the Lion-Ape (see chapter 5). I think this is the idea behind regarding RA’s eye and the lion and since the Lion-Ape also involves the Crux Constellation, it would imply that this eye is also the Crux and Ra’s daughter in this seems to refer to the Eldest Son: “According to one myth, Ra…was becoming old and weak and the people no longer respected him or his rule. They broke the laws and made jokes at his expense. He did not react well to this and decided to punish mankind by sending an aspect of his daughter, the Eye of Ra. He plucked her from the Uraeus (royal serpent) on his brow, and sent her to earth in the form of a lion.”10 According to Wikipedia and Ancientegyptonline, “The Eye of Horus” and “The Eye of Re/Ra” are one and the same thing, and refer to the “All-Seeing Eye”, represented by the following hieroglyphic sign:

It is presented as a fact that what became “The Eye of Horus” was originally “The Eye of Re/Ra”. But Horus the falcon/hawk is much older than Re/Ra and it should therefore be the other way round. And Horus the falcon/hawk actually had two eyes, namely, the moon and the sun, whereas “The Eye of Ra” is regarded as a singular powerful destructive force linked with the fierce heat of the sun. It is also associated with the “Daughter of Re”.11, 12 This “fierce heat of the sun” is a reference to the red colour of Antares. The curled tail represents the False Beard and the Question Mark. The stand or leg could possibly be the Sword/Knife/Penis or the Bull’s Hind Leg or the Crux-Hadar-Rigel Kent star 383

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ cluster whereas the brow is possibly the Celestial Boat/Ship. The Eye of Providence According to Wikipedia the symbol of the “Eye of Providence” first appeared in the West during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. This “All-seeing Eye”, also known as the “Eye of Providence”, occurs in other ancient societies significantly later than the Egyptians. It is also linked to temples, (the Salt Lake Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ); to the Virgin Mary (in her first apparition at the Village of Garabandal the Virgin Mary was accompanied by two angels, one on each side, and the Flaming Eye was above them all); and to several other churches including the Vietnamese Ca Dai religion, which “uses the Eye of Providence (specifically, the left eye) within a triangle to represent God”.13 It is a symbol present in a number of contemporary societies, especially linked to several secret groups such as the Freemasonry and the Illuminati. This symbol had been modified from the original Egyptian mythology and the “Eye of Horus”. An early Masonic version of the “Eye of Providence” is supposed to represent the “Allseeing eye of God”. It typically has “sun” rays radiating outwards and downwards, and this is referred to as the “semi-circle of glory”. There are several variations of this “eye” in Masonry. In one version the eye is enclosed by a triangle. This later representation appears to be a modification of the Paleo-Hebrew “Eye of God” or “Door Eye”, which appeared sometime before the first century and was simply represented as a triangle with a circle or dot in the middle. “Sometimes the bottom of the triangle would be left out to represent an eye of purity or an eye of ascension…It has mostly been found near the dead which some have considered to represent God looking over the dead, or maybe the person who died was pure and the purity eye or ascension eye represents them crossing over into the other world due to pure deeds on earth”.14 Other versions also appear in Freemasonry, where the eye is replaced by a capital letter G which has the dual meaning of geometry and God. With regard to the Illuminati, Wikipedia further notes: “Today some conspiracy theorists link the symbol with conspiracy organisations, especially Adam Weishaupt’s Bavarian Illuminati. This is possibly the only context in which the ‘Eye of Providence’ is shown actually embedded in a pyramid. Some say the eye is meant to represent the Eye of Horus (‘the New born Son’; ‘God’s Son.’) or even Lucifer.”15 Aleister Crowly (1875-1947), an Englishman who openly identified himself with the Great Beast 666 and whom the media dubbed the “most evil man alive” was involved in a highly diabolical life-style and practices .16, 17 A photograph shows him wearing a black triangular hat with an emblem on the front consisting of a triangle with an eye in the middle. Underneath the eye is a modified curled tail. Moreover, the triangle is surrounded by a radiating six-point star, showing that the symbol has a link with the stars. 384

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ On the reverse side of the Great Seal of the United States the “Eye of Providence” is found floating above an unfinished pyramid with thirteen steps. Another representation of this is found on the US one dollar bill. It has been argued that this demonstrates the Freemasonry influence in the founding of the United States.18 The “Eye of Providence” has been wrongly associated with Sirius, see Book 3. The “Eye of Providence” seems to relate to the “Eye of Horus”, which then suggests that this “eye” could be Antares. Strictly speaking the eye of the “Newborn Son”, which is the Horus Child/Angelman, is not the “Eye of Providence”. Antares can also be seen as the “five”-point star where five is the preservation of a specific cosmological number, see Book 3. King Philip II and his missing eye In the Manchester Museum is a replica of the reconstructed head of the Great Macedonian King Philip II (382-336 BCE), father of Alexandra the Great.19 In this reconstructed head, Phillip seems to have suffered a severe blow across his right eye and it also appears as if this eye had been gouged out. Some aspects, presumably based on historical accounts of the lives of Alexandra the Great and Phillip, contain information related to the ancient cosmology which is discussed in this book.20 Interestingly, Philip’s name in Greek is Φίλιππος = φίλος (friend) + ίππος (horse), transliterated Philippos, which when put together will read something like a “friend of a horse” or “horse’s friend”.21 This one eye and horse seem to relate him to Angelman’s one eye and Angelman’s horse, see later. The question is: Is this missing eye pure coincidence, perhaps a battle wound, or was a rite performed in which an eye was gouged out? The “eye” conceptions in religious texts I am also convinced that in mythology and in religious books such as the Zohar and the Bible, ideas around blindness and tears are a play on these eye conceptions. Similarly the “eye for an eye” worldview of the ancient blood feuds may have been derived from these celestial eye conceptions. Interestingly, Jesus discourages the practice of an “eye for an eye”, linking it to a “tooth for tooth”. (Mat. 5: 27-42). The “tooth” idea also has a celestial basis, and the linking of the tooth to the eye may be another way of expressing the eye in a conical shape – as with the eye in the pyramid. In the following passage, presumably uttered by Jesus in connection with adultery, notice how he refers not only to the “missing eye”, but also to “the missing arm/ hand”: “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away…” (Mat. 5:27-30 and 33-42). 385

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ One arm alias the hand of god alias the Shoulder/Arm/Wing alias the “tongue of fire” I mentioned the orientation of Angelman as he appeared on the SW point. When he is orientated thus, his left “arm”, formed by the stars of the Scorpius Constellation, can be viewed as a shoulder-wing, or as a longer arm than the other. This image I term the Shoulder/Arm/Wing. Alternatively, Angelman can be viewed as having only one arm, with the right arm either hidden or “cut off”. I am certain that this aspect of Angelman gave rise to various interesting interpretations which were expressed in ancient artworks, writings and other traditions. I will cite a few random examples to show the range of ideas and expressions which emanated in various ancient societies from this aspect of Angelman. The INYO long-arm imagery In modern Swansea, south east of Lone Pine, California USA at sites INY-272 and Number 41 are a number of interesting Native American rock art and symbols, controversially dated to approximately 2000-2500 years old. These sites, collectively termed INYO, are described as “a dwelling place of a Great Spirit”, and have been studied by various experts since 1929 when the sites were first discovered by Julian Steward. The collective finds of these experts were amassed in a single publication.22 Sadly, since white settlers started mining the area for silver 120 years ago, these places and their valuable art have suffered a great amount of destruction. However several interesting pictures, symbols and signs are still on view at INYO. The most intriguing image can be seen as a not so clear black and white picture on the web. This image is argued to have several similarities to Lugh, the “long-arm” Celtic “God of Light” discussed above in the section dealing with Angelman’s headdresses. In the basic outline, the picture depicts something that resembles one face of a crude obelisk-like structure consisting of two “parallel” vertical lines, capped by a triangle at the top. The base and the triangle meet to form a long tentacle-like protrusion, suggestive of a long arm, which the article specifically notes as “…an elongated right arm and hand, deliberately configured by the artist.” The left “arm” seems to form a crude triangular-like shape and the article notes: “The left arm of the figure is what one might consider normal length.” Running from the left arm, across the “body” to the lower end of the right arm, is a long line. More vertical and to the right is something suggestive of a penis; it is identified as such in the article. Further information is available about Lugh which associates him with celestial figures already discussed in various chapters. And the INYO figure is also associated with a snake – “The Roman historians noted his wayside shrines and holy places were many and that Lugh’s images were often accompanied by a cock, a turtle and a ram. Here, at Inyo, it seems to be accompanied by a snake or serpent.”23

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12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ Long-arm imagery in Ancient Egypt The “long arm” was dealt with in various ways in Ancient Egypt. The first was to depict one arm straight down next to the body, while the other, the “long arm”, was depicted bent at the elbow with the hand at the chest so that the bent part projected to the side to form a little wing-like triangular shape. I will call this formation the “triangular arm”. By moving the hand from the chest to the head, this became the military salute. But before this representation, the ancient artist simply represented human figures (male or female) with two very long tentacle-like arms; for example, on a red vase is a tall white figure with long arms and a large knob suggestive of a penis. In another artwork, a bird-female clay-figurine with a naked, red torso, head and breast and large white “buttocks” is depicted with long outstretched arms.24 The large “buttocks” link these figures to the San rock art and the Venus figurines, see chapter 10. In Mesopotamia, the rock art of the so-called boat people has a similar motif as on the red vase, a picture of a goddess with very long branch-like arms. Another example is the wall painting in Tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis.25 In this painting there are four different representations of the same idea. The top section illustrates a female with a red upper body and a white lower body. She has long, horizontally outstretched arms and, quite tellingly, one large eye. In the lower section are two different representations of a red male. In one, a red male with one long arm with a large hand “spins” with an upside-down antelope. Close to this is an illustration of two males, each with one prominent single eye. One of these is a red male with a bovine leg or lower part dissociated from his torso; both his arms are triangular, but one is extended by a line holding a “leopard” skin. Below are some examples of different representations of the “long arm” extracted from two sources26, 27 starting with the most ancient and moving forward towards modern times. There are two art pieces from Saqqara. One is a stela with scenes of the funerary repast (Second Dynasty, ca. 2720 BCE) which depicts a sitting female with a projected left triangular arm. Also, interestingly her hair on the one side is emphasised in a square style. More or less from the same period is a reddish, more refined, limestone statue of Khasekhem28 depicting the king sitting on a low-backed throne that seems to rest on a rectangular base. On the rim of this rectangle base are scenes of distorted corpses. The king’s left arm is bent in a triangle but the elbow is not projected to the side.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ A mostly white painted limestone of a “seated statue of King Djoser”29 depicts him with a right triangular folded arm that also does not project to the side. Male and female statues (ca. 2610 BCE, Cairo Egyptian Museum), of Rahotep and Nofret, each seated on a high-backed throne, show them with triangular folded arms. But there is a marked difference in the manner in which their folded arms are depicted. Rahotep’s body is reddish-yellow, his upper body is naked and his right arm is projected to the side, folded in the triangular pose, whereas Nofret is in a tight-fitting white dress and both her arms are folded in a triangular pose with only the right hand exposed above the dress. In a relief that depicts three gods, rendered in such a manner that they have only one right arm each. In this arm each carries a book-like thing on top of which is a phalliclike object. And hanging from the book, in each case, are three ankhs (symbols of life). Presumably the books with the symbol of life are an expression of the idea the “Book of Life”. There are other interesting aspects of these gods. Two of the males, each with a breast, prominent long side-back hair and a false beard, flank a woman who is wearing a white tight-fitting dress with one breast exposed. The one exposed breast seems to suggest that the artist wanted to convey the idea that the three are related. The paint on the relief is badly worn, but the first red male from the left is completely naked except for a waist “karate” belt, whereas the one at the rear, whose body appears to be green, has a similar belt and his entire body is covered with waves. He is noted as the “great green one, personification of the sea and marshes…”30 I am of the opinion that the female is Isis, presumably depicted as the Phoenix, whereas the two males could be the Horus Child depicted as the green one on the SE, and as the red one on the SW point. Alternatively, one could be the Horus Child and the other the Jade Emperor / Eldest Son. A painting in the tomb of Khnumhotep II (1880 BCE), labelled “Procession of Asiatics”, depicts two groups of people standing on opposite sides of a donkey.31 At the tail end of the donkey are five people, four bearded tall ones wearing robes, and one very short man-boy in red shorts, with a naked upper body. Three of them have one very long arm that dangles almost to their knees, and two of the four have their right shoulders disproportionately projected, with their left arms in the characteristic triangular pose. In front of the donkey’s head are six males wearing robes, four of whom are closely grouped together. They have cropped beards running in a curved manner along their chins. One of the three, in red robes, has a large red bow, whereas two have “throw sticks”; their robes are draped over one shoulder. 388

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ Two of these males, in red robes, are standing with one of their arms folded in a triangular pose. The robe of the one male is draped over his left shoulder forming a triangular pose, whereas, the robe of the other male is draped over the other arm, which is not the triangular arm. Three of these men are facing forward, while the fourth is facing backwards. The extended arms of these four men are proportionately drawn. In front of these four men are two other men, each with a one-horned antelope. One of these men has a sharp curved beard which projects beyond his chin, unlike the other four who have beards confined to their chins. His upper body is naked and his left shoulder is large and disproportionately depicted. The legend notes this is a scene of a special event of Hykos visiting Sesostris II and the men from their specific dress, hairstyle, beards and physiognomies are identified as Asiatics. Apart from the arms, dress, antelopes, the donkey and the manner in which this scene is composed, there are several additional aspects in this painting which suggest a cosmic depiction as opposed to a reality scene. Variations of the long-arm symbolism At first the “long arm” was represented as a single outstretched arm or two outstretched arms. It has also been indicated that the “one long arm” is symbolic of the celestial structure formed from the Scorpio Constellation that lends itself to a “triangular shape”, an arm bent at the elbow, both at the SE (< long arm) and SW (> long arm) celestial regions. In my opinion, where a figure is represented with two long arms it may be the ancient artist’s way of representing the SE long arm and the SW long arm, that is, the same arm represented twice, probably to convey a sense of symmetry similar to the human body. But it becomes evident that these “arms” were handled in various ways by different ancient societies, and the < and > “long arms” may have eventually ended up in their abstract form as Libra, the scales. It is also possible that the two “arms” represented by < and > became an eye shaped “< >” symbol with a dot in the middle representing the wadjet-eye. I am also of the opinion that this “long arm” idea was represented in various other ways: as the flail, the tail of a bull, leopard or lion, or a wing. The flail A flail is a small whip-like object commonly depicted with pharaohs and other deities. A painted ivory statue of a seated Cheops (ca. 2590 BCE, Cairo, Egyptian Museum, JE 36143) depicts him with a left triangular arm, not projected. However, over the shoulder of this arm is a flail held so as to form a triangle with the forearm.32 A bust of King Neferefre with a false beard (pinkish limestone, Abusir, Fifth Dynasty, 389

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Cairo, Egyptian Museum) depicts the king with a projected right triangular arm with the flail held similarly to that of Cheops. A variation of this flail over the shoulder is where the triangular arm, projected or not projected, holds a three-petal lotus over the shoulder. An example of the latter is found in a statue called “Chapel for ancestor cult of Ani” (ca. 1250 BCE). Here the figure is depicted as a red person with a naked upper body, holding a lotus bent like a pipe in the left triangular arm, with the flower close to his/her face.33 This pose may be similar to representations found in the Nichiren movement. “In Tenri-kyō, a religion founded in the 19th century by Nakayama Miki…the central symbol namu Myōhō renge kyō (‘Homage to the Lotus of the Good Law’) [is] displayed on a stole hanging from the left shoulder.”34 We find depictions where both arms are folded, as the statue of Nofret; further examples are representations of Tutankhamun and Osiris. But unlike Nofret, where one hand is exposed, in these examples both hands are exposed. The flail emphasises the one arm and in each instance it is the right arm.35 Interesting, this flail “one long arm” idea, which might seem weird, seems to have some residual remains outside Egypt. Churchward links ideas contained in an Egyptian artwork to Freemason rituals. In this artwork the God Amsu has a false beard, a two long-feathered crown and a long “tassel” (or hair) hanging down from his hair/hat almost to his feet. He has only one arm and one leg. The up-lifted left arm holds the three-filament flail, not at the handle as usual, but where the whip is attached to the handle. Churchward notes: “He holds the whip of power – the Egyptian Khu – in one hand pointing above, H.A. The other is not free yet from the swathing bandages, and is pointing downwards, H.D. The Good Shepherd.”36 The Ba-luba of Zaire retain some knowledge of the concept Mutende-ya-ngenge that seems to mean having a whip-like stinging arm.37 This idea is probably used to convey the the idea that this arm is “made” of the sting of the scorpion, that is the Scorpio Constellation. It is this connection between a celestial shoulder/arm/shoulder and a flail/whip which much later gave rise to the ritual of “holy” flagellation by Christian monks and the flagellation of the Shiites over the death of Hossian, the son of Ali, who was slain. It also amazingly survives as the whip used in erotic sexual activities to link up with the celestial phallus idea.

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12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ A long sleeve In the Arabian celestial globe of Tabarĩ, a young male is depicted with a dog by his left foot and one right long-sleeved arm. Apart from the dog and the long-sleeved arm, other aspects suggest that the man is actually a representation of Angelman. Above this long sleeved arm is half a creature with pincers (suggestive of a scorpion) and “goat/sheep” legs, a combo representation of Scorpio and the Goat/Sheep celestial images.38 We might have a living tradition of this one long-sleeved arm in our own times. In a picture book, there is a photo of two young Tibetan nomads with their rifles, from the Khampa tribe. They are wearing their jackets draped over the left shoulder, leaving the right shoulder and arm uncovered; both sleeves are empty, with the right sleeve dangling behind while the left sleeve dangles to the side.39 Robing or draping over one shoulder/arm Wearing a robe over one shoulder is found in many contexts. With Ramesses II (ca. 1270 BCE) the right triangular arm is emphasised by the sleeve of his “robe” being shorter over the forearm and projected sidewards, whereas the sleeve of the other covers the whole arm, with which he is holding a crook over his shoulder.40 There are two other Tibetan photos showing different styles of the “one arm”. The first photo, which was discussed in the context of the Question Mark headdress, depicts two young lama boys performing some ritual. Their left shoulder is heavily robed but the robe does not cover the right shoulder.41 In a second photo, several of the lamas, performing the welcome dance during the High Lama’s visit, have their right arms robed while their left arms are naked.42 The purpose of the “draping over one shoulder or arm” was to emphasise the “one arm” of Angelman. We find representations of this in various ancient societies and it also survives in contemporary societies. A gilded statue, found wrapped in linen in the tomb of Tutankhamun, depicts the young king with a long spear in his right arm, the shoulder of which is heavily robed, while his left arm is completely naked.43 There are several European paintings which depict Greek and Roman mythological characters in a similar manner. For example, a painting by Giulio Romano (14921546), “Achilles Contemplating the Body of Patroclus”, depicts Achilles with his left shoulder and arm completely covered with a red cloth that forms a wing-tongue shape on the left side.44 Another painting, “The Death of Achilles” by Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640), depicts a young man wearing the Roman warrior dress; his left shoulder is draped in a red cloth. The exposed arm is twisted in a strange manner as if he is banging his fist on a stand on which a fire is burning. Also noteworthy is 391

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ that only the right foot is visible, presumably the foot that was pierced by the arrow which finally killed him.45 The painting “School of Athens” (by Raphael) depicts an old man, Socrates, and a young man, Plato, walking side by side; their left shoulders and arms are robed. In this painting Socrates’ naked right arm is lifted up and he is pointing his index finger into the air, while Plato holds his right arm horizontally – emphasising his five fingers.46 Picknett and Prince discuss various examples of this raised finger.47 I have already mentioned that this raised finger is the Horus Child’s “finger” alias his hair-lock, but it could equally be symbolic of the False Beard and the Question Mark images. The pointed finger is also found in Leonardo’s painting “St John the Baptist”. In this painting, John, who has clearly female features, raises his right arm with the typically pointed finger; his left arm is in a triangular pose with his arm holding or wrapped in some cloth. In Leonardo’s “The Last Supper” Jesus’ left shoulder is heavily robed, and his extended left arm reveals only his hand, once again to lay emphasis on his five fingers. In Mesopotamian art we have similar depictions of one arm being robed, for example, a depiction of a sitting Ea with water flowing through his body. His left arm is missing whereas the left shoulder of the deity serving him with water is covered but his right shoulder and arm are naked.48 In the painting “Jupiter and Thetis” Jupiter is depicted with a Greek robe over his left shoulder. Underneath this arm is a black eagle. This association of the eagle with the arm-shoulder may be the artist’s way of conveying the association of the Phoenix; that is, the arm-wing represents the Eagle/Phoenix. Thetis, kneeling over Jupiter’s right leg, also has her left shoulder robed while her right shoulder and torso are uncovered.49 This association of the arm with a bird is indeed very old. On the Mesopotamian seal (2,300 BCE) of Enki, he is depicted with his left shoulder and arm completely covered, while a large bird perches on the hand of the completely uncovered right arm and shoulder. Enki’s right leg is exposed from the foot to just above the knee, whereas his left leg is almost completely covered. Interestingly, behind him is a twofaced god standing with his left arm in a triangular pose. This association of the arm with a bird can still be seen with contemporary Arabs who practise falconry. This is meant to convey that the arm “is” a bird or a snake – as 392

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ with snake-charmers handling snakes with their hands. The parrot on the shoulder of a pirate has a similar symbolic meaning. Another example is the statue of Diana (the Louvre, Paris), the male-female virgin huntress; her right shoulder is covered but her left is bare, and she is holding a large bow in this arm. On her right is a hound dog.50 In the Codex Fejérváry Mayer there are several depictions of gods. A naked boy is depicted with a “karate belt” hanging between his legs. He is holding onto a hockey stick with his right hand and his left arm is strangely bent as if he is holding onto things on his back. In two other pictures of fully clothed beings their left shoulders are covered. The head of one of these sitting gods is covered by a bird’s head. The second man or woman, also wearing a prominent cover over the left ear, is breastfeeding a baby held in a Virgin Mary pose.51 In modern traditional Indian dress, the sari is draped prominently over one shoulder. Is this living heritage derived from the same ancient celestial representation as the ones discussed above, namely to give prominence to one particular arm? Other methods used to draw attention to the conception of one arm The Hittites gave prominence to the left arm of Teshub by depicting him with a “Weapon of Brilliance”, that is, a three-pronged thunderbolt, in his left hand.52 The “Weapon of Brilliance” may have simply been derived from the “fire” idea, for example the fire that Prometheus stole from the other gods and brought to mankind. In one painting Prometheus is dressed in a blood red robe which covers his left forearm and his private parts, and flows to his back. His right arm is bare, while in his right hand, which is crossed over his left leg, is the giant fennel burning bush. His right leg is towards the back, and the manner in which he is depicted suggests a floating person.53 The concept of thunder or thunderbolts features prominently in ancient conceptions. The question is; what does it mean? Another interesting manner in which attention was drawn to a particular arm was to depict a god, or his/her terrestrial representative, with a red rose or lotus in one of the arms. An example of this can be seen in the Indian painting where a bluish-black Vishnu is represented with four arms. In his lower left arm he is holding a six-petaled lotus in such a manner as to emphasise four fingers. Interestingly, both the palms of his right hands are painted, probably with mandy, a reddish-orange symbolic of Antares. This might also explain the tradition of Indian women painting their hands and feet with mandy, especially during certain festivals and for weddings. This 393

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ tradition not only drew attention to the “one arm” but also emphasised the hand as part of a counting system (Book 3). A variation by the Aztecs of the representation of “one arm” occurs on a 15-foot fig-bark Codex Boturini.54 This codex has many interesting aspects which can be related to several celestial images. From left to right, we first have two ancestors sitting below a five-step pyramid. One male ancestor is clothed in a similar way to the Egyptian mummy, draped in a cloth tied with a prominent knot on the right shoulder. In front of these ancestors is a “female” with long hair tied in a bundle, dangling on her right side. Quite tellingly she is the single occupant of a canoe, and is holding a single large oar. Two pictures further on are four males wearing different emblems on their heads. Each is carrying a large “bundle” on their right side while three of them have the large knot on their right shoulders. Interestingly, protruding from bundle of the fourth man, is a head covered with a bird’s beak. I am convinced that the purpose of the bundle and the knot on the shoulder is once again to emphasis one particular arm. The hand of God But how can we be certain that these various different ways in which emphasis is given to one arm all refer to the Arm/Shoulder/Wing structure of Angelman? In addition to what has already been described, there are further clues in the association of the arm/hand with a bird, as in the case of Enki; a snake; a severed human head; a triangle under the arm; and lastly a dog. In the case of a snake, the snake or something which resembles a snake may be depicted coiled around the arm/hand, or the arm/hand may be depicted in the form of a snake, or the hand is shown holding a snake. The same applies for the association of the bird with the arm/hand. In addition, the bird, or the snake, or the dog could be placed on, or above, or under a particular arm/hand, or simply placed near the body at the side of the arm that is being emphasised. In the case of the severed head, it was common to depict it held in one hand. There are four “birds” which could be associated with Angelman’s hand: the Phoenix, the Fowl-CHICK, the Jade Emperor’s head as a bird/bat/swallow, and the Corvus Constellation – the black bird. In the context of these discussions about “one arm”, let us recall the signs which God showed to Moses at his first calling, when he was drawn to this unknown god by a burning bush that wasn’t really on fire, to see how ideas expressed in this story resonate with several celestial conceptions discussed thus far, particularly the “handsnake” conception. “Then the Lord said to him, ‘What is that in your hand?’ ‘A 394

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ staff,’ he replied. Then the Lord said, ‘Throw it on the ground.’ Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it…Then the Lord said, ‘Put your hand inside your cloak.’ So Moses put his hand into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was leprous, like snow” (Ex. 4:2-7). In this story of Moses we see a different play with the hand-snake idea but in addition we have the idea of the Leopard Skin, which is symbolic of leprosy (see chapter 6), and the staff, presumably the crook, while “like snow” is symbolic of the “white stuff”. I also think the Arm/Shoulder/Wing was alternatively symbolised as a “hand”, which later took on the more fanciful idea of the “Hand of God”. This “hand” conception, as revealed by the following information below, is very ancient indeed. You may recall the negative imprint of the five-fingered human hand, done in red ochre 20,000 years ago, that was found in a cave in France. I am convinced this hand was symbolic of the celestial hand. Graham Hancock rightfully puzzles over the significance of this imprint: We continue our descent to the floor of the main gallery and come in a moment to a pattern of red ochre polka dots [symbolic of the Leopard Skin] painted on the cave wall. To their left is the ghostly negative image, also outlined in red, of a graceful female hand…When a woman stood here 20,000 years ago, spread her fingers against the wall, what thoughts were going through her head? Was she young, or old, or in the prime of life? What was her relationship to the artist, who had chewed up a solution of ochre in his mouth, mixing it with his saliva, so that he could use his breath to spray it over her hand? Or was she herself the artist as well as the model? Either way, what was her purpose in leaving her spectral handprint here?55

This hand in the cave, viewed in isolation, does not necessarily indicate a celestial relationship, but the accompanying images, which I have discussed under various contexts, reveal the cosmic identity of the hand imprint. The hunters, like the !Kung, drew attention to the hand by amputating a finger-joint, as previously discussed. I am of the opinion that this tradition may have had triple symbolic meanings. Firstly, it may have been done to reduce the hand to “four” fingers to resemble the stars marked EW1, EW2, EW3 and EW4 in figure 11.2 in the Arm/Shoulder/Wing structure. Secondly, to show blood, symbolic of red Antares associated with the Arm/Shoulder/Wing structure. And thirdly, the notches of the fingers were used as a counting system to record the number of days that it took the 395

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ moon to complete its orbit around the earth. There are fourteen notches on each hand which gives a total of 28, and the removal of a single notch gives 27, a number which is close to the scientifically determined 27.32 days of the moon’s orbit around the earth. The passing of time was recorded using moon cycles, which were also used to determine when certain celestial images would appear or disappear, and this in turn determined certain practices and rituals of our ancient ancestors. Christians still draw attention to the “hand” conception when they put their hands together to pray. An interesting side-note: on November 16, 2007, while switching between channels on DSTV, I tuned into the IQRAA channel, showing Muslim pilgrims on Haj. It appeared that some pilgrims had one of their arms wrapped up while they moved anticlockwise around the Kabba. Apparently they carry out this movement 60 or 70 times – numbers which we will see have celestial significance. When you read this one-arm idea and the next section that deals with one prominent leg, you will understand that it is even probable that the very ancient pilgrims might have wrapped up one arm and also one leg while moving around the Kabba. There are Hindu gurus who stand on one leg for very long periods in the belief that it will bring spiritual enlightenment. There are even certain Aboriginal elders who stand on elevated places on one leg, with the foot of the other leg placed against the supporting leg to form a triangle. Similarly, I have read of a holy Hindu man who held one arm in the air as a sign of worship, for several years, – until it became non-functional! Thus, when you consider the anticlockwise movement, the tied arm, the numbers, the white dress and the attempt to kiss the black stone, collectively these suggest that Muslim traditions are an enactment of very ancient cosmological conceptions. The Arm/Shoulder as a heart, tongue and wings In closing, I want to state that the same Arm/Shoulder celestial image was also conceptualised as a wing, heart and tongue (see chapter 5). The ancients probably conceptualised the Arm/Shoulder as a heart to preserve ideas of shape, the colour red and the particular orientation of this image. Firstly, the Arm/ Shoulder arm takes on the shape of a tongue or heart, but with the point of the heart facing to the left instead of downwards, on the left side of Angelman (his left) or the right side of the Jade Emperor. Secondly, the heart is the main organ through which blood is pumped and the red of blood, as with red ochre, was seen as representing red Antares. 396

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ There is an interesting, complex Aztec painting of Mixcoatl, which also suggests that the Arm/Shoulder was conceptualised as a heart. Mixocoatl was an “Aztec god of hunting, war, and the North Star, who was responsible for creating fire by spinning the heavens around a central axis.”56 In this representation he has three strips of “bandage cloth” tied to his forearms. Just below the shoulder of the left arm, there is a red speckled heart-like object. In the same arm he is holding three feathered, red-hot bundles consisting of three “arrows”. He seems to be pushing these into the behind of a leopard-like creature who is pinning down a red man (the biblical strong man Samson tied the tails of foxes and set them alight). The leopard is poking out his tongue while looking back at Mixcoatl. It is this association of the heart with celestial beings that was behind the Aztecs’ gruesome sacrifice of live human hearts to their gods and the mutilation of their tongues in some holy rituals. I am also convinced that the “Spirit” which descended like “tongues of fire” onto the Apostles, and the idea of “speaking in tongues” are different plays with the same ancient ideographic conceptualisations of this Arm/Shoulder/Wing. We also see this “tongue of fire” in the “Dance of Shiva”, where his upper left arm holds a “tongue of flame” – the arm becomes the “tongue of flame”. We have seen, with several examples above, that the representations and the traditions of the Arm/Shoulder/Wing alternated. In some instances prominence was given to the left and in other to the right. In some instances this may have been due to the two ways of representing left and right explained above. Alternatively, it may have been intended to capture the shifting orientation of this image in relation to Angelman, as described in what follows. The Arm/Shoulder/Wing image is first present at the SE, and then moves to the SW. Because of this some societies might have given prominence to the SE side as the “right hand” of Angelman to convey the idea that Angelman “originates” on this side. Other societies might have laid emphasis on the SW side as being the “left hand”. When the ancient artists wanted to capture both directions they would simply have represented one being or one creature with two long arms or two wings. The one prominent leg alias Ancient Egyptian sceptre alias arrow in the leg/foot alias nail in the hand/foot Angelman’s lower body, from just below the “torso” to the “feet”, may be visualised as covered, giving the impression of a woman in a long dress that ends in a fluted hem. I am of the opinion that this view of Angelman gave rise to the ritual of wrapping mummies in white cloth in Ancient Egyptian times, a tradition which continues with Muslims wrapping their dead in white linen. It is also why certain gods and goddesses are depicted in very tight-fitting white garments. 397

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ An alternative “visualisation” of Angelman suggests that he has only one prominent leg. This does not necessarily imply a single leg. But it does not rule out the possibility that some ancient societies may have interpreted him as having a single leg, formed from the Crux-Rigel Kent-Hadar stars when this star cluster moved to its lowest position on the SW horizon. In the latter position the Crux Constellation formed the foot and Rigel Kent-Hadar joining the Crux and vertically aligned formed the leg. From the front, this star cluster formed the right foot and leg of Angelman. Just as with the “one arm” conception, I am certain various interesting “leg” ideas arose which were expressed in artworks, writings and in other traditions. The one-legged conception As rightfully noted by de Santillana and von Dechend, one-legged beings are persistent in the religio-mythological ideas of various ancient societies. And they seem to be linked to the stars: The One-Legged Being, in particular, can be followed through many appearances beginning with the Hunraán of the Mayas, whose very name means ‘one-leg’. From it comes our ‘hurricane’, so there is no wonder that he disposes of the wind, rain, thunder and lightning in lavish amounts. But, for all that, he is not a mere weather god, since he is one aspect of Tezcatlipoca himself, and the true original One-Leg that “looks down from the starry sky”.57

Interestingly this one-legged being is somehow related to a one-legged green ox and here the one-leggedness is also a play with the Bull’s Hind Leg celestial image: It is not clear whether or not the Siberian shamans were still aware of this past [connection of the drum covered in bull’s hide and its connection with Taurus and the God of Heaven]. The amount of highly relevant star lore collected by Holmberg, and the innumerable figures of definitely astronomical character found on shamanistic drums could very well allow for much more insight than the ethnologists assume… In the Eastern Sea, there is to be found an animal which looks like an ox [see chapter 14]. Its appearance is green, and it has no horns. It has one foot only. When it moves into the water or out of it, it causes wind or rain. Its shining is similar to that of the sun and moon. The noise it makes is like the thunder. It name is K’uei. The great Huang-ti, [the Yellow Emperor, said to be Saturn] having captured it, made a drum out of its skin. 58

In the footnote the authors note: “…the Taittiriya Sanhita says: ‘The pressing stone [of the Soma-press] is the penis of the sacrificial horse, Soma is his seed; when he opens his mouth, he causes lightening, when he shivers, it thunders, when he urinates, it rains…’ It will come out later why it is important to supplement these 398

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ strange utterances with the statement of the Shatapatha Brahmana: ‘In the water having its origin is the horse.’” Still in the context of drums, de Santillana and von Dechend mention the Mande of West Africa and an interesting being called Faro (this sounds like “pharo”, that is, pharaoh) who also has only one leg: In the large and complicated creation myth of the Mande, there are two drums. The first was brought down from heaven by the bardic ancestor, shortly after the Ark (with the eight twin-ancestors) had landed on the primeval field. This drum was made from Faro’s skull and was used for producing rain. The experts style Faro usually ‘le Moniteur,’… The first sanctuary was built, and the ‘First Word’ revealed (30 words there were) to mankind through the mouth of one of the twin-ancestors, who ‘talked the whole night, ceasing only when he saw the sun and Sirius rising at the same time…’ When the ‘Second Word’ was to be revealed (consisting of 50 words this time), and again connected with the helical rising of Sirius, the ancestor ‘decided to sacrifice in the sanctuary on the hill, the first twins of mixed sex [male-female]. He asked the bard to make an arm-drum with the skin [the Leopard Skin] of the twins. The tree [the Celestial Tree] from which he carved the drum, grew on the hill and symbolized Faro’s only leg.’ Here again are important characters, of which there are a bewildering number with various functions all over the world. It is not necessary to enter that jungle, except to note that the temporary mock-king of Siam, who was set up for nearly expiatory ceremonies, also had to stand on one leg upon a golden dais during all coronation ceremonies, and he had the fine-sounding title of ‘Lord of the Celestial Armies’.59

In chapter 9, I discussed a fascinating figure called Baba Yaga. She has a single left, white, skeleton leg in a pink slipper. Her left arm, holding a large club, is covered by a white rolled-up sleeve, which in turn is covered by her red frock. What can be gauged from the above information is the existence of various onelegged beings and traditions around “one-leggedness”, which importantly points to the stars. The one leg as the “wounded leg” A prominent severed leg is depicted in a scene where one of twin brothers, Lakshman, is fighting a monster.60 In the Dendera Zodiac is a striding man, “incorrectly” identified by the experts as representative of our modern Orion, depicted with a triangle under his right arm and 399

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ a “dog” with an “amputation implement” at his right leg. The latter appears to be the artist’s way of drawing attention to the one “injured leg”. The significance of the dog as related to Angelman is discussed in Book 2. This same “wounded leg” idea is eminently associated with the myth of the greatest Greek warrior hero, Achilles – a myth retold by Homer in the Iliad (eighth century BCE). This divine hero, with an arrow through his leg, is not unique to Greek “mythology” since the same idea was expressed many thousand years before in Egypt with the Horus child. In Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man there are two pictures of the Horus child with an arrow in his left foot, and a third with an arrow in his right foot. The first two pictures are displayed under the heading “Horus as Lord of the Double-Horizon”, and the description of the first picture notes: “Horus as Horus-Sebek is represented as the earliest fish-man. He is here emanating from the great Fish Mother, Apt – Nina was another form – primarily he was issued from the female fish – that is the Crocodile Apt (female) as her son Horus-Sebek or young Crocodile.”61 Interestingly, two other pictures, which were reproduced from the Mexican Antiquities, have the artistic style of Native Americans; nonetheless, Churchwood claims these are depictions of Horus, an Egyptian deity. The one picture interestingly has two strange looking “sword-fishes” which are similar to the celestial creature I described on Angelman’s head as one of his headdresses. The other picture has the heading “Horus the Light of the World in Tears”, about which Churchwood notes as follows: This figure depicts ‘Horus in Tears’ – ‘Ye are the tears made by my eye in your name of men.’ [This idea should be considered against the ‘tear’ idea which I discussed in connection with the false beard, for example, ‘Isis’ ‘tears’.] His Crown (emblem of light with three feathers) represents him as ‘The Light of the World’ as witnessed by That-Aan – who carried the Eye of Horus in his hands and testified that Horus is the true light of the world as son of Ra, the solar God, and of the Holy Spirit in the Eschatology…That-Aan was the primordial John, but far anterior and just as personal, as he carried in his hands the papyrus roll – ‘the word of life’ and the eye of light, the Talismanic ‘Maatkheru’ as seen portrayed here on the head of Horus.62

In the Mayan Dresden Codex, presumably depicting our modern Venus tablets, a fierce looking god, said to be Venus, is shown in four scenes holding two arrows closely towards his feet. In another scene he appears to be piercing his right foot with the arrows.63

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12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ From these three examples we see the same idea being expressed many thousands of years apart, in two completely different societies which were also separated by huge geographic distances. It is within in this same context that we should understand the “one leg” idea in the Old Testament story of Jacob wrestling with God. Quite tellingly you first have four people (a persistent number in various ideas discussed thus far) in groups of two (two wives and two maidservants) and 11 sons (remember Jesus’ 12 apostles who became 11 after Judas took his life) – then you have Jacob alone – “So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched…Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.”64 The “wrestling” idea is not unique to this Bible story; it occurs in various myths and religions from different countries, for example, in various seals from Mesopotamia you see deities wrestling (see Wars of the Gods for examples).65 Also, this idea of a wounded leg/hip is not unique to Jacob. Another source notes as follows: Mythical heroes typically carry a wound in the upper leg or hip, which wound adumbrates the destined sacrifice, their inevitable reduction, as it were, to godly status. Odysseus as a young man was wounded just above the knee by a boar’s tusk. When, after the Trojan War and his famous subsequent misadventure, Odysseus returns home disguised as a beggar, his old nurse (a she-wolf of sorts, á la his dog Argos)66 recognises him by his scar.67

It is this “piercing of the leg” which inspired the traditions associated with nailing people through the leg – as in the case of Dionysus, a precursor to Jesus.68 Freke and Gandy’s research shows that the “crucifixion” of the Greek god Dionysus was a precursor to the Christian Crucifixion story. A marble sarcophagus (second to third centuries CE) represents an old man with a prominent single leg slanting diagonally, like the Djed Pillar, from left to right. He is being held (or prevented from falling) in position by four people including a young boy with an erect penis and a lady on his right supporting his head and shoulder. The Freke and Gandy authors note: “[This is a] representation of Dionysus…lifted up on a tree during the spring festival of the Mysteries. Jesus was likewise said to have been ‘lifted up on a tree’ at Eastertime. Often a crossbar was also used so that, like Jesus, the Pagan godman was raised up on a cross.”69 401

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ I guess the driving of nails into Jesus’ hands is also a symbolic expression to draw attention to the “bleeding” celestial “hand” idea. Quite tellingly it is only Thum(b); that is, Thomas, who does not believe that Christ has risen from death, yet he believes when Jesus invited him to poke a finger into his wounds. Moreover, most of the representations I have seen of Jesus’ crucifixion depict a single nail through “one leg” since the two legs are crossed over each other. But there is also a subtler way in which attention is drawn to Jesus’ legs, perhaps as reference to the “one leg” conception: According to the Fourth Gospel, Jesus’s executioners are on the verge of breaking his legs, thus accelerating his death. Why bother, if he was already moribund? There would, in short, be no point in breaking Jesus’s legs unless death was not in fact imminent. In the gospel of John (19:33) we read: ‘They [the Jews] asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.’70

We have further confirmation that the Crux-Rigel Kent-Hadar cluster is the one leg or the injured leg/hip conception since Hadar is specifically associated with an “upper leg”: “Oddly enough the word peral stems from the Latin perna, ‘upper leg’.”71 Firstly, Hadar’s association with the Rigel Kent and the Crux forms an image that resembles a foot and leg which ends at the knee, or a boot. This being so, white Hadar is the upper part of the “leg” complex. It is furthermore noteworthy that the word pearl is also linked to “heel of a shoe”: “The word pearl is furthermore related to the Greek pternē, meaning ‘heel of a shoe,’ and ptelos, ‘wild boar’”72 (see chapter 16). It is perhaps this association of leg and shoe that gave rise to the following: • Puss in Boots – a stupendous nursery story about a cat who wears boots. In chapter 16, I discuss the celestial cat image and you will see its relationship to this “leg/boot” and it is the association of this leg/shoe with the celestial cat which formed the basis for this story. • Interestingly enough, for yet unknown reasons, Italy became the focus of mystics whose ideas and actions seem to have spurred the Renaissance. The landmass of Italy looks like a great boot in an ocean; was this perhaps the ancients’ mystical attraction to Italy? 402

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ Interestingly, there are several references in Hamlet’s Mill where Rigel is associated with Hades, evil forces, destruction and, interestingly, also with the idea of the “foot”.73 This star, Beta Orion, as we know it today, is associated with our modern Orion. It seems that there are experts who think these ancient ideas are indeed a reference to the Orion stars, but this may not be the case. I think these deductions were drawn because of a mix-up between Rigel and Rigel Kent, and also because they did not understand the dynamic cosmology which the ancients were expressing in their ideas and actions. Such misunderstandings, especially with regard to Rigel and/or the celestial foot, are noted by de Santillana and von Dechend, who also confirm other aspects of the ancient cosmology consistent with my own interpretations: They explain the well known whirlpool in the sky is a group of stars, known as zalos, found at the foot of Orion, close to Rigel. According to Hermes Trismegistos the degree at which zalos is situated is called ‘death’. But the Moaris claimed that Rigel marked the way to Hades. The astrologer Antiochus enumerates the whirl among the stars with the rising Taurus. And even though Franz Boll disagreed with the adequacy of this description he did conclude that the zalos must be Eridanus, the watery grave of Phaethon, “which flows from the foot of Orion” and regarded as a starry river leading to the other world. The southern hemisphere star map of Athanasius still shows Phaethon’s mortal frame lying in the stream. This mortal’s frame was known as the mysterious place, pī nārāti, literally the ‘mouth of the rivers,’ meaning, the ‘confluence’ of the rivers, and traditionally the Babylonians identified it with Eridu…[the experts’ explanation] did not contribute much to an understanding of the mythical topos of pī nārāti…The ‘source’ is as unrevealing as the ‘mouth’ has been, and as every geographical localization is condemned to be Eridu, Sumerian mulNUNki is Canopus, alpha Carinae, the bright star near the South Pole, has been established irrefragably by B.L. van der Waerden, a distinguished contemporary historian of astronomy.74

Alternative representations of the one leg conception Jesus’ feet It is perhaps the same one leg idea which is expressed by drawing attention to the feet in connection with Jesus in the following stories. The first story is about the woman named Mary who washed Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume and wiped them with her hair (John 12:3). The same story is told in the other three gospels, but in these versions the woman is not named; she perfumes his head and there is also emphasis around the perfume coming from an alabaster jug. The second story is about Jesus washing his disciples’ feet (John 13).

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The prince who stood on one leg In Hamlet’s Mill we find a figure from an Indian religious book about a prince who becomes the Pole Star. He stands on one leg. And interestingly the idea that the stars and planets turn around this being resonates with similar ideas in the Bible. Joseph has a dream where the heavenly bodies also turn around him. Judas is presented likewise in the recently discovered Gospel of Judas. But most importantly, this prince and his one leg connect with celestial phenomena: Farther to the east, in India, the Bhagavata Purana tells us how the virtuous prince Dhruva was appointed as Pole star. The particular ‘virtue’ of the prince, which alarmed even the gods, is worth mentioning: he stood on one leg for more than a month, motionless. This was what was announced to him: ‘The stars, and their figures, and also the planets shall turn around you.’ Accordingly, Dhruva ascends to the highest pole, ‘to the exalted seat of Vishnu,’ round which the starry spheres forever wader, like the upright axle of the corn mill circled without end by the laboring oxen.75

Ancient rituals of one leg enacted by secret societies Under the “one arm” discussions I mentioned examples of rituals involving standing on one leg. We have also seen Chinese and Egyptian representations of the phoenix standing on one leg. Secret societies like the Freemasons still seem to enact these cosmological ancient rituals related to the celestial imagery discussed in this book. I want to draw your attention to the “one leg, one arm” ritual. In the Hiram Key, Knight and Lomas describe some of the rituals they experienced with their initiation into the Freemason “Craft” as First Degree Masons: The rituals took place in a “Temple” under the guidance of The Worshipful Master… The lodge or “Temple” itself speaks of cosmological imagery: The floor is laid out with a central rectangle of black and white squares. On the Eastern edge is the Worshipful Master’s pedestal, the Junior Warden sits on the southern edge while the Senior Warden sits on the western edge. Their pedestals are smaller. The pillars situated behind, and on either side of the Worshipful Master, are significant as they are a recreation of the left-hand and the right-hand pillars that stood in the porch way of King Solomon’s Temple. The left-hand pillar, called Boaz, was named after Boaz the great-grandfatherof David, King of Israel. [Boaz may be a modification of Bes as Boz]. You are required to dress in loose-fitting white trousers, a tunic top and on one foot you wear a simple slipper (the expression for this is “slipshod”). The trouser 404

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ leg is rolled up to expose your left leg up to the knee. The tunic is drawn aside so that your chest and left breast are exposed, [the single breast exposure implies you are a man-woman]. You are hoodwinked (that is, blindfolded) and unbeknown to you a hangman’s noose is placed around your neck and draped down your back, and a dagger is held firmly to your chest. The guard waiting with you bangs the hilt of a drawn sword on a large door to the temple, seeking permission for you to enter. The Worshipful Master invites you in and questions your maturity and your age. Only when you have confirmed you are 21 years of age and a free man, is the dagger removed from your chest. You then kneel down and a short prayer is said, invoking the blessing of the Supreme Governor of the Universe… After having been guided around the perimeter of the Temple, pausing three times to be introduced as a “poor candidate in a state of darkness”…The Worshipful Master asks: “Having been in a state of darkness, what is the predominant wish of your heart?” When you give the required answer, “Light,” your blind fold is removed and your attention is drawn to the emblematic “lights” of the Freemasonry, which are explained as the Square and the Compasses and the Volume of the Sacred Law – for Christian candidates this is the Bible. The secret signs, grips and passwords of the First Degree are then explained to you. Eventually you are presented with a simple white calf-skin apron which symbolises your rank as a First Degree Mason. This apron “Is more ancient than the Golden Fleece or Roman Eagle, more honourable than the Star, Garter or any other order now in existence, it being the badge of innocence and a bond of friendship…”76

Confirmatory evidence of this ritual can be seen in a noteworthy photo depicting a “First Degree Mason being initiated”. In this photo, a blindfolded man is shown standing between two pillars. The blindfold presumably plays around with the “eye” conceptions. Behind the pillars is a solid wooden door. Above this door-frame is a painted dome with two large six-pointed stars. The man’s right sleeve is rolled up. The left sleeve is not rolled up. The right side of his open tunic hangs over his pants while the left side is tucked in. The left leg of his pants is rolled up to just above the knee, while the right leg is not rolled up. Several aspects suggest that this initiation is connected to my observations and hence the rolled-up sleeve and pants leg also seem to connect with the ancients’ one leg and one arm ideas and traditions. The rope around the neck might be symbolic of the False Beard, since it is hanging 405

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ with one end loose. But remember it is Judas who hangs himself. The “rope”/hanging, and its celestial significance are discussed in chapter 14. Other symbolic significance of the Crux-Rigel Kent-Hadar As the was sceptre Based on the discussions thus far, you might appreciate the significance of the CruxRigel Kent-Hadar star cluster. I now want to suggest that these stars might even have given rise to certain objects and signs which eventually became specific letters in our “Western” alphabet. I have already hinted at the fact that these stars might have been the archetype of the Ancient Egyptian was sceptre, especially the base and the handle. The shape of the base of the was sceptre is like an upside-down letter ‘c’; that is, or Λ with the handle extending above the base. I am also of the opinion that the three-toed chicken legs of Baba Yaga’s house, and the medicine bundle of the Crow Eagle tribe that was “used for shamanic vision”, were meant to represent the same stars and hence can be seen as “was-like” objects. As the letters L, h, b and d This “one leg/foot” conception may have been the basis of the foot hieroglyphic sign of the Egyptians. It is not difficult to see how this became the letter L. If indeed, the letter L was derived from the leg-foot of Angelman it should actually have been written in the reverse as (the leg twisted out of joint). But these same stars may sign, which is probably a crude precursor to h, or have been represented as the sign when the “missing” even b and d. The latter two letters would be a modified Crux star is included. As a mace I am of the opinion that these same “leg/foot” stars have been the archetype for two other interesting objects and signs. In chapter 6, I discussed the arrangement of these stars as the face and leg of a creature with many aliases, but which I initially called the Fowl-CHICK. In such an arrangement Rigel Kent and Hadar are directly under the Crux, thus forming a typical mace object. It perhaps for this reason that the mace is depicted with deities and ancient rulers and continues to have cultural significance in some contemporary societies. •  On a Narmer slate palette, Menes, a prominent Ancient Egyptian King accredited with the “unification of the lands”, is holding a mace as if to strike his enemy.77

• In the blue-black painting of Vishnu with four arms, in his lower right arm he is holding a golden object that looks like a fancy “knobkerrie” (a ball-like base

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12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ with a centre handle, that is, the mace) facing down and dangling at one of his feet.78 A similar mace object is also depicted in a painting of Lugh. •  Even in contemporary times various African tribes, especially the Zulu, use and see the knobkerrie as a ritual tribal weapon, with some mysterious significance. The Zulu King normally carries the knobkerrie together with an object that resembles the tail of a bovine, presumably representative of the flail sceptre.

• The knobkerrie became the rattle that is depicted in the hands of various Hindu divine beings. The holy rattle eventually ended up as a baby’s toy and also became the ceremonial staff, which is part of the traditions of some modern governments at the opening of parliament.

As an axe/hammer Apart from assisting in defining various images, these leg/foot stars formed different interesting patterns and several other objects, signs, ideas and traditions may have evolved from them. I briefly discuss a few prominent examples of these objects, signs, ideas and traditions, especially where these are associated with “divine beings”, including ancient “royals” who believed and styled themselves as beings representative of these “celestial divine beings”. When these stars are low on the southeast to south horizon (for example in March 2006, between 6-7 pm) the Crux is on top while Rigel Kent-Hadar is at the side of the Crux, thus giving the impression of an axe or hammer. There are many mythology ideas and traditions around axes and hammers, with some societies even regarding such objects as sacred.79, 80 Tokipoutangata is a ceremonial adze of the Maori.81 It has a wooden handle (wood being representative of the celestial tree) with a green stone blade (green of Canopus, see discussion in Book 3). It is a ritual tool used to invoke the gods when the first chips of a canoe (symbolic of the celestial boat/ships) are carved. This hammer/axe, as seen in connection with the wood of the Celestial Tree, gave rise to ideas around “carpentry”. Nangar is an ancient Mesopotamian word for a carpenter and it is linked to the stars. Carpentry was also a craft of Lugh, and Christians associate it with Jesus, the “son of a carpenter”. As a flag-like symbol and the letter P In The Dwellers on the Nile, there is a discussion about the first signs which the 407

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ Ancient Egyptians used to represent a god.82 This sign resembles a tiny flag or little axe. Sometimes only one sign is used, but at times these are grouped in threes or other multiple groupings. The multiple groupings are supposed to signify many gods. This sign may have been derived from the leg-foot stars, probably first as a crude axe, and thereafter converted to the flag-like symbol. And related to this visualisation and probably derived from the flag-like sign, is the letter P, which was probably first represented in the reverse as . Some support for this suggestion can be seen in what follows. There is a third-century CE ring-seal amulet plaster cast that depicts a person on a cross.83 At the top of the cross is a semi-circle of seven stars. At the top of the horizontal bar is a slice of the moon in a canoe-like shape. These suggest that the artist wanted to convey the message that the crucifixion relates to stars. Around the bottom are various crude Greek letters which, according to Freke and Gandy, spell out the name “Orpheus-Bakkikos”, which means Orpheus becomes a Bacchoi (a word which may have become “bachelor”). One of the letters in the name OrpheusBakkikos is a reversed P-like letter. Orpheus was a great legendary prophet of Dionysus who was so respected that he was often regarded as the god-man himself. “A Bacchoi was an enlightened disciple of Dionysus who had completely become identified with the god. The talisman, therefore, represents Dionysus dying by crucifixion, symbolising the initiate’s mystical death to his lower nature and his rebirth as a god.” It is also interesting that Freke and Gandy note in the legend of the plaster cast of Orpheus-Bakkikos that this figure is actually Osiris-Dionysus who may have inspired the story of Christ’s crucifixion: “This is a plaster cast of an amulet which was housed in the Museum of Berlin until it was lost during the Second World War. Although it seems to portray Christ crucified, it actually depicts the passion of the Pagan god-man Osiris-Dionysus.”84 I am tempted to suggest that the slice of the moon on the horizontal pillar of the cross is another symbol of the Crux. But this sliced moon could also be symbolic of the Celestial Boat/Ship or horns that were finally reduced to the letter U. Still in the same context, a picture of carvings on a pillar in Rome (193-235 CE) shows some sort of crude imagery and letters. The central image is of a large donkey/ horse-man (presumably Angelman’s Horse-Volvine) being crucified.85 Once again the horizontal “bar” ends in a “U” shape, but with the central “bar” running through the “U” and connected to one side of the “U” to form a cross with a top that looks something like this: . But what is also of interest is the prominent letter Y. Freke 408

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ and Gandy describe this plate as follows: “It sketches a man with a donkey’s head crucified on a cross, with the caption ‘Alexmenos worships his god’. This has been interpreted as a pagan insult towards Christianity, but it is far more likely that it is a Dionysian representation of the crucifixion of the lower ‘animal’ nature, which, as we have already discussed, was symbolised by a donkey.”86 At the bottom of this crucified donkey/horse is a male lifting his left hand to show five fingers, whereas the hand of his right arm is not prominent, that is, it is either not prominently drawn or has been erased. The man is identified: “A Pagan initiate of the Mysteries looks on at the crucifixion of a donkey-head man…”87 Both ideas are probably true, namely that this figure was used to mock Christians, as well as being some representation of Dionysus. This donkey-man may be a donkey, or a horse-man, or a volvine-man, but different ancient societies played around with this celestial being in various ways (see my discussion on Angelman’s Dark Twin Horse-Volvine, later and in Book 2). Y-slingshot and the letter Y Reference has been made to several examples where a Y-shaped stick is either represented with divine beings, or used as a slingshot, for example, where David uses it to slay the giant Goliath. We have also seen Indians smoking Y-shaped pipes, one of which is especially decorated with the celestial frog motif, and images on a Roman pillar that also have a Y letter. This Y-shaped sign is very ancient. Hancock describes some cave art in France which dates back 35,000 years. Among these are various celestial images which I have discussed including “The wounded man of Pech Merle” and a Y-shaped sign: “Possibly – or possibly not – part of the same composition is the figure of a powerful auroch (an extinct species of wild bull) with lyre-shaped horns. It too is done in red ochre and floats on the ceiling of the alcove very close to the wounded man. A little further off there is a stylised ibex (mountain goat) also painted in red ochre. Between the two there are several associated symbols, including one that is distinctively branched or Y-shaped.”88 I am also of the opinion that the Y symbol is again representative of the same stars, and is also a reverse of the was sceptre. What appears to have happened is that , as a the ancients represented the Y, that may actually have been written as “mace” but it is also the was in reverse, to emphasise the “missing star” in the Crux Constellation.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ As zero and one Interestingly the symbol for zero, 0, is diamond-shaped٠, in the Arabic numerals, and this may suggest the Crux as the basis for 0 or a circle. Therefore, the Crux and Hadar-Regal Kent could be 10 (1٠) or 01(٠1) where the 1 is representative of Hadar and Regal Kent. As a diamond and an egg It might even be that the Crux alone became associated with two other objects, namely, the diamond and the egg. Not only does the arrangement of the Crux stars lend itself to the shape of an egg when joined by smooth curving lines, but there are several ideas associated with the egg, for example with regard to the Phoenix (see Chapter 4). The goose and some divine beings are specifically said to have been born from eggs. All these have some association with the celestial regions dominated by the Crux. Given the roles that the Crux together with Rigel Kent and Hadar play in defining various celestial images, it is not difficult to see why the Crux would have taken on such significance. But then again it is also possible that the entire body structure of the Jade Emperor was symbolically conceptualised as a nest and egg. This possibility is certainly suggested in the following: The egg contained twin sons (both in [the] same single egg!) of Nommo [and it] by-passed the Red Sand World – they voyaged in this egg-shaped mothership [the Celestial Boat/Ship that is also the Jade Emperor’s body] between starsystems. The mortal one of these twins Mpanku…was killed in a battle with a great shark. The immortal of the twins, Wowane, nevertheless is torn to pieces and so ‘would scream for many thousands of years. [And this African mythological idea is compared with Greco-Roman myth] – Arene (Latin for sand) was sister of Tundareos, who had egg-born twin sons (both in the same single egg!) – ‘each has his half egg-shell surmounted by a star.’ The mortal Dioskouros was slain by the overly-voracious Idas. The immortal of the twins, Polu-deukes nevertheless is dead on alternating days.89

Angelman as Humpty-Dumpy, the jar-born and the egg-born Those of us who are the product of a Western education will immediately recall the following meaningless, nursery rhyme accompanied by an illustration of Humpty Dumpy as an egg-man: Humpty Dumpy sat on a great wall Humpty Dumpy had a great fall And all the King’s horses, And all the King’s men, Couldn’t put Humpty together again 410

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ These rhymes seem to relate to Angelman and the Jade Emperor and their connecting images. Angelman became progressively bigger from August onwards, expanding like a large blown-up doll. Then, from late August/September onwards, as he expanded, some of his lower “body parts” began to fade, which gave the impression of him breaking into pieces. This and the “beheading” of the Jade Emperor probably gave rise to the ideas and traditions about gods “breaking or being torn to pieces” and of the subsequent disarticulation burial rituals. In Egypt, Osiris is cut into 14 pieces by his “evil brother Set.”90 Similar ideas were widespread in Greco-Roman culture: Based on studies conducted by Guthrie, it is rightfully noted that this idea of gods or divine beings being torn into pieces was suggestively widespread in Greco-Roman culture. He presents evidence that the first tragedy performed in the service of Dionysus was a mimetic performance – a passion play accompanied by song. The first tragedy was, therefore, probably concerned with the death and dismemberment of the god. Guthrie also notes that in Greek theater, ‘The number of plays which dealt with the tearing into pieces of heroes, some closely akin to Dionysus, is surprising.’ Understanding that the mysteries and the theatre arose in the same culture, at the same period, under the aegis of the same patron deity, offers a valuable insight into what might have taken place in the dramatic spectacle enacted at Eleusis.91

In yet another note we see that Dionysus as a babe is also “torn to death”, and these various aspects of Dionysus’s life and death, which are compared with those of Jesus, are also worth noting: Campbell…the mythologist…writes of the similarities between the birth of Jesus and the Orphic myth of the miraculous birth of Dionysus, ‘While the maiden goddess sat there’ peacefully weaving a mantle on which there was to be a representation of the universe, her mother contrived that Zeus should learn of her presence; he approached in the form of an immense snake. And the virgin conceived the everdying, ever-living god of bread and wine, Dionysus, who was born and nurtured in that cave, torn to death as a babe and resurrected…In Christian legend, derived from the same archaic background, God the Holy Ghost, in the form of a dove approached the Virgin Mary and she – through the ear – conceived God the Son, who was born in a cave, died and resurrected, and is present hypostatically in the bread and wine of the Mass.92

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ The idea of “babies torn to pieces” finds a different expression in the New Testament, “as babies smashed against walls”, which would result in the scattering of pieces. But such an idea I associate more with the Eldest Son celestial image. I am of the opinion that the “fat” aspect of the Jade Emperor or Angelman gave rise to various ideas, representations and traditions. In chapter 10, I discussed various artworks ranging from San rock and cave paintings to the famous Venus figurines, and suggested that the large “belly-buttocks-thighs” in such artworks might be a symbolic representation of the Arm/Shoulder/Wing of Scorpio. But it is equally feasible that the large “belly-buttocks-thighs” depictions are an attempt to give expression to the “fatness” of Angelman. I would agree with you that it is difficult, if not foolhardy, to draw such a conclusion. But once again, as with many of the examples discussed in various contexts, it is the totality of interconnected information that allows me to draw such a conclusion. I will illustrate the various interpretations of the “fatness” conception, including some examples already discussed in other contexts. The “fatness” conception in an ordinary sense The first obvious symbolic representation of this “fatness” aspect was simply to depict divine beings and their terrestrial counterparts (people who enacted this cosmic drama) as fat individuals. In chapter 10 we saw an example of an “obese” female “ruler” of Çatal Hüyük. There are also further examples of chubby beings discussed in chapter 5. There are many pictures, figurines and statues of an “obese” old Buddha smiling in exuberant divine happiness. Buddha’s stomach is depicted as the stomach of a pregnant woman, presumably done to subtlety convey the conception that Buddha is a male-female who gives birth to the Horus Child. Other “pumpkin-like” figures that I have referred to are Lord Rama and Bacchus. Several interesting archeological artworks have been recovered from burial sites in Ancient Egypt from the Naqada II period. Among these objects is a small flat, inflated human-like object identified as a “turtle cosmetic palette”.93 It is certainly not a turtle but a human with three prominent horizontal lines at his/her “neck”. I have already referred to the pumpkin-costumed Pedi man blowing a phalahala horn. The pumpkin-costume is probably the ancient precursor of what eventually became the hoop and bustle dresses associated with high society in Europe, especially the ballroom gown most commonly associated with the Victorian age, and the dress of the “one-legged” pivoting doll found in classical musical boxes.

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12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ And what about Cinderella’s carriage, made from the magical transformation of a pumpkin (yellow inside and white outside, thus perhaps also symbolic of ancient cosmology, see discussions on colours and stars in Book 3). This pumpkin aspect is also played with in the Asterix comic character Hagar, and quite tellingly he has a long Horus Child plait, carries an axe and is associated with a tiny magical man (Asterix) and a dog (Obelisk). As all the aspects of the ancient cosmology unfold, you will see many more associations among nursery stories, so-called myths, religion, fables and folklore. Vessels symbolic of “fatness” and other related conceptions and traditions A second conception perhaps representative of this “fatness” but which may also be symbolic of the water-carrier’s jar/jug, is the notion of associating gods and other divine beings with a jar/jug (not the water-carrier’s jar/jug), pots or barrels. They are either depicted in large vessels, or are born from such vessels. We should not confuse these vessels with the small “flower pot” sometimes depicted on the heads of certain divine beings, for example, Serapis (see chapter 14). The “flower pot” representations are representative of other celestial images and ideas. As we will see, several different representations and traditions emerged from this jug/pot/barrel conception. An old Buddhist sketch, depicting the crumbling of the skambha (world axis or tree), caused by Buddha’s death, has a number of interesting images.94 From left to right we have: a female-like Buddha squatting cross-legged with a halo and a “spinningwheel” on her head. He/she seems to have just emerged, and is the centre of attention of four other people including an angel-like person, without a face, sitting at his/her feet. A young boy is standing on his/her left. At the bottom of the picture are three pillars. The second scene depicts another lady with a prominent ear-ring “throwing” various “broken” items from a large sheet into a round “dish/circle”. This seems to coincide with the going away of something that looks like a flying saucer from a large base. The interesting thing for this context is the two large oval clay pots in the right-hand corner. The once glorious Buddha’s upper torso is shown projecting from the top of one of the pots, which seems to have a crack in it. The other pot is empty, with the head of an animal with two curved horns shown above the pot. And above this animal is a cross-like “grave sign”. In the third scene the artist portrays Buddha crumbling into pieces, which are mixed into a round dish/circle. The “pieces” that are thrown into the dish/circle are two 413

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ trees, an object with a rabbit on it (“the moon”), a bigger disk (“the sun”) and various other, round, oval and rectangular objects. These broken pots seem to relate to the mystical Jewish idea of the “breaking of vessels” which they associate with creation: Lurianic Kabbala propounds a theory of the creation and subsequent degeneration of the world and a practical method of restoring the original harmony. The theory is based on three concepts: tzimtzum (‘contraction’ or ‘withdrawal’), shevirat ha-kelim (‘breaking of the vessels’), and tiqqun (‘restoration’). God as the Infinite (En Sof) withdraws into himself in order to make room for the creation, which occurs by a beam of light from the Infinite into the newly provided space. Later the divine light is enclosed in finite ‘vessels,’ most of which break under the strain, and the catastrophe of the ‘breaking of the vessels’ occurs, whereby disharmony and evil enter the world.95

Ideas of vessels/pots can also be seen in the context of the water pots at the Feast of Cana where, almost towards the end of the wedding festival, Jesus makes the best wine out of water. This same idea of wine and “breaking of vessels” is retold in the context of the military exploits of the Emperor Bābur,96 also spelt Bābar, or Bāber, original name Çahīr-ud-dīn Muhammad (1526-30 BCE). When he was near to being defeated and his soldiers had come to the point of giving up, he sought divine intervention which resulted in a rather strange “event” – “…He sought divine favour by abjuring liquor, breaking the wine vessels, and pouring the wine down a well.”97 We have seen several aspects of Dionysus – “god of wine, intoxication, and creative ecstasy.”98 Orgies held in his honour began in Rome around 200 BCE. These parties were outlawed by the Roman Senate in 186 BCE. On different archaeological materials there are various depictions of this god. But what is of interest in this context, is a relatively recent depiction of this naked, stout, short, fat god, sitting on a barrel of wine which is being carried by several men.99 His right arm is in a typical triangular pose and in his raised right hand he is holding a large cup (see the significance of this cup in chapter 16). Diogenes (420-324 BCE), who is said to have been a cynical Greek philosopher and a disciple of Plato, is a rather strange “personality” (if he ever was a real person) who did unbelievable things; for example, “Diogenes owned nothing and lived in a jar at the entrance of a temple.”100 From the Naqada II period there are various “Canopic” clay pots. The fact that these 414

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ pots carry various images such as boats, large dancing female figures and animals, which seem to relate to celestial images, strongly hint at their celestial nature. It is interesting to note that round about the Naqada II period, in the Maadi culture, people were buried with clay pots and other celestially inspired objects: The Maadi site also lays south east of Cairo…The pottery is of a very specific kind here. Most important of all, at this period, copper tools, needles, fishhooks, and axes are represented in great quantity (or their existence can be deduced), and they were beginning to displace similar tools made of bones and stone. Copper ore, probably used as a dye in cosmetics, has also been found in the Maadi.101

In one grave that dates back to the Naqada II culture (middle of the fourth millennium BC), a naturally preserved mummy known as Ginger was found. The naked adult male is shown lying on his left side, in a foetal position, with his right arm at his mouth as if suckling. Is this pose perhaps an imitation of the young Horus with his finger in the mouth? Several clay pots and two dishes had been placed at specific positions around the body. One oval pot, at his left shoulder, has several images painted on it including a large “celestial boat/ship”. At his right shoulder is a very large oval pot with four or five relief marks on it, and just below it is a much smaller pot with concentric circles. At his feet, is a large dish, three smaller pots and one large pot. A very tiny pot is found at his knee. Opposite these pots is a differently shaped pot with a dish. There are several interesting aspects to the ancient Nubian and Sudanese burial customs, which once again suggest a link between such customs and my working theory, namely, that ancient cosmology influenced traditions and beliefs. An example is the findings at the pot burials at the El Kadada (fourth millennium BCE) excavations.102 This site, like Kadero, held several cluster graves which occupied circular or semi-circular pits. A number of vases were found standing upright, and one of the most important innovations found in these graves is the female pottery figurines, the purpose of which has led to numerous speculations. Furthermore: Several pits contained superimposed burial; dog skeletons, and more infrequently, goat skeletons were present in the graves, alongside the bucrania (cattle); and finally, child burials occurred in large vessels in the settlement. One of the most significant observations concerns the superimposed inhumation of two and three individuals. A comparative analysis of these burials seems to indicate the presence of human sacrifice in those tombs containing three bodies. If confirmed, this would be the first occurrence of a custom destined to become widespread in later times, particularly in Kerma.103 415

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ On pages 362-363 are sketches, taken from Geus’ article,104 of a non-pot burial and a pot burial containing some interesting objects and animals discussed in this book. In Ancient Egypt, jars also served some religious function. Canopic jars containing the internal organs (liver, lungs, stomach and intestine) of the deceased have been found in various tombs in Ancient Egypt. The earliest evidence of evisceration in ancient Egypt comes from the calcite canopic chest, divided into four compartments, found at Giza in the tomb of Queen Hetepheres…Fourth Dynasty. Each canopic jar (or compartment in a divided chest) held a particular organ of the body and was under the especial protection of one of the Four Sons of Horus. Each had a characteristic head and was associated with one of the four cardinal points of the compass and one of the four ‘protective’ goddesses. After the new kingdom the following arrangement became established: Imsety – man-headed – held the liver – south – Isis Hapi – ape-headed – held the lungs – north – Nephthys Duamutef – jackal-headed – held the stomach – east – Neith Qebsennuef – falcon-headed – held the intestine – west – Selket During the Eighteenth Dynasty the stoppers were sometimes all human- headed.105

At one burial site at El Argar, in south-east Spain, people were buried in oval-shaped clay pots. The burial of people in or with clay pots of various shapes is also found in other sites, for example, Hallstatt (700-500 BCE), Hochdorf (550-500 BCE) and Jericho (8500-7300 BCE). Interestingly, the clay-pots at Hallstatt are mostly green (symbolic of Canopus) and brownish-red (symbolic of the bark of the celestial tree and red Antares).106 On one Greek vase with a faded image, dated to ca. the fourth or fifth century BCE, a sharp curve-bearded man (said to be a “Hierophant” or High Priest) holds a stick in his right hand. He is gesturing some winged being (said to be a soul) into an urn. 107 This stick is suggestive of the magic wand, presumably Hadar-Rigel Kent, which later may have become the magician’s stick and the conductor’s stick used to lead an orchestra. The legend notes: “Here Hermes [presumably the bearded male], patron deity of the Hierophants of the Greek Mysteries, is shown using his wand to guide souls into and out of a half-buried funerary urn…”108 This idea/tradition of capturing souls in containers still survives in Voodooism where Voodoo practioners claim they are able to capture human souls in jars!

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12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ The SE and SW celestial regions were dominated by a whole range of “living things” such as the goat/sheep/lion/ape, the celestial tree, fishes, birds, ducks, buck and other wild animals, including creatures which could not be identified and to which I suspect the ancients gave the names of beasts. Angelman in his transformation moves from low down at the SE region to the SW region subsuming all these animals and creatures and as indicated becomes larger and larger until by August he “bursts” into pieces. Egg symbolisms and Angelman You may recall the phoenix and its association with an egg (see chapter 4); here I want to repeat a brief extract about the egg aspect: “It obtains its herbs and species from Arabia; it carries in its beak an egg of myrrh that contained its father’s body. This egg is similar to Geb’s egg that was laid on the primordial hill and gave birth to the sun.”109 It is interesting that this mysterious egg is associated with Geb, one of the earliest deities of Ancient Egypt. One of the oldest representations of Geb is a relief from a shrine of the Pharaoh Zoserat Heliopolis (ca. 2670 BCE), which depicts a man sitting on a low-backed “throne”.110 Geb/Gob/God/Job/Dog has several features which suggest he is similar to Angelman. These include: a prominent single eye, the false beard, one single hand protruding outside his “mummy”-wrapped body and the low throne. We also learn from a Pyramid Text (No. 308), which accompanies this relief, “that the deceased entered into Geb”. And “as god of the earth, he bore the plants which grew on his back [an archetype for what would eventually become the Greenman idea]; water, too, sprang forth from him.” This idea of water issuing from a god is similar to several depictions of Mesopotamian gods with water flowing into and out of them. A noteworthy example is Ea/Enki.111 Also, Geb is specifically linked to a goose – “his sign, however, was a goose…Geb sometimes wore a goose on his head, but otherwise his head-dress was the lower Egyptian crown.”112 The goose that he is commonly associated with is called the “Great Cackler”. There is repeated reference to the “egg of the goose”. In chapter 4 I described a celestial creature with an appearance similar to pictures of the “Great Cackler” – most noticeably its quacking beak. There is even an Egyptian hieroglyphic sign of a head of a quacking goose and this is more consistent with my celestial image since it too has no body. If you recall; the celestial goose was at the lower SW point, a region also associated with Angelman. Thus we have Angelman and a goose which relate to Geb and a 417

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ goose. This aspect, taken together with other aspects mentioned above, strongly suggest that Angelman = Geb. Interestingly, Isis is called “egg of the goose.” While writing this I was reminded of four things. Firstly, township slang for a girl is a goose. Secondly, in modern times there are still people who hunt ducks, which in ancient times was a sport normally associated with royalty. And what about the duck whistle they use? Thirdly, in the Western culture, it is common for children and even woman to bath with a little yellow duckling. Fourthly, in France there is a cruel tradition of force-feeding ducks so as to produce foie gras (which literally mean “fatty liver”), a delicacy. It is tempting to suggest that this tradition may have arisen to preserve the link between the Shoulder/Arm/Wing (also symbolised as the liver) and the celestial duck. Given the exposition thus far, it is not difficult to understand several aspects of the egg, namely, its sacred veneration, a tradition which Christians continue with the now highly commercialised Easter egg, and its association with “egg-born” deities which presumably coalesced into the nursery rhyme character Humpty-Dumpy. The egg as a mystical, religious symbol Madam Blavatsky discusses the significance of the egg conception in ancient societies. She explains why the egg, which she terms the “Mundane (presumably Min + Din/Dan) egg” of the “egg-born god”, was revered – both on account of its form and its inner mystery – and why it was incorporated as “a sacred sign in the cosmology of every people on the Earth”.113 Starting with the egg’s origin she notes, in her particular writing style: Darkness radiates light, and light drops one solitary ray into the mother deep. The ray shoots through the virgin egg. The ray causes the eternal egg to thrill, and drop the non-eternal germ, which condenses into the world-egg. Then

the three fall into the four.

seven outside.

The

radiant essence becomes seven inside,

The luminous egg, which in itself is three, curdles and spreads in

the milk-white curds throughout the depths of mother, the root that grows in the depths of the ocean of life.

Madam Blavatsky continues: “In the begining the ‘First Cause’ had no name. It was only many years later that people believed an ever invisible, mysterious Bird dropped an Egg into Chaos, which became the Universe. Hence Brahmâ 418

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ was called Klahansa, ‘the swan in (Space and) Time.’ He became the ‘Swan of Eternity,’ who lays at the beginning of each Mahamanvantara, a ‘Golden Egg.’”114 The swan, like the “Great Cackler”, in this context is the egg, the Crux, which has many different aliases. The egg as the first manifestation of the Cosmos and the origin of deities is a recurrent theme in various ancient societies including the Greeks, Indians, Syrians, Persians, Chinese, Scandanavians and Egyptians. Here are some examples, taken from Blavatsky.  Seb, who at times is called Geb, presumably derived from sAb (meaning leopard), is said to have “laid the egg” and Ra was carrying it in his womb: Seb, the god of Time and of the Earth, is spoken of as having laid an egg, or the Universe, ‘an egg conceived at the hour of the great one of the Dual Force’…Ra is shown like Brahmâ gestating in the Egg of the Universe. The deceased is ‘resplendent in the Egg of the land of mysteries’. Here we see that not only is the egg associated with life but also with death! For, this is ‘the Egg to which is given life among the gods’. ‘It is the Egg of the great clucking Hen, the Egg of Seb, who issues from it like a hawk’.115

 The God Ra is shown in the “Rituals (Book of the Dead…) beaming in his egg…and he starts off as soon as the god Shoo…awakens and gives him the impulse. ‘He is the Solar egg, the egg to which is given life among the gods’…The Solar god exclaims: ‘I am the creative soul of the celestial abyss. None sees my nest, none can break my egg, I am Lord!’”116  The Ram-headed God Khnoum is “the modeler of men,” fashioning men and things out of the Mundane Egg on a potter’s wheel…it is Emepht, the One, Supreme Planetary principle, who blows the egg out of Ammon’s mouth. It is Ptah, originally the god of death and destruction, like Shiva, “he who opens,” “the opener of life and Death”, who proceeds from the egg of the world to begin his dual work of creation and destruction. In another version Ptah, the “fiery god”, carries the Mundane egg in his hand.  The egg was sacred to Isis. The priest of Egypt never ate eggs on this account.  With the Greeks the Orphic Egg was part of the Dionysiac and other 419

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ mysteries, during which the Mundane Egg was consecrated. In the Orphic Hymns, the Eros-Phanes evolves from the divine Egg, which the Æthereal Winds impregnate, wind being “the Spirit of the unknown Darkness” – “the spirit of God”.117 This wind is actually the “movement” of the “white stuff” “issuing from” the Crux.  According to the Greeks, “the phantom form of the Chemis118 (chemi, ancient Egypt) which floats on the ethereal waves…was called into being by HorusApollo, the Sun god, who caused it to evolve out of the Mundane egg.”119  In Greece and in India the first visible male being, who united in himself the nature of either sex, abided in the egg and was issued from it. For some Greeks, this “first born of the world” was Dionysius, the god who sprang from the mundane egg, and from whom the mortals and immortals were derived.120  Diodorus Siculus states that “Osiris was born from an egg, like Brahmâ. From Leda’s Egg Apollo and Latona were born, as also Castor and Pollux - the bright Gemini.”121  The Chinese believe that their first man was born from an egg, which Tien, a god, dropped down from heaven to earth into the waters.122  In the Scandinavian Cosmogony, in the Poem Voluspa (the song of the prophetess): The Mundane egg is again discovered in the phantom-germ of the Universe, which is represented as lying in the Ginnungagap – the cup of illusion (Maya) the boundless and void abyss. In this world’s matrix…Nebelheim (the mist-place)…[he] dropped a ray of cold light which overflowed this cup and froze in it…These waters (chaos), called the streams of Elivagar, distilling in vivifying drops, fell down and created the earth and the giant Ymir, who only had “the semblance of a man” (the Heavenly man), and the cow, Audhumla (the “mother”…) from whose udder flowed four streams of milk (the four cardinal points: the four heads of the four rivers of Eden…).123

YMIR appears to be derived from YA + MARS and YMAR is link to MARY when the Y letter is switched.  Lord Vishnu “formed an egg…and the lord of the universe himself abides 420

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ in it, in the character of Brahmâ. In that egg, O Brahman, were the continents, and seas and mountains, the planets and divisions of the universe, the gods, the demons and mankind.”124  In the Hindu “Katakopanishad, Purusha, the divine spirit, already stands before the original matter, ‘from those unions springs the great soul of the world,’ Maha-Atma, Brahmâ, the Spirit of Life…In one place it is the female creator who is first a germ, then a drop of heavenly dew, a pearl, and then an egg. Then again it is Vishnu who emerges from within the egg with a lotus in his hand. Vinata, a daughter of Daksha and wife of Kasyapa (‘the self-born sprung from Time,’ ‘one of the seven creators’ of our world), brought forth an egg from which was born Garuda, the vehicle of Vishnu.”125  Like the Phoenix, the egg was a symbol of immortality and resurrection. For example on a papyrus an egg floats above the mummified body of Osiris, which according to Blavatsky symbolises “hope and the promise of a second birth for the Osirified dead…” And in the esoteric doctrine, this Egg is the Devachan, the abode of Bliss, and is linked to the winged scarabeus, the Khoripoo (from the root Khoproo “to become,” “to be reborn”) which relates to the rebirth of man, as well as to his spiritual regeneration.126  “From the anguinum, ‘the Egg of the pagan Druid’, whose name alone made Rome tremble with fear, to the red Easter Egg of the Slavonian peasant, a cycle has passed.”127  Eggs, like birds, were widely used for divination. It is easy to understand that these practices originated from the ancients’ cosmology, which associated the various celestial birds with this celestial egg. Blavasky’s admonition is worth repeating: It might be easy to ridicule these ancient conceptions but they are no different from beliefs still held even today. Christianity has to this day their sacred birds; for instance, the dove, the symbol of the Holy Ghost. Sacred animals, that are as much pagan as that of the Egyptians or the Chaldeans are – the Bull, the Eagle, and the Lion. And then the Angel (in reality the Cherub, or Seraph, the fiery-winged Serpent)…These four animals are, in reality, the symbols of the four elements…[and] correspond to the four constellations that form, so to speak, the suite or cortége of the Solar God, and occupy, during the winter solstice, the four cardinal points of the zodiacal circle…128

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________  Blavatsky further notes that “the symbolisms of the lunar and Solar Deities are so inextricably mixed up, that it is next to impossible to separate such glyphs as the egg, the lotus, and the ‘sacred’ animals from each other.”129 The egg as zero and 1 An intriguing egg idea is its association with sacred numbers. Blavatsky is of the view that the “‫ ”׀‬issuing from the “O” symbolises something (the number one) emerging from nothing, the egg (zero). She further links one and zero to the number 10, where the one is at times written as the letter I: The 10, being the sacred number of the universe, was secret and esoteric, both as the unit and cipher, or zero, the circle…we have yet sufficient evidence to show that the full numbers, as given by Boethius, were known to the Pythagoreans, even before Alexandria was built. This evidence we find in Aristotle, who says that “some philosophers hold the idea that numbers are of the same nature, and amount to ten in all…the whole astronomical and geometrical portion of the secret sacerdotal language was built upon the number IO, or the combination of the male and female principles, and…the Pyramid of “Cheops” is built upon the measures of this decimal notation, or rather upon the digits and their combinations with the nought.

San folklore about the egg These “egg” ideas and traditions are certainly ancient. In the Geus article which I have referred to, several of the burial sites, some from as early as 8000-5000 BCE, contained ostrich eggshell beads or ostrich eggs.130 And the ostrich egg also features prominently in the folklore of an ancient hunter-gather tribe, the San. There is a lengthy San folktale about Kaggen and his bow and arrow, a “Magic bird”, the stealing of the Ostrich’s egg and the Magic bird’s eggs.131 It appears that the Ostrich here is actually the celestial peacock alias the reindeer, alias the one-horned unicorn (see chapter 16) and the “Magic bird” now represents the phoenix in this particular tale. Below are a few lines of the story of the Magic bird and its eggs. The extract follows after !Kaggen, his talking “Walking stick”, talking Shoes and talking Bag (!) had stolen two of Ostrich’s eggs, eaten one and was carrying one home: Kaggen answered: ‘Yes [on being asked to go home]…We can eat this other egg once we are home.’ And so Kaggen and the Shoes began to make their way home. Suddenly, Kaggen saw something that made him stop short. Just ahead of them was the most beautiful bird he had ever seen. Her whole body was covered in shimmering silver feathers that made a soft tinkling sound whenever she moved. ‘It is the Magic Bird,’ gasped Shoes. ‘It is said that she lays silver eggs,’ they told Kaggen. When Kaggen heard this, he moved closer to take a better look. ‘I would 422

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ like to have a silver egg,’ thought Kaggen to himself. And so he crouched down and aimed his bow and arrow at the Magic Bird. To Kaggen’s amazement, as soon as the arrow touched one of the silver feathers, the arrow turned around and flew back at him. ‘We should leave the magic Bird alone,’ said Shoes softly. But by then Kaggen was even more determined to take one of her eggs. He was just about to shoot another arrow when the magic Bird suddenly opened her wings and, with a soft tinkling sound, flew away. ‘Look, there are her silver eggs! Silver eggs!’ cried Kaggen…The Magic Bird had left her nest, and now he could take as many silver eggs as he wanted. Kaggen crept up to the nest and was just about to grab an egg, when the Shoes cried out: ‘Don’t, Kaggen! If those eggs belong to the Magic Bird, they must have special powers. You do not know what will happen if you steal them.’ But Kaggen would not listen to the warning. As he stretched out his hand to touch the silver eggs, Kaggen said to the Shoes: ‘Do not worry so much. The Magic Bird is gone, so nothing will happen to me.’ No sooner had he said that than Kaggen saw that one of the silver eggs was stuck to his hand. No matter how hard he tried, Kaggen could not remove the egg from his hand. The poor little mantis tried everything. First, he shook his hand as hard as he could. Then he jumped up and down, waving his arms in the air, but still the egg stayed stuck to his hand…[they continued home with the egg stuck to his hand]...The Walking stick began to laugh: ‘I do not think that Kaggen is carrying a silver egg. It looks as if he is stuck to it!’132

The story continues and leads up to a moral lesson – stealing is bad. And once this is understood, the spell is broken. The egg came off once Kaggen returned it to Ostrich and promised never to steal her egg again. In San folklore, it appears that the egg of the Ostrich is indeed the Crux, which as we will see is actually the Ostrich’s head and crown, while the other silver egg is likely to be the Arm/Shoulder/Wing of Angelman, or it could be the Crux played with in such a way that it is associated with the Ostrich and the Phoenix. Alternatively the other egg is the False Cross Constellation. Jack and the Magic Beanstalk and the Giant’s Golden Egg This same story of the egg is differently related in Jack and the Beanstalk, which was one of my favourite childhood stories. After Jack had exchanged his grandmother’s only cow for five magic beans from a magician (the same magician uncle of Aladdin) and returned home, his grandma, out of anger, threw the beans out of the kitchen window. Aladdin’s parents are not mentioned and from the look of things Jack is really an orphan. Early the next morning while his grandma is still sleeping Jack saw a Giant Beanstalk (the Celestial Tree) outside the window. He climbed the tree only to end up in the house of a Giant who had just returned with a goose that had laid a golden egg. Jack hides in a pot and in quite telling adventures he first steals 423

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ the golden egg, then a golden harp, and then the goose. Finally he descends the beanstalk chased by the Giant, and then cuts it down with an axe, thus causing the Giant to crash. As you will have noticed, this story is built by making associations with various celestial images discussed in this book. And what about Fabergé’s eggs – an enigma wrapped in a mystery – which originated with the decoration of ostrich eggs by the San, a tradition that they still practise today.

NOTES AND REFERENCES 1. David M. Rohl, Legend: The Genesis of Civilisation, (London: Arrow Books Limited, 1990), 201. 2. Maurice Cotterell, The Tutankhamun Prophecies – the Sacred Secret of the Mayans, Egyptians and Freemasons (United Kingdom: Headline Book Publishing, 1999), 8789. The famous painted head of the beautiful Nefertiti is kept at the Charlottenburg Museum in Germany. 3. Dale M. Brown, ed., Lost Civilization: Aztecs – Land of the Pharaohs (U.S.A: TimeLife Books, Time Warner Inc., 1992), 100-101. 4. Cotterell, The Tutankhamun Prophecies, 87-89. 5. Manfred Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt (London: Thames and Hudson, 1980), 128. 6. Eye of Providence, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye of Providence. 7. Eye of Horus, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Horus. 8. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 48-49. 9. Ibid., 67. 10. www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk. 11. Eye of Providence, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye of Providence. 12. The Eye, The Eye of Horus, The Eye of Ra, www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk. 13. Ibid. 14. Eye of Providence, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye of Providence. 424

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ 15. Ibid. 16. Paul Roland, Revelation – the Wisdom of the Ages (London: Carlton Books, 1995), 114115. 17. Tobias Churton, Gnostic Philosophy – From Ancient Persia to Modern Times (United States: Inner Traditions), 314-365. 18. David Ovason, The Secret Zodiacs of Washington DC – Was the City of Stars Planned by Masons? (London: Arrow Books, 2000), 81-82, 267-286. 19. Macedonian is presumable from Mace/Mice + Don/Din + An. A picture of this head is shown at: www.ancient-bulgaria.com. 20. Stories which I read on the internet, in history books and have seen in a Hollywood Epic, Alexandra. 21. Philip II of Macedon, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillip_II_of_Macedon. 22. www.equinox-project.com. INYO, presumably by the Equinox Project112, are described as “a dwelling place of a Great Spirit”, and have been studied by various experts since 1929 when the sites were first discovered by Julian Steward. The collective finds of these experts were published in a single book, Prehistoric Rock Art of Nevada and Eastern California, by Dr. Robert Heizer and Dr. Martin Baumhoff. 23. Peter Watson, Ideas – A History from Fire to Freud (United Kingdom: Orion Books Ltd., 2006), 130. 24. Regine Schulz and Matthias Seidal, eds., Egypt – The World of the Pharaohs (Germany: Könemann, 2004), 15, 19. Vase from the Naqada I period, first half of the fourth millennium BC, E 3002, Brussels Musées Royaux d’ Art et d’ Histoire. The birdfemale clay figurine is from the Naqada II Period, second half of the fourth millennium BC, fired clay, 07.447.502, New York, The Brooklyn Museum. 25. Ibid. 26. Ibid., 38-39, 52, 70, 72, 73, 76, 81, 102, 110, 124. 27. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 99. 28. Limestone statue of Khasekhem (Hierakonpolis, Oxford, Ashmolean Museum, E 517). 29. Limestone “seated statue of King Djoser” (Saqqara, ca. 2680 BC, Cairo, Egyptian Museum, JE 49148). 30. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt, 70, “Procession of fertility gods from lower Egypt” (Abusir, mortuary temple of Sahure, Fifth Dynasty, ca. 2490 BC).

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 31. Ibid., 124. 32. Ibid., 76. 33. Ibid., 489. 34. Encyclopedia Britannica. 35. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt, 230, 232-233. 36. Albert Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man (United States: Kessinger Publishing, 1963), 204. 37. Zulu Mythology, 00.gs/Zulu_mythology.htm 38. Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill – An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge and Its Transmission Through Myth (Boston: David R. Godine Publisher Inc., 1977), sketch between pages 300-301. 39. Yeshi Choedon and Dawa Norbu, Tibet (India: Roli Books: 1997), 34-35. 40. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt, 172. Ramesses II (ca. 1270 BC, black granodiorite, Turin, Museo Egizio cat. no. 1380). 41. Choedon and Norbu, Tibet, 67. 42. Ibid., 84-85. 43. Brown, Egypt: Land of the Pharaohs, 153. 44. Janet Parker and Julie Stanton, Mythology – Myths, Legends and Fantasies (Australia: Global Book Publishing, 2003), 175. 45. Ibid., 178. 46. Lynn Picknett and Clive Prince, The Templar Revelation – Secret Guardians of the True Identity of Christ (United Kingdom: Corgi Books, 1998). “The School of Athens” in the plate section. 47. Ibid. 48. Zecharia Sitchin, Wars of the Gods and Men – Book III of the Earth Chronicles (New York: Avon Books, 1985), 79. 49. James G. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough – A Study in Magic and Religion (United Kingdom: Labyrinth Publishing, 1996), 10. 50. Ibid., 11. 426

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ 51. Brown, Lost Civilization: Aztecs, 16-17, 36-37. 52. Sitchin, The Wars of God and Men, 74. 53. Frazer, The Illustrated Golden Bough, 168-169. 54. Brown, Lost Civilization: Aztecs, 36-39. 55. Graham Hancock, Supernatural – Meeting with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind (London: Century Publishers, 2005), 22-23. 56. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 488. 57. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 125-127. 58.  Ibid. 59. Ibid. 60. Kathleen. E. Sullivan, Indian Myths and Legends (Great Britain: Brockhampton Press, 2004), 20. 61. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 104-105. 62. Ibid. 63. Anthony Aveni, Stairways to the Stars – Skywatching in Three Great Ancient Cultures (United Kingdom: John Wiley and Sons, 1997), 116. 64. Genesis 32:22-28. 65. Sitchin, Wars of the Gods. 66. The “she-wolf who recognises him” is a play on the faithful dog of Odysseus. Tthis conception relates to Angelman and his dog (see Book 2). “His old nurse,” a dog of some sort, is really an alias dog / wolf / wife / sister / brother / daughter / governor / servant / king, etc., and these, beside the “one-leg”, further link Odysseus with Angelman. 67. Mythology and History: http://www.gravity.org/mytholohg. 68. Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, The Jesus Mysteries – Was the Original Jesus a Pagan God? (London: Elements, 2003), plate 3. 69. Ibid. 70. Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh and Henry Lincoln, The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail (United Kingdom: Arrow Books, 1996), 373.

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The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 71. Mythology and History: http://www.gravity.org/mythology. It does appear that peral may be related to pearl. We know that white pearls had some mysterious significance, and even today, carry significant aesthetic and monetary value. In certain ancient and in contemporary societies young boys often dived for pearls risking their lives. “Pearl” may have been derived from pr (house) and L (leg). This word may also have been the base for other words such as Earl, ear, pear. Hadar fits both the “white pearl” and the “upper leg” conceptions. 72. Ibid. 73. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 210-211. 74. Ibid. 75. Ibid., 138. 76. Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas, The Hiram Key (United Kingdom: Arrow Books, 1997), 6-9. 77. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt, 28-29. King Narmer (Narmer Palette148, 3100 BC, Cairo, Egyptian Museum). 78. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 343. 79. Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man, 29, 31, 33, 35. 80. Paul G. Bahn, ed., The Story of Archaeology (London: Orion Publishing Group, 1996), 10, 21, 85, 138. 81. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 414. 82. Ernest A. Wallis Budge, The Dwellers on the Nile – The Life, History, Religion and Literature of the Ancient Egyptian, (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1977). 83. Freke and Gandy, The Jesus Mysteries, 64. 84. Ibid. 85. Ibid. 86. Ibid. 87. Ibid. 88. Hancock, Supernatural, 22. 89. Zulu Mythology, http://00.gs/Zulu_mythology.htm.

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12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ 90. Freke and Gandy, The Jesus Mysteries. 91. Ibid., 314. 92. Ibid., note 16, p. 318. 93. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt, 18. The “turtle cosmetic palette”, Berlin, SMPK, Ägyptisches Museum, 10595. 94. De Santillana and von Dechend, Hamlet’s Mill, 60. 95. Encyclopedia Britannica. 96. The name Babur/Babar may be the root for barbarian and barber, where barber may have changed from meaning “cut off the head” to “cut off hair”. 97. Encyclopedia Britannica. Bābur was also the founder of the Mughal dynasty of India, a descendant of the Mongol conqueror Genghis Khan and also of Timur (Tamerlane). He was a military adventurer, a soldier of distinction, a poet and a diarist of genius, as well as a statesman. 98. Parker and Stanton, Mythology, 90-92. 99. Ibid., 92. “Pentheus and Dionysus” by J. Briot, ca. 1610. 100. Freke and Gandy, The Jesus Mysteries, 21. 101. Schulz and Seidal, Egypt, 11-12. 102. F. Geus. Burial Customs in the Upper Main Nile: An Overview. Arkamani Sudan Journal of Archaeology and Anthropology, www. Arkamani.org. An interesting scholarly review article that looks at archeological findings related to the Nubian and Sudanese burial customs during ca. 13000-8000 BC, and to the evolution of such burial customs. 103. Ibid. 104. Ibid. 105. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 37-38. 106. Bahn, The Story of Archaeology, 88-89, 106, 140 and 141. 107. Freke and Gandy, The Jesus Mysteries, plate 8. 108. Ibid. 109. www.phoenixmoon.org/thephoenix.html. 429

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ 110. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 54. Interestingly, a first century tomb was discovered in Israel, believed to be the tomb of Jesus, his wife and son. While there is a great deal of scholarly dispute over this tombbox, that is, whether it is indeed the tomb-box of Jesus and his family, I am, nevertheless, intrigued by one name on the tomb-box, “Jesus son of Joseph”. Apparently Joser on the tomb-box, is a nickname for Joseph (father of Jesus). But this name is very similar to Zoser and Djoser. Which brings me to another intriguing possibility: Was Zoser/Djoser not the root for the Greek name Oser, that finally became Osiris? 111. Enki may have been composed from En + ka where EA/EN means priest and the spirit (KA), literally “the priest’s spirit”. Ka as in spirit is an Ancient Egyptian word/idea and en or ensi meant high priest or priestess in Mesopotamia. The En or ensi were powerful figures in Mesopotamia. Is it also not possible that Enka became Inka, that is, Inca? It is also not inconceivable that Enoch may be have been derived from En-O-C/Shi; that is, the dog (shi) priest, see book 2. 112. Lurker, An Illustrated Dictionary of Gods and Symbols of Ancient Egypt, 54. 113. Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, The Secret Doctrine, vol. 1 (California: Theosophical University Press, 28-29 and 359-378. 114. Ibid. 115. Ibid. 116. Ibid. 117. Ibid. 118. Perhaps a combination of Chemis and Cylops became Cheops. 119. Blavatsky, Secret Doctrine, vol. 1, 28-29 and 359-378. 120. Ibid. 121. Ibid. 122. Sacred Source – jblstatue.com/pages/lugh. 123. Blavatsky, Secret Doctrine, vol. 1, 28-29 and 359-378. 124. Ibid. 125. Ibid. 126. Ibid. 127. Ibid. 430

12 : Angelman, the one-eyed, one-armed, one-legged, egg-born bandit __________________________________________________________________ 128. Ibid. 129. Ibid. 130. Geus. Burial Customs in the Upper Main Nile. 131. Raffaella Delle Donne, San Tales from Africa, (South Africa: Struik Publishers, 2007), 105-111. 132. Ibid.

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Chapter 13

ANGELMAN, THE WOUNDED MAN AND HIS DARK TWIN Angelman because of his various deformities may have become the archetype for the “wounded man” conception which plays itself out in various forms. He has a “twin” whom I call the Dark Twin Volvine-Horse or just his Dark Twin. The “twin”, “dark” and “horse” conceptions of this being have given rise to various interesting ideas and traditions which are explored here. The volvine nature of this being is discussed with other volvines in Book 2. “The wounded man” conception and its link to Angelman There is a skull shown in Frazer’s Golden Bough with a pointed chisel-like object inserted in one eye close to the nose bridge. This is probably a victim of black magic killing. The legend notes: “In black magic a human being could be cursed to death by spearing a skull with a metal point bearing the name of the intended victim.”1 I am of the opinion that this skull was meant to look like Angelman and the chisel-like object his False Beard. Voodooism is renowned for this particular black magic practice. It is believed that someone can bring harm to an enemy by inserting needles into a doll that resembles the person. But can one person really cause harm to another using this particular practice? Where did such an idea and practice come from? This type of black magic practice appears to relate to the ancient conception of the “wounded man”. It is a very ancient idea that appears in various disguises in myths and religions. In France, in the gallery of Pech Merle, there is an artwork about 20,000 years old that the experts call the “Wounded Man”. According to Hancock: The wounded man, in the artwork, is so named because of a series of lines, drawn as harsh slashes (and often interpreted as spears), that pass directly through his chest, torso and buttocks. Against the background of the ceiling he seems to be rising into the air. His head is a most peculiar shape. Some archaeologists say it is birdlike… with its prominently domed skull, narrow pointed chin [slightly false beard shaped] and oblique slit eyes…Possibly – or possibly not – part of the same composition is the figure of a powerful aurochs (an extinct species of wild bull) with lyre-shaped horns. It too [like the “Wounded man”] is done in red ochre and floats on the ceiling of the alcove very close to the wounded man. A little further off there is a stylised 432

13 : Angelman, the wounded man and his dark twin __________________________________________________________________ ibex (mountain goat) also painted in red ochre. Between the two there are several associated symbols, including one that is distinctively branched or Y-shaped [Rigel Kent-Hadar-Crux].2

This “wounded man” conception is played with in various ancient ideas and later culminated in Jesus on the wooden cross (Celestial Tree). Unfortunately, only the picture of the “Wounded Man” is shown; it would have been interesting to see the associated figures since later on I will describe the two celestial bulls (see chapter 14) of which the aurochs are symbolic. Here are further aspects of this picture which point to celestial ideas discussed in this book:



• The man is naked with a large, dangling penis. • There is a distinct line just “across” and above his buttocks, as if the ancient artist wanted to stress a separation between the upper and lower body parts. • The other two hand-like projections, one of which is complete, seem to have something to do with the Arm/Shoulder/Wing image. The incomplete “arm” appears to be a projectile from the neck and might just be another representation of the False Beard. • The other three lines at the rear are very suggestive of the “white stuff”. • Then there is some unidentifiable object above the head of this being and a “rope” from this object is attached to the rear of his head/neck.

Angelman’s dark twin alias the volvine-winged horse alias Pegasus When I first observed Angelman I could only see Angelman and his various transformational forms, but little did I realise or visualise that Angelman, when he appears on the SW point, is actually a “double” image, two in one. Many of us will have come across the two-in-one pictures commonly found in psychology text-books, and sometimes reproduced in popular magazines to test differential perception. One example of such a picture is the old hag/young woman composite image; depending on how this picture is viewed some will only see the old hag, some the young woman, while others can alternate between the two. It is this type of idea which I am trying to convey regarding Angelman’s double. Angelman seems to alternate between two images, and this other image I call his Dark Twin, which changes into an image that looks like a horse and a canine-like creature but which has various other aliases. The horse-canine image I call the Volvine-WingedHorse but for simplicity’s sake it is henceforth referred to as the Horse-Volvine. It was only from September 24, 2006 from 7:08 pm onwards, that I was able to differentiate or recognise this other image. The stars marked as T6, T5 and T8 are 433

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ the “three” prominent stars which form the hat/head of Angelman, but as Angelman slants more and more to the west, the two stars at T8 seem to “separate” further, to the extent that when you view stars T6, T5, T8 and T3 together with the other stars that constitute the False Beard (T2, SW1 and SW2) and the other “body parts” of Angelman, you get an impression of a creature with a horse-volvine head (constituted of stars T6, T5, T8 and T3). As Angelman progressively “disintegrated”, the False Beard moved upwards, more horizontally, while the head of the horse-volvine slanted more and more towards the west. The resulting image resembled the mane (False Beard) and head of a horsevolvine with the remaining stars, numbered T1, EW7 and EW8 forming the front “leg”. I made a recording of such an image on October 27, 2006 at 7:05 pm. I have termed this image the Dark Twin (the volvine-headed one) and the other most westerly figure the Winged Horse. The winged aspect is included since this creature is also linked to the Arm/Shoulder/Wing structure, which has been discussed. The Dark Twin and ancient conceptions around this idea This Dark Twin conception, as a “shadow” of the Horus Child / Angelman, as an independent character, and as a volvine or horse, has been the source of numerous ancient ideas and traditions. The first representation of this dual aspect of the celestial image of the Horus Child and Angelman could have taken on the form or conception of twin sons, twin daughters, brother and sister, husband and wife, king and queen, or male and female deities. And because the “dark” albeit incomplete form “triumphs”, in that this is the one that remains in an area close to the Western wall, ideas might have arisen that “he/she” is the evil one or the black consummator of all; that is, everything is gathered into “him/her” in opposition to the white consummator of all, namely the Phoenix. Dark-light as a twin conception Hindu religio-mythology deals with this “twin” aspect in various interesting ways, often where one of the “twin” deities is represented as being beautifully white and the other shrouded in a mysterious, shadowy blackness. An example of such a representation is that of Rama (the main and well loved son-god) and his brother Lakshman.3 These two brothers were inseparable: “Rama would be joined by Lakshman as they set out for the forest; the brothers had shared everything since birth and could not live apart.”4

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13 : Angelman, the wounded man and his dark twin __________________________________________________________________ Interestingly, Kaikeyi, the stepmother of Rama, is noted as being “by nature a fair women, easy natured and gentle” and is represented as moon yellow, draped in a green sari, while her menacing evil-minded “maid”, Manthara (who convinced Kaikeya to exile Rama), is in the typical mysterious dark colour.5 In a hideous painting, a bloodlusty maiden KAli, the great Hindu Goddess, is depicted as naked, black and holding a large sword and a severed head. Two red snakes are entwined around her arms and she is standing on her white phallic self who is lying on a burning snake skin pyre.6 (This association between an arm and snake is presumably a forerunner of the Moses arm-stick-snake idea, and for the idea of snake-headed maidens, or maidens with snakes entwined around their arms, found among the Minoans and other Greeks.) There are many interesting aspects of the Kali painting but what is noteworthy is two volvines in the foreground. One is looking at the white skull in the sand while the other is devouring red meat from one of four similar bones. Also, the manner in which Kali’s buttocks and legs are drawn, together with the long black hair flowing down to the back of her knees, is suggestive of the back-end of a horse, with the hair creating the impression of a horse’s mane becoming a tail. As an interesting side-note: in India, there is still a Hindu sect, the Gorri, who live among the dead and worship Kali. When bodies are not completely burnt they are buried in shallow pits. The Gorri dig them up. A “goddess”, a hideous looking woman, then apparently eats pieces of the corpse. There is a similar black-white dual representation of Radha (Krishna’s lover) and Krishna.7 Krishna is not only black but interestingly, like Achilles, he is “shot” in the heel: “Krishna (‘the Black’) is the most outstanding avatar of Vishnu. And it is only when Krishna has been shot in the heel (or the sole of his foot), the only vulnerable spot of his body, by the hunter Jara (= old age) that the Pandavas, too, resolve to depart…”8 This cosmic dark-light twin idea may also be evident in representations of historical persons, such as Mohammed and his fierce and faithful warrior Ali, or Jesus and Simon (there is an idea that Simon who carried Jesus’ cross was black), or even in so-called mytho-religious characters such as Bilaal and Krishna, or even the duo Nephthys and Isis, where Nephthys is the “dark goddess”.9 The double as a twin conception Another way of expressing this idea of duality could have been to represent any divine being or human character (who believed they were representatives of celestial 435

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ images) as dual characters. This can be expressed symbolically in many ways, for example, as a divine being/ god / human with two faces, or as two brothers, two sisters, a brother and sister, etc. The ram-headed Egyptian god Khnum, who was worshipped in the form of a ram right up to the early parts of the New Kingdom, is depicted fashioning two naked humanoids with prominent Horus curls (one even with his finger in his mouth) on a “potter’s wheel”. The legend notes that these beings are young Prince Amenhetep III and his ka (spirit double).10 This idea of a “double” also seems to have been preserved with regard to Jesus; according to Freke and Gandy, John observes that Jesus sometimes conversed with a Heavenly Twin who descended to join him: When all of us, disciples, were sleeping in one house at Gennesaret, I alone, having wrapped myself up, watched from under my garment what he did; and first I heard him say, ‘John, go thou to sleep,’ and thereupon I feigned to be asleep; and I saw another like unto him come down, whom I also heard saying to my Lord, ‘Jesus, do they whom thou hast chosen still not believe in thee?’And my Lord said, ‘Thou sayest well, for they are men.’ The Pistis Sophia relates a charming myth of the child Jesus meeting his own Heavenly Twin for the first time. His mother Mary recalls: ‘when thou wert a child, before the Spirit had descended upon thee, when thou wert in the vineyard with Joseph, the spirit came down from the heights, and came unto me in the house, like unto thee, and I knew him not, but thought that he was thou. And he said unto me, ‘Where is Jesus, my brother, that I may go to meet him?’ Mary relates to Jesus that when his Twin finally found him, ‘He embraced thee and kissed thee, and thee also didst kiss him; ye became one and the same being.’11

The good-bad duality as a twin conception The same twin idea seem to be played with in the good-bad duality conception in the context of the later Gnostics, and the much earlier pagan “theology” of the lower self and the higher Daemonic self. But the ideas expressed below may also relate to the Jade Emperor versus the Horus Child / Angelman: The Pagan sages taught that every human being has a mortal lower self called ‘eidolon’ and an immortal higher self called ‘Daemon’. The eidolon is the embodied self, the physical body and the personality. The Daemon is the Spirit, the true Self which is each person’s spiritual connection to God. The Mysteries were designed to help initiates realize that the eidolon is a false self and that their true identity is the immortal Daemon…The Gnostic sages taught exactly the same Mystery doctrine. Valentinus explains that a person [who] receives Gnosis [is] actually the seeker’s 436

13 : Angelman, the wounded man and his dark twin __________________________________________________________________ own Higher Self. In ancient Egypt the Daemon had for millennia been pictured as a Heavenly Twin of the eidolon. This image is also found in Gnosticism. The Gnostic sage Mani was said to have been conscious of having a protecting angel from the age of four and, aged 12, to have realized it was his Heavenly Twin, whom he called the ‘most beautiful and largest mirror image of own person.’12

This duality might even have been the base for the relatively recent ideas of the white (good) side and dark (bad) side of an individual, that is, our psychological “Jekyll and Hyde” or “split personality”. It might also be the root of the concept of the man “possessed by a demon” in the Bible. The black-white coupled to the bad-good conception might even be the origin of the relatively recent demonisation of black-skinned people in what we now known as racism. Other representations of the twin conception There are many creative ways in which the ancients expressed the idea that this duality is “two sides of the same coin”. In artworks, one of the characters would be in black and the other in colour, for example, the Black Madonna and the White Madonna artworks. “Blackness” in artwork was symbolically represented by black Africans or alternatively beings (both deities and ordinary people) were painted or sculptured with “typical” African features. In text, words such as “black” or “comes from Africa” were used to convey the same meaning. In the Koran, Mohammed is an Arab (white) and Bilaal [Baal +AL] is an African (black). In some sculptures Buddha has short, curly hair, said to be typical African hair, and even Jesus is said to have had woolly hair like that of sheep; this is symbolic of “blackness” but also to symbolise their association with sheep-like celestial images such as the Goat/Sheep/Cow/Bull/Horse’s Head image and the Fowl-CHICK as a sheep image. A misunderstanding of these ideas has led to all sorts of racist interpretations. For example “black”-skinned people are quick to point out that since Jesus and Buddha had “African hair” they must have been of African descent. And “white”-skinned people counter this by simply ignoring this biblical description of Jesus and portraying him as a typical white-skinned male, and even more absurdly with blue eyes. An alternative artistic device employed by the ancients was to represent one character in the clothes of the other and vice versa; for example, Krishna is depicted 437

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ in the clothes of Radha and Radha in the clothes of Krishna. The duality is further emphasised by painting one character (Radha) in “white” and the other (Krishna) in “black”, or by showing the same being in alternating colours, for example, in the case of Krishna, sometimes he is in a darker colour and other times he is in a lighter colour.13 In ritual expressions this duality was acted out by the same person wearing different masks or wearing a garment with one side in one colour and the other in another contrasting colour. Another, more recent, device is the use of coins where each side represents a different being, or the same being but with different appearance. The White Madonna and Black Madonna conceptions could also be seen in the context of the white-black duality conception. But there are some interesting ideas and traditions, and down-right confusion and fear in the Christian establishment, about the Black Madonna and her links to pagan rituals, to the extent that the Church did everything in its powers to stamp out veneration of the Black Madonna. The Black Madonna as a twin conception and related ideas and traditions In popular Church iconography, Mary is depicted as a young white, female holding baby Jesus on her left side over her heart. In other representations, baby Jesus is sitting on her lap, to the right. However, very few people know about the Black Madonna and her related traditions, which despite the Christian establishment’s brutality against its followers, remain an open secret in Europe, which some contemporary Christians and secret societies in certain European countries venerate without really understanding why. The epithet Madonna may have been derived from MA + Diana, MA(D) + Anna, MA + Di + Anna, or Ma + Din/Don/Dan + Inanna. In Book 2 I discuss the goddess/ hunteress Diana and her possible link to the ancient Sumerian goddess Inanna. Picknett and Prince discuss the controversial Black Madonna from various perspectives.14 Especially in view of the ancient cosmological worldview, I want to refer to some key points from their discussions and from other sources, not only of the ideas and traditions based on the Black Madonna, but also the intriguing links between the Black Madonna and other ancient goddesses as well as biblical figures.15, 16, 17

These Black Madonnas, also known as Black Virgins, have a cult following “over a wide area in Europe, including sites in Poland and even in the UK, and according 438

13 : Angelman, the wounded man and his dark twin __________________________________________________________________ to a survey by Ean Begg (1985) around 65% [of them are] found in France, and of those, most are located in the south”. However, even though they still evoke a passionate following, the Catholic Church does not openly recognise or support this following; instead the Black Madonnas are regarded with suspicion and hostility, symbolically linked to “being dark”.18 Various forms of evidence are used to argue that several secret societies in Europe, for example, the Knights Templars, the Cathars and the Priory of Sion, have been involved in covering up a profound truth surrounding the true identities, motives and mysteries of Jesus, John the Baptist, Mary Magdalene and the Black Madonna. And that their knowledge of the mysteries about these people was encoded in various European artworks, architecture, texts and various other traditions. I want to highlight some of their findings and interpretations under three main themes: • The rival twin conception. • The reconciliatory twin conception. • The Black Madonna and ancient “pagan” ideas and traditions linked to the ancients’ cosmology The rival twin conception In mytho-religious ideas there is a persistent interplay between two characters which is a play on the twin conception. In this regard the rivalry between the “twins” is emphasised – an age-old theme which can easily be recognised as a continuation of the rivalry involving various characters such as Enki and Enlil, Inanna and her sister, Gilgamesh and Enkidu, Set versus Horus, Set versus the Horus Child, Set versus Osiris, Romulus versus Remus, Kane versus Abel, and even Jesus versus John the Baptist. Picknett and Prince focus on rivalry between Jesus and John the Baptist, two of the most powerful characters in Christianity. One of their profound and shocking claims is that John, far from being Jesus’ inferior, was indeed his equal – in fact they were religious and political rivals, and that Jesus “orchestrated” the murder of John in order to seize total religious and political control. They also claim that various sects in Europe knew that John was supposed to have been the true “Saviour” and “Son of God” instead of Jesus. This claim is built on the premise that these groups venerated the Baptist over Jesus in various ways through their rituals, artworks, architecture and other traditions. Here follows a summarising exposition from their book: Perhaps the mystery surrounding John’s death provides the key to the otherwise inexplicable emphasis on venerating the Baptist over Jesus among the groups we have discussed throughout this investigation. As we have seen, the Mandeans19 439

The zodiac in our genes __________________________________________________________________ uphold John as the ‘King of Light’, while vilifying Jesus as a false prophet…just as he is portrayed in the Talmud, where he is also described as a sorcerer. Other groups, such as the Templars, have taken an apparently less extreme view, but nevertheless have venerated John over Jesus. This found supreme expression in Leonardo’s Virgin of the Rocks, and is reinforced by elements in the other works…When we first noticed Leonardo’s obsession with the supremacy of John the Baptist we wondered if it was merely a whim on his part. But after sifting through the mass of evidence for the existence of a wider John cult, we had to conclude not only that there was such a thing, but also that it has always existed parallel to the Church, keeping its secret safe. The Church of John has had many faces over the centuries, such as that of the warrior-monks of old and their political arm, the Priory of Sion. Many secretly worshipped John when they bowed the knee to ‘Christ’ – as we have seen, the Priory, which gave its Grand Masters the title of ‘John’, began this tradition with ‘Jean II’.20

As expected, the good-bad duality is interchangeable between the “twins” and has inspired rival ideas and traditions. While the above illustrates the veneration of John, yet there are views and traditions, also in Europe, where he is strongly disliked even to the point of being demonised. The Bogomils referred to John the Baptist as the “forerunner of the Antichrist”. The Cathars, who were in all probability influenced by the Bogomils, declared the Baptist a demon. Yet in a Gnostic version of their gospel, which in fact was exactly the same as the canonical gospel, John is the “Beloved Disciple”. However in the remaining holy texts of the Cathars, in the book of John “Jesus tells his disciples that John the Baptist was an emissary of Satan (Lord of the material world) sent to preempt his mission of salvation.”21 Even though this text was not unanimously accepted, it proves that dualistGnostic ideas accorded with the general theology of the Cathars, which, presented simplistically means one of the pair is good and the other is bad. If this is the case then the logical conclusion would be that even though they are opposites they are equal, making them “rivals” according to the Cathars. This is certainly not the view of traditional Christianity. Then again their orthodox symbolisms specifically hide allusions; for example, “the Lamb of God”, an important Christian image of Jesus, can be linked to John. In many places such as in the West Country of England “the Lamb of God” refers to John. The Templars venerate John as the “Lamb of God”, and have adopted this symbolism as one of their official seals specific to the Order in the South of France. This “Lamb of God” is none other than an alias for the Fowl-CHICK! 440

13 : Angelman, the wounded man and his dark twin __________________________________________________________________ The work of a scholarly priest named Lambert de St Omer includes a thoughtprovoking insight noting that the “Templars’ veneration of John the Baptist was not a simple matter of paying homage to their chosen patron saint, but hid something rather more radical.”22 In a reproduced illustration of Lambert’s “The heavenly Jerusalem”, it is noted that the founder of the heavenly Jerusalem is apparently John the Baptist, not Jesus, and there is a further suggestion that the Christians are hiding secret ideas which once revealed will rock the very foundation on which Christianity is built. There is no mention of Jesus at all in this so-called Christian document...Two years after the mass arrests [of the Templars], while the knights were still on trial, the Catalan visionary and occultist Ramon Lull (c.1232-c.1316), previously a staunch supporter of the Order, wrote that the trials reveal ‘Dangers to the boat of St Peter’, adding that: ‘There are perchance among Christians many secrets, from which a [particular] secret may cause an incredible revelation, just as that [which is] emerging from the Templars…such public and manifested infamy can of itself endanger the boat of Peter.’23

The “boat of St Peter” is none other than the Celestial Boat/Ship. The reconciliatory twin conception An alternative take on this twin rivalry conception