Scientific Verification of Vedic Knowledge

by Swami Visnu 
 
A vast number of statements and materials presented in the ancient Vedic literatures can be shown to agree with modern scientific findings and they also reveal a highly developed scientific content in these literatures. The great cultural wealth of this knowledge is highly relevant in the modern world.
Techniques used to show this agreement include:
• Marine Archaeology of underwater sites (such as Dvaraka)
• Satellite imagery of the Indus-Sarasvata River system,
• Carbon and Thermoluminiscence Dating of archaeological artifacts
• Scientific Verification of Scriptural statements
• Linguistic analysis of scripts found on archaeological artifacts
• A Study of cultural continuity in all these categories.

Introduction

Early indologists wished to control & convert the followers of Vedic Culture, therefore they widely propagated that the Vedas were simply mythology.
Max Muller, perhaps the most well known early sanskritist and indologist, although later in life he glorified the Vedas, initially wrote that the "Vedas were worse than savage" and "India must be conquered again by education... it's religion is doomed"
Thomas Macaulay, who introduced English education into India wanted to make the residents into a race that was: "Indian in blood and color, but English in taste, in opinion, in morals, and in intellect."

However, the German Philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer stated that the Sanskrit understanding of these Indologists was like that of young schoolboys.

These early Indologists:
• Devised the Aryan Invasion theory, denying India's Vedic past
• They taught that the English educational system is superior
• They intentionally misinterpreted sanskrit texts to make the Vedas look primitive.
• And they systematically tried to make Indians ashamed of their own culture
• Thus the actions of these indologists seems to indicate that they were motivated by a racial bias.
Innumerable archaeological findings and their analysis have recently brought the Aryan Invasion Theory into serious question. This theory is still taught as fact in many educational systems despite much contrary evidence.

The Aryan Invasion Theory Defined
• Vedic Aryans entered India between 1,500 and 1,200 B.C.
• They conquered the native Dravidian culture by virtue of their superiority due to their horses & iron weapons
• They Imported the Vedic culture and it's literatures.
• This Aryan Invasion Theory, however, deprives the inhabitants of India of their Vedic heritage. The wealth of their culture came from foreign soil.
The Aryan Invasion Theory raises an interesting dilemna called Frawleys Paradox: On the one hand we have the vast Vedic Literature without any archaeological finds associated with them and on the other hand, we have 2,500 archaeological sites from the Indus-Sarasvata civilization without any literature associated with them.

A preponderance of contemporary evidence now seems to indicate that these are one and the same cultures. This certainly eliminates this paradox and makes perfect sense, to an unbiased researcher.

Facts which cast serious doubt on the Aryan Invasion Theory
• There is no evidence of an Aryan homeland outside of India mentioned anywhere in the Vedas. On the contrary, the Vedas speak of the mighty Sarasvati River and other places indigenous to India. To date, no evidence for a foreign intrusion has been found, neither archaeological, linguistic, cultural nor genetic.
• There are more than 2,500 Archaeological sites, two-thirds of which are along the recently discovered dried up Sarasvati River bed. These sites show a cultural continuity with the Vedic literature from the early Harrapan civilization up to the present day India.

The archaeological sites along the dried up Sarasvati River basin are represented by black dots.

• Several independent studies of the drying up of the Sarasvati River bed, all indicate the same time period of 1,900 B.C.E.
• The significance of establishing this date for the drying up of the Sarasvati River is, that it pushes the date for the composition of the Rig Veda back to approximately 3,000 B.C.E., as enunciated by the Vedic tradition itself.
• The late dating of the Vedic literatures by indologists is based on speculated dates of 1,500 B.C.E. for the Aryan Invasion and 1,200 B.C.E. for the Rig Veda, both now disproved by scientific evidence.
Max Muller, the principal architect of the Aryan Invasion theory, admitted the purely speculative nature of his Vedic chronology, and in his last work published shortly before his death, The Six Systems of Indian Philosophy, he wrote: "Whatever may be the date of the Vedic hymns, whether 15 hundred or 15,000 B.C.E., they have their own unique place and stand by themselves in the literature of the world."

The Vedic Culture is indigenous to India
It can be scientifically proven that the Vedic Culture is indigenous, through archaeology, the study of cultural continuity, by linguistic analysis, and genetic research.

For example, the language and symbolism found on the Harappan seals are very Vedic. We find the Om symbol, the leaf of the Asvatta or holy banyan tree, as well as the swastika, or sign of auspiciousness, mentioned throughout the Vedas. Om is mentioned in the Mundaka and Katha Upanisads as well as the Bhagavad Gita.
The Holy Asvatta tree is mentioned in the Aitareya and Satapata Brahmanas as well as the Taittiriya Samhita and Katyayana Smrti.

The pictoral script of these Harappan seals has been deciphered as consistently Vedic and termed "Proto-brahmi," as a pre-sanskrit script.

This piece of pottery from the lowest level of Harappan excavations with pre-harappan writing is deciphered as ila vartate vara, referring to the sacred land bounded by the Sarasvati River, described in the Rig Veda.
Additionally, other archaeological finds are culturally consistent, such as the dancing girl, whose bracelets are similar to those worn by women of Northwest India today as well as

the three stone Siva Lingas found in Harappa by M. S. Vats in 1940. The worship of the Siva Linga is mentioned in the Maha Narayana Upanisad of the Yajur Veda and is still ardently practiced today.

The Vedas were maligned by early indologists because of their disagreement with their Eurocentric colonialists world view, a view which produced and depended on the Aryan Invasion Theory. The fact that the Aryan Invasion Theory has been seriously challenged recently by scholars and indologists, adds credence to the Vedas as viable, accurate and indigenous sources of information.

Satellite imagery of the Dried Up Sarasvati River Basin
Using modern scientific methods, such as satellite imagery and dating techniques, it can be shown that the ancient statements of the Vedas are factual, not mythical as erroneously propagated. High resolution satellite images have verified descriptions in The Rig Veda of the descent of the ancient Sarasvati River from it's source in the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea.

"Pure in her course from the mountains to the ocean, alone of streams Sarasvati hath listened."

The mighty Sarasvati River and it's civilization are referred to in the Rig Veda more than fifty times, proving that the drying up of the Sarasvati River was subsequent to the origin of the Rig Veda, pushing this date of origin back into antiquity, casting further doubt on the imaginary date for the so-called Aryan Invasion.
The Satellite image (above) clearly shows the Indus-Sarasvata river system extending from the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea. Here the Indus River is on the left, outlined in blue, while the Sarasvati River basin is outlined in green. The black dots are the many archeological sites or previous settlements along the banks of the now dry Sarasvati River.
The drying up of the Sarasvati River around 1900 B.C.E. is confirmed archaeologically. Following major tectonic movements or plate shifts in the Earth's crust, the primary cause of this drying up was due to the capture of the Sarasvati River's main tributaries, the Sutlej River and the Drishadvati River by other rivers.
Although early studies, based on limited archaeological evidence produced contradictory conclusions, recent independent studies, such as that of archaeologist James Shaffer in 1993, showed no evidence of a foreign invasion in the Indus Sarasvata civilization and that a cultural continuity could be traced back for millennia.
In other words, Archaeology does not support the Aryan Invasion Theory.

Evidence for the Ancient Port City of Dvaraka
Marine archaeology has also been utilized in India off the coast of the ancient port city of Dvaraka in Gujarat, uncovering further evidence in support of statements in the Vedic scriptures. An entire submerged city at Dvaraka, the ancient port city of Lord Krishna with its massive fort walls, piers, warfs and jetty has been found in the ocean as described in the Mahabharata and other Vedic literatures.
This sanskrit verse from the Mausala Parva of the Mahabharata, describes the disappearance of the city of Dvaraka into the sea.

"After all the people had set out, the ocean flooded Dvaraka, which still teemed with wealth of every kind. Whatever portion of land was passed over, the ocean immediately flooded over with its waters."

Dr. S. R. Rao, formerly of the Archaeological Survey of India, has pioneered marine archaeology in India. Marine archaeological findings seem to corroborate descriptions in the Mahabharata of Dvaraka as a large, well-fortified and prosperous port city, which was built on land reclaimed from the sea, and later taken back by the sea. This lowering and raising of the sea level during these same time periods of the 15^th and 16^th centuries B.C.E. is also documented in historical records of the country of Bahrain.
Amongst the extensive underwater discoveries were the massive Dvaraka city wall, a large door-socket and a bastion from the fort wall.

Two rock-cut slipways of varying width, extending from the beach to the intertidal zone, a natural harbor, as well as a number of olden stone ship anchors were discovered, attesting to Dvaraka being an ancient port city.

The three headed motif on this conch-shell seal (above), found in the Dvaraka excavations, corroborates the reference in the scripture Harivamsa that every citizen of Dvaraka should carry a mudra or seal of this type.
All these underwater excavations add further credibility to the validity of the historical statements found in the Vedic literatures.

Thirty-five Archaeological Sites in North India
Apart from Dvaraka, more than thirty-five sites in North India have yielded archaeological evidence and have been identified as ancient cities described in the Mahabharata. Copper utensils, iron, seals, gold & silver ornaments, terracotta discs and painted grey ware pottery have all been found in these sites. Scientific dating of these artifacts corresponds to the non-aryan-invasion model of Indian antiquity.

Furthermore, the Matsya and Vayu Puranas describe great flooding which destroyed the capital city of Hastinapur, forcing its inhabitants to relocate in Kausambi. The soil of Hastinapur reveals proof of this flooding. Archaeological evidence of the new capital of Kausambi has recently been found which has been dated to the time period just after this flood.


Kurukshetra

Similarly, in Kurukshetra, the scene of the great Mahabharata war, Iron arrows and spearheads have been excavated and dated by thermoluminence to 2,800 B.C.E., the approximate date of the war given within the Mahabharata itself.
The Mahabharata also describes three cities given to the Pandavas, the heroes of the Mahabharata, after their exile:
Paniprastha, Sonaprastha & Indraprastha, which is Delhi's Puranaqila. These sites have been identified and yielded pottery & antiquities, which show a cultural consistency & dating consistent for the Mahabharata period, again verifying statements recorded in the Vedic literatures.

Renowned Thinkers Who Appreciated the Vedic Literatures
Although early indologists, in their missionary zeal, widely vilified the Vedas as primitive mythology, many of the worlds greatest thinkers admired the Vedas as great repositories of advanced knowledge and high thinking

Arthur Schopenhauer, the famed German philosopher and writer, wrote that: I "...encounter [in the Vedas] deep, original, lofty thoughts... suffused with a high and holy seriousness."
The well-known early American writer Ralph Waldo Emerson, read the Vedas daily. Emerson wrote: "I owed a magnificent day to the Bhagavat-Gita"
Henry David Thoreau said: "In the morning I bathe my intellect in the stupendous philosophy of the Bhagavad Gita... in comparison with which... our modern world and its literature seems puny and trivial."
So great were Emerson and Thoreau's appreciation of Vedantic literatures that they became known as the American transcendentalists. Their writings contain many thoughts from Vedic Philosophy.
Other famous personalities who spoke of the greatness of the Vedas were: Alfred North Whitehead (British mathematician, logician and philosopher), who stated that: "Vedanta is the most impressive metaphysics the human mind has conceived."
Julius Robert Oppenheimer, the principle developer of the atomic bomb, stated that "The Vedas are the greatest privilege of this century." During the explosion of the first atomic bomb, Oppenheimer quoted several Bhagavad-gita verses from the 11th chapter, such as:
"Death I am, cause of destruction of the worlds..."
When Oppenheimer was asked if this is the first nuclear explosion, he significantly replied: "Yes, in modern times," implying that ancient nuclear explosions may have previously occurred.

Lin Yutang, Chinese scholar and author, wrote that: "India was China's teacher in trigonometry, quadratic equations, grammar, phonetics... " and so forth.

Francois Voltaire stated: "... everything has come down to us from the banks of the Ganges."
From these statements we see that many renowned intellectuals believed that the Vedas provided the origin of scientific thought.

The Iron Pillar of Delhi
The Vedic literatures contain descriptions of advanced scientific techniques, sometimes even more sophisticated than those used in our modern technological world.
Modern metallurgists have not been able to produce iron of comparable quality to the 22 foot high Iron Pillar of Delhi, which is the largest hand forged block of iron from antiquity.
This pillar stands at mute testimony to the highly advanced scientific knowledge of metallurgy that was known in ancient India. Cast in approximately the 3rd century B.C., the six and a half ton pillar, over two millennia has resisted all rust and even a direct hit by the artillary of the invading army of Nadir Shah during his sacking of Delhi in 1737.

Vedic Cosmology

Vedic Cosmology is yet another ancient Vedic science which can be confirmed by modern scientific findings and this is acknowledged by well known scientists and authors, such as Carl Sagan and Count Maurice Maeterlinck, who recognized that the cosmology of the Vedas closely parallels modern scientific findings.

Carl Sagan stated, "Vedic Cosmology is the only one in which the time scales correspond to those of modern scientific cosmology."
Nobel laureate Count Maurice Maeterlinck wrote of: "a Cosmogony which no European conception has ever surpassed."
French astronomer Jean-Claude Bailly corroborated the antiquity and accuracy of the Vedic astronomical measurements as "more ancient than those of the Greeks or Egyptians." And that, "the movements of the stars calculated 4,500 years ago, does not differ by a minute from the tables of today."
The ninety foot tall astronomical instrument known as Samrat Yantra, built by the learned King Suwai Jai Singh of Jaipur, measures time to within two seconds per day.
Cosmology and other scientific accomplishments of ancient India spread to other countries along with mercantile and cultural exchanges. There are almost one hundred references in the Rig Veda alone to the ocean and maritime activity. This is confirmed by Indian historian R. C. Majumdar, who stated that the people of the Indus-Sarasvata Civilization engaged in trade with Sooma and centers of culture in western Asia and Crete.

The Heliodorus Column and Cultural Links to India
An example of these exchanges is found in the inscriptions on the Heliodorus Column, erected in 113 B.C.E. by Heliodorus, a Greek ambassador to India, and convert to Vaisnavism, as well as the 2nd century B.C.E. Coins of Agathocles, showing images of Krishna and Balaram. These artifacts stand testimony that Sanatan Dharma predates Christianity.

This also confirms the link between India and other ancient civilizations such as Greece and shows that there was a continuous exchange of culture, philosophy and scientific knowledge between India & other countries. Indeed the Greeks learned many wonderful things from India.

Vedic Mathematics
Voltaire, the famous French writer and philosopher) stated that "Pythagoras went to the Ganges to learn geometry." Abraham Seidenberg, author of the authoritative "History of Mathematics," credits the Sulba Sutras as inspiring all mathematics of the ancient world from Babylonia to Egypt to Greece.

As Voltaire & Seidenberg have stated, many highly significant mathematical concepts have come from the Vedic culture, such as:

The theorem bearing the name of the Greek mathematician Pythagorus is found in the Shatapatha Brahmana as well as the Sulba Sutra, the Indian mathematical treatise, written centuries before Pythagorus was born.


The Decimal system, based on powers of ten, where the remainder is carried over to the next column, first mentioned in the Taittiriya Samhita of the Black Yajurveda.


The Introduction of zero as both a numerical value and a place marker.


The Concept of infinity.


The Binary number system, essential for computers, was used in Vedic verse meters.


A hashing technique, similar to that used by modern search algorithms, such as Googles, was used in South Indian musicology. From the name of a raga one can determine the notes of the raga from this Kathapayadi system. (See Figure at left.)
For further reading we refer you to this excellent article on Vedic Mathematics.


Vedic Sound and Mantras
The Vedas however are not as well known for presenting historical and scientific knowledge as they are for expounding subtle sciences, such as the power of mantras. We all recognize the power of sound itself by it's effects, which can be quite dramatic. Perhaps we all have seen a high-pitched frequency shatter an ordinary drinking glass. Such a demonstration shows that Loud Sounds can produce substantial reactions
It is commonly believed that mantras can carry hidden power which can in turn produce certain effects. The ancient Vedic literatures are full of descriptions of weapons being called by mantra. For example, many weapons were invoked by mantra during the epic Kuruksetra War, wherein the Bhagavad-gita itself was spoken.
The ancient deployment of Brahmastra weapons, equivalent to modern day nuclear weapons are described throughout the Vedic literatures. Additionally, mantras carry hidden spiritual power, which can produce significant benefits when chanted properly. Indeed, the Vedas themselves are sound vibrations in literary form and carry a profound message. Spiritual disciplines recommend meditational practices such as silent meditation, silent recitation of mantras and also the verbal repetition of specific mantras out loud.
A Clinical Test of the Benefits of Mantra Chanting was performed on three groups of sixty-two subjects, males and females of average age 25. They chanted the Hare Krsna Maha Mantra twenty-five minutes each day under strict clinical supervision.
Results showed that regular chanting of the Hare Krsna Maha Mantra reduces Stress and depression and helps reduce bad habits & addictions. These results formed a PhD Thesis at Florida State University.
Spiritual practitioners claim many benefits from Mantra Meditation such as increased realization of spiritual wisdom, inner peace and a strong communion with God and the spiritual realm. These effects may be experienced by following the designated spiritual path.

Conclusion
Most of the evidence given in this presentation is for the apara vidya or material knowledge of the Vedic literatures. The Vedas however, are more renowned for their para vidya or spiritual knowledge. And even superior is the realized knowledge of the Vedic rsis or saints — that which is beyond the objective knowledge of modern science — knowledge of the eternal realm of sat, cit ananda, eternality, blissfullness and full knowledge. But that is another presentation.
The Scientific Verification of Vedic Knowledge is available from DevaVision Video Documentaries as a more extensive video as well as a PDF chapter in Science of the Sacred.

EL CANCER NO EXISTE EN LAS MOMIAS EGIPCIAS

Las momias no muestran signos de cáncer

El cáncer es una enfermedad moderna provocada por el ser humano, sugiere un estudio realizado por científicos de la Universidad de Manchester, en Inglaterra. A esta conclusión han llegado los investigadores tras analizar cientos de momias egipcias entre las que encontraron sólo un caso de muerte por cáncer. Este hecho apunta a que el cáncer fue una enfermedad extremadamente rara en la antigüedad, según publican los autores del estudio en la revista Nature Reviews Cancer. Rosalie David y su colega Michael Zimmermann trataron de averiguar si en las momias de hasta 3.000 años de antigüedad que se conservan había rastros de cáncer, pero sólo encontraron cinco casos de tumores, todos ellos benignos.Sí hallaron, por el contrario, otros signos como el endurecimiento de las arterias o artritis que, según los científicos, desmienten los argumentos esgrimidos por algunos de que si nuestros antepasados no llegaron a desarrollar el cáncer es porque no vivían tantos años como el hombre actual. Por otro lado, las tasas de incidencia del cáncer han aumentado exponencialmente desde la Revolución Industrial. En particular, se ha incrementado el cáncer infantil, lo que señala que este aumento no se debe sólo a que la esperanza de vida sea mucho mayor en la actualidad que antaño. Por último, los investigadores subrayan que no hay nada en los entornos naturales que pueda causar cáncer. Así que seríamos los humanos los que estaríamos provocando esta "plaga", con la contaminación que generamos y los cambios a los que hemos sometidos nuestra dieta y nuestro estilo de vida, concluyen los científicos. La importancia del presente estudio es que proporciona una perspectiva histórica del cáncer y presenta una amplia perspectiva de ella.

los otros cristos

Una representación de algunos de los cristos antiguos más comunes,

Los libros que hablan acerca de los otros cristos, dan a entender que, en definitiva, debió de existir un molde de prototipo de religión universal, y que ese molde fué dando forma a diferentes salvadores milagreros y a diferentes credos religiosos, variando según el paso del tiempo, la cultura del lugar y demás condiciones del momento.

De modo que la religión cristiana sería, según esta hipótesis, una copia posterior de otras religiones más antiguas, como por ejemplo la religión egipcia y otras creencias sagradas antiguas.


Por ejemplo, se nos habla del dios Osiris, la diosa Isis y de su hijo Horus de Egipto.

Osiris murió pero luego resucitó, según la Mitología Egipcia.

Attis de Frigia, murió supuestamente por la salvación de la humanidad crucificado en un árbol, descendió al submundo y resucitó al tercer día.

Mitra de persia tuvo 12 discípulos; pronunció un Sermón de la Montaña, fue llamado el Buen Pastor, se sacrificó por la paz del mundo y resucitó a los 3 días.

Buda de Nepal enseñó en el templo a los 12 años, curó a los enfermos, caminó sobre el agua y alimentó a 500 personas hombres con una cesta;

Krishna de la India, era hijo de un carpintero; su nacimiento fue anunciado por la aparición de una estrella en Oriente y fué recibido por unos pastores que le llevaron especias como regalos…

Y así hay un largo etcétera de personajes, que, supuestamente, también tuvieron seguidores, que hacían votos de pobreza y que renunciaban al mundo. Unos extraños personajes que también fueron llamados como Señor, Maestro, la Luz del Mundo, etc...

.. también cabe citar a Zoroastro de Persia, Dioniso de Grecia, Apolonio de Tiana, Indra del Tibet, Hesus de los druidas, Prometeo de Grecia, y muchos más.

-----

el nacimiento en las religiones paganas ( o politeista ,llamenlo como gusten ) son todas en el nombrado "Sol Invictus"
el solsticio de inviero - invierno = diciembre .

La biblia no especifica fecha del nacimiento de Jesus , pero menciona que los pastores estaban pastando , Invierno en Israel , es sinonimo de Aluviones , no creo que maria con 9 meses de gestacion caminara desde Jerusalen a belen en plena lluvia, Jesus nacio en verano , o sea Marzo....

San Pedro fue crucificado cabeza abajo ( recuerda el exorcista  ) en plena Roma , hoy es lugar tiene el nombre de basilica de san pedro , ¿ quien le dio ese nombre ?

Un pagano - Constantino - Constantino como conquistador y fundador de Constantinopla , era creyente de un panteom de dioses por doquier .

Pero segun unas de sus visiones ( estrategicas por cierto ) tras una batalla ya perdida . El dios cristiano le señalo el camino para ganar aquella batalla. La gente creyo en el y constantino el pagano , paso a ser Constantino el cristiano . ......es un hecho inimaginable , Constantino debia convencer a su pueblo que el Dios cristiano , era superior a todas sus tradiciones paganas.

El concilio de Nicea -

Nicea ,  se decidio la divinidad de cristo , su resurrecion , la santa trinidad , los evangelios selectos para la biblia , asi como algunos detalles , su nacimiento por ej. .

Constantino no tenia conciencia de que Horus tuviera tributo el 25 de Diciembre , ni que Apolo tambien , pero si estaba asociado a una en particular , una diosa persa , Mitra .

tras esto jesus adopto tradiciones paganas , por ej. la figura de cristo con el simbolo del sol en su cabeza.

Hay miles de historias como dicen , hay relacion entre el Dios de platon , con el dios de Jesus .

Buda tambien creia en Dioses , pero hacia mas referencia al Brahmma , energia , la energia estaba presente en cada ser del universo , el nirvana era algo tan inexplicable para Buda como lo era Dios para Moises o para Los cristianos .

Sabes quien plantio la idea del BigBen ??
Georges Lemaître - un sacerdote catolico y astrofisico belga . La energia existe , tambien lo comprueban las matematicas .

..

RESUCITAR A LOS TRES DIAS - algo mas antiguo que cristo

Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection

 

Although it is believed to represent the time of Jesus Christ's resurrection, the festival of Easter existed in pre-Christian times and, according to the famous Christian saint Venerable Bede (672-735 AD/CE), was named for the Teutonic or German goddess Eôstre, who was the "goddess of dawn" and who symbolized the fertility found abundantly during the springtime of the year. (See CE, V, 224; Weekley, 491) Regarding the ancient fertility goddess, in How the Easter Story Grew from Gospel to Gospel, Dr. Rolland E. Wolfe, a professor of Biblical Literature at Case Western Reserve University, relates:

"In the polytheistic pantheons of antiquity there usually was a king or chief of the gods, and also a female counterpart who was regarded as his wife. This mother goddess was one of the most important deities in the ancient Near East. She was called by the various names of Ishtar, Athtar [sic], Astarte, Ashtoreth, Antit, and Anat. This mother goddess always was associated with human fertility. In the course of time Mary was to become identified with this ancient mother goddess, or perhaps it should be said that Mary was about to supplant her in certain Christian circles." (Wolfe, 234)

The comparison between the Babylonian goddess Ishtar and the Jewish maiden Mary becomes even more evident when it is factored in that in an ancient Akkadian hymn Ishtar is called "Virgin." (Sayce, 268) Yet, like Mary, Ishtar too was the "Mother of God," in this case Tammuz, the dying and rising god mourned by the Israelite women at Ezekiel 8:14. (See Mettinger, 213) Indeed, Old Testament scholar Rev. Dr. W. Robertson Smith identifies Ishtar as the virgin-mother goddess worshipped at Petra who was mentioned by Church father Epiphanius. In a footnote, Smith remarks, "The identification of the mother of the gods with the heavenly virgin, in other words, the unmarried goddess, is confirmed if not absolutely demanded by Aug. Civ. Dei, ii. 4."(Smith, 56) The reference is to St. Augustine's The City of God (2.4), in which the Church father discusses with undisguised contempt the Pagan rites surrounding "the virgin Caelestis" and "Berecynthia the mother of them all." (Augustine, 54) From these remarks and many others over the past centuries it is clear that the educated elite have been well aware of the unoriginality of the virgin-mother motif within Christianity. Yet, to this day the public remains uninformed and/or in fervent denial about such facts....

As demonstrated in Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection, the springtime/Easter resurrection myth occurred in Greek mythology with the tale of Kore/Persephone descending into the underworld to reside with Hades, leading to the death of winter. Her remergence out of the underworld represented the springtime renewal of life on Earth - thus, Persephone's resurrection symbolized eternal life, precisely as did that of Jesus and the Egyptian god Osiris.

Comprising the entombment for three days, the descent into the underworld, and the resurrection, the spring celebration of "Easter" represents the period of the vernal equinox, when the sun is "hung on a cross" composed of the days and nights of equal length. After a touch-and-go battle for supremacy with the night or darkness, the sun emerges triumphant, being "born again" or "resurrected" as a "man," moving towards "his" full strength at the summer solstice...

It is noteworthy that even older scholarship reflects the knowledge of the strengthening of the sun at Easter, as exemplified by Rev. George W. Lemon, who in his English Etymology, published in 1783, gives the meaning of "Easter" as:

"...at that time or on that day, the Sun of Righteousness arose with healing in his wings, like the sun all glorious in the east..."

The "Sun of Righteousness" refers to Jesus Christ, as purportedly prophesied in the last book before the New Testament, Malachi (4:2). Christ's identification as the "Sun of Righteousness," the placement of his "resurrection" at Easter, and his association with the "sun all glorious in the east," all reflect his solar role, serving as earmarks of Jesus himself being a sun god. Indeed, "Easter" or the vernal equinox truly represents the resurrection of the "Light of the World" - the sun - bringing with it the fertility of spring.

That Easter constituted a pre-Christian festival concerning resurrection is apparent from the discussion in the New International Encyclopaedia regarding Easter customs:

"The use of eggs in this connection is of the highest antiquity, the egg having been considered in widely separated pre-Christian mythologies as a symbol of resurrection..." (Gilman, 492)

In his extensive analysis in The Golden Bough regarding the "dying and rising gods," Sir James George Frazer concluded that the story of Easter as a time of rebirth, renewal and resurrection of life in general could be found in the myths of non-Christian deities such as the Greco-Phrygian god Attis and the Greco-Syrian god Adonis, among others. While various of Frazer's contentions have come under fire, frequently from Christian apologists, in The Riddle of Resurrection, Dr. Tryggve N.D. Mettinger demonstrates the dying-and-rising theme overall to be sound....

Discussing Attis along with his consort/mother Cybele (the "Metroac" cult/mysteries), Dr. Andrew T. Fear, a professor of Classics and Ancient History at the University of Manchester, remarks:

"The youthful Attis after his murder was miraculously brought to life again three days after his demise. The celebration of this cycle of death and renewal was one of the major festivals of the metroaccult. Attis therefore represented a promise of reborn life and as such it is not surprising that we find representations of the so-called mourning Attis as a common tomb motif in the ancient world.

"The parallel, albeit at a superficial level, between this myth and the account of the resurrection of Christ is clear. Moreover Attis as a shepherd occupies a favourite Christian image of Christ as the good shepherd. Further parallels also seem to have existed: the pine tree of Attis, for example, was seen as a parallel to the cross of Christ.

"Beyond Attis himself, Cybele too offered a challenge to Christian divine nomenclature. Cybele was regarded as a virgin goddess and as such could be seen as a rival to the Virgin Mary... Cybele as the mother of the Gods, mater Deum, here again presented a starkly pagan parallel to the Christian Mother of God.

"There was rivalry too in ritual. The climax of the celebration of Attis' resurrection, the Hilaria, fell on the 25th of March, the date that the early church had settled on as the day of Christ's death...." (Lane, 39-40)

The festival associated with Cybele and Attis, called the "Megalensia," was celebrated specifically in the spring, with a passion play commemorating Attis's death and resurrection. (Salzman, 87) Dr. Fear thus asserts this mourning period of the god Attis to have comprised three days. In reality, this pre-Christian cult remained popular well into the common era, and its similarities to Christianity were not considered "superficial" by the Church fathers such as Augustine who wrote about them. The parallels between the Attis myth and the gospel story are in fact startling and highly noteworthy, and in reality represent an archetypal myth that was evidently changed to revolve around a Jewish messiah, with numerous details added for a wide variety of purposes. Fear's analysis includes the debate as to when this prototypical springtime death-and-resurrection motif was associated with the pre-Christian god Attis, with various scholars averring its components to have been added in response to Christianity.

Contrary to the current fad of dismissing all correspondences between Christianity and Paganism, the fact that Attis wasat some point a "dying and rising god" is concluded by Mettinger who relates: "Since the time of Damascius (6^th cent.AD/CE), Attis seems to have been believed to die and return." (Mettinger, 159) By that point, we possess clear discussion in writing of Attis having been resurrected, but when exactly were these rites first celebrated and where? Attis worship is centuries older than Jesus worship and was popular in some parts of the Roman Empire before and well into the "Christian era."

In addition, it is useful here to reiterate that simply because something occurred after the year 1 AD/CE does not mean that it was influenced by Christianity, as it may have happened where Christianity had never been heard of. In actuality, not much about Christianity emerges until the second century, and there remain to this day places where Christianity is unknown; hence, these locations can still be considered pre-Christian.

It is probable that the Attis rites were celebrated long before Christianity was recognized to any meaningful extent. Certainly, since they are mysteries, they could have been celebrated but not recorded previously, especially in pre-Christian times, when the capital punishment for revealing such mysteries was actually carried out. We have seen cautious reticence expressed on the part of the Greek historian Herodotus (c. 484-c. 425 BCE), for example, who declined to reveal the mysteries of Osiris he had witnessed. Herodotus's concerns would not be misplaced, as evidenced by the "witchhunt" that ensued within his lifetime regarding the Athenian politician Alcibiades (c. 450-404 BCE), who was accused of "profaning the Mysteries" and was sentenced to death for his alleged transgressions. (Bauman, 62-64) Under such circumstances, it is understandable that the mysteries were never recorded overtly such that we now have them readily at our disposal....

Concerning the pre-Christian resurrection theme, in Resurrection Dr. Stanley Porter remarks:

"During the Graeco-Roman period, there were numerous cults that had their basis in earlier thought and relied to varying degrees on some form of a resurrection story. Three of them can be mentioned here, although it is not clear that these are different myths. They may be simply the same myth many times retold...." (Porter, 74-75)

In his discussion of this retelling of myths, Porter recounts the comments by ancient Greek writer Diodorus Siculus (c. 90-27 BCE) that the Egyptian gods are called by many names, such as various Greek counterparts. He then addresses the Orphic myths, which include that of the Greek god Dionysus, "first developed around the sixth century BC in the east." Porter subsequently says:

"The cycle of nature, reflected in the myth of Dionysius's [sic] death and rebirth, tied to the harvest, emphasized the promise of new life to those who followed the cult....

"A second cult worth recounting is that of Isis. This cult was arguably the most important of the mystery religions of the Roman Empire. The figure of Isis was identified with Demeter...but developed her own cult, well-reflected in evidence from Egypt during the Roman period, especially in terms of health and overcoming of disease." (Porter, 75)

Next Porter relates the story of the Egyptian god Horus's resurrection from death as recounted by Diodorus (1.25.6), adding:

"The word used for raised from the dead is αναστησαι [anastesai], widely used in the New Testament for 'resurrection' as well. This same power, evidenced also in Isis's husband/brother Osiris, was then in some sense transferred to all later initiates, who went through a process of initiation into the cult of Isis." (Porter, 76)

Thus, in Horus's myth emerges a resurrection or anastasis, using the precise term found in the later New Testament, in the century before Christ's purported revivification. This fact is highly significant in that it demonstrates yet another solid link between the Egyptian and Christian religions....

The Christian celebration of "Easter," the supposed time of Christ's death and resurrection, follows a roving date traditionally placed on the first full moon following the vernal equinox, which has occurred occasionally during the equinoctial three-day period, as it did in 2008. This wandering date indicates that Christ's passion and resurrection are not "historical," with their placement following the full moon after or at the vernal equinox, demonstrating theirastrotheological nature instead....

The "Christos" is not only the sun triumphing over the darkness as the day becomes longer than the night, but it is also the sun's light in the moon, as the moon waxes and wanes monthly. Hence, the full moon likewise represents the sun's "resurrection," and the theme within Christianity also appears to have been influenced by Osiris's entrance into the moon at the vernal equinox as well. That the date of Christ's death and resurrection is based on astrotheology is thorougly demonstrated in the subject's discussion by ancient Church fathers, including the writers of the Alexandria or Paschal Chronicle, also called the "Easter Chronicle" (3rd to 6th/7th cent. AD/CE). In that text, the authors spend significant time calculating the proper dates for Easter, based on astrotheological considerations. In any event, the deity reborn or raised up at the vernal equinox or springtime is a recurring theme not representing a "historical" personage but, rather, a natural phenomenon, i.e., Spring.

Sources

Augustine, The City of God against the Pagans, ed. R.W. Dyson, Cambridge University Press, UK, 1998.
Bauman, Richard A., Political Trials in Ancient Greece, Routledge, London/NY, 1990.
Catholic Encyclopedia, V, Universal Knowledge Foundation, 1913.
Gilman, Daniel, et al., eds., The New International Encyclopaedia, VI, Dodd, Mead & Co., 1903.
Lane, Eugene N., Cybele, Attis and Related Cults: Essays in Memory of M.J. Vermaseren, E.J. Brill, Leiden, 1996.
Lemon, George W., English Etymology or, a Derivative Dictionary of the English Language in Two Alphabets, G. Robinson, London, 1783.
Mettinger, Tryggve N.D., The Riddle of Resurrection: "Dying and Rising Gods" in the Ancient Near East, Almqvist & Wiksell International, Stockholm, 2001.
Porter, Stanley E., et al., Resurrection, Journal for the Study of the New Testament, Supp. 186, Roehampton Institute London Papers, 1999.
Salzman, Michelle Renee, The Codex-Calendar of 354 and the Rhythms of Urban Life in Late Antiquity, University of California Press, 1990.
Sayce, A.H., Lecturess on the Origin and Growth of Religion, Williams and Norgate, London, 1897.
Smith, W. Robertson, Lectures on the Religion of the Semites, Adam and Charles Black, London, 1907.
Weekley, Ernest, An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, vol. 1, Dover, Toronto, 1967.
Wolfe, Rolland E., How the Easter Story Grew from Gospel to Gospel, Edwin Mellen Press, NY, 1989.

For more information, please see Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection.

Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled 

Contrary to popular belief, Easter does not represent the "historical" crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In reality, the gospel tale reflects the annual "crossification" of the sun through the vernal equinox (Spring), at which time the sun is "resurrected," as the day begins to become longer than the night.

Rather than being a "Christian" holiday, Easter celebrations date back into remotest antiquity and are found around the world, as the blossoming of spring did not escape the notice of the ancients, who revered this life-renewing time of the year, when winter had passed and the sun was "born again." The "Pagan" Easter is also the Passover, and Jesus Christ represents not only the sun but also the Passover Lamb ritually sacrificed every year by a number of cultures, including the Egyptians, possibly as early as 4,000 years ago and continuing to this day in some places.

Easter Around the World

Easter is "Pessach" in Hebrew, "Pascha" in Greek, "Pachons" in Latin and "Pa-Khonsu" in Egyptian, "Khonsu" being an epithet for the sun god Horus. In Anglo-Saxon, Easter or Eostre is goddess of the dawn, corresponding to Ishtar, Astarte, Astoreth and Isis. The word "Easter" shares the same root with "east" and "eastern," the direction of the rising sun.

"The Phrygian sun and fertility god Attis was annually hung on a tree, dying and rising on March 24th and 25th, an 'Easter celebration' that occurred at Rome as well."

The principal Mexican solar festival was held at the vernal equinox, i.e., Easter, when sacrifices were made to sustain the sun. In India, the vernal equinox festival is called "Holi" and is especially sacred to the god Krishna. The Phrygian sun and fertility god Attis was annually hung on a tree, dying and rising on March 24th and 25th, an "Easter celebration" that occurred at Rome as well. The March dates were later applied to the Passion and Resurrection of Christ: "Thus," says Sir Frazer, "the tradition which placed the death of Christ on the twenty-fifth of March was ancient and deeply rooted. It is all the more remarkable because astronomical considerations prove that it can have had no historical foundation…." This "coincidence" between the deaths and resurrections of Christ and the older Attis was not lost on early Christians, whom it distressed and caused to use the "devil got there first" excuse for the motif's presence in pre-Christian paganism.

The rites of the "crucified Adonis," another dying and rising savior god, were also celebrated in Syria at Easter time. As Frazer states:

"When we reflect how often the Church has skillfully contrived to plant the seeds of the new faith on the old stock of paganism, we may surmise that the Easter celebration of the dead and risen Christ was grafted upon a similar celebration of the dead and risen Adonis, which, as we have seen reason to believe, was celebrated in Syria at the same season."

The salvific death and resurrection at Easter of the god, the initiation as remover of sin, and the notion of becoming "born again," are all ages-old Pagan motifs or mysteries rehashed in the later Christianity. The all-important death-and-resurrection motif is exemplified in the "Parisian magical papyrus," a Pagan text ostensibly unaffected by Christianity:

"Lord, being born again I perish in that I am being exalted, and having been exalted I die; from a life-giving birth being born into death I was thus freed and go the way which Thou has founded, as Thou hast ordained and hast made the mystery."

Easter's Roving Date is Astrotheological

In the gospel tale, there are two dates for the crucifixion: the 14th and the 15th of the month of Nisan, and within Christianity the date for Easter was debated for centuries. There continue to be two dates for Easter: the Western Catholic and Eastern Orthodox, thus demonstrating that this holiday is not the historical date of the actual crucifixion of a particular man. The dates are, in fact, astronomical, astrological and astrotheological.

In explaining this roving date, one "distinguished churchman," as Catholic Church historian Eusebius called him, Anatolius, revealed the meaning of Easter and of Christ, as well as the fact that astrology was a known and respected science used in Christianity. Said Anatolius:

"On this day [March 22] the sun is found not only to have reached the first sign of the Zodiac, but to be already passing through the fourth day within it. This sign is generally known as the first of the twelve, the equinoctial sign, the beginning of months, head of the cycle, and start of the planetary course.... Aristobolus adds that it is necessary at the Passover Festival that not only the sun but the moon as well should be passing through an equinoctial sign. There are two of these signs, one in spring, one in autumn, diametrically opposed to each other...."

In establishing the "Paschal festival," Church father Anatolius thus based his calculations on the positions of the sun and moon during the vernal equinox.

Christ as the Solar Hero

The need to time the Easter celebration - or resurrection - to coincide with the vernal equinox demonstrates that"Christ" is not an historical personage but the sun. This fact of Easter being the resurrection of the Sun has been well known for centuries, just as "the Savior's" birth at the winter solstice has been recognized as another solar motif. Another obvious clue as to Christ's nature is the fact that the "Lord's Day" is Sunday.

"Christ is the Sun of Righteousness, with 'divine beams.'"

Concerning Easter, in his "Letter I. for 329" Bishop of Alexandria Athanasius (c. 293-373) remarks, "Again, 'the Sun of Righteousness,' causing His divine beams to rise upon us, proclaims beforehand the time of the feast, in which, obeying Him, we ought to celebrate it…" Christ is thus the Sun of Righteousness, with "divine beams."

The Paschal Chronicle

The Easter calculations were recomputed in the seventh century by the Christian author(s) of the Paschal Chronicle or Alexandria Chronicle, which seeks to establish a Christian chronology from "creation" to the year 628. The Paschal Chronicle determines the proper date for Easter as March 21st and the date of Christ's resurrection as March 25th (or, midnight, March 24, three days after the beginning of the equinox). In his various calculations, the Chronicle author discusses solar and lunar cycles, including the 19-year lunar cycle, by which he reckons the crucifixion and resurrection, concluding: "This is consistent with the prior determinations of reputable men in the calculation of the heavenly bodies." To wit, Christ's death and resurrection are based on astrotheology.

The Chronicle author further confirms that Christianity is a continuation of the ancient "Pagan" astrotheological religion when he states that the "Annunciation of our Lady," i.e., the conception of Christ by the Virgin Mary, likewise occurred on March 25th, the vernal equinox, exactly nine months prior to the December 25th birthdate, the annual rebirth of the sun.

For more information, including citations, see Suns of God.
See also Easter: The Resurrection of Spring.

  


¿El eslabón perdido entre jdaísmo y cristianismo?

La tablilla de David Jeselshon que ha permitido la interpretación de Israel Knhol. (REUTERS)

8 de julio de 2008.- Sala en el Santuario del Libro del Museo de Israel. Jerusalén. No cabe un alfiler. Algunos periodistas y muchos expertos, arqueólogos, teólogos y profesores no cesan de escuchar y escribir. En el escenario, el investigador Israel Knhol, profesor de Estudios Bíblicos de la Universidad Hebrea de Jerusalén. Ante una expectación académica más propia de las películas de Indiana Jones, Knhol presenta su hallazgo: la interpretación de una palabra clave en la línea 80 de las 87 de la piedra que contiene la que se conoce como 'revelación de Gabriel', defendiendo que la idea de la muerte del mesías y su revelación a los tres días es anterior a Jesús.
Revela que los judíos ya creían antes en la llegada de un mesías resucitado. "Existe la posibilidad que la profecía de la muerte y resurrección asociada a Jesús después de la crucifixión existiera antes por lo que éste podría haber estado influido por estas teorías en el judaísmo", explica Knhol, un poco abrumado ante la expectación creada. "No deseo ir contra ninguna religión ni muchos menos contra los cimientos del cristianismo", comenta intentando reducir el impacto de sus palabras y de la palabra descifrada.
El texto en la tabla de piedra caliza gris es en gran parte ilegible costando grandes esfuerzos a los expertos descifrarla. En una fotocopia del documento que nos entregan en la sala del Museo, se puede leer el término 'shlosha yamin' (tres días) seguida de una palabra prácticamente borrada pero que según Knhol es la palabra hebrea 'hayé', que significa 'vivir'. El texto —visión apocalíptica escrita en el siglo I antes de Cristo— indica que el arcángel San Gabriel resucitará tres días después de su muerte al "ministro de ministros", (en la tradición judía se aplica al mesías), en referencia a un líder local (Shimon).
"Yo identifiqué una idea judía no reconocida anteriormente, que la sangre del mesías es necesaria a fin de lograr la redención nacional. La idea de un torturado mesías que fue resucitado tres días después de su muerte fue adoptada por el judaísmo antes del nacimiento de Jesús. Las ideas principales del mito de Jesús existían en el judaísmo", comenta ante un silencio sepulcral. "El relato es muy parecido a lo que luego explica el Nuevo Testamento sobre la resurrección de Jesús", explica un ayudante en la sala.
En la conferencia internacional sobre los Manuscritos del Mar Muerto, Knohl reconoce que el análisis que hace del texto en hebreo antiguo de esta estela descubierta hace ocho años en la zona del mar Muerto, "puede cambiar la visión que todos tienen del personaje histórico de Jesús".
Su interpretación tambalea viejos debates entre el judaísmo y cristianismo, religión que se basa en el fundamento que Jesús era el mesías que murió y resucitó tres días después. Una premisa que según el investigador ya existía previamente en el judaísmo que nunca ha considerado a Jesús, uno de los suyos, como "el redentor o hijo de Dios".
La nueva interpretación de Knhol está provocando polémica, dudas y precaución. En declaraciones a la agencia EFE, el director del santuario del Libro y conservador de los Rollos del Mar Muerto, Adolfo Rotiman, comenta: "Estamos en el comienzo, en la investigación académica alguien propone y después se abre el debate, por lo que sugiero paciencia antes de sacar conclusiones y titulares grandiosos". Aunque reconoce: "Ha habido una lectura muy creativa, quizas osada".
Pero en muchos foros de Internet, no hay paciencia. La realidad virtual exige reacciones inmediatas. El debate se ha encendido. Hay algunos que escriben que "es la prueba que era una leyenda antigua que los cristianos posteriormente adoptaron y aplicaron a Jesús". Otros responden que "la interpretación de Knhol no es fiable ya que es difícil sacar conclusiones de una linea escrita en una tabla tan vieja y deteriorada".
Esta tablilla está en manos del coleccionista David Jeselshon —vive en Suiza— que la compró hace unos años en Londres de manos de un anticuario jordano. "No me di cuenta de su importancia hasta que se lo enseñé a la paleontóloga Ada Yardeni, que es especialista en escritos hebreos. Ella estaba abrumada y me dijo: ¡Has conseguido una piedra de los Rollos del Mar Muerto!", explicó Jeselshon al diario 'The New York Times'.