AAL’S LABYRINTH HISTORY An Alternative Viewpoint…..contd. #59

 

Wise men of Chaldea

625BCE           NABOPOLASSAR (r. 625-604 BCE) sheikh of a Semitic Chaldean tribe (76) and first king of the New Babylonian Empire, he takes over the Assyrian capital Nineveh, with the help of the Medes and Persians. Thus, independence from the Assyrians is gained for Babylon. This is known as the state of the New Babylon or Chaldea. The latter title probably comes from the naming of the intellectuals as Chaldeans or wise men and referring to  both Babylonians and captured Hebrews Nabopolassar’s son NEBUCHADREZZAR (76) is the second king of the New Babylonian Empire. He continues the rebuilding of Babylon after its destruction by the Assyrians in 689 BCE. New buildings included the ‘Hanging Gardens’, nominated as one of the ‘Seven Wonders of the World’. Possibly these gardens were built on a stepped pyramid called a ziggurat.

‘ Hanging Gardens ‘of Babylon

[An imaginary 19^th century depiction]

609                 JEHOIAKIM king of Judah, the southern kingdom of ancient Israel, from 609 to 598 BCE. When King Josiah died at Megiddo in 609, he was succeeded by his son Jehoahaz.  The Egyptian pharaoh Necho, however, deposed Jehoahaz and placed Jehoiakim, also a son of Josiah, on the throne (II Kings 23). Judah will subsequently come under Babylonian domination, but Jehoiakim will rebel about 601 and then die shortly before Nebuchadnezzar II takes Jerusalem in 597.  The prophet Jeremiah speaks of the reign of Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 36).

Josiah of Juda

[An imaginary 16^th century portrait]

606                 CYAXARES descendant of Median Deioces (708 BCE). He makes an alliance with the Babylonians against the Assyrians. Later, Cyaxares will destroy Nineveh, capital of Assyria, when he annexes Assyria in 612. By this action he extends the Median Empire. (40)

 

c604 BCE        LAO-TSE ancient Chinese sage whose name means ‘old boy’ or ‘venerable philosopher’. He is the founder of the philosophy of Taoism, which is recorded in the T’ao-Teh King’.  Lao-Tse is a contemporary of Confucius upon whom he had some influence.  As librarian and archivist of the royal house of the Chou dynasty, Lao-Tse resided in the capitol of Chow.  Retiring from the world at the distress of its evils, he took up the command of the ‘warden of the outer gate’.

He then put into book form the essence of his teachings, known as the doctrine of ‘The Way’ or ‘Tao’. During his life Lao-Tse attempted to make no converts to the Tao, possibly because he realized that his philosophies were far ahead of his age and that people were not ready to receive such teachings.  Lao-Tse professes to be the transmitter of an earlier knowledge of Hwang-Ti rather than the originator of ‘The Way’ and the ‘I Ching’ or ‘Book of Changes’. Hwang-Ti is the legendary civilizer of China c2704 BCE. (6)

                   Lao-Tse

c600         From the Egyptian cursive writing known as Hieratic, develops an even more cursive from of script known as demotic (of the people). (144). Demotic looks very similar to Hebrew and indeed later research shows that Hebrew ideograms are derived from Egypt.

 

                     The end of the 7^th Century BCE brings the official founding of Dionysiac feasts at Corinth, Sicyon, Athens, (33) whilst in Europe, the ‘Hallstatt’ Culture of the Celtic people is giving way to the ‘La Tene’ culture which is to develop into a highly refined living, as reflected in their art works. The original ‘La Tene’ settlement is by the lake of Neuchâtel, Switzerland and marks a second and more sophisticated period of Celtic culture that is to develop. By 100 BCE this culture will succumb to the growing Roman Empire. [371]

5th century Celtic ornament

RAM FEVER

 ARIES is the first sign of the zodiac circle because it is the sign of the northern spring equinox, which in turn is the point marking the beginning of the natural year. Ancient calendars used this point to start their solar year in contrast to our western artificial calendar, which starts its calendar year in the month of January. 

 

So, with the rushing in of new energies for the start of a new solar year, the Ram was chosen as the symbol of the zodiacal sign of Aries. And Aries has great affinity with the planet Mars, or in astrological speak, Mars is the ruler of Aries.

An image of Mars from Albumasar’s

‘De Magnus Conjunctionibus’ [9^th Century]

Mars is hot and fiery, it is the life driving force that gives initiative to take action, drawing, as all the planets do, its own life from our sun, the hub of our universe. Mars was the planet particularly favoured by the Romans. This accords well with their pagan religion of Mithraism, the religion of fire, fire that makes so much possible in the lives of human beings.

 

We will meet Mars again in his association with the sign Scorpio, but here in Aries, the Martian energy is less complicated and therefore freer to have a more direct and easy expression of itself. Without Mars energy, little or nothing can be accomplished; no one would get out of bed in the morning, or strive for achievement in the world, or make love and generate more babies. Mars is the fighting energy that enables us to push our way through life. Of course too much push can make one very unpopular and too much fire makes an enemy of an otherwise very useful commodity.

 

The secret side of the Ram is seen in the Ancient Egyptian god Khnum who guards one of the 21 portals of the House of Osiris. As an ancient creator god, Khnum moulds man on his potter’s wheel, or as Vulcan, hammers out man on his anvil with the aid of fire.

Khnum guarding a portal.

From the Ancient Egyptian ‘Book of the Dead’.

It takes persistence and courage to get through life, sadly when these ‘thrusting’ qualities are devoid of the human virtues and chivalry, one can descend into pointless war and aggression, instead of fighting for good like King Arthur or Parsifal.

Chivalry: the knight and his lady.

SPRINGING ARIES RAM

 On the Full Moon of Libra, we muse that this is the time of year that we have passed the Equinox point, that point of equal day and night and our sun is seen to enter the tropical zodiac sign of Aries. This time marks the beginning of a new circuit for the Hero or spiritual warrior, as he/she travels around the twelve signs conquering his or her trials along the way in an endeavour to become a better expression of themselves. Each turn on the spiral adding to the benefits and accomplishments of the previous journey.

 

The sun entering Aries on the 20^th of March, reminds us of the first energies of spring in the northern hemisphere and that powerful force propelling the bud out of the winter frozen earth. Aries people are driven by a similar first explosion of unstoppable, joyful and expectant energy, and this seems to be so no matter which side of the world you were born in and whether that time was passing into spring or autumn.

ARIES the RAM

This joyful, fiery energy is the case whether an Aries person is born in the northern or the southern hemisphere, for we are referring here to deep space constellation influence rather than only planetary energies of the solar system represented in the tropical zodiac signs. Thus the sun and the Ecliptic sign of Aries might be said to be focusing towards earth, the greater energies of the constellation Aries. At the same time there being an over-lay of the energies of the constellation Aquarius. This is because the Vernal Point, in its great 2,000 year shift is moving into that constellation. Complicated? Confused? Look back at the Equinox blog and do some research on ‘Precession’ for a clearer understanding.

 

Whatever!! Aries people are full of ‘spring’, energy and enthusiasm, wanting to get things done even before the rest of us have worked out just what has to be done! But watch out for their fire, it can be used like a Promethean gift to progress onwards and blaze a trail for others to follow, OR the fire will singe your toes and elbows so that the burns sting and make you uncomfortable. There is a transforming application of this element of fire, one way or another.

Salamander being transformed by fire, 

from the ‘Book of Lambspring’

On a planetary level, another ‘springing’ time is early morning, when a daily sunrise quickens life energies for the coming 24-hour cycle. As the Vedic hymn to the dawn says:-

 

Listen to the exhortation of the Dawn!

Look to this Day, for it is life, the very life of life.

In its brief course, lie all the verities and realities of your existence;

The glory of action, the bliss of growth, the splendour of beauty.

For yesterday is but a dream, and tomorrow is only a vision.

But today well-lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness,

And every tomorrow a vision of hope.

Look well, therefore, to this Day.

Rising Sun of Maat

The ancient Egyptian rebel Pharaoh Akhenaten [c.1380 BCE] took a different tack on sun worship and wrote his own poem, part of which goes like this:-

 

‘Splendid you rise in heaven’s lightland,

O living Aten, creator of life!

When you have dawned in eastern lightland,

You fill every land with your beauty.

You are beauteous, great, radiant,

High over every land;…

 

All beasts browse on herbs;

Trees, herbs are sprouting,

Birds fly from their nests….

And if that sounds familiar, it is. From the Hebrew Bible, Psalm 104 reads:- 

 

Lord…thou are very great;

thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment;

Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain:

Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters….

 

[that] give drink to every beast of the field…

the fowls of the heavens have their habitation…

….grass to grow for the cattle….

 

A good read on the rebel king of Egypt is Cyril Aldred ‘Akhenaten’.

Like the little lamb, young Arians frolic and gamble around the place, oblivious to the toes they step on. The older Ram has a different take on life and stands firm ready to ‘butt’ the opponent out of the way. Some will ‘butt’ even when there is no enemy, in their bid to be free to create something new.

AAL’S LABYRINTH HISTORY An Alternative Viewpoint…..contd. #57

 

City of Persepolis

c650 BCE    ACHAEMENES establishes a royal line of the clan Pasargadae, the most noble tribe of the Persians (from Persis or Persia). His country of Elam was over-taken by Ashurbanipal (Assyrian King) in 7^th century BCE. Achaemenes took part of Elam, called Anshan, and made its capital Susa. Susa is the Biblical Shushan which had been founded c4000 BCE at the head of the Persian Gulf. Elam then disappears as an independent state at this point.

                      Achaemenes’ son Teispes will be followed to the throne by his son Cyrus I, then by his grandson Cambyses I, followed by Cyrus II or Cyrus the Great, who will be known in history as the ‘Empire Builder’. (73)

Sappho the Poet

c630 BCE      SAPPHO of Eressos on Lesbos Island, near Turkey/Greece. A female poet she produced 9 books, of which only fragments remain, some based on more ancient Egyptian papyri. Some poems invoke Greek Aphrodite, some give passionate depictions of flowers, moon, sea and night. Sappho was regarded as the 10^th muse and looked upon as a goddess. She had a literary circle of female disciples of strong emotional attachment and they conducted and took part in the ‘Thesmophoria’ fertility rituals at the sanctuary of Demeta/Kore at Mitaleni on the island of Lesbos.  Sappho’s work was subsequently suppressed by the Christian religion and it was eventually lost in the destruction of the Alexandrian library. (102. 345)

Aphrodite goddess of the Sea and Love

                   Under the force of the Medes coming from the north and the Persians coming from the east, the fall of the Assyrian Empire is brought about, whilst in the south there is a resurgence of Chaldean thought in the Neo-Babylonian Empire.

Jeremiah the weeping Prophet [Bottecelli]

c626 BCE     JEREMIAH second of the major Hebrew Prophets. ‘The Book of Jeremiah’ of the Old Testament is a collection of prophesies named after him. Jeremiah lived in Anathoth on the outskirts of Jerusalem, the seat of orthodox Yahweh worship. He condemned the Baal worship of Canaan which had degenerated into licentiousness. In the face of political and religious crisis, Jeremiah called for moral reform and repentance so that the turning to God might lead to a new creation. Jeremiah thus prefigured the New Testament in prophesizing the notion of the “new covenant.” Jeremiah felt called to bring a new social and religious understanding to the people and carried the message of a universal God. He considered it to be an act of God when the Babylonians captured his people. Jeremiah’s prophetic career ranged from about 626 BCE, during the reign of Josiah, at least to the fall of Jerusalem (586 BCE) and the deportation of its population. At this time, Jeremiah was taken by the remaining Jewish community to Egypt, where he died. The career of Jeremiah thus embraced the period of Josiah’s Reformation (626-622 BCE); the years of resurgent Judaic nationalism (608-597 BCE); the period leading to the final demise of Judah (597-586 BCE); and his time spent in Egypt. The Monastery of Saint Jeremiah, located at the Serapeum northwest of Saqqara, Egypt, will be founded by the Copts in the 5^thcentury CE. It will include two churches, a refectory, and various workshops. (102. 99) The monastery will be located not far from the tomb of the ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Unas. It was at this period of history that the Great Mother Goddess met her final demise.

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DREAMY NEPTUNE

 The planet Neptune is closely associated with the sign Pisces who has a dual rulership like the previous two signs of Scorpio and Aquarius. Poseidon is the other name for Neptune and he is the brother of Jupiter the original and traditional ruler of Pisces.

Roman Floor Mosaic of Neptune with his Trident

Neptune rules the sea; the deep dark depths of silence that only the fishes understand, and perhaps those humans who are nearly fishes anyway. Because of the silence and hidden qualities of the god and his watery medium, it is very hard to know much about him or his world. We do know that his energy causes chaos on earth and works best in the spiritual world or in the intangible energy aura that surrounds us. The warning here is that one should get to know Jupiter first, and then the Neptune energies will follow in their own good time. In the everyday world it is easier to relate to the energies symbolised by the planetary god Jupiter.

Zeus/Jupiter [Larousse]

The great god Zeus or Jupiter rules the world from his heavenly abode. The stars are his hair and the rocks of Earth his feet; in between is the belly of the world that produces everything. So the Orphic Hymn tells us. This probably means that Pisceans, and Sagittarians too for that matter, need to expand their world, but this should be done in a controlled way. Thus, these people can know more than anyone else, but the hubris is an over-full belly or a mental indigestion – depending on whether the concentration is on the world of senses and food, or the world of the mind and knowledge.

 

Jupiter always brings a spirit of generosity and benevolence. However, under this influence a person must be willing to give way in the end to the dissolving powers of his brother Neptune so that the material world becomes less dominant and one is allowed to see beyond into the world of spirit. Those who let Neptune in too soon, in the belief that dreaming and psychic powers are all that is, are also bound to let muddle and even chaos rule their lives.  If one is not sufficiently grounded in the ways and necessities of life on Earth; are not sufficiently grounded in this world and the arena for our physical living then life can run out of control. On the other hand, those who deny Neptune, deny the magic of the world. Once the practical foundations of living and projects have been established, then Neptune should be allowed to bring inspiration for those conceived art forms and for solving complications. Neptune is not as a solution to life’s difficulties through fantasy escape roots; but he may be the avatar of the Pisces Age which is coming to a close and to be replaced by a new dispensation of the Aquarian Age.

Salvador Mundi by Titian.

PISCIAN SWIM

 The sun is now in that gentle and undefined sign of Pisces. However, that apparent gentle sensitivity hides the potential of quite a strong personality once it has been awakened to what it wants from life.

PISCES

Traditionally the glyph for Pisces of two fishes swimming in opposite directions symbolised the conflict between spirit and soul. This could also be interpreted as conflict between soul and personality; or what is the true self as against the superficial habit patterns that have been adopted or encouraged by the environment and teaching. You know, that little inner voice of consciousness that we so often ignore in order to let the senses have their own way – that extra chocolate, that extra glass of wine to aid in the must of socialising or just to assist in getting through the day. Most Pisceans need a stronger personality to guide them or hang on to for support and guidance in the rough and tumble of practical mundane living. However, the stronger Piscean, in their turn can also be carriers of advice, help and guidance, once they have found the energy to train themselves.

 

“Be warned and understand truly that two fishes are swimming in our sea”, says Lambspring.

Fairy Spirits by John Anster Fitzgerald

Pisceans like to dream; they are people very happy with the abstract. Some like to bring those dreams into existence; some can do this, some just can’t seem to get it together or focus on that practical execution of their thoughts, dreams and visions.

 

Like the former sign of Aquarius, Pisces too has two planets associated with it. They are Jupiter and Neptune. This would indicate that Pisces shares a complexity with Scorpio and Aquarius, albeit of a different type. A Piscean can be found serving drinks at the bar [or on the other side of the bar drinking them]; or expounding on a mathematical formula in the lecture theatre; or painting a marvellous sunset; or dancing and singing to their hearts content; or selflessly serving the poor of mind or body. Piscean capabilities are endless and as varied as the life in the sea with which they have such great affinity. There is another ‘sea’ though, that one in the sky that we call space; the sea above, which probably has as many invisible inhabitants as the sea ‘below’, if we but had the senses to observe them.

‘The Three Graces’ 

So easily can the Piscean understand the ‘Three Graces’ if they wish to, symbols of the triple action of grace which is ‘giving, receiving and returning’.  ‘Pagan Mysteries’ of the Renaissance’ by E.A. Wind, is all about art, music and mythology, and bound to appeal to the reading and searching Piscean.

AAL’S LABYRINTH HISTORY An Alternative Viewpoint…..contd. #57

SEVENTH CENTURY BCE (699-600)

 

7^th C BCE        Etruria (land of Etruscans) was at its zenith during the 7-6 century BCE and was comprised of 12 city-states including Veii, Bolsena, Tarquinia, Volterra and Perugia. The Etruscan culture had the same gods as the Greeks who had colonised southern Italy. The Etruscan culture formed the basis of one branch of the Latin civilization. (182)

Etruscan Sarcophagi

689 BCE          The Assyrians invade and destroy the Babylonian culture.

The Babylonia text MUl Apin is the first known Mesopotamian star catalogue, a copy of which is to be held in the Library of Nineveh. The original probably dates from 1000 BCE.  The title is taken from the first line of the text and refers to the ‘star Apin’ which is the constellation Triangulum, together with gamma Andromedae. The text records astronomical events including the heliacal rising, culmination and setting of certain fixed stars. The Assyrians extended this work into the text known as ‘Enuma Anu Enlil’. (46)

                    Velikovsky said that this is the time that the length of the year changed from 360 days to 365 ¼ days. (344)Previously, according to the ancient Egyptians, there were 360 days in the human year and five days dedicated to the gods.

Triangulum & Andromeda. 

[Sky Walk 15.2.24]

675             ESARHADDON (r. 681-68) son of Assyrian King Sargon II, captures the Egyptian capital Memphis, rebuilds Babylon and expands the Assyrian Empire. Egypt becomes a Persian province.

                   The original Sargon, ‘Sargon the Great’ [c2340 BCE] was the founder of the great nation of Mesopotamia.

 

650 BCE      ASHURBANIPAL II (Ashurbanapal/Asurbanipal) (668 - d.c.627BC) son of Sargon II and last great king of the Assyrian Empire. He runs a lavish court at Nineveh, which will be captured in 612 BCE by the Medes and Babylonians.  

 

                       ASSYRIA is a large empire based on the city of Ashur or Assur, which is located on the River Tigris of Mesopotamia. The Assyrian Empire came into being in 3^rd millennium BCE, to reach its peak in 9-7^th centuries BCE. It will eventually be absorbed into what is to become known as the Persian Empire.  

 

                     Assurbanipal collected contemporary historical records, hymns, poems, scientific and religious texts from the archives of the ancient seats of learning, that is from Babylon, Uruk and Nippur.  Copies and translations where also made of the even older Sumerian language of Mesopotamia. All these works were rendered into the contemporary Akkadian Semitic language for Assurbanipal’s library. (188)

 

              The library of Ashurbanipal at Nineveh contained most of the Assyrian and Babylonian religious and magical texts collected from ancient temple cities. The Assyrian scribes copied from very ancient texts and the Sumerian language was still largely employed. In the library was a great collection of astrological omens called the ‘Enuma Anu Enlil’. (1)

      

      Examples from Ashurbanipal’s Library

                 Assurbanipal’s library contained the last known recension of the ‘Epic of Gilgamesh’, a cycle of poems about Gilgamesh, [see 2,700 BCE] king and hero of the ancient city state of Uruk in Mesopotamia.  This mythic cycle probably originates in the time between Abraham and Noah (3^rd millennium BCE). The themes are of the human concern with mortality, the search for knowledge and escape from the common lot. The most important elements of this relatively complete work existed as separate poems in the older Sumerian literature. Tradition takes the story back into a preliterate age on the borderline of legend and history, a little later than the Deluge when gods were replaced by mortals on the thrones of the city-states in the age of Archaic Sumerian civilizations. (188. 13.)