Astronomy and Astrology and Changing Zodiac Signs

Referencing all this astrology stuff, I feel like Luke Wilson in the movie 'Idiocracy'...C'mon people this isn't new stuff! Some poor guy somewhere was trying to explain axial precession and the difference between astronomy and astrology and the 'students'-whoever they were-obviously there was a reporter in the bunch- misunderstood and somehow this makes the news as something 'new'. OK, I've been suckered in and I'll try to explain this in a less scientific way.

I was horrified by what I saw on NBC news last night, the anchor said 'precision' instead of 'precession', and referred to Ophiuchus as an 'unpronounceable constellation'. Off-e-YOU-kuss, if anyone is interested. Why he did not Google it and learn how to pronounce it is beyond me. I usually watch ABC, but for whatever reason NBC was playing on the tube. I know that today some media outlets are also trying to clarify this 'news', but I thought I would also give it a shot. We are the first group of humans who have lost touch with the reality of the night sky. We struggle to learn and see and understand, whereas just over a hundred years ago, everyone knew the constellations. Runaway slaves navigated by them, as did sailors. We have lost this in modern times and it is sadly no longer part of our culture. Most places are so light polluted that you can't even see the stars at night, but I digress.

Astrology is based on the idea that the Earth is at the center of the solar system and that planets and the sun and the moon revolve around the Earth, and have a influence on life here. Astrology uses the positions of the the solar system objects relative to a fixed Earth to try to explain Earthly events and predict the future. Most astrologers today use a system based on the ideas of Ptolemy, the Egyptian astrologer, astronomer and mathematician who lived almost two thousand years ago in the first century AD. In those days, the science of astronomy and the art of astrology were mixed practices. Today astronomers go to great lengths to separate themselves from astrologers.

Astronomy recognizes that the sun is the center of the solar system. People become confused because the two use most of the same constellations. Think of constellations as road maps for the sky. The plane of the solar system is the ecliptic and it is across that ring-like path that we can see the other planets, as well as the Sun and Moon, seemingly move across our sky. This is why people used to think the solar system was Earth-centered. Think of the constellations that fall on the ecliptic 'ring in the sky' as cities marking an interstate map. We call the group of them the zodiac constellations. Astrology recognizes only twelve for simplicity, but like the boundaries of cities, scientists have also changed the boundaries of constellations over the past several thousand years. Everything changes in our universe because everything is moving...The Earth is moving, the Sun is moving, the solar system itself is moving..The Earth is tilted and has a slight wobble. Over thousands of years that wobble causes us to see and view the stars differently. Today, in our time, Polaris is the north star or more properly, the pole star, but due to the Earth's tilt and wobble the imaginary pole line has not always pointed to that star. Around 3500 BC, the star Thuban or Alpha Draconis was the pole star. Around 400 BC, the pole star was Kochab in Ursa Minor. You know this star as the second brightest star in the Little Dipper. It is in the ladle of the dipper whereas Polaris, our current pole star, is the end of the handle of the dipper.

Imagine that the Earth is wearing a hula hoop in a fixed, almost level location near the equator. Over time the Earth wobbles and tilts, the hula hoop also tilts and 'moves'. If you were on the Earth, you would see the hoop change positions if you lived long enough. The ecliptic is an imaginary line representing the average plane of the solar system, but if you could look up and see it as a giant roadway or hula hoop, you would see that thousands of years ago it ran farther north than it does today. It moves. It takes almost 26000 years for the Earth to make one full circle in its wobble, and that is called axial precession or precession of the equinoxes. It is pronounced like 'pre-session', not pro-session or pre-cision.

Ophiuchus is and always has been a constellation in the sky on the ecliptic above Scorpius (and there's another difference, Scorpius v. Scorpio). At this moment in time, the constellation of Ophiuchus doesn't really lie on the ecliptic-neither does Aries, but they have in the past and while Western astrologers don't count Ophiuchus as a zodiac sign, astronomers do because it is what is known as a sidereal zodiac constellation. There are several other small constellations that also might touch the ecliptic at a given point in time. Western astrology just generalizes and keeps the zodiac at 12 tropical constellations by convention. Ophiuchus was once called Serpentarius. If you remember Greek mythology, you will recall that Hercules fought a great serpent, and in the sky, Ophiuchus the serpent bearer is next to the constellation of Hercules. To our eyes, the brightest stars are in the shape of a large coffin, so some people call Ophiuchus the Coffin.

Again, modern Western astrology is based on a fixed system-an Earth that doesn't move-that , whereas things move around it. the changes they recognize are those dealing with the seasons, how an area of Earth is oriented to the sun.

Astronomy understands that everything moves and that things change over time. Precession is slow, but we can actually see the movement as it is almost one degree for every 70 years. (360 degrees in a circle-remember the imaginary line at the pole wobbling makes a big circle in the sky-70 times 360 equals 25200 years. It's close. )

Now, has your sun sign changed??

Yes in astronomical terms and no in astrological terms.

First, understand what your sun sign is in astrology...it is the constellation on the horizon at the point where the sun rises on the day you were born. As the seasons change, the constellations change. Above, I used the analogy that a constellation was like a city with its borders changing. In 1930 the International Astronomical Union set a uniform standard for the borders of constellations. Not all constellations are the same size and the sun would spend less time rising in Aries(small constellation) than it would in Aquarius(large constellation) The IAU just defined the borders of the constellations as they were and took no consideration of astrologers needs for something uniform and regular.

Astrologers fixed the dates that demark a sun sign, but in reality, because of precession and because everything is moving, sidereal astronomers know that the Sun, for example, actually rises in Taurus from about May 16-June 5, not from the fixed April 20th to May 21st. About every seventy and a half years, it changes by a day. The May 16 start date is based on IAU calculations for the year 2002.

Ptolemy died in the year 168 AD.

2002 AD minus 168 AD equals 1834 years.

1834 years divided by 70.5 years equals 26 days.

April 20(the fixed astrological date) + 26 days = May 16 (the approximate actual date that the sun begins to rise in Taurus)

In our lifetimes, this hasn't changed appreciably. My birthday is May 13th so sidereally, actually, on the day I was born, the sun rose in the constellation of Aries, not Taurus, but astrologically speaking, I am a stubborn, earthy Taurean. Anyone who knows me knows that to be truer than you could believe. However, the fact that I am writing this note is an act very characteristic of an Arian.

In sidereal astronomy, the sun also rises in the constellation of Ophiuchus between November 29 and December 17. In modern Western astrology, this overlaps the sun signs of Scorpius and Sagittarius, and therefore is not used in order to simplify things.

One system, astrology, is fixed. The other, astronomy, changes.

If you believe in astrology, then your sun sign has not changed. If you were a Taurus, you are still a Taurus.

Saami and Suomi

After a long absence from this space, I return with a bit of heritage. The Sami, or Saami are the indigenous people of northern Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Russia. You may have heard them called Lapps, from Lapland, but Saami consider the term Lapp derogatory, much in the way that the Inuit don't like the term Eskimo. The Saami are mostly nomadic or semi-nomadic reindeer herders, but there are some tribes who primarily fish or farm instead of herd. My grandfather was from a fishing village, and although I am not exactly sure of the location, I believe it was in the vicinity of Lake Inari, north of the Arctic Circle. My father just pointed to the area north of Rovaniemi and Kemi, Finland, and said that his family was from 'there'. Lake Inarijarvi is the body of water in northernmost Finland, up near the Arctic Ocean and the border with Norway and Russia.

Saami are not ethnically Finnish, but they are distantly related based on their language. The Finno-Ugric languages form a subfamily of the Uralic languages. Other closely related Ugric languages include Finnish, Hungarian and Estonian. Unlike most of the languages spoken in Europe, the Finno-Ugric languages are not part of the Indo-European family of languages, that is, they do not stem from Latin nor are they Germanic.

In the Old Norse language, Fenn and Finn are terms for Saami, but after the 19th century it was transferred simply to mean someone who lives in Finland and not specifically of the Saami people. 'Suomi' is still the Finnish name for Finland, and the word 'suomilainen' means Finnish.
Both words stem from the word Saami. There is a lot of confusion about the origin of the Finnish people, both Saami and non-Saami. New theories are proposed every year. Legend says that the khans of Mongolia chased these (Finnic) peoples across Russia until they reached the northern shores of Scandinavia. This happened over centuries, and the Fenns chose flight instead of fight. I once read that the word 'Fen' meant 'runner', but I can't recall where I read that. Anyway, when they could run no further, they fought fiercely and turned back the horde.
I've always liked that story.

The Saami seemingly share certain physical traits, like Mongoloid eye-shape, with other indigenous peoples of northern Asia. Modern theories of origin suggest that this is just chance, and that the facial features in common, such as high cheekbones, are more from cultural similarities than genetics. Europeans, who have a longer history or farming, have lost the high cheekbones necessary to support the musculature of those who eat a lot of meat. Many Saami are dark complected, but there are also fair-skinned blonds. The same is true of ethnic Finns. This phenotype variation further complicates the mystery of the origin of these people. In addition to evidence that these people came across the steppes of Russia, there is also evidence that the Saami and or Fenns have inhabited the Sapmi(Scandinavia to include all of Finland) since the last ice age.

I've included a few turn of the century Saami I found on the web, along with modern Saami. Since they were traditionally nomadic, their shelters were temporary, often tipis from animal skins or huts of stones and earth, as shown. I don't really look like any of these people(except for maybe the little girl second from the right in the front row back when I was 5 years old), but I consider myself of Saami heritage. If you don't know what I look like, then perhaps you have seen Renee Zellweger. She, too, is of Saami heritage. We both have those slanty eyes and round, high cheekbones and dirty blond hair. I'd rather look like Pamela Anderson or Christine Lahti (both Finnish, but not Saami),but, alas, Renee and I are distant cousins. I loved her in Cold Mountain, but I digress. For the record, speaking of celebs, Matt Damon is also Finnish.

I know you guys are rolling on the floor laughing at the traditional garb. That's okay. For a good chortle, zoom in on the shoes of the children. Now, you will understand why small Christmas elves are depicted with pointy shoes. Santa Claus is Saami, by the way, with his rosy cheeks, felt cap, reindeer, etc. I kid you not...now you know. The North Pole really is in the Land of the Midnight Sun.

Anyway, genetic and language studies are rather inconclusive as to proof of the actual origin, but what is known is that the Saami are not related to other Europeans, so perhaps we do hail from the Urheimat. "Urheimat" is supposedly the homeland or origin of the language. The exact location of the Urheimat is unknown and disputed. Big surprise there, huh? Some believed it to be to the just west of the Ural mountains in central Russia, some 5000 years ago. There is evidence that before Slavic tribes lived in Russia, a sprinkling of Finno-Ugrians inhabited the whole territory from the Urals to the Baltic Sea. Other scientists place the Urheimat further south or in Siberia. My Sami grandfather told my father that his ancestors were from northwestern Siberia. I consider myself of Finnish and Saami ancestry, but technically, he emigrated from St. Petersburg Russia (Finland was a Grand Duchy of Russia at the time) and there is a good chance that some of my forebearers were Siberian, so I suppose I could be as much Russian as Finnish, ethnically speaking.

More later...and I couldn't resist the image of the Aurora Borealis over Lake Inari. It is magic, at least to me.

Okra and it's Beneficial Slime

Okra. It is an oft maligned vegetable usually associated with the Deep South. I'm growing it, as are most of my friends and neighbors who have gardens. I have the old standby, Clemson Spineless, and a heirloom variety called Lee. Lee's pods are not as heavily ridged as the CS, and the pods are darker green and smoother. I personally think they are less spiny than the Clemson Spineless. Both varieties are doing well in the garden. Did you know that okra historically grew wild on the banks of the Nile River and was one of Cleopatra's favorite foods? Egyptians were the first to cultivate it 1200 years before Christ. By trade, okra became a popular crop across north Africa to Ethiopia, around the Mediterranean Sea, and even as far away as India and the Americas. By 1658, okra made it to Brazil and New Orleans and by 1781, they were growing it in Philadelphia. African slaves used ground okra seeds as a coffee substitute as well as cooked gumbo. Even today, ground okra is used in Africa to make a soup cooked with fish, and okra as a coffee substitute found widespread consumption during the rationing era of WWII. The words okra and gumbo are of African origin, but this easy to grow and useful vegetable is now known around the world by the following names: Okra, Okro, Ochro, Okoro, Quimgombo (Cuba), Quingumbo, Ladies Fingers, Gombo, Kopi Arab, Kacang Bendi, Bhindi (S. Asia), Bendi (Malaysia), Bamia, Bamya or Bamieh (middle east), Gumbo (Southern USA), Quiabo, Quiabos (Portugal and Angola), okura (Japan), qiu kui (Taiwan). Asians, especially the Japanese and Chinese, treasure okra as a fountain of youth.

Okra has hairy spines that are prickly and irritate the skin like fiberglass insulation. The sensation is easily remedied by quickly washing in cold water. The plant has varieties that are burgundy or purple podded and stemmed. Some varieties are dwarfed, but most grow tall, 3 to 6 feet or taller depending on variety and the more you cut the okra the tall the plant gets. It is an 60 day annual that likes hot weather, from the same Mallow family as hollyhock, cotton, and hibiscus. The yellow flowers on the the okra plant are beautiful enough to warrant growing the plant simply for the flowers alone. Ants seem to like the plant, and can often be found on the leaves and flowers. The immature seed pods we call okra are eaten raw, used for soups, pickled and canned, used to thicken stews, breaded and deep-fried, or simply boiled. The pods are cut from the stem when they are about 3 inches long. If they get longer than about 6 inches, the pods become tough and woody, and the pod is not worth eating but will dry nicely for seed. It can also be used to make cordage or paper. When washed or cut, okra releases a sticky, mucilagenous substance with thickening properties. Many people will not eat okra because of this 'slime', but it is this soluble fibrous slime that is extremely healthy for you. If you just can't take the slime, try it deep fried, pickled, or raw. After you cut okra, store it in a paper bag in a warm part of refrigerator, as temperatures below 45 degrees will damage okra. Use within 2 or 3 days at most, or cut it and freeze it. Washing okra will precipitate the sliming process, so do not wash the pods until absolutely necessary. Okra is alkaline in nature, that's why it goes so well with the acid in tomatoes. They balance each other, and I think the acidity helps reduce the sliminess. When canning okra however, recipes must be either pressure canned or acidified for safety.

Okra Nutrition (half-cup cooked okra)

Calories = 25
Dietary Fiber = 2 grams
Total Fat = 0.2 grams (the healthy fatty acid is Omega 6)
Protein = 1.5 grams
Carbohydrates = 5.8 grams
Cholesterol = 0
Vitamin A = 226 IU (5%)
Vitamin C = 13 mg (22%)
Vitamin K = 32 micrograms (40%)
Folic acid = 36.5 micrograms (9%)
Calcium = 62 mg (6%)
Iron = 0.4 mg (1%)
Potassium = 108 mg (3%)
Magnesium = 46 mg(7%)
Manganese 0.2 micrograms (12%)
Phosphorus = 25 mg (3%)
Plus approximately 7% of the RDA of Thiamine and Vitamin B6
With a glycemic load of 2, it is excellent for weight loss due to the lack of fat and the high fiber content.

According to famous nutritionist Sylvia W. Zook, Ph.D., the following benefits of okra should not be overlooked making okra a staple in your 'green pharmacy'.

- The superior fiber found in okra helps to stabilize blood sugar as it curbs the rate at which sugar is absorbed from the intestinal tract.
- Okra's mucilage binds cholesterol and bile acid carrying toxins dumped into it by the filtering liver.
- Okra helps lubricate the large intestines due to its bulk laxative qualities. The okra fiber absorbs water and ensures bulk in stools. This helps prevent and improve constipation. Unlike harsh wheat bran, which can irritate or injure the intestinal tract, okra's mucilage soothes,
and okra facilitates elimination more comfortably by its slippery characteristic.
- Okra fiber is an excellent probiotic for feeding the good bacteria, contributing to the health of the intestinal tract.
- To retain most of okra's nutrients and self-digesting enzymes, it should be cooked as little as possible, e.g. with low heat or lightly
steamed. It can even be eaten raw. However, if one is going to fry it (and it is undeniably delicious prepared that way when rolled in cornmeal and salt), only extra virgin olive oil, or UNREFINED coconut butter is recommended (this is NOT the unhealthy partially hydrogenated product found in processed foods.) Organic ghee used by gourmet chefs, has the oil and flavor of butter without the solids, is also excellent for frying okra (does not burn like butter), and may be obtained from the health food store or made at home.
- Okra is a supreme vegetable for those feeling weak, exhausted, and suffering from depression.
- Okra is used for healing ulcers and to keep joints limber. It helps to neutralize acids, being very alkaline, and provides a temporary protective coating for the digestive tract.
- Okra treats lung inflammation, sore throat, and irritable bowel.
- In India, okra has been used successfully in experimental blood plasma replacements.

The following are anecdotal stories and studies detailing how okra is helpful in eliminating specific ailments. The treatments were found on the web and should be used at your own risk and with common sense.

Acid Reflux and Constipation
A person, suffering from constipation for the past 20 years and recently from acid reflux, started eating 6 pieces of Okra. Since then, has not taken any other medication. Now, his blood sugar has dropped from 135 to 98 and his cholesterol and acid reflux are also under control.

Asthma
Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. This anti-inflammatory activity may curtail the development of asthma symptoms. A large preliminary study has shown that young children with asthma experience significantly less wheezing if they eat a diet high in Vitamin C. One half cup of okra provides almost 25% of the RDA of Vitamin C.

Atherosclerosis
Diets high in insoluble fiber, such as those containing okra, are associated with protection against heart disease in both men and women, diabetes, cholesterol and obesity.

Cancer
The insoluble fiber found in okra acts as a mild laxative and helps to keep the intestinal tract healthy, decreasing the risk of some forms of cancer, especially colo-rectal cancer.

Capillary fragility
Eating plenty of flavonoid and vitamin C-rich fruits and vegetables such as okra helps to support the structure of capillaries.

Cataracts and Vitamin A support
1/2 cup of cooked okra contains 226 IU of vitamin A. Some studies have reported that eating more foods rich in beta-carotene or vitamin A was associated with a lower risk of cataracts. Vitamin A also helps night vision and of course has anti-oxidant properties, anti-aging nutrients, supports mental health by maintaining brain chemistry, great for healthy skin, helps with blood circulation and liver functions.

Cholesterol
A study (JAMA July 23, 2003) showed that consuming a diet rich in soluble fiber from oats, barley, psyllium, eggplant and okra was as effective as the cholesterol lowering drug Mevacor. Raw okra is a great weapon to lower cholesterol and it also provides some protection against absorption of trans fats.

Depression and Lack of Energy
Okra is a supreme vegetable for those feeling weak, exhausted, and suffering from depression.

Multiple sclerosis (MS)
In one survey, researchers gathered information from nearly 400 people (half with MS) over three years. They found that consumption of vegetable protein, fruit juice, and foods rich in vitamin C, thiamine, riboflavin, calcium, and potassium correlated with a decreased MS risk. Okra is an excellent disease fighter.

Alternative Dialysis type treatments
Take 2 pods of Okra, cut into 3 pieces each, rough crush the pieces, fill glass with water soak the pieces overnight.(do not refrigerate just use bottled or tap water) In the morning before eating,
drink the thick slimy texture, swallow the seeds too. Drink three times a week it clears excess cholesterol and toxins (in bile acids). It removes extra wastes from your blood, does the job of a dialysis machine by helping the kidneys to function properly.

Confucius and Lao Tse

A while back, my son asked me about religions, and I looked around the web and sent him a few links on various things. We in the West consider Buddhism as a religion, but it is more of a lifestyle than a religion, and in fact, someone can be a Christian AND a Buddhist, or a Muslim and a Buddhist, or an atheist and a Buddhist, etc.
Here in the South, there are a lot of misconceptions about religions other than Christianity. For that matter, there are a lot of misconceptions about Christianity. Most folks can't even list the types of Christians, and no, I don't mean denominations, I mean the three types of Christianity: Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Protestant. So over the next month or so, I intend to write micro-primers on some of the world's religions. It will be in no particular order.

Confucianism

Confucianism began about 500 BC. K'ung Fu Tzu, better known in the West as Confucius, was born in 551 BC in China. Siddhartha the Buddha had just died, Darius was King of Persia, and all those famous Greeks like Pythagorus and Herodotus were doing an awful lot of thinking back in Greece. Confucius traveled China advising rulers and teaching. He dealt with individual morality and ethics, as well as the proper exercise of political power. He was the original supporter of what we call 'family values'. He emphasized: LI: ritual, propriety, and etiquette HSIAO: love among family members YI: righteousness XIN: honesty and trustworthiness JEN: benevolence towards others, which is the highest virtue and CHUNG: loyalty to the state, etc.

Confucianism is primarily an ethical system with rituals at important times during life, such as birth, reaching maturity, marriage, and death.

For more information, you can read Analects of Confucius
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?userid=Q65fgetAJM&isbn=0486284840&itm=1

Or read the Wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucius

Taoism

Taoism was founded by Lao-Tse, who lived at the same time as Confucius. Taoism began as a combination of psychology and philosophy. Lao-Tse tried to end feudal warfare and other conflicts of his day. His writings, the Tao-te-Ching (which means Classic of the Way and Virtue), describe the nature of life, the way to peace and how a ruler should lead his life. Nine hundred years later, in 440 CE, Taoism was adopted as a state religion.

Tao, roughly translated as path or the way, is a force which flows through all life and is the first cause of everything. The goal of everyone is to become one with the Tao. Tai Chi, a technique of exercise using slow deliberate movements, is used to balance the flow of energy or "chi" within the body. People should develop virtue and seek compassion, moderation and humility. One should plan all action in advance and achieve goals through minimal action. Yin (dark side) and Yang (light side) symbolize pairs of opposites which are seen through the universe, such as good and evil, light and dark, male and female. The impact of human civilization upsets the balance of Yin and Yang in nature. Taoists believe that people are by nature, good, and that one should be kind to others simply because such treatment will probably be reciprocated. In my opinion, I'd bet that George Lucas borrowed heavily from Taoist ideas when he wrote about the Force.

Over the years, other philosophies and ideologies have merged or become part of Taoism, things such as ancestor worship, qigong, feng shui, various martial arts styles, and even what the west calls Chinese medicine has all melded to some degree with Taoist thought.

There are Ten Precepts of Taoism which are of note:

1. Do not kill but always be mindful of the host of living beings.
2. Do not be lascivious or think depraved thoughts.
3. Do not steal or receive unrighteous wealth.
4. Do not cheat or misrepresent good and evil.
5. Do not get intoxicated but always think of pure conduct.
6. Maintain harmony with ancestors, family and never disregard kin.
7. If I witness a good deed, I will support that with joy and delight.
8. If I see someone unfortunate, I will help him recover with dignity .
9. When someone harms me, I will not harbor thoughts of revenge.
10. As long as all beings have not attained the Tao, I will not expect to do so myself.

You can learn more here:
http://english.siutao.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taoism

Taoism and Confucianism are often seen as being closely related. Lao-Tse may have been Confucius' teacher, and Tse's book may have evolved from idea's expressed by Confucius. These two men who lived 2500 years ago have been greatly influential in Chinese history and culture, and increasingly in Western culture and thinking.

Earth to Earth, Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust

This is the fourth day of rainy weather. When it is not raining, it is so foggy and humid that nothing dries out. The ground is mush and springs are bursting forth everywhere. The rain has definitely kicked in the afterburners of the asparagus. We’ve been cutting a few spears a day for a few weeks now. When I went out this afternoon to check for shoots, I saw a bunch of them breaking ground, so tomorrow I should bring in a bundle-enough to roast for dinner again. We had asparagus today as well, but I love the stuff and could eat it every day. I wish there were a way to harvest it all year long. The rain is also quenching the thirst of the lettuces, as their leaves have also doubled in size. We had some of the mesclun mix leaves tonight with dinner. Within a week or so, I expect to be chopping up the first bunch of pak choi and harvesting the first head of broccoli. There are a couple of plants that were put out too early and have button heads, but I’ll just cut them and toss the buttons in salad and wait for the side shoots to produce more florets. I’ve got plenty of broccoli so a few plants with button heads doesn’t upset me. I love gardening.

As you know, our moniker is EarthNSky. I am Earth, and of course Skyguy is my better half. I am the most earthy, Earth-loving person you could imagine. For me, the soil, the clay, the earth is part of my being. When I say that, it is not a metaphor, it is what I believe. I’ll try to explain. In Latin, the word for soil is humus. Human, Humble, and Humility all share that root concept. When one has humility, he might prostrate himself to the earth, lowering himself to the ground, the base. I’m not religious, but I do know The Bible, and I am familiar with ancient texts that historically pre-date the Bible. In the Sumerian Creation myth, Adam is the new being, literally the Earthling, created from the Adama, the soil or the clay of the earth. The Creator, EA (EA ruled the Earth) took the clay and molded it, arranging it in his likeness, in his image. I happen to believe that the Creator was sculpting not just the clay itself, but the DNA within the clay, arranging it so that the Adam would be made in the image of the Creator. It sounds a bit far fetched for those who adhere rigidly to evolutionary theory, but consider this: The clay, the soil, the flesh, is the supporting matrix. The flesh is the tissue made of cells that hold the genes that contain DNA. Modern humans, homo sapiens, have 223 genes that other animals, including their predecessor hominids, do not have. In fact 40 or so of the genes are shared only with bacteria, prokaryotic acidobacteria from the soil. It is also possible that those 223 genes came from the ‘breath’ of the Creator. Furthermore, the genes came to humans not from some evolutionary inheritance from early bacterial life, but the genes appeared spontaneously from a lateral or horizontal transmission. This happened rather recently in the evolutionary history of mankind. This fact has stirred debate among geneticists, and has yet to be adequately explained. The origin of man’s existence is one of the world’s great mysteries, and if you compare the Genesis version of creation with the Sumerian version and other ancient myths, it is interesting that in most stories that ADAM was made from clay, from the earth. He was Human. You can believe whatever you choose to believe. Your Creator may be the Christian God, the Sumerian Enki/Ea, the Islamic Allah, some other Extraterrestrial Benefactor or maybe the Creator is just an idea and there is only evolution, but I believe that Humans were made from the Earth, and when they die, their bodies return to the Earth. Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. By the way, that saying does not come from the Bible like people think. It is a suggested funeral rite in the Book of Common Prayer that is based on Genesis 3:19 which states (KJV) “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

People ask me about my weirdo beliefs all the time. I believe in both evolution and intelligent design. I don’t think they are mutually exclusive like some people do. I believe that both theories, as they originate from the human mind, are flawed and neither provides all the answers we seek, but together they do a better job of explaining what might have happened than either one by itself. When I place my hands in the earth, in the humus as I garden, it is a spiritual event. It feels much like a baptism, a cleansing, an act that unifies my flesh with the flesh of the Earth. I don’t think it is in my mind. It feels primal, and it may be just that in reality.

So now, as a gardener, I tend the soil, the humus, the earth and I eat the fruits of that soil. Those fruits feed my flesh, my clay, my body. Earth is my foundation. I am a steward of the soil just as I am a steward of my own body. If I poison the soil with pesticides and herbicides, I poison myself. When I finally die, cremate me and spread my ashes in the humus of the forest.

Knowing that there will be some people who will wonder whether or not humans really share bacterial DNA like I claim, I quickly googled the following abstracts as a primer. Feel free to do your own research with an open mind. You may be surprised at what you learn.

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/292/5523/1903
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/311/5765/1283

For the Love of...Mythology

Paraskevidekatriaphobia or friggatriskaidekaphobia. (easier-to-pronounce) Both mean 'fear of Friday the 13th'. Frigga-Friday, comes from Norse mythology. Compare those words with
triskadeckaphobia which is just a fear of the number 13.

I am a Friday the 13th person. I like the day and it is usually lucky for me. I was born on the 13th of the month, adopted at 13 days old, so I have always felt a connection to the number 13 that most of the world doesn't. No one really knows why people have this superstition, but most authorities will tell you that the fear of Friday the 13th has it roots in either Norse mythology, Templar history, or is just a combination of two separate 'unlucky' things most from a Christian ideology: Friday is unlucky because it was the day of the crucifixion, and 13 is unlucky because it is one past twelve, the number of disciples or Israeli tribes, yada yada yada. All typical explanations aside, since there is at least one and maybe as many as three Friday the 13ths in a year (2009 is such a year), it seems very likely that over time, some disaster or calamity has occurred on this date and that further feeds the fear. It also seems that the idea of 13 dinner guests is unlucky, perhaps stemming from Loki's presence and Balder's death in mythology, or perhaps from Judas's presence and Jesus' death after the Last Supper. The 13th hour of the (13th) day would certainly be close to meal time, whether you started counting at midnight or sunrise.

Another of the superstitions has to do with sailing, leaving port on Friday, for example. For Christians, there is usually a penitence aspect to the day, penitence related to secularism and selfish endeavours. Some Christians, especially Catholics, faithfully eat fish on Friday. It seems that the number 13 represents death in many ancient cultures, but death is both an end and a beginning, a transformation of the survival of existence. Perhaps we have lost the survival and transformation aspect of that idea?

None of the above reasons, stories, or myths by themselves pique my imagination, but the following does:

I recall hearing a theory on talk radio about the origins of friggatriskaidekaphobia. I wish I could find some reference on the idea, but despite a fairly thorough web search, I cannot find anything
on it. I fear that I have forgotten key details, but I will relate what I can recall, because I love stuff like this, ideas from the edge of reason, so to speak. The radio guest linked Friday the 13th as the day that the mythical civilization of Atlantis was lost forever to the ocean. The survivors of that fateful day allegedly set sail and spread throughout the world and eventually attempted to memorialize their dead. Friday the 13th became somewhat of an anniversary of the tragedy that transformed the remaining civilizations of the world, Indus, Egyptian, Greek, etc. There are ancestor and hero worshipping cults and sects throughout the world. There are holidays that honor the dead in many countries and cultures. If I recall correctly the guest's main evidence for this theory came from the writings of the Greeks. Of course, he referred to Plato's description of Atlantis, but he also had a lot of information about certain Greek mystery cults. Some of these cults are well known for their hero worship or ancestor worship. Orphic and Dionysian cults gave importance to the life and death cycle.

When you think of the common lore of Atlantean culture, you can draw even more parallels. The Atlanteans were allegedly destroyed for their wicked ways, their corruption, secularism and selfishness. Perhaps the sign of disaster began during meal time, during dinner. As they set sail into the unknown, they watched their world disappear. Was the demise of Atlantis the impetus for the rise of the Indus, Sumerian, Green, Persian, and Egyptian and MesoAmerican civilizations? If Atlantis existed, and it was destroyed by some natural disaster, the Mother of All Disasters, then of all days, it probably happened on a Friday the 13th, a happenstance that was unlucky for the Atlanteans, but lucky for the rest of the world. It was the end, the death of a great civilization, and yet, it was a transformation as it became the 'semen, the seed of all seeds' (literally, Dionysus) for many civilizations.
Mythology is so cool. It is always right out there on the edge of science. Oh, and in case you were unaware, the statue pictured is in Copenhagen, of the Greek God of the Sea, Poseidon, (Roman Neptune) whose dominion includes Atlantis as well as Naval submariners. My SubmarinerSon is also a friggatriskaidekaphile.