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TRANSLATIONS
I have realized the
necessity to add, in the dictionary item for
manu rere (GD11), a proof that also the
Polynesians regarded Saturn as a 'king':
|
"... Saturn does give the measures:
this is the essential point. How are we to reconcile it with Saturn the First
King, the ruler of the Golden Age who is now asleep at the outer confines of the
world?
The conflict is only apparent, as
will be seen. For now it is essential to recognize that, whether one has to do
with the Mesopotamian Saturn, Enki / Ea, or with Ptah of Egypt, he is the 'Lord
of Measures' - spell it 'me' in Sumerian, 'parshu' in Akkadian, 'maat'
in Egyptian. And the same goes for His Majesty, the Yellow Emperor of China -
yellow, because the element earth belongs to Saturn - 'Huang-ti
established everywhere the order for the sun, the moon and the stars'. The
melody remains the same. It might help to understand the general idea, but
particularly the lucubrations of Proclus, to have a look at the figure drawn by
Kepler, which represents the moving triangle fabricated by 'Great Conjunctions',
that is those of Saturn and Jupiter. One of these points needs roughly 2.400
years to move through the whole zodiac." (Hamlet's Mill)
"Fetu-tea [Pale Star =
Saturn] was the king. He took to wife the dome of the sky, Te-Tapoi-o-te-ra'i,
and begat stars that shine (hitihiti) and obscure, the host of twinkling
stars, fetu-amoamo, and the phosphorescent stars, te fetu-pura-noa.
There followed the star-fishes, Maa-atai, and two trigger-fishes that eat
mist and dwell in vacant spots in the Milky Way, the Vai-ora or
Living-water of Tane. The handsome shark Fa'a-rava-i-te-ra'i,
Sky-shade, is there in his pool and close by is Pirae-tea, White
Sea-swallow (Deneb in Cygnus) in the Living-waters of Tane." (Makemson) |
Then, why is there
a double-rimmed vai glyph in Sunday
according to the P text:
|
By now it must be clear that GD16 (vai)
is a symbol for the sun.
There remains, though, at least one
question to be answered: Why is
there a single oval in Hb9-18
and a double in Pb10-30?
|
I think there is a
connection between the double-rimmed vai
in P and the eye inscribed in manu rere.
Both phenomena are meant to underline that the
eye of the sun is meant.
Manu rere is
the sun and vai is the sun, although in
two different aspects. Possibly vai
glyphs are meant to illustrate Tama-Nui-Te-Ra:
'...
It
was during this struggle with the sun that his
second name was learned by man. At the height of
his agony the sun cried out: 'Why am I treated
by you in this way? Do you know what it is you
are doing. O you men? Why do you wish to kill
Tama nui te ra?' This was his name, meaning
Great Son of the Day, which was never known
before ...'
Tama-iti may
be the sun child and Tama-nui the grownup
sun:
 |
 |
|
Ba1-13 |
GD16 |
|
tamaiti |
tamanui |
Polynesian
children were swaddled, which may explain the
form of tamaiti glyphs (a form which I
once thought meant pregnancy):
|
... At the start of
the X-area we do not find henua
(GD37) but niu (GD18),
although much points to the idea
that these niu
glyphs are standing at the beginning of new year:
|
|
|
|
Aa1-13 |
Pa5-67 |
How may that be
explained? Is a picture of a tree
too trivial? The halo around the
head of a holy 'person' would be
difficult to picture in a
rongorongo glyph (because such
glyphs show only outlines).
Radiating light in all directions
would be easier to draw (as in niu).
The picture is from Wikipedia:
'Madonna and Child' by Ambrogio
Lorenzetti. I searched for
'swaddling', with the idea that I
would find some picture of how
Polynesians swaddled their newborn
babies. However I did not find any
such information.
Newborn babies do not show their
arms and legs, because they have
been swaddled. That could explain
the shape of Pa5-70 (and similar
glyphs):
"The child has hardly left the
mother's womb, it has hardly begun
to move and stretch its limbs, when
it is given new bonds. It is wrapped
in swaddling bands, laid down with
its head fixed, its legs stretched
out, and its arms by its sides; it
is wound round with linen and
bandages of all sorts so that it
cannot move …
Whence comes this unreasonable
custom? From an unnatural practice.
Since mothers despise their primary
duty and do not wish to nurse their
own children, they have had to
entrust them to mercenary women.
These women thus become mothers to a
stranger's children, who by nature
mean so little to them that they
seek only to spare themselves
trouble. A child unswaddled would
need constant watching; well
swaddled it is cast into a corner
and its cries are ignored …
It is claimed that infants left free
would assume faulty positions and
make movements which might injure
the proper development of their
limbs. This is one of the vain
rationalizations of our false wisdom
which experience has never
confirmed. Out of the multitude of
children who grow up with the full
use of their limbs among nations
wiser than ourselves, you never find
one who hurts himself or maims
himself; their movements are too
feeble to be dangerous, and when
they assume an injurious position,
pain warns them to change it."
(Wikipedia citing Jean Jacques
Rousseau - Emile: Or, On Education,
1762.) |
Before entering on
an investigation of the GD17 glyphs, I had
better here present what I have recently written
in the dictionary:
|
A few preliminary remarks and
imaginations:
1.
"An iconographic study by Jeff
Kowalski suggests a cosmological
layout for the Nunnery. The higher
placement of the North Building,
with its 13 exterior doorways
(reflecting the 13 layers of
heaven), and the celestial serpents
surmounting the huts identify it
with the celestial sphere.
The iconography of the West
Building, with 7 exterior doorways
(7 is the mystic number of the
earth's surface), and figures of
Pawahtun - the earth god as a
turtle - indicate this to be the
Middleworld, the place of the sun's
descent into the Underworld.
The East Building has mosaic
elements reflecting the old war cult
of Teotihuacan,
where tradition had it that the sun
was born; thus, this may also be
Middleworld, the place of the rising
sun. Finally, the South Building has
9 exterior doorways (the Underworld
or Xibalba
had 9 layers), and has the lowest
placement in the compex; it thus
seems to be associated with death
and the nether regions." (The Maya)
While we modern people in the
western societies probably think of
the turtle as the emblem of slow
motion, ancient peoples had other
key associations. To begin with, the
turtle is neither flying high like
the birds nor swimming far down in
the sea like the fishes. A turtle is
living at the surface of the sea or
crawling on land, i.e. in the
middle
world. The sky roof contains air,
the bowl of the sea has water and in
the middle is the earth we live in.
Clearly the carapace of the
turtle has an upper shell and a
lower shell and in the middle we
find the living creature. |
|
"A
very detailed myth comes from the
island of Nauru. In the
beginning there was nothing but the
sea, and above soared the
Old-Spider. One day the Old-Spider
found a giant clam, took it up, and
tried to find if this object had any
opening, but could find none. She
tapped on it, and as it sounded
hollow, she decided it was empty.
By
repeating a charm, she opened the
two shells and slipped inside. She
could see nothing, because the sun
and the moon did not then exist; and
then, she could not stand up because
there was not enough room in the
shellfish. Constantly hunting about
she at last found a snail. To endow
it with power she placed it under
her arm, lay down and slept for
three days. Then she let it free,
and still hunting about she found
another snail bigger than the first
one, and treated it in the same way.
Then she said to the first snail:
'Can you open this room a little, so
that we can sit down?' The snail
said it could, and opened the shell
a little.
Old-Spider then took the snail,
placed it in the west of the shell,
and made it into the moon. Then
there was a little light, which
allowed Old-Spider to see a big
worm. At her request he opened the
shell a little wider, and from the
body of the worm flowed a salted
sweat which collected in the lower
half-shell and became the sea. Then
he raised the upper half-shell very
high, and it became the sky. Rigi,
the worm, exhausted by this great
effort, then died. Old-Spider then
made the sun from the second snail,
and placed it beside the lower
half-shell, which became the earth."
(New Larousse Encyclopedia of
Mythology) |
|
2. The ancient Chinese
used to drill holes in turtle shells
and then place them in the
fire to see what cracks
developed. The cracks foretold the
future:
(Ref. Lindqvist)
Turtles are associated with earth
and earth is resistant to fire. The
Polynesians had earth-ovens (umu)
in which food was prepared. The
heavenly firedrill had a turtle at
the bottom to isolate the earth from
a general conflagration when at new
year a fire must be ignited.
(Ref. Hamlet's Mill)
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"... the tortoise cannot
be burnt ... a
characteristic which is
confirmed objectively by
ethnography, since the
wolf's trick [in M192]
of trying to cook the
tortoise while it was
lying on its back is
based on a method which
may seem barbarous but
is still current in
central Brazil: the
tortoise is so difficult
to kill that the
peasants cook it alive
among the hot wood
cinders, with its own
shell acting as the
cooking-dish; the
process may last several
hours, because the poor
beast takes so long to
die ..." (From Honey to
Ashes) |
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|
3. On Easter Island the
sacred geography has
Haga Hônu on one side of
Poike and Haga Takaure on
the other:
.jpg)
(Ref. Métraux)
Growing sun advances from the
three little islands outside the
south-western point of Orongo
up to Poike (corresponding to
noon and midsummer) at the eastern
extreme of the island, then
descending sun moves along the
northern coast, arriving at Haga
Hônu approximately at autumn
equinox (sundown). The point where
sun reaches earth does not catch
fire because Hônu is there
protecting us.
The kuhane of Hau
Maka described the path for
him in his dream. |
|
"Hau Maka had a dream. The
dream soul of Hau Maka moved
in the direction of the sun (i.e.,
toward the East). When, through the
power of her mana, the dream
soul had reached seven lands, she
rested there and looked around
carefully. The dream soul of Hau
Maka said the following: 'As
yet, the land that stays in the dim
twilight during the fast journey has
not been reached.'
The dream soul of Hau Maka
countinued her journey and, thanks
to her mana, reached another
land. She descended on one of the
small islets (off) the coast). The
dream soul of Hau Maka looked
around and said: 'These are his
three young men.' She named the
three islets 'the handsome youths of
Te Taanga, who are
standing in the water'.
The dream soul of Hau Maka
continued her journey and went
ashore on the (actual Easter)
Island. The dream soul saw the fish
Mahore, who was in a (water)
hole to spawn (?), and she named the
place 'Pu Mahore A Hau Maka O
Hiva'.
The dream soul climbed up and
reached the rim of the crater. As
soon as the dream soul looked into
the crater, she felt a gentle breeze
coming toward her. She named the
place 'Poko Uri A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul continued her search
for a residence for King Matua.
The dream soul of Hau Maka
reached (the smaller crater)
Manavai and named the place 'Te
Manavai A Hau Maka O Hiva'. The
dream soul went on and reached Te
Kiore Uri. She named the place 'Te
Kiore Uri A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul went on and came to
Te Piringa Aniva. She named
the place 'Te Piringa Aniva A Hau
Maka O Hiva'. Again the dream
soul went on her way and reached
Te Pei. She named the place 'Te
Pei A Hau Maka O Hiva'. The
dream soul went on and came to Te
Pou. She named the place 'Te
Pou A Hau Maka O Hiva'. The
dream soul went on and came to
Hua Reva. She named the place 'Hua
Reva A Hau Maka O Hiva'. The
dream soul went on and came to
Akahanga. She named the place 'Akahanga
A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul went on. She was
careless (?) and broke the kohe
plant with her feet. She named the
place 'Hatinga Te Koe A Hau Maka
O Hiva'.
The
dream soul went on and came to
Roto Ire Are. She gave the name
'Roto Ire Are A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul went on and came to
Tama. She named the place 'Tama',
an evil fish (he ika kino)
with a very long nose (he ihu
roroa).
The dream soul went on and came to
One Tea. She named the place
'One Tea A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
She went on and reached Hanga
Takaure. She named the place 'Hanga
Takaure A Hau Maka O Hiva'. The
dream soul moved upward and came to
(the elevation) of Poike. She
named the place 'Poike A Hau Maka
O Hiva'. The dream soul
continued to ascend and came to the
top of the mountain, to Pua
Katiki. She named the place 'Pua
Katiki A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
Everywhere the dream soul looked
around for a residence for the king.
The dream soul went to Maunga
Teatea and gave him the name 'Maunga
Teatea A Hau Maka O Hiva'. The
dream soul of Hau Maka looked
around. From Maunga Teatea
she looked to Rangi Meamea
(i.e., Ovahe).
The dream soul spoke the following:
'There it is - ho! - the place - ho!
- for the king - ho! - to live
(there in the future), for this is
(indeed) Rangi Meamea.' The
dream soul descended and came to
Mahatua. She named the place 'Mahatua
A Hau Maka O Hiva'. The dream
soul continued to look around for a
residence for the king. Having
reached Taharoa she named the
place 'Taharoa A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul moved along and
reached Hanga Hoonu. She
named the place 'Hanga Hoonu A
Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul came to Rangi
Meamea and looked around
searchingly. The dream soul spoke:
'Here at last is level land where
the king can live.' She named the
place 'Rangi Meamea A Hau Maka O
Hiva'. The mountain she named 'Peke
Tau O Hiti A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul moved along a curve
from Peke Tau O Hiti to the
mountain Hau Epa, which she
named 'Maunga Hau Epa A Hau Maka
O Hiva'.
The dream soul stepped forth lightly
and reached Papa O Pea. She
carefully looked around for a place
where the king could settle down
after his arrival and gather his
people around (? hakaheuru).
Having assembled his people (?) and
having come down, he would then go
from Oromanga to Papa O
Pea, so went the speech of the
dream soul. She named the place 'Papa
O Pea A Hau Maka O Hiva'.
She then hastened her steps toward
Ahu Akapu. There she looked
again for a residence of the king.
Again the dream soul of Hau Maka
spoke: 'May the king assemble his
people (?) and may he come in the
midst of his people from Oromanga
to Papa O Pea. When the king
of Papa O Pea has assembled
his people (?) and has come to this
place, he reaches Aha Akapu.
To stay there, to remain (for the
rest of his life) at Ahu Akapu,
the king will abdicate (?) as soon
as he has become an old man'. She
named the place 'Ahu Akapu A Hau
Maka O Hiva'. The (entire) land
she named 'Te Pito O Te Kainga A
Hau Maka O Hiva'.
The dream soul turned around and
hurried back to Hiva, to its
(Home)land, to Maori. She
slipped into the (sleeping) body of
Hau Maka, and the body of
Hau Maka awakened. He arouse and
said full of amazement 'Ah' and
thought about the dream ..."
(Barthel 2, maps from Heyerdahl 4) |
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In the Mamari
calendar for the month there are 8 periods of different lengths. The
last of the periods has only 2 nights (a night is symbolized by a moon sickle):
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Ca8-27 |
Ca8-28 |
Ca8-29 |
Ca9-1 |
Ca9-2 |
Ca8-27 is a peculiar hônu glyph with a long 'peg' at
bottom and it presumably illustrates how at new moon a new fire is being alighted,
possibly by fire drilling (which is not the usual Polynesian
method to light fires). In Ca5-17 a similar hônu ignites
new sun fire in midwinter:
The back-to-back persons (Ca8-28--29 respectively Ca5-18--19)
are the old and new periods, i.e. the Janus concept - called
Takurua in
Polynesian.
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We should notice how the position of hônu
immediately before takurua takes on a more
profound meaning when we consider the numerical
facts: Ca9-1--2 are the two first nights of the new
month and the creator of the text has ingeniously
arranged them to also initiate a new line (Ca9).
Ca8-28 is the last night of the old month in which
moon is visible, while in Ca8-29 the moon is dark.
Likewise, Ca5-18 presumably signifies the last time
sun is present, while Ca5-19 is a vero time.
360 / 2 = 180 measures a 'year'.
Hônu, therefore, is present while the old
'light' still is 'alive'. |
|
|
"At the risk of invoking the
criticism, 'Astronomers rush
in where philologists fear
to tread', I should like to
suggest that Taku-rua
corresponds with the
two-headed Roman god Janus
who, on the first of
January, looks back upon the
old year with one head and
forward to the new year with
the other, and who is god of
the threshold of the home as
well as of the year...
There is probably a play on
words in takurua - it
has been said that
Polynesian phrases usually
invoke a double meaning, a
common and an esoteric one.
Taku means 'slow',
the 'back' of anything,
'rim' and 'command'. Rua
is a 'pit', 'two' or
'double'. Hence takurua
has been translated 'double
command', 'double rim', and
'rim of the pit', by
different authorities.
Taku-pae is the Maori
word for 'threshold'...
Several Tuamotuan and
Society Islands planet names
begin with the word
Takurua or Ta'urua
which Henry translated Great
Festivity and which is the
name for the bright star
Sirius in both New Zealand
and Hawaii.
The planet names, therefore,
represent the final stage in
the evolution of takurua
which was probably first
applied to the winter
solstice, then to Sirius
which is the most
conspicious object in the
evening sky of December and
January, and was then
finally employed for the
brilliant and conspicious
planets which outshone even
the brightest star Sirius.
From its association with
the ceremonies of the new
year and the winter
solstice, takurua
also aquired the meaning
'holiday' or 'festivity'."
(Makemson) |
|
In the G calendar
the situation seems
to be different
(according to how we
so far have
interpreted the
calendars of E and
G), because the
hônu arrive at
autumn equinox (and
not at midsummer):
|
|
In
ancient Egypt a similar perception was at work, although the sky
dome was female:
(Ref. Wilkinson and Lockyer)
The
goddess Nut (Nu-t where final t indicates
female) is depicted with stars spangled over her body. The canoe of
the sun is during the night travelling above her body from the feet
to her hands. Feet and hands are resting on the ground.
Whereas in rongorongo the sky dome was depicted as the body
of a male (because it illustrates the day sky), in Egypt the sky
dome was depicted as the body of a female because Nut means
night. Night is female and day is male. |
|
We can identify the 2nd quarter 'person' with the 'worm' Rigi:
... By repeating a charm, she opened the two
shells and slipped inside. She could see nothing, because the
sun and the moon did not then exist; and then, she could not
stand up because there was not enough room in the shellfish.
Constantly hunting about she at last found a snail. To endow it
with power she placed it under her arm, lay down and slept for
three days. Then she let it free, and still hunting about she
found another snail bigger than the first one, and treated it in
the same way. Then she said to the first snail: 'Can you open
this room a little, so that we can sit down?' The snail said it
could, and opened the shell a little.
Old-Spider then took the snail, placed it in the
west of the shell, and made it into the moon. Then there was a
little light, which allowed Old-Spider to see a big worm. At her
request he opened the shell a little wider, and from the body of
the worm flowed a salted sweat which collected in the lower
half-shell and became the sea. Then he raised the upper
half-shell very high, and it became the sky. Rigi, the
worm, exhausted by this great effort, then died. Old-Spider then
made the sun from the second snail, and placed it beside the
lower half-shell, which became the earth ...
Careful reading leads to conclusions:
There were two
snails, a little one and a bigger one. The first, the little
one, became the moon and her location was in the west. The
bigger snail became the sun and his location was in the east.
Both snails first
needed power, and that was accomplished by 3 days in the armpit
while Old Spider lay down. At winter solstice movement stops, a
time for lying down. The 3 nights (rather than days) of complete
darkness are those between 365 and 362 (= 180 + 182) when 'gods
are born'. The armpit is a center for re-creation.
Rigi is
neither of the two snails but another being, a very powerful
'worm'. Exhausted he dies at summer solstice. In his stead the
salty sea emerged and sun is not placed in the east until the
worm has gone.
Rigi is
obviously a wordplay on ragi (sky). |
|
In the G
calendar it
was possible
to count
glyphs in
order to
arrive at a
hidden
structure
beneath the
periods.
Likewise, it
is possible
to count
glyphs in
the E
calendar and
thereby find
out what
structure
will be
revealed.
18 periods
describe the
central part
to the E
calendar.
The 1st
period is
exceptional
and outside
the central
part, which
has 2 * 54 =
108
glyphs, a
fascinating
number.
| 2 - 4 |
12 |
54 |
| spring: |
| 5 - 8 |
28 |
42 |
| 9 - 10 |
14 |
| summer: |
| 11 - 13 |
20 |
30 |
54 |
| 14 - 16 |
10 |
| autumn: |
| 17 - 19 |
24 |
42
(periods 5-10) is already understood as an important number ('the
7th flame of
the sun').
36 can be reconstructed as the number of glyphs in periods
2-4 plus those in periods 17-19.
It
means that 108 = 30 + 36 + 42. The regular year is divided in 3
parts of different lengths, although one part (30) is divided
unequally with ⅓ in late winter (before spring) and ⅔ in early
winter (after autumn). And then we have not yet considered the 1st and
the last
5 periods (20-24). |
|
"... It
is known
that in
the
final
battle
of the
gods,
the
massed
legions
on the
side of
'order'
are the
dead
warriors,
the
'Einherier'
who once
fell in
combat
on earth
and who
have
been
transferred
by the
Valkyries
to
reside
with
Odin in
Valhalla
- a
theme
much
rehearsed
in
heroic
poetry.
On the
last
day,
they
issue
forth to
battle
in
martial
array.
Says
Grimnismal
(23):
'Five
hundred
gates
and
forty
more -
are in
the
mighty
building
of
Walhalla
- eight
hundred
'Einherier'
come out
of each
one gate
- on the
time
they go
out on
defence
against
the Wolf.'
That
makes
432,000
in all,
a number
of
significance
from of
old.
This
number
must
have had
a very
ancient
meaning,
for it
is also
the
number
of
syllables
in the
Rigveda.
But it
goes
back to
the
basic
figure
10,800,
the
number
of
stanzas
in the
Rigveda
(40
syllables
to a
stanza)
which,
together
with
108,
occurs
insistently
in
Indian
tradition,
10,800
is also
the
number
which
has been
given by
Heraclitus
for the
duration
of the
Aiōn,
according
to
Censorinus
(De
die
natali,
18),
whereas
Berossos
made the
Babylonian
Great
Year to
last
432,000
years.
Again,
10,800
is the
number
of
bricks
of the
Indian
fire-altar
(Agnicayana).32
32
See J.
Filliozat,
'L'Indie
et les
échanges
scientifiques
dans
l'antiquité',
Cahiers
d'histoire
mondiale
1
(1953),
pp. 358f.
'To
quibble
away
such a
coincidence',
remarks
Schröder,
'or to
ascribe
it to
chance,
is in my
opinion
to drive
skepticism
beyond
its
limits.'33
33
F. R.
Schröder,
Altgermanischer
Kulturprobleme
(1929),
pp. 80f.
Shall
one add
Angkor
to the
list? It
has five
gates,
and to
each of
them
leads a
road,
bridging
over
that
water
ditch
which
surrounds
the
whole
place.
Each of
these
roads is
bordered
by a row
of huge
stone
figures,
108 per
avenue,
54 on
each
side,
altogether
540
statues
of Deva
and
Asura,
and each
row
carries
a huge
Naga
serpent
with
nine
heads.
Only,
they do
not
'carry'
that
serpent,
they are
shown to
'pull'
it,
which
indicates
that
these
540
statues
are
churning
the
Milky
Ocean,
represented
(poorly,
indeed)
by the
water
ditch,34
using
Mount
Mandara
as a
churning
staff,
and
Vasuki,
the
prince
of the
Nagas,
as their
drilling
rope.
34
R. von
Heine-Geldern,
'Weltbild
und
Bauform
in
Südostasien',
in
Wiener
Beiträge
zur
Kunst-
und
Kulturgeschichte
4
(1910),
p. 15.
(Just to
prevent
misunderstanding:
Vasuki
had been
asked
before,
and had
agreeably
consented,
and so
had
Vishnu's
tortoise
avatar,
who was
going to
serve as
the
fixed
base for
that
'incomparably
mighty
churn',
and even
the
Milky
Ocean
itself
had made
it clear
that it
was
willing
to be
churned.)
The
'incomparably
mighty
churn'
of the
Sea of
Milk, as
described
in the
Mahabharata
and
Ramayana.
The
heads of
the
deities
on the
right
are the
Asura,
with
unmistakable
'Typhonian'
characteristics.
They
stand
for the
same
power as
the
Titans,
the
Turanians,
and the
people
of
Untamo,
is
short,
the
'family'
of the
bad
uncle,
among
whom
Seth is
the
oldest
representative,
pitted
against
Horus,
the
avenger
of his
father
Osiris.
The
simplified
version
of the
Amritamanthana
(or
Churning
of the
Milky
Ocean)
still
shows
Mount
Mandara
used as
a pivot
or
churning
stick,
resting
on the
tortoise.
And
here,
also,
the head
on the
right
has
'Typhonian'
features.
The
whole of
Angkor
thus
turns
out to
be a
colossal
model
set up
for
'alternative
motion'
with
true
Hindu
fantasy
and
incongruousness
to
counter
the idea
of a
continuous
one-way
Precession
from
west to
east."
(Hamlet's
Mill) |
|
108
can be read as 30 + 36 + 42 = (5 + 6 + 7) * 6. Counting also the
jokers there are 2 * 54 = 108 cards in a double deck.
In
the regular pentagon the internal angles are 180 * (5 - 2) / 5 =
108º.
However, in the E calendar 54 probably first of all represents 3 *
18 (and 108 = 6 * 18).
South
of the equator the summer half of the year is ca 180 days, and
combining 18 with the fundamental solar number 6 we reach 108. Half
that number comes before the midpoint and the other half after.
The
midpoint
lies
between
periods
10
and
11,
exactly
as
we
earlier
have
discovered
by
way
of
henua
ora
in
the
10th
and
vero
in
the
11th
period.
Disregarding
the
1st
period
there
are
9
periods
up
to
the
midpoint
and
9
after.
The
autumn
vero
is
located
in
the
19th
period,
i.e.
in
the
last
of
the
summer
periods
(according
to
the
structure
observed
in
the
number
of
glyphs).
The
summer
vero
(11th
period)
inaugurates
the
2nd
half
of
the
year
and
the
3rd
quarter,
while
the
autumn
vero
(19th
period)
ends
summer
and
the
3rd
quarter.
During
9
periods
with
54
glyphs
sun
advances
and
during
9
periods
with
54
glyphs
sun
declines.
These
two
phases
have
each
6 *
9 =
54
glyphs.
Each
glyph
therefore
may
correspond
to a
duration
of
3⅓
days
(180/54
=
3⅓).
To
avoid
fractions
it
is
necessary
to
count
in
durations
of
at
least
10
days.
Each
half-year
has
18 *
10 =
9 *
20 =
180
days,
but
54 =
3 *
18
suggests
that
each
half-year
is
divided
in 3
* 60
days,
3
periods
which
each
is
divided
in 3
lesser
periods
à 20
days. |
|
Comparing with the glyph number structure in G we find nothing there which contradicts the assumed 3 periods à (20+20+20) days in each half-year:
| period no. |
number of glyphs |
| 1, 2, 3 |
19 |
19 |
| 4, 5, 6 |
8 |
27 |
| 7, 8, 9 |
8 |
35 |
| 10, 11, 12 |
7 |
42 |
| 13, 14, 15 |
12 |
54 |
| 16, 17, 18 |
16 |
70 |
The midpoint is located between periods 9 and 10, not between 10 and 11 as in E. But that, we know, is due to the 1st period in E being counted although it does not belong to the regular year.
The autumn vero (period 19 in G) is, however, outside the regular year (not ending summer as in E).
In G
35 glyphs seems to correspond to 90 days, which may be expressed as 7
(after division by 5) in relation to 18 (after division by 5). 7
glyphs will then correspond to 18 days and 70 (= 10 * 7) glyphs
equal 180
days. Sun seems to have 10 periods à 7 glyphs to live, 5 before the midpoint
and 5 after.
It is
as if sun has 'weeks', though only 10 such. |
|
If we now consider the 6 periods which in E lie outside the regular year, we find the structure to be:
| 20 |
4 |
15 |
61 |
| 21 |
3 |
| 22 |
4 |
| 23 |
4 |
| 24 |
26 |
| 1 |
20 |
26 glyphs are in the last period and 20 in the first period. These two numbers are highly significant. For instance, is the number of glyphs in Tahua (1,334) divided in two groups determined by them: 26 * 29 + 20 * 29 = 754 + 580. Presumably they signify the darkest time of the year, the time corresponding to new moon.
15 is related to the moon, viz. the number of nights up to and including full moon. 3 (an odd number) is necessary to reach 15. 3 has also the role of covering the time between 365 and (180 + 182) days, given that the summer 'year' has 12 * 15 = 180 days and the winter 'year' 13 * 14 = 182 days. Purely speculation, of course.
61 it is needed to reach 13 * 13 = 169 glyphs for the whole calendar (61 + 108 = 169). 61 also happens to be related to 10 and 6 in a curious way.
15 is the moon number equivalent to the sun number 10 - the time at which the measure is full and the waxing phase has ended. That explains why in the 10th period of the calendar we have henua ora (the sun harbour). |
| In Chinese checkers the board is built up like a 6-pointed star:
Each of the triangular 'flames' has 10 holes (= 1 + 2 + 3 + 4). Together there are 6 * 10 = 60 holes around the central hexagon.
The central hexagon has 61 holes, astoundingly not 60.
In a way it is as if the creator of the E calendar had seen this picture. But Chinese checkers was not invented until much later.
The 6 'flames' are similar to the 6 times 60 days necessary to reach 360 days for a year, while 61 is the mirror image with one additional hole in the center, the germ of next year carried in the middle as if the embryo to a new ‘world’. |
|
20
glyphs in the 1st period in a way predicts how after 10 periods sun
will reach 'harbour' (henua ora). Maybe 2 glyphs corresponds
to 1 period? That is probably not so, because 20 presumably
represents 20 periods - 10 up to the midpoint and 10 after the
midpoint. Or to be more precise: the 10th period has passed the
midpoint and the 20th period has passed the end of the next half.
10 means one more than full, which of course is true if we regard 9 as the measure for full - there are no higher digits. 20 means that the limit has passed once more, and as there are two 'years' in a year 20 is the proper symbol.
The Mayan number symbol for 10 has a fleshless jawbone - a sign of death:
|
|
Possibly 26 in the last period tells about how during a year there are 26 fortnights (14 * 26 = 364). With 20 in the first period representing 20 * 18 (= 360) solar days, 26 may mean 364 lunar nights.
Counting would proceed upwards with waxing sun to the 10th period. Beyond that comes the time of the moon and sun wanes.
Vero in the 11th period means that sun is no more. Vero in the 19th period has a sign of the moon:
It means that the moon
has no more time. With the 20th period darkness arrives.
Moon will therefore have an equal amount of glyphs as the sun:
| sun |
2 - 4 |
12 |
54 |
| 5 - 8 |
28 |
42 |
| 9 - 10 |
14 |
| summer solstice |
| moon |
11 - 13 |
20 |
30 |
54 |
| 14 - 16 |
10 |
| 17 - 19 |
24 |
|
|
We have seen two different hônu designs, what may be called the 'ignition turtle' and the 'quenching turtle' (water quenches fire), here exemplified from G:
 |
 |
| Ga3-12 |
Ga5-14 |
At new year, in ancient times all over the world, when a new fire was to be ignited - magically inducing the winter solstice sun to come alive again - the old fire was first 'quenched'. The Maya Indians offer a good example.
On Easter Island there is a story about how the explorers ignited a new fire at Haga Hônu on the north coast. According to the sacred geography of the island Haga Hônu lies at the beginning of autumn (fall). After sun has risen by way of the south coast up to Poike (maximum) he descends along the north coast.
Logically, if the old sun dies at autumn equinox it must also be the time for a new fire. The new year may therefore be regarded as beginning with autumn equinox.
Fires function as a way to contact the gods high above in heaven and fires were used at all crucial times of the year. Therefore, to light a fire does not necessarily imply that a new year is inaugurated, only that a major new period is beginning. |
|
"[Sahagun:] ... When it was evident that the years lay ready to burst into life, everyone took hold of them, so that once more would start forth - once again - another (period of) fifty-two years.
Then (the two cycles) might proceed to reach one hundred and four years. It was called 'One Age' when twice they had made the round, when twice the times of binding the years had come together.
Behold what was done when the years were bound - when was reached the time when they were to draw the new fire, when now its count was accomplished. First they put out fires everywhere in the country round. And the statues, hewn in either wood or stone, kept in each man's home and regarded as gods, were all cast into the water.
Also (were) these (cast away) - the pestles and the (three) hearth stones (upon which the cooking pots rested); and everywhere there was much sweeping - there was sweeping very clear. Rubbish was thrown out; none lay in any of the houses." (Skywatchers) |
|
"... Again they went on and reached Hanga Hoonu. They saw it, looked around, and gave the name 'Hanga Hoonu A Hau Maka'. On the same day, when they had reached the Bay of Turtles, they made camp and rested. They all saw the fish that were there, that were present in large numbers - Ah!
Then they all went into the water, moved toward the shore, and threw the fish (with their hands) onto the dry land. There were great numbers (? ka-mea-ro) of fish. There were tutuhi, paparava, and tahe mata pukupuku. Those were the three kinds of fish.
After they had thrown the fish on the beach, Ira said, 'Make a fire and prepare the fish!' When he saw that there was no fire, Ira said, 'One of you go and bring the fire from Hanga Te Pau!' One of the young men went to the fire, took the fire and provisions (from the boat), turned around, and went back to Hanga Hoonu. When he arrived there, he sat down. They prepared the fish in the fire on the flat rocks, cooked them, and ate until they were completely satisfied. Then they gave the name 'The rock, where (the fish) were prepared in the fire with makoi (fruit of Thespesia populnea?) belongs to Ira' (Te Papa Tunu Makoi A Ira). They remained in Hanga Hoonu for five days ..." (Barthel 2) |
|
"... Whatever may have been the reason for the preëminence of the Pleiades cluster - and it was probably a combination of several reasons - it is certain that when men became increasingly alert ot the annual cycles of celestial phenomena, the changing altitudes and azimuths of the Sun, the lengthening and shortening of days and the corresponding variation in temperature, the slow march of the constellations across the sky, and realized the need of choosing a day on which to begin the yearly cycle of the calendar, they turned to the Pleiades for guidance.
Undoubtedly the Polynesians carried the Pleiades year with them into the Pacific from the ancient homeland ... With but few exceptions they continued to date the annual cycle from the rising of these stars until modern times.
In the Hawaiian, Samoan, Tongan, Society, Marquesan, and some other islands the new year began in late November or early December with the first new Moon after the first appearance of the Pleiades in the eastern sky in the evening twilight.
Notable exceptions to the general rule are found in Pukapuka and among certain tribes of New Zealand where the new year was inaugurated by the first new Moon after the Pleiades appeared on the eastern horizon just before sunrise in June. Traces of an ancient year beginning in May have been noted in the Society Islands, but there is some uncertainty about the beginning of the year in native annals generally, at least as reported by missionaries and others, due perhaps to the desire to make the Polynesian months coincide with the stated months of the modern calendar.
In view of the almost universal prevalence of the Pleiades year throughout the Polynesian area it is surprising to find that in the South Island and certain parts of the North Island of New Zealand and in the neighboring Chatham Islands, the year began with the new Moon after the yearly morning [heliacal] rising, not of the Pleiades, but of the star Rigel in Orion. Such an important difference can be explained only on the assumption that the very first settlers ... brought the Rigel year with them ... some other land 10° south of the equator where Rigel acquired at the same time its synonymity with the zenith.
Colonists who arrived in New Zealand from Central Polynesia during the Middle Ages and intermarried with the tangata whenua, 'people of the land', found themselves between the horns of a calendrical dilemma. They must either convert the aborigines to the Pleiades year beginning in November-December or themselves adopt the Rigel year [together with heliacal rising observations] and bring down the wrath of their ancestors on their own heads.
That there resulted a long and passionate struggle on the part of both the invaders and the invaded to retain their own the integrity of the sacred year of their traditions can hardly by doubted. The outcome of the conflict proved that the institution of the land was too firmly established to be changed. While some tribes retained the Rigel year in its entirety others effected a compromise by retaining the Pleiades year but commencing it in June ..." (Makemson) |
|
The modern calendar of Easter Island has two autumn months Vaitu nui (April) and Vaitu poru (May). Equally, there are two early spring months with similar names: Hora iti (August) and Hora nui (September). Probably there once were only 10 months and 12 names was introduced by splitting up the old months Vaitu and Hora.
The sense in Vaitu, I guess, is 'water' (vai) at the backside (tu'a). The old name may have been Vaitu'a, '(the) water at the backside (of the) year'. The front (ra'e) side will then be the Hora side, the time when sun is advancing upwards.
The sea turtle naturally will be associated with the watery season. Its resistance to fire is an additional factor which puts the turtle in opposition to the sun and its primary season.
(Green Sea Turtle, ref. Wikipedia) |
|
"... From the natives of South Island [of New Zealand] White [John] heard a quaint myth which concerns the calendar and its bearing on the sweet potato crop.
Whare-patari, who is credited with introducing the year of twelve months into New Zealand, had a staff with twelve notches on it. He went on a visit to some people called Rua-roa (Long pit) who were famous round about for their extensive knowledge.
They inquired of Whare how many months the year had according to his reckoning. He showed them the staff with its twelve notches, one for each month. They replied: 'We are in error since we have but ten months. Are we wrong in lifting our crop of kumara (sweet potato) in the eighth month?'
Whare-patari answered: 'You are wrong. Leave them until the tenth month. Know you not that there are two odd feathers in a bird's tail? Likewise there are two odd months in the year.'
The grateful tribe of Rua-roa adopted Whare's advice and found the sweet potato crop greatly improved as the result. We are not told what new ideas he acquired from these people of great learning in exchange for his valuable advice. The Maori further accounted for the twelve months by calling attention to the fact that there are twelve feathers in the tail of the huia bird and twelve in the choker or bunch of white feathers which adorns the neck of the parson bird ..." (Makemson) |
|
In the so called 2nd list of places, ordered clockwise around Easter Island (i.e. contrary to the order in which the dream soul (kuhane) of Hau Maka visited localities hônu is mentioned in the 59th place:
| 58 "ata popohanga toou e to ata hero e
'Yours is the morning shadow' refers to an area in Ata Hero where the house of Ricardo Hito is now located. |
| 59 "ata ahiahi toou e honu e
'Yours is the evening shadow' belongs to a 'turtle'. I could not obtain any information about the location, but I suspect that the 'turtle' refers to a motif in the narration of Tuki Hakavari (the turtle is carved in stone in a cave along the bay of Apina).
The contrasting pair 'morning shadow vs. evening shadow' establishes a definite spatial relationship." (Barthel 2) |
The front side (ra'e), which I have suggested to be the temporal opposite (spring, a.m.) of the back side (tu'a) is here expressed as the opposition between 'morning shadow' and 'evening shadow', and the turtle 'owns' the evening shadows (ata ahiahi). Hero means the yellow colour of ripe bananas.
59 is twice 29.5 or the number of nights for a synodic month. In a way 59 therefore marks the end (and new beginning) - exactly the function of the hônu glyph type. Furthermore, Barthel has ordered the 2nd list of places in parallel with the phases of the moon and there ata ahiahi toou e honu e is in parallel with the beginning of the waning moon. We recognize how in the E calendar at the beginning of waning sun (period 12) hônu glyphs appear.
Turtles are located both at the beginning of the 1st 'year' and at the beginning of the 2nd 'year'. At the beginning of the 1st 'year' (winter solstice) a new fire will be alighted and therefore a turtle is needed. At the beginning of the 2nd 'year' a turtle must quench the fire. In the G calendar we see the same structure - only the 1st 'year' here seems to begin around spring equinox and end around autumn equinox, the 'years' are defined by equinoxes and not by solstices.
|
|
It may be coincidence, but probably it was a wordplay from Metoro when he said ero (very much like hero) at the first glyph documenting early dawn in the 'day calendar' according to Tahua:
 |
 |
| Aa1-16 |
Aa1-17 |
| ka ero |
ka tapamea |
The Polynesian languages are slippery, however, and we must not dismiss hiero = to shine, to appear (of the rays of the sun just before sunrise). He hiero te raá, dawn breaks.
Probably the yellow of ripe bananas (hero) and the rays of the sun immediately before sunrise (hiero) have a lot in common, not obvious for other than Polynesian minds. The common denominator may well be a word ero, now no longer used.
A wordplay with vero ('the black cloth') may also be involved, where vero = 'death' and hero = 'birth'. |
|
In this table Barthel has correlated the 2nd list of places with moon phases. I
have reordered the list according to places (while Barthel has an order according to
the moon nights):
|
1 Apina Iti |
2 Hanga O Ua |
21-23 |
21 Roto Kahi |
22 Papa kahi |
1-3 |
|
3 Hanga Roa |
4 Okahu |
22-24 |
23 Puna Atuki |
24 Ehu |
2-4 |
|
5 Tahai |
6 Ahu Akapu |
23-25 |
25 |
26 |
3-5 |
|
7 Kihikihi Rau Mea |
8 Renga Atini |
24-26 |
27 Hakarava |
28 Hanga Nui |
4-6 |
|
9 Vai A Mei |
10 Rua Angau |
25-27 |
29 Tongariki |
30 Rano Raraku |
5-7 |
|
11 Roro Hau |
12 Vai Poko |
26-28 |
31 Oparingi |
32 Motu Humu Koka |
6-8 |
|
13 Hereke |
14 Hatu Ngoio |
27-29 |
33 Hanga Maihiku |
34 Maunga Toatoa |
7-9 |
|
15 Ara Koreu |
16 Hanga Kuokuo |
28-30 |
35 Pipi Horeko |
36 Hanga Tetenga |
8-10 |
|
17 Opata Roa |
18 Vai Tara Kai Ua |
29-31 |
37 Ahu Tutae |
38 Oroi |
9-11 |
|
19 Hia Uka |
20 Hanga Ohiro |
30-32 |
39 Akahanga |
40 Hua Reva |
10-12 |
|
Uncertainty is the reason for a standard interval of 3 nights for each pair of localitites.
Uncertainty is also the reason for the vacant place names. The names may be shifted one position forward or backward and are therefore not recorded in the table.
59 Ata Ahiahi (the location of the turtle) may by an educated guess be referred to the 21th night, because Haga Hônu is number 21 in the kuhane voyage. |
41 |
42 |
11-13 |
|
43 |
44 |
12-14 |
|
45 |
46 |
13-15 |
|
47 |
48 |
14-16 |
|
49 Hanga Te Pau |
50 Rano Kao |
15-17 |
|
51 Mataveri O Uta |
52 Mataveri O Tai |
16-18 |
|
53 Vai Rapa |
54 Vai Rutu Manu |
17-19 |
|
55 Hivi |
56 Puku Ohu Kahi |
18-20 |
|
57 Hanga Piko |
58 Ata Popohanga |
19-21 |
|
59 Ata Ahiahi |
60 Apina Nui |
20-22 |
|
|
The turtle is a
creature of the water and therefore in opposition to the lightgiving
heavenly bodies, foremost the spring sun (Rigi). Light comes from fires and the
two elements water and fire are in opposition. When Rigi 'dies' it is
the work of the turtle.
The spring sun 'dies' at summer
solstice because from that point onwards he is waning. Sun also
'dies' at autumn equinox because then he emigrates to the
other side of the equator.
The reason why the
turtle is needed also when a new fire is to be alighted is not
difficult to understand: The turtle has 'taken' the fire and he
must now return it. In nature everything takes and gives, there must be
a balance.
Finally, fires have
flames which rise towards the sky while water instead runs
downwards. Heaven (up) belongs to the birds (gods) and the sea
(down) belongs to the sea creatures. We live in the middle. The
Mayan concept of the turtle as a creature of the middle world does
not apply to sea turtles.
|
|
