TRANSLATIONS

TRANSLATIONS

The triplet of haú ke glyphs (Ca6-7--9) seems to be numbers 11-13 in a group consisting of 20 glyphs located immediately before the calendar for the month:


Ca5-32	Ca5-33	Ca5-34	Ca5-35	Ca6-1	Ca6-2	Ca6-3


Ca6-4	Ca6-5	Ca6-6	Ca6-7	Ca6-8	Ca6-9	Ca6-10


Ca6-11	Ca6-12	Ca6-13	Ca6-14	Ca6-15	Ca6-16

The redmarked henua+rima glyphs form a pattern of 3 + 1, and the pattern of 'feathers' on haú ke (7 + 7 + 6 = 20) is similar to how I have tried to divide the 20 glyphs above into 3 lines with 7, 7, respectively 6 glyphs. Other subdivisions are also possible, though.

We can take one more step and add ordinal numbers counted from Ca1-1:


Ca6-1	Ca6-2	Ca6-3	Ca6-4 (144)	Ca6-5	Ca6-6


Ca6-7	Ca6-8	Ca6-9	Ca6-10 (150)	Ca6-11	Ca6-12


Ca6-13	Ca6-14	Ca6-15	Ca6-16

Possibly hau tea in Ca6-4 (where 6 + 4 = 10 and 6 * 4 = 24) has to do with summer solstice. There are 3 + 3 'feathers' at the top, and the outer vertical lines are curved, which could mean 'spreading out' ('multiplying','growing'). Though it is rather strange that the height of the glyph is so low, when the sky is so high in summer.

The central 'person' in the following Ca6-5 has a threadlike vertical straight line above his head, presumably a 'line for measuring', and his mata in front is tilted. It could mean that beyond the maximum height of Sun his path is sloping downwards.

In Ca6-10 (the last of 3 identical glyphs) we can count 6 + 10 = 16 or 6 * 10 = 60, and 150 is half 300. In the following Ca6-11 there is a break between the left 'person' and the central niu. The 'chevron' at bottom left could have been put there to indicate a contrast with the top of niu, i.e. to convey a sense of overturning (huri). This was also, it seems, a thought with Metoro, who here said te niu kua huri.

The following pattern with 8 + 12 = 20 glyphs could be what was intended for us to see:


Ca5-32	Ca5-33	Ca5-34	Ca5-35 (72)

Ca6-1	Ca6-2	Ca6-3	Ca6-4 (144)


Ca6-5	Ca6-6	Ca6-7	Ca6-8	Ca6-9	Ca6-10 (108)

Ca6-11	Ca6-12	Ca6-13	Ca6-14	Ca6-15	Ca6-16 (216)

If these 20 glyphs should correspond to 20 periods with 18 days in each, then we can count 20 * 18 = 360 = 8 * 18 + 12 * 18 = (72 + 72) + (108 + 108) = 144 + 216.

'Etoru kiori' will then presumably represent the 3 periods of Spring Sun (and 3 * 18 = 54). Confirmation of a sort is given by Ca6-9 where 6 * 9 = 54.

If a new year comes with Ca6-1 (which is suggested by the twin mata on hau tea), then Spring Sun will end after 10 * 18 = 180 days:


Ca6-1	Ca6-2	Ca6-3	Ca6-4 (72)


Ca6-5	Ca6-6	Ca6-7	Ca6-8	Ca6-9	Ca6-10 (180)

Ca6-11	Ca6-12	Ca6-13	Ca6-14	Ca6-15	Ca6-16 (288)

From new year (Ca6-1) the calendar will stretch for 16 * 18 = 288 = 4 * 72 days, because the first 72 days (at the end of the preceding glyph line) evidently belong to the old year. At hau tea without mata the old year is ending:


Ca5-32	Ca5-33	Ca5-34	Ca5-35 (72)

I believe this interpretation of the 20 glyphs was in the mind of the creator of Mamari. The 'Moon season' (8 periods) is divided in the middle by the birth of a new year. Spring has 10 periods ending in high summer, while autumn at first sight appears to be shorter. Yet, if we add the first 4 periods of the 'Moon season' (before the arrival of new year) autumn is seen to be also 10 periods long.

The main break in time comes after day number 16 * 18 = 288 (= 180 + 108), when the 'Moon season' is beginning (cfr ragi in Ca5-32) and Sun is 'hidden' (Ca5-33--34).

288 can be interpreted as 28 (the number of nights in a month when Moon is potentially illuminated by the light from Sun) combined with 8 (the perfect number for a cycle). And then, with 28 * 8 = 224 it is easy to see how 224 + 72 = 296 can be read as 10 * 29½ plus 'one more'. The thought pattern is the same as in 365 = 364 (= 14 * 26) + 1:

14	26	364	+ 1	365
10	29½	295	+ 1	296

With a little twist a pair of other important numbers will appear:

Sun	10	26	260	+ 1	261
Moon	14	29½	413	+ 1	414

We should, however, also investigate if 'etoru kiori' could belong in a more global pattern where the triplet of haú ke glyphs is contrasted with the triplet of haú glyphs:


Ca6-7	Ca6-8 (148)	Ca6-9

Cb10-9	Cb10-10 (240)	Cb10-11

The central glyph in each triplet should be the main one, which the numbers possibly are confirming. 6 and 8 could allude to 148 because 6 * 8 = 48 and because 24 (= 14 + 10) * 10 = 240. Counted from the beginning of the text (at Ca1-1) glyph line Cb10 is number 14. The number of 'feathers' are 14 in both Cb10-9 and Cb10-10.

Though I have counted to 240 at Cb10-10 from Cb1-1. If we add the glyphs from side a (which are 392 in number), it becomes 632. And if we count 6 * 32 = 192 the picture of a 'hidden sun' agrees with not only 192 (= 8 * 24) but also with 240 (= 8 * 30).

It may all be coincidences. But the hard to avoid idea of 392 = 192 + 200 for side a will naturally lead to the idea of 348 (side b) = 148 (also the ordinal number of Ca6-8) + 200.

Maybe we should divide the number of glyphs in the 'Moon season' with 2 in order to reach the number of days (or rather nights). 148 + 100 = 248 and 192 + 100 = 292.

248 + 292 = 540 = 360 + 180:

side a			side b
147		244	239		108
	Ca6-8 (148)			Cb10-10 (632)
392			348
192 + 200 / 2 = 292			148 + 200 / 2 = 248
*292 + 248 = 540 = 5 108**

... 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, using Mount Mandara as a churning staff, and Vasuki, the prince of the Nagas, as their drilling rope ...