November 2002

Firmament-Chaos News is a free, e-mail newsletter for registered users of firmament-chaos.com - published by Angiras.

Feel free to forward this newsletter on to others you believe would be interested. If you receive this newsletter in a forwarded message and would like to ensure that you receive each one directly from news@firmament-chaos.com, use this link to register on our website.

In This Issue:

Why are the Pioneer Probes Retarded

NASA Pioneer 10 and 11 probes, launched some thirty years ago, are moving away from the solar system slightly more slowly than Newton’s gravitational law dictates, based on the calculated mass of all the planets, satellites and asteroids currently known. In an article from the Independent News http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_medical/story.jsp?story=335901, astronomer John Anderson of NASA JPL states, "By 1980, when Pioneer 10 was twenty times farther from the Sun than the Earth - halfway between Uranus and Neptune - it was clear that the probes were not where our calculations said they should be." Pioneer 10 and 11 are both experiencing similar retardation, although they are traveling in roughly opposite directions away from the Sun.

Anderson, Michael Martin Nieto (Los Alamos) and Slava Turyshev (JPL), have meticulously discounted all the prosaic explanations, such as directed heat radiation or fuel leaks. Assuming the total mass of the solar system is accurately known, this measurement has led some more radical scientists to suggest a possible deviation from the Newtonian gravitational ‘law’.

Ironically, later probes such as the Voyagers and Cassini are too ‘sophisticated’ to measure the effect because they are continually being oriented by tiny thrusters, the net effect of which would completely mask the small gravitational effect suggested by the Pioneer data.

As with many other solar system ’mysteries’, the Velikovsky/Angiras scenario of recent solar system chaos, provides a possible explanation. It is closely related to our Newsletter 3 article which advances an explanation of the ‘mysterious’ recent increase in the oblateness of the Earth.

To reiterate, we maintain that proto-Venus was created only 6,000 years ago, as the result of an enormously energetic impact on Jupiter, (10 43 ergs). As a corollary, Jupiter is a solid snow/ice planet in which are frozen (as clathrates?) all the elements in their natural proportions. Therefore the material ejected from Jupiter was 95% water. The Jovian temperature excess, the GRS, and other features are evidence of this impact. (http://www.firmament-chaos.com/jupiterpaper.pdf). The gravitational collapse of proto-Venus from the cloud of ejected material, and the subsequent transfer of orbital energy to heat at perihelion passes, which rapidly reduced its eccentricity, repeatedly raised its temperature above 10,000 Kelvins, http://www.firmament-chaos.com/fvenuspaper.pdf). At these high temperatures most of the volatile elements, including hydrogen and oxygen, were evaporated into space, causing the proto-planet’s average density to increase to over 5 g/cm3, that of a terrestrial planet. In fact, we maintain that this is the process by which all proto-terrestrial bodies formed, including Mars, Moon and Earth. One of the beautiful aspects of this new theory is that the water lost in the initial millennia of its formation remains in interplanetary space, where it is available for subsequent reacquisition by the new planet as it cools and by other extant planets. As discussed in the previously referenced article, this is a possible source of the thousands of house-sized snowballs impacting the upper atmosphere of the Earth every day. This dispenses with the notion that the terrestrial aenospheres were delivered a comet-load at a time over billions of years.

We maintain that there is an invisible cloud of water ice, with a mass several times that of Venus, lurking in the inner solar system and that the added gravitational attraction of this unrecognized mass is the reason for the mysterious retardation of the Pioneer probes.

The Bicameral Mind

The Origin of the Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind by Julian Jaynes is a well known treatise in academic circles, and created quite a controversy when first published in 1977. Based on the contrast between ancient myths, which are heavily devoted to ‘gods’, and ‘modern’ works, which completely discount such notions, the author proposes that the mind of mankind in these two periods was profoundly different. He suggests that before 3,000 BC men had no ‘consciousness’, no ability to reach reasonable conclusions based on objective observations. Fundamental aspects of this hypothesis are that consciousness derives from language, enabling the development of new more sophisticated concepts from older ones via metaphor, and the ability to see ones life as part of a narrative. Somewhat confusing in this context is Jaynes suggestion that the trauma of ice age climatic variations, between 70,000 and 8,000 BC, might have stimulated the development of language, while its effect in establishing consciousness did not manifest itself until 3,000 BC.

In lieu of consciousness, Jaynes hypothesizes that ancient man had a ‘bicameral mind’ in which ‘gods’ occupied a large portion of the right temporal lobe, an area which currently seems under-utilized. These ‘gods’, manifested as inner voices, continuously told the right half of the brain ‘what to do.’ His thesis is based heavily on the Iliad, in which everything that men did was said to be ‘commanded’ by the Greek gods. He likens the bicameral process to ‘voices’ that schizophrenics hear in modern times, indeed he suggests that the latter are possibly a carry-over from the former. One difficult aspect of this hypothesis is the apparent agreement among the ‘voices’ members of each group were hearing. Why did not each person go off in a different direction, working, playing or even killing others as his ‘voice’ demanded? To counter this objection, Jaynes suggests that the impulses suggested by the voices may have originated in instructions from a ‘king’, which were subsequently internalized for daily use.

During the third millennium BC, due primarily to stresses created by natural catastrophes and by the growth of populations to the point that cultures clashed, this bicameral mind began to break down, and the collective ‘mindset’ of mankind changed. This profound change in men everywhere supposedly occurred in one millennium, a very difficult notion to accept.

In Firmament we suggest a completely different rationale for the profound changes of the outlook evident in ancient myths versus modern times, but we do agree with some of the radical changes which Jaynes suggests. First, we agree that language developed quite late, even later than he suggested, based particularly on passages in the Rig Veda, for example:

"Speech, such as the ..(first verse in the Rigveda), was originally confused, i.e. unvaried like the roar of the sea, etc., and undistinguished, i.e. without articulation to denote crude [primitive] forms, inflections, words, and sentences, etc. Then Indra, being solicited by the gods ... divided in the middle speech, which had previously been without division, and introduced everywhere the distinction of crude forms, inflections, etc. In consequence, this Speech, being now distinguished in its parts ... is pronounced by all men."
We date the advent of the Vedic period at 4,000 BC, which corresponds almost exactly to the age of man as determined by the sequence of the patriarchs from Adam to Jesus enumerated in Genesis.1.

Second, we agree that a world-wide change occurred which profoundly divides the worlds in which ancient and modern man lived. However, we maintain that this was due to the chaotic motions of the inner planets which repeatedly approached the Earth until about 680 BC. Due to the great stresses on the planets during this period, they glowed and emitted radiation from volcanic vents. Indeed, the ancient term for gods literally meant ‘glowing’ in every ancient language, from which we derive ‘glory’, in religious contexts to this day.

In this context it is easy to understand the preoccupation of mankind with the ‘gods’ during this period, without resorting to profound changes in the mind of man. Proto-Venus, whose birth from an impact on Jupiter triggered the planetary chaos, approached and completely devastated the Earth on two closely spaced occasions. The destruction is best described by Plato, in Timaeus and Critius. We also suggest that the second verse of Genesis (1:2 KJV) in the Christian Bible refers to the state of the Earth immediately after these encounters, "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep." Proto-Venus then kicked what we call priori-Mars out of its ancient orbit, comparable to Venus’ current orbit, into one which intersected that of the Earth. With proto-Venus, priori-Mars and Earth in resonant orbits, the effect of Venus was to enable priori-Mars to be captured in a geosynchronous orbit around the Earth for fourteen or fifteen years at a time and then to be released into orbit around the Sun for an equal period. This process was repeated one hundred times before priori-Mars split into two, its core moving into the inner solar system forming what is now known as Mercury and the outer shell collapsed in on itself to form what we now call Mars.

Thus, there were two planets, both of which greatly disturbed the Earth, causing irregularities in its rotation, floods, earthquakes and the raining down of great masses of rock and red dust onto the Earth. While orbiting the Earth over the Transhimalayas only 44,000 km from the Earths center priori-Mars formed an enormous ‘stage’ on which the people of the Earth observed floods, marsquakes, violent eruptions, seven great volcanos and an enormous lava fountain which extended 1000 km down toward the Earth, spewing flames and surrounded by heat-tornadoes. It was these bodies and the continuously threatening events observed on priori-Mars that were the ‘gods’ of the myths, but they were very real.

The mind of man did not change during this period as evidenced by the human reactions recorded in the most ancient Rig Veda, upon the return of priori-Mars to the Earth after one of its fifteen year absences. First, the reasoned questioning of how the enormous body remains fixed in the sky without falling:

How is it that, unbound and unsupported, he falleth not although directed downward.
By what self power moves he?
Who hath seen it? 2
The following quote makes the analogy between the planets which swoop down towards the Earth, in apparently random fashion, like dice being cast onto a playing board, and resulting in good fortune for some and bad for others.
Downward they roll on the dice board, but they bob up on high; handless themselves, they vanquish those that have (powerful) hands. Cast on the board they shine like glowing embers; they are cool no doubt, but how they burn up my heart! 3
In a similar vein, the transient nature of riches is emphasized, since they can quickly be removed by the approaching 'god.’

The dice their victims hook and tear, Disturbing, torturing, false though fair. The transient gains they yield today, Tomorrow all are swept away.
The poor stood to gain and the rich to lose in the catastrophic encounters between planets. However, some of the rich hoarded food when such an encounter seemed imminent. These people, who would not share their bounty in times of great travail, were greatly despised:
A man, inhumane and ungenerous, in vain, overstocks himself with provisions. In very truth, this will be the death of him; a man who does not feed his elders and companions, but feasts all alone, is Sin incarnate.
As the ominous Indra (priori-Mars) approached the Earth, many of the rich began to give alms to the poor in hopes that the threatening god would see this as a benevolent act, and spare the giver his wrath. The poor, on the other hand, knew this to be the case and used the opportunity to extract some additional 'baksheesh' from the otherwise stingy rich, by recalling for their benefit how destinies vary each time the planet approaches the Earth:
Relieve the poor while yet ye may; Down future time's long vista look, And try to read that darkling book; Your riches soon may flit away. Ye cannot trust their fickle grace. As chariot wheels in ceaseless round Now upward turn, now touch the ground, So riches ever change their place.
These quotes are of great value to our hypothesis, because they emphasize the repetitiveness and reality of the catastrophic events that occurred during the Vedic period. No myth, or fairy story, in the sense usually thought of in the modern world, would evoke these gut-level feelings. The minds of these ancient peoples was no different than our own today.
1Original Sanskrit Texts, John Muir, v.2, p.211-213
2The Heart of the Rig Veda, p.138
3Ibid, p.331

Multiple Worlds

The one hundred generations of human beings who lived between 4000 and 687 BC were familiar with multiple worlds because priori-Mars and proto-Venus came close to the Earth on numerous occasions. In most myths they were called ‘gods’ or the homes of gods, but in some cases they were actually referred to as ‘worlds.’ This has clouded the true meaning of the myths because the translators, ignorant of the planetary encounters, always interpreted ‘world’ as referring to the Earth.

The most prominent other ‘world’ was priori-Mars, because when captured in geosynchronous orbit about the Earth it remained stationary in the sky over the Himalayas for fourteen or fifteen years at a time, occupying a solid angle 400 times greater than the full moon. This was ‘the astral plane’ on which a myriad of physical phenomena were visualized as dramas involving a variety of deities. It was the ‘TV screen’ for one hundred generations of eastern peoples. This circular stage rotated like a giant wheel once per day. At the same time it passed through phases, like the Moon, but on a daily basis, fully illuminated when opposite the Sun (midnight), waning until noon then waxing for 12 hours until the next midnight. The waning was the origin of the myth that Prometheus’ body (priori-Mars) was consumed by a vulture on a daily basis. At certain seasons it also regularly passed into the shadow of the Earth around midnight and partially eclipsed the Sun around noon.

At the beginning of each encounter the tidal force of the Earth drew the waters in the northern hemisphere toward priori-Mars’ north pole. In subsequent months it caused massive marsquakes and melting of subsurface rock. The magma was then drawn through myriads of fissures to its surface and eventually shot high into the air from volcanos and lava fountains. The greatest fountain comprised thousands of solid vertical lava tubes, which coalesced to form a structure perhaps a thousand kilometers in height at its north pole, partially supported by the tidal force of the Earth.

In a similar manner, floods, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occurred on Earth, induced by the tidal force of priori-Mars. These parallel events reinforced the duality between the two worlds and led to associations of all kinds between them in the cultural minds of human beings. Thus ancient descriptions of world-wide flooding were undoubtedly influenced by observing flooding on priori-Mars. Because they had a ‘birds eye view’ during the encounters, humans had a much better knowledge of the large scale topography of priori-Mars than of Earth. Understanding this reveals the true interpretation of a number of ancient myths, such as Atlantis, the geographical layout of which was described in great detail by Plato. In the more ancient Rig Veda different rishis (priests) described whimsically foretold the regions on priori-Mars to which they would pass when they died. They described the places in terms of north or south, beyond this or that mountain range, even delineating the regions where the most devout souls lived on the basis of the presence of more volcanos, imagining that they were burnt sacrifices offered to the gods, just as was done on Earth.

The Egyptians imagined that at the same time their kings were born on Earth, their spiritual counterparts, called their ka were born on priori-Mars. The first figure shows the god Khnum creating a king and his ka on a potters wheel. It is easy to identify the king’s ka because he has a finger on his left hand in his mouth. This was derived from the large ‘face of Horus’ feature, (in the second figure) still visible today on the surface of Mars, except for the fact that the Tharsis Bulge was greatly distended into a ‘beak’ during the dance encounters. Note how the west end of the Valles Marineris cuts into the Tharsis Bulge, as if a finger from the left hand is in the mouth of the face. This led to the common epithet ‘Horus the child.’ This explains why a king was said to ‘go to his ka’ when he died.’ Further corroboration of the V/A theory appears in the texts from the 18th dynasty (1500 BC onwards) which is interpreted to say that ‘the king has fourteen kas.’ This is slightly misinterpreted because of a lack of the understanding of the true nature of the ka. Fourteen years was the duration of each danceencounter, which we have derived from completely independent sources. The hieroglyph for the ka is shown in the third figure and is meant to express ‘duality.’


Figure 1: The God Khnum


Figure 2: Face of Horus


Figure 3: Heiroglyph for the Ka

A number of additional mythical relationships between the worlds are based on the great lava fountain at the north pole of priori-Mars. As we have mentioned many times, this monstrous flaming column was the primary deity in almost every eastern culture, Prajapati (Vedic), Brahma (Hindu), Buddha, Osiris, Zeus and the Jewish ‘column of smoke and fire.’ In Egyptian lore it was represented by another mysterious hieroglyph, the djed pillar or tet, shown in the fourth figure, which has many variations, most of them associated with Osiris. This was an graphic depiction of the actual feature. The parallel cross pieces were also imagined to be the rungs of a ladder extended downward from ‘heaven’ making possible the ascension of the dead Pharaoh. Later it was imagined to be the male member of Geb inserted in Nut, the over-arching heaven (priori-Mars.) Also, Geb was seen as the deity who supported the ‘world,’ i.e. he kept priori-Mars from falling, paralleling the function of the Greek god Atlas.


Figure 4: Djed piller or tet

In more primitive cultures, such as Australian aborigines and North American Indians the same feature was called the ‘world tree.’ The resemblance of the tree and the tet is obvious. There were two main forms of the cosmic tree myths. One was that it was ‘the tree of life’, placed at the center of the world and was protected by several ‘supernatural’ guardians, which were massive ‘heat tornados’ seen writhing and twisting around it. It inspired myths in which the ‘hero’ must overcome a number of obstacles in his quest for the life-giving fruit of the tree. Indeed, it may have been the tree of ‘the knowledge of good and evil’ in the center of the garden of Eden.

The second form was that of the tree extending down toward the Earth from the center of the rotating priori-Mars, forming the vital connection between the ‘world’ of the gods (heaven) and the ‘world’ of men. This is very similar to another mythical feature known as the ‘axis Mundi’ (axis of the worlds) which was present among the most primitive tribes where it was thought to be the link between heaven and Earth In myth the ‘universe’ is a mandala which whirled on the ‘axis mundi,’ the other end of which passed through the center of the Earth. Although described in different cultures and myths as the axis mundi, mountain, tree, pillar or ladder, the V/A theory explains the physical events which inspired the myths.

The fact that ancient peoples observed multiple worlds approaching, orbiting, rotating and leaving repeatedly for thousands of years led to the understanding that they lived on a world also, a view that was then lost for two thousand years, until modern science discovered it all over again.

Published for registered members of firmament-chaos.com. Produced by the Webmaster of Firmamanet-Chaos.com.

We want to hear from you! We encourage you to view the publication as yours. Please contact us with suggestions about its content.

Send your inquiries or contributions to: E-mail: news@firmament-chaos.com Internet: firmament-chaos.com