It's a pet theory of mine that creeds and religions have fought for millennia, adopting similar sets of symbols each time.
For instance, the Eagle/Falcon & Sun - symbol of the god Ashur, certain parts of Egypt, ancient Rome, the Third Reich etc. - has frequently faced off with...
The Egyptian Crook & Flail, now better seen as the Hammer & Sickle.
Meanwhile, the Six-Pointed Star - symbol of the Babylonian minor god Ninurta, now a Judaism symbol (moreover, Ninurta is also associated with stone tablets, another Jewish symbol), seems to always clash with...
The symbol of the Crescent Moon and Star - associated both with the ancient goddess Inanna/Ishtar and with modern Islam.
And of course, the ancient Ankh is actually far closer to a modern Crucifix than the actual crucifying setup used by the Romans (since those were X-shaped).
I don't really try and read too much into this. My general conclusion is that symbols will always outlive scripture, though I don't think it's mere coincidence that the followers of these symbol sets tend to end up at odds with each other.
Agreed. Western media and pop-culture tends to pretend Eastern religions either don't exist, or amount to quirky worship of weird-looking statues by the resident "funny foreigner" sitcom character. Same goes for meditation, yoga and tai-chi being treated as cool and fancy health routines, without any attention to their spiritual underpinnings or the overall lifestyle that goes to them.
I suspect westerners just aren't comfortable with the fact that there are not just other religions, but completely different paradigms of spirituality, compared to Judaeo-Christian monotheism and all its own quirks. Heathen gods are all well and good (well, bad, usually), but the very concept of religion where gods aren't central, of morality that's mandated by one's actions, rather than divine judgement; or of rebirth that's universal rather than offered only to the righteous - that simply does not compute.
Hard to say if it's true or not, like with many religions assertions. But it does make for a dangerous proposition to Judaeo-Christian societies, since it takes their ultimate leverage - the fear of damnation - and just does away with it. Much like how a Buddhist has no fear of losing their soul or suffering in hell - since in their view, the "soul" is itself an unwanted artifact of previous lives, and suffering is a state of internal being, not external circumstances.
True. That's why I said I don't read too much into it. Still, one way to confirm a causal relationship from otherwise superficial similarity, is to see if there's a plausible timeline for the symbol to have evolved.
For instance, the original symbols of Christianity were the fish and the "chi rho" (which looks like a P over an X - and if you squint a bit, like a man's figure with his limbs stretched on the aforementioned X-shaped Roman crucifix). However, early Christianity was further molded in the care of the Coptic church, which used the Ankh, known as the "crux ansata", as a mainline symbol. And as the Coptic church was instrumental in the development of Christianity, eventually the symbol further developed into the Crucifix we know today.
The interesting coincidence here - and the reason I say symbols outlive scripture - is that the Ankh wasn't just a random scribble, but one of the most important symbols in Egyptian religion - signifying both divine domain and... eternal life. As in, the eternal life offered by the god Osiris, himself risen from the dead and having the power of judgment over all souls... Sounds familiar, doesn't it? A bit too much to be a coincidence on it's own, I'd wager.
It's a pet theory of mine that creeds and religions have fought for millennia, adopting similar sets of symbols each time.
For instance, the Eagle/Falcon & Sun - symbol of the god Ashur, certain parts of Egypt, ancient Rome, the Third Reich etc. - has frequently faced off with...
The Egyptian Crook & Flail, now better seen as the Hammer & Sickle.
Meanwhile, the Six-Pointed Star - symbol of the Babylonian minor god Ninurta, now a Judaism symbol (moreover, Ninurta is also associated with stone tablets, another Jewish symbol), seems to always clash with...
The symbol of the Crescent Moon and Star - associated both with the ancient goddess Inanna/Ishtar and with modern Islam.
And of course, the ancient Ankh is actually far closer to a modern Crucifix than the actual crucifying setup used by the Romans (since those were X-shaped).
I don't really try and read too much into this. My general conclusion is that symbols will always outlive scripture, though I don't think it's mere coincidence that the followers of these symbol sets tend to end up at odds with each other.
i have a pet theory that jews/muslims/christian religions are created for mass consumption.
those three appears to be 'pushed' for these three while hindiusm is ignore or deliberately misinterepreted.
Siehks are similiarily ignored by msm
Agreed. Western media and pop-culture tends to pretend Eastern religions either don't exist, or amount to quirky worship of weird-looking statues by the resident "funny foreigner" sitcom character. Same goes for meditation, yoga and tai-chi being treated as cool and fancy health routines, without any attention to their spiritual underpinnings or the overall lifestyle that goes to them.
I suspect westerners just aren't comfortable with the fact that there are not just other religions, but completely different paradigms of spirituality, compared to Judaeo-Christian monotheism and all its own quirks. Heathen gods are all well and good (well, bad, usually), but the very concept of religion where gods aren't central, of morality that's mandated by one's actions, rather than divine judgement; or of rebirth that's universal rather than offered only to the righteous - that simply does not compute.
So were gnostics right that there is reincarnation of all souls? This would be a huge revelation.
Hard to say if it's true or not, like with many religions assertions. But it does make for a dangerous proposition to Judaeo-Christian societies, since it takes their ultimate leverage - the fear of damnation - and just does away with it. Much like how a Buddhist has no fear of losing their soul or suffering in hell - since in their view, the "soul" is itself an unwanted artifact of previous lives, and suffering is a state of internal being, not external circumstances.
At the end of the day you can only have so much and it will look similar.
True. That's why I said I don't read too much into it. Still, one way to confirm a causal relationship from otherwise superficial similarity, is to see if there's a plausible timeline for the symbol to have evolved.
For instance, the original symbols of Christianity were the fish and the "chi rho" (which looks like a P over an X - and if you squint a bit, like a man's figure with his limbs stretched on the aforementioned X-shaped Roman crucifix). However, early Christianity was further molded in the care of the Coptic church, which used the Ankh, known as the "crux ansata", as a mainline symbol. And as the Coptic church was instrumental in the development of Christianity, eventually the symbol further developed into the Crucifix we know today.
The interesting coincidence here - and the reason I say symbols outlive scripture - is that the Ankh wasn't just a random scribble, but one of the most important symbols in Egyptian religion - signifying both divine domain and... eternal life. As in, the eternal life offered by the god Osiris, himself risen from the dead and having the power of judgment over all souls... Sounds familiar, doesn't it? A bit too much to be a coincidence on it's own, I'd wager.
The Black/Venetian Nobility invert everything.
E PLURBIUS UNUM: From many➡️ONE
About the states (colonies) forming a union (federalist)
Or straight up nWo?