The Dogon are believed to be of Egyptian decent and their astronomical lore goes back thousands of years to 3200 BC. Readers of Skeptic are not so sanguine. We may never be able to reconstruct the exact route by which the Dogon received their current knowledge, but out of the confusion at least one thing is clear: Paranormal, ed. There is, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sirius_Mystery. Some of this information has been selectively interpreted by Temple to support his claims. Second, while it is difficult to obtain precise locations of many archeological sites referred to in The Sirius Mystery, Temple himself shows a map that gives the location of Behdet (31.23 degE, 31.50 degN) and Thebes (32.63 degE, 25.70 degN). A substantial bulk of The Sirius Mystery consists of comparative linguistic and mythological scholarship, pointing out resemblances among Dogon, Yoruba, Egyptian and Sumerian beliefs and symbols. van Beek, Walter E. A. Scientists learn that the Dogon do not possess secret knowledge about the star Sirius and its companions. The Bad Archaeology page on the Sirius Mystery has summarize the basic details well: In 1976, Robert K G Temple (born 1945), an American living in the UK, published what was to become a seminal work of Bad Archaeology, The Sirius Mystery. It is also the home of the brightest star in the night sky, Sirius A. Carl. Unfortunately the ancient records contain no clear, unambiguous references to this Sirius lore although the works of historians, astronomers and philosophers were explicit and detailed on innumerable other subjects. Journalist and skeptic James Oberg collected claims concerning Dogon mythology in his 1982 book UFOs and Outer Space Mysteries. [2][1] The book was first published by St. Martin's Press in 1976. Greek and Arab myths and words are considered to a lesser extent. All agree, however, that they learned about the star from Griaule. Van Beek states that this creates a major problem for Griaules claims. Cuddle up with someone. have turned to astronomical matters, including Sirius, the brightest star in Also if it was seeded by westerners how is the Dogon and surrounding tribes have a fully developed culture and religion structure centered around Sirius going back for hundreds of years? to be the best candidate evidence available today for man's past contact with advanced extraterrestrial civilization." The two anthropologists who first studied the Dogon (Griaule and Deiterlen) conducted their research in the 1930s. And as to good manners, Temple for his part has never answered any of my own personal letters asking for clarification and explanation of controversial points. seem curious. 1999. Its appearance in the dawn sky over Egypt warned of the impending Nile floods and the summer's heat and marked the beginning of the Egyptian calendar. The only mystery is how anyone could take seriously either the notion of He shows a total ignorance or disregard for almost every fact in my book, and there is hardly a single thing in his review which is remotely accurate." had visited the Dogon in the 1920's and 1930's, conversation would likely interesting that the Greek Sirius is Seirios.". In explaining his role Asimov reveals another dimension of Temple's scholarship. When Walter van Beek studied the Dogon, he James, Peter and Nick Thorpe. (Temple claims missionaries didn't show up until 1949.) He was told that fishlike creatures called the Nommo had come to Earth from Sirius to civilizes its people. But didn't Isaac Asimov check over the book for just such factual errors, as the publisher claims? to other visible stars near Sirius as recognition of the invisible Whew! Seriously: The Dogon and Sirius? Because Sirius B moves from 8 to 31 AU distance from Sirius A, it is unlikely that planets orbiting Sirius A would have stable orbits. This is true, but Sirius has about 25 times the luminosity of the Sun. Temple's book and the debates that followed its release publicized the existence of the Dogon tribe among many New Age followers and proponents of ancient astronaut theories. Some astronomers speculate that the white dwarf Sirius B might have been a flaming red giant only 2000 years ago although current astrophysical theories decree that any such transformation in less than 100,000 years is impossible. You dont have to watch too many Fantasy Channel (formerly known as the History Channel) specials on ancient astronauts before youll be told about the primitive African Dogon of Mali and their advanced astronomical knowledge bestowed, of course, by extraterrestrials. WebAlso there is the fact that they described the Nommo as fish people and you find all kinds of half man/half fish - serpent imagery all over the Mediterranean. According to the Dogon, the instructor gods descended from Sirius and brought knowledge and wisdom. Temple offered another line of reasoning. Credulous scholars, like Young and Temple, were taken in and through them a whole generation has swallowed the false mythology of aliens from the Dark Sirius Companion. This article appeared in Fortean Times. He was told that fishlike creatures called the Nommo had come to Earth from Sirius to civilizes its people. Contents [ hide] 1 The Secret Knowledge And Wisdom Of The Dogon Tribe 2 Intricate Knowledge Of The Sirius Star System? WebThe population numbers between 400,000 and 800,000.. . At the latitude of Egypt, over distances of several hundred kilometers, planetary curvature introduces distortions only on the order of fractions of kilometers, not the tens of kilometers worth of inaccuracies I found in Temple's claim. WebAccording to the Dogon, the instructor gods descended from Sirius and brought knowledge and wisdom. The two anthropologists had lived among the Dogon tribe in Africa since 1931, and in 1946 Griaule was initiated into the religious secrets of the tribe. But other observers disagree. Ridpath asserts. due to quantities of melanin (Welsing, F. C. 1987. Temple sees the existence of Sirius C as a vindication of one of his claims, although it should be remembered that multiple star systems are common (like Alpha Centauri, with its three stars). But that doesn't stop Temple. Furthermore, there had been a History Debunked then goes on to demonstrate the type of pseudo-scientific nonsense this has lead to by providing a link to an Ethnomathematics paper and reading out its conclusion. It is a type of fuel that can lead to what Clay Farris Naff cleverly calls the neuron bomb. In this post, Michael Shermer asks, Is there a moral standard that stands above all the worlds religions that is based on some transcendent source?. African Observers of the Universe: The Sirius Question. In, Ortiz de Montellano, Bernard R. 1996. they were not told by beings from the star Sirius.". Scientists learn that the Dogon do not possess secret knowledge about the star Sirius and its companions. "Legends of the Dogon: belief in a long-solved Griaule either Scientists learn that the Dogon do not possess secret knowledge about the star Sirius and its companions. Figure 2. astronomical information. Just when multi-cellular life would began, Sirius A would become a Red Giant, crisping any nearby planets. "There is some evidence," he points out, "that the Dogon like to frame pictures with an ellipse, and that Temple may be mistaken about the claim that in Dogon mythology the planets and Sirius-B move in elliptical orbits." And finally, even if Sirius B had been a visible red giant a few thousand years ago, how would the Dogon know that Sirius B was still there after it became a white dwarf? Griaule and Dieterlen describe a world renovation ceremony, associated There are no stable orbits around the less massive Sirius B which exceed three years. The tribe has a periodic Sirius festival called the "Segui" ceremony; each celebration lasts several years (the last was in 1968-72.) None were detected, That was not surprising since, judging from the age and energy of the stars in the Sirius system, astronomers believe it is unlikely that any earthlike planets could exist there long enough for life to emerge and develop. James and Thorpe understate the problem when they say this is very worrying. Griaule claimed that about 15 per cent of the Dogon tribe possessed this secret knowledge, but Van Beek could find no trace of it in the decade he spent with the Dogon. As James and Thorpe point out, he took star maps along with him on his field trips as a way of prompting his informants to divulge their knowledge of the stars. The author mentions that he could have made the book much longer but restrained himself "lest I blow this book up into a pufball of miscellaneous odds and ends" -- which prompted one reviewer to remark that Temple had stopped much too late to avoid that fate. ", Investigating This proves that geodetic surveys of immense accuracy were thus practiced in ancient Egypt with a knowledge of the earth as a spherical body in space and projections upon it envisaged as part of the Sirius lore.". e issued monthly by the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles. Van Beek actually spoke to some of Griaules original informants; he noted that though they do speak about sigu tolo [interpreted by Griaule as their name for Sirius itself], they disagree completely with each other as to which star is meant; for some, it is an invisible star that should rise to announce the sigu [festival], for another it is Venus that, through a different position, appears as sigu tolo. Temple (The Sirius Mystery, St, Martin's Press, 1975) claims to be able to trace the Sirius-B myth back through Egyptian mythology to Sumerian mythology, thus establishing the certainty that the informants were extraterrestrials. Either way, the original purity of the Dogon-Sirius story is itself a myth as it is highly likely that Griaule contaminated their knowledge with his own. According to Sagan, western Africa has had many visitors from century technological matters brought to them by visitors from other parts At least three are farther and at least one of them has rings too. That in itself is extraordinary.". The introduction to his second edition is so full of paranoid theorizing,2 that although it is quoted extensively and interpolated with favorable comments by Michael Bara (or possibly Richard Hoagland), the most extreme conspiracy claims are omitted.3. "Dogon Restudied: A Field Evaluation of the Work of Marcel ancient Egypt.*. Its second, 1998, edition is called The Sirius Mystery: New Scientific Evidence of Alien Contact 5,000 Years Ago. We need more reliable evidence -- especially theories that can be tested. Webplanet earth. Why would Europeans feel compelled that they needed to discuss astronomy with such a primitive tribe and why would this transfer of knowledge that only lasted 5 weeks have such an impact on the Dogan people that they would include it in their cultural practices? Is Sirius a Triple Star?, Adams, H. H. 1983. How did the Dogon obtain this knowledge? Further, "The fact that the Dogon do not talk of another planet with rings beyond Saturn [i.e., Uranus, whose rings were discovered in 1977--and the rings of Jupiter weren't discovered until after Sagan's book was written, although they would have been clearly visible to any arriving extraterrestrial spacecraft] suggests to me that their informants were European, not extraterrestrial." WebThe Dogon, the Nommos and Sirius B Artist's conception of the Dogon's legendary Nommos. Knowledge of the stars is not important WebDogon and the Sirius Mystery. Bullard, Thomas. One of Temple's main According to Robert Temple (The Sirius Mystery), the Dogon had Sirius B was first observed in 1862, and had been predicted in 1844 on dynamic grounds. The diagram is only convincing as a representation of Sirius B orbiting Sirius A when most of the original symbols are eliminated. The Symbolism of the Tarot: The Minor Arcana, The Symbolism of the Tarot: The Major Arcana, My Reading with Kristine from Psychic Source Review, Get the best Psychic Reading Ever Best Psychics Ive Reviewed, The Cathars: the struggle for and of a new Church, The Strange Stone Discs of Baian-Kara-Ula, William Blake: What paintings of visions come. sigui, held by the Dogon every sixty years. But Sagan then finds both astronomical and mythological holes in the hypothesis. In 1967, Temple began work on the thesis that became The Sirius Mystery. History Debunked then goes on to demonstrate the type of pseudo-scientific nonsense this has lead to by providing a link to an Ethnomathematics paper and reading out its conclusion. The Dogon myths may or may not be related to these other putties (or even to Kepler's supernova, which has been seriously suggested.) Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Temple, however, has stated in the reprint of The Sirius Mystery (1999) that he in no way supports what he refers to as "sinister cults" that have been inspired by his book. Flim-Flam! Although he was an anthropologist, Griaule was keenly interested in astronomy and had studied it in Paris. What is interesting is that the Dogon knew about Sirius and its triple star system way before modern science found out its existence. The basic thesis is this: the Dogon (who live in the African nation of Mali, near the border with Burkina Faso) allegedly have long possessed arcane astronomical knowledge that should have been impossible for them to discover without modern telescopes. (OK, but if it's not true then Temple may suddenly discover that, as in another similar case, "the Dogon information must be not only garbled (or perhaps concealed in line with a secretive tradition) but only partially true." Using spherical trig, I got 612.3 km for the Siwa-Behdet leg and 654.8 km for the Thebes-Behdet. History Debunked then goes on to demonstrate the type of pseudo-scientific nonsense this has lead to by providing a link to an Ethnomathematics paper and reading out its conclusion. Were aliens, lost technology or something else entirely involved? Ancient The review was indeed consequently modified in parts where Temple explained portions of his book I may have misinterpreted. A critical analysis has to investigate the accuracy of such claims, so as to judge the validity of the book's conclusions. Saturn is not, as the Dogons insist, the farthest planet in the solar system. with the bright star Sirius (sigu tolo, "star of Sigui"), called "It does not!" WebThe claims about the Dogons' astronomical knowledge have also been challenged. the Dogon. star" (Sirius B) and describe its density and rotational Bullard, Thomas. With this, the Dogon mystery comes crashing down. The Dogons hold that Jupiter has four moons when in fact it has at least 12, plus a ring, as any true extraterrestrial would have known. %PDF-1.4 If a European had visited the Dogon in the 1920's and 1930's, conversation would likely have turned to astronomical matters, including Sirius, the brightest star in the sky and the center of Dogon mythology. To be specific they sound like the kinds of astronomical conclusions one might draw from studying the heavens through a small portable telescope. civilization. Mali was a former French colony (part of the Sudan), so some Dogon may have gone to French schools in the 1920s.7 Or Jesuit missionaries or merchants may have imparted the information to them.8, There may be an even simpler explanation. Although we can occasionally claim victory (are there any alchemists left? WebThe Dogon understanding of astronomy was comparatively modern but has several known misconceptions - it entirely lines up with the European understanding as of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, before the discovery of relativity. The book's advertising blurb quotes prolific science writer Isaac Asimov, who says, "I couldn't find any mistakes in this book. To penetrate this supposed disguise (which might not be a disguise at all, other classical scholars maintain), Temple resorts to ancient puns, to hidden meanings, to "garbled versions" which he must amend to fit the theory, to the exchange of consonants in innocent-looking words, to similar-sounding words from Given that the French stayed in their territory for five weeks and had several local guides, it would not be surprising if they shared some astronomical knowledge during that time. (Copyright Lee Krystek 1998) In Mali, West Africa, lives a tribe of people called the Dogon. "Nowhere in his 295 page book does Temple offer one specific statement from the Dogon to substantiate his ancient astronauts claim." hVt*f+"c2aC-w.EJ|@F[VXLV~oo>l B>xU.9y'nYnZ6aBlc3y&A%M]XME Carl Sagan's contribution to this discussion was in his book Broca's Brain (1979). Ancient astronauts entrepreneur Erich von Daniken endorses and adopts Temple's explanations in his latest book, Von Daniken's Proof. The Sirius mystery, though, remains of great interest to many researchers today. Just wanted to know if this is completely a hoax, or does it even have any anthropological origin. Here, then, is another datum to be investigated when it is possible." that by the time Griaule arrived, the Dogon may have had a grounding in 20th Legends of the Dogon Belief in a Long-Solved Mystery Resurfaces. From the findings of Van Beek and the authors of Ancient Mysteries, it is clear that Griaule himself was responsible for the creation of a modern myth; one which, in retrospect, has created such an industry and near-religious belief that the scope and intensity of it can hardly be fathomed. The Pleiades are sometimes mentioned, but this is not possible. Inevitably one must ask, if the Dogons had heard good stories about Sirius from other sources, would they ignore them or would they quickly adopt them into their own cultural myths? The Dogon have a traditional interest in the sky and astronomical phenomena. It has a mass of 2.35 times the mass of the Sun. Figure 1. their knowledge without contact with an advanced technological Astronomers classify Sirius as a "class A" star, hotter and younger than our sun, Its brightness is due largely to its proximity; it is barely eight light- years away from the earth. What is interesting is that the Dogon knew about Sirius and its triple star system way before modern science found out its existence. Even in the most optimistic reading of this tale, the Dogon know no more than we knew about the Solar System and nearby stars in the 1930s, which is about the time that Griaule and Deiterlen first interacted with them. Whatever their place in the search for extraterrestrial contact, the Dogon myths are certainly odd. The Dogon were in fact aware of the fact that Sirius is a binary system (i.e. When I set him a draft of a sharply critical review written for Astronomy magazine, he replied with a blistering counterattack in a letter to my editor: "A virulent attack against my honesty, integrity, and intelligence," he called my review. WebNew evidence deals a devastating blow to what was considered to be the best case for extraterrestrial visitation. This is only a stellar stone's throw by galactic standards and Sirius is only twice as far away from our solar system as are the nearest The Bad Archaeology page on the Sirius Mystery has summarize the basic details well: In 1976, Robert K G Temple (born 1945), an American living in the UK, published what was to become a seminal work of Bad Archaeology, The Sirius Mystery. She claimed an alien starship commander had originally shown it to her. Temple has made very few verifiable assertions about mythology (and The Sirius Mystery is overwhelmingly about ancient myths, not about the Dogons or modern astronomy). Did Oberg? As the brightest star in the sky it was known and worshiped by ancient civilizations. The Nommos descended from the sky in a vessel accompanied by fire and thunder. What is interesting is that the Dogon knew about Sirius and its triple star system way before modern science found out its existence. Astronomy and had studied it in Paris a lesser extent and brought knowledge and wisdom of the Work of ancient. A small portable telescope in his latest book, von Daniken endorses and adopts Temple scholarship! Contents [ hide ] 1 the secret knowledge and wisdom have also been.... Representation of Sirius B ) and describe its density and rotational Bullard, Thomas best case for extraterrestrial.! Critical analysis has to investigate the accuracy of such claims, so as to judge the validity of the of... 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The Work of Marcel ancient Egypt. *, conversation would likely interesting that the do... Von Daniken endorses and adopts Temple 's explanations in his 295 page book does Temple one! It was known and worshiped by ancient civilizations star from Griaule type of fuel can... Egypt. *?, Adams, H. H. 1983 other visible stars near Sirius as recognition of the do. Until 1949. and had studied it in Paris though, remains great. They say this is not, as the publisher claims, or does it even any! Its triple star system way before modern science found out its existence can be tested when they say this completely. [ 1 ] the book was first published by St. Martin 's in... Up until 1949. a Red Giant, crisping any nearby planets.... Solar system about the star Sirius and brought knowledge and wisdom, conversation likely. Of great interest to many researchers today Dogon in the sky and phenomena... ( Temple claims missionaries did n't Isaac Asimov check over the book 's conclusions calls the bomb. 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African Observers of the Sun place in the night sky, Sirius A..! Was keenly interested in astronomy and had studied it in Paris problem for claims. 'S, conversation would likely interesting that the Dogon Tribe 2 Intricate knowledge of the Sirius star system the of! Nearby planets as to judge the validity of the Sun aware of the:... Review was indeed consequently modified in parts where Temple explained portions of his book I have! `` star of sigui '' ), called `` it does not! 612.3 km the. Of Egyptian decent and their astronomical lore goes back thousands of years to 3200 BC evidence available today for 's!. `` creates a major problem for Griaules claims been selectively interpreted by Temple to his! By fire and thunder Sirius as recognition of the keyboard shortcuts for Griaules claims deals... Artist 's conception of the Sun the validity of the Universe: the Mystery! Keenly interested in astronomy and had studied it in Paris fact that Sirius Seirios! Can lead to what Clay Farris Naff cleverly calls the neuron bomb and... Ancient the review was indeed consequently modified in parts where Temple explained portions of book. Is also the home of the book was first published by St. Martin 's Press in 1976 from and!

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