dogon sirius debunked

WebThe Dogon reportedly related to Griaule and Dieterlen a belief that the Nommos were inhabitants of a world circling the star Sirius (see the main article on the Dogon for a discussion of their astronomical knowledge). It was popularized in an episode from the In Search of television series narrated by Leonard Nimoy. How is that the Dogan tribe has a culture that combines elements from 3 different ancient traditions "rituals of Judaism, practices of ancient Egypt, and a symbolic cosmology that's closely resembles Buddhism? star" (Sirius B) and describe its density and rotational What is interesting is that the Dogon knew about Sirius and its triple star system way before modern science found out its existence. "He sent me the manuscript which I found unreadable. The stars in this group are too young only a few tens of millions of years for planets with life and civilization to have developed. 30-31. have turned to astronomical matters, including Sirius, the brightest star in In 1991, Van Beek led a team of anthropologists to Mali and declared that they found absolutely no trace of the detailed Sirius lore reported by the French anthropologists. The assyrians called Sirius Kal-bu-sa mas (the Dog of the Sun) and in Chaldea, it was known as Kak-shisha (The Dog Star That Leads) Known History of the Dogon According to Dogon mythology, Nommo was the first living being created by Amma, the sky god and creator of the universe. "Nowhere in his 295 page book does Temple offer one specific statement from the Dogon to substantiate his ancient astronauts claim." Conversations With thousands of similar objects along with even heavier and denser objects such as neutron stars and black holes. 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. Readers of Skeptic are not so sanguine. Temple's book mentions the absorption of a Christ-figure into the traditional Dogon Pantheon, obviously a recent addition. What is interesting is that the Dogon knew about Sirius and its triple star system way before modern science found out its existence. One of Temple's main The 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. [12] According to Oberg, the Dogons' astronomical information resembled the knowledge and speculations of late 1920s Europe, suggesting that the Dogon were influenced by European visitors before their mythology was recorded in the 1930s. interpreter. by Liam McDaid. Somehow, Temple and I have never gotten our disputes off on the right foot. Dogon people are renowned for their knowledge about the Sirius Star system which dates back to 3200 BC, long before scientists discovered it in 1862 The traditional mythology of the Dogon is amazing. On top of that, there is another star, Sirius B, orbiting at an average distance of about 20 AU (1 AU is the distance between the Earth and Sun). It would appear that the Dogon had extensive knowledge of the Sirius star system before the outside world had a chance to give it to them. She claimed an alien starship commander had originally shown it to her. A teacher named Marjorie Fish tried to corroborate Hills map by matching it to the Sun and nearby stars like Tau Ceti and Zeta Reticuli 1 and 2. Although he was an anthropologist, Griaule was keenly interested in astronomy and had studied it in Paris. The obviously advanced astronomical knowledge must have come from somewhere, but is it an ancient bequest or a modern graft? Dogon people are renowned for their knowledge about the Sirius Star system which dates back to 3200 BC, long before scientists discovered it in 1862 The traditional mythology of the Dogon is amazing. A review of the astronomical, cultural, and anthropological sides of this issue might be timely. James, P., N. Thorpe, and I. J. Thorpe. WebRe: Dogon Sirius claim debunked - Graham Hancock Official Website Mysteries Taken from [ library.thinkquest.org] According to the Dogon priests, Sirius is orbited by a tiny secret star that they refer to as 'po', which traces an elliptical path around Sirius taking 50 years to I published, showed the distances to be nowhere close, in error by tens of miles, at least ten percent -- hardly "immense accuracy. These same myths, Temple claims, identify a planet circling that star as the home of Nommo, an alien creature who founded the Dogon civilization. What about Sirius? Hmm, The Cardiff Giant, one of the most celebrated hoaxes in American history, on display at the Farmers Museum in Cooperstown, NY. Beware of mood swings. The Skeptics Society is a non-profit, Sagan, Carl 1980. The Pleiades are sometimes mentioned, but this is not possible. for some unknown reason from a planet orbiting Skeptic. of Griaule informants, had ever heard or understood that Sirius was a WebThe Dogon, the Nommos and Sirius B Artist's conception of the Dogon's legendary Nommos. Temple claims his expert cartographer found these distances "nearly equal." 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. 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). There are no stable orbits around the less massive Sirius B which exceed three years. This sounds significant and convincing until one measures the distance on a map and discovers an "immensely accurate equality" of a twenty percent difference! The proof is supplied by (the Odyssey), where Helios is said to possess 7 herds of 50 cows each and 7 herds of 50 sheep, a transparent allegory of the days and nights of the year.") The Dogon have a traditional interest in the sky and astronomical phenomena. Giants appear in cultures around the world: Biblical tales of giants more than ten feet tall; Roman and Greek stories of titans and heroes; European stories of giants of mountain and hill. African Observers of the Universe: The Sirius Question. In, Ortiz de Montellano, Bernard R. 1996. "Legends of the Dogon: belief in a long-solved He was told that fishlike creatures called the Nommo had come to Earth from Sirius to civilizes its people. Copyright 19922023. This is a complicated issue, because several special interest groups each claim the Dogon for their own. I disagree. extraterrestrial visitors? Furthermore, most Dogon symbology already has multiple levels of meaning; the sketches used to illustrate the Sirius secrets are also used in puberty ceremonies. sigui, held by the Dogon every sixty years. 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. Some of this information has been selectively interpreted by Temple to support his claims. 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. Liam is the author of Urban Astronomy and is a Senior Scientist for Skeptic. A recent newsletter from my local astronomy association still found the Dogon and their mysterious knowledge of Sirius B worth mentioning. So what is the alternative to the extraterrestrial hypothesis for the Dogon myths7 The Dogons could have learned of European Sirius lore in the 1920's from traders, explorers or missionaries, many of whom are avid amateur astronomers. -- in other words, no disproof would follow the failure of his prediction.). He soon multiplied to become six pairs of twins. The Dogon are supposed to have known that Sirius B orbits Sirius and that a complete orbit takes The Dogon also knew Sirius B was about the size of Earth and spun on its axis. found no evidence they knew Sirius was a double star or that Sirius B is According to the Dogon, the instructor gods descended from Sirius and brought knowledge and wisdom. The second problem is that ancient writers seemed to use color for stars in a way different from the way that we do (they described Pollux, Arcturus, and Capella as red a modern observer would call them yellow-orange, orange, and yellow, respectively). I disagree wit deeee72. of course, no evidence for this special eyesight, nor for other equally based his account on an interview with one person, Ambara, and an Since Sirius B is a very dense white dwarf star about the size of Earth, it can only be seen in dark skies with medium-sized telescopes. 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. 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. Afrocentrists, on the other hand, claimed that the Dogon could see by Philip Coppens. The brightest star in the sky is Sirius, now called Sirius A. The good news is that two of the first five entries were from skeptical websites (CSICOP and Bob Carrolls Skeptics Dictionary). The Dogon also knew Sirius B was about the size of Earth and spun on its axis. 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). This drawing is used by those who support the idea that the Dogon were taugfht about Sirius B by aliens. Precise maps at the NASA space photo interpretation lab in Houston list "Behdet" as an ancient name for modern Damanhur, located today at 31.03 degN, 30.28 degE, i.e., more than a hundred kilometers away from where Temple locates his "Behdet" at 31.50 degN, 31.23 degE. All rights reserved. I certainly concur with the first of those sentences! I suspect not.". But now, in another recent publication Ancient Mysteries by Peter James and Nick Thorpe this mystery is also uncloaked as a hoax or a lie perpetrated by Griaule. Lets start with the first idea, proffered by Robert Temple.1 Temples basic premise is that the Nommos visited the Dogon at some point in the past and gave them information that, in one form or another, the Dogon have passed down through oral tradition. Ridpath asserts. mystery resurfaces." Many served in the French army in World War I and some of them could have returned years later with colorful embellishments for their native legends. WebThe Dogon, the Nommos and Sirius B Artist's conception of the Dogon's legendary Nommos. 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. Temple's impressive research was encouraged by noted futurist Arthur C, Clarke (although Clarke now prefers the "modern influence" hypothesis). Fishs map and Hills map look similar only because the lines connecting the stars look the same. 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. they were not told by beings from the star Sirius.". traditional interest in the sky and astronomical phenomena. Webplanet earth. Several possibilities exist. Temple's theory is heavily based on his interpretation of the work of ethnographers Marcel Griaule and Germaine Dieterlen. stream Strangely, ancient records explicitly list Sirius as one of six "red stars." For instance, the anthropologist Walter Van Beek, who studied the Dogon after Griaule and Dieterlen, found no evidence that the Dogon considered Sirius to be a double star and/or that astronomy was particularly important in their belief system. He soon multiplied to become six pairs of twins. 1978. The "mystery" that is central to the book is how the Dogon allegedly acquired knowledge of Sirius B, the white dwarf companion star of Sirius A, invisible to the naked eye. Just wanted to know if this is completely a hoax, or does it even have any anthropological origin. He allegedly found the distances "to be nearly equal to one another" -- although no quantitative definition of "nearly equal" was ever offered. They seem to have WebThe Dogon, the Nommos and Sirius B Artist's conception of the Dogon's legendary Nommos. Did Oberg? To quote James and Thorpe: As for Sirius B, only Griaules informants had ever heard of it. Was Griaule told by his informants what he wanted to believe; did he misinterpret the Dogon responses to his questions? Temple lists a number of astronomical beliefs held by the Dogon that no conclusions of any kind." Below: The Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy (discovered in 2003) is the nearest known galaxy to the centre of the Milky Way. The Sirius mystery, though, remains of great interest to many researchers today. Flim-Flam! 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? knowledge of the satellites of Jupiter and rings of Saturn, among other The X symbol inside the oval is Sirius A, The oval itself is labeled Umlaufbahn von Sirius B, or Orbit of Sirius B. Pretty convincing. [15] An apparent "third star" observed in the 1920s is now confirmed as a background object,[16] something previously suggested by Holberg in 2007: Benest and Duvent found that stable orbits with a period of up to six years exist around Sirius A. Appleby also believes there exists a modern arrogance that cannot countenance the idea that ancient civilisations might have been scientifically superior. the Sirius "Mystery" by Ian Ridpath, Skeptical Inquirer, Fall Temples solution referred to legends of a mythical creature, the god Oannes, who might have been an extraterrestrial, described as descending to Earth from the stars to bring civilising wisdom to the Dogon forefathers. "We have in the Dogon information a predictive mechanism which it is our duty to test, regardless of our preconceptions." `` he sent me the manuscript which I found unreadable Dogon were taugfht about Sirius B which exceed years! 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