I was listening to a discussion about projecting information into deep space in order to signal our presence as an intelligent life form, to alien life forms elsewhere – the question being, which number would be the best choice to communicate this? Suggestions included:
- Archimedes’ Constant (Pi): 3.1415.
- The Golden Ratio: 1.6180
- Planck’s Constant: 6.626068 x 10^-34 m^2 kg/s.
- The Speed of Light: 186,282 miles per second
- 1/137
- and even 42
The fibonnacci sequence, Plancks constant, pythagorean principle, 13, 42, are all reassuringly familiar and planted within the sphere of our understanding. It adds up, we know what to do with them mathematically and or what they mean symbolically. We of course do not know if any ET intelligence possess the same keys of knowledge to unlock the doors of understanding regarding these figures as we do.
Hearing this question made me think of all of the signs and symbols found in ancient art – pictograms which spoke loudly and clearly to the ancient understanding, yet to us are largely locked away – elusive and mysterious, enigmatic and intriguing
For many of these ancient symbols we have not yet found the correct key to unlock the barriers to full comprehension so we valiantly try to pick the metaphorical locks – and who doesn’t love a good puzzle?
Previous celebrated savants throughout time have solved enigmas that were tantalisingly out of cerebral reach for millennia until the cogs of awareness nugde along enough to dislodge the stubborn blockages of perception, the information stream washes away former confusion and the answers seem so beautifully simple and obvious, staring us in the face all along. Just as with a rubiks cube, the solution remains impentetrable until the penny drops about how the code works and the algorithms applied to solve the puzzle.
Scytales and Cyphers
In much the same way, the ancient Greeks and Spartans on campaign encoded messages using a scytale – a length of leather marked with notches, that needed to be wound around a stick of a particular length and circumference in order for the encoded message to become legible. Without the correct stick, it was just a strap of leather, yet with the correct stick the useless became transformed into the invaluable. Possessing the correct framework provided a structure upon which a line of knowledge spiralled; a simple humble stick with the power to unlock the untold. In the hands of the unaware it seems like nothing more than a bit of old wood, yet to those who knew the correct application of this simple yet elegant system of encoding information, it became a wooden punctuation mark delineating between potential for victory and heroic glory, or not.
Reflections
When within a hall of mirrors at a travelling fair or amusement park, we know that the distorted refections are versions of truth, but not the only truth; they are each reflecting back an image which is in accord to its particular composition, as do we all in our daily lives with our interactions with others and in our interpretation of the world around us. This is an important point to consider – the mindset of our ancestors at the point they composed or implemented certain laws, customs, practices and wrote or translated texts is also a reflection of their personal internal landscape – be it characterised by peace and equanimity, fear and greed, rationality and logic or superstition and fanaticism. We must be cautious about letting the transient mood swings of individual historical figures and their personal neuroses influence our collective experience moving forwards, and actively guard against the perpetuation of rhetoric from any narcissistic or mysoginistic historical influencers continuing to let their particular flavour of bad mood influence our collective decorum and standards, above all reason and rationality.
Levels of Understanding
There are many ways to interpret myths and legends, and symbols are by their nature designed to be open to interpretation; the depth and sophistication of the comprehension and elucidation being proportional to the level of consciousness of the observer. After all, we can only relate to ideas, concepts and philosophy as deeply as we are able to understand ourselves. Being open and curious to explore the different facets and nuance of the symbolic without preconceived expectation or limiting ideas about how things ought to be or what could have been possible or impossible (as far as we presume) allows opportunity for revelation in awareness.
Kabbalist scholars teach that there are four levels of understanding: literal, allusive, allegorical, and esoteric. That is not to say that any one is preferable or superior to another, rather that it is a gift and a blessing if we are able to utilise more than one of these and ideally be open minded and curious enough to allow for even all possible interpretations to be considered synchronistically, without one rendering all others completely redundant.
Whether it be a sacred texts or a deodorant advert, the content we consume either intentionally or serendipitously meets us at our point of need and understanding – what kind of guidance, comfort or motivational nudge is resonating for us at that particular point? Works of poetry or prose, art works and scripture suddenly reveal profound truths or lessons previously overlooked, even adverts or the idle chit chat of a young child can be revelatory in nature if our consciousness is at a point where we are open to consider life from a different aspect.
Such revelatory moments are barred when we succumb to the perils of dogmatic or rigid dualistic thinking. Rather than asserting one view as being right, or wrong to the exclusion of all else, or taking a them versus us mentality, possibly we can approach these ideas in a new light of respectful collaboration. In many places world wide local towns have friendly rivalry as to who’s version of a dish is superior. Devon and Cornwall both make cream teas, yet cannot agree which order the jam and cream must be layered onto the scone. When all is said and done, the only question we need concern ourselves with is, does it taste delicious? If yes, great, can’t wait to try both.