This
is a really good investigation into the mathematical mind of the
Egyptians and their ancient contemporaries including the Atlantean
civilization. Please note what I just said. This is the exercise of
the math talent which we direct differently today, particularly with
the discovery and acceptance of the use of zero and Cartesian Space.
I
reconstructed Bronze Age mathematics in two chapters in my
unpublished manuscript ‘Paradigms Shift’ That led to a number of
interesting thought experiments.
Otherwise the author
is out of his depth in his understanding of the science but at least
makes a good stab at it and does reveal much of the underlying
thought patterns which I find quite helpful.
The
Hermetic Universe
September
19, 2013
Michael
Hayes, Waking
Times
Ever
since my formative years, when I first began to think in concepts, I
have always been confounded by the mystery of human existence. By and
large we all tend to take this consciousness of ours for granted, but
for me it has always been a source of wonder. Equally perplexing is
that ultimate question in life: death – that future happening
looming over the horizon of all of our lives like some conceptual
black hole. What, one wonders, is the purpose in the unending cycle
of the genesis and inevitable destruction of all of us? Why are
millions of sentient beings all over our planet created, only to
starve or be slaughtered wholesale, many without ever having been
given the opportunity to fulfill themselves?
On
the wider scale of evolution, we see evidence in palaeontological and
fossil records, of the emergence and subsequent violent extinction of
whole races of people and species of animal. These entities come and
go with alarming regularity. But to what avail?
In
the greater universe also, existence is no less capricious, with the
continuous formation and devastating destruction of planets, stars –
even entire galaxies. And who knows what countless other life-forms
out there are being indiscriminately annihilated in this way? Just
normal, everyday occurrences – but these inviolable and often
disturbingly violent events have persistently gnawed at my reason.
Why, I ask myself, would the theologians all-wise and all-knowing
Benefactor – if he exists – create such a myriad of wonderful
forms and then turn round and simply destroy them? These endless
cycles of life and death, creation and destruction – what kind of
devilment is this?
The
ongoing debate over the possible existence and modus operendi of a
conscious, all-knowing creator proceeds unabated, with contributors
from all disciplines lining up to have their say. However,
owing to a specific sequence of events which led me on a solitary
quest which was to last nearly fifteen years, I believe I have found
a way of understanding what might really be going on in and around
us. And ultimately, if I am right, the future looks not all bad.
What is more, in this particular scheme of things, God
is tangible, very much alive, and undeniably omnipresent.
Strange
as this may seem, this whole scenario can all be explained with
numbers.
Introducing
the Hermetic Code
The
theory in question centres on a familiar numerical symbol: 22/7. This
is pi of course, a unique mathematical convention whose discovery is
generally attributed to the Greeks, but which in fact expresses a
symmetry that was recognised as far back as the time of the Egyptians
of the Old Kingdom.
It
is now generally accepted by all but the most hardened sceptic that
the classical pi ratio – 22/7, or 3.142857 etc. – is incorporated
in the dimensions and proportions of the Great Pyramid. That the
Egyptians knew of this value is further substantiated by a key piece
of non-pyramidal evidence. This appears in the form of a royal
decree, one of the most important administrative documents of the Old
Kingdom, which appoints the high priest and Grand Vizier Shemaj
Director of Upper Egypt. This document officially places all
twenty-two nomes (districts) under his authority, enumerating them
from first to last. Some time later the pharaoh appoints to the post
of deputy the overseer vizier j, who seems to be the son of the same
Shemaj. But then comes the most interesting part of this ancient
decree, which states that the son’s jurisdiction, as deputy,
extends to only seven nomes. The symbolism is obvious: father over
son, twenty-two over seven: pi.
Most
people are aware that pi is the ratio of the circumference of a
circle to its diameter. However this ratio exists separate from
circles as well. It resonates in and around us and is the answer to
innumerable maths puzzles. It is intrinsic to the solutions of
probability and statistical questions; and it is part of how we
interpret phenomena as varied as the structure of atoms to the motion
of stars. Is it not remarkable, therefore, given its uniqueness and
sophistication, that the ancient Egyptians incorporated this
symmetry, not only in the proportions and dimensions of what is
undoubtedly one of the most impressive pieces of architecture of the
ancient world, but also as a basic model for the conduct and
interactions of their high priests?
Now,
apart from geometry and the solving of probability and statistical
questions, there is another, much more important aspect of the pi
convention. This is its musical conformity.
22/7 is in fact an expression of three consecutive octaves of
resonance. An octave, as everyone knows, comprises seven fundamental
notes: Do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti. The eighth note, Do, a repeat
of the first but with double the pitch frequency, is the first note
of the second octave. Accordingly the eighth note of the second
octave – again, Do – is the first note of the third. Taken
together these three octaves contain twenty-two notes.
What
we have here, in fact, is a symbolic embodiment of the two most
fundamental laws of nature, namely, the ubiquitous law of three
forces (active-passive-neutral), and the lesser-known but equally
all-embracing law of octaves. The law of three forces, as we shall
see, is the absolute mainstay of all creative processes, whose
influence manifests practically everywhere. The second law, the law
of octaves, tells us that all phenomena generated by these three
primordial forces are essentially musically structured. To
sensibly visualise this concept, we need to look at the formula pi
when expressed musically, like so:
Do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-Do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-Do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-Do.
This
configuration expresses in exact scientific terms everything you need
to know to understand the General Theory of just about Everything.
All one need do to appreciate this is to remember the key musical
numbers incorporated within it. These are: 3, 4, 7, 8, 22, and 64.
Three, the number of the Trinity, is the number of octaves encoded in
pi. Four is the number of base-notes (Dos) in three
consecutive octaves. Seven is the number of intervals between the
notes of the major scale. Eight is the number of individual
notes in the major scale. Twenty-two is the number of notes in three
consecutive scales or octaves. And, according to the law of three
forces, the three octaves incorporated in pi are each sub-divisible
into three octaves apiece, giving an inner formula of nine octaves,
or sixty-four notes. So eight is the constant,
and sixty-four, is the square of it.
So
much for the maths. You don’t need to be an Einstein to
venture further, although it is worth noting the most famous
scientific equation of all time – e=mc2 – was
formulated to verify this great scientist’s Special Theory of
Relativity, which states that e, the latent nuclear energy
contained in any given element, is equal to m, the mass of the
thing, multiplied by c2, the square of the constant speed
of light. As we shall see, the square of the constant occurs time and
again throughout the whole of nature.
I
have called this musical pattern of symmetry the Hermetic Code,
after the Greek god of wisdom and patron of alchemy Hermes
Trismegistus, known as the god Thoth, in Old Kingdom Egypt. As noted
previously, it was in ancient Egypt where the pi symmetry first came
to light, both in its most famous piece of architecture the Great
Pyramid – and also in extant administrative documents of the Old
Kingdom.
The
law of three expressed in the Hermetic Code can be recognised by
anyone. Nothing in this universe can be created without the combined
action of the three forces described by it: active, passive and
neutral. The three main constituents of atoms – protons, electrons
and neutrons – the triplet-codon templates of the genetic
code, the three pin plug, two opposing teams and a neutral referee,
the three primary colours of the spectrum of light, the tripart
social and political arenas, two chemical compounds and an
intermediary catalyst – all of these trinities exist and interact
as a direct result of the three fundamental forces described by the
first law of nature. Whenever and wherever something is created,
these three forces will inevitably be there.
The
second law – the law of octaves – also operates throughout the
entire universe. For example, the atomic scale of matter described by
the periodic table of elements in chemistry conforms to this law
precisely. Based on the atomic weight of a given substance, the table
begins at its apex with hydrogen, the lightest of all elements, which
has just one electron tracing a specific orbit, or period, around the
nucleus. The heavier the element, the more electrons it hosts, and
the more periods are needed to accommodate them. The table culminates
with substances like curium, one of the densest of radioactive
elements. The curium atom consists of ninety-six electrons, which
between them trace a total of seven periods around the nucleus
precisely the number of periods, or intervals, between the
fundamental notes of the major musical scale. The
eighth, transcendental note of this atomic scale is the
whole phenomenon, all atoms combined.
There
is also a current method of classification in nuclear physics called
the theory of quantum chromodynamics, which indicates that, beneath
the atomic scale, in the world of subatomic quanta, there are also
distinct musical symmetries. The American physicist Murray Gell-Man
noted that the categories of particle-molecules known as baryons,
mesons and pions always combine together in families of eight, which
he called octets – hence his name for the system: the eightfold
way. Further, each of the eight particles in an octet is a triplet
made up of three smaller particles, which Gell-Man called quarks.
Three quarks to each particle, eight particles to each octet – an
altogether familiar pattern. And then we have the hermetic structure
of light, with its three primary colours, the seven fundamental
colours of the spectrum and the final eighth note, the product of all
seven colours when spun together – the white ray.
Whilst
still on the subject of theoretical physics, significantly the number
sixty-four, the square of the musical constant, has surfaced in
superstring theory, which describes all particles in the universe as
infinitesimally small strings made of a kind of vibrational energy.
You really cannot get more conceptually obscure than superstring
theory, with its eleven different dimensions (three spacial, one
temporal, and seven others of increasingly acute curvature), and a
system of higher mathematics guaranteed to give the layman a form of
intellectual vertigo. But no matter, all we need to know here is that
this incredibly complicated system holds that there are eight degrees
of manifestation or modes of movement inherent within the string
itself. Moreover, in order to account for the four-dimensional
structure of classical space-time geometry, the superstring theory is
further developed through calculating the formulation of the string
in four dimensions, the mathematics of which apparently produces
precisely sixty-four specific degrees of movement
associated with it. The detailed mechanics of this theory involves a
language all of its own, inaccessible to the general reader, myself
included. The point is – and any lay observer can see this – even
the most complex and advanced mathematical formulae of present-day
scientific thought, taken as symbols, reflect virtually every aspect,
every nuance, of the original Hermetic Code.
As
well as the microcosmic music of the underworld, there is also a
cosmic aspect of the Hermetic Code. This is dramatically reflected,
not only in the musical symmetry of light itself, but also in the
movements of major planets in relation to the Sun, many of which, as
I explain in my book High
Priests, Quantum Genes, beat out endlessly repeating intervals
developing in time, which exactly conform to the relative values of
the fundamental notes of the major scale. Ergo, the music of the
spheres is not simply legend, but fact.
Perhaps
most crucial of all aspects of the Hermetic Code is that it actually
resonates throughout the entire organic world. Probably most of you
will have heard of the genetic code, a chemical arrangement used by
the DNA in the cells of your body to manufacture amino acids, the
building blocks of all organic life. In the genetic code there are
four kinds of fundamental chemical bases: adenine, thymine, guanine
and cytosine. In this respect it is significant there are exactly
four base-notes, four Dos, in the triple-octave of resonance
described by pi. It takes three of these bases to make what is known
as a triplet-codon, an amino acid template, of which there are
precisely sixty-four variations. Each of these codons correspond to
one or another of twenty-two more complex components, namely, the
twenty amino acids and two further coded instructions for starting
and stopping the process of protein synthesis.
All
this, therefore, is crystallised music, composed by nature from units
and sub-units of the constant number eight and its natural multiple,
the square of the constant, sixty four. This same universal
harmony is also reflected in the ever present number seven of course,
which again, as we see from the periodic table, is prevalent
throughout the whole of nature. This is simply because it, too, is an
expression of the law of octaves, which describes eight fundamental
notes, but with seven intervals between.
So
the General Theory of just about Everything is described in its
entirety by the Hermetic Code, an exact blueprint, not only of the
underlying structure of the physical universe, but also of the
genetic code, of the DNA molecule, of life itself. This
unique evolutionary concept has been in existence at least since the
time of Old Kingdom Egypt. And, remarkably, the symmetry it describes
is currently resonating through the entire spectrum of modern
scientific enquiry. How strange is that? Well, not quite so strange,
for the seeds of science were sown long ago, as we shall see when we
go back in time. Consider this:
In
the symbolism of every major religion and belief system in history,
the key numbers of the Hermetic Code are paramount. Without
exception, these immensely powerful religious doctrines are all exact
copies of the original blueprint. To briefly illustrate this, we need
only to focus on the two key numbers of the octave: eight (the notes)
and seven (the intervals between).
In
ancient Egypt, where the Hermetic Code first came to light, the
people revered a pantheon of eight principal gods. There were three
main theologies in the Old Kingdom: Hermopolitan, Memphite and
Heliopolitan, and in all of them the octave format formed the basic
blueprint.
In
China, in the third millennium BCE, the legendary sage Fu Hsi
introduced a belief-system which was subsequently condensed into a
book we today know as the I-Ching,
whose chapters were numbered using a combination of eight three line
symbols called trigrams. Confucius, who later added commentaries to
this enigmatic book, subsequently introduced a system of instruction
known as the Eight Steps of Learning.
The
body of writings known as the
Vedas of Indian tradition described the nature of reality as
being supported by a system of proofs, of which there were considered
to be eight fundamental types. Reminiscent of this also are the
systems of the Buddha, with his Eightfold
Path, and the Persian Zoroaster, with
his pantheon of eight Bounteous Immortals. Pythagoras,
as we know, reinvented his own take on this oldest of sciences by
working out the precise mathematics of the octave. In the Book of
Genesis of Mosaic tradition, we read that God worked for six days,
rested on the seventh, presumably starting over again on the eighth.
Later still, Jesus Christ acted out possibly the greatest musical
performance of all time through the Passion, which began on Palm
Sunday and ended, seven days later, on the Sunday of the
Resurrection. Finally we have Mohammad, last of the great
revelationists, whose famous night journey began at the sacred site
of the furthest mosque (The Dome of the Rock Temple in Jerusalem –
the first note), and continued up through the seven heavens.
The
number seven, or the septenary principle, is equally ubiquitous in
the annals of human tradition.
It
first appears in the customs of the Neanderthal race as far back as
75,000 BCE. In a cave at Drachenloch in the Swiss Alps, a known
bear-hunter site, there was discovered an altar in which were
enshrined seven bear skulls, each with their muzzles pointing toward
the entrance.
The
Hindus regarded the constellation of the Great Bear (our Plough), as
the heavenly home of the Septarishi, an embodiment of the
seven Rishis (properties) applicable to the whole of
nature. Their land had seven peninsulas, seven islands, seven rivers,
seven seas and seven mountains.
Another
key number of the Hermetic Code, as noted earlier, is the number
sixty-four, the square of the constant. This, too, is a vital
component of many major religious and esoteric traditions. We have
already noted this number is intrinsic to the pi convention, whose
encoded triple-octave is further subdivisible into nine inner octaves
– sixty-four notes. The Greeks recognised an Egyptian number system
known as the Magic Square of Mercury, defined by the number 2080,
which is the sum of all the numbers from one to sixty-four. Mercury,
of course, is a Romanised version of Hermes/Thoth, the Egyptian
messenger of the gods.
In
the time of the Buddha it was customary for the nobility to consult a
council of sixty-four Brahmins on matters of supreme importance. The
ancient game of chess, whose true origins are the subject of endless
debate and whose strategic possibilities are seemingly endless, is
played on a board comprising sixty-four squares. The Tarot pack, with
its fifty-six minor arcana cards also includes a major arcana of
twenty-two cards. This major arcana, a triple-octave on one scale,
must also, according to the law of three forces, be a single octave
on another scale. If we add this greater single octave onto the minor
arcana figure, we end up with a total of sixty-four notes. And again,
in the Koran, there is a crucial chapter on the sacred light of Allah
– chapter sixty-four.
So,
what does all this mean? It means many things, whose separate
conceptual strands all lead us back to the same hermetic blueprint.
It means that the Hermetic Code, the design plan for everything
existing – particles, cosmic concentrations, living cells – is
applicable literally everywhere, not only in the wider universe, but
also, as we see from esoteric traditions going back over centuries
and millennia, in the ephemeral realms of the collective human
psyche. It tells us that, if everything is music, then
everything is hermetic, genetic, alive. There is an ancient
dictum attributed to the Egyptian god Thoth which sums up this idea
perfectly: As above, so below. The message is clear: man below and
the universe above, as stated so emphatically in Genesis, are made in
the same image. Everyone, quite literally, is a miniature universe.
And expansion is the natural course of things.
And
so, if hermetic is genetic, this means the whole universe itself
is alive, it is a living organism of infinite size. So
if you are looking for a god, we have here a candidate that outshines
all of the ill-defined, abstract deities alluded to by clueless
clerics – an all-powerful, omnipresent deity that actually
does exist.
If
we assume, therefore, that the universe is itself an organism,
a living entity, and that we are all copies of it, then
this would imply that the more advanced products of an organic brain
– ideas, theories, concepts – are also in their own way alive,
they are metaphysical genes, as organic as the brain from which they
originate. The ancients of the remote past, in my view, seem somehow
to have understood this, which is why they devised a musical mode
of existence in the form of prescribed disciplines and rituals which
enabled them to psychologically conform to the laws and forces
controlling evolution. This is precisely why religion was first
invented – to instil into the collective consciousness of humanity
the necessity ofharmonising one’s inner faculties according to
the principles of the Hermetic Code.
The
aim was quite straightforward, it was an attempt to complete the
natural course of one’s evolutionary and psychological development
by living-out a harmonious existence and
ultimately transcending on to a higher plane, a greater
musical scale above. This greater scale, a wholly scientific concept
describing a higher dimension of existence accessible to the trained
mind, is the heaven expressed in all religions.
About
the Author
MICHAEL
HAYES is the author of the new book High Priests, Quantum
Genes, which includes an introduction by Colin Wilson. The book is
published by Black Spring Press. To order the book visit their web
site www.blackspringpress.co.uk.
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