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An Astronomical Observatory?
Stonehenge
itself remains a steadfast observer of the world, watching the seasons change
from summer to fall to winter to spring and back again thousands of times over.
But it also bears witness to movements in the heavens, observing the rhythm of
the Moon and, more noticeably, the Sun.
For most
parts of the year, the sunrise can't even be seen from the center of the
monument. But on the longest day of the year, the June 21st summer solstice,
the rising sun appears behind the Heel Stone, creating the illusion that it is
balancing on the stone.
The Heel
Stone sits along the Avenue, that extends from the northeast corner of the main
monument. The rising Sun creeps up the length of the rock, creating a shadow
that extends deep into the heart of five pairs of sarcen stone trilithons -two
pillar stones with one laid across the top - in the shape of a horseshoe that
opens up towards the rising sun.
Just as the
Sun clears the horizon, it appears to hover momentarily on the tip of the Heel
Stone. A few days later, on midsummer's day, the sun will appear once again,
but this time, it will begin to move to the right of the heel stone. The same
phenomenon happens again during the winter solstice, only it's in the opposite
direction and a sunset. But both indicate a change of season.
It was the
British antiquarian William Stukeley who had noticed that the horseshoe of
great trilithons and the horseshoe of 19 bluestones at
It was argued
that the summer solstice alignment cannot be accidental. The sun rises in
different directions in different geographical latitudes. For the alignment to
be correct, it must have been calculated precisely for
The alignment
also made it clear that whoever built Stonehenge had precise astronomical knowledge
of the path of the sun and, moreover, must have known before construction began
precisely where the sun rose at dawn on midsummer's morning while standing on
the future site of the monument. This point needs to be made because with
Stonehenge and many other such monuments, it was the site, a particular place
within the landscape, that was important; only later were these sites marked in
some more permanent manner by the digging of ditches and banks and (or instead)
the erection of wood or stone structures.
For reasons
we shall never know, this particular spot in the landscape was so important
that not only were ditches and banks dug and, later, stone circles and
horseshoe arrangements constructed to mark it, but that some of the stones were
deliberately transported there with considerable effort from a great distance
away.
Either way,
this discovery had a tremendous impact on how
Others, like
20th century British astronomer, Sir Norman Lockyer, also saw
But to see
There are
also more than 400 burial mounds surrounding the ancient monument. Many of
these graves have been found to contain gold breast plates and other precious
metal items. These people may have wanted to be buried close to
More
recently, though, the astronomer Gerald Hawkins has argued that
Aside from
the sarcen horseshoe trilithons that open in the direction of the sunrise,
there are four stones, called "Station Stones" that may have played an
astronomical role. These were placed in a rectangle around the main monument,
within the ditch and bank that surrounds the circle of stones. These are
believed to point out the moonrise, moonset, sunrise and sunset. Only two stand
today.
One of the
first people to propose the idea that Stonehenge could have been a tool used in
understanding the heavens was 20th century astronomer Gerald Hawkins. He
proposed that Stonehenge, which he called a primitive astronomical computer,
could predict events of the Moon and Sun as well as eclipses. Hawkins
discovered astronomical patterns in the station stones, possibly erected in the
first phase of building, and within gaps between trilithons set up the last
phase of building. This connection was made by computer calculation, based on
maps and charts. It led him to believe that because astronomical properties
could be found in two aspects of the monument, there is definite evidence of a
heavenly purpose.
Modern day
astronomer, Fred Hoyle, tested Hawkins hypothesis. "I set myself the
clearcut target of finding out if the stones that exist at Stonehenge could, in
fact, be used to predict eclipses -- and it seemed to me that they could."
Hoyle took a
slightly different approach to Hawkins. His calculations are based on the 56
pits or Aubrey Holes mentioned earlier. These holes can be found on the inside
circle created by the ditch and bank, or henge. Hoyle believed it was possible
to determine eclipses by moving three markers, or stones, around the Aubrey
holes in such a way that when all three arrived at the same hole, an eclipse of
the Sun or Moon was about to occur.
But
Stonehenge may not have always been used in this way, according to Hoyle. He
believes that the first phase of building, where it was simply a ditch and bank
with 56 pits (the Aubrey holes) carved out on the inner side of the henge, is
the only section of Stonehenge that holds astronomical value.
"I was
convinced that the inner part, which was built around 1500 BC, was really
mostly a matter of simply religious construction," Hoyle says. "I
thought the people who built the first structures there, approaching 3000 BC,
were the cleverest and that the later people didn't know what they were
doing."
For the
archaeoastronomists, the Aubrey Holes served as fixed reference points along a
circle, and their number was essential to astronomical calculations. The cycle
of the moon, for example, which takes 27.3 days, can be tracked by moving a
marker by two holes each day to complete a circuit in 28 days.
A much longer
calculation is to move the marker by three holes per year to complete a full
circuit in 18.67 years. In this way, it is argued, it would be possible to keep
track of the nodes, points where the paths of the sun and the moon apparently
intersect to produce an eclipse. Because the moon slews around in its path, the
two nodes move along the path of the sun, a complete circuit of which takes
18.61 years. By means of the markers in the Aubrey Holes and keeping track of
the directions of the sun and the moon, the astronomer at Stonehenge could
calculate nodal points ahead of time and thus predict both lunar and solar
eclipses.
Whether this
was in fact the intended use of the Aubrey Holes has been disputed.
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Preface
Theosophy and the Masters General Principles
The Earth Chain Body and Astral Body Kama – Desire
Manas Of Reincarnation Reincarnation Continued
Karma Kama Loka
Devachan
Cycles
Arguments Supporting Reincarnation
Differentiation Of Species Missing Links
Psychic Laws, Forces, and Phenomena
Psychic Phenomena and Spiritualism
Quick Explanations
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What is Theosophy ? Theosophy Defined (More Detail)
Three Fundamental Propositions Key Concepts of Theosophy
Cosmogenesis
Anthropogenesis
Root Races
Karma
Ascended Masters After Death States Reincarnation
The Seven Principles of Man Helena Petrovna Blavatsky
Colonel Henry Steel Olcott William Quan Judge
The Start of the Theosophical Society
History of the Theosophical Society
Theosophical Society Presidents
History of the Theosophical Society in Wales
The Three Objectives of the Theosophical Society
Explanation of the Theosophical Society Emblem
Glossaries of Theosophical Terms
An Outstanding
Introduction to Theosophy
By a student of
Katherine Tingley
Elementary Theosophy Who is the Man? Body and Soul
Body, Soul and Spirit Reincarnation Karma
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An
Outline of Theosophy
Charles
Webster Leadbeater
Theosophy - What it is How is it Known?
The Method of Observation General Principles
The Three Great Truths Advantage Gained from this Knowledge
The Deity
The Divine Scheme The Constitution of Man
The True Man
Reincarnation
The Wider Outlook
Death Man’s Past and Future Cause and Effect
We can learn something from these guys
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Outline of the Creation Process
There is no Dead Matter in the Universe
The Divine Spark in Everything
The 10 rungs on the Ladder of Life
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(You do take some things with you but sadly not your
money)
(The Energy Driving the Universe)
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GENERAL PRINCIPLES THE EARTH CHAIN
BODY AND ASTRAL BODY KAMA – DESIRE
KARMA KAMA LOKA
DEVACHAN
CYCLES
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky 1831 – 1891
The Founder of Modern Theosophy
Index of Articles by
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H P Blavatsky
Is the Desire to Live Selfish?
Ancient Magic in Modern Science
Precepts Compiled by H P Blavatsky
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Articles about the Life of H P Blavatsky
Writings of Ernest Egerton Wood
Theosophy and the Number Seven
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H P Blavatsky’s Secret Doctrine
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Mahatma Letters to A P Sinnett 1 - 25
A Modern Revival of Ancient Wisdom
(Selection of Articles by H P Blavatsky)
The Secret Doctrine – Volume 3
A compilation of H P Blavatsky’s
writings published after her death
Esoteric Christianity or the Lesser Mysteries
The Early Teachings of The
Masters
A Collection of Fugitive Fragments
Fundamentals of the Esoteric
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Mystical,
Philosophical, Theosophical, Historical
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Essays Selected from "The Theosophist"
Edited by George
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From Talks on the Path of Occultism - Vol. II
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Twilight” series appeared during
1898 in The
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in The Theosophist.
compiled from
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Letters and
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Teosoficas En Espanol
Theosophische
Schriften Auf Deutsch
Hey Look! Theosophy in Cardiff
Quotes from the Writings of
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky
The Secret Doctrine , Volume 2, Page 100
It is only by the attractive force of the contrasts
that the two opposites — Spirit and Matter — can be cemented together on
Earth, and, smelted in the fire of self-conscious experience and suffering, find
themselves wedded in Eternity.
The Secret Doctrine , Volume 2, Page 108
It is the motive, and the motive alone, which makes
any exercise of power become black, malignant, or white, beneficent Magic. It is
impossible to employ spiritual forces if there is the slightest tinge of
selfishness remaining in the operator .... The powers and forces of animal
nature can equally be used by the selfish and revengeful, as by the unselfish
and the all-forgiving; the powers and forces of spirit lend themselves only to
the perfectly pure in heart — and this is Divine Magic.
Isis Unveiled, Volume 1, Page 36
The Secret Doctrine , Volume 3, Page 14
Even ignorance is better than
Head-learning with no Soul-wisdom to illuminate and guide it.
The
Voice of the Silence, Page 43
Annotation - The Path, May, 1888
The Secret Doctrine , Proem [Volume 1], Page 35
Isis Unveiled, Volume 1, Page 210
The Secret Doctrine , Volume 1, Page 134
incarnation of
his God; and when the sense of personal responsibility will be so
Isis Unveiled, Volume
2, Page 374
It is the
motive, and the motive alone, which makes any exercise of power become
The Secret Doctrine , Volume 2, Page 498
Isis Unveiled, Volume 1, Page 36
From strength to
strength, from the beauty and perfection of one plane to the
greater beauty
and perfection of another, with accessions of new glory, of fresh
knowledge and
power in each cycle, such is the destiny of every Ego, which thus
becomes its own
saviour in each world and incarnation.
The Key to
Theosophy, Page 105
The Secret Doctrine , Volume 1, Page 69
The mind
receives indelible impressions even from chance acquaintance or persons
Isis Unveiled,
Volume 1, Page 311
The Key to Theosophy, Page 228
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