Historicity of the Flood

[Raoul Martens]

Hindu, Babylonian, Judaic et a. flood-stories are per-
cieved as astronomical myths describing precession as
the slow sinking of stars near horizon into the 'cosmic
water" below horizon (where it was thought to begin).
The observation was not related to any kind of 'zodiac'
something that came into existence much later. (1-4)

Noah's 'ark' = the ship of Utnapishtim/Manu could be the
constellation Triangulum = Sumerian-Akkadian 'mul Apin'
a boatlike triangle, the brightest star of which at the
head of the triangle, rose heliacally at or close to 90
degrees, i.e. the vernal equinoctial point, between ca
4000 to 3000 BC. (actually (and more precisely) during
Noah's 'lifetime' of 950 years acc. to Genesis IX:29).

The myth seems to be contrived by a people living close
to an ocean (in the case of the Hindus southern Sindh).
People living to the north up the Indus and Sarasvati
rivers had another, but analogous, view of precession.
Acc. to the literature re prehistoric Hindu astronomy
RgVeda data caused Tilak and Jacobi, independently of
each other, to their similar opinions that precession
was known in India well before 3000 BC. (5)

Yaska Nirukta 4.4.2 says that Aditi/Devamata = Pollux
indicated autumn equinox but was replaced by Rudra =
Betelgeuse, in Vayu Purana mentioned as the star of
autumn equinox. Indian astronomer S.B. Roy found the
said transition to have occurred in 4730 BC. (6)

Acc. to Mahabharata 3.219.8-11 Rohini = Aldebaran "fell
from the sky" and Krttikas = the Pleiads "went to the
sky", an event that led to a calendar reform: "Abhijit
became envious of elder sister Rohini and went to the
forest to perform penance, wishing to attain seniority.
That constellation fell from the sky. Upon this Brahma
(solstice) made time begin with Dhanista. Formerly time
reckoning used to begin with Rohini. When Indra told
this the Krttikas went to the skies."  (7)

This testifies to the prehistoric importance of preces-
sion, during millenia believed to threaten 'World Order',
later manifested in the Persian Mithraic cult. (8)

(1) de Santillana G. & von Dechend H.: Hamlet's Mill,
 London 1993
(2) Papke, W.: Die Geheime Botschsaft des Gilgamesh,
 Bergish Gladbach (Germany) 1993
(3) Reiche, H.: The language of archaic astronomy, in
 The Astronomy of the Ancients, Cambridge Mass USA 1979
(4) various astronomical computer programs: Dance of the
 Planets, SkyGlobe, Newcomb, Science Software: Astronomy
(5) Chattopadyaya, D.: Making of astronomy in ancient
 India, Cambridge University Press 1989
(6) Roy, S.B.: Prehistoric lunar astronomy, New Dehli 1976
(7) Rajaram, N.S. & Frawley, D.: Vedic Aryans and the Ori-
 gin of Civilization, Quebec 1995 (2nd ed. New Dehli 1997)
(8) Ulansey, D.: The Mithraic Mysteries, Sci. Amer. Dec. 1989

Sincerely Raoul Martens