Fundamental to Velikovsky's understanding of ancient myth, as we have observed, is the belief that it encodes historical events, albeit on occasion in a figurative and symbolic manner. In some notable instances, as in the myth of Athena's birth or the Deluge, myth relates spectacular events involving the respective planets. Elsewhere, however, Velikovsky suggested that myth would be found to record biographical events from recent history. The Greek myth of Oedipus, according to Velikovsky's analysis, refers in large part to court intrigue in the Egyptian Thebes of Akhnaton.[Fn.41]
An issue never addressed by Velikovsky is the following: Why do some myths, such as that of Athena's birth from the head of Zeus, commemorate the spectacular behaviour of planets, while others, such as that of Oedipus, commemorate the extraordinary deeds of human beings? Velikovsky's dualistic approach to ancient mythology, needless to say, raises a host of questions regarding his methodology, not the least of which is by what criteria does one distinguish between the two types of myth?
In order to adequately appreciate the ramifications of this apparent contradiction in Velikovsky's writings for his historical reconstruction--as well as for a science of mythology--it is necessary to attempt a definition of myth, however tentative.
VELIKOVSKY UPDATE--Three [this and 3 other postings comprise an article from AEON--A Symposium on Myth and Science, Vol. III, No. 1, November, 1992]
TOWARDS A SCIENCE OF MYTHOLOGY: VELIKOVSKY'S CONTRIBUTION
By: Ev Cochrane
ON MYTH AND SACRED HISTORY
Countless definitions of myth have been offered, needless to say, none wholly satisfactory. For our purposes here we would endorse the opinion of Eliade, who defines myth as sacred traditions about the origin of the world:
Myth narrates a sacred history; it relates an event that took place in primordial Time, the fabled time of the `beginnings.' In other words, myth tells how, through the deeds of Supernatural Beings, a reality came into existence, be it the whole of reality, the Cosmos, or only a fragment of reality--an island, a species of plant, a particular kind of human behaviour, an institution.[Fn.42]
In his voluminous writings on myth, religion, and related subjects, Eliade has argued that myth is typically a sacred story related about primordial events which are believed to have happened at the dawn of time, involving such themes as the creation of the world, the flood, wars of the gods, the dragon- combat, the origin of culture, etc. Mythological themes formed the focal point of early culture and religious ritual, countless aspects of daily life being designed to commemorate these sacred events through imitation, mimicry, and simulation. Ancient cities and temples, to take but one example, were designed and oriented in accordance with the sacred original:
All the Indian royal cities, even the modern ones, are built after the mythical model of the celestial city where, in the age of gold, the Universal Sovereign dwelt. And, like the latter, the king attempts to revive the age of gold, to make a perfect reign a present reality.[Fn.43]
What was true for ancient architecture was also true of ancient law, sacrificial rites, art, sports, war, etc. In each case the local custom was expressly patterned after the divine prototype, revealed in the distant past.
A recurring theme in Eliade's writings is the intimate relationship between myth and history. Not only does profane history reveal numerous attempts to commemorate the sacred events of myth (wars of conquest, for example), but on occasion myth can be found to masquerade as history. Indeed, as numerous scholars have come to recognize, it is not always easy to distinguish between cosmological myth per se and sacred history as found in many cultures. In early Rome, for example, Dumezil found that although much of its ancient mythology had been lost, it resurfaced as "history" in the accounts of Roman historians. The famous account of Rome's first war and the taking of the Sabine women is a case in point.[Fn.44]
Countless other examples could be offered in support of Dumezil's hypothesis. The greatest god of ancient Egypt--Osiris- -can be found masquerading as a mortal king in "histories" of the Hellenistic period. Quetzalcoatl, the greatest god of Mesoamerica, was represented in similar fashion by Aztec chroniclers. Indeed, the "historization" of great gods as early "kings' and "heroes" is so commonplace in ancient traditions that one would be justified in speaking of a rule governing the composition of tribal histories.
To return to Velikovsky's historical reconstruction: How, then are we to interpret the Hebrew tradition of the Exodus? As myth--defined, it will be remembered, as sacred traditions concerning the origin of the gods and world--or as an objective history of real people and events? If we approach the Old Testament account of the Exodus from the standpoint of comparative mythology it is evident that it contains more than a trace of mythical elements which, were it not that these particular traditions are so dear to us, we would otherwise recognize as being typical of cosmogonic myth. It is well-known, for example, that numerous peoples traced their origins to a great god/hero who personally led them upon an extended migration to their ultimate homeland. Thus the earliest settlers of Italy were said to have been led there by Mars; the Norse remembered a similar migration led by Odin; while the ancient Aztecs were said to have followed Huitzilopochtli to Mexico City.[Fn.45] While it was commonplace in the last century to interpret such accounts in a Euhemerist fashion--e.g., as actual migrations led by men of flesh and blood--to do so today seems hopelessly naive.
A mythical aura surrounds other aspects of the Exodus-account as well. The parting of the Red Sea, as several scholars have recognized, is strangely reminiscent of the Symplegades- motive.[Fn.46] Here, it will be remembered, the hero barely succeeds in passing through some treacherous feature of the natural landscape such as clashing rocks, while his evil pursuer is caught and killed.[Fn.47]
The slaying of the Pharaoh, similarly, given his explicit identification with the dragon Rahab in Rabbinic sources, appears to bear more than a trace of the imagery associated with the dragon-combat. The latter theme, alluded to in numerous passages in the Old Testament, refers to the primeval occasion in which the demon of chaos was vanquished by Yahweh himself (or with the aid of a supernatural warrior-hero).[Fn.48] The episode of the wandering in the wilderness also has numerous parallels in the myths of other lands, a period of wandering frequently distinguishing the events associated with the Creation prior to the Creator finding a suitable spot to settle. The darkness said to have accompanied the period of the Israelite's wandering, similarly, would appear to relate to the darkness which is typically said to have preceded Creation, such darkness signifying a time of chaos.
The pillar of fire, said to have led the Israelites during their nocturnal peregrinations in the desert, has long troubled all but the most pious of scholars: "Of all the mysterious phenomena which accompanied the Exodus, this mysterious Pillar seems the first to demand explanation."[Fn.49] The account in Exodus 13, so difficult to reconcile with what we know about the facts of "history," is in perfect accord with the facts of comparative mythology, where the World Pillar forms a universal motive.[Fn.50] Indeed, in many traditions the World Pillar is expressly described as a pillar of fire.[Fn.51]
In short, while this is not the place to argue the probable origin of the Exodus traditions in early Hebrew cosmological myth, enough has been said, perhaps, to at least suggest this possibility. And such a conclusion, should it be confirmed by future research, would significantly undermine the rationale behind Velikovsky's attempted historical reconstruction.
Velikovsky's handling of the Exodus material illustrates what would appear to be a glaring flaw in his approach to the ancient sources. For want of a better term, I would note that Velikovsky tended to favour a literal interpretation of the ancient traditions. If the texts say the sea parted allowing for the escape of the Israelites, Velikovsky seeks a meteorological explanation of such an event. If the texts say that the Israelites wandered forty years in darkness in the wilderness, Velikovsky imagines the sun being obscured for a period approximating four decades. If the texts say that manna rained from the heavens, Velikovsky envisages carbohydrates falling from the skies and seeks to provide a physical explanation for such an occurrence.[Fn.52]
Although Velikovsky's interpretations here are within the realm of possibility, he offered no arguments which would preclude other, less exotic, explanations of such traditions. A prolonged eclipse of the sun, for example, such as that described in Exodus, would naturally tend to disrupt the accurate keeping of time, and thus the tradition of a 40 year period of darkness might simply be a conventional way of saying "a significant period of time" (40 years, after all, is a suspiciously common span in ancient texts). Certainly it would seem to be a hazardous enterprise to make of such traditions a foundation block in a radical reconstruction of ancient history.
In retrospect, Velikovsky's analysis of the Exodus-traditions seems naive, especially so inasmuch as it comes from a distinguished psychoanalyst who made his living analyzing dreams, where the phenomena of displacement, distortion, and condensation feature prominently. Indeed, as one peruses the wealth of mythological material in Velikovsky's works one is amazed at the relative dearth of analysis offered by him. In most cases the myths are simply accepted at face value, as literal records of ancient experience. Had Velikovsky applied his formidable analytic tools to the mythical elements co- mingled with the Exodus account, he would have found, I suspect, that the flight of the Israelites, the fall of the Pharaoh, the prolonged darkness, the time of wandering, and the pillar of fire are all susceptible of alternative explanation, one involving less strain on credulity.
CONCLUSION
Granted that our analysis has some merit, the question arises as to how and why Velikovsky went wrong? I, for one, would suggest that Velikovsky needlessly compromised his magnificent insight that myth commemorates the spectacular behaviour of planets in an attempt to proffer a scientific explanation to accommodate the sacred history of the Jewish people. Had Velikovsky pursued a more systematic approach in his mythological exegesis, he would have discovered, I would suggest, that the sacred history of the Jews is best understood by comparison with that of other peoples, and that such a comparison reveals that history to be less a record of human behaviour than an allegorical account of planetary goings-on, albeit one that has been suppressed and "historicized."
Alas, if Velikovsky's historical reconstruction rests uneasily upon the historical/mythological record, such is not the case with his thesis of planetary catastrophism, which is confirmed again and again by the ancient sources. Indeed, it is my opinion that Velikovsky's theory offers the best hope for a resolution of the most fundamental questions facing comparative mythologists. For the truth of the matter is that neither Eliade nor any other scholar has offered a satisfactory explanation of the content of myth. A glaring weakness in Eliade's interpretation of myth, for example, is the inability to account for the universal belief in a former Golden Age ruled over by a primeval king under whom all manner of customs were revealed. Yet as Velikovsky suggested--followed by David Talbott, Dwardu Cardona, and myself--such traditions are readily understood if once upon a time the planet Saturn ruled the visible heavens during an unprecedented period of prosperity and cultural advancement.[Fn.53] A Golden Age at the dawn of time was recalled as the well-spring of civilization and deemed to be the gift of Saturn for the simple reason that spectacular events associated with the period of that planet's dominance provided the "divine" inspiration for the origin and development of cities, laws, religious rites, systems of writing, etc. Having been, as it were, originally "revealed" by God on high, these patterns of behaviour were not only held to be sacred, they remained canonical for all time. To quote Eliade: "This `sacred history'--mythology--is exemplary, paradigmatic: not only does it relate how things came to be; it also lays the foundations for all human behaviour and all social and cultural institutions."[Fn.54]
No doubt we are still a long way from satisfactorily decoding the astronomical events encoded in ancient myth. Of this much, however, I feel confident: Velikovsky's discovery of the prominent role played by Saturn and the other planets in ancient thought not only ensures his place amongst the truly important figures in the history of science, it provides the all-important theoretical foundation for a science of mythology.
FOOTNOTES TO: TOWARDS A SCIENCE OF MYTHOLOGY: VELIKOVSKY'S CONTRIBUTION
By: Ev Cochrane
AEON is a journal of science devoted to the collection and exploration of archaeo-astronomical traditions and analysis of common patterns in ancient myths from around the world. Articles and abstracts build upon the pioneering work of Immanuel Velikovsky, author of the best selling "Worlds In Collision". Featured topics include:
Evidence of catastrophic planetary interactions in historic times
Reconstruction of standard archaeological dating systems
Evidence for cataclysmic evolution and extinction
Astral worship in the Egyptian Pyramid Texts, the Veda, and ancient Babylon and mythological traditions surrounding the planets in general
Astral myths of the American Indians, astral worship in Meso-America
The role of Osiris in Egyptian myth; Thor; the Mother goddess; the birth of Athena; Oedipus in Compartive Mythology; etc.
Common elements in the myths of Heracles, Indra, and Cuchulainn; in the myths of Heracles and Gilgamesh and myths of the Deluge from around the world
Please send all manuscripts and inquiries to:
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