http://SaturnianCosmology.Org/ mirrored file For complete access to all the files of this collection see http://SaturnianCosmology.org/search.php ========================================================== Axis mundi Mount Kailash , depicting the holy family: of Shiva and Parvati cradling Muruga with Ganesha by Shiva's side The *axis mundi* (also */cosmic axis/, /world axis/, /world pillar/, columna cerului, /center of the world/*) is a ubiquitous symbol that crosses human cultures.^[/citation needed /] The image expresses a point of connection between sky and earth where the four compass directions meet. At this point travel and correspondence is made between higher and lower realms.^[1] Communication from lower realms may ascend to higher ones and blessings from higher realms may descend to lower ones and be disseminated to all.^[2] The spot functions as the /omphalos / (navel), the world's point of beginning.^[3] ^[4] The /axis mundi/ image appears in every region of the world and takes many forms. The image is both feminine (an umbilical providing nourishment) and masculine (a phallus providing insemination into a uterus ). It may have the form of a natural object (a mountain , a tree , a vine , a stalk , a column of smoke or fire ) or a product of human manufacture (a staff , a tower , a ladder , a staircase , a maypole , a cross , a steeple , a rope , a totem pole , a pillar , a spire ). Its proximity to heaven may carry implications that are chiefly religious (pagoda , temple mount , church ) or secular (obelisk , minaret , lighthouse , rocket , skyscraper ). The image appears in religious and secular contexts.^[5] The /axis mundi/ symbol may be found in cultures utilizing shamanic practices or animist belief systems, in major world religions, and in technologically advanced "urban centers." In Mircea Eliade's opinion "Every Microcosm, every inhabited region, has a Centre; that is to say, a place that is sacred above all."^[6] Contents [hide ] * 1 Background * 2 Multiplicities o 2.1 Places o 2.2 Plants o 2.3 Human figure o 2.4 Homes o 2.5 Shamanic function * 3 Traditional expressions o 3.1 Asia o 3.2 Middle East o 3.3 Africa o 3.4 Europe o 3.5 The Americas * 4 Modern expressions o 4.1 Modern Storytelling * 5 See also * 6 References [edit ] Background Mount Fuji , Japan The symbol originates in a natural and universal psychological perception: that the spot one occupies stands at "the center of the world." This space serves as a microcosm of order because it is known and settled. Outside the boundaries of the microcosm lie foreign realms that, because they are unfamiliar or not ordered, represent chaos, death or night.^[7] From the center one may still venture in any of the four cardinal directions, make discoveries, and establish new centers as new realms become known and settled. The name of China , "Middle Kingdom," is often interpreted as an expression of an ancient perception that the Chinese polity (or group of polities) occupied the center of the world, with other lands lying in various directions relative to it.^[5] Within the central known universe a specific locale-often a mountain or other elevated place, a spot where earth and sky come closest-gains status as center of the center, the *axis mundi*. High mountains are typically regarded as sacred by peoples living near them. Shrines are often erected at the summit or base.^[8] Japan 's highest mountain, Mount Fuji , has long symbolized the world axis in Japanese culture. Mount Kun-Lun fills a similar role in China. For the ancient Hebrews Mount Zion expressed the symbol. Sioux beliefs take the Black Hills as the axis mundi. Mount Kailash is holy to Hinduism and several religions in Tibet . The Pitjantjatjara people in central Australia consider Uluru to be central to both their world and culture. In ancient Mesopotamia the cultures of ancient Sumer and Babylon erected artificial mountains, or ziggurats , on the flat river plain. These supported staircases leading to temples at the top. The Hindu temples in India are often situated on high mountains. E.g. Amarnath , Tirupati , Vaishno Devi etc. The pre-Columbian residents of Teotihuacán in Mexico erected huge pyramids featuring staircases leading to heaven. Jacob's Ladder is an axis mundi image, as is the Temple Mount . For Christians the Cross on Mount Calvary expresses the symbol.^[9] The Middle Kingdom, China, had a central mountain, Kun-Lun, known in Taoist literature as "the mountain at the middle of the world." To "go into the mountains" meant to dedicate oneself to a spiritual life.^[10] Monasteries of all faiths tend, like shrines, to be placed at elevated spots. Wise religious teachers are typically depicted in literature and art as bringing their revelations at world centers: mountains, trees, temples. [edit ] Multiplicities [edit ] Places Because the axis mundi is an idea that unites a number of concrete images, no contradiction exists in regarding multiple spots as "the center of the world." The symbol can operate in a number of locales at once.^[6] The ancient Greeks regarded several sites as places of earth's /omphalos / (navel) stone, notably the oracle at Delphi , while still maintaining a belief in a cosmic world tree and in Mount Olympus as the abode of the gods. Judaism has the Temple Mount and Mount Sinai , Christianity has the Mount of Olives and Calvary , Islam has Mecca , said to be the place on earth that was created first, and the Temple Mount (Dome of the Rock ). In addition to Kun-Lun the ancient Chinese recognized four mountains as pillars of the world.^[11] Sacred places constitute world centers (omphalos ) with the altar or place of prayer as the axis. Altars, incense sticks, candles and torches form the axis by sending a column of smoke, and prayer, toward heaven. The architecture of sacred places often reflects this role. "Every temple or palace--and by extension, every sacred city or royal residence--is a Sacred Mountain, thus becoming a Centre."^[12] The stupa of Hinduism , and later Buddhism , reflects Mount Meru . Cathedrals are laid out in the form of a cross , with the vertical bar representing the union of earth and heaven as the horizontal bars represent union of people to one another, with the altar at the intersection. Pagoda structures in Asian temples take the form of a stairway linking earth and heaven. A steeple in a church or a minaret in a mosque also serve as connections of earth and heaven. Structures such as the maypole , derived from the Saxons ' Irminsul , and the totem pole among indigenous peoples of the Americas also represent world axes. The calumet , or sacred pipe, represents a column of smoke (the soul) rising form a world center.^[13] A mandala creates a world center within the boundaries of its two-dimensional space analogous to that created in three-dimensional space by a shrine.^[14] Yggdrasil , the World Ash (Norse) [edit ] Plants Plants often serve as images of the axis mundi. The image of the Cosmic Tree provides an axis symbol that unites three planes: sky (branches), earth (trunk) and underworld (roots).^[15] In some Pacific island cultures the banyan tree, of which the Bodhi tree is of the Sacred Fig variety, is the abode of ancestor spirits. In Hindu religion, the banyan tree is considered sacred and is called "Ashwath Vriksha" ("I am Banyan tree among trees" - Bhagavad Gita). It represents eternal life because of its seemingly ever-expanding branches. The Bodhi Tree is also the name given to the tree under which Gautama Siddhartha , the historical Buddha , sat on the night he attained enlightenment . The Yggdrasil , or World Ash, functions in much the same way in Norse mythology ; it is the site where Odin found enlightenment. Other examples include Jievaras in Lithuanian mythology and Thor's Oak in the myths of the pre-Christian Germanic peoples . The Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in Genesis present two aspects of the same image. Each is said to stand at the center of the Paradise garden from which four rivers flow to nourish the whole world. Each tree confers a boon. Bamboo , the plant from which Asian calligraphy pens are made, represents knowledge and is regularly found on Asian college campuses. The Christmas tree , which can be traced in its origins back to pre-Christian European beliefs, represents an axis mundi.^[16] Entheogens (psychoactive substances) are often regarded as world axes, such as the Fly Agaric mushroom among the Evenks of Russia . [edit ] Human figure The human body can express the symbol of world axis.^[17] Some of the more abstract Tree of Life representations, such as the /Sefirot / in Kabbalism and in the /Chakra / system recognized by Hinduism and Buddhism, merge with the concept of the human body as a pillar between heaven and earth. Disciplines such as Yoga and Tai Chi begin from the premise of the human body as axis mundi. The Buddha represents a world centre in human form.^[18] Large statues of a meditating figure unite the human figure with the symbolism of temple and tower. Astrology in all its forms assumes a connection between human health and affairs and the orientation of these with celestial bodies. World religions regard the body itself as a temple and prayer as a column uniting earth to heaven. The ancient Colossus of Rhodes combined the role of human figure with those of portal and skyscraper. The image of a human being suspended on a tree or a cross locates the figure at the axis where heaven and earth meet. The Renaissance image known as the Vitruvian Man represented a symbolic and mathematical exploration of the human form as world axis.^[16] [edit ] Homes Homes can represent world centers. The symbolism for their residents is the same as for inhabitants of palaces and other sacred mountains.^[12] The hearth participates in the symbolism of the altar and a central garden participates in the symbolism of primordial paradise . In Asian cultures houses were traditionally laid out in the form of a square oriented toward the four compass directions. A traditional Asian home was oriented toward the sky through Feng shui , a system of geomancy , just as a palace would be. Traditional Arab houses are also laid out as a square surrounding a central fountain that evokes a primordial garden paradise. Mircea Eliade noted that "the symbolism of the pillar in [European] peasant houses likewise derives from the 'symbolic field' of the /acxis mundi/. In many archaic dwellings the central pillar does in fact serve as a means of communication with the heavens, with the sky."^[19] The nomadic peoples of Mongolia and the Americas more often lived in circular structures. The central pole of the tent still operated as an axis but a fixed reference to the four compass points was avoided.^[20] The Caduceus [edit ] Shamanic function A common shamanic concept, and a universally told story, is that of the healer traversing the axis mundi to bring back knowledge from the other world. It may be seen in the stories from Odin and the World Ash Tree to the Garden of Eden and Jacob's Ladder to Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel . It is the essence of the journey described in /The Divine Comedy / by Dante Alighieri . The epic poem relates its hero's descent and ascent through a series of spiral structures that take him from through the core of the earth, from the depths of Hell to celestial Paradise. It is also a central tenet in the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex .^[21] Anyone or anything suspended on the axis between heaven and earth becomes a repository of potential knowledge. A special status accrues to the thing suspended: a serpent , a victim of crucifixion or hanging, a rod, a fruit, mistletoe . Derivations of this idea find form in the Rod of Asclepius , an emblem of the medical profession, and in the caduceus , an emblem of correspondence and commercial professions. The staff in these emblems represents the axis mundi while the serpents act as guardians of, or guides to, knowledge.^[22] [edit ] Traditional expressions [edit ] Asia * Bodhi tree , especially where Gautama Buddha found Enlightenment * Pagoda * Stupa (Buddhism, Hinduism) * Mount Meru in Hinduism * Mount Fuji (Japan ) * Mount Kailash regarded by hinduism and several religions in Tibet , e.g. Bön * Jambudweep in Hinduism and Jainism which is regarded as the actual navel of the universe (which is human in form) * Kailasa (India), the abode of Shiva * Mandara (India) * Kun-Lun (China), residence of the Immortals and the site of a peach tree offering immortality * Human figure (yoga , tai chi , Buddha in meditation , sacred images) * Central courtyard in traditional home * Bamboo stalk , associated with knowledge and learning [edit ] Middle East * Garden of Eden with four rivers * Tree of Life and Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil * Mt. Ararat landing place of Noah's ark and court of the Armenian gods * Ziggurat , or Tower of Babel * Jacob's Ladder * Jerusalem , specifically, the Temple * Cross of the Crucifixion * Steeple * Mecca , specifically, the Ka'aba ; focus of Muslim prayer and where Adam descended from heaven * Dome of the Rock where Muhammad ascended to heaven * Minaret * Dilmun * Land of Punt * Paschal candle * Garizim (Samaria) * Alborj (Persia) [edit ] Africa * Meskel bonfire * Stelae of the Aksumite Empire * Pyramids of Egypt * Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove of Nigeria * Jebel Barkal of Sudan * Idafe of prehispanic La Palma [edit ] Europe * Yggdrasil (World Ash Tree in Norse cosmology ) * Irminsul (World Pillar in Germanic paganism ) * Mount Olympus in Greece, court of the gods (Greek mythology ) * Delphi home of the Oracle of Delphi and (Greek mythology ) * Colossus of Rhodes (Greek mythology ) * Maypole (East Europe and Germanic paganism ) * Christmas tree (Christianity ) * Jack's Beanstalk (English fairy tale ) * Rapunzel's Tower (German fairy tale ) * Hearth * Central pillar of peasant homes * Altar * Vitruvian Man * St. Peter's Basilica * Umbilicus urbis Romae , a structure in the Roman Forum from where all the Roman roads parted. [edit ] The Americas * Teotihuacán Pyramids * Totem Pole * Tent * Black Hills (Sioux ) * Calumet (sacred pipe) * Bamboo (Hopi ) * Southeastern Ceremonial Complex * Medicine wheels of the northern Great Plains 1. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.48-51/ 2. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.40/ 3. *^ * J. C. Cooper. /An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols./ Thames and Hudson: New York, 1978. 4. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Willard Trask). 'Archetypes and Repetition' in /The Myth of the Eternal Return." Princeton, 1971. p.16/ 5. ^ ^/*a*/ ^/*b*/ Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrandt. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. pp.61-63, 173-175 6. ^ ^/*a*/ ^/*b*/ Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.39/ 7. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.37-39/ 8. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.41-43/ 9. *^ * Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrandt. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. pp.680-685 10. *^ * Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrandt. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. pp.681 11. *^ * Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrandt. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. p.681 12. ^ ^/*a*/ ^/*b*/ Mircea Eliade (tr. Willard Trask). 'Archetypes and Repetition' in /The Myth of the Eternal Return." Princeton, 1971. p.12/ 13. *^ * Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrandt. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. pp.148-149 14. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.52-54/ 15. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.42-45/ 16. ^ ^/*a*/ ^/*b*/ Chevalier, Jean and Gheerbrandt, Alain. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. pp.1025-1033 17. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Symbolism of the Centre' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.54/ 18. *^ * Mircea Eliade (tr. Philip Mairet). 'Indian Symbolisms of Time and Eternity' in /Images and Symbols." Princeton, 1991. p.76/ 19. *^ * Mircea Eliade. 'Brâncuşi and Mythology' in /Symbolism, the Sacred, and the Arts." 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'Skyscrapers: A History of the World's Most Extraordinary Buildings.' Black Dog & Leventhal, 1998/2008. p.136-7 27. *^ * Judith Dupré. 'Skyscrapers: A History of the World's Most Extraordinary Buildings.' Black Dog & Leventhal, 1998/2008 28. ^ ^/*a*/ ^/*b*/ Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrandt. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. pp.1020-1022 29. *^ * Judith Dupré. 'Skyscrapers: A History of the World's Most Extraordinary Buildings.' Black Dog & Leventhal, 1998/2008. p.15 30. *^ * Mircea Eliade. 'Brâncuşi and Mythology' in /Symbolism, the Sacred, and the Arts." Continuum, 1992. p.99-100/ 31. *^ * Jean Chevalier and Alain Gheerbrandt. /The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols./ Editions Robert Lafont S. A. et Editions Jupiter: Paris, 1982. Penguin Books: London, 1996. pp. 18, 1020-1022 32. *^ * Nasa Apollo Mission: Apollo 13. 2007-08-25