The Curse of Konark

India houses legends and myths so old that sometimes the line between reality and imagination fades. You can't believe some stories, yet history proves them true. A place where reality is wrapped in myths and stories may not be just stories. A country filled with temples that are masterpieces of artwork, home of miracles, and sometimes fallen to curses.  

Yes, temples, the holy places of worship, can be cursed too.  

One such temple is the Sun Temple of Konark.  

Built in 1278 CE by King Narasimha Deva, a king of the Ganga dynasty, it was a tribute to the Sun god "Surya." Till now, the ruins of the temple have stood against the harsh trample of time, showcasing the genius minds behind the construction. The temple is built like a sun chariot with seven horses on the side, depicting seven days a week. The wheels of the chariot are sundials made with precision to count minutes. Twelve wheels signify the 12 months of a year. 

But do you know what was the most charming feature of this temple?  

Guess!  

Well, let me tell you, it's the floating idol of the Sun God.  

Yup, you heard me right—a floating idol.  

How is it floating?  

Simple, magnetic levitation. The base of the temple was made with lodestone, creating a strong magnetic field. At that time, Konark was located near the seashore, and the magnetic field was so strong that it posed a great disadvantage to ships sailing nearby.  

The disturbance was so much that some enemies plotted and stole the lodestone.  

Anyway, we will know about it a little later, let's first talk about how the temple became cursed.  

Before we delve into the story, let us know why the temple was built.  

Kona means angle, and ark means Surya Dev. It is said that after Vishnu Dev killed Gayasur, he placed his weapons in four regions of Odisha—Shankha at Puri, Chakra at Bhubaneswar, Gada at Jajpur, and Padma at Konark. So Konark is also known as Padma Khetra. It was also the place where the sun's rays first fell in Odisha.  

The Cursed Son

Now, there are different legends on why the temple was built. One of them was to celebrate the victory of Narasimha in a war.  

Another story portrayed a tale of Lord Krishna's son  Samba, who by mistake, entered Lord Krishna's wife's bed chamber and was cursed with leprosy. To get rid of the curse, he was advised to pray to the Sun God at Padma Khetra. After praying for a long time, he was relieved from the disease and decided to build a temple in honour of the Sun God.  

The First Curse

The first curse took place before the construction of the temple was completed.  

You see, the temple is built with very special rocks like chlorite, laterite, and chondrite from Udaigiri and Kadamgiri, located about 100 kilometres away from Konark. How these rocks were brought is still a mystery.  

Due to the magnetic nature of the rocks, a problem arose during the assembling of the kalasa on top of the temple. No matter how many times the architects tried, they couldn't balance the kalasa perfectly, and it kept falling. This one problem delayed their workflow and caused increased tensions with the King.  

During this tough period, one little boy, named Dharama the son of the lead architect Bisu Maharana around 12 years old, somehow figured out a way to adjust the kalasa on top of the temple. One night, the young boy climbed the roof of the temple and secured the kalasa.  The other workers heaved a sigh of relief but apprehended the fact that they were unable to solve a problem the little boy managed to solve also the king would belittle them and may punish them so they urged Bisu Maharana to choose between his son and the 12,000 workers.

 To save his father's honor and the lives of so many workers. The little boy jumped from the top of  the temple straight into the Chandrabhaga river on whose banks Konark was situated and sacrificed himself.  

Most of the people thought the child was an incarnation of Surya himself, and with his sacrifice, the temple attained the first curse.  

Some rishis warned the king to wait for a certain period before opening the gates of the temple to the public, but the stubborn king did not listen. He opened it on the day he promised, and trouble started.  

The beautifully crafted temple began breaking down. The first structure that fell was a statue of a lion, which fell from the top and is still lying in the exact same place it fell.  

After this incident, the temple was closed, but some people argue that after a certain period of time, the temple was opened again for pujas.  

The Second Curse: Haunting at Konark

The second curse is actually not a curse but the haunting tale of Konark.  

Due to the presence of the lodestone, ships were unable to navigate as the magnetic force interfered with their compasses. It posed a huge hindrance to trade and even prevented attacks on the kingdom. Even after repeated requests, they were unable to convince the villagers to remove the stone.  

So, some stories say that invaders sneaked into the temple at night and removed the lodestone.  

But...  

As soon as the magnet was removed, parts of the temple began crumbling. One of the places that fell prey to destruction was the Mandir, where the devadasis were resting. The whole building crumbled and buried the innocent souls underneath.  

The floating idol also went missing that night along with the lodestone.  

It so happens that after the sun goes down people have claimed to hear the sound of laughter of girls and ghungros (anklets worn by women during dancing) from the temple ruins.

 now of course paranormal activity exists or not is still debated?

The inside of the main temple had crumbled down just after the lodestone and the area is sealed now, so the us tourists would be unable to take a glance inside.

Third Curse: The disappearance of the river

The map of India is everchanging, you will find newly emerging islands, disappearing lands, missing waterbodies, course-changing rivers and a lot more.  Chandrabhaga river that once flowed beside Konark temple also fell prey to such a change. The river whose existence is immensely prominent in history and ancient maps has disappeared from the face of the earth in such a way that today not even its trace is found. To date nobody has deciphered the mystery of what caused the river to disappear.

And yes it is the same river where Dharama sacrificed his life.

Now if you ask me if the river ever existed?"

my answer would be yes

And it's not my assumption based on the old texts.

it's a myth that has been scientifically proven.

So should we visit this cursed temple?

why not?

It's a beautiful place with outstanding architecture. 

As said by Rabindranath Tagore " here the language of stone surpasses the language of man" 

It is indeed true that most people won't believe until you visit the place, the beautiful incarnations of myths, rituals, stories and mythical creatures of ancient India will have one captivated for hours that you won't even understand how quickly the time passed. It's like Lotus Casino for my fellow mystery seekers.

And besides it's not only the sun temple that is the only attraction of Konark do visit the peaceful Chandrabhaga beach which is a home of olive ridley turtles.

Do comment your views and I may personally tell you about another location near Konark that most tourists do not know about. Though some of you may know.

Blue rose belles

Archie

Mini Coffins of Edinburgh

 Have you ever wondered if you discover coffins on a quest to find rabbits?

And that also not of humans but of small dolls?

Well, this is what happened in Edinburg in 1836,

While playing in Arthur's seat, a group of boys stumbled upon a small cave in the rocks. They found seventeen mini coffins inside the cave, each containing a mini-doll.

Yes, dolls, and if you don't believe me check out the National Museum Of Scotland.

Eight of the seventeen coffins that survived are displayed there.

Unique collection to be kept safely in a museum right!

Now coming, to the question why are these coffins are so famous? Could they be a foul joke? or something a child did while playing?

Nah!

Things are never so simple!

Let's start with the dolls, each of the dolls is dressed differently and could be differentiated from one another. They are assumed to be originally small wooden soldier toys. The coffins are so tiny that some of the toys have their limbs removed to fit in. 

Coming to the coffin, each one is approximately 95mm in length and has carvings on their surface that also seem to be different from one another. They were arranged in three tiers, two tiers of eight and one solitary coffin on top.

Though most researchers think that all the coffins are made by the same person the question still remains!

 Why? why would someone make coffins of dolls and why hide them in Arthur's seat of all places?

Let's dive into the different theories behind these Lilliputian coffins.

Since these were discovered in the 1800s of course one of the first theories published in newspapers would be witchcraft and demonology!

How intuitive!

They must have thought something like "These look similar to voodoo dolls so blame the satanic cults!"

This was one of the theories published in The Scotsman on 16th July 1836.

Almost a month later, the Edinburgh Evening Post suggested a new theory. It mentioned an ancient custom of Saxony, where friends who were lost in distant lands were buried in effigy.

Caledonian Mercury, Talked about the existence of a superstition, where sailors lost in the sea were buried in effigies by their wives to give them a Christian Burial.

But these two theories still raise questions why seventeen coffins? or why bury them at a Volcanic hill?

Obviously, no answer was found.

The coffins disappeared for some time after being auctioned off. They reappeared in 1901 when they were donated to the Museum of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. Society somehow concluded that the coffins could be honorific burials.

But the case didn't stop there!

Of course, if it stopped there with such a simple theory, we Mystery seekers wouldn't have anything to discuss.

Besides, if they were honorific burials why make these dolls so creepy, that the children almost destroyed them.

Five years later in 1906, The Scotsman published another interesting but absurd story. 

The story was relayed by a woman who lived in Edinburgh, her father, was visited by a daft man. who had once drawn on a piece of paper three coffins with dates 1837, 1838, and 1840. following that incident in the autumn of 1837 a relative of her father died, in 1838 his cousin demised, and in 1840 his own brother. After the funeral, the daft man again appeared glaring at him, and then disappeared forever. Even if the article hinted that the daft man could be the original creator of these Arthur seat coffins. But they could also be a mere series of coincidences.

In 1976 Walter Havernick, director of the Museum of Hamburg History, came up with a new theory. according to a German superstition of keeping mandrake roots or dolls in tiny coffins as talismans, he postulated that these coffins could be lucky charms for sailors. Even though charms were still used in 19th-century Scotland, no evidence of such seafaring tradition was found.

I guess you are tired after reading so many theories,

So, now let's discuss the most interesting theory!

The Mystery of Murder Dolls.

Edinburgh became renowned for medical science by the early 1800s. The field of medical science is based on understanding the body's mechanisms, so of course, anatomy plays a vital role in this honorable study. We all know anatomy requires a human body to be dissected. With a rise in medical schools and students, fewer criminals punished with the death penalty, and diseases being treated better, there soon became a shortage of cadavers for anatomical studies.

The news of this soon spread like wildfire among criminals, who saw it as an opportunity, and body snatching from churchyards became a common thing. Thus, most of the criminals shifted to suppliers of dead bodies for medical schools. Among these suppliers, two soon attracted the attention of people, as the bodies they supplied seemed not to come from the graveyards.

The two Irish immigrants William Burke and William Hare ran a boarding house in Edinburgh. One day one of their elderly lodgers accidentally died still owing them money. To make up for their losses they sold the body to Dr. Robert Knox. This is how their murderous business started. 

Why murderous?

Because the rest of the bodies they sold none of them were accidental death anymore.

At first, Burke and Hare started abducting travelers then they became sloppy and started murdering townspeople who were easily recognized by others. The small mistake became their doom and William Burke was hanged after Hare confessed to his crimes. In the 10 months of their murder journey, they killed 16 people. After Burke died his body was also dissected and used for anatomical studies. 

How ironic!

Interestingly, a lot of people were admitted to the hospital that day just to observe his body.

So 16 victims and one of their murderers: could this be the answer we are looking for?

Could someone have felt pity and buried the people, murdered in cold blood who never got a proper funeral in this way?

The only logic against this theory is that their victims were predominantly women but toys were male.  Then again premade soldier toys.

Or is there some other story behind the miniature coffins? feel free to comment below.

If you don't know Arthur's seat is associated with the legendary King Arthur, not only that it was the home to the Celtic Voltadini Tribe in 400AD. 

Obivously, a story like this will attract a lot of creative attention. Ian Ranking, wrote  in his thriller book 'Fall', "Plenty of people over the years have come up to me with their excited notions of plots for my next book. I’ve found precious few of them to be helpful, or viable, but I was intrigued by these ‘little dolls’… which is how I made the acquaintance of the Arthur’s Seat coffins… As soon as I saw them, I knew they would make a great story, especially as no one had come up with an incontrovertible interpretation of their meaning. In other words, there was a story to tell about them…"

In 2006 the novel was adapted for television, and replicas of the coffins were produced. These replicas often replaces the originals when they were required to be presented somewhere else.

The mystery continues...

In December 2014, the museum received a beautiful replica of the coffin cryptically named XVIII, attached to it was a note which quoted the climax from a chilling short story 'The Body Snatcher' by Robert Louis Stevenson.

These tiny coffins will continue to attract more attention in the future. We can just hope for this mystery to be solved one day.

Blue rose belles

( Archie) 

The Ankh

Egyptian mythology has always been fascinating, the pyramids, the mummies, the biographies, and the controversies of Alien connections make it a pandora's box for mystery seekers. 

But today our topic is not the mummies, pyramids, or heck even the Aliens.

Today we are going to talk about a certain symbol of ancient Egypt.

a symbol that everyone has seen, even if they have no idea about Egyptian mythology.

The Ankh.

The Ankh is related to almost all the Egyptian gods and goddesses, but with each figure, the Ankh receives a new meaning

The Ankh is the symbol of life.

But what is life?

Is it the cycle of life and death 

or it is the story of birth,

Maybe it is the energy that keeps us alive 

or the source that created it all

Life is complex

So let us start little by little

Most theories suggest that the Ankh represents the womb, where life grows. The complex union of male and female gametes causes the creation of life. 

                                      

Moreover, it signifies the balance of nature, the circle represents the cycle of nature. The simple understanding of everything that nature created makes its way back to it again. So that a new life can be created again and the cycle of life continues.

The cross symbolizes the material plane.

It also symbolizes the afterlife and thus was used during mummy formation and on the sarcophagi, so the person could easily travel to the other world. 

The symbol is strongly connected to all the gods of Egypt even Anubis.

But with each god, the meaning of the symbol changed slightly,

Isis

The story of Isis is the most important one, as the origin of Ankh as the key of life.

So the story goes something like this

Osiris who is a god came to Egypt to rule as a king, he proclaimed new laws, taught them new techniques of farming, and so on. Under his reign, the Egyptian empire flourished and he soon became for his wisdom and kind heart. His fame and fortune soon caused envy in the heart of his brother Seth.

So Seth killed him in a really creative way, he took the measurements of his brother while he was sleeping, careful not to wake him or the goddess Isis, his wife. 

With the measurements, he ordered to make a beautiful chest that was exactly the size of Osiris. A few days later he threw a party and invited Osiris as guest of honor. There he played a game that anyone who could fit in the chest could keep it. when it was Osiris turn he shut the chest close and locked it up. then he and his friends threw the chest in river Nile. 

Isis after learning about Osiris's death, went in search of his body. She found the chest and retrieved his body, she wanted to do the last rites of her husband so she went to arrange for the rituals after burying him near the banks so that no one found him. Seth went to check if the chest had drifted far away when he stumbled upon Osiris's body, Infuriated he cut up the body in fourteen pieces and distributed them in various parts of Egypt. 

Isis came back with her sisters to perform the last rites of her husband, when she discovered the body missing, so she transformed into a bird and flew all over Egypt and collected the pieces of his body. With the help of her sisters, she was able to stitch the body up and then covered him with bandages. After performing the rituals Osiris came back to life, but he said that he couldn't stay in the living world and would become the king of the underworld, he also mentioned that the child Isis was carrying would avenge his death and bring justice to Egypt.

Horus defeated Seth and became the king of Egypt, In the battle his one eye was damaged but got revived again.

In the Egyptian images where the ritual to revive Osiris is performed Isis is seen carrying the Ankh, she holds it over Osiris' body giving the breath of life to him. A lot of scholars believe that it was the first time the Ankh made its appearance.

Anubis

Anubis is portrayed as the god of death, He is also one of the gods who assisted in the resurrection of Osiris. The Ankh of Anubis symbolizes the protection of the dead, Anubis is also given credit for the invention of the process of mummification. He guides the souls into the afterlife and protects the tombs from predators and pests that can harm the dead body.

But how does he protect the tombs

Well, the answer is Ankh

An Ankh is kept in the coffin along with the mummies. Some people say that the ankh emits very high-frequency vibrations, these are inaudible to human ears but not to the sensitive ears of animals. These sounds drive away the animals and insects and protect the bodies from decaying. 

This is also a reason why the Ankh was majorly used as an amulet by the people. It drives away the predators and protects the travelers. But it should be noted that unlike the Ankh nowadays which are made as jewellery set from metals the Ankh in those days was made from gold and several other elements. The composition of Ankh is still not understood.

So the Ankh that you find in stores nowadays cannot be used as an amulet.

Many claim that the key to using Ankh is Melanin, a skin pigment, that serves as a semiconductor.

The Ankh as a Source of Energy

The Ankh has many functions and one of them is the production of energy.

Some researchers claim that the structure of Ankh can be used to generate electricity. 

The energy is self-generative and can be used to power complex devices, It may not be clear how it functions but there are articles that show it's possible.

The Pyramids stand as proof that people in ancient times were much more advanced than nowadays, So making a device that is self-driven and generates energy wouldn't be that hard for them?

Meanwhile, whenever an ancient structure or device seems so advanced, Alien theories suddenly spread like fire, and at other times people refuse to believe in extraterrestrial beings.

Well, let's forget the Ankh for a minute, 

What is the source of energy necessary for a living?

The Sun

Without the sun the solar system wouldn't be there, Earth wouldn't be there, and neither would we.

There are two forms in which this energy from the sun reaches us, Photons and Electromagnetic Waves. 

So can the Ankh represent the sun

Yes

If the horizontal portion is taken as the horizon the loop as the pathway of the sun, rising and setting and the vertical portion as the portal of life or energy, then we get the ankh as a representation of solar energy.

So, when we talk about life, it is not only the lives of humans but the energy that sustains the living world on Earth also.

This is why Ankh is such an important symbol, it is able to represent almost all the concepts of life.

Another important theory is the connection of Ankh with the River Nile.

The pyramids had underground passages which led to underground canals containing the water of the river Nile. Many believe that the key to open these passages was shaped like the Ankh.

Since water is a vital element for life

So, the key that holds the power to open the water channels Can also be referred to as the 'key of life'

The Ankh is also a symbol that establishes the connection between the physical and spiritual world or physical and spiritual energy.

The pharaoh underwent extensive rituals, before ascending the throne, 

The pharaohs were partial gods, who could easily connect to the spiritual world. In many of the paintings, the Egyptian gods are seen holding the Ankh at the lips of Pharaohs giving them the power to rule the kingdom. 

Scholar Adele Nozedar writes: 

"The volume of meaning that can be squeezed from such a simple symbol is awe-inspiring. The ankh represents the male and female genitalia, the sun coming over the horizon, and the union of heaven and earth. This association with the sun means that the ankh is traditionally drawn in gold - the color of the sun - and never in silver, which relates to the moon. Putting aside the complexities of these separate elements, though, what does the ankh look like? Its resemblance to a key gives a clue to another meaning of this magical symbol. The Egyptians believed that the afterlife was as meaningful as the present one and the ankh provided the key to the gates of death and what lay beyond."

Like every symbol in history, the Ankh has its' origin and controversies related to it.

The Ankh is believed to have originated in the 30th to 29th century BC. Egyptologist Sir Alan H Gardiner believes the Ankh derived from the strap of a sandal while Egyptologist E.A. Wallis Budge believes it derived from the belt buckle of goddesses Isis, also known as the knot of goddess Isis.

The knot of Isis symbolizes the female genitalia and fertility, many scholars agree with this theory. 

One theory that I don't agree with is that the Ankh is the Egyptian cross.

Oh, come on the Ankh was way before Christianity came, and no aspect joins the two, except maybe both are holy symbols. 

The Cross emerged from a place where people were brutally killed, while the Ankh represents a symbol of life.

Besides the cross is a masculine symbol and Ankh is a feminine one.

So there are not many positive things that connect the two.

You can argue how Jesus was resurrected like Osiris but Jesus was resurrected after he was brought down from the cross while the Ankh gave the breath of life to Osiris

The Ankh played a vital role in Egyptian mythology and culture, to date it is seen as one of the most popular symbols of ancient times.

Blue Rose Belles

(Archie)

(Let me know your views on the Ankh in the comment section.)

UNRAVELING THE TITANIC MYSTERY

 

THEY SAID THE SHIP WAS UNSINKABLE, YET IT SANK!

2 AM on the morning of 15 April 1912, the RMS Titanic sank, drowning 1,500 people with it.

The question that the majority of us ask is, " HOW THE SHIP SANK?". 

The answer to that question is simple, " The ship hit an iceberg causing irreparable damage to it, which led to its drowning."

But what if the question I ask is, "Why did the ship drown?"

Confused right!

Well, you see, we all know the basic story that the media wants us to know and ignore the small details hidden within and what best place to hide than in plain sight.

The three adjectives that I want to use for the story of Titanic are creepy, tragic, and suspicious.

THE SUSPICION

Did you know the stack of binoculars onboard was never used?

The key to that room was not even on the ship!.

 The key never reached the ship due to some last-minute changes.

So, the lookers had to completely rely on their eyesight, not to mention the thick fog of the Atlantic would make it almost impossible to see. the lookers Frederick Fleet and Reginald Lee didn't see the iceberg until 37 seconds before hitting it.

It's funny to see that the key that could have saved so many lives, was sold at an auction in 2010 for  $130,000.

Was it a mistake or a well-planned mistake?

According to one of the survivors, a lifeboat drill was to be held on Sundays, but it was canceled on the first Sunday, which also happens to be the last Sunday, 14th April 1912.

The answer to, "Why the drill never happened?" drowned with the captain.

The very next question is about the scarcity of lifeboats,

 "Why were only 20 lifeboats on the ship carrying over 3,330 people?"

Even if the crew was overconfident, at least they could have kept enough boats to accommodate seventy percent of the people. There were supposed to be 60 lifeboats, but the number decreased before the voyage. According to the crew, the lifeboats would hinder passengers from enjoying the ocean view.

Stupid right! 

When you see people putting luxury and aesthetics over safety.

A telegram reached the ship, informing it about the icebergs ahead, but the message was ignored as spam?

The SS. California, although nearby, never came to aid the Titanic.

A missing key, An ignored warning, a Scarcity of lifeboats, and the help that never came, can all of them be ignored as mere coincidences.

You may ask me why would drowning a ship be planned?

 

Well, Titanic had some really influential men abroad, one of them was the richest man of that time, who went down with the ship. It could be a plot to wipe out some dangerous competitors.

THE PREDICTION

Now comes another twist to the story. The prediction.

Do you know that the fall of Titanic was predicted?

Almost 14 years before the ship went on a maiden voyage, a book was published called 'Futility' by Morgan Robertson, it was based on a fictional ship called Titan, that drowned on her first maiden voyage in the North Atlantic after it hit an iceberg. Not only the name and tragedy are similar but the Titan was imagined to be the largest ship, the most magnificent and unsinkable, and it also had a scarcity of lifeboats as the crew was overconfident. The book was renamed in 1912 as 'The Wreck of the Titan or Futility'.

I mean a lot of catastrophes have been predicted before like Corona but was the sinking of Titanic really predicted or the story of Titan was taken as a framework for the Titanic tragedy.

Confused!

Let's put it this way. If you are planning mass murder and want to show it as an accident, lure your victims with a promising offer, then make the accident. In this case, Titanic was made hype, the influential men wanted to be on the ship to show off they were capable enough to be on the most prestigious ship of that time. The couples wanted to make their honeymoon memorable to be on a famous ship and the last, passengers in third class just wanted the experience to tell stories to their grandchildren.

Now comes another rumor, the ship was already damaged before it hit the iceberg, it was damaged before even it started the voyage. The damage happened due to burning coal and not hitting an iceberg. Once the captain knew of the damage he started speeding the ship, so they could reach the land before a disaster.

Another theory claims that it wasn't even Titanic that went on sail, It was her twin sister the Olympic, a notorious accident-prone vessel. It was a desperate attempt to defraud the company insuring the ships.

It seems far-fetched, but the ship was really speeding up before it hit the iceberg. So could the sinking be pre-planned?

But the story of the sinking ship is not unique.

Another fictional story also had a similar storyline, written by journalist  W.T. Stead, who tragically died when the Titanic sank. 

It's scary right! how you write a tragic story and it becomes your own tragedy. 

A creepy coincidence occurred with  Revered Charles Morgan. He fell asleep and dreamed of turbulent waves in the sea and a dark sky with a long-forgotten hymn playing in the background. he woke up but when he fell asleep again the dream returned. He was so moved by the dream, that in the service that evening he played the hymn. It seemed so inappropriate at that time. As it was an inland church and the hymn was 'For those in peril on the Sea' and the date was 14 April 1912.

THE CURSE

Could the Titanic be cursed? Did you know that eight people died during the construction of the ship? A plaque memorizing them was discovered in Belfast.

A nurse Violet Jessop was called the luckiest or unluckiest woman on board she survived the fall of Titanic and also the fall of Britannic.

Did you know the 'Heart of the Ocean' that was portrayed in the film, is very similar to the Diamond of Doom?

THE CONCLUSION

So, how to conclude this mystery?

The story is obviously tragically surrounded by some eerie stories

But what about the suspicions that pose a red flag to ruling it out as mere coincidence or accident?

What do you think should be the conclusion? 

Comment below.

Blue Rose Belles

(Archie)

(Video from National Geographic.)

The Nine Unknown

 ❁❁❁

Secret societies have always been a topic of debate among scholars, the existence of those seemed too good to be true, and yet some names circulated among common men, raising the seed of doubt. 

While associations like the Freemasons are quite well known for their brotherhood, the existence of the Illuminati and Priory of Sion is still questioned. These societies included the most brilliant minds of the age, their motives were clear and secrets are hidden, and both organizations had to battle against the church to survive. The names of these organizations came to light mostly because of some leaked documents and Dan Brown. Illuminati is 400 years old, but what if I tell you about an older organization much older than the Illuminati and the Priory of Sion.

A 2000-year-old secret society, 

The secret society of Ancient India.

The alleged society was founded in India during the reign of Mauryan king Asoka.

Anyone familiar with Ancient Indian history is bound to know about King Asoka, his ties with Kalinga, and his preaching of Buddhism. Asoka is better known as 'Asoka the Great', he was the strongest Mauryan king even after his conversion to Buddhism, there were no weak holes in the kingdom. Could his strength be due to the secret society he created?

Secret society secret society and secret society? but what is this secret society about and what is its name?

drumroll, please

Conch sound, please!

THE NINE UNKNOWN

You must be thinking what type of name is it? but it may not be the real name, the real name may be washed away by the tide of time like many other valuable pieces of information. This is the name given to the secret organization by Talbot Mundy who published a storybook with the same title. He published the book according to his research but most people refused to believe in the existence of such a powerful group. 

So, what exactly are the Nine Unknown?

Well, according to the legend, Asoka chose nine men of knowledge and gave each one of them a book, so, nine books contained knowledge that would be lethal if got into the wrong hands. 

Do not roll your eyes at books.

These books were on subjects that shouldn't be known to mankind at that age. and no it isn't a pre-Illuminati.

The nine books were on subjects like, propaganda, physiology, microbiology, sociology, alchemy, light, communication, cosmology, and gravity.

Gravity, a concept that all thought Newton invented when the apple hit his head?

Nice story. Now let's continue!

It is also assumed the technique to kill with a touch was leaked from the second book, and some other leaked knowledge of these books has been used in judo.

The identity of the nine men was always kept hidden, and when one of the nine men left their position another brilliant mind took the place, who was elected by the former before his death. The nine men each had nine disciples, and each of their disciples had another nine disciples like this their organization had about 2100 men. These men spread throughout the world protecting their secrecy. The nine men were also assigned to collect information and research their respective subjects and increase the information in the books.

Of course, the books at that time were not printed but handwritten! so the knowledge in the books kept increasing and increasing.

Do you know that the first ever plastic surgery, Rhinoplasty, surgery of the nose was done by Shushruta in India in 600 BC and not in one of the highly developed advanced countries of Western medicine.

If you asked me why was Rhinoplasty needed?

Well, there was this cruel practice of cutting off the nose of criminals. So, every time they look at themselves or someone else looks at them, their cruel crimes will be remembered. Now, it is frequently used as a phase in India when someone is ashamed.

But why would Asoka need a secret society to keep Knowledge hidden? Shouldn't it be shared and spread?

Well to answer that question let us know a little back story.

Asoka was a man of extreme knowledge, he was the brightest among his brothers and also the strongest, but after the battle of Kalinga, he realized how destructive this knowledge could be and decided to collect this vast knowledge of ancient India and keep it hidden from common man to protect it from falling into wrong hands.

Asoka 

Kalinga was one of the kingdoms that Chandragupta Maurya was unable to capture. The kingdom was strong and posed a threat to the trade affairs of the Mauryan kingdom. The Mauryan kingdom ruled over most of India by that time, Asoka the grandson of Chandragupta decided to capture the kingdom by hook or crook and he succeeded. But at the cost of thousands of innocent lives. The battle of Kalinga is marked as the most gruesome war in Ancient India. After the battle, when King Asoka walked through the roads littered with dead bodies and splashed with blood, he was grief-stricken and so he decided to leave his ways of brutality and convert to Buddhism. He became a preacher of Buddhism and spread its words throughout the world. But the Mauryan Kingdom did not fall weak after embracing Buddhism as its core religion, it grew even stronger. 

Studying structure in India was a bit different, there were Gurukuls, where mostly higher class people were taught, and even so, they needed to prove their worth to their teachers. The teachers (rishis or munis) were highly respected as they were thought to be both knowledgeable and spiritual, anyone who wanted to study needed to pass tests from them, and these weren't written exams but rather some creative tests to check their practical skills and if they were trustworthy enough to gain knowledge. So, knowledge was seen as a powerful tool and Asoka, a brilliant student knew how to use this knowledge to win his battles. Maybe he even applied his knowledge during wars, so he knew how destructive it could be if fallen into the wrong hands. Maybe because of this reason, he created a secret society to protect this fascinating yet deadly power from the hands of destructive humans. Who will either not understand its significance or use it for their benefit?

The Nine Unknown worked in mysterious ways, 

It is said that during times of need, the Nine Unknowns secretly leaked the required pieces of knowledge to worthwhile men. Some sources say, Alexander Emilie Jean Yersin, visited Madras and met one of the descendants of nine unknown before he invented the immunotoxin vaccine for cholera. It is also known that Pope Sylvester II came to India and met the nine unknown, he was gifted with a talking bronze head that could answer yes or no, but the day he was going to present his advanced technology to the church, he succumbed mysteriously and the bronze head also vanished. Another piece of information is that the nine unknowns had an immense influence on the political and social workings of society. their influence was such that they could easily draw the strings without anyone suspecting it. They also had tons of treasure safely guarded against the world's prying eyes.

The huge amount of treasure may be stashed somewhere in India or spread in hidden stashes over the entire subcontinent or maybe somewhere in the world, cause nine unknowns had a wide network spread throughout the world but a stronger communication between their circles. 

To me, it is not very hard to believe that India may be the birthplace of such a powerful society, as the Vedas are proof of the advanced nature of science and technology of ancient India. There is an explained structure of the Atom described in one of the Vedas, eras before Dalton even existed. Ayurveda, yoga, and various other practices of modern science have been taken from old Indian scriptures.

 Nalanda was also the world-famous university of ancient India, it was known as the center of education. And this all was before the Renaissance, before Illuminati. not to mention gravity was already known by Indians before Newton. Then again Indians were the ones who gave 'zero' to the word, a digit without which mathematics would cease to exist. So, it is not impossible to believe in the existence of such a secret society.

Some people protested against the existence of such books but some Sanskrit texts discovered in Lhasa, and Indian scriptures in Afghanistan prove them wrong, there are descriptions of vimana (spacecraft) found there. So, Nine Unknown may have been real.

The majority of Secret societies have been washed from the face of the earth but nine unknown have always kept their secrecy better than most, could it be that they still exist?

❀❀❀

 blue rose belles

Archie

The ghost ship

If the story of the Titanic sends chills down your bones then Octavius will freeze you to death.

And that's what happened to the crew of the ship, they were frozen to death.

If a person feels cold then it is their natural tendency to curl up their bodies or use blankets but unexpectedly this is not the scene that happened in Octavius, the entire crew was frozen in their states of doing tasks. Even the captain was frozen at his desk with a pen in hand, writing into the logbook.

It was as if the crew was frozen in the blink of an eye without even realizing it.

(much like how suddenly everyone fell asleep in sleeping beauty).

Okay, so the crew died eerily, but that does not explain why Octavius is called The ghost ship? it should be called a cursed ship, that would be more appropriate, wouldn't it!

Well, then here is the reason

In 1761, the sailing ship Octavius left the port of London with a cargo destined for China. when returning from China with goods destined for Britain, the captain of the ship decided to take the northwest passage, that was the last time the ship was seen. The Northwest passage was a route that was still unventured by the icy waters there, but the British crew was very keen to claim the northwest passage and add another achievement to their list.  The ship never made it to London port and went missing on the way.

The story should have ended here as the lost ship but that was not the case.

 In 1775 a whaling ship, Herald was working in the frigid waters of Greenland when it observed another battered ship floating nearby, they send a team for inspection of the ship. The team identified the ship as Octavius and was frightened at the sight that prevailed there. The captain was frozen in his cabin with a pen in hand as if writing something, behind him they found a woman frozen holding her child wrapped in blankets. Downstairs all the 28 crew members were found frozen while performing some work. The bodies preserved by the frost, made the team run in fright, back to their own ship. They were in such a rush to leave the ghost ship that they didn't bother to pick up the fallen pages of the frostbitten logbook they collected as evidence. Luckily the first and last page survived and the last entry of the captain was of 75N 160W on 11th November 1762, i.e. 250 miles north of Barrow, Alaska. As the crew of Herald thought Octavius was cursed they left it adrift as it was. Octavius was never seen again.

Interestingly, as the ship was found off the coast of Greenland, it did complete its voyage of passing the northwest passage even if the crew was not alive to celebrate their victory.

what makes the ghost ship even more intriguing, 

1. the ship did not sink even after being weather-beaten for 14 years.

2. the creepy position in which the bodies were frozen

3. The ship floating on its own and completing the voyage it was destined for

4. the ship never being seen again.

5. the stories that revolve around the northwest passage.

The major spooky alarm comes from the way the bodies froze-

How can a person be okay one second and suddenly freeze the next second? there must be a quick and sudden temperature drop for that to happen. So, quick that the people didn't even realize it.

The mystery gets even more interesting when in 1848, two ships H.M.S Erebus and H.M.S Terror were set to search the northwest passage for an exploration known as Franklin Expedition. None of the crew survived the voyage and the ships also went missing. After 170 years of searching the wreck of HMS Erebus was found in September 2014 and two years later in 2016 wreck of the other ship was found.

You may ask what stories revolve around the northwest and why people are so eager to claim it?

The Northwest Passage is a sea route that joins the North Atlantic and the North Pacific, by way of the Canadian Arctic.

Let's begin with the first fact that the northwest passage is not a natural route but was invented by British explorers on the map while finding the fastest route to China. once they marked it up they were eager to discover it and claim it as it would give them an upper hand in trade. The northern islands had rough weather which posed the greatest obstacle in navigating those waters.

Some facts state that the inhabitants of those islands were different from mainland people with different cultures and technologies, some of their advanced technology included Inuit sunglasses and Inuit shoes. There is a huge gap in cultural differences between the northern people and the mainlanders. while the northern people were thought to be as harsh as the climate there the mainlanders were seen as greedy and deceitful by the northerners. This difference was like a dead end to the successful discovery of the route.

Another important point is that even after a ship sinks its remains can be found as was the case of HMS Terror and HMS Erebus but the remains of Octavius were never found. So, where is the ghost ship now?

The northwest passage was explored in 1903-1906 by Ronald Amundsen, his crew was able to survive the thick fog that surrounded these islands. But even after its successful navigation the Northwest passage still remains a place shrouded in mystery, with the unsolved case of Octavius and the disappearance of other ships, this place will always remain an area of attraction for the mystery seekers all around the world.

(What do you think happened to Octavius? write in the comments)

                                                                                   blue rose belles

Archie 

x

The Secret Behind Christmas

🔔🔔🔔

Jingle bells, jingle bells,

Jingle all the way.

Oh what fun it is to ride

In a one-horse open sleigh, hey!

The time has come for chilly winter mornings, fog-covered skies, red and white striped sweaters with a cup of hot chocolate and freshly baked goods along with our favourite Christmas carols on loop.

No matter how old are you Christmas is the time to be a child again and spend quality time with our loved ones.

Do you know why Christmas is celebrated?

to celebrate the birth of Christ

Well, you are technically right

except a teeny tiny detail is missing that most of us don't know

December 25th is not the day Jesus Christ was born!

Shocked!

Well, I was too when I came across this fact.

According to old scriptures, the actual birthday of Jesus Christ is assumed to be the 6th of January. Then why do we celebrate the wrong birthday of the son of god?

To answer this question we have to travel back to the 4th century.

it was the time when Christianity was gaining over Europe and pagan worship was struggling for existence. As most of the pagan worshippers were killed or tortured because the church saw it as a form of satanic worship. it wasn't a favourable time for both the teams. So, to avoid more bloodshed and to unite European countries, the church started including some pagan rituals into Christianity. the rituals were so intricately interwoven in Christianity that nobody doubted it. And at that time raising questions against the church was also punishable, so ...

So, Pope Julius I announced 25th December to be celebrated as the birthday of Christ.

Why 25th December? you may ask

 

because just 3 days before, the 22nd of December is the winter solstice, a day that was widely celebrated across Europe in various forms.

The date selected was so clever that by 5th century Christianity emerged as a major religion of Europe.

Why was winter solstice celebrated?

Because winter solstice marks the end of the harsher part of winter, as the day is supposed to be the coldest and has longest night. so in one sentence it is celebrated to say goodbye to woolens and waking up before sun.

What could be the similarities between Christmas and festivities performed during winter solstice?

well, since winter solstice was performed all over the world in different forms so there are various rituals we will come across

let's start with Rome.

In Rome the festival of saturnalia was celebrated during this time, slavery was banned and everyone was treated as equal. there was also grand feasts and gift-givings. In ancient Rome the pine trees were seen as sacred and an essential part of goddess' groves and were also brought home and decorated.

In Persia, the victory of light over darkness was celebrated in form of Yalda. in this festival people use to light candles and fires to ward off darkness along with feasts.

in China, Donghzi festival is celebrated, which is one of the most widely celebrated festival by Chinese people and the significance of the festival is to celebrate the seasons turning point towards warmer and lighter days of spring.

But the most significant, of all of this is the the old pagan celebration of  winter solstice - yule

According to pagan beliefs Yule is the birthday of sun rather than the birthday of Jesus. there is a story of two twin kings Oak king and Holy king , the Holly king is considered to be the king of waning period of sun and thus he use to rule from midsummer to Yule time (winter solstice) and during Yule he would surrender his throne to his younger brother the Oak king, the ruler of waxing period. both of them are considered to maintain the harmony of seasons and fight for the love of goddess. although many researchers consider them to be the same person.

A point to be noted in this context is the western world used to follow a sun calendar , where there seasons, months days and important times wee all based  on the position of sun. that's why the zodiac symbols are also called sun signs, So the sun held a huge influence and significance in rituals and beliefs of people.

Yule was also observed in old Germany, scholars have found some connections with the historic Germanic tradition and the wild hunt of Odin.

Now, you would be surprised to know that how much of the old traditions are still followed today in Christmas.

The first one is the concept of evergreen trees, yew, iris, ivy, were seen as sacred, though there is no historic proofs, if the trees were decorated or not, some scholars believed that that Christmas tradition of decking the halls was implemented from this old pagan tradition.

the concept of mistletoe came from this old tradition along with use of wreath to protect homes from evil and keeping them warm with love.

The famous Christmas tree or Yule tree was is thought to be introduced during Victorian times by  German prince albert. It was believed that bringing live pine trees into the house and decorating them with candles kept the houses safe and warm, as the wood spirits would be pleased. ( I don't think they would be very pleased if you empty the forest in the name of festival though).

Sometimes Christmas is also referred to as Yuletide or Yuletime, due to the similarities between the two. but now we know which one originated from which one. Though it is very plesant to see how Christmas  is celebrated throughout the world irrespective of the religion of person. It has truly become a widely accepted and loved festivals of time.

🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕🎕

Merry Christmas to everyone

blue rose belles        

   (Archie)   🎕