In updating and bringing forward previous posts, I find that I interchange the terms Ancient Astronauts and Ancient Aliens. They are the same, but Ancient Astronauts seems a better fit.
Theorists believe Earth was visited by extraterrestrials who manipulated and guided human evolution from the time we crawled from the depths of the oceans, and maybe even before then. These extraterrestrials are known as Ancient Astronauts.
The Theory
Ancient Astronaut Theorists (AATs) began their research by studying the Sumerian culture and the Akkadian clay tablets. Sumer is the oldest civilization known to man and is located in southern Mesopotamia. It is today’s southern Iraq.
Akkadian is a language that coexisted with Sumerian language. Old Akkadian reached its peak in c.2270-2215 BC. Sumerian was a literary language used by the scribes. True writing of language—language that is not just numbers for record keeping—is believed to have originated independently in at least two separate areas of the world, one being ancient Sumer, 3200 BCE, and the other being Mesoamerica, 600 BCE. (BCE means Before the Common Era.)
An Ancient Astronaut Theorist
One of the few scholars able to read and interpret ancient Sumerian and the Akkadian clay tables was Zecharia Stitchin (1920-2010). His bestselling book, The 12th Planet, is based on his study of these ancient languages. As one might guess, his books have received both widespread interest and criticism.
His controversial theories on the Anunnaki origins of humanity have been translated into more than 20 languages and featured on radio and television programs around the world.
The Anunnaki are a group of deities associated with the Mesopotamian cultures and most assuredly the Sumerian culture. In Stitchin’s 1976 book, the 12th planet is Nibiru—an undiscovered planet beyond Neptune that collided with another planet located between Mars and Jupiter.
This collision formed Earth, the asteroid belt, and the comets. According to Stitchin, Nibiru was the home of an advanced extraterrestrial race—the Anunnaki of the Sumerian mythology, if it is indeed myth.
Stitchin suggests that the Anunnaki are the same as the Nephilim in Gensis 6:1-4. According to Genesis the Nephilim were the “offspring of the sons of God” and “the daughters of men.” Of course, arguments exist involving the translation of the word Nephilim.
A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, Brown-Driver-Briggs, translates Nephilim to mean “giants.” Stitchin wrote that this advanced extraterrestrial race came to be after Nibiru entered the solar system. These “gods” were the workers on an expedition sent to Earth looking for minerals, primarily gold. They became dissatisfied with their working conditions and mutinied.
In his book Stitchin wrote that, Enki, a god in Sumerian mythology, proposed the creation of a slave race to do the mining using genetic engineering and crossing ET genes with upright man (Homo erectus).
Criticism is based on Stitchin’s translation and interpretations of ancient texts, but then there are those who question the King James translation of the bible. Other skepticism of Stitchin’s work is based on astronomical and scientific observations, and literalism of myth.
As for me, Zecharia Stitchin opened a gateway to new ideas. A different way of perceiving the world in which we live. This underlying theme that mankind is guided, or perhaps manipulative, or was perhaps created by an advanced extraterrestrial race is the premise for my novellas in The Creep Mesquite Anthology, as it is for much of our modern literature and films.
As an example I offer the recently released movie, Gods of Egypt. I watched it last week and the entire time I thought this is a take on Ancient Astronauts. The gods resemble what one might envision ETs to have looked like with powers mightier than humans.
In the movie, these gods lived among men and were distinguished by their giant size, their golden blood, and their ability to transform into winged creatures who glided across the sands in chariots that looked like hovering spaceships.
If they had wings, why did they need hovercrafts? One of the many flaws of the film which received only a 15% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
I recommend the movie for it’s spectacular visuals, its capacity to tweak one’s imagination, and its all-star cast which is easy on the eyes.
Prometheus
Another example of the Ancient Astronaut theory in film is the 2012 movie, Prometheus. It is the fifth installment to the Alien Franchise and it’s opening scene stunningly portrays an Ancient Astronaut landing on early Earth and seeding the planet with his DNA into a cascading waterfall.
This seeding is referred to as Directed Panspermia.
The movie wasn’t a box office smash, though is was recognized for its mesmerizing visuals and as an adequate prequel to Alien. Most importantly, it revived interest in the Ancient Astronaut theory and the possibilities of mankind’s origins.
We’ve all hashed over Darwin’s theory of evolution, but it doesn’t really answer the question of how we began. Surely, we are not as happenstance as Darwin’s theory would suggest.
In Greek Mythology, Prometheus was the god who created man and gave him the gift of fire. Thus, the title of the movie seems fitting.
If one believes in such things.
How about you, do you think an alien race seeded our Earth and began the evolution of mankind?
The Probe’s Mission Statement
The Probe is a blog devoted to the exploration of the unexplainable, to finding the truth in occurrences that resemble science fiction, and to researching and reporting on topics that could be flung upon the wall of weird. New posts are featured as often as I can find WiFi, and as often as I have something I think you might find interesting.
Over a year ago I paid a company a lot of money to convert my blog over to WordPress. They did a terrible job as far as formatting. So over the next couple months I will bring forward old posts that are still relevant, update, reformat, and repost them.
(I now use Tech Surgeons for my blog and Jay is awesome. If you have any computer stuff that you need help with, contact Jay. If you want the name of the robber dogs who did a bad job and charged me a bunch, email me, and I’ll disclose that information to you privately.)
I live in an isolated, rural community in southern Colorado—conservative and rather closed minded. Though I love the area, it’s not a great fit for someone who believes in space travelers, thinks she is host to a Walk-In, and talks to her newly departed grandson. The few friends I have are not fans of science fiction. They prefer romance novels or reality TV. I would enjoy talking to other science fiction lovers, or ghost hunters, or animal lovers, or writers.
Join me here for more close encounters of the alien kind, or ghost kind, or animal kind, or travel kind, and please share your own. Science Fiction or Fact? Doesn’t matter to me. I just like a story that gives me the chills, makes me laugh, makes me think, or makes me imagine.
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