It used to be that if a student wrote a paper on a particular subject the end of that paper would contain, require, a bibliography, a list of all the books used to get the information to write the paper. Perhaps the practice of requiring a bibliography has become antiquated, but the word and the origin of bibliography does go back to Antiquity.
Biblia, meaning books, ta biblia, meaning the books, biblion meaning book and biblos, meaning papyrus, scroll. Somewhere along the way these words evolve for us as the familiar BIBLE. Bible, before claimed as one book, was always -the books.
It could be true that the Bible is the most widely read book in the world, the most widely distributed and most translated.
But which Bible?
Sacred texts or canons make up the Bible for religions Throughout antiquity the books were translated, reviewed, revised, renamed, reorganized, according to the religious leaders and movements of the period. In time came two significant parts, the old evidence or testament, and the new. Now there wer two parts.
The old testament is the group of books said to have been written before the birth of Jesus. This period has, in our time, come to be called the time Before the Common Era or B.C.E. or some may say before the current era, in case as one humanity we don't see the whole calendar issue in common.
It was not so long ago that we used B.C. for Before Christ and A.D. for Anno Domini or 'Year of Our Lord. Basically A.D. was determined to be the year 1, the new beginning I think, the year of the birth of Jesus, ...I think. And and all the years that happened before Jesus the Christ was born would be referred to with the term before Christ B.C..
Rather consusing.
The calendar years would grow higher the further back in time the reference was. So, Plato the Greek philosopher, was said to have been born about 428 BC and died about 348 BC, the years decreased as he got older. But it didn't work this way when Plato was actually alive, because there had not been a Christ figure. The calendar systems were not the same then as we use now. Our system actually only changed about 1500 years ago, about the year we would now call 500 or 500 BCE. Not everywhere or everyone in the world uses this system.
The calendar systems, as other systems, have changed at times to suit the times or suit those in charge of the times. Some populations will argue or disagree on changes. Agree or disagree at the end of day the sun sets on all of us and we check another day off the calendar the just the same way. Ultimately, if we hold a god or a God within our heart it seems the terms used for a mundane tracking system or prayers said or sets of books would not cause division.
But division is a cultivated crop.
Ironically generation is disvion, Genesis, the origin, the creation. I believe the first stories of civilizations generally, or gener ationally always begin at the beginning. This is in essence ...One said let there be two. And the one was divided into two parts.
Every culture and all peoples have this story. Physics tells this story. A mother has told this story. A garden tells this story. It must be genetic. The sacred books tell the story.
The stories and books of all antiquity are sacred in that these relate a history, a tracing of humanity and this is what must remain, our trace of humanity. In the end most sacred teachings are encouraging the individual to trace back the human to the divine. And are we?
Some may call this regeneration, to create again, but thats another story.
So much is broad cast about how the laws were given to the people, how the generations and tribes came into being, how struggles and suffering and wars, plagues and famine altered and formed the characters of the people. And much more has been cast for human cultivation.
But the seed of unity appears uncultivated.
The Garden of Eden lost the heirloom seed in the fall of Adam. It became genetically modified. Isn't that the story?
Read the stories, the myths, the sacred books. Read the writing on the walls of Jericho or the Temple of Luxor. Read between the lines and below the surface level. Your story came from one.
Antiquity refers back to times and epochs long long ago, the Ancient days, the former ages, the roots that dug in when the soil was fertile. Anthropology is the study of humanity and its development of civilizations, empires and cultures. the Ancients. Sacred texts are the heirloom seed that first generations tried to plant, harvest and gather with their labors, and save for us. Sow we would Know too. So we would know two and one and the purpose of three.
The roots go down deep, the branches go high and wide, the soil holds it all together. See? There is a twilight between day and night, there is an equater between north and south, there is a you and there is a me and an us. There is an us and a them,... but then what? What force lies between?
The ANTIQUITIES articles here are about the stories, the characters and the value of these heirlooms in seed form. Cultivate the wisdom for the next generation.
ANTIQUITIES CHARACTERS GLOSSARY
