Sunday, March 11, 2012

Jonah vs. Atlantis


Just a brief thought about a pattern in scriptures, borrowing from prior records and stories.

I wonder, if the Jews borrowed the story of Jonah from ancient accounts of a great teacher emerging out of the mouth of a fish, coming from the ocean, giving instructions on how to run society and other advanced philosophies to tribal cultures around the world.

I've just listened to a Manly P. Hall lecture about Atlantis, which included references of a man, either in a fish suit, or coming out of the mouth of a fish, and do all of the above. Depictions of it are found all over the world, apparently. Even Babylon was a recipient of knowledge through this character and the priesthood took on the fish design, carried until today with the fish head hat of the pope, for example.

Anyway, in the Torah the story of Jonah seems to illustrate a very similar situation, including the teaching of the city of Nineveh. He came out of the fish's mouth (being vomited out for that matter, haha) and went to the great city of Nineveh, where he instructed the people of the way of the Lord, telling them that if they were not acting righteously, they'd be doomed.

Previously I came to a different conclusion about the parable, which I still hold on to to some degree. The core of the story illustrates that God's influence or rather control is absolute on anything, the logic that has been setup by creation is unchallenged by everything, except humans. Humans are somewhat beyond this pure control and are permitted to act on "freewill", having to find solutions adaptively. Ever since my model (please, don't sigh!) I see our function to find a relevant combination of the divine code (DNA) by virtues beyond our freewill, or rather beneath it, and the ability to decide is merely there to allow us to fulfill this task on top of a highly complicated foundation that requires adaptive behavior and more.

Thus God explains to Jonah that he only tries to teach humanity, but does not control us. He controls the winds, the oceans, the plants and the creatures, but we are left to our own devices to figure out what to do only by his guidance, if we understand to accept it. Then it will guarantee or help us to survive. If we do not accept the guidance, we'd be doomed or- put in another way- useless.

His example is the bush at the end of the story. God lets a bush grow over the resigning Jonah. Jonah is happy about the bush that suddenly appeared, saving him from the burning sun and providing him with fruit to eat. But the next day the bush is gone and Jonah is angry about it. God asks him, why he would be angry about the bush. He didn't do anything for the bush to appear, but got mad once it was gone. He then mentions Nineveh, likewise it was not God, who made Nineveh, but men and it was a blessing that they could accomplish such feat. But when they started to become corrupt, God got mad and needed to do something. As they repented, there was no reason to destroy them anymore. His teachings were successful and the best he could hope for, so to say.

I don't think the core of the message changes, even if we transpose it to more ancient times, as the story could've been told with the same essence and the same effect regardless as to where it took place, or who was the messenger. But peculiar it is non the less.

Maybe I'll draw a little sketch later to go with this, haha, sorry about that... :o)

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