Kim H. Veltman, Keynote, Christianity and the Alphabet, Human-Computer Interaction, Tourism and Cultural Heritage (HCITOCH 2015). Strategies for a Creative Future with Computer Science, Quality Design and Communicability, Ravenna, September 22 24, 2015.

http://www.ainci.com/HCITOCH-2015/workshop_hcitoch_2015_registration.html

Abstract

There are several histories of Western alphabets. One claims that Hebrew was the source of all Western alphabets, which makes them a product of the Judeo-Christian tradition. Another claims that the Phoenicians invented an abjad, that the Greeks added vowels, thus creating the first alphabet and subsequently Latin alphabets. In this narrative, vowel alphabets were largely a pagan invention, through a Greco-Roman tradition, which is often contrasted or opposed to a Judaeo-Christian tradition.

Historical evidence suggests a more complex story. In the 3rd century B.C., the Hebrew Old Testament was translated into Greek as the Septuagint. This translation added alphabetic vowels to an abjad tradition without vowels. In the centuries that followed, this Greek version became the model for translations which also became the principal alphabets of the world: Coptic, Latin, Armenian, Georgian, Arabic, Cyrillic, Chinese and even Sanskrit. So it is a Greco-Christian tradition rather than a purely Judeo-Christian tradition that spreads the alphabet.

At least five centres contributed to this story: Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Constantinople and Jerusalem, which were subsequently reduced to three centres of orthodox Christianity. These centres did much more than translate the bible and develop new alphabets. The new alphabets also became linked with new branches of Christianity. Adding vowels changed the names of God, and the names of protagonists of the Bible. It also introduced new gematrias, linking letters with numbers and cosmology. Hence each translation into a new alphabet also entailed a new cosmology.

The Wolff-Sapir hypothesis claimed that the structure of languages affects concepts of the world. The early alphabets suggest that the structure of alphabets affects not only cosmological concepts but also varieties of religious belief. The essay explores some implications for interfaces.

.

1. Introduction

2. Pre-Christianity

3. 5 Christianities

4. 3 Orthodox Christianities

5. Key Letters

6. North and South

7. Letters as Symbols

8. Changing Names

9. Changing Gematrias

10. Implications for Interfaces

11. Conclusions

1. Introduction

There are multiple histories of the alphabet.[endnoteRef:1] One claim is that Hebrew was the source of all Western alphabets, which makes them a product of the Judeo-Christian tradition.[endnoteRef:2] This claim is problematic because classical Hebrew is typically without vowels in an abjad of 22 letters. Western alphabets typically have vowels and 24, 26, 28 or 32 letters. [1: Notes The ideas in this article concerning the alphabet are studied in more detail in the authors Alphabets of Life, Smolensk, 2014: cf. www.alphabetsoflife.com. ] [2: The Ancient Hebrew Alphabet Was the First Alphabet On Earth: http://yehweh.org/the-ancient-hebrew-alphabet-was-the-first-alphabet-on-earth; cf. The English Alphabet Was Shaped by Hebrews Only: http://yehweh.org/profiles/blogs/english-alphabet-shaped-byThis tradition also tends to make Western religions derivatives of Jewish: e.g. What Kind of Jew are You?: http://thuleanperspective.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/nws9gtv.png]

Another claim is that the Phoenicians invented an abjad of 22 letters. The Greeks expanded this to 24 letters, added vowels and thus created the first alphabet, which subsequently led to Latin and Western alphabets. In the view of Havelock, alphabetic literacy was chiefly, even solely, responsible for the Greek Enlightenment and thus provided the foundations of Western civilization.[endnoteRef:3] Precisely when this happened is unclear. It is associated with Homer whose dates range from 1102 B.C. to 875 B.C.[endnoteRef:4] Havelock associated it with Plato (c. 428 348 B.C.).[endnoteRef:5] The earliest Greek abecedary comes from Fayyum in Egypt (800 B.C.).[endnoteRef:6] The ABCD sequence was not introduced into Athens from Miletus in Ionia until 403 B.C.[endnoteRef:7] [3: John Halverson, Havelock on Greek Orality and Literacy, Journal of the History of Ideas, Vol. 53, No. 1 (Jan. - Mar., 1992), pp. 148- 163: http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2709915?sid=21105539146831&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=4&uid=70&uid=3738736 . cf. Eric A. Havelock, Preface to Plato, Harvard University Press: Cambridge, Mass., 1963). ] [4: Homer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homer] [5: Plato, 428/427 or 424/423[b] 348/347 BCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plato] [6: The earliest Greek Alphabet: http://www.schoyencollection.com/palaeography-collection-introduction/early-writing-introduction/first-alphabets/earliest-greek-alphabet-ms-108] [7: Greek Ionic alphabet of Miletus, which Athens adopted in 403 bc: http://www.arapacana.com/glossary/misc/letters.html]

This Ionian Alphabet was listed by Duret as the second Phoenician alphabet,[endnoteRef:8] preceded by a first which had its origins in Saracenum and ultimately in Assyrium.[endnoteRef:9] Hence, in terms of the ABCD alphabet both Greek and Phoenician had their sources in Asia Minor and Asia rather than the shores of the Mediterranean. So there are two limbs on the early alphabet tree: one beginning in Assyria, going to Arabia (Saracenum), and Phoenicia; the other beginning in Phoenicia, going to Ionia and Greece. In this view, vowel alphabets were largely a pagan invention, through an Aryan, Greco-Roman tradition, which is often contrasted or opposed to a Semitic, Judaeo-Christian tradition.[endnoteRef:10] [8: Duret, 1613, 366: Autre Alphabet Phoenicien ou Ionique ] [9: Duret, 1613, 366: Premier alphabet Phoenicien selon Theseus Ambrosius, which in turn is based on Assyrium. Cf. Virga Aurea: http://www.levity.com/alchemy/virga_aurea.html] [10: Greco-Roman: http://ramosworld.weebly.com/uploads/1/1/3/9/11393097/10.1.1.pdf]

The advent of the other principal alphabets appears to have another source. The Judaic tradition has abjads with no vowels for the basic 22 letters.[endnoteRef:11] In the 3rd century B.C., the Hebrew Old Testament was translated into Greek as the Septuagint. This translation added alphabetic vowels to an abjad tradition. In the centuries that followed, this Greek version became the model for translations, which also became the principal alphabets[endnoteRef:12] of the world: Coptic, Latin, Armenian, Georgian, Arabic, Cyrillic, Chinese and even Sanskrit. So it is a Greco-Christian tradition as much as a Judeo-Christian tradition that spreads the alphabet. To understand this requires a closer look at pre-Christian and early Christian centres. [11: The characterization of Hebrew as a consonantal abjad without vowels is a modern view. Historically, there were different configurations. Syriac 1, equated with Hebrew, had only consonants. Syriacum had the same consonants followed by 5 vowels at the end (http://dfg-viewer.de/show/?set%5Bimage%5D=23&set%5Bzoom%5D=default&set%5Bdebug%5D=0&set%5Bdouble%5D=0&set%5Bmets%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.zvdd.de%2Fdms%2Fmetsresolver%2F%3FPPN%3DPPN572072716). Syriaque and old Samaritan, also called Hebraicum Antiquum linked the five vowels (a e i o v) with letter 1 , aleph, and the five aspirated vowels (a e i o u) with letter 16, Hain (http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k54507r/f25.zoom).] [12: Wiki lists 5 principal alphabets: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_writing_systems :Latin, Cyrillic (& Latin), Greek, Georgian, Armenian. Omniglot lists 54: http://www.omniglot.com/writing/alphabets.htm]

2. Pre-Christianity

According to the Wycliffe Bible translation timeline, the Old Testament began on 1 January, 1250 B.C. and the Septuagint translation in Alexandria into Greek was finished on 1 January 250 B.C.[endnoteRef:13] Some claim an earlier date (285 B.C.) and also explain the original rationale for the translation: [13: Wycliffe, BTT: http://www.wycliffe.net/BTT.html]

The reason the Septuagint came about is because in Alexandria, Alexander the Great had come through and conquered many of those nations, and Greek became the predominant language. So they took the original Law, and translated it into Greek for those Jews that no longer spoke Hebrew, and also to convert many of the Greeks over to Judaism. They translated the original into the Greek at approximately 285 BC. [endnoteRef:14] [14: Septuagint: http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/septuagint.html]

Hence, although the Hebrew tradition is typically characterized as relatively closed and non-proselytzing, Alexandrian Judaism was committed to converting Greeks to Judaism. While the precise extent of Indian influences from the East is uncertain, these appear to have played a direct role:[endnoteRef:15] [15: The same Ptolemy II Philadelphus (309246 B.C.) who commissioned the Septuagint sent an emissary to the court of emperor Ashoka in Patna and there appear to have been Indian missionaries in Alexandria. Indeed :Will Durant, noting that the Emperor Ashoka sent missionaries, not only to elsewhere in India and to Sri Lanka, but to Syria, Egypt and Greece, speculated in the 1930s that they may have helped prepare the ground for Christian teaching. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_and_the_Roman_world: ]

Bauddhic missionaries traveled around the world and converted most Asians to Bauddha Dharma and set up 2 major missions in the Middle East (the Essenes and the Therapeuts; Thera-pada) which influenced Yahshua (Jesus) to incorporate some of their beliefs (non-violence, water immersion for soul purification; Baptism) into the reformed Jewish religion he was promoting that later became a new religion Christianity.[endnoteRef:16] [16: Royal chronology of India: http://www.newdharma.org/royal_chron.htm]

It is known, for instance, that the Jewish philosopher, Philo of Alexandria (25 B.C.-50 A.D.),[endnoteRef:17] who encountered and wrote about the Indian Therapeutae,[endnoteRef:18] also studied the Septuagint.[endnoteRef:19] In any case, Alexandrian Judaism established the principle of Scripture access and use in the everyday language of the people.[endnoteRef:20] Whereas, traditional Judaism had centred around a sacred text in one language (Hebrew), Alexandrian Judaism introduced the idea of making religion available in peoples native language, thus presaging the idea of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit enabled speaking in tongues.[endnoteRef:21] It was thus a first important step in pre-Christianity, whereby religion is intended potentially for everyone and not simply for a small group. [17: Philo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philo] [18: Therapeutae: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Therapeutae] [19: The Jewish historian, Josephus also cited the Septuagint: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josephus] [20: Wycliffe: http://www.wycliffe.net/BTT.html] [21: New Testament:"And they were all amazed and marveled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. " -- Acts 2:7-11.]

3. 5 Christianities

The rise of Christianity started during the life of Christ, even though the name Christianity was not used until the year 37 A.D. At least five centres contributed to this story: Alexandria, Antioch, Constantinople, Rome and Jerusalem.

3.1 Alexandria

The Patriarchate of Alexandria and of all Africa is said to have been founded by Saint Mark the Evangelist (c. 33 A.D.).[endnoteRef:22] But there must clearly have been earlier connections since the parents of Jesus, on the flight to Egypt, took him to Cairo, directly next to one of the oldest Coptic Churches. In pre-Christian times, Greek was the official language. In the Christian era, Coptic became the official language in a number of versions (e.g. 22, 24, 28, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34 letters). Greek had seven vowels. So too did Coptic, Abyssinian, Ethiopian, and Eritrean (Geez, Tigrinya). So Alexandria fostered seven vowel alphabets. The seven vowels of Coptic (Alpha, Ei, Ita, Iota, O, Epsilon, OA) recur as the 7 vowels of Duplex Iacobitanum (Alfa, E, Eta, Ioda, O, Ye, Omega), also known as West Syriac Ser. [22: Patriarchate of Alexandria: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Egypt :Egyptian Christians believe that the Patriarchate of Alexandria was founded by Mark the Evangelist around AD 33, but little is known about how Christianity entered Egypt.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Egypt]

Alexandria as the Patriarchate of all Africa, fostered the Aphricanum alphabet, which was basically the same as Arabic in the alfabai sequence. Alexandria also fostered a series of 5 vowel alphabets (cf. Rome below).

Theologically Alexandria was an important centre.[endnoteRef:23] Whereas Judaism professed a creation ex nihilo, the Alexandrian school, developed traditions of gnosticism, whereby a monad evolved through various emanations, and often created the physical world through an imperfect Demi-urge, rather than the Supreme Being. Early exponents were the Ophites,[endnoteRef:24] Basilides (Basilidians, fl. 117 to 138 A.D.)[endnoteRef:25] Valentinus (Valentinians, 100-180 A.D.) and his student Marcus (Marcosians, 2nd c. A.D.),[endnoteRef:26] who applied gematria to Greek in combination with the octad and dodecad to evolve a theory of creation through aeons, and letters of the alphabet. Their theory explored how created things were made after the image of things invisible,[endnoteRef:27] reminiscent of the non-material creation of the prajapatis in India. Plotinus (204/5-270 A.D.)[endnoteRef:28] was the most famous of these emanationists, combining Egyptian traditions with neo-Platonic thought. Cyril of Alexandria (c. 376 444)[endnoteRef:29] developed a concept of miaphysitism (one nature) concerning God and Christ. Gnosticism[endnoteRef:30] -- also taught by the Essenes -- sought to explain evolution from the one to the many (cf. Taoism).[endnoteRef:31] Hence, whereas Judaism of the Old Testament theoretically[endnoteRef:32] began with the advent of physical creation, the Alexandrian school explored metaphysical pre-creation, often in the form of a Monad, One, Demi-urge or Aeons prior to physical creation. [23: Alexandrian theologians include Clement of Alexandria (c. 150 c. 215 A.D.): Clement of Alexndria: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clement_of_AlexandriaOrigen (184/185 253/254 A.D.): Origen: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origen] [24: Ophites: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophites] [25: Basilides: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilides] [26: Marcosians: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MarcosiansMarcus: Of Marcus himself we know nothing beyond the fact that he was one of the earlier pupils of Valentinus, or at any rate belonged to the earlier circle of Valentinian ideas. His date is vaguely placed somewhere about the middle of the second century; he is said to have taught in Asia Minor, and Jerome, two hundred years afterwards, states that he was an Egyptian.] [27: Theory of the Marcosians: http://biblehub.com/library/irenaeus/against_heresies/chapter_xvii_the_theory_of_the.htm] [28: Plotinus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plotinus] [29: Cyril of Alexandria: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyril_of_Alexandria] [30: Alexandria was the also the birthplace of Scythianus who made a trip to India (c. 50 A.D.) and then returned and taught Terebinthus who passed the ideas on to an old woman, who taught Corbicius, and finally Mani, who developed these ideas in an Eastern form of gnosticism: Manichaeanism. ] [31: Gnosticism: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gnosticism] [32: In the Kabbalah, the various levels of pre-creation via the Sephiroth were studied at length. ]

The First Council of Constantinople (381) asserted the primacy of Constantinople over Alexandria and Antioch.[endnoteRef:33] When the Council of Chalcedon (451) attempted to impose belief in a dual nature of Christ of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Patriarchates of Alexandria (Coptic, Ethiopian, Eritrean Church) and Antioch (Syriac, Malankara Syrian or Indian Orthodox Church, and Armenian Apostolic Church) remained true to Miaphysitism and formed the Oriental Orthodox Church.[endnoteRef:34] As Roman Christianity became more codified, Alexandrian gnosticism (cf. Nag Hammadi texts) along with Antiochian gnosticism (cf. Essenes of Mount Carmel), of whom Saint Paul was said to be ringleader: Acts 24:5), were treated as apocryphal and largely forgotten.[endnoteRef:35] [33: Council of Constantinople: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Council_of_Constantinople#Dispute_concerning_the_third_canon] [34: Oriental Orthodoxy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Orthodoxy] [35: Essenes: https://lostchristianity.wordpress.com/2012/06/03/jesus-was-an-essene-and-nazareth-did-not-exist/]

3.2. Antioch

Paul of Tarsus converted to the new religion in 34 A.D., i.e. a year after the Crucifixion. He was not one of the 12 Apostles. Indeed, he never met Christ. And yet it was he who decided to expand the scope of Christianity from an esoteric sect for Jews, to a religion for Gentiles. Accordingly, Saint Paul became Apostle of the Gentiles,[endnoteRef:36] while Saint Peter became Apostle of the Jews.[endnoteRef:37] Saint Paul established the 7 churches of the New Testament in Turkey, centuries before Rome had its 7 Christian basilicas. 14 of the 27 Books of the New Testament are attributed to Saint Paul; 2 are attributed to Saint Peter.[endnoteRef:38] [36: Saint Paul: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_the_Apostle; New Testament: https://carm.org/new-testament-books] [37: Saint Peter: http://biblehub.com/galatians/2-8.htm] [38: Saint Paul: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_the_Apostle]

Saint Paul moved to Antioch and it was here that the disciples were first called Christians[endnoteRef:39] in the year 37 AD., whence the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch claims the status as the most ancient Christian church in the world.[endnoteRef:40] Antioch (Antioch on the Orontes) was closely related to Edessa (Antiochia on the Callirhoe).[endnoteRef:41] [39: Saint Luke, Acts 11-26: http://biblehub.com/acts/11-26.htm] [40: Syrian Orthodox Church, Antioch: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syriac_Orthodox_Church] [41: Edessa (Urfa, Urhoy, Roha, modern Sanliurfa) and Haran are associated with the Old Testament patriarch, Abraham, who was born and immolated there. Edessa was an important centre of the Essenes and there were connections with both early Christianity and Saint Thomas Christians in Kerala. In 351 A.D., when Nisibis fell to the Persians, many of its scholars moved to Edessa. In 489 A.D., as a result of the Nestorian schism, the school of Edessa was closed and moved back to Nisibis. So Edessa which began with Indian influences on early Christianity, became a source of Christian (Nestorian) ideas affecting the Church of the East. Cf. Abrahams Journey: http://www.originofnations.org/books,%20papers/maps/patriarchs.jpgUrhoy became the focus of Christianity in the Semitic-Speaking world : https://books.google.nl/books?id=9i8L8qxSsM4C&pg=PA243&lpg=PA243&dq=melkite+alphabet&source=bl&ots=P4iA5ftudJ&sig=HNC9tXq6xh9U4BGNufWF10vAx6s&hl=en&sa=X&ei=2Sz8VJ21ItGy7Qb2nYCYBQ&ved=0CDEQ6AEwBTgK#v=onepage&q=melkite%20alphabet&f=falseLetters of St. Thomas the Apostle to Edessa from India. Read more: http://www.nasrani.net/2008/09/20/letter-of-st-thomas-the-apostle-to-edessa-from-india/#ixzz3HEetbODMNisibis:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/School_of_Nisibis]

In the course of the next centuries, Antioch became the home of five churches. After the Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D.) three remained linked with Roman Christianity (Melkite Greek Catholic Church, Syriac Catholic Church, Syriac Maronite Church); one joined the Eastern Orthodox Church (Antiochian Greek Orthodox Church), while one became part of the Oriental Orthodoxy (Syriac Orthodox Church).[endnoteRef:42] [42: Church of Antioch: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_Antioch]

3.3. Constantinople

The Eastern Orthodox Church traces its origins back to Pentecost in 33 A.D.[endnoteRef:43] It was based in Byzantium (Constantinople, Istanbul). It integrated 4 early Patriarchates: Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem. It included 11 Autocephalous Churches (Cyprus, Sinai, Russia, Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, Georgia, Poland, Albania and Czech Republic and Slovakia),[endnoteRef:44]and 3 Autonomous Churches (Finland, China and Japan). [43: Orthodox Church: http://orthodoxwiki.org/Orthodox_Church] [44: Eastern Orthodox Church: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Orthodox_Church]

Alphabetically, the Eastern Orthodox Church focussed on Greek (Koine Greek), thus supporting the 7 vowels model, also found in Georgian, and Armenian as well as in Antiochian (Jacobite, Iacobitanum, Maroniticum) and Alexandrian alphabets (Coptic, Eritrean, Ethiopian, Abyssinian, Amharic, Geez).

The Eastern Orthodox alphabets also included Aramaic, Arabic and later Cyrillic (Old Church Slavonic, Glagolitic). At the Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D.), Constantinople declared that Christ has two natures in one person and hypostasis; it also insisted on the completeness of his two natures: Godhead and manhood.[endnoteRef:45] In the short term (451 A.D.), this led to a separation with views of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which continued its tradition of monotheism and the patriarchates of Antioch and Alexandria which continued their traditions of miaphysitism. In the longer term, differing definitions of the Trinity, contributed to the Great Schism between Roman Christianity and the Eastern Orthodox Church (1054 A.D.) [45: Council of Chalcedon: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Chalcedon]

3.4. Jerusalem

Jesus was born and lived in Galilee. As an Essene he was a member of an esoteric Hebrew sect, quite separate from and opposed by the Pharisees and Sadduccees of Jerusalem.[endnoteRef:46] Even so, Jerusalem as the place of the Last Supper and the Crucifixion was linked with Christianity from the outset. Officially, it became linked with the new religion through the Apostle, James the Just (37 A.D.).[endnoteRef:47] The Council of Jerusalem (50 A.D.)[endnoteRef:48] decided on the obligations of Gentile converts to Christianity. There were assertions of Jerusalem as the mother of all churches (cf. Antioch and Rome), but with the destruction of the second temple (70 A.D.) and the Jewish exile (134 A.D.), Jerusalems role in early Christianity was more symbolic than an everyday reality. Even so, Jerusalem saw the rise of Jewish Christianity which gradually became distinguished from Judaism: [46: Jesus was an Essene: https://lostchristianity.wordpress.com/2012/06/03/jesus-was-an-essene-and-nazareth-did-not-exist/] [47: Saint James the Just: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/299860/Saint-James :Three years after Pauls conversion, James was an important leader in the Jerusalem church (Galatians 1:1819), where he assumed even more significance after King Herod Agrippa I of Judaea in about ad 44 beheaded the Apostle St. James, son of Zebedee, and after Peter fled from Jerusalem (Acts 12:117). ] [48: Council of Jerusalem: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Jerusalem:The council decided that Gentile converts to Christianity were not obligated to keep most of the Law of Moses, including the rules concerning circumcision of males.]

Christianity is rooted in Second Temple Judaism, but the two religions diverged in the first centuries of the Christian Era. Christianity places emphasis on correct belief (or orthodoxy), focusing on the New Covenant made through Jesus Christ, as recorded in the New Testament. Judaism places emphasis on right conduct (or orthopraxy), focusing on the Mosaic Covenant, as recorded in the Torah and Talmud.[endnoteRef:49] [49: Christianity: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_and_Judaism]

In Indian terms, Judaism resembled Karma Yoga,[endnoteRef:50] with justification through works of the Law, while Christianity resembled Bhakti Yoga,[endnoteRef:51] with justification through faith. Within Christianity, the Petrine approach of Roman Christianity was closer to Judaism, in contrast to the Pauline approach of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Constantinople and Antioch. [50: Karma Yoga: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karma_yoga] [51: Bhakti Yoga: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhakti_yoga]

By the fourth century, the Metropolitan of Jerusalem was playing a role in the Syrian Church in Malabar (325 A.D.).[endnoteRef:52] With the Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D.),[endnoteRef:53] Jerusalem became independent of Antioch, and became a Patriarchate under Justinian (531 A.D.), when it became one of the Pentarchy. Hereafter, it played a role as one of the five centres of Christianity, even though the Pharisees and Sadducees had originally been opposed to Christianity. [52: Metropolitan of Jerusalem: http://orthodoxwiki.org/Malankara_Jacobite_Syriac_Orthodox_Church] [53: Jerusalem: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Chalcedon]

3.5. Rome

The earliest references to Christianity in Rome entail persecutions (49, 62 A.D.) and references to the martyrdom of Saint Peter (64 A.D.) and Saint Paul (67 A.D.).[endnoteRef:54] Even so, there is still debate whether Saint Peter ever lived in Rome. It is not until the fourth century that Roman Christianity becomes significant. The basilica of Saint John Lateran, mother church of all churches, was given to the Catholic Church by 311 A.D. Formal recognition of Roman Christianity came after the conversion of Constantine and the Edict of Milan (313 A.D.), which decriminalized Christian worship.[endnoteRef:55] Constantine commissioned the building of Saint Peters Basilica (318 A.D.). The First Council of Nicaea (325 A.D.) established the Nicene Creed and Jeromes Vulgate (381 A.D.) provided a systematic Latin translation from the Greek (and Hebrew). Romes primacy over Constantinople was asserted at the fourth Council of Constantinople (869 A.D.) and anew at the time of the Great Schism (1054 A.D.).[endnoteRef:56] [54: Saint Paul: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_the_Apostle] [55: Constantine: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_the_Great_and_Christianity] [56: Rome: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Council_of_Constantinople#Dispute_concerning_the_third_canon]

Linguistically, Rome focused on Latin, which became the basis of Romance languages. These were alphabets with 5 vowels (A E I O U) typically with the letter sequence 1 5 9 14 20. This same sequence of letters and vowels is found in Egyptian Alphabets (Aegyptiacum, Aegyptiorum, Isis, Mercurius Thoyt), Saracenum, Scythicum, Siriorum, Premier Alphabet Phoenicien and Etruscan 2. Alternatively Latin vowels had the sequence 1 5 9 15 21, also found in Egyptian, German, Fraktur and English.

4. 3 Orthodox Christianities

Christians as a term is said to have begun in 37 A.D. But the separation between Judaism and Christianity was gradual:

Recently, some scholars have argued that there were many competing Jewish sects in the Holy Land during the Second Temple period, and that those that became Rabbinic Judaism and Proto-orthodox Christianity were but two of these. Some of these scholars have proposed a model which envisions a twin birth of Proto-orthodox Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism rather than a separation of the former from the latter. For example, Robert Goldenberg asserts that it is increasingly accepted among scholars that "at the end of the 1st century AD there were not yet two separate religions called 'Judaism' and 'Christianity.[endnoteRef:57] [57: Split of early Christianity and Judaism: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Split_of_early_Christianity_and_Judaism]

The ecumenical councils of the 4th and 5th centuries helped to define the boundaries of Christendom and, in the process, created a series of divisions. The Council of Ephesus (325 A.D.) saw the Church of the East cut off from orthodoxy. The Church of the East was dubbed as Nestorianism for its interpretation of a separation between the Divine and human nature of Christ. Linguistically, the Church of the East spread the Syriac alphabet model across Asia. Thus consonant alphabets spread to Syro-Chaldee, Karshuni and Uigur (Mongolian, Kalmuk, Manchu).[endnoteRef:58] [58: Semitic:http://s155239215.onlinehome.us/turkic/31Alphabet/TaylorIsaakAlphabetSemiticScheme_TurkicP92R1.gif]

The Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D.) further split the Church into three orthodoxies: Roman Christianity; Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodoxy. Roman Christianity favoured a trinitarian Monotheism. The Eastern Orthodox Church (Constantinople) favoured 2 natures. Oriental Theology (Antioch and Alexandria) continued miaphysitism. Latin was the key language of Roman Christianity. Koine Greek was the key language of the Eastern Orthodox Church, while Coptic, Syriac, Ethiopian, and Eritrean were languages of Oriental Orthodoxy.

Sanskrit a.Vowel 1 Vowel 12 Letter 33 Letter 20 Letter 26

A Ai H V Y

b. Vowel 1 Letter 33 Letter 20 Letter 26 Vowel 12

A H V Y Ai

Indiens AbyssinsLetter 1 Letter 5 Letter 6 Letter 10 Letter 16

A H V J E

Alephu, He Vuauf Jodo e.

Syriac Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 6 Letter 10 Letter 16

a h v i aa

Syriaque Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 6 Letter 10 Letter 16

Olaph He Vau/Vau Iod Hoin

Samaritanorum Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 6 Letter 10 Letter 16

Hebraicum A. Aleph He Vau Iod Hain

IndicumLetter 13 Letter 1 Letter 15 Letter 18 Letter 16

A H V I A

A Ha Va Ia A

Ethiopien Letter 13 Letter 1 Letter 15 Letter 18 Letter 16

Et Abyssin A H V I A

Alph Hoi Vau Iaman Hain

Ethyiopique a.Letter 13 Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 18 Letter 16

NubiensA H V I A

b.Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 6 Letter 10 Letter 18

A H V I A

A Ha Va Iud A

Aleph Ha Vau Iod Ain

Arabic a.Letter 1 Letter 26 Letter 27 Letter 28 Letter 18

A Ha Wa Ya Ain

Arabic b.Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 6 Letter 10 Letter 16

A Ha Wa Ya Ain

Phoenician Aleph Heth Waw Yodh Ain

A E U I O

Greek a.Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 20 Letter 9 Letter 16 Letter 24

A E U I O O

Greek b.Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 9 Letter 16 Letter 20 Letter 24

Gematria 1 5 10 16

A E I O U O

Alpha Epsilon Iota Omicron Upsilon Omega

CyrillicLetter 1 Letter 5 Letter 10 Letter 16 Letter 22 Letter 24

A E I O U O

azu esti izei onu uku otu

Latin Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 9 Letter 14 Letter 20

Letter 1 Letter 5 Letter 9 Letter 15 Letter 21

A E I O U

Table 1. Comparison of five key letters.

Each of the three orthodoxies thus had their own alphabets. The Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodoxy used 7 vowels. Roman Christianity used 5 vowels. Judaism, by contrast used 5 consonants. Underlying these seemingly small differences was a subtle shift in letters. What began as 2 vowels and 3 semivowels in Sanskrit, shifted to 5 consonants in Semitic alphabets (e.g. Syriac, Aramaic, Hebrew), 7 vowels in Greek, Coptic and Cyrillic and 5 vowels in Latin alphabets.

5. Key Letters

The traditional Sanskrit alphabet has 50 letters. Of these two vowels (vowels 1 and 12: A, Ai) and three semivowels (letters 33, 29, 26: ha va ya) acquired a particular significance (table 1).

In shuffled form, these became the letters A H V Y Ai. In the Alphabet des Indiens Abyssins, these became the letters 1 5 6 10 16: A H V J E: Alephu, He, Vuauf, Jodo, e. In terms of gematria this sequence leads to 92 (1 + 5 + 6 + 10 + 70 = 92), which is the gematria for Elohim (God), Mohammed, King, son, great, heart. The same sequence of letters (1 5 6 10 16) and gematria became the basis of Syriac (a, h, v, i, aa), Syriaque (Olaph, He, Vau/Vau , Iod, Hoin). Alphabetum Samaritanorum and Hebraicum Antiquum (Aleph, He, Vau, Iod, Hain). They become letters A H V I O in Chaldean (1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 13, 14, 15)[endnoteRef:59] and letters A H V I AA in Chaldean (6, 7, 8, 9, 12). [59: Numbers as in Fry, Pantographia: http://archive.org/stream/pantographiacont00fryeiala#page/28/mode/2up/search/chaldean]

In the Hebrew tradition, the first and last letters of this sequence, A Ai, were sometimes assigned ten vowels (a e i o u and a e i o u aspirata (aspirated)) respectively (e.g. Syriaque, Hebraicum Antiquum seu Samaritanorum). In other contexts, the three central letters, H V Y, were reconfigured as four letters in the sequence Y H V H (letters 10 5 6 5, gematria 26), as the tetragrammaton or four letter name of God.

Indicum (1616)[endnoteRef:60] kept the same basic letters A H V I A (A, Ha, Va, Ia, A) but changed the sequence to letters 13 1 15 18 16. Ethiopien et Abyssin maintained this sequence but gave a slightly different meaning to the letters A H V I A (Alph, Hoi, Vau, Iaman, Hain ). The Alphabet Ethyiopique des Nubiens is especially instructive. It maintains the letters A H V I A but accords to them two different sequences: 13 1 15 18 16 as above and then 1 5 6 10 16 as encountered earlier in Syriac and Hebrew. It also provides two sets of meanings for the letters: A, Ha, Va, Iud, A and Aleph, Ha,Vau, Iod, Ain. [60: This was a version of Indian alphabet as one of the 72 magic alphabets listed in the Virga Aurea (1616): http://www.levity.com/alchemy/virga_aurea.html ]

The significance of these shifts is considerable. First, it confirms that the so called syllabaries (more recently called abugidas) of Abyssinia, Ethiopia and Eritrea were originally configured in one sequence as a Southern norm (13 1 15 18 16) and subsequently reconfigured to align with what became the Northern norm in Judaism and Syriac Christianity (1 5 6 10 16). It also confirms that these two seemingly different systems were integrally linked with one another. The prior existence of the Southern norm undermines claims for Hebrew as the original alphabet.

The Arabic tradition has further variants for this sequence. In the alfabai sequence,[endnoteRef:61] they become shapes 1 15 16 17 9[endnoteRef:62] as letters 1 26 27 28 18. In abjad form,[endnoteRef:63] these become letters 1 5 6 10 16 as in Chaldean, Syriac, Hebrew corresponding to A Ha Wa Ya Ain. [61: The Numerical Value: http://numerical19.com/category_numerical_value.html] [62: Arabic has 17 basic shapes. Cf. http://www.fromoldbooks.org/Fry-Pantographia/pages/p004/; ] [63: Abjad is so-called because it follows the sequence of letters A B J D. See the Numerical value as above: http://numerical19.com/category_numerical_value.html]

Figure 1a. Phoenician letter Teth,[endnoteRef:64] b. Solar Wheel,[endnoteRef:65] c. Solar Disc,[endnoteRef:66] d. Ichthys as Greek letters and as circle wheel. [64: Teth: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theta] [65: Solar Wheel: http://www.wizardstarot.com/picts/sun-wheel.jpg] [66: Solar Wheel: http://www.favosity.com/uploads/6/9/7/2/6972588/3856591.jpg]

In Phoenician, letters 1 5 6 10 16 become Aleph, Heth, Waw, Yodh, Ain which become the five vowels A E U I O. In Greek, the same vowels A E U I O become letters 1 5 20 9 16. The sequence is then switched to A E I O U O as letters 1 5 9 15 20 24. The corresponding gematria is 1 5 10 70 400 800 (as if the letters sequence were 1 5 10 16 22 26). In Latin, these become letters 1 5 9 15 21 corresponding to vowels A E I O U. Meanwhile in Cyrillic, these become letters 1 5 10 16 22 24 corresponding to vowels A E I O U O (azu, esti, izei, onu, uku, otu).

These shifts in five key letters are of the greatest significance because they reveal a close interplay between syllabaries, abjads and alphabets and also help us to understand their differences. On the surface, syllabaries linked vowels specifically with two of the five key letters (A and Ain) and included these in their gematria. Alphabets made vowels a part of their gematria. Abjads in their extreme form limited their gematria to consonants. In practice, all three systems entailed the same five letters. In Sanskrit, these began as two vowels and three semivowels (or more strictly speaking two semivowels and an aspirate). In the African syllabaries (Abyssinian, Ethiopian, Eritrean) and in an early form of Chaldearum,[endnoteRef:67] these continued as two basic vowels (generating 7 x 2 vowels), and three semivowels. In the abjad tradition, these five letters became five consonants. In alphabets, by contrast, beginning with Phoenician, these became five vowels (A E U I O), which were later shuffled to become A E I O U in Latin. Hence, there are underlying patterns in alphabets that need to be analysed. [67: Alphabetum seu potius Syllabarium Chaldearum: http://rarebooks.filosofia.sns.it/index.php?id=30&workId=2&L=0&n=52]

These subtle differences help us to understand differences between North and South. They also mean that each of the major divisions of Christian orthodoxy developed their own gematria with their accompanying cosmology (cf. 8 below).

6. North and South

North and South play multiple roles in the story of near Eastern Alphabets. For instance, Christ, as an Essene, was born and spent most of preaching life in what is now Northern Israel (Galilee). He was crucified in the South (Judaea). His language was Aramaic (and presumably also Syro-Galileen). The language of Judaea, by contrast, was Hebrew. The roots of Hebrew are in Edessa, and Harran in the North. As Jerusalem in the South becomes linked with Hebrew, these Northern roots diminish in memory to the extent that present day Israel does not intervene in the Syrian homeland of its roots.

Alphabet trees of the region typically distinguish between North Semitic and South Semitic alphabets.[endnoteRef:68] In these tables, Hebrew and Aramaic are typically in the North, while South Arabic is in the South. The source of standard Arabic is taken to be Nabataean, named after Nebaioth, the eldest son and tribe of Ishmael. There is a sense that the 12 tribes of Israel displaced the 12 tribes of Ishmael. Other local versions of Arabic such as Arabicum ex Syriaco, Levantine Arabic or Hatra Arabic (of the first Arabic Kingdom) typically do not occur in these tables. [68: North Semitic and South Semitic Alphabets: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_WzpPc1LwUrM/S9vH6g6XljI/AAAAAAAAAcs/G1DtMQli_A8/s1600/16evolofalphabets100Percent.jpg; http://www.hallelu-yah.nl/semitic-languages-tree.gif; http://s155239215.onlinehome.us/turkic/31Alphabet/TaylorIsaakAlphabetSemiticScheme_TurkicP92R1.gif]

A number of early versions of Arabic followed the Alfaba Order (e.g. Arabicum, Arabicum ex Syriaco, Aphricanum, Levantine Arabic, Musnad Arabic, and Maghrebi Arabic). According to Arabic sources the origin of the abjad sequence goes back to the names of six giant kings of Midyan (Abjad, Hawwaz, HuTTiya, Kaliman, SafaS, Qurishat).[endnoteRef:69] It was in the [69: Origin of the Arabic Alphabet: http://www.examiner.com/article/the-origin-of-the-arabic-alphabet]

Figure 2a. Chinese Zodiac with Dragon and Snake[endnoteRef:70], b. Chinese (Huang Ti) letter 6: chi,[endnoteRef:71] c-d. Stigma and Zeta (Greek)[endnoteRef:72], e-f. Soo Zita (Coptic), g-j. Dzelo Zemlya (Old Church Slavonic,[endnoteRef:73] Cyrillic).[endnoteRef:74] [70: Chinese Zodiac: https://2012project12.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/chinese-zodiac.jpg?w=296&h=300] [71: Chinese Huang Ti Chi: http://www.creationism.org/csshs/v07n4p24.htm] [72: Digamma: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DigammaZeta: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeta] [73: Old Church Slavonic: http://kodeks.uni-bamberg.de/aksl/Schrift/AkslAlphabet.htm] [74: Early Cyrillic: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Early_cyrillic_alphabet.png]

North, however, that abjads and the 1 5 6 10 16 sequence of semivowels became dominant in Syriac, Chaldean, Aramaic and Hebrew, to such an extent that the abjad version[endnoteRef:75] became the most familiar form and the abjad gematria became the most familiar gematria. [75: It is noteworthy that the Arabic term 'abjadiyyah 'arabiyyah ( ) typically entails the alfabai sequence: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_alphabet]

7. Letters as Symbols and Cosmology

All the letters of the Greek alphabet had cosmological symbolism. In one early version, two letters were aligned with each of the 12 zodiac signs (figure 9).[endnoteRef:76] The Greek letter Theta (), was based on the Phoenician letter Teth (, figure 1 a).[endnoteRef:77] This letter Teth was effectively a solar disc: a circle inscribed with an x signifying the axes Candlemas-Lammas and May Day-All Hallows Eve (figure 1b). Another version of the solar wheel included six spokes (figure 1c). [76: Greek Alphabet and Zodiac: http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/donnightman/69905628/247330/247330_original.jpg] [77: Theta: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theta]

The Christian tradition transformed the meaning of these cyclical symbols. For instance, the Greek term ICHTHYS, meaning fish, symbolized Christianity. More specifically the letters meant , , (Jesus Christ, God's Son is Saviour). When the five Greek letters (, , ,, ) are superimposed on one another they produce the same six spoked wheel as the wheel of the sun (figure 1d). Hence, the fish is not just a symbol of early Christianity. It also summarizes the annual cycle.

To understand the extent of this Christian transformation of letters it is useful to study the history of number and letter 6. In the Chinese zodiac, animals 5 and 6 are the dragon and snake respectively. In some versions, the snake was effectively a mirror image of the dragon (figure 2a). The dragon was heaven, the snake was earth. The shift from 5 to 6 thus marked a descent from heaven to earth. In the Chinese Huang Ti alphabet, letter 6 was drawn as an S, reminiscent of Draco (figure 2b). In India, the 6th nakshatra was Rahu (caput draconis, head of the dragon). Indeed, Rahu, dominated nakshatras 6, 15, 24. In Greek gematria, numbers 6 15 24 had a gematria of 6 60 600, with a total of 666. Accordingly number 666 became associated with the dragon, the serpent, evil, and Satan. Corresponding letters 6 15 23 (digamma, ksi, psi) acquired negative connotations.

In the Greek alphabet, letter 6 became the digamma (waw, wau, ) or stigma (). This letter was dropped from the Greek alphabet such that zeta became letter 6 with a gematria value of 7 (figure 2 c-d). The Draco like symbol () continued to be used as numeral 6. In Coptic, the corresponding letter Soo as number 6 remained a part of the alphabet, followed by Zita (figure 2 e-f). The corresponding letters in Old Church Slavonic and Cyrillic were dzelo and zemlya now as letters 8 and 9 (figure 2 g-j).

In the Greek mystery traditions, the S shape of Draco acquired cosmological meanings. For instance, the Monogram of 3 Emblems carried in mysteries (figure 3a) shows a cross superimposed on a reversed S. The heathen monogram of the Triune shows the same cross superimposed on Greek S, letter 18 (, sigma, figure 3b).

The Christian tradition adapted this imagery. The monogram of the Saviour[endnoteRef:78] superimposes an I and H on a reversed S (figure 3c). Elsewhere these three letters I H S [endnoteRef:79] become a monogram of Christ (figure 1d).[endnoteRef:80] They are superimposed on a reversed S. These letters are also the first [78: Monograms in a c: http://www.sacred-texts.com/sro/rrm/img/25700.jpg] [79: IHS: http://www.daidaika.net/ihs%20ais%20marine%20traffic/] [80: HIS logo: https://rfonseca11.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/ihs20logo1.jpg]

Figure 3.Letters as symbols: a. Monogram of 3 Emblems carried in mysteries, b.Heathen monogram of the Triune c.Monogram of the Saviour,[endnoteRef:81] d. IHS logo,[endnoteRef:82] e. IHS cross,.[endnoteRef:83] f-g. Bulgarian HSA and AEFAE. [81: Monograms in a c: http://www.sacred-texts.com/sro/rrm/img/25700.jpg] [82: HIS logo: https://rfonseca11.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/ihs20logo1.jpg] [83: IHS Cross: http://www.seiyaku.com/images/cross/ihs-stone-monogram-large.jpg]

Figure 4 a.Slavic Ksi,[endnoteRef:84] b. Greek Chi Rho,[endnoteRef:85] c. Monogram of Christ,[endnoteRef:86]d-e. Anastasis[endnoteRef:87] [84: Ksi in Old Slavic Alphabet: http://st.free-lance.ru/users/IceTeam/upload/f_4804c30e36ebe.gif] [85: Chi: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chi_(letter)] [86: Monogram of Christ: http://www.jesuswalk.com/christian-symbols/images/monogram-of-christ384x389vatican.jpg] [87: Anastasis: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Anastasis_Pio_Christiano_Inv31525.jpg]

Figure 5 a. I X as diagram,[endnoteRef:88] b.Theta and Helios as Diameter 318,[endnoteRef:89] c-d. Jesus as circumference 880, e-f. Jesus as circumference 8880.[endnoteRef:90] [88: I X: http://jesus8880.com/chapters/gematria/images/ix-sign-1000.gif] [89: Theta and Helios: http://jesus8880.com/chapters/gematria/theta-helios-318.htm] [90: Jesus and Circumference 8880: http://www.jesus8880.com/chapters/gematria/vesica-pisces.htm]

three letters of the Greek name of Jesus: . The three nails represent the suffering and death of Jesus, the cross represents his resurrection. This association with resurrection explains why the symbol recurs as an IHS cross on gravestones (figure 1e).[endnoteRef:91] The column of the I and two columns of the H also function as three pillars. IHS as Iota, Eta-Sigma (letters 10 - 5 - 18), becomes an abbreviation for Isis, Horus, Seth; Iesus Hominum Salvator, In Hoc Signo (vinces), Iesus Humilis Societas, Iesus Habemus Socium (Jesuit order), In Hoc Sanctis and In His Service. [91: IHS Cross: http://www.seiyaku.com/images/cross/ihs-stone-monogram-large.jpg]

In Bulgarian, the letters HSA () signify Christ, while the letters Yat, Phi, Yat, equivalent to AEFAE, signify the resurrection (figure 3 f-g),[endnoteRef:92] another example of the cross as symbol of resurrection. In Old Slavic, letter Ksi (figure 4a) is clearly linked with the heavens, showing the sun descending as 1 and a line ascending from left to a star in the upper right as 2. The lower case letter for Greek Chi (figure 4 b) shows a similar curving line in the descent and a straight diagonal in the ascent. In an old alignment of Greek letters and the zodiac this letter Chi aligns with the time of the Summer Solstice in Cancer (figure 9). [92: Religious Symbols: http://kroraina.com/pb_lang/FIG2.gif]

In the Eastern Orthodox Christian tradition, letters 22 and 17 of the Greek alphabet: Chi and Rho, become the first two letters of the Greek (Christos, figure 4c). The symbol has multiple names: monogram of Christ, Labarum, Chrismon. The central axis shows a Greek Rho (drawn as a Roman P). As letter 17, it has a gematria of 100 and symbolizes the creative female power, fruitfulness, vegetative growth, adaptability, fluidity.[endnoteRef:93] Superimposed on the Rho is a Greek letter, Chi, with a gematria of 600, symbolizing the cosmos, godhead, private property, possession and gift.[endnoteRef:94] Appended from the arms of the Chi are the letters Alpha and Omega, beginning and end. Note how the Christian symbol replaces or rather integrates the symbolism of the annual cycle seen in Greek letter Theta and in the solar disc (Candlemas-Lammas and May Day-All Hallows Eve, figure 2a-b). [93: Kabbalah: http://www.slideshare.net/star3salonica/hebrew-arabic-greek-alphabet-of-the-kabbalah] [94: Ibid. Kabbalah: http://www.slideshare.net/star3salonica/hebrew-arabic-greek-alphabet-of-the-kabbalah]

A variant of the same monogram of Christ recurs on a Roman sarcophagus (c. 350 A.D.). Here the lower version shows a cross, beneath which sit two figures. The upper part of the cross is topped by a chrismon, which here has the meaning of anastasis or resurrection (figure 4d). Another example (figure 4e) shows the same motif in a larger context in a sarcophagus in San Paolo fuori le mure (c.350-400 A.D.).[endnoteRef:95] These examples show how letters from the name of Christ in Greek, acquired theological and cosmological symbolism. They also illustrate how this Greek symbolism of the Greek Orthodox Church is adapted in Roman Christianity. [95: Sarcophagus: http://www.rome101.com/Topics/Christian/Magician/pix/Vat28591_0609_4425LM_L.JPG]

In the Marcosian system of Alexandria, Jesus as Iesous (, ), becomes a 6 letter name of God, also identified with the episemon ():

the number six was regarded as a symbol of Christ, and was hence called " " ("the outstanding number"); likewise, the name (Jesus), having six letters, was " " ("the outstanding name"), and so on.

Hence, the descent to earth, symbolized by Rahu, a dragons head in India and a serpentine letter S in China, Russia, and Greece (figure 2), was replaced in Alexandrian Christianity by a symbol of Christ. The letters Chi Xi Sigma (gematria 600 60 6 = 666), form the Greek number of the beast, also the numbers corresponding to rahu (dragons head) and become Symbols of Christos (Christ).[endnoteRef:96] [96: 666: http://theyfly.com/gaia/666.htm]

Figure 6 a. Monograms,[endnoteRef:97] b. Pax,[endnoteRef:98] IHS.[endnoteRef:99] [97: Monograms: http://www.christiansymbols.net/images_monograms/monogram_page1.png] [98: Pax: https://www.gravemarkers24.com/symbol%20pax.jpg] [99: IHS: http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5520/11822264476_5d5e853007_c.jpg]

In Alexandria, there was also a tradition of serpent worship, notably by the Ophites, who extolled the serpent and preferred it to Christ,[endnoteRef:100] believed the serpent, as if it had been God the Son, or believed that serpent and Christ were identical,[endnoteRef:101] and had their own Ophite Alphabet. Some have suggested that this snake worship has its origins in the naga traditions of Siva Buddhism.[endnoteRef:102] In this context, the links between Christ, number 6 and dragon/serpent are simultaneously a reflection of older traditions and an attempt to redefine the connotations, whereby Jesus as 666 is replaced by Jesus as 888. [100: Ophites: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophites] [101: Ibid. Ophites: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophites] [102: Siva Buddhism: http://www.hinduwebsite.com/history/indChrist/ophis.asp]

The name Christ comes from the Greek (Christs) and Latin Christus (annointed). The full name Jesus Christ ( , Iisous Khristos) is reduced to the first and last letters of the name to spell - (IC X C, Iota Sigma Chi Sigma):[endnoteRef:103] Greek letters 10 18 - 22 18. The first letters of are written as IX (Iota Chi). In geometrical form they become an I superimposed on an X in a circle with circumference 1,000 (figure 3a). Now Jesus Christ is symbolised by a circle of 1000 and with a superimposed I X which emulate the 6 spoked wheel of the solar circle (figure 5a cf. 2c). [103: IC XC Iota Sigma Chi Sigma: http://www.synaxis.info/old-rite/0_oldbelief/instructional_eng/cross_symbolism.htmlThe top bar of the Cross is the title-board which Pilate ordered to be hung in mockery over Christ's head. On this board was inscribed: "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" in Hebrew, Greek and Latin (abbreviated to the Greek initials 'INBI', or the Latin initials 'INRI' in the Western tradition). This has been replaced with the Christian inscription: "King of Glory" (Slavonic: ), placed below the knees of the angels. [Note that while the use of the inscription '....' does not usually appear in the Russian tradition, examples of its occurrence are occasionally found on newer Russian Crosses.] On the title-board is inscribed the initials 'IC XC', being the first and last letters of Christ's name in Greek (Greek: Iisous Khristos; Old Rite Slavonic: ; New Rite Slavonic: ). ]

The diameter of a circle of 999 or 1000 is 318. Gematria 318, (or more precisely 318.318),[endnoteRef:104] corresponds to the letter Theta (, figure 5b), and has the further meanings of foundation (osh), man ('iysh, cf. Ish above), sun (helios, ) and savior (). Jesus is also associated with the gematria for 8 80 800 = 888. Geometrically, if Jesus has a circumference of 888, then the circle has a diameter of 282, which is the gematria of Bios (, Life, figure 5c). Alternatively, Jesus is associated with a circle of 8880 in which 6 triangles of life () with a gematria of 815 are contained within a hexagram (figure 5 d). Or such a circle can contain 10 circles with a gematria of 888 (figure 5e), or three circles which create a vesica pisces for the word fishes () with a gematria of 1224 (figure 5f). [104: IX: The Sign of Christ: http://jesus8880.com/chapters/gematria/ix-sign.htmThe initials of his name also happen to be Greek Numerals. The Attic Greek Numeral "I" has a value of "1" and the Numeral "X" has a value of "1,000." The product of the two numerals is therefore = 1000 units. If the circle holding his sign is assigned a circumference of 1,000 units, the diameter of the circle by calculation is 318 units, which is the gematria value of Helios ('), the Sun. This is just one of the many examples you will find in this book of how the Greeks used gematria to equate Jesus Christ with the Sun. The sign of Jesus Christ has decorated Christian religious objects and churches throughout the world from the 1st century to the present.]

The intricate details of Christian gematria are beyond the scope of this essay. Nor are the criticisms of these techniques by Irenaeus and other figures in Roman Christianity. What concerns us is how the letters of a name become associated with numbers, which can then be translated into arithmetical and geometrical forms. Letters and words can reflect cosmological principles and cycles.

Of interest also is how this entire system depends on the precise sequence of letters in names and words. Simply changing a language can alter the meaning and sequence. For instance the Greek Chi Rho (letter 22 - letter 17), becomes the Latin P X (letter 16 Letter 21) as in the Latin word Pax (peace, figure 6a). Even a decorative turn can transform the shape of letters IHS almost beyond recognition (figure 6b). A consonant alphabet such as Hebrew produces different letter sequences than a five vowel (Latin) or a seven vowel (Greek, Coptic, Jacobite, Cyrillic, Ethiopian, Eritrean) alphabet. Names and words often change dramatically in different Christian communities, and bring changes in symbolism, gematria and cosmologies.

8. Changing Names

The new alphabets used for translating the Old Testament had an important impact on names in the Bible. In Hebrew, God was typically written as the four letter (tetragrammaton) Y H V H. In Latin, this became Yahweh and Yehovah. In Coptic, it became five vowels: Iaoue. In the magic papyri, the tetragrammaton recurred in a series of forms: (1) "Iaoouee," "Iaoue,"

Figure 7 a. Hebrew Bible wheel, b. Roman Catholic Bible Wheel.[endnoteRef:105] [105: Roman Catholic Bible Wheel: http://www.biblewheel.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/RomanCatholicBibleWheelChiRho.gif]

"Iabe,"; (2) "Iao," "Iaho," "Iae"; (3) "Aia"; (4) "Ia."[endnoteRef:106] In Syriacum, these five vowels (A E I O U) became the five prophets: Abraham, Esaia, Isaac, Odam, Vria[endnoteRef:107] In other contexts, they became the five tribes, which began as Acab, Ose, Ura, Esu, Jaichim[endnoteRef:108] and were then modified as Jacab, Jose, Jura, Jesu, Jaichin or as Jacob, Joseph, Jerah, Joshua, Jachin. [106: Tetragrammaton: http://bible.tmtm.com/wiki/LORD :It was in connection with magic that the Tetragrammaton was introduced into the magic papyri and, in all probability, into the writings of the Church Fathers, these two sources containing the following forms, written in Greek letters: (1) "Iaoouee," "Iaoue," "Iabe,"; (2) "Iao," "Iaho," "Iae"; (3) "Aia"; (4) "Ia." It is evident that (1) represents (3) (2) and (4) . The three forms quoted under (1) are merely three ways of writing the same word, though "Iabe" is designated as the Samaritan pronunciation.] [107: Syriacum: http://dfg-viewer.de/show/?set%5Bimage%5D=21&set%5Bzoom%5D=default&set%5Bdebug%5D=0&set%5Bdouble%5D=0&set%5Bmets%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.zvdd.de%2Fdms%2Fmetsresolver%2F%3FPPN%3DPPN572072716] [108: 5 Tribes: http://www.angelfire.com/journal/cathbodua/Ogham.html]

In English, the name Jesus Christ is often abbreviated to Jesus or Christ. Jesus is a transliteration of Latin Iesus. English transliterations of Jesus in Hebrew include Yaohushua, Yahvahosha, YHWHSHUA, Yahshua, Yahushua, Yeshua, Iahushua, Yashwa, Yahoshua, Yahweh Ben, Yahweh, Yashua, Y'shua, Yehshuva.[endnoteRef:109] His Greek name is (Isous).[endnoteRef:110] The transliteration of Jesus in Aramaic is Eesho (Eesaa). In Arabic it is Eesa" () or Isa (Issa),[endnoteRef:111] also called the Messiah, Jesus (al-MaseeHu `Eesa).[endnoteRef:112] Jesus was an Essene. Indian sources link the word Essene with Ishani (which also means devotee of Siva) and Ishan, which is related to ISa[endnoteRef:113] and Ishvara (which means Lord).[endnoteRef:114] In Cyrillic, Jesus is (Iisus).[endnoteRef:115] [109: Jesus Names: http://www.psyche.com/psyche/lex/shaitan.html] [110: Strongs Concordance: http://biblehub.com/greek/2424.htm] [111: Issa: http://www.rickrichards.com/jc/JesusComment2.htmlBut Issa/Ieshuah is not indeed Krishna, as his name is taken directly from that of Ishvara, "the Lord of the Universe" (Ish-vara, in Skt.). Ishvara pronounced "Ishwar" is also called Ishva ("Lord"), pronounced "Ishwa". The name of Ieshua or Ioshuah means "Saviour" in Hebrew, and is taken directly from the above Sanskrit term, which also has this acception, particularly when applied to Vishnu and to Shiva. Ishvara (Ishwar) is widely worshipped in the Far East, being also called Isha (or Ishana) in India, Issara in Pali, Isuan in Thai, Jizu (or Jizai) in Japanese, and so on.In turn, Issa (or Issi) is a corrupted form of the Skt. Rishi (or Riksha). Issa is how the Muslims call Jesus Christ, whom they acknowledge as a sort of saint. The Rishis are the "Sages" or "Seers" who revealed the Vedas (Hindu evangels) to the world. They date from Vedic times in India, being far older than the times of Christ, and even of Israel as a Biblical nation in Palestine. The Rishis are widely worshipped in the Far East, whence their cult passed to the Near Orient and, thence, through Alexandria, into Greece and Rome.] [112: Name of Jesus, Eesa: http://www.answering-christianity.com/name_of_jesus.htm] [113: Cf. Sanskrit: ISa m. the month Asvina see {iSa} ; a son of the third Manu ; a servant of Siva: http://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/cgi-bin/tamil/recherche] [114: Ishan: https://books.google.nl/books?id=WOQ5bucsDyAC&pg=PA358&lpg=PA358&dq=ishani+jesus&source=bl&ots=oKlYTX0KBV&sig=vOULH1MsIM3Spnv4RGcRuiMMFEw&hl=en&sa=X&ei=OOIDVfCQBqXa7gaUu4Eg&ved=0CD8Q6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=ishani%20jesus&f=false] [115: Jesus (name): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_(name)]

9. Changing Gematrias

These changing names affect their gematrias. Jesus, as Iesous () in Greek has a gematria of 888. Jesus as Isa in Arabic has a gematria of 71. The same name, Isa has a gematria of 100 in Hebrew, 174 in English and 29 in simple gematria.[endnoteRef:116] A different spelling as Eesa gives a gematria of 81 in Arabic.[endnoteRef:117] One of the Hebrew equivalents of Jesus is Joshua which has a gematria of 949 in Hebrew, 444 in English and 74 in simple gematria.[endnoteRef:118] [116: Gematria of Isa: http://www.gematrix.org/?word=isa] [117: Gematria of Eesa: http://dev.skynetcoding.com/zulunation/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/image043.jpg] [118: Gematria of Joshua: http://www.gematrix.org/?word=joshua]

Hence, the translation of the Old Testament from Hebrew, a consonant alphabet (or strictly speaking an abjad), into Greek, Coptic, Armenian, Georgian, Cyrillic with 7 vowels, and Latin with 5 vowels, meant a fundamental change of gematrias each time, all the more so because the alphabets had dramatically different lengths, ranging from 22 letters in Hebrew, 24 in Greek, 26 in Latin, 28 in Arabic, 32 in Coptic and 42 in Armenian. Bible wheels offer a very simple illustration of the principle. A Hebrew Bible wheel aligns the books of the bible with 22 letters. A Roman Catholic Bible wheel using the Greek alphabet aligns the same books with 24 letters (figure 7a b).

Hebrew has at least three terms for cosmos.[endnoteRef:119] One version of cosmos has a gematria of 313 in Hebrew. In Greek,[endnoteRef:120] cosmos, () has a gematria of 600 equal to that of the letter Chi, which as we have seen is also a symbolic letter of Christ. Hence the 5 Christianities in the 5 centres of early Christendom produced much more than 5 alphabets each with their own gematrias. They produced different models of the cosmos and the universe. [119: Cosmos: : , , ] [120: Hebrew cosmos: http://www.gematrix.org/?word=pure%20love%20is%20the%20cohesive%20power%20of%20the%20cosmos]

The Marcosian scheme of pre-creation adapted the Egyptian model of the ogdoad, decad and dodecad (table 2). The ogdoad was associated with 2 tetrads: 4 elements (air, earth, fire, water) and 4 operations of elements (heat, cold, dryness, humidity. The decad was composed of the 8 heavens, the sun and the moon. The dodecad was associated with the 12 zodiac signs.

8 10 12

Ogdoad DecadDodecad

4 elements - 4 operations of elements 8 heavens, sun, moon 12 zodiac signs

9 Consonants (Mutes) 8 Semivowels 7 Vowels

Table 2. Marcosian model of pre-creation.

Table 3. Standard view of branches of Christianity.[endnoteRef:121] [121: Christianity: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity]

Each of these three subdivisions was linked with letters: the ogdoad with 9 consonants, the decad with 8 semi-vowels and the dodecad with 7 vowels. Together, the 24 letters were arranged in pairs to provide an image of the body of Truth (Aletheia).[endnoteRef:122] [122: Body of Aletheia (Truth) in Marcus: http://www.sacred-texts.com/gno/fff/fff54.htmLetter 1 - Letter 24 TermsAlpha OmegaHeadLetter 2 - Letter 23 Terms Beta -Psi NeckLetter 3 - Letter 22 Terms Gamma -ChiShoulders Letter 4 - Letter 21 TermsDelta -Phi BreastLetter 5 - Letter 20 TermsEpsilon -UpsilonDiaphragmLetter 6 - Letter 19 Terms Zeta- TauStomach Letter 7 - Letter 18 Terms Eta - SigmaPrivate PartsLetter 8 - Letter 17 Terms Theta -RhoThighsLetter 9 - Letter 16 Terms Iota -PiKnees Letter 10 - Letter 15 Terms Kappa -OmicronLegsLetter 11 - Letter 14 TermsLambda -XiAnkles Letter 12 - Letter 13 Terms Mu - Nu FeetIt is striking that the same basic ordering, namely of linking the first with the last, the second with the penulitmate etc. can be traced back to Old Slavic runes. Hence, the ordering system of the Marcosians harks back to something much older. Cf. http://www.e-reading.club/bookreader.php/148041/Karlsson_-_Runy_i_nordicheskaya_magiya.html]

In the Hebrew system, the 7 planets were associated with the 7 double letters (B G D K P R T). Here, the seven vowels are aligned with the seven planets. The seven Marcosian vowels also play a direct role in the creation of the sensible world:

Now as to the creation of the sensible universe: the Logos, as creator, uses as his minister, or servant, the seven-numbered "greatness" (that is to say, the septenary hierarchy of the ideal universe, the Plrma or Mind of the Logos, symbolized by the seven vowels), in order that the fruit of His self-meditated meditation may be manifested.[endnoteRef:123] [123: Marcosians: http://www.sacred-texts.com/gno/fff/fff54.htm]

This passage suggests that the shift from abjads (consonants only) to alphabets in the modern sense (consonants interspersed with vowels), had metaphysical reasons. Vowels, as a key to creation, had to be included in the alphabet. While some in the early Christian centres at Antioch and Jerusalem maintained the abjad model, the Eastern Orthodox Church (Byzantium, Constantinople) adopted 7 vowel alphabets (Koine Greek, Georgian, Cyrillic), as did the Eastern Orthodoxy (Alexandria, Antioch with Coptic, Jacobite, Ethiopian, Eritrean, Armenian, Syriac, Jacobite), while Roman Christianity turned to 5 vowel alphabets (Latin, Romance Languages). Hence, Christianity introduced new views of creation, which required a modern version of the alphabet.

Arthur Lovejoys Great Chain of Being,[endnoteRef:124] provided a masterful overview of emanation theories of creation, which begin from the abstract one (Monad) and descend into the world of matter. The examples above illustrate how these theories are directly linked with letters of the alphabet. Nor is this limited to the Christian tradition. In the Mediaeval period, Ibn rabi (1165-1240 A.D.) developed an elaborate system, whereby the sequence of the letters of the alphabet is also the sequence of the 12 zodiac signs and a descent from the Divine essence, via the ultimate sphere, the 7 heavens and the 4 elements down to the final letters of the alphabet: the Hierarchy of the Degrees of Existence, not their manifestation (figure 10).[endnoteRef:125] [124: Arthur O. Lovejoy, The Great Chain of Being: A Study of the History of an Idea, Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1936, 1964. Cf. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_chain_of_being] [125: Ibn Arabi: http://www.yeatsvision.com/mansions.html]

A future history of such theories would need to trace how Egyptian emanation theories, and particularly those of the Alexandrian school, which had Eastern roots, in turn affected Manichaeism and the Church of the East. It would also trace how the orthodox schools of Roman Christianity and the Eastern Orthodox Church increasingly dismissed such attempts at explaining pre-creation as heretical and focussed directly on the creation (ex nihilo) story of the Old Testament.

10. Implications for Interfaces

A first implication is that we need more subtle maps for tracing the divisions of major religions. A standard view (table 3) shows early Christianity proceeding simply until the breaks with the Assyrian Church (381), the Oriental Orthodox Church (451) and the Eastern Orthodox Church (1054). Our brief outline has shown that the early period entailed five centres, each with their own languages, alphabets and approaches.

The received view is that Christianity has a sacred text, the Old and New Testaments, which was gradually translated into thousands of languages, as if translation alone could spread the sacred scriptures. Our essay suggests that considerably more is needed. Our simple example of X P (figures 4b , 6a), showed how the same letters mean Chi Rho as in Christ in Greek and P(a)X, peace, in Latin.

Our search systems are geared to search for words. They need to be refined so that we can search for individual letters. We have different tools to search for images (e.g. Google image). But the same letters, Chi Rho, which occur in texts can recur as drawings, monograms, geometrical diagrams, sculptures, paintings and other media. These need refinement such that we can search by language. If we type X P Latin into Google web, we learn at the first hit that this is an abbreviation for Christus. If we type X P Latin under Google images, we need to ignore well over a 100 hits, before we find an isolated example. Typing X P Greek is slightly more helpful but far from ideal. If we type Chi Rho we receive hundreds of hits but they are indiscriminately ordered. We need options to arrange them chronologically and spatially, and to be able to search them accordingly: e.g. Chi Rho Alexandria 100- 200 A.D.

Needed is a new kind of hyperlinking which would give us access to multiple translations of a given passage (table 4). Reading the King James version of the Gospel of Saint John, would show us the term Word, which is static. Comparison with Latin Verbum, (cf. verb) reveals motion and a dynamic element. Greek Logos (), also has a dynamic sense plus a sense of ordering. Sanskrit vac (vak) is sound and speech as well as word. Non-experts would need access to multilingual dictionaries in order to trace the etyrmologies of words.

Such an ability for comparative etymology would be fundamentally helpful in exploring the history of key terms associated with the Trinity, Incarnation and Christ: e.g. ousia (), hypostasis (, person), prosopon (, person) and physis (, nature). In Greek, ousia is connected with being and the verb to be () and hence the same meaning

English In the beginning was the Word, and the word was with God

Latin In principio erat Verbum et Verbum erat apud Deum et Deus erat Verbum

Greek , ,

English < Greek In the Beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was (one) with God, and the Logos was God.

English < Sanskrit In the beginning was Vk, and Vk was with Yahva, and Vk was Yahv

In the beginning was Prajapati, and with Him was the Word

Table 4. Multiple translations of a passage.

Roman Christianity Catholics: One person, one hypostasis, two natures. Oriental Orthodoxy Monophysites: One person, one hypostasis, one nature.

Church of the East Nestorians: One person, two hypostases, two natures. Table 5. Definitions of Christ[endnoteRef:126] [126: Christ Definitions: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10489b.htm]

as Cyrillic letter 5: esti (, ) and corresponding to Greek letter 5: Epsilon. In Latin, ousia is often translated as substantia and essentia, which become substance and essence in English. Hence, Latin and English bring a sense of reification that reduces the idea of a living being to a lifeless thing or object. In English, it was also translated as person. Different definitions of these basic terms thus lead to basic divisions in Christianity: e.g. Roman Christianity, Oriental Orthodoxy and the Church of the East (table 5).

To understand this requires multilingual hyperlinking of terms, such that we can trace how Greek ousia becomes Syriac qnm (), while Greek hypostasis becomes Syriac kyn (). In addition, it requires an ability to see basic usage examples (cf. tables 4-5), which can then, in turn, be traced multilingually. Such dynamic, multilingual etymological dictionaries as an online app would open new pathways in the history of ideas and concepts.

Another dimension of this new hyperlinking would be that we could submit any letter, word or passage to gematria filters to see their underlying gematric value. At the simplest level this would entail linking any word in the Bible to reference tools such as the Full Text Hebrew/Greek Bible Gematria Database.[endnoteRef:127] In important cases, such as Jesus or Life (e.g. figure 5), we could see how these gematria values had been visualized. Reading the Old Testament in Hebrew, if we encounter the term (Hokmah), we could see that this is (the heart of) wisdom; gematria 37 and see that it is geometrically a centred hexagon and star (with 37 as the star as 19 as the hexagon).[endnoteRef:128] [127: Full Text Hebrew/Greek Bible Gematria Database: http://www.biblewheel.com//GR/GR_Database.php?Gem_Num=234] [128: Heart of Wisdom: http://www.biblewheel.com//GR/GR_37.php]

Conceptually this changes the reading of a text into a layered approach. The simple version just outlined would have the text at layer 1, the gematria at layer 2 and the corresponding geometrical diagram at layer 3. In light of our discussion of changing names and gematrias, each translation of a sacred text would have different second and third layers for the same text. Hence, different translations of a text, implicitly lead to different visualizations at the gematric and symbolic level.

A more complex version might well have at least 6 levels (table 6), such that a reader could also consult dictionaries, encyclopaedias, articles, books and reconstructions concerning any given letter, word, passage.[endnoteRef:129] Searching for a given letter would require indicating the contexts that are of interest. For example if we chose to search for Hebrew letter 5 (He), we would learn (figure 8) that it is aligned with sight (Veue), Aries (Le mouton), Malchidael, Mars and Nisan. We would also see which other letters align with the remaining zodiac signs. Changing the language to Greek we would discover (figure 9) that the corresponding letter 5, Eta () aligns with Aquarius in an early Greek schema. [129: A full research tool would have the 10 levels of knowledge as outlined in the SUMS (system for Universal Media Searching) prototype. Cf. the authors Access, Claims and Quality on the Internet Future challenges , Progress in Informatics, Tokyo, no. 2, November 2005, pp. 17-40. ]

In current search engines such as Google, each medium tends to have their own search Engine: e.g. text (Google web); images (Google images); videos (YouTube); maps (Google

1. Dictionaries

2. Encyclopedias

3. Full Text

Editions

Translations

4. Internal Analyses

Gematria Numbers

Geometrical Figures

Articles on word, concept

Monographs

5. External Analyses

Comparative Articles on word, concept

Comparative Books

6. Reconstructions

Table 6. Layers of Analysis in a Text

maps). Needed is a system where searching for a word (text), offers access to diagrams, images, videos on that word. Images would have a contextualizing function. Hence, if a search for Chi Rho sculptures led to the Anastasis image (figure 4e), we would be led to its current location, the Pio-Christian museum (Vatican), and its provenance from the excavations of the Duchess of Chablais at Tor Marancia, 1817-1821[endnoteRef:130] Map functions would allow us to see where this is (Rome 11e). [130: Anastasis: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anastasis_Pio_Christiano_Inv31525.jpg]

Current library systems allow searching via a keyword, which provides book titles and occasionally other media concerning that term. Searching for articles requires separate searches in periodicals indexes, often limited to a given year or short time period. Needed is an ability, whereby we could search for all books and articles on a given term, with spatial parameters (e.g. published in Italy, Umbria, or Rome) and temporal parameters (e.g. published between 1830-1850). In an online, portable digital reference room, such information, now dispersed in thousands of reference works would be integrated into a single system. To achieve this requires a universal approach to bibliography and reference works, a domain which was pioneered in book form by the Saur Verlag.

Searching for a name such as Jesus would provide not only the typical orthography found in authority files. It would offer all significant variants. A sample list is offered in Appendix 2. This list could be supplemented by translations into other languages, and traced chronologically.

To be sure, no one would be expected to explore all the possible links of every letter, word, or passage they encounter, just as no-one in the great libraries with over 400,000 reference books would expect to check very possible connection. The important dimension of the vision is that reference books (das Hand Apparat) traditionally in reading rooms or reference rooms would now be a super app. To achieve it requires a new global approach to bibliography as foreseen by visionaries in their view of a Global Brain, or World Library.[endnoteRef:131] [131: For another formulation of this vision, see: Alan Stuart Radley, Self as Computer. Blueprints, visions and Dreams of Technopia, Blackpool, 2015. ]

11. Conclusions

Diringer (1948) in his monumental history of the alphabet, claimed that if trade follows the flag, the alphabet follows religion.[endnoteRef:132] He used this insight to explain how the spread of Buddhism from Nepal and Northern India to South India and gradually to the whole of Southeast Asia was a key to understanding the spread of what he termed the Indian branch of languages. [132: David Diringer, The Alphabet: A Key to the History of Mankind, New York: Philosophical Library, 1948, p. 341. ]

Our essay has introduced a new meaning to this well established phrase: namely, that the alphabet, in its modern sense, as a combination of consonants interspersed with vowels, follows a specific religion, Christianity, and its main examples (e.g. Greek, Georgian, Cyrillic, Coptic, Arabic, Ethiopian, Eritrean, Jacobite, Latin) are directly connected with different branches of Christianity associated with five main centres (Antioch, Jerusalem, Constantinople, Alexandria, Rome). Hence, there were effectively five Christianities in the early centuries, each with their own alphabet.

Two of those centres, Antioch and Jerusalem continued the abjad tradition with their respective alphabets (Syriac, Aramaic, Hebrew). The other three centres developed modern alphabets. Constantinople, the seat of the Eastern Orthodox Church, used mainly 7 vowel alphabets (Koine Greek, Georgian, Cyrillic). Rome, the seat of Roman Christianity, used 5 letter alphabets (Latin, Romance alphabets). Alexandria, the seat of the Oriental Orthodox Church, also used a 7 vowel alphabet (Coptic), a model also adopted in alphabets used by other members of the Eastern Orthodoxy: e.g. Ethiopian, Eritrean, Jacobite, Armenian. The third century Marcosians explicitly linked vowels with the source of sensible creation. This perceived link with creation may well have been a rationale for including vowels amidst consonants in alphabets.

Efforts to define the terms of Christianity in the 4th and 5th centuries reduced the five centres to three orthodox churches: Roman Christianity with 5 vowels, Eastern Orthodox with 7 vowels and Oriental Orthodoxy, also with 7 vowels. In the centuries that followed, Rome claimed supremacy over and then separated from Constantinople (Great Schism, 1054). Rome also distanced itself from the Alexandrian schools fascination with pre-creation, how created things were made after the image of things invisible.[endnoteRef:133] Accordingly theories of emanations and gnosticism became apocryphal texts, dismissed as heretical, suppressed or simply forgotten. [133: Theory of the Marcosians: http://biblehub.com/library/irenaeus/against_heresies/chapter_xvii_the_theory_of_the.htm]

The history of Western alphabets thus entails a series of paradoxes. On the surface, they arose from a decision to translate the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek and from Greek into other languages. 518 translations of the Old Testament have been made and another 2300 are underway.[endnoteRef:134] These originated from an original text in Hebrew and to this extent the Western alphabets of the translations are inspired by Judaism and a Judaeo-Christian tradition. [134: Bible Translations: https://www.wycliffe.org/about/why]

On the other hand, Hebrew followed an abjad model using only consonants for its gematria. So too did Aramaic and Syriac, which were original languages of the New Testament and were also adopted by the (Assyrian) Church of the East. By adding vowels, the Greek alphabet enabled words to be spelled out in their entirety. Greek, as was noted, had its roots in Aryan alphabets (Ionian, Saracen and Assyrian). Further translations of the Bible were made via the Greek translation (Septuagint).[endnoteRef:135] In this sense, Western alphabets were a Greco-Christian development, independent of the Judaic, Semitic tradition. [135: A rare exception was the Peshitta (200 A.D.), a translation directly from the Hebrew into Syriac: http://www.wycliffe.net/BTT.html]

Notwithstanding, their outer differences, the alphabets of these Abrahamic religions shared a number of key letters. Five in particular were examined (e.g. A H V I A, table 1). In Sanskrit, these began as two vowels, two semivowels and one aspirate. In the abjads, they became five consonants. In the 5 and 7 vowel alphabets, they became 5 vowels. Hence, there are underlying patterns in alphabets that need to be analysed. An understanding of these patterns throws some light on differences between Northern and Southern alphabets in the region.

On closer study, it was shown that letters also function as symbols,[endnoteRef:136] often with cosmological dimensions. The sequence and numbers of these letters vary in different alphabets. As a result, each alphabet generates different names, and ultimately different cosmologies. We have search engines for searching in different media. We need search engines that allow us to search across media and across different scales. [136: e.g. Chi Rho can be two letters and also symbols for Christ or Pax).]

The Wolff-Sapir hypothesis claimed that the structure of a language affects the ways in which its respective speakers conceptualize their world.[endnoteRef:137] Our study suggests that these differences begin at the level of alphabet letters and that each alphabet implies, some might say imposes, its own structures, gematrias, and cosmologies. In this context, the old saying of the translator as a traitor (traduttore tradittore), acquires a new dimension. Hence, each translation into another alphabet entails different realities or at least different formulations of reality, which cannot be reduced to a simple one-to-one correspondence. Needed are new kinds of hypertextual links entailing digital reference rooms. [137: Linguistic Relativity: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguistic_relativity]

The final section explored implications for scholarship and interfaces. A first implication is that no translation is sufficient onto itself. And yet a simple listing of various translations (cf. table 4) would require that readers have mastered all the original scripts. So a combination of comparative translations and transliterations are required. A layered approach to study was outlined beginning with the text, its gematric equivalents in numbers, and visualizations thereof in terms of geometrical diagrams. A six level approach was also outlined (table 6).

Memory institutions (libraries, archives, museums), have tended to separate texts from images and numbers. Internet search engines continue this tradition. The examples in this paper show that there are vital connections between letters, words, numbers and images. Current search engines are designed to find a single item, assuming that we know its standard name. In the emerging Internet of Things, the focus is increasingly on reification, point searches for individual objects, rather than understanding how they are parts of systems, context, change with time and have a history. Todays hyperlinks have been limited to random one-way personal connections.

Knowledge is about systematic connections. We need systems that allow us to see, study and understand these inter-connections, not just Nelsons deeply intertwingled[endnoteRef:138] nature of reality, but the cumulative associations of mankinds knowledge, in order to comprehend the big picture in its fullest sense and wholeness. [138: Intertwingularity: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intertwingularity]

Appendix 1.

Figure 8. Hebrew Letters and Zodiac, from Duret, 1613, 210.

Figure 9. Greek Zodiac and Alphabet.[endnoteRef:139] [139: Zodiac and Greek Alphabet: http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/donnightman/69905628/247330/247330_original.jpg]

The Mansions of the Moon according to Ibn Arabi (ca. 1200)

[name]

meaning

from

attribution

letter

Divine Attribute

1

Al Sharatain

The Two Signs

0 Aries

The First Intellect, the Pen

Hamza & Alef

Divine Essence

2

Al Butain

The Belly of Aries

1251'22" Aries

The Universal Soul, the Preserved Tablet

H(unstressed h)

The One Who Calls Forth

3

Al Thurayya

The Many Little Ones

2542'51" Aries

Universal Nature

Ayn

The Interior

4

Al Dabaran

The Follower

834'17" Taurus

Universal Substance, prima materia

H(stressed h)

The Last

5

Al Hakah

The White Spot

2125'40" Taurus

Universal Body

Ghayn (gh)

The Manifest

6

Al Hanah

The Mark

417'09" Gemini

Form

Kh (kh)

The Wise

7

Al Dhira

The forearm

1708'34" Gemini

The Throne

Qf (q)

The All-Encompassing

8

Al Nathra

The Gap or Crib

0 Cancer

The Footstool

Kf (k)

The Grateful

9

Al Tarf

The Glance

1251'22" Cancer

The Self-Existing Ultimate Sphere, the Starless Sky, the Zodiacal Towers

Jm (j)

The Independent, the Rich

10

Al Jabhah

The Forehead

2542'51" Cancer

The Sky of the Fixed Stars, the Sphere of the Stations, the Sun of Paradise, the Roof of Hell

Shn (sh)

The Powerful

11

Al Zubrah

The Mane

834'17" Leo

The First Heaven, the Sphere of Saturn, the Sky of the Visited House and Lotus of the Extreme Limit, the Abode of Ibrahim (Abraham)

Y (y/)

The Lord

12

Al Sarfah

The Changer

2125'40" Leo

The Second Heaven, the Sphere of Jupiter, the Abode of Musa (Moses)

Dd(stressed d)

The Knowing

13

Al Awwa

The Barker

417'09" Virgo

The Third Heaven, the Sphere of Mars, the Abode of Harun (Aaron)

Lm (l)

The Victorious

14

Al Simak

The Unarmed

1708'34" Virgo

The Fourth Heaven, the Sphere of the Sun, the Abode of Idris (Enoch, Hermes)

Nn (n)

The Light

15

Al Ghafr

The Cover

0 Libra

The Fifth Heaven, the Sphere of Venus, the Abode of Yusuf (Joseph)

R (r)

The Form-Giver

16

Al Jubana

The Claws

1251'22" Libra

The Sixth Heaven, the Sphere of Mercury, the Abode of Isa (Jesus)

T(stressed t)

The Numberer

17

Iklil al Jabhah

The Crown of the Forehead

2542'51" Libra

The Seventh Heaven, the Sphere of the Moon, the Abode of Adam

Dl (d)

The Evident

18

Al Kalb

The Heart

834'17" Scorpio

The Sphere of Ether, Meteors and Fire

T(unstressed t)

The Seizer

19

Al Shaula

The Sting

2125'40" Scorpio

Air

Zy (z)

The Living One

20