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A Radical Interpretation of the Origins of Civilization
Bear & Company/Inner Traditions 1997, 2004 ISBN #159143023-2
 Sometimes what is seen as the greatest weakness in a person or thing turns out to be its greatest strength - this is exactly what happened during my journey through this book. It was apparent from the first page that John Gordon was quite a chatty fellow, and that I would be wandering down many side roads in trying to follow his thoughts. This is exactly what happened - and I consider this time well spent, and the wisdom that I gained - about myself and about Egyptian civilization and culture, to be well worth the effort. We need to keep in mind that John Gordon is a senior fellow of the Theosophical Society of England, and that the areas of his concern are ancient history and metaphysics. While his theories concerning Egypt are indeed radical, they are worth trying on for size. Gordon holds the belief that t he civilization of Egypt is far older than traditionally believed, and that it was structured around knowledge based on a foundation of astronomy and geography that we of modern times do not hold a good understanding of. If one is going to be in the face of tradition, one might as well go all the way, which is what Gordon does when he traces Egyptian culture to the (legendary) lost continent of Atlantis. He builds on evidence of a prehistoric religious culture that extended from Egypt to Tibet and China, a culture based on an understanding of the Precession of the Equinoxes and its connection to human evolution, divine purpose and the initiatory nature of Egyptian life. Seen in this light, the nature of Egyptian culture moves from one that is based on death to one that connects life and death as part of an initiatory transition. It helps if the reader has a background in metaphysics in general to truly appreciate this book. However, the layout is such that someone with no knowledge of Egypt, Egyptian culture, initiatory processes or the Mystery traditions could come away with a solid understanding of what was being presented, and a fair idea of what they were willing to accept as "true", what they were perhaps wanting to investigate further, and what they felt was totally erroneous and needed to be left behind. With a small willingness to open their minds to a certain degree of radical thought, any reader could come away with an expanded consciousness. Egypt - Child of Atlantis is divided into three parts: Part One is entitled "Origins", Part Two is entitled "Traditions" and Part Three is entitled "Knowledge". They work together to present the astronomical, astrological and metaphysical picture of ancient Egyptian civilization and the pyramids. They also work together to show that the literal interpretation of Egyptian civilization is not the one that we need to be looking at - that Egyptian life truly was based on a religious initiation process, and that some things are intended to be more in the nature of metaphor and esotericism than literal thought. Part One: Origins, covers astronomy, astrophysics and geophysics as they pertain to our current understanding of Egyptian culture and civilization. Geophysics is not an area that is easy for me to comprehend, so I had to pay close attention to what was being presented. Astronomy and astrophysics are areas that I do have some slight knowledge in, so they readily fell into place. Working with the theory behind celestial seasons and the structure of the earth is quire interesting, and was well presented. One of the things that I appreciated was the use of graphics to augment the text - a great help for those that grasp an issue easier if seen in picture format. Not only are graphics of land mass and astronomy presented, but throughout the book there are wonderful pictures of Egyptian civilization, the pyramids and incredible statues. Gordon also presents the religious base for Egyptian civilization, and does a nice job of explaining the deities, their various forms, and the influence on mankind of mythical structure of the gods, demi-gods and heros. Part Two: Traditions, covers the belief systems of the ancient Egyptians, and how these systems governed their art, architecture and religion. Gordon starts out here with a nice discussion of gods, daemons and souls - and how the gods are seen as expressions of perfection in nature. He discusses sympathetic magic, and psycho-spiritual magnetism. One of the topics covered under Traditions is the geometric structure of the pyramids, and how this served as part of the initiation process (including how this structure enabled the energy of the gods of a specific temple to be brought down into the ceremonies being performed, gifting those participating with their wisdom). Those who study the Mystery Traditions will appreciate this section. Those for whom this material is all new will find a whole new world out there waiting for them to discover! Part Three: Knowledge, deals specifically with the cosmological and astronomical derivation of ancient Egyptian thought, as well as their architectural associations. The Nile Temples, the Pyramids at Giza, and the Great Pyramid are dealt with at length. Here, through text and pictures, we see the part that allegory and metaphysical metaphor play in ancient Egyptian culture. A smile was brought to my face when Gordon went into the explanation behind the "Eye of Ra" - a graphic that I have seen used in the professional field of Tarot, but one that I did not know the background of. There were many other moments in this book when a smile came to my face, but this one definitely stands out! Gordon has included an extensive appendix that covers a great deal of information that did not find an exact place within the textual structure of the book. It is well worth the time taken to check it out. I believe that this book will have a place in many people's lives - those who are interested in ancient Egyptian civilization and the pyramids, those interested in the psycho-spiritual power of the pyramids, as well as those interested in the Mystery Traditions. Gordon pushes the envelope on many (if not all!) issues, but he tells you that this is exactly what he is doing. He asks the reader to think for themselves, and take away what fits for them. If the one thing that this book does is open a few minds, it has served its purpose. Egypt - Child of Atlantis can be purchased here.
Bonnie Cehovet
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