What do you think?
Rate this book
Point of Origin: Gobekli Tepe and the Spiritual Matrix for the World's Cosmologies
Reveals Gobekli Tepe as a center of civilizing knowledge for the ancient world
• Details how symbolic elements at Gobekli Tepe link a pre-Vedic cult in India to cosmological myths and traditions in Africa, Egypt, Tibet, and China
• Discusses how carved animal images at Gobekli Tepe relate to stages of creation and provide an archaic foundation for symbolic written language
• Defines how classical elements of ancient Egyptian myth and religion characterize an archaic cosmological tradition that links ancestrally back to Gobekli Tepe
How could multiple ancient cultures, spanning both years and geography, have strikingly similar creation myths and cosmologies? Why do the Dogon of Africa and the civilizations of ancient Egypt, India, Tibet, and China share sacred words and symbols? Revealing the existence of a long-forgotten primal culture and the world’s first center of higher learning, Laird Scranton shows how the sophisticated complex at Gobekli Tepe in Turkey is the definitive point of origin from which all the great civilizations of the past inherited their cosmology, esoteric teachings, and civilizing skills, such as agriculture, metallurgy, and stone masonry, fully developed.
Scranton explains how the carved images on Gobekli Tepe’s stone pillars were the precursors to the sacred symbols of the Dogon, Egyptians, Tibetans, and Chinese as well as the matriarchal Sakti cult of ancient Iran and India. He identifies Gobekli Tepe as a remote mountain sanctuary of higher knowledge alluded to in Sakti myth, named like an important temple in Egypt, and defined in ancient Buddhist tradition as Vulture Peak. Scranton reveals how Gobekli Tepe’s enigmatic “H” carvings and animal symbolism, symbolic of stages of creation, was presented as a kind of prototype of written language accessible to the hunter-gathers who inhabited the region. He shows how the myths and deities of many ancient cultures are connected linguistically, extending even to the name of Gobekli Tepe and the Egyptian concept of Zep Tepi , the mythical age of the “First Time.”
Identifying Gobekli Tepe not only as the first university but also as the first temple, perhaps built as a civilizing exercise, Scranton definitively places this enigmatic archaeological site at the point of origin of civilization, religion, and ancient science.
• Details how symbolic elements at Gobekli Tepe link a pre-Vedic cult in India to cosmological myths and traditions in Africa, Egypt, Tibet, and China
• Discusses how carved animal images at Gobekli Tepe relate to stages of creation and provide an archaic foundation for symbolic written language
• Defines how classical elements of ancient Egyptian myth and religion characterize an archaic cosmological tradition that links ancestrally back to Gobekli Tepe
How could multiple ancient cultures, spanning both years and geography, have strikingly similar creation myths and cosmologies? Why do the Dogon of Africa and the civilizations of ancient Egypt, India, Tibet, and China share sacred words and symbols? Revealing the existence of a long-forgotten primal culture and the world’s first center of higher learning, Laird Scranton shows how the sophisticated complex at Gobekli Tepe in Turkey is the definitive point of origin from which all the great civilizations of the past inherited their cosmology, esoteric teachings, and civilizing skills, such as agriculture, metallurgy, and stone masonry, fully developed.
Scranton explains how the carved images on Gobekli Tepe’s stone pillars were the precursors to the sacred symbols of the Dogon, Egyptians, Tibetans, and Chinese as well as the matriarchal Sakti cult of ancient Iran and India. He identifies Gobekli Tepe as a remote mountain sanctuary of higher knowledge alluded to in Sakti myth, named like an important temple in Egypt, and defined in ancient Buddhist tradition as Vulture Peak. Scranton reveals how Gobekli Tepe’s enigmatic “H” carvings and animal symbolism, symbolic of stages of creation, was presented as a kind of prototype of written language accessible to the hunter-gathers who inhabited the region. He shows how the myths and deities of many ancient cultures are connected linguistically, extending even to the name of Gobekli Tepe and the Egyptian concept of Zep Tepi , the mythical age of the “First Time.”
Identifying Gobekli Tepe not only as the first university but also as the first temple, perhaps built as a civilizing exercise, Scranton definitively places this enigmatic archaeological site at the point of origin of civilization, religion, and ancient science.
- GenresHistory
224 pages, Paperback
First published February 21, 2015
About the author
Laird Scranton
28 books56 followersHe is an independent software designer who became interested in Dogon mythology and symbolism in the early 1990s. He has studied ancient myth, language, and cosmology since 1997 and has been a lecturer at Colgate University. He also appears in John Anthony West’s Magical Egypt DVD series.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 14, 2016
The blurb on the back cover of this book starts with the question of “how multiple ancient cultures, spanning both years and geography, have strikingly similar creation myths and cosmologies?” In the book, the latest in a series, Scranton postulates that the centre of this web of shared cosmological values and symbols is the ancient megalithic site of Göbekli Tepe in South east Turkey. Indeed, Göbekli Tepe is the originator of this universal cosmological environment; an ancient university disseminating ancient knowledge. Scranton’s main tool is linguistic. This certainly is a major task and I would suggest that it is a task well beyond the use of language dictionaries which seem to be his most important resources. Scranton clearly isn’t a linguist and it shows; it simply isn’t possible to play word association games using dictionaries for several languages each of which is from a different language group with completely different structures and then to produce a coherent hypothesis. It’s certainly possible to decipher one language using a word matrix from languages in the same group – Hittite was deciphered in this way. But Turkish and ancient Egyptian? Or Dogon and Ancient Tibetan? These languages are in completely different groups, have a completely different structure and a completely different chronology of development and simply inventing a rubric that states cosmologically significant terms transcend mundane matters like time and space simply isn’t good enough.
However, this is how it works……..Scranton makes much of a supposed connection beween the word “tepe” in the Turkish name “Göbekli Tepe” and the ancient Egyptıan word “tipi” in the term “Zep Tipi” which is the Egyptian founding myth. The logic of this connective argument is so garbled it’s hard to make sense of it but he to pursue this line of reasoning throughout. One of the many synonyms for “tepe” is roof……and this may be relevant, he says, because one idea has it that Göbekli Tepe was roofed at one time. Or, on the other hand, Turkish “tepe” sounds like Egyptian “tipi” as in “sep tepi”……and “sep” can be written as a fox hieroglyph and there are foxes depicted at Göbekli Tepe. Alternatively, and for good measure, “sep” could also mean “worm” or “serpent”………and there are many snakes depicted at Göbekli Tepe – see pages 41 to 45. And then just to bludgeon the point home Scranton points out that the Egyptian word tepi also means ancestor and, as we know, Gobekli Tepe has anthropomorphic pillars that may represent ancestors……..and the Turkish word tepe primarily means “peak” or “hill” while the Egyptian word tep means “high ground” or the “top of anything.” The fact is that all of the synonyms for the Turkish word “tepe” relate to a feature that stands proud of the surrounding environment whether it is a roof or a mound. That’s it. Nothing more. But Scranton then proceeds to beat the Turkish word “göbekli” to death with same analytical hammer. This exercise just goes on and on in a train of cosmological and lexical non sequiturs for the whole book.
Scranton makes the point that “these comparisons demonstrated that when the ancient Egyptians used the words tep or tipi, they likely understood the meaning in the same essential ways as someone in ancient Turkey.” No they didn’t Laird. One is left wondering why, when this book was in manuscript form with the Publisher or when Scranton was discussing his ideas on the alternative history radio show/ lecture circuit with like minded colleagues such as Graham Hancock, Anthony West, James Swagger or Andrew Collins, nobody had the decency to point out that any lexical references to the Turkish language in relation to Göbekli Tepe and ancient Egyptian or Dogon are meaningless because the Turks didn’t arrive in Anatolia until the early 11th century AD and didn’t establish themselves in the region where Göbekli Tepe is located until the late 14th century AD. It was later still before Turkish was established as the common language in the area.
Just as an illustration of how this game works, I’ll have a little play at it……..the Kurdish name for Göbekli Tepe is Gire Navoke. It has the same meaning. But the word “gire” looks very like the English word “gyre” - to move in a circular motion and remaining now only in the word gyrate. It can also mean a spiral or vortex. Circular motion is clearly replicated in the circular arrangement of the oldest Göbekli Tepe enclosures. The henges and many barrow tombs of the British Isles are built in a circular configuration suggesting a circular processional imperative. Bingo! There is a connection between Göbekli Tepe and Stonehenge, Seahenge, Newgrange and the Ring of Brodgar in the British Isles …….and therefore with ancient Egypt and the Dogans. There must be a priesthood connecting the oldest to the newest…….an academy or university if you will. Never mind that English didn’t establish itself in the British Isles until well after the 7th century AD. But I suspect that the Neolithic British Isles is going to be the next target for Laird Scranton’s ridiculous cosmological scrabble game anyway. Give it a miss. There are far better books on this topic.
However, this is how it works……..Scranton makes much of a supposed connection beween the word “tepe” in the Turkish name “Göbekli Tepe” and the ancient Egyptıan word “tipi” in the term “Zep Tipi” which is the Egyptian founding myth. The logic of this connective argument is so garbled it’s hard to make sense of it but he to pursue this line of reasoning throughout. One of the many synonyms for “tepe” is roof……and this may be relevant, he says, because one idea has it that Göbekli Tepe was roofed at one time. Or, on the other hand, Turkish “tepe” sounds like Egyptian “tipi” as in “sep tepi”……and “sep” can be written as a fox hieroglyph and there are foxes depicted at Göbekli Tepe. Alternatively, and for good measure, “sep” could also mean “worm” or “serpent”………and there are many snakes depicted at Göbekli Tepe – see pages 41 to 45. And then just to bludgeon the point home Scranton points out that the Egyptian word tepi also means ancestor and, as we know, Gobekli Tepe has anthropomorphic pillars that may represent ancestors……..and the Turkish word tepe primarily means “peak” or “hill” while the Egyptian word tep means “high ground” or the “top of anything.” The fact is that all of the synonyms for the Turkish word “tepe” relate to a feature that stands proud of the surrounding environment whether it is a roof or a mound. That’s it. Nothing more. But Scranton then proceeds to beat the Turkish word “göbekli” to death with same analytical hammer. This exercise just goes on and on in a train of cosmological and lexical non sequiturs for the whole book.
Scranton makes the point that “these comparisons demonstrated that when the ancient Egyptians used the words tep or tipi, they likely understood the meaning in the same essential ways as someone in ancient Turkey.” No they didn’t Laird. One is left wondering why, when this book was in manuscript form with the Publisher or when Scranton was discussing his ideas on the alternative history radio show/ lecture circuit with like minded colleagues such as Graham Hancock, Anthony West, James Swagger or Andrew Collins, nobody had the decency to point out that any lexical references to the Turkish language in relation to Göbekli Tepe and ancient Egyptian or Dogon are meaningless because the Turks didn’t arrive in Anatolia until the early 11th century AD and didn’t establish themselves in the region where Göbekli Tepe is located until the late 14th century AD. It was later still before Turkish was established as the common language in the area.
Just as an illustration of how this game works, I’ll have a little play at it……..the Kurdish name for Göbekli Tepe is Gire Navoke. It has the same meaning. But the word “gire” looks very like the English word “gyre” - to move in a circular motion and remaining now only in the word gyrate. It can also mean a spiral or vortex. Circular motion is clearly replicated in the circular arrangement of the oldest Göbekli Tepe enclosures. The henges and many barrow tombs of the British Isles are built in a circular configuration suggesting a circular processional imperative. Bingo! There is a connection between Göbekli Tepe and Stonehenge, Seahenge, Newgrange and the Ring of Brodgar in the British Isles …….and therefore with ancient Egypt and the Dogans. There must be a priesthood connecting the oldest to the newest…….an academy or university if you will. Never mind that English didn’t establish itself in the British Isles until well after the 7th century AD. But I suspect that the Neolithic British Isles is going to be the next target for Laird Scranton’s ridiculous cosmological scrabble game anyway. Give it a miss. There are far better books on this topic.
May 24, 2018
A thought provoking complex and very detailed book.
July 11, 2015
Kyle Philson Host of Expanded Perspectives Podcast
-Free Review Copy Courtesy of Inner Traditions/Bear & Company
Let me start off by saying that Laird Scranton has done a fantastic job once again with this latest book on the connections in the symbolism, cosmology, myths, and more of various different cultures, and shows their commonality in the very ancient past. The deeper you get into the book the more it becomes painfully obvious that many ancient cultures around the world shared language and symbols. Laird argues that the Dogon tribe have one of the most pure forms of this teaching. There are also connections to reality, how they see the world and creation, multiple dimensions, the structure of matter, and what else may be out there. Then he gets into Gobekli Tepe, and how it may represent a center from where all these different cultures diverge. Like an ancient university or learning center. Fantastic Read!! If you are interested in ancient cultures and lost civilizations then you need to read this!
-Free Review Copy Courtesy of Inner Traditions/Bear & Company
Let me start off by saying that Laird Scranton has done a fantastic job once again with this latest book on the connections in the symbolism, cosmology, myths, and more of various different cultures, and shows their commonality in the very ancient past. The deeper you get into the book the more it becomes painfully obvious that many ancient cultures around the world shared language and symbols. Laird argues that the Dogon tribe have one of the most pure forms of this teaching. There are also connections to reality, how they see the world and creation, multiple dimensions, the structure of matter, and what else may be out there. Then he gets into Gobekli Tepe, and how it may represent a center from where all these different cultures diverge. Like an ancient university or learning center. Fantastic Read!! If you are interested in ancient cultures and lost civilizations then you need to read this!
December 31, 2021
He doesn't really know what he's talking about does he
Read
March 30, 2018An excellent book for the exploration of beginning of spiritual connections. Had some difficulty agreeing with his starting premise of certain symbolic references. In that he focused and explored mostly the Egyptian and the Dogon definitions. I believe within my own paradigm that much of the origin of symbolism and letters which represented both the mathematical and the definition of spiritual connection was first established by the Sumerian Phoenician connections to their cosmology. If one were to derive a phonetic value it would have to be most definitely the Sumerian and Phoenician language and numerical values in which they based their belief system. However within the Dogan and Egyptian phonetic values the book reflected many of the archaic word forms while depicting them in somewhat different positions of the construction by which they built their connection to their place in the universe. I did enjoy however the unifying aspect of civilization being connected to the universal heaven or birthplace of their spiritual cosmology, mathematics, alphabet, that formed their connection to their gods and their beliefs.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews