A work of scientific and philosophical inquiry, in which, the authors track world myths to a common origin in early man’s descriptions of cosmological activity, arguing that these remnants of ancient astronomy, suppressed by the Greeks and Romans and then forgotten, were really a form of pre-literate science. Authors: Giorgio De Santillana & Hertha Von Dechend. (BibliotecaPleyades.net)
Extrase despre Sirius:
„(…) In the inscriptions of Dendera, published by Dumichen, the goddess Hathor is called „lady of every joy.” For once, Dumichen adds: „Literally. . . ‘the lady of every heart circuit.'” This is not to say that the Egyptians had discovered the circulation of the blood. But the determinative sign for „heart” often figures as the plumb bob at the end of a plumb line coming from a well-known astronomical or surveying device, the merkhet.
Evidently, „heart” is something very specific, as it were the „center of gravity.” [for the sign of the heart (ib) as expressing generally „the middle, the center.”]. (…) The line seems to state that Hathor (= Hat Hor, „House of Horus”) „rules” the revolution of a specific celestial body — whether or not Canopus is alluded to — or, if we can trust the translation „every,” the revolution of all celestial bodies. As concerns the identity of the ruling lady, the greater possibility speaks for Sirius, but Venus cannot be excluded; in Mexico, too, Venus is called „heart of the earth.”.” (Hamlet’s Mill, cap. IV – A Guide for the Perplexed, 73-74)

„(…) In the large and complicated creation myth of the Mande, there are two drums. The first was brought down from heaven by the bardic ancestor, shortly after the Ark (with the eight twin-ancestors) had landed on the primeval field. This drum was made from Faro’s skull and was used for producing rain. (The experts style Faro usually „le Moniteur,” thus avoiding mislabeling him as culture hero, savior or god.) The first sanctuary was built, and the „First Word” revealed (30 words there were) to mankind through the mouth of one of the twin-ancestors, who „talked the whole night, ceasing only when he saw the sun and Sirius rising at the same time.” When the „Second Word” was to be revealed (consisting of 50 words this time), and again connected with the heliacal rising of Sirius, the ancestor „decided to sacrifice in the sanctuary on the hill the first twins of mixed sex. He asked the bard to make an arm-drum with the skin of the twins [It is an hourglass-shaped drum, with two skins, said „to recall the two geographic areas, Kaba and Akka, and the narrow central part of the drum is the river itself [Niger] and hence Faro’s journey.”]. The tree, from which he carved the drum, grew on the hill and symbolized Faro’s only leg.„.” (Hamlet’s Mill, cap. VIII – Shamans and Smiths, 126-127)
„(…) The eighth Yasht of the Avesta, dedicated to Sirius-Tishtriya, says of this star: „We worship the splendid, brilliant Tishtriya, which soars rapidly to Lake Vurukasha, like the arrow quick-as-lightning, which Urxsa the archer, the best archer among the Aryans, shot from Mount Aryioxsutha to Mount Huvanvant.”. (…) Tir or Ira is the name for Mercury, but it is also, along with Tishtriya, the name for Sirius, and the 13th day of every month is dedicated to Sirius-Tishriya. We must leave it at that: Sirius-the-arrow has made more mythical „noise” than any other star, and also its connection with the ominous number 13 appears to be no Iranian monopoly.
And what does Sirius do to this sea? It causes „Lake Vurukasha to surge up, to flood asunder, to spread out; at all shores surges Lake Vurukasha, the whole center surges up”. Whereas Pliny wants to assure us that „the whole sea is conscious of the rise of that star, as is most clearly seen in the Dardanelles, for sea-weed and fishes float on the surface, and everything is turned up from the bottom.” He also remarks that at the rising of the Dog-Star the wine in the cellars begins to stir up and that the still waters move – and the Avesta offers as explanation that it is Tishtriya, indeed, „by whom count the waters, the still and the flowing ones, those in springs and in rivers, those in channels and in ponds.”.
This is, however, no Iranian invention: the ritual text of the Babylonian New Year addresses Sirius as „mul.KAK.SI.DI. who measures the depth of the Sea.” mul is the prefix announcing the star, KAK.SI.DI means „arrow,” and it is this particular arrow which is behind most of the bewildering tales of archery. The bow from which it is sent on its way is a constellation, built from stars of Argo and Canis Major, which is common to the spheres of Mesopotamia, Egypt and China [There is strong circumstantial evidence of this bow and arrow in Mexico also: the bow of the Chichimeca, the Dog-people.]. And since the name Ishtar is shared by both Venus and Sirius, one may guess who „stirs up the apsu before Ea.”.” (Hamlet’s Mill, cap. XV – The Waters from the Deep, 215-216)
„(…) This is a long way from Great Pan, and it is not clear yet who or what was supposed to have passed away in the time of Tiberius, that is, which „Pan.” Creutzer claimed right away that he was Sirius – and any suggestion from Creutzer still carries great weight – the first star of heaven and the kingpin of archaic astronomy. And Aristotle says that, wishing to circumscribe a „dog,” one was permitted to use „Dog-star” (Sirius) or Pan, because Pindar states him to be the „shape-shifting dog of the Great Goddess”. But this is far enough for now. The amazing significance of Sirius as leader of the planets, as the eighth planet [„the eighth”, great god of Chemmis], so to speak, and of Pan, the dance-master (choreutes) as well as the real kosmokrator, ruling over the „three worlds,” would take a whole volume.
The important point is that the extraordinary role of Sirius is not the product of the fancy of silly pontiffs, but an astronomical fact. During the whole 3000-year history of Egypt Sirius rose every fourth year on July 20 of the Julian calendar. In other words, Sirius was not influenced by the Precession, which must have led to the conviction that Sirius was more than just one fixed star among others. And so when Sirius fell, Great Pan was dead.” (Hamlet’s Mill, cap. XXI – The Great Pan Is Dead, 285-286)
„(…) Returned to Uruk, Gilgamesh washes his hair and garbs himself in festive attire. As he puts on his tiara, Ishtar, the goddess of love (in Sumerian, Inanna), is entranced with his looks and asks him to marry her. Gilgamesh rejects her, reminding her in scornful words of what happened to her previous mates, including the hapless Tammuz, later known as Adonis. It is not unusual for a hero to refuse the love, and the unheard-of presents, offered by a goddess. In every such case only two celestial personalities are possible candidates for this role: the planet Venus, and Sirius, alias Sothis, who has some of the reputation of a harlot.” (Hamlet’s Mill, cap. XXII – The Adventure and the Quest, 290)
„(…) Lady-archers being a rare species, it is worth consideration that the great Babylonian astronomical text, the so-called „Series mulAPIN” (= Series Plough-Star, the Plough-Star being Triangulum), states: „the Bow-star is the Ishtar of Elam, daughter of Enlil.”
There has been mention of the constellation of the Bow, built by stars of Argo and Canis Major, Sirius serving as „Arrow… Star”. It is no less significant that the Egyptian divine archeress, Satit, aims her arrow at Sirius, as can be seen on the round Zodiac of Dendera.” (Hamlet’s Mill, cap. XXIII – Gilgamesh and Prometheus, 321)