Re: Universe names, was Re: Kalieda climate

Am 06.02.02, Michael Poxon yscrifef:

> Padraic, do you mean astronomers or astrologers, or is this a "coniversion?"
They don't have "astronomers" as we know them! On the other hand,
they don't have astrologers as we know them either (scab sheet
hucksters and 900 lines, etc.). An astrologer from the World is
someone learned in the physical motions of the wandering stars,
the movement of the bowl upon which are the fixed stars and the
relations of the subtle movements of Earth with respect to Sky;
as well as the portents to be understood in the waxing and waning
of the Moons, the rise and fall of comets, the cycles of Sun
spots, chasms and other heavenly phenomena. Like alchemy, it is
an amalgamation of hard science and philosophy; especially in
the West - in the East, the emphasis is on the more physical
science and mathematics of your more familiar astronomy.

> It's just that the former (of which I'm one) don't like being confused with
> the latter ;-))
*Here*, I can certainly empathise! *There*, the distinction
between science and philosophy was never made.

> -'coz if they're studying the physical universe they're definitely
> astronomers!
As I said, they study both. And anyway, the physical and
spiritual worlds are simply two arms on the same being. ;)

As an astronomer, you might be interested in this astronomical
(astrological) chapter from a book written in this coniverse
(obconlang: there are conlang names for the Zodiac and other
astronomical features in there):

*****
        The HEAVENS

The philosopher Alexander of Circasia taught that the study of
history or natural history ought to begin with the broadest
concepts and end with the minutia. Thus, this Treatise will begin
with a chapter on the whole of the Heavens, wherein will be
discussed the several aspects of the supraterrestrial shpere: the
Cosmos; the Heavenly Bodies; Heavenly Phenomena; the Sun and the
Earth; and the Ages of the Earth.

The Cosmos. The Heavens be a great bowl in space that contain
all the substance of the universe and in which exist the Sun, the
Earth, the Moons of the Earth and the other heavenly bodies: the
moveable and fixed Stars, the Comets and the meteors. At the
center of this sphere of the Heavens rests the Sun, which be a
great fiery ball that radiates light and warmth to the whole of
the cosmos. Around the Sun revolve the seven planets and the
sphere of the fixed Stars; and also the Comets. The planets
revolve around the Sun at different rates or velocities; and each
is composed of different substances. The substance of the Sun is
that of pure Fire: for she burns mercilessly, and no substance of
Earth can withstand her intense heat without burning away into
nothing. The substance of the planets is mixt: being well
proportioned in all the elements and substances. Within each of
the seven planets there be a great heart of Fire, which causes it
to move and which generates a part of its warmth. The middle
parts of the Earth, that is, the planet we inhabit, are made of
Water and Earth, which be the oceans and seas and also the lands
of the World. Above all be the bowl of the Sky, which contains
the vapours of the clouds and the air all living things
breathe. The Sun whose light gives us our Day, is hidden from
sight during the night for the sphere of the Earth lies between
the Sun and our vision; and it be during our Night that the lands
upon the other side of the Earth have their Day.

The Heavenly Bodies. Within the sphere of the fixed Stars, there
be twelve houses of Stars known as Constellations; and these be
the zodiack. The Sun rises in each of these houses over time,
making steady progress through the whole zodiack. The Sun be the
greatest of the Stars, for she is mighty and casts forth a great
light and much heat. She rules the seasons and controls the
renewal of the year; she dispells darkness and overpowers the
Stars. There be many stars beside those of the zodiack; and they
be as uncountable as the sands of the shore. The seven movable
stars, or planets, move in great circular orbits around the Sun
as does the Earth. The planet called Saturn be the most distant
from the Sun and he makes his circuit in about thirty years. The
next closest planet hight Juppiter, and he makes his circuit in
twelve years. Next be Mars, which be a fiery red planet, for he
has in him the spirits of fire and war, and he makes his course
in two years. Venus, also called Lucifer, for according to
Pythagoras, he be called Evenstar when he sets after the Sun and
Morningstar when he rises before the Sun, Mercury, also called
Apollo, and Vulcan be the three planets nearest to the Sun, and
their courses take less than one year, so swift and energetic are
they. So bright and reflective is Lucifer that he be the only
movable star that may cast a shadow with his own rays of light.

The Moons of Earth be the largest planets, apart from the
Earth herself, and they orbit the Earth as the Earth orbits the
Sun. It is plain that the Moons are spheres, as are all the other
planets; the greater Moon be nearly a twin sister to Earth, for
she has lands and seas and clouds of air as does our
planet; while the lesser Moon be a great shiny ball which be very
bright and white, though he has no features. The greater Moon may
eclipse the Sun according to Salppo for it passes between the Sun
and the Earth, and she casts her shadow upon the Earth; and
likewise, the Earth may eclipse either Moon; but the lesser Moon
can not fully eclipse the Sun, for he be too small to fully
obscure the Sun. Poseidon, the Pretorian mathematician and
astrologer who invented the optical device called telespeculon
which allows astrologers to examine the surfaces of the planets,
seeing them greatly enhanced, has measured the orbits of the
Moons and also of the Earth: the greater Moon orbits the Earth at
a distance of 250.495 miles and the lesser Moon at a distance of
543.126 miles; while the Earth orbits the Sun at a distance of
4.759.406 miles. He has also measured the height at which the
clouds move above the Earth, ranging between 52 and 104 stadia.

The other heavenly bodies are the Comets and the
Meteors. Comets be stars that make their course through the
heavens between the sphere of the fixed Stars and the Sun; which
is known to be the case for they often pass very close to
Earth. Comets have very long tails of vapour streaming behind
them, and reflect much light from the Sun as they approach,
appearing brighter and brighter. As they fly ever further from
the Sun, having made their orbit, they lose their intensity, and
soon may not be seen even with a telespeculon. Meteors be a kind
of Comet, but they remain invisible until they enter and mix with
the air of our atmosphere. When a Meteor so mixes with our air,
its internal fire is excited and it becomes engulfed by ardent
flame, which be visible for many miles. When a Meteor strikes the
Earth, it blasts a crater in the dirt and at the heart of this
crater may be found the still hot meteor. Meteors be of two
kindreds: the metal and the earthy meteors. Metal Meteors are
made of the Skystone, which be hard and makes good tools like the
wotaz, yet be as rare as the imitrill, though not as
valuable. Earthen Meteors are said to explode into minute specks
upon striking the earth of a place, for they disappear entirely
unlike the metal meteors. Meteors are only visible in the sky
once they have mixed with the air, and fall within a few moments,
unlike the Comets, which be visible for long time. According to
Poseidon, some Comets return at regular intervals, in like manner
to the regular orbits of the moveable Stars; yet Meteors come
once to Earth and are gone. It seems most likely that Meteors be
very small Moonlets that orbit the Earth and occasionally fall
from the sky. Many of these stones that fall from the sky are
worshipped or venerated by people: at Abydus and in Sabaea in the
Uttermost West great skystones be so worshipped; and as well in
Su by the Sianadaine who believe their gods send such stones to
be used as altars.

It be curious also that the Romans of the West, as well
as other westerners, study these heavenly phenomena as portents
of doom or blessing, rather than study them as elements of the
Cosmos. They write many books and their histories be full of this
or that astrologer who predicted a comet for a general, saying it
will be his doom, and he then sends all his legions and armies
into battle and they are defeated because they know their general
is doomed. They be also known to study the more reliable science
of reading portents in the Earth herself or in the beasts that
roam her woods or fly the air or swim the waters; the skills and
intuitions of which our wise have also learned and honed
finely: for what better to enlighten the future of earthlings
than a thing of Earth and not a thing of the heavens!

Heavenly Phenomena. In Hyperborea, there be a strange phenomenon
of the heavens called a chasm; which be a great gash in the sky
the colour of blood. The light of the chasm shines very brightly,
and may at times be seen in our latitudes. Like the chasm, but
more muted a thing be the rainbow. This phenomenon only occurs in
the daytime, while the chasm is most brightly lit at night, and
is caused by the rays of sunlight reflecting within the clouds.

Lightning be also a phenomenon of the heavens. A
lightning bolt be a great ray of light and be very hot, for it
burns whatever it touches upon the Earth. The stroke of a
lightning bolt which courses from the clouds in the sky to the
ground is seen a little before the sound of the thunderclap is
heard. This is because the light of it travels much faster than
the sound. Lightning never strikes the laurel tree, or so it is
said, and for this reason many people wear a laurel sprig in the
stormy seasons in order to avoid being struck by a lightning
bolt.

The Sun and the Earth. The Earth revolves around the Sun, which
is what causes the Sun to rise in the morning and set in the
evening. The light of the Sun shines directly toward the Earth,
for they be in the plane of the Cosmos; thus any man who stands
on a point of the Earth that bisects this Cosmick plane must look
directly overhead if he would watch the Sun in her daily voyage
across the sky. A man that stands to the north of this Cosmick
plane, which be called the Equinoctical Line, must look a little
to the south in order to follow the Suns course; and the farther
north he travel, the further south the Sun appears to
travel. This is because the northern latitudes lie above the
Equinoctical Line. It may be supposed as well that any man that
travels south of the Cosmick plane must even turn more and more
to the north to watch the Suns course; though no one has ever
done so, except the Carthaginian explorer Hanno who, in the sixth
century before the present age, while attempting the
circumnavigation of Nubia, noted that, at the Horn of the South,
the Sun rose in the east, but voyaged across the sky in a
northerly direction.

The Ages of the Earth. Time may be reckoned in a number of
ways: we commonly use the divisions found on clocks to mark our
days into twenty four hours each having sixty minutes. It is
common to call nine days a nineden and seven days are a week; two
fortnights, or four weeks make a month; six fortnights or three
months make a season, and four seasons or twelve months make a
twelvemath, or year. Beyond this, most people care little, for
the years repeat one after the other into eternity. Yet many folk
have devised longer periods of measuring time on Earth.

Commonly noted are the decade, which be a ten year; the century,
which be a hundred year; the millennium, which be a thousand
year; and the myriade, which be a ten thousand year. Such
measures are in common use by historiographers, especially the
decade and century, as convenient measures of time; but they are
arbitrary and not connected to any heavenly or earthly cycle. In
fact, there be some measures of time that were devised in ancient
days and are yet in common use, and they find their root in the
great cycles of Earth and the Heavens.

Manander of Melita was the first to observe the Sun
through the telespeculon, and was able to detect what he called
"freckles" or "spots" which pass across the face of the Sun in
varying amounts at different times, but which reach a great
number every ten and three-quarters years, with a corresponding
paucity at times in between. Thereafter, he devised a calendar,
the Calendricon Flumentis Cloacaii Historiaii which dates the
principal moments of history to these cycles of altering solar
freckles, or Appolonian Months as they are usually termed.

Hipparchus of Nicaea explained the long ages of time used
by the Elves after discovering the Tertiary Motion of the Earth,
which be the precession of the globe around an imaginary cone
originating at the Earths center, the base of which be a circle
described in space around the Earth. This precession is
responsible for the apparent shift in Pole Stars over the years -
for as time has passed, seafaring nations have learnt that north
be in the region of a certain star, and that this pole star be
not the same from age to age - and for the discrepancies noted in
ancient astrological observations. Thus, the equinoxes are found
to precess through each house of the zodiac over a period of 2100
years, which hight a zodiacal era; twelve such eras, when the
equinox has precessed through all twelve houses of the zodiac,
make a Hipparchian age, which be 25.200 years. Forty such ages
make what the Elves call an Age of Stars, or 1.008.000 years. The
Elves account for eight such Ages of Stars, though believe the
Earth to have been created as many as twenty Ages previous. The
Ages of Stars the Elves name not, but names were later given
them: Marax, Uzara, Fanam, Azrael, Marakan, Pashto, Starram, Xora
and Calior. These are said to be the names of the spirits that
watch over each Age and may at times visit the world or else send
messengers or wardens over the world. The Hipparchian ages are
given names of plants, animals and weather phenomena. The
original names are no longer kenned of the Wise, or if the Elves
in sooth even gave names to the ages, though Hipparchus records
the names of the forty ages in the Common tongue of the
West: pwerncas, lufur, sedura, camfur, pineton, lefur, tontas,
tumulas, menta, canas, grannon, montar, caspas, wulpas, nicar,
flumin, acarnon, perwas, jephurullas, riwullas, qamellas,
isqiurellas, fluwias, wallas, fercas, murrullas, fulgur, nemur,
laricas, draccon, furican, fagas, leon, furisniwas, balanellon,
wermiqullon, paliqon, aballon, musqajiftas, and nimbullas; which
Plodios renders into our tongue as: oak, wolf, calm, plains,
pine, hare, thunder, hills, mint, hound, hail, mountains, grass,
fox, snow, rivers, maple, deer, breeze, streams, reed, squirrel,
rain, vales, birch, mouse, lightning, forests, larch, dragon,
whirlwind, beech, lion, blizzard, corn, worm, dew, apple,
dragonfly and cloud. The names of the twelve zodiacal eras
are: arias, pesqas, apwarias, qafrencqurnur, sajittarias,
iscorpion, libras, wirjin, leon, qanqar, jininar, and
torras; which Plodios gives as: ram, fish, water bearer, horned
goat, archer, scorpion, merchant scale, virgin, lion, crab, twins
and bull. It will be noted that the Earth precesses through the
eras in the opposite order which they appear through the year.
        The Common Calendar, which is arbitrary and not in synch
with the Star Calendar, was inaugurated by the Imperial Roman
Senate in the West after the death of the archmage and Emperor
Agustas and be in common use in East and West alike. The first
year of this calendar is the 87th year of the Pesqas zodaical
era. Long stretches of time hight "ages" or "ages of man" though
be not of equal length. The first age was set at 100.000BCE to
40.000BCE; the second age from 40.000BCE to 12.000BCE (sometimes
called the First Flowering of Man); the third age from 12.000BCE
to 5000BCE (sometimes hight the Age of Archaic Empires); the
fourth age from 5000BCE to 1BCE (sometimes hight the Age of the
Elder Kingdoms); and the current or fifth age from 1CE (sometimes
called the Younger Days). A philosophy of the West that hight The
Last Age holds that the fifth age will come to a bloody and
violent and possibly cataclysmic end in the near future; for,
they say, the length of the ages is shrinking at an alarmingly
rapid rate. Last Age doomsayers proclaim that Men will be
destroyed by Daine in a long series of terrible wars over the
next few decades. Other doomsayers proclaim that, long after the
Daine destroy Men, they in turn will be destroyed about four Star
Ages from now, for they appeared some four ages ago; and that
eight Star Ages from now the Elves too will be destroyed, for
they appeared some eight ages ago. These philosphers have cleppt
this philosophy the Theory of the Pond Ripple; for they hold that
each race awakens, expands and grows to a maximum, then receeds
and is ultimately destroyed.

The year of this works publication, 1996 of the Common
Calendar and of the fifth age of Man, be the 2083rd year of the
zodiacal era of Pesqas in the Pwerncas Hipparchian Age in the
Ninth Age of Stars, which hight Calior. The Ninth Age of Stars
began 4183 years ago, when the Torras zodiacal era, the Nimbullas
Hipparchian Age and the Xora Age of Stars passed away.
*****

> Mike
Padraic.
--
Gwerez dah, chee gwaz vaz, ha leal.

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