The episodes and characters in the scriptures of the Old and New Testament, from Genesis all the way to Revelation, can be shown to be based on celestial metaphor. In fact, the very same system of celestial metaphor which underlies the stories and characters of the Bible is a worldwide system, which also forms the foundations of the myths, scriptures and sacred stories of virtually every other culture around the globe, on every inhabited continent (as well as the islands of the Pacific), including those of Australia, Africa, the Americas, ancient China and Japan, ancient India, ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and other parts of Europe including Scandinavia. In this presentation, David Warner Mathisen explains the outlines of the system and how it can be seen in specific Biblical figures and stories, from the Garden of Eden to the Exodus to events described in the gospel accounts. David believes that this celestial system of metaphor, found around the world, is designed to convey profound wisdom for our benefit, but that their message is greatly enhanced if we listen to the ancient myths in the language they are actually speaking — and that the message is often distorted, obscured, or even completely inverted if they are interpreted as if they are speaking a literal language (as if describing literal, terrestrial and historical personages and events).
David Mathisen is the author of The Undying Stars and of the recent multi-volume series Star Myths of the World and how to interpret them. He writes about the evidence that the world’s myths, scriptures, and sacred stories are based on a common system of celestial metaphor — and the evidence that the same system can be found operating in virtually every story and episode in the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. This field of study is sometimes referred to as “astro-theology,” although that term has also been used by different people to refer to something different.
The very strong evidence that a universal system of celestial metaphor can be found in the sacred traditions of virtually every culture around the globe, and stretching across millennia back to the most ancient Pyramid Texts and cuneiform tablets right up to the living traditions passed down in cultures who have preserved their sacred stories into modern times, reveals significant problems with the conventional view of human history.
In addition, David shows how the understanding of the celestial language used in the ancient myths can open a door to new understanding of the knowledge that the myths were designed to convey to us — and that their message has profound relevance for our lives right now, wherever we are.