Mushroom of the MonthMarch 2009 Mushrooms occur in every piece of Christian art. They are found in the mosaics and wall paintings of the earliest Christian images, and later in manuscripts, stained glass, tapestries, and sculpture. They are obvious; I have verification from priests and icon artists. What they mean, however, is still guarded. In my opinion the mushroom is generic for numerous plants, fungi, and potions used by the various cults to commune with the Teacher of Righteousness at the time of our mythic hero Jesus. The mushroom motif has few boundaries but surprising analogues above and beyond the one legged fungi most popularly displayed as either Amanita muscaria (red, gold, often with spots), or Psilocybin (either blue or brown), although there are exceptions. The holy mushroom also comes in the form of mushroom-trees, tree-mushrooms, mushroom-rocks, blood-mushrooms, mushroom-stoles, footstools, cushions, doves, and fish. Two general analogues, surprisingly, are the nimbus or halo and the cross, with the nimbus a symbol for the experience of the divine, while the cross converts flesh into spirit, or death and rebirth. They are both transmuters in their own way. In short, the original mystery connected to the earliest Christian cult was the identity of and communion with Jesus, the Teacher of Righteousness, as uncovered by John Allegro (The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross, 1970) those many years ago. The nimbus represents the emotional or mental experience of one’s death and rebirth, while the cross represents the physical transmutation and resurrection in that special place, that spiritual geography far, far away. These rites were initiation ceremonies using guided imaginary, not unlike encounter groups of today, or cult indoctrination, as in Scientology, with the addition of mind-altering substances. These are powerful rites; this is serious business. The dynamics of these early groups and how some evolved into what today we call Catholicism is considered in detail in The Mushroom in Christian Art, to be released early 2010. For a general overview of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and the part mind-altering substances played in their development, refer to Rush, J. Failed God: Fractured Myth in a Fragile World, 2008. The sequel, The Mushroom in Christian Art, goes into this neglected issue through a detailed analysis of over 220 images spanning a time period of over 1,500 years. There can be no doubt about the identity of Jesus. The Christian Myth The Christian myth can be summed up in the Apostle’s Creed: 1. I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. 2. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. 3. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. 4. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. 5. He descended into hell. An the third day he rose again 6. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. 7. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. 8. I believe in the Holy Spirit, 9. the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, 10. the forgiveness of sins, 11. the resurrection of the body, 12. and life everlasting. This is metaphor, in back of which lies the Christian mystery. This is not to be accepted as historical fact, any more than an icon is to be accepted as historical fact. It is to be accepted on faith. Most people read Christian art as pictures, as snap shots representing historical events, but that is not what Christian art is about. An icon is a representation of something that cannot be represented; icons are spiritual renderings of another world, a spiritual geography; what you see is not what you get. A cross is not a cross, a book is not a book, an angel is not an angel, and a mushroom is not a mushroom. This being the case the Apostle’s Creed is likewise an icon, a mega-icon because it encapsulates all others. Again, this is not history; it is an elaborate, artistic, spiritual attempt to explain and pay homage to the mushroom experience. At the center of the Christian fabric resides the mushroom experience, and appreciating this opens to an entirely different interpretation of Christian roots and what today we call Christianity. But first, we need to establish a mushroom typology beginning with the most obvious and leading to the most abstract rendering of the mystery. The following image and description is from, The Mushroom in Christian Art (2010: 138-139).
Baptistery St. Giovanni, Laterano Rome c 500 (Plate 2: 4) This mosaic (top left and right) comes from Baptistery St. Giovanni, Laterano Rome , and is dedicated most appropriately to St. John the Baptist and his shadow, St. John the Evangelist. First mentioned in 313 CE, it was the residence of popes and bishops until the papal seat was moved to Avingon by Pope Clement V (1305-1314 CE). The basilica was sacked by the Vandals and rebuilt by Pope Gregory around 590 CE Other restorations occurred in the seventh and eighth centuries. The Bapisttry, we are told by Church historians, was ordered by Constantine suggesting that the structure was built around 313 CE Constantine may, in fact, have built churches for the Christians who came to his cause, but not because he converted to Christianity. Building Churches creates obligations, political obligations. In any case, this may be one of the first official Christian baptismal structures. The Holy Font is large enough for initiates to stand in water to their knees while water is poured over their heads. This would be considered a partial emersion, but still very impressive. The mosaic (Plate 2: 4, top left and right) is found in the ceiling above the font and clearly shows the Amanita muscaria in the center of each chalice or vase (eight in number) representing everlasting life. When Gabriel announces to Mary she is with child she is often portrayed with vase and protruding lily. The birds flanking the Amanita are of both male and female of the species. The Amanita is the axis mundi, the world tree, the center from which all things come and into which all things go. When things come forth they split into paired opposites. That center, that which is everything and nothing at the same instant, is referred to as God, Aten, Atman, Amun, energy, singularity, and so on. Here that energy is represented as the Amanita muscaria emerging and separating from the veil symbolized by the chalice (upper and lower). The center likewise represents ultimate knowledge which can never be known until or unless it splits into paired opposites. Knowledge is revealed through comparison of one thing to another; this is called relativity. These ancient people used Amanita muscaria and other forms of manna to formulate this idea, which Einstein clarified with mathematics. We will see the mushroom (cross) in the chalice (Plate 2: 4, bottom right) again as the determinative for Gethsamane (“olive press”). But there is more. This image of birds flanking the world axis is found in Egyptian myth where Osiris, the axis, represents primordial life (the djed pillar or backbone of life). In this ancient drawing (Plate 2: 4, bottom center) Osiris is depicted as Khepri the beetle, who, like the scarab beetle, climbs out of the ground but unseen until he does so. Osiris is the primordial mound, or mushroom encased in the djed pillar, which, as a Lebanese Cedar, enclosed his coffin when pitched upon a beach in Lebanon (see Rush, J. The Twelve Gates. 2007). Emerging from the underworld, Khepri (Osiris, Re, Jesus), is flanked by his two Queens, Isis (Virgin Mary) and Nephthys (Mary Magdalene), in the form of birds (see The Twelve Gates, reverse of Plate Five). Nephthys and Isis are paired opposites connecting the spiritual female energy. That is, Nephthys represents the male/female union – the carnal female union with the god, while Isis represents male/female devotion, love, healing, and spiritual non-carnal union. They cling to the mound, the penis, crying, wailing, and waiting to reunite with the resurrected god Re as the new born sun, for they also represent life in the female condition. In short, the mound, at least for the ancient Egyptians, could not simply represent the male energy; the female energy is always present. Artemis the singularity, Mistress of the Animals (Shaman), is depicted in the bottom left image with deer in her left hand (a symbol of the moon) and a lion in her right, a symbol of the sun. All these images are related to transmutation, of going from one state to another in the never ending paired opposites in the field of time. Copyright © 2009 John A. Rush April 2009 The plate below is an example of transfiguration which comes from Matthew 17: 1-8: And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart: and he was transfigured before them; and his face did shine as the sun, and his garments became white as the light. And behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him. And Peter answered, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, I will make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah. While he was yet speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold, a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. And Jesus came and touched them and said, Arise, and be not afraid. And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, save Jesus only. The original Transfiguration, however, was not that of Jesus, but of individual priests or bishops (for example Apollinarius, Ravenna, Italy, c. 320-390 CE) who consumed the holy mushroom and transfigured with God. This more than suggests that originally Jesus was an experience and not a living, breathing human being, at least to some of the priests and bishops of that time period. Combine this with the fact that there are no faces of Jesus until the fourth century raises
Cretan Icon, c. 1550 CE, now in a private collection. One of the Eastern schools (Greek, Russian, etc.) it displays what I call the hard look as they are contrasted with white; this is a very stern dreamworld. a serious question: When was Matthew written in the form that comes down to us today? Perhaps major elements were added after 325 CE and the Council of Nicaea, with the transfiguration removed from the Gospel’s author (Matthew, Mark, Luke, Mary Magdalene, etc.) and replaced with Jesus? This is one reason the Nag Hammadi (Gnostic Gospels) were an unwelcome addition to the light of day. Above we see Jesus on top of a mountain with Peter, James, and John overwhelmed by the blinding light emanating from Jesus’ body (the black lines). This rendition of the Transfiguration comes from the Eastern School in Crete, dates to the mid-sixteenth century, and is in a private collection. There are many mushroom-shapes in this image, the major one’s being in Jesus’ stole and in the stoles of Moses (top left) and James (bottom left). Elijah holds the mushroom in his hand in the form of the book, one of the original determinatives for Jesus. Notice how Elijah’s cape or stole hangs down in a suspicious fashion. The casual observer would miss these shapes, rare in secular art, because, if you don’t know where to look or what to look for, these mushroom-shapes are invisible. This is why I refer to the mushroom as the visible, invisible icon (within an icon). The mushroom-shapes are undeniable and not simply “puffs” of air or artistic whim. They are in the images from the beginning, commissioned by the religious clerics, and remain for a period of over 1500 years right up to this day. It is the icon artist who has kept the mystery of Christianity intact, not the priests or pope who can change things. As Forest (Praying with Icons, 2008: 9) comments: It may be that one beneficial consequence of the iconoclast movement was that makers of icons searched for better ways to represent in paint the hidden, spiritual reality rather than merely the physical aspects of the person presented. (emphasis added) The hidden, spiritual reality in this case is the mystery, Jesus, hidden in the clothing often appearing at the end of a stole or the hems of capes or albs. In the next few months, I will introduce the reader to some of the many mushroom motifs woven into the art, including mushroom-trees, tree-mushrooms, mushroom shoes, mushroom blood, mushroom-doves, and many others. Oh, yes, happy Easter. The story of resurrection and renewal is a natural hope in an uncertain world, and to read Easter as historical fact is to miss the point. To aid in your spiritual quest, in May I will show you what the honky-pokey is all about. Copyright © John A. Rush 2009 May 2009
by John A. Rush The Hokey-Pokey We have all heard the hokey-pokey, a silly little song and dance designed to amuse old and young. It is probably a play on ritual in general. That is it say, whether you are signing the Stations of the Cross, genuflecting, or praying that Allah won’t torment you in hell, it all amounts to ritual designed to bind one to the group. A portion of the lyrics goes as follows:
Christ in Majesty, in his own way, is doing the hokey-pokey; he is half in and half out and, of course, he is what it’s all about. This particular image comes from the mid-Eleventh Century France and clearly shows Jesus existing in the now as well as that celestial geography far, far away. Besides his dance, however, there are lots of mushroom shapes. Let’s take a closer look.  Christ in Majesty, Sacramentary, Saint-Denis, mid-Eleventh Century,  Jesus in Majesty is the resurrected god in that celestial place, just as the dead Pharaoh in ancient Egypt resurrects as the sun god Re and travels the heavens maintaining life through daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly cycles. But unlike Re, he wants you to join him on the celestial barque that comes and goes as does life and death. Jesus is beckoning you to follow him through his path to salvation. Non-believers “shall be condemned.” (Mark 16: 16 – Jesus would never have said such a silly thing; see John 3: 17.) The early priests, however, realized that it wasn’t enough to believe in Jesus; the priest, through initiation, had to become one with Jesus. How is that done? Through the consumption of his flesh (manna, body, bread) or blood (wine, manna soaked in water) you enter into his kingdom. In John 6: 52-56 we read:
This passage in St. John is not to be
taken literally, for to do so would represent cannibalism. Jesus, without doubt,
is the mushroom, and it is through the mushroom experience that one obtains
everlasting life. The celestial world is open only to a special few in the
Christian tradition. In times past, however, a personal experience with one’s
patron deity was encouraged.
May 1st: The Feast of Bel
So, here we have Jesus in Majesty
doing the hokey-pokey, engaged in the ritual of being in this world one moment
and in a celestial geography the next. May, in the Catholic tradition, is the
month of our Lady; in the Saxon tradition this is the month of Easter. Easter is a fertility goddess and her symbol
is the prolific hare; this is what the Easter bunny represents. Like all gods
and goddesses in the Greek, Celtic, and Roman myths, they are both of and not
of this world. They live in that special spiritual geography but can manifest
in various forms and bring aid, or misery, to humans. The Easter egg hunt is
also of interest in that when the Amanita
muscaria mushroom emerges from the ground it looks like an egg.
Beltane in the Celtic Tradition, one
of the four major festivals, is celebrated on May 1st. This is the half-way mark between the Spring
Equinox and Sumer Solstice. “May 1st” is most likely the first full moon
closest to this astronomical reckoning. Beltane translates as “fire of Bel”
referring to the sun as the days grow longer. Bonfires are still lit in areas
of Ireland and Scotland celebrating Beltane. They are also lit during the
festival of Samhain (summer’s end) on October 31, designed to warm the dead
ancestors and encourage the sun’s return.
Some researchers suggest that the festival of Beltane was one of fertility and accompanied by burning Cannabis from the fall harvest in closed structures and breathing the smoke, as well as copulating in the freshly plowed fields to insure human and plant fertility. We are told that the Celts made pilgrimages to sacred wells where prayers and offerings were made to specific goddesses like Melusina, the goddess connected to transmutation and use of Amanita muscaria. In Germanic countries we encounter Maypole dancing, a fertility ritual, reminiscent of the axis mundi or ben-ben stone of the ancient Egyptians, which manifests from the primal abyss and splits into paired opposites (see Mushroom of the Month, March). This is the same image as Jesus on the cross at Golgotha, the primal mound, flanked by the repentant and unrepentant criminals, the paired opposites. Copyright © John A. Rush 2009
June 2009 It is only fitting to dedicate the June mushroom to John the Baptist whose birth date, through celestial decree, is June 24. Here we see John the Baptist removing his clothes representing a change in status, or the transmutation of social forms, from inside society to outside. John is an apostate; he will reveal the secret, the mystery, the Teacher of Righteousness. His is truly the mushroom man. Again, his status changes, from an Essene priest to apostate. Notice the mushroom nimbus above John’s head, his naked flesh upon which he will place the camel hair coat, and the path into the wilderness. We see on the right the clothes he removed before entering the wilderness, piled in such a manner as to suggest Amanita muscaria. He morphed from mushroom to human form. This suggests that John the Baptist and Jesus are on the same botanical and historical footing; they are both the mushroom and, more than likely, mythic figures. John, like Mary, brings the mushroom (Jesus), while Jesus brings his experience through muscimol, the mushroom’s major mind-altering component.
I’ve often wondered if the Baptist’s camel hair coat was originally the leopard skin, for it was the leopard skinned chief who initiated resurrection by touching the mouth of the dead pharaoh with an adz-like instrument in the shape of the big dipper. This brought the pharaoh to spiritual life by opening his mouth so he could speak the chants and reassemble his body in preparation for that endless round of life and death.
July 2009
Jesus therefore six days before the passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus raised from the dead. The stories all point to Mary as the favorite of Jesus for he kisses her on the mouth, which is what we see in the image below (Plate 2: 17, The Mushroom in Christian Art). This is one of two miniatures possibly brought to England by St. Augustine and part of the manuscript from St. Augustine’s Abby, housed in Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. Remember that it was St. Augustine who said that curiosity was one of the worst temptations, and one should not attempt to understand that which is beyond human comprehension, a very different sentiment than that of the Gnostics. This is one reason, among many, the Catholics and various Gnostic sects were quite antagonistic toward one another. The illustration dates to the sixth century and shows clear reference to the mushroom. At center top we see Jesus with the sacrament in his hand and in front of each apostle the sacrament as well. Notice the hole in the center of  each “loaf” indicating that it is the underside of the mushroom, which indents in the center when the stalk is removed. This hole is synonymous with the holes in the hands, side, and feet of Jesus, symbolic of “entering into” Jesus.
So, what is the foot washing all about, and why does Peter question Jesus’ motives? This has been variously interpreted as Jesus showing humility and servitude to something higher than him or serving others. Although honorable, I see this act in a slightly different manner. Jesus has a mushroom clearly depicted arising from his back, on top of which is a four branched candelabra. This is the axis mundi, the world center, out of which everything comes and into which everything goes, with the four candles representing the four points of the compass. He will cleanse all sin, and all will see the light and understand (Pistis Sophia). Once you understand the other side (“know thy self”), and that the here and now is simply a vehicle to that other place, you become without fear and desire (abandon worldly things), “I and the father are one,” and you live a life as did Jesus. The mushroom (Jesus) washes away sin through knowledge and recognition of a world beyond. Sin, therefore, is a product of ignorance, a position found in Buddhism, that is, illumination defeats ignorance. Washing one’s feet means washing away sin, and it is dirt, most obviously accumulated on the feet (or hands), that stands as a symbol for ignorance or sin, the most accepted meaning. This act could also represent the purging effect of the mushroom when the cap is consumed or when you “enter into” Jesus and are purified of your ignorance. The esoteric point of the story has to do with respect for others. But I think there is another message, that is, purification before illumination. Peter is being purified by the mushroom (perhaps the nausea that precedes the experience of the divine?), for Jesus provides both purification (foot washing) and illumination (the candle holder). Also note the mushroom-shape in Jesus’ cape as he bends down to wash Peter’s feet. The frame, top right, is the “Rebuking in the Garden of Gethsemane,” where the apostles, we are told (exoteric meaning), fall asleep and Jesus can’t understand why they aren’t supportive in his hour of need. This cannot possibly be the meaning of this icon. The rebuking has to do with being impure or in the wrong mental set when approaching the mushroom personified as Jesus or God. This is one of the main points of Pistis Sophia, which in part is an elaborate purification right most likely connected to higher order cult initiation, with the Gospel of Thomas representing perhaps first order initiation, with parables more easily decoded (see, The Mushroom in Christian Art for the larger discussion). He opens you to the other side and is about to go to his death and become your spiritual life force. In short, you are going to commune with the body of Jesus (the light, the “stream of illumination,” a probable reference to urine drinking), he is going to die (his flesh will be consumed), so honor him by being pure of mind, and have your thoughts focused on him, not the evil light from below. Staying focused while on mind-altering substance can be difficult, and this is why there has to be ritual process and guide(s) directing the experience. If you want the experience with Jesus you have to be prepared because sometime he only comes once. And being prepared means focusing on some aspect of Jesus, any aspect (any level of illumination above your own), and he will reveal himself to you. Some people never meet Jesus because they focus on what they want Jesus to do for them—health, wealth, and progeny. You will never get to Jesus by asking the deity to pay attention to your animal nature; Jesus makes this quite clear in Pistis Sophia. The Church, however, has reserved that personal contact with Jesus, with God, to itself. At the top of the same frame we see Jesus bowing before a hand-mushroom, a common motif. Note how the cloud is in the shape of a mushroom cap and the hand is the stem. In the frame beneath we see Jesus kissing Mary Madeleine. This is an interesting scene because it represents Jesus as a sentient, living, breathing human being with an attachment to a woman, in this case, Mary Madeleine. Notice the position of Mary’s hands—this is not an erotic kiss, but a kiss goodbye, a shock. There are other possible meanings, for example, this is the kiss of life through Jesus’ death by impregnating Mary with knowledge for it is knowledge and illumination that issue from Jesus’ lips. We also see (bottom left) the mushroom at the end of a vine, suggesting the vine in Christian art might have initially represented the mycelium of a mushroom or the root of the tree. But notice how one of the tendrils of the vine is positioned between Jesus’ legs, suggesting perhaps that Jesus is the fruit of the “vine” (womb) and is about to be picked (identified than sacrificed) inferred by the Judas kiss, the kiss of death. Also note how Jesus’ cape forms the mushroom cap, and the bottom portion of his alb, the stock. Perhaps the Judas kiss represents locating the correct mushroom, for some species of Amanita are deadly, or at the very least can give you a hard time, like being blind for several days, as was mythic Paul on the road to Damascus. Certainly the sacrament, the object growing from Jesus’ back, the mushroom dangling from Jesus’ cape, and the hand coming from a mushroom-shaped cloud could have other interpretations. Nonetheless, they are mushroom motifs.
August 2009 August, in the Catholic tradition, is the month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Who was Mary, and what is the immaculate Heart all about? Mary, of course, was supposedly impregnated by God and thus a virgin, or by Joseph and thus human. But the detailed storyline for Mary wasn’t worked out until after 325 and closer to 600CE, and is based on the Mother Goddess image most likely coming from ancient Egypt. Moreover, because it was the original saints, emerging from the various Christian, Gnostic, and other traditions, who were the conduits between heaven and earth, there was no need for Mary. Jesus, for many, was an experience, not a human presence, and having a mother did not fit the story line. The story of Mary is to be read literally by faithful Christians, along with her physical heart,
which, we are told, represents internal happiness and joy. This, of course, is a large contradiction because most of the images of Mary are miles away from happiness and joy. The traditional interpretation, that is, reading the image as a lesson in history and psychology, does not even come close to the meaning behind the image. Icons are not to be read as history, although the clergy encourages people to do so. In the above icon we see the Virgin as Inviolate Mountain, from Solvychegodsk, Russia, late sixteenth century, alongside the Western interpretation (on right). The ladder held by the Virgin is a device of transportation (a movement from one place to another), while the “burning bush” under Jesus’ forearm is the means of transformation (Amanita muscaria). Also note that the Cherubim to the right of Mary sports a clear mushroom with stalk in its stole. That which resides under Jesus’ forearm, the burning bush, was converted to the Sacred or Immaculate Heart sometime after the twelfth century and then the image was romanticized in the early nineteenth century. In the Eastern Traditions (Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, etc.) much of the image’s original symbolic values have been retained. The ladder, burning bush, and cave all relate to the transmutation of body and spirit, with the ladder representing the passage to heaven (borrowed from the ancient Egyptians), or going from one place to another. The cave is a geography of transmutation, representing a change of beliefs or mind-set, while the burning bush represents God or the conduit to God. Recall that God was encountered as a burning bush by Moses, which is most reasonably a reference to the initial effects of Amanita muscaria. When mind-altering substances enter the equation the traditional interpretation (the history lesson) cannot be maintained. Notice the angel is holding three devices of transmutation, one being the reed that holds the sponge, and the others, the lance and cross. The sponge, an analog for the mushroom, was, as the story goes, brought to the mouth of Jesus who either refused or accepted it depending on the version you read. The lance, of course, pierced the side of Jesus, offering the “entrance” inspected by St. Thomas, and the cross transmutes flesh into spirit. The above image, then, refers to transmutation and change both emotional and physical and has nothing to do with the historical existence of Mary or Jesus. The Sacred Heart, on the other hand, is a reference to Jesus and is represented in a slightly different manner. For Mary the heart has a flame issuing from the top with a gold chain around the upper portion of the heart. For Jesus, we see a cross issuing from the top or within the flame, which is another version of the mushroom-chalice motif, the symbol for Gethsemane. In the case of Jesus, the heart is entwined in thorns. The heart, originally at least, was the burning bush, which morphed into a red, hand-held immature fruit (Baby Jesus), and then was converted into the heart sometime after the twelfth century. Mary is the throne upon which Baby Jesus sits, just as Isis is the throne upon which Horus, the Spirit of Light or Holy Ghost, sits. Jesus is the fruit (Amanita muscaria) of Mary’s womb, who represents the root of the pine (sometimes oak or birch) tree. The Cedar of Lebanon is a botanical reference for Jesus and Mary.
September 2009 This is the Month of Our Lady of Sorrows and the month of many famous saints including St. Ingrid (September 2), Saint John Chrysostom (September 13), Saint Catherine of Genoa (September 15), Saint Andrew (September 20), to name a few. September 29, however, is reserved for Saints Gabriel, Michael, and Raphael, and all three play significant parts in delivering prophecy, defending heaven, and performing miracle healing and protecting from demonic attacks. Esoterically they represent a major conduit between heaven and earth, maintenance of heavenly integrity/power, and physical/healing, which only comes by way of God. Gabriel
The date for the writing of the Book of Daniel is disputed. Biblical scholars claim it was written while mythic Daniel and about 10,000 Israelites were in exile in Babylon, in which case it would have been written around 586 BCE Other scholars, however, place the date of writing between 560 BCE (when many were allowed to return to Palestine) and 200 BCE The apocalyptic nature of the passage is more suggestive of a time period closer to 200 BCE In Daniel 9: 20-27 we read: We are told this had to do with the desolation of Jerusalem, which would last 70 weeks/years. This has shades of Joseph in Genesis predicting good (7 years) and bad times (7 years) for Pharaoh. Gabriel, as we recognize in the Old Testament, does not bring good news and some scholars believe that Gabriel is actually Samael, the Angel of Death or the Grim Reaper, and it is this personality, drafted into the Qur’an as Gabriel, who meets Muhammad in the cave. Gabriel in the Qur’an is not Gabriel of the Christian tradition; Gabriel in the Islamic tradition is a demon sent by Il Liah (Allah), the Moon God of War, to enslave the Arab people and everyone else.
In Luke 1: 18-28 we read:
to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. In the above passages Gabriel brings good news, in the first instance the birth of John the Baptist, and in the second, Jesus. All other references to Gabriel were added over the centuries to enhance the storyline. Gabriel, for example, becomes the angel guarding the gates to the Garden of Eden least those who are unworthy trespass on this hallowed ground. Because an angel in the Jewish tradition guards heaven, as the logic goes, it must be Gabriel. In the Christian tradition heaven’s mightiest defender is Michael, but Gabriel and Michael guard different things. Gabriel guards the Trees of Knowledge and Life from the unworthy, while Michael guards heaven from demonic intrusion. Michael Michael, as mentioned, is considered heaven’s mightiest defender. In Jude 1:9 we read, “But Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing judgment, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.” In Revelation 12: 7 we read: “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels going forth to war with the dragon; and the dragon warred and his angels. And they prevailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast down, the old serpent, he that is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world; he was cast down to the earth, and his angels were cast down with him.”
taken to the Promised Land because of fears his grave would be a station of worship, which would be contrary to the Second Commandment. In any case, Moses is based on Akhenaten in the Egyptian tradition so obviously we can’t have a body for our mythic hero, Moses (see Rush, Failed God, 2008), any more than we can have a body for Mickey Mouse. My impression of the Book of Jude is similar to that of some of the Gnostic texts. That is to say, Jude seems to be the ramblings of someone on Cannabis (or other mind-altering substance) or mentally challenged. The passage from Revelation represents the more common depiction of Michael. Raphael
Raphael is mentioned in the Book of Tobit adopted by Catholic and Orthodox traditions. He is characterized as healer and patron saint to apothecaries, physicians, the blind, insane or mentally ill, and sick people in general. He acts as a guide for Tobias, saving him from demons, showing him how to cure his father’s blindness with the liver of a fish, and so on. Raphael is usually accompanied by Tobias along with a fish or fish head representing life.
October / November 2009 Samhain (summer’s end) is an important ritual in the Celtic tradition. Contemporary cultures in the West celebrate this holiday on October 31, but originally it was celebrated over a several day period. We know little about the actual rituals but the ritual complex, called Samhain, comes down to us as Halloween a contraction of All Hallows’ Eve, so we are told. Halloween, might, however, be a contraction of All Hollow’s and Samhain (Sah-wan). Contemporary celebrations involve dressing up in disturbing images of the dead or images that poke fun at presidents and popes. For the ancient Celts, however, this was not principally a joyous time, especially if not enough food was put in for the winter months. Bonfires were lit to attract the sun and warm the dead ancestors, while food was placed close by to appease and maintain their memory (our “trick or treat”). The bonfires attract mosquitoes, the mosquitoes attract bats, and the bats attract owls, common symbols in modern renditions of the rites, images demonized by the Church. The Celtic priests, Druids, added another ingredient, that is, human sacrifice. We know they engaged ritual killings at specific times of the years and some have suggested that Samhain was more than likely one of them. These special killings, as evidenced by bog burials, involved nobility as the sacrifice. In other words, if a hard, long winter was anticipated, a sacrifice of nobility might influence the deities to shorten the winter and provide a good spring planting and harvest. In another sense, if the nobility were not able to provide a good harvest through their proper rites and rituals then we need a changing of the guards. This type of ritual killing was abandoned by the Jews, most likely evidenced in the sacrifice of Isaac, the great non-event, where a scapegoat is inserted because it was philosophized that any life would do. This also protected the nobility including the priests. Human sacrifice, nonetheless, is found in Christianity, with the martyring of Jesus, the saints, and the mushroom, the kinder, gentler sacrifice. The Opet (New Year’s) festival in ancient Egypt, dating back to the Old Kingdom Pyramid Texts, depicts the renewal of the king by bringing him near death most likely through the use of Amanita muscaria or other potent potion, and with his “recovery,” his kinship renewed. All Saints Day, November 1, was more formerly instituted in the ninth century and was added to Church ritual as a means of absorbing Samhain and replacing it with Christian observance. Obviously this ploy did not obliterate this Celtic tradition, nor did it have much impact on the Feast of the Dead among the Maya when the Church, using the same strategy, attempted to extinguish that tradition (see Rush, J. The Twelve Gates, 2007). Samhain and All Saints’ Day have several things in common the major being a reverence for the ancestors/saints, especially those without their own special day of observance. In a sense this mirrors the Celtic fear of the ancestors, of not recognizing them, and perhaps removing protection or help for the living. The image below is a seventeenth century icon from Greece. Icons are always signed, but not by the artist; they are signed by that which inspired the artist, God. One of the most popular of God’s signatures in Eastern art is to be found in clothing, often in the hem of an alb, cape, or perhaps in the sleeve, or at the end of a stole. This signature is also the Mystery in Christianity, the Holy Mushroom. In this image we see Jesus in the center of the sun disk (Aten in Egyptian, Adon in Hebrew) doing the hokey-pokey, surrounded by the saints in their ranked order. Directly above Christ’s head is the Arc of the Covenant, so I am told, but this is more likely a book, a determinative for the Holy Mushroom, out of which are coming rays of light rendered with several Instruments of the Passion, that is, reed, cross, spear, and Holy Sponge (mushroom). The angel to the left of the book is either holding the mushroom in his hand or his stale is being blow forward in the shape of a mushroom by holy wind. Jesus is centered in the Aten sun disk, the mushroom, and his left knee and thigh form another common mushroom motif. To the left and right of Jesus’ feet are Seraphs, “fire makers,” who brings fire, physical discomfort before you enter his celestial domain. Directly beneath his feet is the papal cross forming the stalk of the mushroom flanked by the most noticeable popes and bishops. The angels flanking Jesus’ head appear to be Cherubim; they know God’s wisdom and deliver it to humans in the form of doves and manna, the food of the gods.
Beneath is Abraham (left), on his throne, accepting all God wills to be in his presence, and in the distance he sees a man wearing a blue loin cloth walking his way. Directly in front of the man is a tree-mushroom. God has bequeathed favors on the Good Thief and he has entered the Garden of Paradise. As you recall, Jesus is nailed to a cross erected in the center of Golgotha, the Hill of Skulls, geography not found in history. This hill is the ben-ben stone, the axis mundi, the center, and when it materializes it splits into paired opposites, as all things in the field of time are paired, generically rendered as good and evil, male and female, light and dark, and so on. Jesus as the story goes was stationed between two thieves, one unrepentant, Gestas, and the other, Dismus, who repented. Dismus is on the right side of Jesus while Gestus is on the left, and when this good-bad is reversed in the art, always look deeper into the meaning. This celestial image shows God or Jesus in heaven, in his majesty, surrounded by his loyal followers. I would add to this that they all must have been thieves, repentant all, because they are letting another one in, Dismus, who’s only regret is that he got caught. The reader can place his or her own truth to the story. The exoteric meaning, proffered as historical truth, comes from Matthew 6: 10: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The saints and sinner below Jesus’ feet, frequent flyers all, are the temporal rulers especially chosen to administer God’s will. And when the peasant asked the Bishop why he was in charge, he recited Matthew 6: 10, pointed at the icon and said, “You see here are all the saints who had experiences with God, and most were martyred. So there it is, proof; the saints are the witnesses.” Icons can be seen as the first snap shots in history, the difference is they reflect inner space, imagination, and mind-altering substances helped stimulate that reflection. December 2009 Mushroom of the Month December 2009 December is a magical month representing the end of one period and entrance into another. The winter solstice, December 21, is the shortest day of the year where the sun appears to stand still in its position on the horizon for three days and then daylight lengthens thus ushering in the a new year. The winter solstice is recognized by cultures all over the world and it is not surprising that Christianity would incorporate this celestial event into its mythic storyline specifically for the purpose of synchronizing with and absorbing the competing pagan traditions. Halloween and Christmas are my favorite times of the year. Halloween is purely Celtic in origin, tolerated by the Church because they couldn’t extinguish the tradition. Halloween is perverted by Fundamentalist Christian groups who often use the haunted house as a means of demonizing sex, drugs, and the gods of other traditions. The horned god (Cernunnos, the Green Man), for example, becomes Satan or Beelzebub, and we are warned about other evils, the temptations that surround us. Christmas, however, is an amalgam including Celtic, Egyptian, and Christian symbols. The pine tree, for example, is a symbol for St. Anna, with the roots representing Mother Mary, who nurtures the fruiting body Amanita muscaria, Jesus, the botanical trinity from which emerged what is known today as Christianity. Jesus is the gift to the world, that is, communion with God. The connection to Santa is direct, that is to say, Santa is a reflection of an older tradition, Thor or Donner, who rode around in a Golden Chariot pulled by two goats, Cracker and Gnasher, placing the gift of the god under the pine tree. The true gift was communion with God. The frequent flyer was the shaman, the stand-in for the god just as the early Christian saints, who shared his gift with those who were good during the year. Bad children, as the fairytales inform, were placed in ovens or boiled in cauldrons, or perhaps for lesser offences given a lump of coal. In the early Christian cults those who confessed their sins and answered the parables (understood the mystery) were worthy of the flesh of God. For the pagans, the dried mushrooms would be delivered by the shaman on the winter solstice, and because there was lots of snow around the huts, a trap door was conveniently available in the roof for easy entrance and exit. I love these stories! In any case, the Christmas story and the story of Santa bringing gifts are one and the same. The true gift, however, was shared among the pagans but restricted for the Christians. You won’t find too many images of Santa outside Christian churches, but many still display echoes of the pagan god in the form of candy canes, Christmas trees, and associated ornaments. The manger scene, I might add, comes from the Egyptian tradition. The birth of Jesus is symbolic of the birth of the Catholic Church and an expansion of the constructed storyline once it gained political acceptance through Constantine. Constantine needed allies rather than sectarian strife. Through the efforts of Eusebius of Caesarea (cir. 263-339 CE) the life and times of Jesus was shamelessly constructed. Jesus, who cannot be found in history, was made real through forgery and debate and probably the destruction of priceless documents not conforming to the Church’s quest for unification. There can be no doubt about the forgeries, actions unnecessary if Jesus was a real person healing the sick and bringing people back to life far and wide and known to all. Jesus has many enemies for his truth is dangerous, so dangerous that even the Church had to suppress the original message if they were to gain political merit. His truth is human decency and this does not set will with people in power. Those who would eradicate human decency, redefined by the Church for their own ends, are characterized as evil and this evil goes by many names, for example, Satan, Devil, and my favorite, Beelzebub. Beelzebub is an old Canaanite god shared by the Hebrew (also a Canaanite tribe) and translates as Lord of the Flies. The connection to Jesus can only be understood through the behavior of flies and how that insect relates to Amanita species. In the first image below notice the fly on Jesus’ right leg, Mother Mary is pointing to it, while Jesus holds a transparent globe in his hand and appears to be looking up and past Mother Mary. According to St. Melito, bishop of Sardis dating to the late second century, the fly was a symbol of the devil, Beelzebub, Lucifer. The fly is sometime characterized as temptation or gluttony, but at the very least, evil. But there may be another meaning, for it could be seen as a botanical evil—flies crawl up the stalk of the mushroom (Jesus’ leg) and lay their eggs in the gills. When the maggots hatch they consume the mushroom and its life’s force. In the second image we see a similar motif. Mary is looking at the fly while Baby Jesus clutches a bird, a dove, unusual in its brown and white color. The dove has its wings spread and Jesus is holding tightly as if he and the dove are one. The dove is a messenger, and Jesus is the message, the path to illumination and everlasting life. Jesus is also wearing the cruciform nimbus with dots, another analogue of the mushroom. His right eye appears to be looking at the fly and his left at Mary’s left hand while she pulls him away from evil. Turned upside down the pillow becomes the mushroom cap while the stalk is formed by his buttux and right thigh. Amanita msucaria is also known as Fly Argaric or Fly Mushroom. Jesus and Santa both bring knowledge to the world through communion with the god, a sacred event. So, this Christmas, as in Christmas past, place the gift that keeps giving under your tree and commune with the deity or energy of choice—“Give me that ol’ time religion. . . . ! “
January 2010 Priests need something to do and one of their duties involves honoring numerous saints, some recognizable in history, others constructed for absorbing gods and goddesses from other traditions, filling gaps in the storyline, and certainly to reinforce a martyr mentality and absolute faith in the storyline. Those who give their life to God gain merit. Paul is going from one place to another, and during the “trip” he is struck blind by God after which he converts to Christianity and becomes the “lesser apostle.” Being “struck blind” is symbolic of going from one sensory or reality state to another, like when the light bulb comes on. Many are struck blind by truth, only to recover with a different perspective. For example, when you first learned that Santa was an idea and attitude, and not a magical man in a red suit flying around in a sleigh pulled by reindeer, delivering presents to all god boys and girls—that was a shock; Christmas is never quite the same. Being informed that Jesus is a mushroom represents that same type of shock resulting in disbelief and anger, maintained in many cases even in the face of overwhelming evidence (cognitive dissonance) to the contrary. Paul poetically was blinded by his anti-Christian hate (guilt, hate of self) and unable to experience the true nature of God (love, compassion), but emerges from this experience converted, a true believer. So, how did this conversion, celebrated on January 25, take place, or was Paul’s experience simply a psychotic split from reality? Again, we are not talking history and the historical existence of Paul, so this isn’t psychosis. Instead we need to look at the message behind the image, behind the adventure attributed to this interesting player in the construction of Christianity. All saints were inspired by God, a personification, and there can be little doubt regarding the identity of the Jewish and Christian God. This deity is the Fiery Bush that Moses encountered one fine afternoon; this is Fiery Hathor and the Aten sun disk in the Egyptian tradition; this is the Teacher of Righteousness, the Holy Mushroom.  February 2010
by John A. Rush
Christianity, on the other side, did not emerge as a conquest tradition, and, contrary to Islam, surfaced as a rejection of our animal nature and all terrestrial things. Early Christian beliefs and practices represent psychological protection for people living a miserable existence without power or influence. This rejection of our animal nature is reflected in a heaven with no earthly delights—no clinging to life, no sex or caloric food, and no concern about status because you are in perpetual ecstasy contemplating God. The image below is a wonderful example of this otherworldly, serene paradise where absolutely nothing is happening. In Islam, heaven is party time, at least for the men. I’m not sure what women get, other than the privilege to service men. In Islam the terrestrial fear of female energy translates to the celestial realm. Many of the early saints had experiences that turn them totally inward. As you recall (January 2010) Paul is struck blind by God on the road to Damascus and becomes an aggressive true believer, who is then martyred (decapitated) thus opening the door to his sainthood. Some saints, however, did not reportedly perform miraculous or noteworthy service outside unyielding faith in the Lord. These saints symbolize the average person promising if you are a true believer you can likewise reach sainthood. Such a case is Dorothy (c. 300 CE) who is celebrated on February 6. Dorothy, as the story goes, was a born Christian who refused to pay homage to the gods during the reign of Emperor Diocletian. She was tortured numerous times, and ridiculed by a writer named Theophillus. But, at the moment of her beheading, she prayed and an angel descended from heaven with a basket of roses and apples which were presented to Theophillus. Angels bring the conduit to prophecy and ecstasy, manna, not terrestrial apples or roses. In any case, Theophillus apparently converted on the spot, and was martyred shortly thereafter, another analogue of the mushroom. The image below is entitled, The Little Garden of Paradise, or The Virgin Mary in a Walled Garden with Saints (Master of the Frankfurt, c. 1410 CE). Let’s consider some of the symbols connected to this image. First, Theophillus translates as “beloved of God” or “friend of God,” an honorary title, so we are instructed. Dorothy means “gift of God.” Apples (as well as quinces, pomegranates, and figs) are analogs of the mushroom, while the rose can point in several directions. Remember Christian art does not represent the secular world; these are not pictures but a representation of celestial geography which can only be imagined. What you see is not what you get. Then there are the roses (sometimes five-petal) which, in Christian art, are white, yellow, and red, with white representing purity, yellow and gold perfection, and red a symbol of martyrdom. But the symbolism goes way beyond this. The rose is analogous to the lotus, octopus, cornucopia, and Grail. A rose without thorns is said to have grown in the Garden of Eden (mushrooms don’t have thorns). In the image below we see the Virgin Mary in the center of a walled garden reading a “book” (see The Mushroom in Christian Art for an extended interpretation of the book). The walled garden, as some scholars suggest, represents Mary’s virginity, but that’s not what this is. This is the garden of ecstasy, not a garden that has any connection with carnal acts. To the left is Dorothy picking apples and placing them into the vase/chalice (on her left) symbolic of that (womb) which brings forth everlasting life (mushroom, Jesus). Surrounding the periphery and foreground are flowers including lilies on the far right representing Mary’s purity, but not purity in a carnal sense. Instead this is pure thought devoid of all terrestrial suggestion; this is deep meditation, or as the Buddhists would say, “stopping of the mind stuff.” Red roses to the right and above the tree represent the Passion, the blue iris above the offering table is symbolic of Mary and Isis of the Egyptian tradition, and strawberries below the table are considered the “food of the blessed,” heaven, another analogue of the mushroom. There are also lilies of the valley (chastity, i.e. nothing is happening) to the right of the well; this is not about carnal things. And then there are carnations (Dianthus or “God’s flower”) to the left of the apple tree. These symbols point 180 degrees away from our animal nature. Flanking Mary on the right is a “table” symbolic of Golgotha as indicated by the small skull on the ground to the left. On the table is a cup encrusted with jewels above which is a flat dish with “apples” (mushroom cap?), while to the right are Amanita mushrooms clearly showing stalks pointing up. I am told these are apple cores or even cherries, but there is no one in heaven to eat these fruits; they eat the Food of God. You decide. In the bottom left is St. Barbara (c. 300 CE - excommunicated from sainthood in 1969 because she, like Jesus, has absolutely no historical visibility) drawing water from a well, symbolic of transmutation. Barbara means “foreign woman” or “stranger.” St. Barbara, I might add, is the patron saint of miners who work with explosives! (I’m surprised the Islamic terrorists haven’t invited Barbara into their celestial fold.) The story of St. Barbara is a play on the Rapunzel-in-the-tower caper for in both the father claims to pretect his daughter from the evils on the outside, Christianity in the former and men (sex) in the latter. Barbara had converted to Christianity and as a sign of rebellion or challenge to the prevailing politic had three windows (instead of two ordered by Daddy) installed in her protective prison as a sign of the Trinity. When Dioscorus returned home she admitted her conversion. Daddy Dioscorus then stabbed her to death, but she was whisked away to a pasture with two shepherds tending sheep, and noticing the materialization and restoration were told by a bevy of angels to keep the event secret. Dioscorus pursues his daughter and encounters the shepherds, one of which cops to Barbara’s whereabouts, and of course was immediately turned to stone. Because of her unyielding faith Barbara was returned to life, but brought back to town, only to be repeatedly cut and tortured. By morning, however, all her wounds would heal. She was finally beheaded—by her father! He in turn was struck by a bolt of lightning and vaporized. Dioscorus, I might add, translates as “Son of Zeus,” a reference to the pagan traditions and vain attempts to kill Christian faith. Martyrdom usually requires decapitation which translates into removing the mushroom cap from the stalk; all these early saints are analogues of the mushroom path. This is an unusual story and the points of interest are Barbara’s ability to self-heal but not if her head is removed, possibly a reference to the part of the mushroom sacrificed, the cap, while the stalk is discarded, and the name Dioscorus, a reference to the pagan traditions. Catherine of Alexandria (bottom center) is seated with Jesus who plays a lyre (interesting shape and color). Catherine (c.290 CE), meaning “pure,” attempted to convert Emperor Maximinus and for her efforts was condemned to death, broken on the wheel. However, she touched the wheel and it fell to pieces, so she was beheaded. Beheading, again, is analogous to removing the stalk from the cap. There is no historical visibility for Catherine but the Church still keeps her on the payroll. Clinging to the tree on the right is Oswald. Oswald has an interesting history creating a cult following on the Scottish isle of Ione and dying (642 CE) in a battle with the pagan King of Mercia. He is usually dressed in royal attire holding a box-like vessel which contains anointing oil brought to him by a raven (a play on the Elijah and raven story); here, in ecstasy, he leans against the tree. Oswald looks down upon the archangel Michael who keeps a sleepy eye on the devil by his knee. The other image is St. George, in back of which is a small dragon, asleep, on his back behaving himself and of little concern at the moment—nothing is happening. Let’s put some of these symbols together. Mary sits next to the offering table, symbolizing the cross on Golgotha, evidenced by the skull. On the table is the chalice, the receptacle of everlasting life. Above is a platter, most likely an analogue of the mushroom cap, and Amanita mushrooms on their cap (once “picked” they can’t easily stand on their stalks), the sacrifice. Dorothy picks apples from a tree and places them in a large vessel symbolizing Jesus and her own sacrifice. Barbara, on the other hand, apportions the waters of everlasting life—a possible reference to urine drinking. Catherine sits with Jesus who plays the song of the universe (the buzz), while Oswald leans on the tree as no one is in need of anointing oils at the moment; all are in ecstasy. Michael and George look bored with an otherworldly gaze because nothing is happening. This scene speaks to the sacrifice of the Holy Mushroom and its many analogues. In this sense Dorothy, Barbara, and Catherine likewise represent the mushroom as they were pure (virgins) and, like Jesus, sacrificed. Also, they have no historical visibility. So this is the Garden of Tranquility, a singularity, where the sacrifice has been made and good and evil are contemplating the next round, waiting for Jesus, the Holy Mushroom, to mature and take his place as the ultimate martyr in the field of time, the cycle of life, death, and return.
Coming in 2010:The Mushroom in Christian Artby John A. Rush
In 2001, the author and his wife entered St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice and encountered Jesus surrounded by mushrooms with the Amanita muscaria mushroom cap in his hand (see cover, Failed God). During that trip to Europe the author took hundreds of photos in cathedrals and basilicas and on close examination mushrooms in one form or another are prominent themes. One of the reasons the mushrooms have gone unnoticed is that the images are at a distance and can only be seen up close in most cases. Turning to illuminated manuscripts produced from the sixth-century onwards, the author likewise found mushrooms on page after page. What do these images mean, why are they in the art, and why have the art historians neglected to mention them? These are some of the questions Rush asks along with offering a new interpretations of the icons and consequently a new interpretation of Christianity and the development of Western Civilization. There can be no doubt about the importance of mind-altering substance in the development and continuation of the Catholic Church. As outline in Failed God, Christianity as well as Judaism and Islam are based on mushroom worship and a shamanic tradition extending deep into prehistoric times. Chapter One introduces the reader to the mushroom and its many disguises; it is the visible/invisible icon. Chapter Two examines the art from the approximately 250 CE (Current Era) to 1000 CE, showing the development of the icon and explaining why there are no pictures of Jesus until the fourth-century, although images of saints abound before that time. Chapter Three includes art from 1100 CE to approximately 1550 CE, showing the complexity and sophistication of the mushroom art. Chapter Four considers the time span from 1550 CE to the present including images from cathedrals throughout the Americas and the mushrooms contained within. Chapter Five presents a review and a close look at art guilds and associations and how these images, spanning a period from 550 CE to the present, were commissioned and overseen by the Catholic Church. Chapter Six is about the life history of Jesus, as told in storybook fashion, wherein the reader can develop a spiritual relationship with Jesus once the storyline is abandoned as historical fact. Product Details
|
