Lineage of Thought

It's kind of sad that Graham Hancock went on to write such hits as Underworld: The Mysterious Origins of Civilization and The Mars Mystery: The Secret Connection Between Earth and the Red Planet since those books relegated him to the fringes of scientific respectability. His book Fingerprints of the Gods, though, is still fascinating and thought provoking.

Hancock believes that the advanced civilization existed and was destroyed by a huge flood, but that its survivors retained remnants of the old technology, architecture, and cartography that was then passed on through the centuries giving rise to things like chronometers, pyramids, and Admiral Piri Reis's map. This theory supposes that the flood was likely more of a local event than a worldwide one, but that the shock of it was probably felt by the rest of the inhabited world. If this flood were local and it only destroyed the advanced, Atlantis-like civilization, then it stands to reason that the earth was likely not that much different looking than it is today--meaning the continents had already separated. Thus, the mapping of Antarctica is made possible by that civilization that met its end and ultimate dispersion.

Dispersion of a different kind occurred in the Bible however and could just as easily explain the drop off of advanced technology. That dispersion took place at the building of the Tower of Babel and is recorded in the book of Genesis, chapter 11. God says, "Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." This effectively began the dispersion God was after.

It is interesting to read the words of God Himself as he admits that "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them." This key phrase lets me know that God saw them as being very advanced and potentially great. This was a problem since mankind would inevitably look to himself as the reason for his achievements. Josephus even states that Nimrod sought to turn mankind from God as a means to enrich his vision of himself. His idea of Nimrod was that he championed himself as the revenge for the destruction of their forefathers. His intent was to build a tower so tall that another flood could not consume it.

From this perspective, it seems obvious that men immediately turned from God even after the great flood. They took no heed of God's power and transfixed themselves on their own power as a means to their salvation. It is probably fair to say then, that when God confused their language and scattered them that the memory of God was already perverted and simply remained that way. Memory of the great flood remained, as can be seen in the writings of all the ancients from Europe and Asia to the Americas. Memory of the Zodiac went on with the ancients. Memory of some technologies went along, as well as various other elements that link the resulting great nations that are most remembered in history now. Egypt, the Mayans, the Greeks, the Chinese, etc. became the established children of the first Babylon. Those nations, however great, retained the perverted version of the truth. It was as though the new nations came out of a dark age. Brilliant ideas eventually rose to answer the eternal questions, but none ever hit the truth. This explanation can account for the similarities in history, flood legend, and astronomical understandings while the memory of God became something completely different.

The line of Eber, which eventually became the Hebrews, who eventually came to be known as the Jews were preserved by God supernaturally. They retained the correct knowledge of God and began the long genetic trek to the Messiah. Thus began the history of mankind. Many paths were begun, many legends would develop, and some things that flowed through from prehistory became enigmatic reminders of an age that diffused as confusion set upon it. Perhaps, as we study the Admiral's map, we are seeing a little of what the first Babylonians had drawn in forgotten times.