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   Adam F. Lawton (adam_cadmon1@mastodon.online)'s status on Saturday, 06-Apr-2024 00:13:29 JST Adam F. Lawton

   I've read that the original swastikas--not the nazi shit--were symbolic representations of the Milky Way? The spiral that it shapes. If anyone has done any formal study of comparative religion or you just know what I'm talking about, care to discuss?

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     Paul Cantrell (inthehands@hachyderm.io)'s status on Saturday, 06-Apr-2024 00:13:28 JST Paul Cantrell

     in reply to

     @Adam_Cadmon1
     That seems extremely dubious, since the original symbol predates by centuries and maybe millennia the knowledge that the Milky Way is spiral-shaped. (In the sky, of course, we view it edge on.)

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     Paul Cantrell (inthehands@hachyderm.io)'s status on Saturday, 06-Apr-2024 01:42:18 JST Paul Cantrell

     in reply to

     @Adam_Cadmon1
     For sure. People have known a lot about astronomy for millennia. Still, the examples you mention take mind-boggling observation and eyesight, but don’t require a telescope. And it’s conceivable that somebody may have spotted •other• spiral galaxies in the sky long before the telescope; that could be an origin. The Milky Way specifically, though, I’m highly dubious.

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     Adam F. Lawton (adam_cadmon1@mastodon.online)'s status on Saturday, 06-Apr-2024 01:42:19 JST Adam F. Lawton

     in reply to

     • Paul Cantrell

     @inthehands And that's my thinking too, except tangentially...the Dogon knew about Sirius A and B centuries before the telescope was introduced to them. Likewise the Maya understood the length and cycle of astronomical events to a degree of accuracy that is quite amazing considering they didn't even smith metal