Dan Brown's Lost Symbol - Circumpunct, Ra, or Circle With a Dot in the Middle?
As any true seeker of ancient wisdom knows, it ain't found in a Dan Brown novel. This is despite the bold claim in the preface to his latest epic, The Lost Symbol:
"FACT: In 1991, a document was locked in the safe of the director of the CIA. The document is still there today. Its cryptic text includes references to an ancient portal and an unknown location underground. The document also contains the phrase 'It's buried out there somewhere.'
"All organizations in this novel exist, including the Freemasons, the Invisible College, the Office of Security, the SMSC, and the Institute of Noetic Sciences.
"All rituals, science, artwork, and monuments in this novel are real."
Brown was asking for it, wasn't he? All over the world, people are now having a ball proving The Da Vinci Code author wrong again on numerous points, from his definition of ancient (200 years, duh!) to his grasp of Washington DC's geography. The Freemasons have even set up a website to fight the lies, although they are more likely to find themselves inundated with applications for membership.
But – despite Brown's leaden, explanation-heavy denouement – much confusion still surrounds the Lost Symbol itself.
Staggering through all 509 pages (spare yourself the misery, try instead the Guardian's parody) reveals the tatttoed maniacal villain was not actually hunting for the lost symbol but the lost word – and, for all good Christians, a simple capital W would have cleared the whole thing up from page 1. Besides, the Lost Symbol was never really lost. Its meaning may have been a little obscure but that's because it has multiple interpretations. Clear as mud? Excellent. Let's proceed.
The symbol in question is what Dan Brown calls a circumpunct. Interestingly, a Google search for the word "circumpunct" turns up only 1480 results (although that is increasing as Brown-noses unthinkingly adopt the word). It appears in no sensible dictionary, such as the OED, or even dictionary.com. In fact, some of its few web pages feature a discussion in the Wikimedia Commons on circumpunct's validity and origins – in the ancient year of, er, 1992. The word, some argue, was first coined by the Brianists, followers of 'Brian the Cyber Prophet', a decidedly dodgy, short-lived religion of the 1990s that adopted the circumpunct as its symbol.
Brown has this to say in his novel: "In the idiom of symbology, there was one symbol that reigned supreme above all others. The oldest and most universal, this symbol fused all the ancient traditions in a single solitary image that represented the illumination of the Egyptian sun god, the triumph of alchemical gold, the wisdom of the Philosopher's Stone, the purity of the Rosicrucian Rose, the moment of Creation, the All, the dominance of the astrological sun, and even the ominscient all-seeing eye that hovered atop the unfinished pyramid. The circumpunct. The symbol of the Source. The origin of all things."
The Lost Symbol's cardboard cut-out hero – Robert Langdon, a professor so wacky and adventurous he refuses to wear ties (look out, Indiana!) – describes the circumpunct as one of the most widely used symbols in history. It has dozens of meanings; in ancient Egypt, he says, it was the symbol for the sun god Ra.
Can we Trust Brown on This?
There are already conspiracy theories surrounding his usage of the symbol (including one incoherently excited site that believes the Freemasons' circumpunct celebrates the same star pictured in a 3500-year-old Egyptian tomb, an assertion that ends up being little more than an advertisement and request for cash).
It is true that the circumpunct symbol has been around for millennia, albeit more often known as "the circle with the dot in the middle". It can symbolise everything from gold in alchemy to a European road sign for city centre. It is commonly used as a solar symbol and reputable sources date this to ancient Egypt, where the symbol has its origins in Ra (or Re), god of the midday sun. In fact, the circle with a midpoint, plus a vertical line is the hieroglyph meaning "sun".
So how did an Egyptian symbol rise to shine again as a token of the ancient mysteries among 21st-century Freemasons in Brown's novel? Langdon's exposition is as follows: "The pyramid builders of Egypt are the forerunners of the modern stonemasons, and the pyramid, along with Egyptian themes, is very common in Masonic symbolism." Very neat. Well done, Brown.
Later in the novel, after the circumpunct is discovered inside the stone box which housed the capstone for a mysterious Masonic pyramid, Langdon briefly mentions one of the most famous images supposedly deriving from the circumpunct – the all-seeing eye over the Great Seal of a United States dollar bill. But mostly the circumpunct is represented in the book in its purest, original form.
This simple symbol has many meanings, often spiritual. The Stanford Solar Center says the circle with a point is the common astrological and now astronomical symbol for the Sun, as well as the ancient alchemical symbol for gold, the perfect metal. This is because the sphere is a perfect shape, representing wholeness, oneness, unity and spirituality.
In her book Life Symbols as Related to Sex Symbolism, Elizabeth E. Goldsmith writes that the dot within the circle dates to ancient times and may have typified the seed within the egg. "This is the 'Orphic egg', a symbol of the universe whose yolk in the middle of a liquid surrounded an encompassing vault, represented the globe of the sun floating in ether and surrounded by the vault of heaven," she writes. How apt then that Ra – worshipped as the great father who created gods and men – should be represented by this symbol.
In Hinduism the midpoint in the circle is called a "bindu" – meaning point or dot – and it's said to signify the spark of male life, the point at which creation begins within the cosmic womb and one becomes many. According to the book Yantra: The Tantric Symbol Of Cosmic Unity the bindu is the "the sacred symbol of the cosmos in its unmanifested state".
It would be interesting to find out where this symbol appears all over the world. In Freemasons' halls, we now know. In the writings of the ancient Egyptians. But where else?
Answers on an e-card, please.
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Where else indeed?
In 1994 after an out-of-body experience, I was given the gift of symbol interpretation. I was given a 24-symbol alphabet for deciphering symbols.
Within this alphabet, the circle with a dot in the center represents the word KNOW. When you add another circle on the outside, you have the symbol for MAN.
While capturing the meanings of the symbols for the book "The Language of Light," I was repeated told to go look at your EYE. When I did, I saw not only the circumpunct, but the symbol for MAN. Do you remember what the Bible says about the EYE?
So, the circumpunct lives in the eye of every single human on this planet. I would say that makes it rather important.
Gen,
A most delightful writing to have stumbled upon. Thank you! Your writing is well informed and judicious, and as such is greatly appreciated.
I always look forward to the release of a new Dan Brown book, not because I expect the book to enlighten me or anyone else on this subject, but because, all the better, the book ignites awareness of and debates on the subject. I have been a Mason for over 20 years and have spent most of that time as a student of its symbols, and some years back, became a student of ancient symbology in general.
Ten years ago, when I would attempt to explain my interests to most people, I would elicit either a blank stare of incomprehension, or worse, a flicker of fear as they began to suspect me to be a practitioner of the Black Arts or worse. Now, I merely tell them that my hobby is akin to that of Robert Langdon and they understand instantly what I mean.
As you may hear Dan Brown say at times, it is essential to remember that he is a writer of fiction and that his stories are make believe, touching just enough on such things as to make them mysterious and interesting. No one should think they know a lot about the Holy grail after reading the Da Vinci Code, nor about Masonry from reading the Lost Key. The benefit is the interest generated by these stories, and I believe this to be helpful. Dan Brown takes tidbits of fact or legend as a skeleton upon which to weave a wonderful and entertaining story, and by his popularity, it does seem to be effective. It he, at times, generates controversy with various claims, he does so with the result of selling a great many books. I cannot hold him to blame for this.
I should mention as an aside, that in some ancient languages, such as Phoenician, the word door or portal are the same, and may confer many meanings, including, just a door. Also note that the Phoenix, which is also mentioned more than once in the Lost Symbol, is oddly similar to the word Phoenicia. An accident, perhaps? Both words originate from the Greek Word phoinikeia, meaning red or deep purple.
Thank you again, and I look forward to reading more from you!
Best regards,
Stephen Jackson
Dallas, Texas.
Hi Judy,
So all I had to do was look in a mirror! Thanks for pointing out the obvious :)
Hi Stephen,
Great to meet a real-life Robert Langdon! Have you come across the circumpunct in your studies? I'd be very interested to hear the views of a Mason and symbologist on Dan Brown's "lost symbol".
You are absolutely right about his books igniting debate – a new Dan Brown novel gives both fans and critics something to be passionate about.
Glad you enjoyed the article.
Gen
To me it looks like a fertilized egg. Which could easily be interpretted as "hope". Am I wrong?
E Pluribus Unum
(s)
Hello folks,
I just finished DB's latest work of wonder, and have been looking at the impact is having on the internet's denizens.
Folks... he is a NOVELIST. Don't you get it... He can write anything he wants. He is NOT a historian, although he incorporates history into his stories. He is not an expert on everything, but he writes an entertaining story. Why do people seek to dissect his work? It is FICTION. What difference doth it make if NW Washington DC is in the SW of his book? It is FICTION. Need I say it again? It is FICTION
Are you taking all of your medications? Do the voices say you should hurt yourself or others? This is Fiction.
Yes it is a book of fiction BUT it now seems more likely the original Solomon Key plot was replaced with the new fictional puzzles and dull ending.
Dan was probably going to reveal the real Hebrew Solomon Key cipher puzzle, a copy of which is on record in the British library in the manuscript titled clavicula Salomonis.
And here is the thing... it actually duplicates the same thing found on a Freemason historical record at the Bradford University in the UK, has the same star references and beam of light coming down from the star of 'Ra' and Dan Brown was probably stopped in his tracks. It is meaning would shake the foundations of every religion in this world because the message associated with it is... that we are descendant of star visitors!
He apparently reworked his whole book and changed the title... launched a Freemason promotional plot... and even wrote to a Freemason lodge who wanted to celebrate the book with him , and in his own words o his letterhead and I quote:
"hope that the Masonic community recognises The Lost Symbol for what IT TRULY IS... an attempt to reverentially explore the BEAUTY of Masonic Philosophy"
Now if this line alone doesnt sound like he is a Mason then God only knows!
I am the author the Gen Swart ripped off in this article - I published a book on the Ra symbol titled The Hidden Records that has been interfered with in the USA marketplace - I was also trying to raise funds asking for donations to keep this truth alive.
Thanks Gen from a fellow Capetonian for the scathing comments you made where you obviously didnt bother to check to see that the historical documents referencing stars are actually real.
About the Point within the Circle, I've found a blog article that could be seen as some kind of conspiracy theory (at least some parts of it), even though it includes some pretty interesting information. It's called "The Real Symbol of the Illuminati", and you can read it here:
http://illuminaticiphers.blogspot.com/2009/08/real-symbol-of-illuminati.html
Gen a book published in Turkey in 1990s name was APOKALIPSE. It mentions secret symbols before dan brown. The name of the writer is Aydogan Vatandas. He is also a journalist and lives in New York. His email address is aydogan29@yahoo.com. And his face link http://www.facebook.com/photo_search.php?oid=215801666890&view=user#/aydogan.vatandas?ref=ts
He also published a new book about 2000 years old Bible found in southeast of Turkey written by Joseph Barnaba. He says that villagers went to hunting and come accross with an ancient tomb and inside in it a skeleton and a deer skin bible. carbon test proves its age as 2000 years old. and at the end of the bible barnaba says that there are 3 more edition more and draw the map of their places. 2nd edition is near Golan Heights in Israel. 3rd is in saudi arabia and 4th is in northern Iraq, kurdish territory. I think u might be interested with this issue.
sorry for my english. i m a turkish guy beginner at learning english.
Can you buy this book in English, German or Bosnian? I had problems finding anything in any other language than Turkish.
If you know any place where we can buy this book in another language (i.e. English ) I would appreciate it if you could post us a link here.
Thank you, Miran
I will look for it mate. Pls wait for my reply. U may also send mail to the author as i given above aydogan29@yahoo.com.
Actually, the symbol does exist in Masonic Lodges, but in a slightly different form. It has a vertical line on each side and a Bible above it. The Bible is the symbol of illumination, not the Christian or Jewish religion and the lines are thought by some to symbolize the Deacon's rods, which perhaps mark the Sun's position at the summer and winter soltices. The author who set up the site at the University of Bradford site also theorizes that there was a Megalithic Yard, a standard unit of measurement from ancient times, which can be calculated by setting up two rods to view the passage of a star between them.
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