May's Musings: Pirate/Osiris

[jporter]

Watching a TV program on the Pyramids of Ancient Egypt, I was fascinated to
hear a description of a theory speculating on the purpose of the small
channels leading from the burial chambers in the center of the pyramids to
well up the sides of one of the outer walls. These were positioned
strategically to allow the light of particular stars to fall on the
entombed, but newly awakened Mummy, at exact times during the year. Thereby
was the soul's passage guided to the appropriate constellation, thus
allowing mating with and fertilization of Isis, the subsequent rebirth of
the world, etc., in accordance with ancient Egyptian ritual and belief.

I couldn't help but be reminded of the (simplified) description an
aquaintance provided for me of the Trident missle's guidance system (which
he helped design): Once above cloud level a tiny window opens. Then,
depending on the target and the position of the launching sub, a particular
star's light is sought by the guidance system. The chosen star is kept
focused by a series of tiny lenses, and the missle's trajectory is adjusted
so as to keep the star's image focused exactly in the middle of the sensor.

For some reason Pirate's "entrance" in GR has always reminded me of the
awakening of Osiris. Perhaps the use of guidance systems based on the
positions of the fixed distant stars, by both ancient Egyptian priests and
the rocket engineers of the ICBM culture, has something to do with this
eerie feeling.

Jody Porter