The fragrance of a lotus is the sum total of the fragrance of the individual petals that compose the lotus… If the petals are plucked away, the lotus ceases to exist. If what has happened or has been achieved in the regional spheres is bypassed, the composite image… gets distorted and disturbed. K.D. Thirunavukkarasu
Our second Chispological survey concerns the most famous object in history, the cup from which Jesus shared wine with his disciples at the Last Supper. The journey into its origins blows open the truth behind both King Arthur & Jesus, both of whom are now emerging from the chisperballs that have coated them in obscuring matter for many centuries.
Beginning with Jesus, who in the Western World has heard of the Samkhyakarika? Who in the Eastern regions has heard of Apollonius of Tyana? In the context of this book they are but two of the many pieces of a remarkable puzzle known as ‘The Jesus Jigsaw.’ The gentleman in question is a world-famous prophet called Jesus Christ, you have probably heard of him, whose life and teachings are the foundation stones upon which stands one of the most important religions of mankind: Christianity. The traditional Jesus, as described by the four canonical Gospels of the New Testament, is reported as conducting his ministry in and around the city of Jerusalem. Before this, and indeed after, as some scholars would have it, a great deal of evidence, both new and old, suggests he was resident in India.
Following the European introduction of Christianity into the Indian sub-continent, by the nineteenth century many native intellectuals began to notice the numerous similarities between the religion preached by the ‘Carpenter’s Son’ from Judea, & the faiths of India. One of these, the erudite ascetic, Swami Sivananda Saraswati, in his ‘Lives of Saints’ (1916), suggests that Jesus, ‘lived like a Hindu or a Buddhist monk, a life of burning renunciation and dispassion. He assimilated the ideals, precepts and principles of Hinduism. Christianity is modified Hinduism only, which was suitable for those people who lived in the period of Christ. Really speaking, Jesus was a child of the soil of India only. That is the reason why there is so much of similarity between his teachings and the teachings of Hinduism and Buddhism.’
During my researches I went to India & the city of Leh, situated gloriously among the Himalayas of Ladakh. While there I mooted my embryonic theory to certain scholars at the Central Institute for Buddhist Studies. One particular morning we were sat outside in the sunshine, a small gaggle of pupils observing our conversations, as I explained to the scholars the crux of my thoughts; not only did Jesus Christ survive the Crucifixion, not only did he travel to India, but during his time on the Subcontinent he would also compose seminal texts which would form the fundamental pillars of both Krishnaism and Mahayana Buddhism. In this spirit I asked the scholars about the possibility of a certain Asvaghosha being the same personage as Ishvarakrishna. The notion was promptly met with laughter of gentle condescension, and I was told rather bluntly that although the two men may have shared the same era, and written in the same style of Sanskrit, Asvaghosha was a poet and Ishvarakrishna a philosopher. I replied with calm erudition, explaining that although Ishvarakrishna was considered to be a philosopher, he wrote his Samkhyakarika in verse, hence making him a poet. My observation was met with Vedic silence, a profound moment of validation, for my new theory of Jesus-in-India had passed its first critical test.
While it is true that there are always two sides to every story, in the case of the Jesus I have discovered there are many, scattered throughout numerous texts. The Jesus Jigsaw is an attempt to make sense of all the information, when to ascertain the realities about this opaque figure we must understand how the historicity of Jesus lies embedded in the cultures of several faiths. Along one branch he is remembered in the Judeo-Christian tradition, with smaller sub-branches shooting off into Islam. Along another branch he is remember’d in the Hindoo tradition, with sub-branches leading off into Tamil mythology. In another he is one of the inspirational minds which fashioned Buddhism in its earliest days. Jesus Christ should in all reality be seen not only as a preacher in Palestine, but also a poet-saint in India. Fruitfully creochisped into Christian, Buddhist & Hindu traditions, such ebullient richness & untrammelled diversity in the world’s worship must be heartily praised, for it would be a dull congregation indeed if this planet of ours all sang entirely from the same hymn sheet.
We shall look at the Indian Jesus in much greater detail as we progress, but let us now turn to the other major component, of the Grail mythomeme, King Arthur. This world famous British warleader is very much an integral presence in what is known Matter of Britain, a collection tales sprung from a time when a fermenting Britain would slowly crystallize into the three kingdoms of England, Scotland & Wales. The story is a bloody one, soaking the soil a deep crimson from Cornwall to the Orkneys, as these kingdoms were fought for, & died for, on a series of battlefields thought lost forever. Researching the Matter of Britain has been something of a jigsaw puzzle – all the pieces were there, it was just a case of finding them in the depths of unread manuscripts, analyzing their value, & then assembling them to paint a cohesive picture. Many historians have given these pieces colour, from scanty historical hints found in Dark Age hagiographies, to the vague, uncertain chronicles of the Middle Ages; from medieval Icelandic sagas, to the epic efforts of the 19th century mega-scholar, William Skene. On one occasion I even utilised a primitive photocopied pamphlet from Lymington, which served as the keystone to the discovery of four Arthurian battlefields. At another most erudite time, up in the National Library of Scotland, I was helped by a charming Classics expert, Dr Ulrike Hogg, who helped me to translate a thorny piece of medieval Latin.
So, kind readers, bring forth your mead horn & fill these eager vessels, for I have a song to sing. Let us plunge helmet first into the Dark Ages when, as the candle of Roman civilisation goes out over Europe, a mighty empire finally fell. The Britons, placid citizens after centuries of the Pax Romana, are suddenly assaulted on three sides; from the west the Irish, from the north the Picts & from across the North Sea the Anglo-Saxons. For almost a century the situation was getting rather desperate, until a great hero rose up from the ranks & led the Britons to victory. This man, who turned back the tide for the duration of his lifetime, was the world famous figurehead, King Arthur. His legend is the primary myth of the British Islands whose name resonates to every corner of the planet. Despite this, his existence is hotly debated, with recent scholarship placing this world famous monarch alongside UFOs & the continent of Atlantis. Most people have heard of Excalibur, Camelot & the Quest for the Holy Grail, but to the modern mind these are surely the stuff of legend? Perhaps not. The existence of King Arthur has been heatedly debated for centuries, with as yet no concensus having been reached. This book aims to change this state of affairs, for as time dissolves, the traces of famous happenings are left etched in the fabric of time, & I believe that the proof of his existence was out there all along.
When we strip away the medieval romancing of our legendary king, we discover nuggets of genuine historicity. He is mentioned in the Lives of seven saints. He is mentioned by the ninth century monk, Nennius, in his Historia Brittonum. Two centuries later, Geoffery of Monmouth drew on Nennius, as well as several other sources, & created his fluid chronicle, the History of the Kings of Britain. Arthur also turns up over 30 times in the wonderful & archaic poetry of the Welsh. If we move from these just one degree of seperation, we are given numerous other accounts of Arthur’s companions & kin. By cross-referencing all this information we are able to paint a detailed picture of Arthur & his times. It is the task of the Chispologist to analyze all these findings, leaving no stone unturned in the process, even checking the original sources for their genuine veracity.
During my time with Arthur I was delighted to find that everything said about him in antiquity had its right & proper place in the picture. As I progressed through the reams of paper & gallons of ink disgorged on the quest to uncover him, I made an early discovery, as my 2012 Blog records.
Its been a mad wee three days, y’know. On Thursday morning the Southern Reporter, based in Selkirk in the Scottish Borders, published my findings as to the discovery of King Arthur’s Grave. By the afternoon I was tracked down by Deadline News, an Edinburgh based company which feeds stories to the nationals, & on Friday morning I went to mi local paper-shop, bought a copy of the Daily Record & mi fuckin face is staring at me. Since then, the news has spread to America, on various websites, & inspired me to get the follow up together. I’ve basically discovered who King Arthur’s dad was, & have spent today in the national library of scotland researching medievil breviarys & ancient Breton manuscripts to gain the answer. Anyhow, its not every day ya find King Arthur’s grave, so here’s the story (google King Arthur Damian Bullen for all the others).
AN Edinburgh hobby historian is claiming the Yarrow Stone marks the grave of King Arthur, writes Sally Gillespie.
Self-styled literary archaeologist Damian Bullen says academic consensus has the Liberalis Stone as the burial ground of two Christian princes of the fifth to sixth centuries AD. And one of those he believes was King Arthur.
Mr Bullen, 35, said: “When we strip away the mediaeval romancing of our legendary king, we are left with genuine nuggets of historicity. One of them is the stone at Yarrow which I am convinced is his grave marker.”
It has been reported that the famous regent died with Medrawt (said to be his nephew Mordred) during “the strife of Camlann”. Camlann means “crooked glen” which Mr Bullen says is “a perfect match” for the river bends in the Yarrow Valley near the Liberalis Sonte.
Ploughing in the area three hundred years ago revealed a large flat stone inscribed in Latin.
Mr Bullen says: “The accepted translation reads;
This is an everlasting memorial.
In this place lie the most famous princes
Nudus and Dumnogenus.
In this tomb lie the two sons of Liberalis,
“Academic consensus states that the site was a burial ground for two Christian princes of the fifth to sixth centuries AD – but which two? At first glance it seems that Prince Nudos and Prince Dumnogenus were the sons of King Liberalis, but there is more to these names than meets the eye.”
He looked up “liberalis” and “nudus” in the 1968 Oxford Latin Dictionary from which he believes the former means gentlemanly and argues: “Calling our two princes, ‘sons of Liberalis,’ would be a poetic way of saying that they were very noble princes.”
Nudus, he says, implies loss of all one’s material possessions.
“In the context of a burial chamber, the word nudus is surely used as a deterrent to would-be grave robbers of the future.”
He further claims: “Moving on to the second prince, Dumnogenus, the whole key to the Yarrow Stone and its significance to British history is revealed. The word is actually made up of two components, Dumno and Genus. Genus – descent, birth, origin – with implication of high or noble descent – nationality, race, nation. The genus element means ‘born of,’ as in our modern word ‘genes.’ This makes the two princes ‘born of the Dumno’. This has to be the Dumnonii, a tribe of ancient Britons, whose lands encompassed Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset.
“This knowledge renders the inscription as, ‘Here lie two famous and very noble princes of Dumnonia, buried without possessions’ Of all the princes of antiquity who have heralded from this region, there is one who stands head and shoulders above all the rest – King Arthur! That he died with a family member – Mordred – fits the inscription on the Yarrow Stone completely.”
He says the monks of Glastonbury where Arthur is currently believed to be buried, made the story up to raise money.
“When we look deeper into the initial discovery (of Arthur’s coffin), we learn that the abbey was, at that time, in deep financial trouble. A few years before the discovery, in 1184, the monastic buildings and church of Glastonbury had been burnt to the ground. Money was needed, and with the relics of saints being big business at the time, these wily monks ‘found’ the bones of Saint Patrick. Widespread belief in an Irish burial site soon put paid to that particular claim, and the bones of Saint Dunstan ‘discovered,’ not long after were dismissed as swiftly. By 1189, with Richard the Lionheart pressing the churches for financial assistance to aid his crusade, the monks were getting desperate. How fortuitous it was, then, that the bones of King Arthur were unearthed the next year.
“As seems likely, the monks of Glastonbury had made the whole thing up, meaning the search for Arthur’s grave is back on.”
Other clues to support his theory, he says, are the “crooked” element of Camlann being echoed in a hill overlooking the river called Crook Hill and the moor on which the stone was found having the name Annan Street, which he says is a possible shortened form of Camlannan. He continues: “There is a ‘Dead Lake,’ near Yarrow bridge, which local tradition says was the final resting place of warriors slain in battle. It could well be the lake in which Arthur ordered his knight Bedivere to throw Excalibur into as he lay dying.”
And Mr Bullen says: “ There is a real likelihood of a battle having taken place at Yarrow. In the area one finds a host of Cath- names – Cath is Brythonic for battle – such as Cat Craig, Catslackburn, Catslack Knowe and Cat Holes.”
He notes there are battlefield burials in the area and he believes Arthur’s corpse was the well-preserved skeleton found on Whitehope Farm in the mid-19th century but which was gradually lost to curio-seekers.
And from letters dating back to the period, Mr Bullen also thinks King Arthur’s skull may be in the vaults of a local museum.
“It seems Arthur was buried near Selkirk. I’m convinced of this and until we find another site in a crooked glen, where two princes of Devon or Cornwall are buried side by side, and surrounded by the bodies of many warriors, I shall remain so.”
Asked to comment on Mr Bullen’s hypothesis, a spokesperson for Historic Scotland said: “The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) records indicate that ‘the Yarrow Stone was set up to mark the grave of two British Christian chieftains. It dates from the early 6th century and falls into place in the early Christian series more richly represented in Wales and Cornwall.’ As such, we certainly believe it is of national importance.”
Since 2012, & a lot more chispology, I have changed my mind. The grave is not that of Arthur Mordred, but instead his grandsons, Pheredur & Gwrgi, the former being the Knight who returned the grail to its divine castle in the Sinai desert. It is time for more of my Chisper Effect to explain the hows, whys & wherefores…
The Chisper Effect 