Arcadia Discussion Zone

WHY I AM SURE THAT THE GEOMETRY OF
RENNES-LE-CHÂTEAU IS BEYOND QUESTION



In 1971, when I began work on my first film about Rennes-le-Château, I thought that I was introducing the English-speaking world to a fascinating, essentially unimportant, little local French mystery. Before that film was completed, I already knew that there was much more to the story of Bérenger Saunière and his little village. I had begun with Gérard de Sède’s account in Le Trésor Maudit and I soon began to realise that he was not telling the whole story.

Geometry had begun to raise its head and it was ten years before I grasped the full significance of what I was beginning to uncover. Facts began to appear which were hard to accept and which took yet more years of careful work before I could show the world what I had found. Bérenger and his treasure remained a wonderful mystery, but behind it lay something else ... the extraordinary nature of the backdrop to his story.

Now with the passing of another thirty years there remains no shadow of doubt and I find it strange that the truth is still uncomfortable for some people who insist that the geometry of Rennes-le-Château can be found anywhere and in any landscape. But this is a wilful misunderstanding of the special nature of the Rennes-le-Château phenomenon.

Certainly, it is true that shapes can be traced ... hexagons, pentagons, triangles ... by drawing lines through churches anywhere. And the same can be done with public telephones – letter-boxes – even municipal rubbish tips. But these are arbitrary designs. They are not – like Rennes – controlled by a fixed, precise and repeated measure. (Those of you interested in looking for yourselves will find that on a map of scale 1:25000 the measure is an invisible fraction, less than .188 mm.)

When the discovery was first made, I was obliged to calculate that distance laboriously, using my utterly inadequate knowledge of mathematics. Only much later did I discover that the measure is already defined by the mountains. It is repeated many times between structures marked upon our local map. It is, for example, the distance between the churches of Arques and Terroles; of Arques and Peyrolles; of Esperaza and Coustaussa; of Esperaza and Granès – and many, many more.

So how was this astonishing discovery made? To answer this question, I must return to the beginning of my quest. In 1971 I was intrigued to find that, behind the curious writing of the famous parchments supposedly discovered by Saunière, lay hidden another mysterious layer ... a five-pointed star. It was my first glimpse of geometry.



And it meant nothing to me. I could do no more than note the oddity and file it in the back of my mind.
At the same time I was trying to make sense of the Poussin painting, The Shepherds of Arcadia. Once more I found geometry – and it was Prof Cornford of London’s Royal Academy of Art who proved that, again, we were confronting the five-pointed star.



We were both astonished - and puzzled. And then Prof Cornford suggested that I look in the landscape. It was thus that the awe-inspiring pentagon of natural mountain peaks was discovered ... Blanchefort, La Soulane, Bezu, Serre de Lauzet and Rennes-le-Château with La Pique marking the centre. But still there remained the question: What can be the significance of this amazing wonder?

The answer lay in yet another aspect of Rennes-le-Château’s mystery. The answer to another question. Why was Saunière’s church dedicated to St Mary Magdalene?

In centuries past when that dedication was made, Mary Magdalene, the first to see the risen Christ, was looked upon as the “Medium of the Secret Revelation” and she was honoured with a symbol in the Heavens. That symbol was the planet Venus.

Yet another question: why Venus? And here lay the secret. Venus is special. She conceals a marvel in her movements across the firmament.

Each planet, as it circles, traces a pattern in the sky. A pattern formed by the number of times that it creates an alignment of Planet ... Sun ... Earth. Mars shows us an irregular four-sided figure in its four alignments. Mercury traces a great irregular triangle. Each planet aligns a different number of times and so forms an irregular geometric figure. But Venus is different.

Alone among the circling planets, Venus creates a perfect, regular and powerful symbol in the Heavens. In exactly eight full years she aligns five times. A pentacle. The five-pointed star ... the embodiment of the Divine Proportion. Professor Cornford said of this geometric figure, that ... ‘it enjoyed immense prestige and (has) excited nothing short of reverence ... since very ancient times.’

As Above – So Below

The Magdalen – whose symbol is Venus – the goddess who traces that magical shape across the sky. The shape traced by Rennes-le-Château’s Pentacle of Mountains.
Terribilis est Locus Iste ... Truly, This Place is Awesome.
The wonder in the Heavens is reflected here upon the Earth. For our ancestors this was indeed a Holy Place.

And for us ... ... ... ?

It's a stained glass window one of twelve, this one dipicting VIRGO. It's from the JEWISH MUSEUM in FLORIDA.

I do find it interesting that a group of Churches in the vicinity of RLC are seemingly built on a specific measurement. It is fascinating. And maybe the mountains in the Rennes area do form a pentacle pattern .... but how does this fit with the life and activities of Sauniere\?

Why was Sauniere so secretive? If the solution is the pentacle of mountains, and this idea of Venus .... and that is why Mary Magdalene is mentioned (because the church at Rennes is named after her? But many churches are named after her, and can probably be found elsewhere in the vicinity, right?)
How does Lincolns theories fit in with the rest of Le Tresor Maudit? The story of Henri Boudet, his bizzarre publications, the strange things in the cemetery at RLB, how does it explain Gelis and his involvement?

If Lincoln is right, why is it such a big secret? Hmmm? How does it explain the selling of masses, and why people sent him so much money or whatever? It doesnt explain any of that.

You will of course notice that in the first picture of the irregular pentacle on the Dagobert Parchment right in the centre is the word spica

But Roscoe, that surely isnt there in the way that you are trying to suggest.

Its a Latin text, which we now know, is from Codex Bezae.

Isnt it just 'opportune' that the word 'spica' can be, whats the word, extrapolated from a very old Latin text?

That Cherisey made it like that???

I mean, i can do that right? Look at the word DISCIPULI in Bezae.
In Cheriseys 'parchment' however i can see ,DISGIPULI, which actaully when you look at it properly says 1861.

1861 is all over the place in the mystery of RLC, right??

And its even inside the pentacle Lincoln has drawn! Wow, i must be on to something here ....

Help me to understand what you are actually trying to say?????

I do find it interesting that a group of Churches in the vicinity of RLC are seemingly built on a specific measurement. It is fascinating. And maybe the mountains in the Rennes area do form a pentacle pattern .... but how does this fit with the life and activities of Sauniere\?

Why was Sauniere so secretive? If the solution is the pentacle of mountains, and this idea of Venus .... and that is why Mary Magdalene is mentioned (because the church at Rennes is named after her? But many churches are named after her, and can probably be found elsewhere in the vicinity, right?)
How does Lincolns theories fit in with the rest of Le Tresor Maudit? The story of Henri Boudet, his bizzarre publications, the strange things in the cemetery at RLB, how does it explain Gelis and his involvement?

If Lincoln is right, why is it such a big secret? Hmmm? How does it explain the selling of masses, and why people sent him so much money or whatever? It doesnt explain any of that.

How about the churches are built where they are in this area, for a completely different reason?

Nice museum. I've been there several times. It used to be a synagogue.

BTW, before it was built, my stepfather (since passed) and my mother used to operate a medical clinic, down on Washington Avenue and 7th street, just a few blocks over. It's a nice neighborhood.

If you're looking for conspirators, you're going to have to start here.

http://www.jewishmuseum.com/301washingtoninfo.html

When the structure was built, it had no air conditioning. The transparent glass windows had to be opened during services, letting in the street noises and the beach's blowing sand and dust. When Rabbi Moses Mescheloff (who became the congregation's spiritual leader in 1937) addressed the congregation with the windows and doors open he had to speak so loudly that he could be heard on Euclid Avenue, a block away. The sun shone so brightly that it was impossible for the worshipers to read their prayer books.

The congregation decided to install stained glass windows in the edifice to keep out the noise, the distraction of activities in the street and the blinding light. Rabbi Mescheloff himself designed the windows with graphic symbols to proclaim the messages of the foundations of Judaism. They create an environment colorfully enriched with the aspirations of the principles of the Jewish faith. The stained glass windows, installed in 1940, were fabricated in Hialeah.

The edifice at 301 Washington Avenue served as the religious and cultural center of the South Beach Jewish community through the heyday of Jewish life there from 1936-1986. In 1980, the structure was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In the early 1980s, the neighborhood rapidly declined. The congregation dwindled as the Jewish community moved away from the South Beach neighborhood. While some other nearby synagogues were converted to nightclubs, this building was abandoned and fell into disrepair. Hurricane Andrew decimated the roof in August 1992. The resulting torrents of water destroyed the ceilings, walls, foundation, decorative plaster moldings and oak floors. The beautiful stained glass windows became the target of vandalism.

The building was slated for demolition to allow construction of an apartment building on the site. At that time, MOSAIC, an organization that created a traveling exhibition on Florida Jewish history, was looking for a permanent home to continue to expand, preserve and display MOSAIC's significant collection. In 1993 a wonderful marriage was made between a vacant synagogue with an important cultural history and an organization with a mission to preserve the rich heritage of contributions by Jews to the development of the State for nearly 250 years.

[snip]

You're lucky - if MOSAIC hadn't bought the building, you might have no stained glass window to comment on.

There are names of synagogue members and donors still on the walls. One of them is Meyer Lansky. I always chuckle about that.

Hialeah is a mostly Cuban part of Miami. Perhaps Santeria was involved?

But why the Five-Petal Rose in the JEWISH MUSEUM OF FLORIDA Steven?

Never looked at it that closely.

I believe it's a Rose of Sharon, which appears in the Song of Songs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_of_Sharon

Being a helpful guy, I dug up some more for you.

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM2W86

Rabbi Mescheloff wanted the windows to have symbols to proclaim the messages graphically of the foundations of Judaism, and to create an environment colorfully enriched with the aspirations of the Jewish people.

The images in the windows symbolize the determination of Jews to share in the creation of a better world and include the signs of the Zodiac that correspond to the Hebrew months, the Jewish holidays, themes from the Ethics of the Fathers (Torah, Temple Service and the practice of charity) and other elements of Judaism. These windows remind the worshipper that there is more than prayer and Torah to make them a good Jew; there must also be action and concern for others.

The Star of David, which is shown in many of the windows, is a symbol of Judaism and was the shield of David from the Bible, formed from two triangles representing body and soul.. The recurring pomegranate with its 613 seeds, also on the lower windows, symbolizes the 613 Mitzvot mentioned in the Torah that represent the fulfillment of God's commands.

[snip]

BTW, roscoe, although Judaism forbids some aspects of astrology, it's always been considered acceptable to depict the zodiac constellations and there has usually been a traditional association between the signs and the twelve tribes. Such as Marc Chagall used in this set of windows (they happen to be faves of mine):

http://www.md.huji.ac.il/chagall/chagall.html

(*) P.S. Pirke Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) is part of the dreaded Talmud, (shudder) so these windows contain ... Talmudic symbolism (shudder).

If you're looking for conspirators, you're going to have to start here.

BTW, roscoe, although Judaism forbids some aspects of astrology, it's always been considered acceptable to depict the zodiac constellations and there has usually been a traditional association between the signs and the twelve tribes. Such as Marc Chagall used in this set of windows (they happen to be faves of mine):

Oh and by the way the words Zion and Zodiac are from the same base word.

Your linguistics still baffle me.

The Hebrew word for Zion is Tziyon - written with a tzaddi, not a zayin.

Definitely not the same "z" phoneme as "zoomorphic" or "zodiac" -- the same "tz" phoneme as "tzaddik" or "tzouris".

Now granted it normally appears as the name of a place, a proper name, referring to Jerusalem (generally) or a specific mount within it (i.e. Mount Zion).

But "tsiyon" in Hebrew (as a non-proper name) also means

"hill"/"mountain", "fortress/fortification" and/or "landmark"

Which, if you think about it, was exactly what David took from the Jebusites and built.

I have seen in Museums the Jewish Sarcophagus from the time of Jesus
engraved by the Geometric Rose symbol but dang its hard to find a picture of them

Delilah with Rose (as played by Hungarian Jew Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler)



Are those the Catskills in the background?

Not the Catskills! Surely the village of Rennes le Chateau must be on one of those hills.

Or alternatively the site of the Woodstock festival (40th anniversary coming up soon)

Not the Catskills! Surely the village of Rennes le Chateau must be on one of those hills.

Borscht Belt is a colloquial term for the mostly defunct summer resorts of the Catskill Mountains in parts of Sullivan and Ulster Counties in upstate New York that were a popular vacation spot for New York City Jews from the 1920s through the 1960s.