04-11-2019, 03:18 PM
Hyginus, Poeticon astronomicon IV 14:
So the moon is one note away from the earth ... From this circle is the circle in which the star of Mercury moves by a semitone ... From this circle, the one is a half tone away, in which the star of Venus goes its way ... Above the orbit of this star is that of the sun, which is one semitone away from Hesperus, the star of Venus ... Above the sun and its circle is that of Mars, which is a half tone away from the sun ... Above this circle stands the Star of Jupiter, which is one semitone away from Mars ... The last is the star of Saturn, which traverses the largest circle; this one is a tone removed from Jupiter. From the bodies of the stars Saturn is 1½ tone away.
In the above, Hyginus is following Pliny. Censorinus and Pliny give the distance of a tone as measuring 126,000 stadia, and a half tone measuring 63,000 stadia. Therefore, the Pythagorean cosmos of six tones amounted to 756,000 stadia.
The six tones that make up the cosmos represent the octave (the ratio two to one), which was made up of the perfect fourth (the ratio four to three), and the perfect fifth (the ratio three to two). The perfect fourth measured 315,000 stadia (two and a half tones) and the perfect fifth measured 441,000 stadia (three and a half tones). Although Censorinus allocated the Pythagorean cosmos a total of six tones, Pliny further notes that during his life time (23 AD to 79 AD) there were seven tones. Pliny’s seventh tone was located between the interval of Saturn and the zodiac (one and a half tones instead of a half tone as stated by Censorinus).
Censorinus described the Pythagorean cosmos as consisting of five tones and two half tones. According to Clement of Alexandria, when discussing the mystic meaning of the Hebrew tabernacle, after describing the 12 stones set in four rows (the tetrad) that represent the circle of the zodiac, the seven planets are described as being represented by five stones and two carbuncles (precious gems) for Saturn and the Moon. Although the objects are different, both the Pythagorean cosmos of five tones plus two half tones as given by Censorinus and the Hebrew temple of five parts plus two parts authenticates the belief among the ancients that Pythagoras derived his knowledge from the Egyptians and the Jews.
During the reign of Augustus, the Romans believed the Golden Age was upon them, which herald the return of Saturn. The Pythagorean cosmos shows this to be one hundred percent correct. Manilius writes that when Augustus died, he went to the stars and expanded the heavens. And that is why Pliny and Hyginus have seven tones, and not six tones. They are using a reference to the new and expanded Pythagorean cosmos, while Censorinus was referring to the old Pythagorean cosmos.
Cheryl Boeckmann wrote:
The BC Pythagoras? Maybe St. John (writing after Christ) borrowed from the Pythagoreans...
The majority of the early Christian writers did borrow from the BC Pythagoreans. And literally.
So the moon is one note away from the earth ... From this circle is the circle in which the star of Mercury moves by a semitone ... From this circle, the one is a half tone away, in which the star of Venus goes its way ... Above the orbit of this star is that of the sun, which is one semitone away from Hesperus, the star of Venus ... Above the sun and its circle is that of Mars, which is a half tone away from the sun ... Above this circle stands the Star of Jupiter, which is one semitone away from Mars ... The last is the star of Saturn, which traverses the largest circle; this one is a tone removed from Jupiter. From the bodies of the stars Saturn is 1½ tone away.
In the above, Hyginus is following Pliny. Censorinus and Pliny give the distance of a tone as measuring 126,000 stadia, and a half tone measuring 63,000 stadia. Therefore, the Pythagorean cosmos of six tones amounted to 756,000 stadia.
Earth to Moon 1 tone 126,000 stadia
Earth to Mercury 1½ tones 189,000 stadia
Earth to Venus 2 tones 252,000 stadia
Earth to Sun 3½ tones 441,000 stadia
Earth to Mars 4½ tones 567,000 stadia
Earth to Jupiter 5 tones 630,000 stadia
Earth to Saturn 5½ tones 693,000 stadia
Earth to Zodiac 6 tones 756,000 stadia
The six tones that make up the cosmos represent the octave (the ratio two to one), which was made up of the perfect fourth (the ratio four to three), and the perfect fifth (the ratio three to two). The perfect fourth measured 315,000 stadia (two and a half tones) and the perfect fifth measured 441,000 stadia (three and a half tones). Although Censorinus allocated the Pythagorean cosmos a total of six tones, Pliny further notes that during his life time (23 AD to 79 AD) there were seven tones. Pliny’s seventh tone was located between the interval of Saturn and the zodiac (one and a half tones instead of a half tone as stated by Censorinus).
Censorinus described the Pythagorean cosmos as consisting of five tones and two half tones. According to Clement of Alexandria, when discussing the mystic meaning of the Hebrew tabernacle, after describing the 12 stones set in four rows (the tetrad) that represent the circle of the zodiac, the seven planets are described as being represented by five stones and two carbuncles (precious gems) for Saturn and the Moon. Although the objects are different, both the Pythagorean cosmos of five tones plus two half tones as given by Censorinus and the Hebrew temple of five parts plus two parts authenticates the belief among the ancients that Pythagoras derived his knowledge from the Egyptians and the Jews.
During the reign of Augustus, the Romans believed the Golden Age was upon them, which herald the return of Saturn. The Pythagorean cosmos shows this to be one hundred percent correct. Manilius writes that when Augustus died, he went to the stars and expanded the heavens. And that is why Pliny and Hyginus have seven tones, and not six tones. They are using a reference to the new and expanded Pythagorean cosmos, while Censorinus was referring to the old Pythagorean cosmos.
Cheryl Boeckmann wrote:
The BC Pythagoras? Maybe St. John (writing after Christ) borrowed from the Pythagoreans...
The majority of the early Christian writers did borrow from the BC Pythagoreans. And literally.
