Between the Nazca Lines: What is a Cargo Cult?

In preparing my series on Ancient Astronauts, I encountered a few problems I hadn’t anticipated, though maybe I should have looking back now. Mainly the problem is a lack of understanding of the terms being and ideas being used. Things like why a myth is a myth, or why Archaeologists except certain views over others. If you’re not well versed in these reasons, it can seem a little biased and possibly lead to confusion, like in what the term “quantum” means. So, when I saw Von Daniken and his ilk using the term “Cargo Cult” to describe the Nazca lines, I realized many people may not understand what he’s saying.

In order to give the fullest amount of information possible, I need to back up a little. I want to start with a new set of nearly basic terms. This time I want to introduce to you what Cargo Cults are.

So briefly, what is a cargo cult?

It is a phenomenon of when less advanced cultures encounter more advanced cultures and 1) regard the advanced peoples as supernatural beings whose purpose is to deliver goods (cargo) and 2) use mimicry or pantomime to create ritual in hopes of resumed delivery of such goods.

Probably the most famous Cargo Cult is the Cult of John Frum, worshiped in the South Pacific by the Vanuatu tribe. As many origin stories do this one has many versions, but the jest of it goes; John Frum was a U.S. Sailor that come to the islands during WWII. He brought with him cargo ships and gave freely to the people there. When it was time for him to leave, he told the people he would return and bring with him more cargo, and so the people wait for him to do so.

Unsurprisingly, the John Frum myth has evolved to fit into to it the problems of the modern Vanuatu. In an article by the BBC News,

“Villagers believe the spirit of John Frum sent the US military to their South Pacific home to help them.

Devotees say that an apparition of John Frum first appeared before tribal elders in the 1930s.

He urged them to rebel against the aggressive teachings of Christian missionaries and instead said they should put their faith in their own customs.” [1]

With the invasion of Christian missionaries and the loss of the WWII cargo the Vanuatu have turned John Frum into a strange hybrid of a rebellion leader with a love of tradition. So what started as a desire to have their golden age back has turned to a rallying cry to return to traditional ways, with a twist. Probably the best quote for this cult is given by Chief Isaac one of the top leaders in the cult. In a Smithsonian article by Paul Raffaele, Raffaele asks Chief Isaac why they still wait for John Furm’s return,

“Chief Isaac shoots me an amused look. “You Christians have been waiting 2,000 years for Jesus to return to earth,” he says, “and you haven’t given up hope.”[2]

Brian Dunning does an excellent job of delving deeper into the causes of the John Furm cult, and the complicated circumstances that led to the formation of the cult. I highly recommend reading his article. [3]

So the argument that is being made by Ancient Astronauts is that primitive peoples after encountering the Aliens in some way, became so enamored by their cosmic cargo that when the Aliens left, the peoples started cargo cuts in the hopes that the Aliens would return. Citing the return of Jesus and other similar deities as evidence. For something a little more physical as proof, they point to the Nazca lines saying that these are certainly primitive attempts at landing strips.

At first blush this might seem logical. If you knew nothing more about the lines then that they are carved out of the red rock in Nazca in long lines, then it might seem reasonable. When you began to look at the curves and pictures the lines take on then you hopefully began to doubt this.

There have been many, many suggestions as to what the lines really are, from giant astrological maps to markers of underground waterways. [4] All of these have more evidence supporting them than the idea of Aliens ever will. In the next part of this we’ll go over the past research on the lines and new accepted purpose of the lines.



Bibliography

Brian Dunning
       2010      Skeptoid #199
                        March 30, 2010
                        http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4199

Carr, Tarini
               The Nazca Lines: A Mystery on the Plains
                 Archaeology Online
                http://www.archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/nazca-lines.html

Mercer, Phil.
     2007    Vanuatu cargo cult marks 50 years.
                     BBC News, Tanna, Thursday, 15 February 2007
                     http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6363843.stm


Raffaele, Paul
     2006      In John They Trust
                       Smithsonian magazine, February 2006
                        http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/john.html

Alien/Hominoid Sex

How did the Human Race begin? One Hypothesis is briefly explored.

Things to read:

How to Think About Weird Things by Theodore Schick, Jr and Lewis Vaughn
Why People Believe Weird Things by Michael Shermer

and anything by Erick von Daniken

Cruising along to a Dead End

Seems my life is getting the better of me, so much change in so little time! I’ve got my new place set up and a new job till December, also a possible teaching job for later this year. Holy crap I have no time to Think!

But don’t worry fair reader! I have just now gotten my ducks in a row and with luck we’ll see some progress by the end of the week. Right now, me and my gazpacho are going back to bed, sleep has been a luxury of late as well.

Religion and Archaeology

ArchyFantasies Returnes!

Aliens in the Closet

I've recently fished Erich Von Daniken's most recent book History is Wrong. Let me say, as a sci-fi / conspiracy novel, it was fantastic! It had all the required elements; mythology, religion, government conspiracies, individual persecution, missing artifacts, and betrayal. The pacing was a bit slow in places, but the plot was great...oh wait the plot was that Von Daniken believes all this is real and true.

I really want to break his book down, line by line, and rebut everything he wrote. But other than being a good exercise in rhetoric, I suspect it would get me no where. Still, there is a great deal that needs to be addressed in his book, namely his evident disdain for the academic community.

Von Daniken's grudge against the educated masses seems to stem from their ability to consistently prove him wrong. They also tend to not believe him when he starts shouting "evidence!" because often his 'evidence' goes missing when its time to reveal it.

This lack of evidence is addressed in his new book, mainly in the form of "The scientists/archaeologists don't understand and they wont let me play in their games." He even at one point gives the longitude and latitude location for a mysterious cave in South America where he supposedly heard from a guy who allegedly said he'd gone there and saw plates of gold foil stamped with a mysterious language.

Never mind that if you talk to the alleged discoverer he'll deny the cave, never mind that the 'plates' have never been seen by anyone. According to Von Daniken, even if you try to go to the cave, you can't, because the government wont let you. So don't try...really...

He also goes on to beat the Nazca Lines to death and to poo-poo the scientific explanation for them. He still wants to point out that the Nazca lines could really be landing strips made by primitive man as a form of Cargo Cult.

The Cargo Cult is something I'm going to address on my You Tube channel. It's just the first in a series that I'm starting on the Alien Astronaut phenomena. In it I will be addressing several popular ideas and forms of evidence given by the Alien Astronaut community. It's shaping up to be pretty interesting and entertaining. I encourage you to check it out.

George Boxley, The Underground Railroad and the Discussion of Race

There have been a lot of good articles lately in the dealing with the Underground Railroad. Recently, Timbuctoo was recovered in New Jersey by Temple U. and is currently under extensive survey. It’s a great find because of what Timbuctoo was, and what it came to be. As more is released about Timbuctoo the more we’ll learn about early free black communities.

The Underground Railroad is no less significant as a moment in history. The Whites who ran the Railroad abhorred slavery, many viewed Blacks and Whites as equal long before there was ever an equal rights movement. These people risked their own lives, their families, their properties, and broke laws left and right in order to free slaves.

The Railroad itself is both real and mythical today, you could probably find thousands of “stops” and many have been verified, some have not. Whether or not a stop is real or not isn’t an issue, it’s both amazing and hearting that people want their properties to be part of the Railroad. The ultimate goal of the Railroad was to free those who were enslaved and guide them to places where they could live free and un-harassed.

George Boxley fit into all of this because he was one of the first abolitionists. His views on equality caused him constant strife in his life, climaxing when he personally guided two slaves to freedom. His action were found out and after escaping prison the day before his execution, he escaped Virginia by way of the very Underground Railroad he’d used earlier to save the now former slaves.

George Boxley’s life reads like an action movie. After escaping he is perused by his lifelong rival all the way to Boston, helped along the way by old war buddies and new friends made by saving their lives. When he finally reunites with his family he is still perused across the Midwest till finally he is found by a bounty hunter, who falls ill and is revived by Boxley. In his gratitude for being saved, the Hunter tells Boxley that he’ll return and tell all that George Boxley is dead and not to look for him anymore.

While on the run Boxley still found time to write several pamphlets against slavery, free a few slaves, and educate the youth of a still young nation.

In his twilight years Boxley did some very strange things, and apparently he and his wife parted ways. Still he’d made an impact on the communities he’d lived in and possibly continued his crusade for equality with his own stop along the Railroad.

So what does the current discoveries and research into the Underground Railroad have to do with Racial Discourse today? Quite a bit.

Often archaeology finds things that allow for difficult discussions to start, especially in Urban and Historic archaeology. Evidence is evidence, and when what the archaeologist find contradicts the current world view, this opens up a chance to talk. The work with the Underground Railroad is no different.

The Railroad shows us that even at the earliest times of our country Whites and Blacks struggled and fought together for a common goal that was seen to better all of us. Southern and Northern Whites risked life and limb to free slaves and keep them safe, and in turn those Blacks returned to help free more. In situations like Boxley, Blacks worked to keep their White partners safe.

The Underground Railroad is a triumph in American History. Perhaps we’ll never know the true routes or identify all the stops, but we will continue to look because it’s important to keep the Railroad in the minds of our people. It shows that when push comes to shove, we can and do see each other as equals. When we need to rely on each other the most, we can. It shows that when all men are not treated equal, we will rise up as a nation and find ways to make it so.

Keeping this in mind, is there really a racial issue we can’t work though?