# "Holy Books" the keys to long-forgotten knowledge? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [March 14, 2011, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710 "2011-03-14T22:49:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/21 "2011-03-14T23:25:10Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > What exactly are you talking about? Could you give us an example of a scientific-knowledge-withholding Sage (from history, not from mythology)? I cannot give the name of a particular sage, but I can tell you of one type of sage from Egypt, back in the days of the Pharaohs. Perhaps you’ve heard of them, the Magi? ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/22 "2011-03-14T23:26:34Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > There’s also the Phaistos Disk, demonstrating an early form of movable type, some 3000 years before Gutenberg. History is sprinkled with one-off advances that (for a variety of reasons but mostly because complementary technology did not yet exist) were not developed to their full potential. The Antikythera mechanism would be another good example, it had some types of gearing that weren’t re-invented for a long time afterwards. But unless I’m mistaken, in none of these cases was the information about the lost technology deliberately hidden between the lines in a religious text. ---
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/23 "2011-03-14T23:31:03Z")
> [@AndrewL](#): > > The Antikythera mechanism would be another good example, it had some types of gearing that weren’t re-invented for a long time afterwards. But unless I’m mistaken, in none of these cases was the information about the lost technology deliberately hidden between the lines in a religious text. I don’t know if you’ve read or heard of the Jeffersonian Bible, which is a KJV bible that Thomas Jefferson had cut and edited to reveal secrets that the sages knew and things that they talked about and debated in their temples. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/24 "2011-03-14T23:32:53Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I cannot give the name of a particular sage, but I can tell you of one type of sage from Egypt, back in the days of the Pharaohs. Perhaps you’ve heard of them, the Magi? Magi were Persian/Zoroastrian priests. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/25 "2011-03-14T23:33:21Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I cannot give the name of a particular sage, but I can tell you of one type of sage from Egypt, back in the days of the Pharaohs. Perhaps you’ve heard of them, the Magi? I have. Have you? Magi were[followers of Zoroaster](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magi). They were, by definition, Persian, not Egyptian. They also were not in existence to keep the masses from gettin’ their learnin’. ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/26 "2011-03-14T23:33:34Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I don’t know if you’ve read or heard of the Jeffersonian Bible, which is a KJV bible that Thomas Jefferson had cut and edited to reveal secrets that the sages knew and things that they talked about and debated in their temples. I am aware of the Jefferson Bible. It appears to be an attempt to reconstruct the narrative of Jesus by stripping out the supernatural bits and mistranslations. I don’t see how this has anything to do with the secrets of sages or lost technology. ---
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/27 "2011-03-14T23:35:48Z")
> [@AndrewL](#): > > I am aware of the Jefferson Bible. It appears to be an attempt to reconstruct the narrative of Jesus by stripping out the supernatural bits and mistranslations. I don’t see how this has anything to do with the secrets of sages or lost technology. I am talking about the science of the soul, this is what the sages talked about, the science that everything we think had an effect on the universe. Need I mention the God Particle? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/28 "2011-03-14T23:36:36Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I don’t know if you’ve read or heard of the Jeffersonian Bible, which is a KJV bible that Thomas Jefferson had cut and edited to reveal secrets that the sages knew and things that they talked about and debated in their temples. Jefferson’s bible was a combination of the four gospels with the supernatural stuff removed. You can find it here: [http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/JefJesu.html](http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/JefJesu.html) There are no “hidden secrets” in it, and nothing in it that isn’t also in the four gospels. ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/29 "2011-03-14T23:39:34Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I am talking about the science of the soul, this is what the sages talked about, the science that everything we think had an effect on the universe. Need I mention the God Particle? Let me know when you find any actual science dealing with how anything we think has an effect on the universe. And please do mention the ‘God Particle’, I’d like to know how the Higgs Boson has anything to do with the ‘Science of the Soul’. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/30 "2011-03-14T23:40:40Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > I am talking about the science of the soul, this is what the sages talked about, the science that everything we think had an effect on the universe. If you can’t identify a Sage then how do you know what they talked about? ---
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/31 "2011-03-14T23:41:19Z")
> [@AndrewL](#): > > Let me know when you find any actual science dealing with how anything we think has an effect on the universe. And please do mention the ‘God Particle’, I’d like to know how the Higgs Boson has anything to do with the ‘Science of the Soul’. Oh my God! How many degrees do you have, Professor? ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/32 "2011-03-14T23:41:21Z")
No. You said it yourself: > [@humanafterall](#): > > I have had time to read the Bible, easiest by far of all religious texts to read and understand, and have though that Adam and Eve is all just a fairy tale[…] If it’s a fairy tale (and I would agree), then why do you assume it holds any “hidden” information? ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/33 "2011-03-14T23:43:32Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > Oh my God! How many degrees do you have, Professor? Since you seem to specialize in one book, please enlighten us: name one specific example of forgotten arcane knowledge in the bible. ETA: And do quote chapter and verse. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/34 "2011-03-14T23:44:36Z")
> [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](#): > > Please enlighten us: name one specific example of forgotten arcane knowledge in the bible. If he told you then it would mean it wasn’t forgotten. Hello! ---
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/35 "2011-03-14T23:45:21Z")
Alright! I’ve had enough! I yield. I happen to be a Dan Brown fan, and had read The Lost Symbol, and since a lot of the ideas, cultures, and place that appear in the novel are real, I decided to check them out. Places like the Institute of Noetic Science, The Smithsonian, CERN, The Library of Congress, and all those places. You’ve caught me. Are you happy? ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/36 "2011-03-14T23:50:36Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > Alright! I’ve had enough! I yield. I happen to be a Dan Brown fan, and had read The Lost Symbol, and since a lot of the ideas, cultures, and place that appear in the novel are real, I decided to check them out. Places like the Institute of Noetic Science, The Smithsonian, CERN, The Library of Congress, and all those places. You’ve caught me. Are you happy? I don’t know what this means. For now, I’m assuming it’s an admission of trolling - or an attempt at humor. In any case I wasn’t aware that Dan Brown wrote the bible, though that explains a lot. ---
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2011, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/37 "2011-03-14T23:53:56Z")
> [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](#): > > I don’t know what this means. For now, I’m assuming it’s an admission of trolling - or an attempt at humor. Well, not necessarily an admission of trolling, but an admission of being a real naive 19 year old, who after reading a few articles on Wikipedia, thinks he’s an expert on a subject, goes and smarts off, and gets caught. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/38 "2011-03-15T00:04:12Z")
The litigants for our next case are on the way into the courtroom… ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/39 "2011-03-15T00:04:27Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > Alright! I’ve had enough! I yield. I happen to be a Dan Brown fan, and had read The Lost Symbol, and since a lot of the ideas, cultures, and place that appear in the novel are real, I decided to check them out. Places like the Institute of Noetic Science, The Smithsonian, CERN, The Library of Congress, and all those places. You’ve caught me. Are you happy? Kansas is real too, but that doesn’t mean The Wizard of Oz is nonfiction. It is true that there were Sages who claimed to know the secrets of the universe, and this is true throughout history. As we’ve learned more, and compared our knowledge to their mystical claims, amazingly enough we found that they were all full of crap. And you shouldn’t let yourself get whooshed by the amusing names some scientists assign to things. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710/40 "2011-03-15T00:06:09Z")
> [@humanafterall](#): > > Well, not necessarily an admission of trolling, but an admission of being a real naive 19 year old, who after reading a few articles on Wikipedia, thinks he’s an expert on a subject, goes and smarts off, and gets caught. Read some real science books. I like things by Timothy Ferris, but there are lots of others. Far more mind-blowing than that cosmic debris you’ve been talking about. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-books-the-keys-to-long-forgotten-knowledge/574710.md?page=3)