A combination of scientific evidence, mythic tales and religious texts sheds light for the first time on an ancient ritual of human reincarnation that culminated at dawn on the winter solstice at megalithic temples across four continents. One of the keys to the puzzle is the annual fall migration of migratory birds. Another is the winter flight path of the constellation Cygnus, often identified as a swan for its long neck.
Plotting the human fossil record on bird migration maps reveals that all species of the genus Homo are found exclusively on the world’s busiest bird migration corridors and largest seasonal grounds. Because bird migration routes correlate closely with mountain ranges, volcanism and large bodies of water, ornithologists believe they’ve remained largely the same for millions of years. The network of eight Global Bird Migration Flyways mapped by BirdLife International represents a scientific window into the distant past.
With all our distant ancestors following migratory bird routes, the chances for small groups to meet were increased. Their shared interest in birds likely helped establish strong bonds. At Denisova Cave in the Altai Mountains of Russia, Neanderthals and Denisovans interbred 95,000 years ago and produced blended families. The cave is located at the crossroads of three bird routes from three different global flyways, an extremely rare phenomenon.
There were at least three important advantages to following birds: 1) avian migration routes rarely stray from fresh water and food resources, 2) birds give recognizable alarm calls when predators are near, and 3) the scattering behavior of birds is a recognizable warning of catastrophic storms hours beforehand. Plus, birds and eggs are a good source of food.
The ability of birds to sense major storms long before they arrive created the impression that birds had the miraculous and godlike quality of predicting the future. Recent studies found that feathers, talons and egg-shaped stone rings were symbolic artifacts in ritual practices dating back at least to Homo neanderthalensis and continuing with Homo sapiens.
The Role of Cygnus
Because the Earth wobbles on its axis, the constellation Cygnus appears to change its orbit over a 26,000-year-cycle known as precession, a process scholars believe was too slow for ancient cultures to notice.
But considering humanity’s profound bond with birds, Cygnus likely played a pivotal role in the earliest cosmologies. Also playing a major role was the northern celestial pole, the only point in the night sky that never moves.
Because of the starring roles played by Cygnus and the celestial pole, the slow but dramatic change in the star-bird’s orbit around the pole was more likely to be noticed and passed on over thousands of years. It’s plausible that the constellation’s changing flight path inspired new stories and beliefs, adding to the saga of Cygnus.
About 17,000 years ago, when Cygnus orbited closely around the stationary celestial pole, long-range trekkers would have used it to take their bearings. Following the guidance of migratory birds on extended treks while taking bearings from a star-bird flying around the pole may have been an early example of the concept, as above so below. A guide above, a guide below.
As the orbit of Cygnus grew closer to Earth about 14,500 years ago, the Bølling warming caused sea levels to rise an average of 45 feet around the globe, dramatically reshaping coastlines. On a grand scale, the climate conditions matched the warmth and rising groundwater of spring when migratory birds arrive, just as Cygnus grew closer to the horizon. Across ancient cultures, the arrival of seed-bearing migratory birds in spring was associated with storms and floods, resulting in the archetype of the Thunderbird. The Sumerian Ninurta was the winged god of springtime thunder and rainstorms.
It was 11,500 years ago when Cygnus finally lost its circumpolar status, when the tail-star Deneb appeared to land on the horizon for the first time, just as a bird would land on the water. It was a celestial event that laid the foundation for a new chapter in bird-centered cosmology.
Built between 10,200 and 11,600 years ago, the stone temple Göbekli Tepe in southeastern Turkey featured massive egg-shaped stone enclosures that may have represented a nest of eggs waiting for Cygnus to land. Recent studies found the only significant astronomical alignment at Göbekli Tepe was with Deneb, further suggesting the temple was meant to welcome Cygnus to Earth.
The wobbling of the globe had transformed Cygnus’ orbit from a tight circle around the northern celestial pole 17,000 years ago to a slowly widening loop that finally contacted the horizon. In the eyes of our ancestors, Cygnus had become a migratory bird. Its cosmic migration between Earth and the celestial pole would come to be seen as a round-trip journey of healing, rejuvenation and reincarnation for human souls.
A Cosmic Migration
Perhaps the most literal description of the bird-enabled afterlife journey of the soul is found in the Finnish epic Kalevala, which describes swans flying souls of the dead beyond the horizon to the Milky Way, known as Linnunrata or Path of the Birds, and then to the celestial pole.
The Finns’ notion of soul flight may stem from their observation of whooper swans migrating southeast in late fall, heading toward a point where the distant horizon meets the Milky Way. In the imagination of those who forged the myth, the swans flew past the horizon and into the spirit world of the Milky Way, where Cygnus could be seen flying north towards the celestial pole. When the soul-bearing swans approached the pole, a swirling wind caused by the turning bowl of the sky pulled them out through a small hole to a heavenly land of rest called Tuonela.
Soul flight to the celestial pole in the Finnish epic Kalevala. By Catherine Masters/wondrousmoonstudio.com
Completing their migration, Cygnus dove toward earth in spring to deliver the healed and rejuvenated souls to pregnant mothers. A similar Ukrainian legend describes birds spending winters in heaven and returning in spring with eggs. Unborn souls wait in the Norse Fountain of Urd (symbolizing the pole) to be gathered by storks, which deliver them to the wombs of expectant mothers. Slavic cultures also told of storks delivering infants. In Hawaii, the frigate bird returned babies from heaven.
Megalithic Theater & the Winter Solstice
In the late Neolithic period, the egg shape emerged as a common design element of megalithic temples aligned to the rising sun on the winter solstice – always built on the wintering grounds of migratory birds. The large audience attending the week-long solstice celebration knew the plot well but was doubtless excited to see it again.
The story began in late fall when ancient cultures held communal funerals to release the souls of the year’s dead, coinciding with the fall migration of migratory birds, which were believed to fly human souls to their winter grounds. The souls took up residence to heal and incubate in the egg-shaped design features of megalithic temples and earthworks.
Almost two months later, the week-long celebration of the solstice coincided exactly with the Ursid meteor showers from December 17-24. As Cygnus hovered over the celestial pole during the longest nights of winter, it appeared that stars were shooting from the pole toward the horizon where the weakening sun was about to rise. The meteor showers represented a connection between heaven and earth, and may have been perceived as an infusion of energy from the stars to set the stage for the sun’s rebirth. The winter solstice was the sun’s birthday, the first day of its annual life cycle.
Dawn on the solstice was the moment everyone was waiting for, when sunbeams lit up processional routes flanked by standing stones and traveled down long, dark passages. Sunlight shined into the inner sanctums of megalithic mounds and was refracted into rainbow colors by gems embedded in religious icons. After incubating for nearly two months in egg-shaped stone forms, the souls of the dead were quickened to reincarnation by the divine power of the reborn sun. Rebirth above, rebirth below.
The sacred calendar came full circle as reincarnated souls took up residence in the many newborn infants that were present, or in the bellies of women near full term. The unusually high number of pregnancies was due to a cross-cultural practice in early farming cultures of encouraging and endorsing sexual intercourse as part of early spring planting rituals about nine months earlier. The practice of sexual intercourse en masse was intended to invoke the universal power of fertility.
It appears Cygnus played the role of soul-bearer to the circumpolar stars as part of a ritualized process of reincarnation at sacred sites around the world. The 10 ancient sites reviewed below share three major elements of the story: 1) A direct alignment to sunrise on the winter solstice, 2) built on the winter grounds of migratory birds, and 3) megaliths or earthworks with prominent egg-shaped forms. In some cases, ancient myths and religious texts corroborate the cosmological ritual.
The Birth of Gods & Heroes
Reincarnation at dawn on the winter solstice by Catherine Masters /wondrousmoonstudio.com
The full drama of the winter solstice couldn’t be fully enjoyed in bad weather. On cloudy days, there would be no spectacle of the sun’s first rays proceeding down a path or refracted in slabs of quartz. The Ursid meteor showers would be obscured by clouds.
Fortunately, the Greek god of winds, Aeolus, guaranteed good weather from Dec. 17 to 21 because his daughter had been transformed into a Halcyon bird, and it was the only week of the year when Halcyon birds could lay their eggs.
The Greek author Plutarch wrote of the Egyptian Milky Way Goddess Net giving birth on the last five days of the year. Murals of Net show her body covered with stars and bent over like an arch, her legs embodying the two southern “legs” of the Milky Way intersecting with the southeast horizon. Just after the winter solstice, Net gave birth to Osiris, Isis, Nephthys, Seth, and Horus the Falcon, the spiritual liaison between the pharaohs and the sun god Ra.
Myths from Japan, India, Iran and North Korea describe a river goddess shut away in a dark room until the rays of the sun cause her to conceive and give birth to an egg that hatched the first king. In the Near East, Jesus was said to be born on December 25, about the same time as the pagan god Mithra.
The first Roman emperor Caesar re-branded himself by taking the name Augustus in 27 BCE, while associating himself with Capricorn and the miraculous regenerative power of the winter solstice. Although Caesar was a Libra, he made new coins with himself on one side and the December sign of Capricorn on the other. He also established six new towns, including the town of Aosta, with their main streets laid out as pathways for the sun on the winter solstice.
Brú na Bóinne
When whooper swans left Iceland in late fall to cross the North Atlantic, the ancient Icelanders believed the swans carried souls with them. The whooper flocks migrated to England and Ireland, with one large group spending the winter along the River Boyne in County Meath.
The whoopers chose their wintering ground long before three megalithic mounds were built inside a sharp bend in the river more than 5,000 years ago. The flock, though considerably smaller, still returns today. The ovate Brú na Bóinne was built about 5,200 years ago and designed so the dawning winter solstice sun shined through a 60-foot passage into a large central chamber with a 20-foot domed ceiling.
Thousands of smooth ‘river-rolled’ quartz stones that filled much of the mound were egg-shaped, about six inches across and nine inches long. Archaeologists believe the stones were painstakingly chosen and transported to the site. The egg-shaped stones may have represented temporary vessels for souls of the dead.
While the Celts didn’t build the mounds, they adopted them and the migratory whoopers as centerpieces of their cosmological world. Brú na Bóinne was the mythic home of the Tuatha Dé Danann (Tribe of Danu), known as “masters of rebirth” by the country folk of Ireland all the way into the early 20th century. The greatest heroes had mastered all skills by living many lives.
When the Tuatha Dé Danann were ultimately defeated by the invading Milesians from Spain, they agreed to surrender and disappear into the spirit world under the mounds and waters. But an Irish legend suggests the Dananns pulled off a nifty supernatural trick by reincarnating themselves into pregnant Milesian princesses and growing up to once again rule the land, according to The Fairy-Faith in Celtic Countries (Oxford University Press, 1911) by W.Y. Evans Wentz, a college classmate and friend of W.B. Yeats.
Angkor Wat
Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia is one of the largest wintering grounds for migratory birds in Southeast Asia. Just a few miles away, the ovoid, conical towers at Angkor Wat represent the mythical Mount Meru where Hindu souls are reincarnated.
On the walls of the temple is the mythical Garuda bird, who discusses the metaphysics of reincarnation in the text of the Garuda Purana. A wide canal forms a rectangle around the temple, attracting tens of thousands of birds. A small temple on a nearby hill was the designated viewpoint for watching the winter solstice sun rise over the towers.
The Ajanta Caves
In Maharashtra, India, the Ajanta Caves were dug out from a massive U-shaped rock face near the Jaikwadi Bird Sanctuary, a winter ground for about 30 species of migratory birds. On the winter solstice, the sun shines into Cave 19 onto a standing Buddha, who appears to be emerging from a white egg of polished stone. The caves were built about 2,100 years ago, only a few centuries after the Buddha’s death.
The Hypogeum Hal Saflieni
On the island of Malta, a popular destination for migratory birds on the Mediterranean-Black Sea Flyway, a three-level underground tomb known as the Hypogeum was built about 6,000 years ago and remained in use for 1,200 years. Most of the rooms are round or egg-shaped, and archaeologists found the bones of about 7,000 people in the complex.
The design of the Hypogeum allowed sunlight to penetrate the second level into the Holy of Holies at dawn on the winter solstice. Also on the second level is a sculpted mother goddess known as the Sleeping Lady, whose body is made up of oval shapes, including her legs, arms, and head. Perhaps she awaited the winter solstice dawn.
Mnajdra and Ġgantija
About 5,600 years ago, on the Mediterranean island of Malta, virtually identical ovoid enclosures were built, known as Mnajdra and Ġgantija, with alignments to the winter solstice. Some scholars have suggested the ovate shapes were meant to appear as a mother goddess figure from above, like the Gravettian Venus with over-large breasts atop even larger hips.
The Almendres Cromlech
The stone oval ring known as Almendres Cromlech near Evora, Portugal, features 95 oval/almond-shaped stones up to 11 feet tall, erected more than 6,000 years ago. Evora is one of three almond-growing regions in Portugal.
In Greek and Persian myths, the almond tree was associated with rebirth, reawakening, and victory over death. A single standing stone almost 15 feet tall and three feet in diameter was found about a mile from the oval, forming a visual alignment with the rising sun on the winter solstice. The cromlech is 230 feet long and 130 feet across, the largest in Portugal and Spain.
The Great Serpent Mound
Perhaps the most unique solstice site in North America is the Great Serpent Mound in southeast Ohio, located where the Central and Atlantic Americas flyways converge in a narrow corridor south of the Great Lakes.
The mound was likely built at least 2,000 years ago by the Adena culture, which believed in a mythic Thunderbird that ruled the sky and a great serpent that governed the earthly realm. The mound is three feet tall and 1,300 feet long, aligned to both solstices and both equinoxes. Its mouth stretches around an egg-shaped mound, appearing to mirror the star-group at the mouth of the constellation Draco, located near Cygnus in midwinter.
The Great Zimbabwe Ruins
The main feature of The Great Zimbabwe Ruins is the oval-shaped Great Enclosure, the largest prehistoric stone structure south of the Sahara, located near the convergence of three bird flyways, a rare occurrence.
Believed to be built 800 years ago by a Bantu-speaking people, the enclosure’s granite walls are 32 feet high. A gold furnace was found in a hill complex north of the enclosure, where soapstone birds were carved at the top of stone columns. In a 2002 study, Richard Wade of the Nkwe Ridge Observatory in South Africa found the three bright stars in Orion rise over three standing stone pillars on the morning of the winter solstice.
Chankillo
Located where a route of the Pacific Americas Flyway makes landfall on the coast of northern Peru, the boundary line of the 2,400-year-old village of Chankillo is an oval stone ring with concentric walls, a civic plaza and a cut-stone temple surrounded by houses. Above the village on a north-south running ridge are the Thirteen Towers of Chankillo, with the north end aligned to the summer solstice and the south end to the winter solstice.
The Promise of Spring
The conceptions of birth, death and rebirth were all part of a dramatic story that unfolded with the sacred calendar, drawing upon the entire community in celebrations of the perpetual cycle of life embodied in the cosmic egg.
In addition to hosting the reincarnation of souls, it appears the week-long winter solstice celebration was also intended to maintain the physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual health of the community. As winter cold sets in and days grow short, psychological problems can surface due to inactivity, lack of sunlight and being confined by snowy weather.
A midwinter mandate that people get outside and travel to the nearest megalith to spend a week singing, dancing, celebrating the birth of children and reinforcing their shared beliefs about the universe may have been just what the doctor ordered. The winter solstice was a chance to physically move around, to see relatives and old friends, to consult one of the many healers in attendance, to eat and drink more than usual, to celebrate the deeds of ancient ancestors and to welcome the birth of new heroes. Our distant ancestors latched onto the only tangible sign displayed in the heavens that winter would come to an end and turned it into the biggest event of the year.