Fig. 1 – The Planet Venus is a bright star that appears before the Eastern sunrise. www.cloudynights.com
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by V Garth Norman (The legacy of V. Garth Norman lives on)
“The morning star, also known as the planet Venus, is one of the brightest objects in the sky, second only to the sun and the moon. As it orbits the sun, Venus as the morning star is seen from the Earth every 584 days. On its journey, it changes from the morning star seen in the East during sunrise to the Evening Star visible in the West after sunset. “The Morning Star has significant religious symbolism across various faiths and cultures. In Christianity, the Morning Star is often associated with Jesus Christ, who is referred to as the “bright morning star” in Revelation 22:16. This symbolizes Christ’s role as the light of the world, bringing hope and guidance to his followers. Additionally, the Morning Star is seen as a symbol of spiritual rebirth and new beginnings.
“Native American culture also has a deep connection with the Morning Star which was often depicted in artwork and was believed to bring good fortune to those who saw it. In many cultures, the Morning Star was also associated with the planet Venus. The Maya, for example, believed that the Morning Star was the god Chak Ek’, who rose from the underworld . . . to bring light to the world.”
“One of the symbols to identify the rebirth of the creator Quetzalcoatl is an outlined cross. The Aztec creation god, after being on earth, became a sky god who is seen in the Mexican iconographic system in both anthropomorphic and serpent form, and he is also symbolized by the Morning Star, often in the form of an outlined cross. Venus symbols spread to North and South America and the Caribbeans.”
Venus is the second planet from the Sun and the third brightest object in Earth’s sky after the Sun and Moon. Venus is also the closest planet to Earth. The planet is named for Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty.” Venus is the second largest terrestrial planet.
The Venus synodic cycle presents challenges due to its irregularities as we can see in the following inventory:
244 Days – Morning Star visibility in the eastern sky
77 Days – Invisible between Morning and Evening Star
252 Days – Evening Star in the western sky
+12 Days – Invisible before Morning Star rising
584 Days – Total days of the complete Venus cycle.
(Malmstrom 1997:217—Cycles of the Sun, Mysteries Of the Moon—The calendar in Mesoamerican Civilization -Univ. of Texas Press, Austin.) (1) https://symbolismguide.com/morning-starsymbolism- meaning/ (2) Jim Reed: IMS presentation on “Mesoamerican Cosmology”. (3) www.theplanet.org/venus/ VENUS, THE MORNING STAR = Hope & Guidance, Courage & Protection, Harmony & Balance, Spiritual Meaning & Redemption.
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