2009 Crop Circles

[Windmill knight]

Does anyone have any hypothesis explaining why the latest batch of crop circles appear to be depicting animals? Any particular significance to those animals?

Here is one idea to be explored: There's a constellation of Phoenix, another Aquila, and for the fish there's Pisces and I think some more. Then there's a Dragon constellation and a Fly constellation, but not a Dragonfly constellation. No jellyfish constellation, but there's Medusa, which is the name given to some jellyfish.

I'm not saying there's any relationship, but for the sake of stimulating ideas, there it is. :)

 

[1984]

And the latest - not sure what to make of this one yet - it appears to be a stylized phoenix, with a bit of a different look in general, almost stencil-like - but the fine detail is there:

The top 3 smaller circles surrounding the large one almost looks like an old fashioned alarm clock. ;) Interesting how those guys with the ropes and planks never do get caught!

 

[Alana]

Does anyone have any hypothesis explaining why the latest batch of crop circles appear to be depicting animals? Any particular significance to those animals?

Here is one idea to be explored: There's a constellation of Phoenix, another Aquila, and for the fish there's Pisces and I think some more. Then there's a Dragon constellation and a Fly constellation, but not a Dragonfly constellation. No jellyfish constellation, but there's Medusa, which is the name given to some jellyfish.

I was wondering the same about the animal significance, but also whether the names of the animals are important at all, since each creature has different names across the globe. Though yours, it's an interesting idea, Windmill Knight.

About the phoenix, i don't know, it's very different from any other. I can't even picture it in 3D form. I see it flat, without movement in it.

 

[Gawan]

The top 3 smaller circles surrounding the large one almost looks like an old fashioned alarm clock. ;) Interesting how those guys with the ropes and planks never do get caught!

The whole cropcircle reminds me either of a little bell or a pendulum.

 

[mamadrama]

FWIW, the folks at CCC have made this observation:

There are possibly some similarities with the Zoroastrian bird symbol to be found in this crop formation. Zoroastrianism is the oldest of the revealed world-religions, and it has probably had more influence on mankind, directly and indirectly, than any other single faith. There are also important elections going on in Iran today. Persia being the geographic area where this belief system was formed.

That doesn't really address the phoenix like fire at the bottom, though.

 

[anart]

About the phoenix, i don't know, it's very different from any other. I can't even picture it in 3D form. I see it flat, without movement in it.

It does seem kind of 'flat' doesn't it? That's kind of what I meant when I compared it to a stencil. The 'fish' one seemed flat as well, though more so - not sure what it means, but there it is.

 

[Alana]

You know what it actually reminds me of, the whole Phoenix illustration? An insignia of sorts, an emblem, a coat of arms kind of thing, if that makes any sense. Like this Greek Order of The Phoenix badge.

 

[Third_Density_Resident]

FWIW, the folks at CCC have made this observation:

There are possibly some similarities with the Zoroastrian bird symbol to be found in this crop formation. Zoroastrianism is the oldest of the revealed world-religions, and it has probably had more influence on mankind, directly and indirectly, than any other single faith. There are also important elections going on in Iran today. Persia being the geographic area where this belief system was formed.

That doesn't really address the phoenix like fire at the bottom, though.

Well phoenixes supposedly rise from the ashes, or in the case of the latest crop circle, the fire.

 

[mamadrama]

Well phoenixes supposedly rise from the ashes, or in the case of the latest crop circle, the fire.

Yes, ok I think what you're implying is that a possible reading of the Zoroastrian bird symbol rising like a Phoenix from the ashes could represent Iran rising from the ashes. Is that what you meant or am I off? I looked up some of the symbolism of fire in the Zoroastrian religion and it is a central symbol apparently.

Are Zoroastrians "fire worshippers?"

No, they are not. They do not "worship" fire. The fire is a symbol of the Zoroastrian faith just as the cross is a symbol of Christianity. In a Zoroastrian temple the only symbol before which prayers are said is the fire which is tended by a priest five times a day. The fire stands for a number of things. It is a symbol of purity, for fire purifies everything. It also stands for the "inner fire" or divine spark in a human being. The fire burning in the Zoroastrian temple or at home is a constant reminder that we should always keep our "inner fire" alive.

There are three "grades" of temples, depending upon the process of consecration and who is allowed to tend the fire. The first and second grades of fire can only be tended by the priests, whereas the last can be tended even by laymen.

_http://www.zamwi.org/religion/Getting.html

Still, it seems like the Iranian/Zoroastrian connection is a little too convenient and political if you know what I mean. As others have mentioned, it doesn't seem to have the usual 3D quality though the detail is there. So I'm not sure what to make of it...

 

[anart]

Still, it seems like the Iranian/Zoroastrian connection is a little too convenient and political if you know what I mean. As others have mentioned, it doesn't seem to have the usual 3D quality though the detail is there. So I'm not sure what to make of it...

Yes, it's a subjective impression on my part, but I've always gotten the sense that the 'interpretations' on the CCC site aren't exactly approaching objectivity. They sort of just go with whatever strikes their fancy, if you get my drift, It's usually quite heavily laden with newage interpretation or reinforcing some other preconception of theirs. So, all in all, I take their 'interpretations' with a large grain of salt, if not ignore them all together - but that's just me. fwiw.

 

[Gawan]

Looks like a hot june:

But unfortunately an bird's-eye view is not available at the moment.

 

[Vulcan59]

And here is another, again without any aerial shots yet.

http://www.cropcircleconnector.com/2009/waylandsmithy2/waylandsmithy2009b.html

 

[adam7117]

Ooh - a Phoenix! What a marvellous creation! Thanks for posting this, Anart.

I'm not an expert but there's certainly a bit more to this crop circle than just meets the eye - for starters Phoenix is a mythological creature. Some might even say, it's a lifestyle choice.

A basic search reveals interesting data:

Phoenix (mythology)

A phoenix is a mythical bird with a colourful plumage and a tail of gold and scarlet (or purple and blue, according to some sources).

It has a 500 to 1,000 year life-cycle, near the end of which it builds itself a nest of myrrh twigs that then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix or phoenix egg arises, reborn anew to live again.

The new phoenix is destined to live as long as its old self. In some stories, the new phoenix embalms the ashes of its old self in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis (sun city in Greek). The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being immortal and invincible — it is also said that it can heal a person with a tear from its eyes and make them temporarily immune to death.

The phoenix is a symbol of fire and divinity.

Some might say, it's the same bird (or same soul unit) being continuously reborn - essentially achieving a sort of immortality. Well... symbology is rife here.

The crop circle above shows a Phoenix in the beginning stage of its death - where it is engulfed by fire. It will then proceed to turn into ash and be reborn with a regenerated life force for another millennium.

This is an ancient archetype (guess you could call it that) and has been portrayed in numerous artworks. The pictures usually include apsects of fire and the Sun - there is usually lots of red, orange and yellow. Here are some images (you'll find references at the above Wikipedia page):

The Phoenix from the Aberdeen Bestiary

Phoenix on the portal of Nadir Divan-Beghi madrasah (part of Lyab-i Hauz complex)

The Phoenix represented in the 60 years of peace coin.​

If you look closely, the above three pictures share one thing in common - the Phoenix has the Sun above its head. Our crop circle is not different from that - it also contains a symbol for the Sun although it seems to be overlaid for more meaning.

I'm talking about that "grandma clock" above Phoenix's head. It's actually quite clever and I'm curious what others think. In astrology, some symbols are compound, with the overall meaning being a story conveyed through a composite arrangement of individual symbol elements. Order of the components (their position) is important as well.

For example, take the symbol for Venus (a circle above a cross). Old texts would interpret a circle as a symbol for Spirit and cross as a symbol for Matter (Body). And when you put those two basic symbols together - in a particular order, you get the meaning for Venus - i.e., "Spirit over Matter" or something to that effect. (Do chime in if I'm telling porkies here).

The astrological symbol for the Sun is:

​

and lo and behold, that is what we see in the crop circle - above Phoenix's head. But there seems to be more information present. The Sun symbol (circle with a dot) is extended with three smaller circles at 120deg apart. This is a familiar arrangement - which can be represented in 3D as X, Y and Z axes. From this, I am getting a vague reference to the Threefold Quality (or the triple Yin/Yang symbol).

In fact, if you go back to the previous crop circles this season, this funky tetrahedral arrangement of circles is a repeating theme.

Well, that's my 20 cents. Hope you found it useful. I think this concept of compound symbology is one of the keys - and I'm looking forward to more, Guys!

 

[David]

Pretty kool how the world views the phoenix, not sure if the phoenix feels the same way hence the tear…

 

[ArdVan]

I find that it also look like an eye and it's lens. Like this:

They could have just made one big circle, but they didn't, so this extra bow below the sign of the sun may have some meaning.