Mind Your Head!
Since the dawn of humanity, the skull has been a type of mystery, especially to humans. Ironically enough, humans are the ones who have collected the most skulls since their appearance on this planet. And yet, to humans, the very bone structure that houses the brain, is the very thing they are most curious about. In fact, skulls are so common place within our current society, that you can find skull...everything. There are skull printed materials, clothing, shoes, hats, scarves, and bed linens. You can wrap yourself up in a skull printed blanket, or go sunbathing on a skull printed beach towel. And on Halloween....whoa Nelly! Skulls seemingly pop right out of the wood work at you! OK...time out right here. I'm officially calling bullshit on the majority of the portrayal of the skull, in and of itself. The most important aspect of the skull is what is NOT seen, heard or read about. At least not on a day to day basis. Like many symbols, the skull is one of them that is the most misunderstood.
How would you react if you were to find out that the human skull is not a symbol of evil to most belief systems, but is rather a symbol of higher spiritual knowledge, physical closeness to the worlds many believe exist beyond that of the mortal realm...and something to be revered? What if I told you that VooDoo priests and priestesses used the skull as a sacred symbol that represents their spiritual connection with those that have already died? What would you think if I explained that people who celebrate Dia De Los Muertos (The Day Of The Dead), used skulls as a means by which to allow them to feel closer to those members of their families that have died? Moreover, what crosses your mind when I tell you that there is not one, but several chapels that are decorated primarily with the skulls, and bones, of dead monks, priests and deacons....and all of those chapels are Christian?
Notice the Christian cross, which sits in a place of prominence, and is completely encompassed by the skulls and bones of dead monks? Yes. This is a Christian chapel. It is located in Rome, Italy. It is officially titled the 'Capuchan Crypt Chapel', and is one of 4 chapels within the entire church. Only 1 of those 4 chapels is not fully decorated with skulls and bones. To those who follow a Wiccan/Pagan/Crafter belief system, the skull is symbolic of both higher knowledge (in the mortal sense of the term), as well as higher spiritual connection (in the immortal sense of the term). Shaman not only are trained in the art of the spiritual connection, but are also trained with the physical changes that take place within the brain cavity itself, during what is understood to be a type of self-induced Shamanic 'spell' or 'transe'. Ancient Egyptians were so fond of skulls to the point that anyone that died (this includes animals) got mummified with very strict instructions to never, under any circumstances, is the skull to be damaged in any way. OK...why? Because the Egyptians firmly believed that the entire skeletal structure needed to be completely in tact in order for that person to complete their travels from the mortal world, into the immortal world. Remember, these are people who spent the entirety of their lives preparing for the 'after life'. Literally.
Now to the nerdy part. Human anatomy will show that there are 8 plates to the skull. From birth, to the about the age of 2, these plates are slightly separated. This is to allow the plates of the skull to be more mobile, so that the child can fit through the birth canal. After the age of 2, the plates 'fuse' together to form the hardened adult like skull you and I have. The 8 plates are as follows: Occipital - Encompassing the entirety of the rear of the head down to the base of the skull. Parietal - The crown areas (which are divided down the middle of the top of the crown into two sectioned plates):These are 2 plates, not just 1. Frontal - Scanning the forehead up to the beginning of the crown. Temporal (also 2 plates) - resting just above the ear canal areas on both sides of the skull. Sphenoid - Resting just at the temple area just behind the eye sockets. And, finally, the Ethmoid - Connecting the forehead cavity to the upper jaw bone area. Note here...this area also forms the nasal cavity as well.
It is important to note the skull plates for the reason that there are also 8 main areas of the brain cavity. Thus, the line of thought here points to the idea that the 8 skull plates protect each of the 8 brain areas, and as such, each has its own unique function, especially to the Shaman. A Shaman begins with the understanding of the layers of the mind. They are as follows: The Surface mind/The conscious mind......The 'Editor'/Censor mind....the subjective mind...the subconscious mind.....the 'magikal' mind.....the unconscious mind....the auto-drive mind and finally, the super conscious mind. Outside of the past few ultra-nerdy paragraphs, all this boils down to one basic understanding; The human skull, and the brain that is housed within it, are things that we, as a species, have yet to fully unlock and comprehend. Now let's take the brain out of this equation.
We are now left, once again, with a shell. The skull. Throughout humanity, the skull has been viewed as a wonder. It has been regarded as a physical symbol, left behind for mortal beings to study, and learn from. If you take a look at the human skull, a trained professional can tell you a great deal about the person that the skull once belonged to. You can tell almost everything about that skull...with several exceptions. It is in this area that the mystery behind the skull manages to keep itself alive and well in today's societies.
The skull will not tell us what this person believed. It will not tell us what sexual orientation this person had. It will not tell us if this person had any political preferences, or not. And, unless there is residue within the teeth of this skull, it will not tell us how this person sustained its life. All of that information is gathered through other forms of documentation. The skull, however, will not reveal this information. And, as we all well know, sometimes history is not exactly all that accurate. It will show us battle wounds. It will show us deformations. It will let us know if the brain was larger, or smaller, than average. The brow bone and nasal areas will tell us the approximate origin of the skull, and the jaw bones will tell their own tales about possible ways of life the person had. Outside of what science can actually prove (which, on the grand scale of things is still considered relatively small), the skull still keeps its own proverbial veil over itself, as if to say: "I once was, but am no more. You still are, but won't always be...and neither of us shall know any more about each other, than what you see before you right now".
How would you react if you were to find out that the human skull is not a symbol of evil to most belief systems, but is rather a symbol of higher spiritual knowledge, physical closeness to the worlds many believe exist beyond that of the mortal realm...and something to be revered? What if I told you that VooDoo priests and priestesses used the skull as a sacred symbol that represents their spiritual connection with those that have already died? What would you think if I explained that people who celebrate Dia De Los Muertos (The Day Of The Dead), used skulls as a means by which to allow them to feel closer to those members of their families that have died? Moreover, what crosses your mind when I tell you that there is not one, but several chapels that are decorated primarily with the skulls, and bones, of dead monks, priests and deacons....and all of those chapels are Christian?
Notice the Christian cross, which sits in a place of prominence, and is completely encompassed by the skulls and bones of dead monks? Yes. This is a Christian chapel. It is located in Rome, Italy. It is officially titled the 'Capuchan Crypt Chapel', and is one of 4 chapels within the entire church. Only 1 of those 4 chapels is not fully decorated with skulls and bones. To those who follow a Wiccan/Pagan/Crafter belief system, the skull is symbolic of both higher knowledge (in the mortal sense of the term), as well as higher spiritual connection (in the immortal sense of the term). Shaman not only are trained in the art of the spiritual connection, but are also trained with the physical changes that take place within the brain cavity itself, during what is understood to be a type of self-induced Shamanic 'spell' or 'transe'. Ancient Egyptians were so fond of skulls to the point that anyone that died (this includes animals) got mummified with very strict instructions to never, under any circumstances, is the skull to be damaged in any way. OK...why? Because the Egyptians firmly believed that the entire skeletal structure needed to be completely in tact in order for that person to complete their travels from the mortal world, into the immortal world. Remember, these are people who spent the entirety of their lives preparing for the 'after life'. Literally.
Now to the nerdy part. Human anatomy will show that there are 8 plates to the skull. From birth, to the about the age of 2, these plates are slightly separated. This is to allow the plates of the skull to be more mobile, so that the child can fit through the birth canal. After the age of 2, the plates 'fuse' together to form the hardened adult like skull you and I have. The 8 plates are as follows: Occipital - Encompassing the entirety of the rear of the head down to the base of the skull. Parietal - The crown areas (which are divided down the middle of the top of the crown into two sectioned plates):These are 2 plates, not just 1. Frontal - Scanning the forehead up to the beginning of the crown. Temporal (also 2 plates) - resting just above the ear canal areas on both sides of the skull. Sphenoid - Resting just at the temple area just behind the eye sockets. And, finally, the Ethmoid - Connecting the forehead cavity to the upper jaw bone area. Note here...this area also forms the nasal cavity as well.
It is important to note the skull plates for the reason that there are also 8 main areas of the brain cavity. Thus, the line of thought here points to the idea that the 8 skull plates protect each of the 8 brain areas, and as such, each has its own unique function, especially to the Shaman. A Shaman begins with the understanding of the layers of the mind. They are as follows: The Surface mind/The conscious mind......The 'Editor'/Censor mind....the subjective mind...the subconscious mind.....the 'magikal' mind.....the unconscious mind....the auto-drive mind and finally, the super conscious mind. Outside of the past few ultra-nerdy paragraphs, all this boils down to one basic understanding; The human skull, and the brain that is housed within it, are things that we, as a species, have yet to fully unlock and comprehend. Now let's take the brain out of this equation.
We are now left, once again, with a shell. The skull. Throughout humanity, the skull has been viewed as a wonder. It has been regarded as a physical symbol, left behind for mortal beings to study, and learn from. If you take a look at the human skull, a trained professional can tell you a great deal about the person that the skull once belonged to. You can tell almost everything about that skull...with several exceptions. It is in this area that the mystery behind the skull manages to keep itself alive and well in today's societies.
The skull will not tell us what this person believed. It will not tell us what sexual orientation this person had. It will not tell us if this person had any political preferences, or not. And, unless there is residue within the teeth of this skull, it will not tell us how this person sustained its life. All of that information is gathered through other forms of documentation. The skull, however, will not reveal this information. And, as we all well know, sometimes history is not exactly all that accurate. It will show us battle wounds. It will show us deformations. It will let us know if the brain was larger, or smaller, than average. The brow bone and nasal areas will tell us the approximate origin of the skull, and the jaw bones will tell their own tales about possible ways of life the person had. Outside of what science can actually prove (which, on the grand scale of things is still considered relatively small), the skull still keeps its own proverbial veil over itself, as if to say: "I once was, but am no more. You still are, but won't always be...and neither of us shall know any more about each other, than what you see before you right now".
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