Illustrations for Shaman in the Sky

Draco Cycle

As the earth revolves around its axis, once every 24 hours, the axis wobbles in the motion of a top slowing down. The wobble is extremely slow, taking 26,000 years for a complete cycle. Over that time the north pole of the earth inscribes a huge circle in the region of the circumpolar stars.

At the center of the great polar circle is an unmoving point, the pole of the ecliptic or north celestial pole, NCP, located in Draco. Hence the great polar cycle can be called the Draco Cycle.

26,000 years is a long time in human terms, but it breaks down into lesser periods. As the polar axis wobbles, it also trembles or judders, undergoing a cycle of 18.6 years, shown by the smaller circle on the left of the model. Using this period it is possible to factor down the Draco Cycle into units that lie within the lifespan of a single person.

Here is a model of the Draco Cycle using an astronomical map of the circumpolar stars seen in the northern hemisphere. (There exists an equivalent or mirroring cycle for the southern hemisphere.).

The NCP or pole of the ecliptic is a fixed point at the center of the polar circle inscribed by the wobble of the earth's axis. Imagine that the tip of the axis is inserted in a groove around which it moves in a counterclockwise way, as we view the circumpolar region. The sinuous form of Draco winds around the NCP, and the path of the terrestrial axis encircles that form.

As the pole wobbles, it points out certain stars. Currently, the north star is Polaris in the Little Bear. For most of its cycle, the pole does not coincide with a particular star. Because the circumpolar region is weak in distinct stars and patters, the Draco Cycle is most commonly plotted by precession in the Zodiac. The terrestrial axis carries with it the quadriform structure of solstices and equinoxes. As the axis shifts, so does that entire structure. Hence, precession in the Zodiac is a secondary effect of the Draco Cycle.

Any child of ten years can calculate the long-term periods indicated by the Draco Cycle. By placing a circular protractor with its center on the NCP, we measure the angles around the great polar circle. The rate of precession of 71.632 years for one degree of shift multiplied by the angle gives the date of the angle. The above model shows the following dates:

2650 BCE : angle 65 degrees back from present, i.e., from Polaris
7500 BCE : angle 132 degrees, marked by tau in Hercules
10,000 BCE : angle 168 degrees, marked by iota in Hercules
18,500 BCE : angle 285 degrees, marked by alpha in Cepheus

This shows that alpha in Cepheus was the pole star around 20,500 years ago. We could designate the period 10,000 - 7500 BCE as the Age of Hercules, because during that time the north pole of the earth was in the composite of that constellation. In 2650 BCE the pole star was Thuban, alpha Draconis, the brightest stat in the pattern of Draco. The designers of the great pyramid of Giza used this star to align one of the "ventilation shafts" of the monument:

We cannot imagine what kind of knowledge of long-term celestial patterns, not to mention engineering skills, must have been required for this alignment. In temples and stone circles around the world we see the irrefutable evidence that our ancestors were able to determine all the essential astrophysical directions and to construct their sacred sites in deliberate interface with the cosmic environment.

Every star tells a story. The interval when the NTP was in transit from iota to tau in Hercules was 10,000 to 7500 BCE. In Shaman in the Sky, I propose how we might interpret or characterize this period in terms of the signification of Hercules, the celestial shaman who orients us to the Solar Apex.