Out4Mind Your multi-thematic blog
It has been circulating on the Internet a very complex and controversial theory. It is called theory of the Ancient Astronauts. This theory is based on the idea that extraterrestrials visited Earth in the past, evidences of a contact between these astronauts and humans do exist in historical texts and archaeological records. This theory was popularized by authors such as Erich von Daniken and Zecharia Sitchin. Although I’m a believer in the existence of extraterrestrials, existing subjects that require a different explanation, I admit that something unique may have occurred, but I try to have a rational and objective perspective on the subject and I would like the reader to have an open mind and enjoy.
Theorists of Ancient Astronauts seem to be absolutely convinced that aliens came down to earth in the past and had relations with human women because they considered them attractive, giving rise to a new species of human beings: the Nephilim. They support that the stories contained in many of the traditions and mythologies were in fact misinterpreted, since people who saw this story have interpreted them as an intervention of gods who came down to Earth and have associated with human women. But in fact, these beings were not gods, but aliens, “because the gods do not exist”.
The fall of the rebel angels of Hieronymus Bosch was based on Genesis 6:1-4
Nephilim means deserters, fallen, overturned, and is a variation of nafál or nefal verb (fall, knock down, cut). Nephila in Aramaic designates the constellation of Orion, which among the Hebrews was the Shemhazai angel (Semyaza, Samyaza, Semyaze), as reported in the Book of Enoch. The Bible mentions the Nephilim as “fallen angels”, “evil spirits” or “demons”, and the apocryphal Book of Enoch as “watchers”, having such angels mated with the daughters of men and gave rise to a race of giants.
In the Bible this word refers to the children of [Elohim], the mighty and ancient heroes as reported by the Book of Genesis 6:4.
«The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.»
Recalling that the Hebrew word Elohim is plural and means gods and goddesses, bringing a logic and clear reference whence the Nephilim came from. Nephilim are an Elohim group who revolted, acquiring the epithet which properly means: Deserters Gods.
In the Bible, we can identify some of the descendants of the Nephilim in the earth by being old rulers, as pointed out by the book of Numbers 13:22 and 13:33.
«They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, lived. (Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)»
«We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.»
In the Deuteronomy book we know a little of the physical characteristics of the Nephilim. Deuteronomy 9:2
«The people are strong and tall—Anakites! You know about them and have heard it said: “Who can stand up against the Anakites?”»
Until today, theologians and Bible scholars differ on the nature of the Nephilim and the “Sons of God” and it is argued that the” Sons of God “are actually angels who came to Earth to have “relationships” with women, had children, and for that they were punished and casted into hell.
Another theory says that they were descendants of Cain, who got away from God, giving an indolent race.
Cain killing his brother Abel by Peter Paul Rubens.
There are other theories such as the evolutionary background that says “sons of God” were descendants of Adam and the “daughters of men” of an inferior race, for example, the Neanderthal. Currently scientific research has shown that approximately 4% of our DNA is Neanderthal origin. Some see there the proof of this theory.
The biblical narrative describes that God has decreed a flood that wiped out the human and the Nephilim, giving birth to a new humanity, as the book of Joshua 15:14
«From Hebron Caleb drove out the three Anakites—Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai, the sons of Anak.»
The theory that involves sex between gods and human, though fascinating, does not fit well with the general theory of Ancient Astronauts, as these theorists have always said that the intervention of aliens in human evolution occurred through artificial insemination, being the famous Anunnaki, the inhabitants of Nibiru – the unknown 9th planet in our solar system, the creators of the human species. But the problem is that its provisions are clear by stating that there was physical desire of women by angels, gods or the envoys.
The theorists of the Theory of Ancient Astronauts, try to resolve this contradiction by justifying that in fact the artificial insemination appears in one of the Dead Sea Scrolls, called the Lamech Scroll.
Lamech was a pastor and when his wife Bat-Enos said being pregnant he reportedly said:. “That’s impossible, because I’ve been absent for months” The woman swore she had not be touched by any other man. Methuselah, the father of Lamech. went to the house of his father Enoch searching for an advise and Enoch told him that the sky guardians did an artificial insemination in Bat-Enos’s womb, and that she should accept this child, because he will be the father of one new human generation. And in the Bible, this child is Noah.
Mosaic of the twelfth century with Noah sending forth the dove.
No doubt, that’s an interesting story, but the statement that Lamech doubted Noah was his son for being absent for months, is not true, because what the text says is that Lamech doubted the woman because “he looked at the woman”. However Von Daniken only says: “I was not here for months.” This failure becomes even greater when we see that the Bat-Enos text reminds Lamech the day that he conceived the child. As if it were not enough, the theory states that Enoch tells Methuselah that the guardians of the sky made an artificial insemination in Bat-Enos. This statement is unbelievable because the Enoch text says exactly the opposite and clearly confirms that Noah is the true son of Lamech.
The theorists question whether the “giants” would not be the right word to describe an alien. But the word Nephilim really mean giant and the various stories clearly reinforce this idea because their height is often described as well as the dimensions of their weapons.
The angels described in ancient texts such as the Bible were often mistaken with humans. An example of this is the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, where the townspeople pursued the visitors and wanted to have sex with them.
David facing Goliath in this lithograph by Osmar Schindler (1888).
It is complex and very strange that a consistent story that different cultures have passed on to their offsprings, in which the union of gods with human produced a race of giants. They believed that this unnatural union produced a race of giants, but once again the consistent stories of ancient cultures conflict with the theory of ancient astronauts, because they literally misinterpret the evidence. Eastern texts and even from the Americas, describe hybrid beings and a great flood, probably because all these cultures share a certain kind of collective memory, although these sources hide or forget certain details.
Although I sympathize with this theory and consider that there are details in the ancient texts, for such Nephilim, leading to the conclusion that something strange really happened in the ancient past, such as the strange passage about the Nephilim in Genesis 6: 1-4, I do not consider that there is sufficient evidence to claim that the aliens are responsible for those Nephilim. So, I think to be prudent to consider these stories with more caution. I can not deny that there are texts scattered throughout the world that apparently describe the same thing and also consider a theme indeed problematic and interesting. After all, there are an uncountable number of similar stories and so it is unwise to dismiss these stories completely, since the common idea that, having several cultures, independent from each other, that di invent so similar stories, is at least strange.
I hope you have enjoyed and thanks for the open mind.
