The Nile Decoded: Appendix 1

While ‘30’ is a ‘temporal number’, based on the orbital periods of Saturn and the Moon it may be expressed more precisely as ~29.5. We find that Saturn’s orbit around the sun takes ~29.46 earth-years and the Moon’s orbit around the earth (the ‘synodic month’) is ~29.55 earth-days.

Remarkably, when examined closely the Nile too reveals itself to be about 29.5 degrees in latitude because the river’s beginning point happens to be just slightly north of the equator. (Somewhere between 0.4°N and 0.5°N.[1])

The slight ambiguity surrounding the river’s beginning latitude can be resolved through proportional analysis. We find that using 0.41°N. (= ~0° 25’N.), the ratio between the resultant length of the Nile and the extra 0.41 degrees would become 29.59:0.41 or ~72.17:1, which could then be simplified to 72:1.[2] The significance here is that ‘72’ is known to be something of a ‘sacred’ number that shows up frequently in ancient myths.

As propounded in the book Hamlet’s Mill, the esoteric importance of the number ‘72’ can be traced back to the stars – specifically a astronomical phenomenon known as ‘precession’, an extremely slow (apparent) movement of the stars caused by the slight ‘wobbling’ of the Earth’s axis. The basic unit of this very slow time-keeping mechanism – the vernal point shifting 1 degree – happens to equal 72 years. So ‘72’ can be seen as a ‘time number’.

Corroborating this view is the fact that the ancient Egyptian calendar saw the year as being 360 days with 5 extra ‘epagomenal’ days during which five important gods – Osiris, Horus, Seth, Isis, and Nephthys – were said to have been born. The ratio between 360 days and 5 days happens to equal 72:1.

These consequently tell us that 0.41°N (which produces the 72:1 ratio) is to be considered the designated beginning latitude of the Nile.

[1] Pinpointing the exact spot where the river begins is somewhat problematic due to the narrowing shape of the lake there. It is interesting, though, that the northernmost latitude of Lake Victoria happens to be 0.5°N. exactly.

[2] To show this is not an oversimplification, we could do this in reverse by first asking ‘what would the numbers be in latitudinal degrees if we divided 30 degrees into two parts so that their ratio would be 72:1?'. The answer is: ~0.411 and ~29.589. Those are practically identical to the Nile numbers initially used.