The First Crusades

Knights, soldiers and common folk embarked on one of the bloodiest excursions in the history of this world. After the crusading message spread throughout Western Europe, a much unpredicted reaction occurred amongst the inhabitants. Many were looking for something to upset the humdrum of their everyday lives. Others were tired of the unilateral rule and were seeking an escape from unyielding oppression. And yet others were looking for a little adventure and seeking an escape from the harsh weather of Europe. The crusaders were pursuing a common goal to obtain total control of Jerusalem which cost many their lives, the Christians, Jewish people and Muslims.

Before the Christians began their triumphant crusades, al-Hakim, referred also as Mad Hakim, decided to develop his own army and work separately from the other Islamic sects. His plans were filled with mayhem and bloodshed. He began his vicious attacks on Christians and Jewish people. Even though the Islamic people had control of the “Promise Land,” pilgrims from other religious sects, Christianity and Judaism were welcomed and treated respectfully before al-Hakim took control of Jerusalem. As a result of Hakim’s tyranny and other acts of Islamic aggression, the Islamic people were considered a formidable, pagan force, which needed to be put in their place or obliterated completely.

            Al-Hakim destroyed the church of the Resurrection, the Holy Sepulcher. Christians were being harassed and punished, under restraints and penalties for practicing their Christian religion. He sought to prove a point that the Islamic religion was by far the religion that required the most honor and respect. The Christians were all ordered to wear heavy wooden crosses so they could be readily identified. The Christians and Jewish people were not permitted to join the Islamic people in any of their ceremonies or public services such as the public baths. They were singled out and ridiculed. They were attacked when they traveled to Jerusalem by the Muslims.  

            The Byzantine emperor, Alexius, felt it was prudent to visit the Holy Land to meet with al-Hakim. A cup bearer was sent to retrieve Alexius who was found seated at the entrance to Jerusalem. Al-Hakim wanted Alexius to believe he had no evil intentions. Alexius read al-Hakim’s intentions loud and clear. The meeting went well between the two rulers. Al-Hakim agreed to lighten up concerning his treatment of Christians in exchange for the emperor’s invitation for him to visit freely the fine city of Constantinople. The two rulers drank into the wee hours of the morning as they laughed heartily about the wealth and power they have both amassed over their years of rule. Alexius left Jerusalem feeling he met his match. He was impressed with the ruler.

             

            Pope Urban II sought and desired to obtain an army of well-trained seasoned soldiers and knights to serve in the crusade. To a large degree what he got was everyman’s army, not only the talented knights and foot soldiers that served under warlords, but also an army equipped with poor and wretched but faithful people who wanted to fight for the cause. The ragged mix of common people, who decided to join forces with the soldiers and knights, were straggling behind. Some were walking and others were riding horses. Some of the wives and children tagged along behind the men. A few of the families had wagons that were pulled by horses. Some of the children were crying because they were hungry, tired and scared.

            There were also rogues and crazed men who were released from the depths of imprisonment to provide service. Some of the men were known robbers and murderers. Those seeking pilgrimage in the crusading efforts were promised salvation. The sewing of the cross on many of the warriors’ clothing served as a testament of their loyalty. They were promised to inherit an everlasting life. Only a few of the crusade leaders met Urban’s high expectations (Foss, 2011).

            The Christian armies were trained in various forms of warfare. The knights were a specialized smaller group who usually fought on horseback. They were dressed in light chain mail from head to toe. The knights fought with a lance, sword, axe, or mace, and they were protected by a large shield. The shields bore the brunt of their opponents’ attacks. Each knight was supported by a company of squires, pages, and grooms. They were also provided assistance by the Frank soldiers. Common folk usually took up the rear.

            The Church referred to the crusaders as military pilgrims. These courageous warriors were required to take vows and they were also rewarded with dispensation of protection for their property at home. Any legal proceedings against them were suspended or dropped entirely. Another incentive was the erasing of sin from their very beings no matter the severity of the infractions. Knights were especially attracted by the Get-Out-Of-Hell-Free cards allowing them to commit any sins throughout the rest of their lives without incurring liability in this or the next world. They were on an honorable mission.

            The Seljuk Turks told another story when it came to warfare abilities. The Turks fought as mounted archers. The older nations of the Mideast such as the Fatimids of Egypt, fought in the same manner as the Europeans. Mounted archers did not have a clear advantage when it came to face-to-face combat. The knights also did not have a clear advantage over the Turks. The knights were so weighted down by their equipment and protective gear that they ended up being slower than the Turks. The longer range of the European cross bows were an advantage for the Christian warriors but they were slower than the shorter bows of the Turks. On the open battlefield the Turks had the advantage. In close quarters, the Christian warriors had the advantage. Either group did not have complete advantage over their opponents.

             In the spring of 1096, after some time of living in a period of draught, the sky opened up rain poured down over the territory of France. The autumn harvest was bountiful due to finally receiving the rain needed for the crops that summer. This bounty served as a sign. Shortly after the Council of Clermont and Pope Urban made a plea for Christian armies to take over the “Promise Land,” there was a shower of meteorites that came down from the night sky. During the month of February of 1096, while the French king and his royal followers met to discuss the upcoming crusade, the moon in eclipse turned blood red.

            In March, an aurora borealis lit the evening sky with a spectacular light show. Many people visited the church in droves out of fear of such a sight. In August of the same year, the moon eclipsed again and later that year the winter moon was blocked to some degree by the blaze of a comet. All these were seen as signs of something bigger coming their way. Many Christians burned the cross on their flesh. They felt the heavens were speaking to them and beckoning them to do their part to save the Holy Land from the clutches of the Muslims (Foss, 2011).

            Large brigades of crusaders assembled and went their separate ways as they traveled to Constantinople. The first battalion to arrive in December of 1096 was from Lorraine, northern France and Germany, led by Godfrey de Bouillon. The second to  arrive  was  a   group of  Normans

from southern Italy, led by Duke Bohemond of Otranto and Count Tancred. A third group arrived from southern France under count Raymond of Toulouse. Another battalion included Frenchmen, Normans and Englishmen. They were under the leadership of the Duke Hugh de Vermandois, Robert Curthose of Normandy and Stephen of Blois. The last group arrived in May of 1097. Additional groups joined forces at various times.

Alexius I, the emperor of the Byzantine empire, permitted the Christian soldiers as they crossed the Bosphorus to enter his empire. The emperor pressed the Christians to release lands to him that were formerly part of the Byzantine Empire. The crusaders were not happy about the emperor’s request and felt uneasy about Alexius’ motives to join the crusade efforts. The Byzantine emperor hurried them across the straits to Asia before they could cause any trouble in his region. The crusaders had a reputation of being rowdy, careless and blood thirsty (Castleton, 2008).

            Emich, another commander, was a feudal lord and he had under his command knights of his own kind and he was joined in Germany by several companies of French, Burgundian, Flemish and English soldiers. His company was properly armed. Emich was extremely evil and desired immensely to spill the blood of as many as possible, being a ruthless killing machine and fulfilling the goal of Lucifer wanting to rid the planet of as many humans as possible. He was a Nephilim descendent who disguised himself as a handsome, tall and strong man. Women fell at his feet. He was known for his tyrannical way of life. He took whatever he wanted without consideration of others.

Emich claimed he was going to turn the other cheek and become more righteous. He referred to this change as his awakening and likened himself to Saul in the Bible. He managed to bring under his command almost twelve thousand Christian followers. He preached to his followers that killing a Jew will bring pardon for all their sins. Emich convinced many of this belief. When they reached the Holy Land, he would convince them that killing Muslims would ensure their entrance into heaven. Emich knew Pope Urban already set the stage for erasing all their sins by parti-cipating in the crusade.

            A trail did not actually exist across the better part of France. The terrain was rocky and consisted of a lot of hills and valleys. It was not easy going.

            The large formidable group of warriors led by Emich stopped at one of the Jewish communities in the Rhineland area. It was time to let loose and kill as many Jewish people as possible. A thousand Jewish people were killed or driven to take their own lives. In Worms, a massacre of Jewish people occurred again without remorse. It was a virtual blood bath, 800 Jewish people lost their lives at that location. The trail of blood continued in Speir, Cologne, and Prague as the crusaders continued their way to the Holy Land. The hatred of Jewish people ran rampant amongst the Christian people (Asbridge, 2010).

            Even with the direction of some capable and manipulating men, there was a lack of coordination, discipline, planning, collaborated commands and a mutual purpose. What occurred was a muddled and often riotous campaigns which amounted to a mixed matched group of Christian trouble makers for the most part. The mob of armed miss-matched soldiers and civilians crossed Europe. Along the way they pilfered supplies from the communities they invaded on the path to their final destination. They were sure that God held them in favor for carrying out their holy duties. Others had a different opinion on what they were doing and how they were carrying out what they thought was their divine purpose. Fights broke out between the travelers.

            They pushed further and further towards their goal, the “Promise Land.” Soon the crusaders surrounded Nicaea, a Greek city that fell prey to the Turks recently. Things looked bleak. The Turkish sultan did not want to lose his reign of such a valuable conquest. He sent his forces out to break up the siege. They approached with caution after learning about the stories of the multiple massacres. Both armies engaged in full warfare. It was not much of a fight because the inexperienced and incompetent group of Franks could not stand up to the fierceness of the Turks. Thousands were left for dead on the field and tens of thousands of the Franks were delivered to the slave markets.

            The second wave of crusaders was in route and soon arrived at Nicaea. These crusaders were more prepared. They sharpened their swords and made plans for the takeover. They were more level headed and competent than the first group of crusaders. The Turks shrugged when they saw the second group. Because they did not see the Christians as much of a threat, the Turks were completely taken off guard. They were surprised the second group arrived so quickly after the first group was annihilated. The Turks were tired and running out of arrows. Once the third group of crusaders arrived behind them to provide back up, the Turks were slaughtered and the ones who survived ran off confused and bewildered. The sultan ran for the hills leaving behind his servants, treasury and baggage train (Asbridge, 2010). 

            As a result of eliminating the enemy in Nicea, the Franks were able to march across Asia Minor. They reclaimed the lost territory of the Byzantines and traveled towards Syria. The group of knights, Frank soldiers and civilians were ecstatic about their new conquest. They felt God was really on their side and felt a new sense of enthusiasm. Things were really looking up for the group of miss-matched troops.

            The weather was cooperating and the terrain was becoming a little less difficult to travel. The temperatures were rising as they traveled south. The crusaders traveled along the Mediterranean Sea. The waves were lapping against the shore. They decided to put up camp near the sea. They fell asleep while listening to the sound of the sea. The Common Cuckoo’s, Black-Throated Divers, and Flamingoes were calling out to one another as they swam and flew across the weary travelers.

            A calm breeze cooled off the travelers as they were swept into a heavy slumber. Heavy breathing and light snores could be heard from the travelers. The sky was dark and was lit by many stars. Even the two men who were supposed to be watching over the settlement to protect them from possible intruders were enjoying a deep slumber. The entire group was able to sleep through the night and catch up on some needed slumber without being disturbed.           

            The next morning many of the Frank soldiers and knights were stirring. They started planning their next move as they traveled closer to their final destination, Jerusalem. Their next stop was going to be Antioch. Their plans involved the take over this location from the Islamic troops. They were having doubts about their capability of overpowering the Muslims.  They proved to be a cunning adversary.

            “I believe our army is not as strong as it needs to be,” said Sir Harold, one of the knights.

            “I think you are right,” replied Paul, one of the Frank army’s commanders.

            “We need to keep going,” said Sir Taylor, another knight. Sir Taylor and Sir Harold were talking earlier about how they survived the battles and are happy to still be fighting together. They were looking forward to their next adventure with bated anticipation.

            “The fortress at Antioch is probably going to be heavily guarded. Word has probably gotten out about the other defeats and they are waiting for us fully armed and manned. Our group took some heavy hits and we are not as fully equipped for battle as I would like,” said Sir Harold.

            “I believe with tenacity and planning we can take over Antioch, also,” replied Sir Taylor, another knight.

            Sir Harold sighed and gave into the others’ request and addressed the crowd to relay what their plans were as they proceeded closer to their final destination.

            “Listen everyone. We are soon going to enter enemy territory again. I say it’s their territory rather loosely, be-cause the territory we are about to enter belongs to the Christians. Our plan is to travel to Antioch. We plan on camping outside the gates of this fortress and study and learn about what type of force we are up against. It is in our best interest to not rush in without knowing what is behind the fortress walls. Our plan is to send in spies. The couple of Arab followers we managed to get to join our side are going to infiltrate the settlement and report back to us about how heavily armed our enemies are and where the weak areas are. There are always areas of a compound that are not as heavily guarded as others. We can attack where we feel we have more of a fighting chance. Does everybody agree with me that we need to play this out very discreetly and be ready for anything?”

            All the people listening to Sir Howard nodded their heads.

            “We need to do some hunting and gathering to prepare for our provisions before taking off on this next journey. Who is going to join me?” asked Sir Harold.

            Most of the men in attendance nodded in agree-ment.

            Wild game was not as readily available as they had hoped so they fished the waters of the Mediterranean. They speared Garfish, Red Gurnard and Blue Whiting. They didn’t know what the fish were called. The fish were different from the ones they were familiar with, but they were still delicious when cooked. They ate heartily to prepare for the journey. The leftover fish was stored in woven baskets covered with blankets. The women also picked pomegranates, cactus pears and persimmons and stored these in baskets.

            The plan was to continue to fish and pick fruit along the way to furnish themselves with the food they needed. They were going to travel alongside the Mediterranean Sea. They heard there were mountains and other treacherous terrain further north. 

            They discovered when they arrived at Antioch that there were not enough crusaders to completely surround the city of Antioch. As planned earlier, they camped outside the walls of the fortified city while they tried to figure out what their next course of action was going to be. One of the scouts reported the Muslims were sending an Islamic relief army to stop the crusaders’ siege. The commanders and knights knew they had to operate quickly. They were in luck. The scouts that were stationed inside the walls of the city paid off. That evening the Christian army sent a strike force to scale over the walls and get into the city fortress by a food storage building. That area was not being guarded. They were assisted by a Christian Armenian inhabitant of the city of Antioch. The Islamic guards were killed by the front gates and the gates to the city were opened to the waiting Christian army.

            The Turkish relief force arrived and discovered the crusaders were inside the city. They surrounded the city to conduct their own siege. The crusaders were about to give up hope when they discovered what they thought was the actual spearhead that was used to stab Jesus’ side at Calvary. It was hidden under the floor of one of the old churches. They looked at their discovery as a sign they needed to take over the city of Antioch for the Christians. They decided to fight the Turks with all their might.

            The crusaders lost a lot of their horses on the long march from the French territory to Antioch so they had to do most of their fighting on foot. The loss of their horses worked towards the Christian crusaders’ advantage. The European knights were trained to fight on horses and on foot. They were well prepared to take on the Turks while on foot which was unlike what the Muslims were trained to do. The Turks have never met such heavily armored foot soldiers. Without big warhorses to hit with arrows, the Turkish arrows did not make an impact on the heavily covered knights with their strong, durable armor. The crusaders had the Turks cornered and with the limited number of Islamic warriors, they were butchered in no time.

            The crusaders were under command of some very good leaders. Prince Bohemond of Taranto was one of them. He served as a practical commander for the weary team of warriors. Often with so many varied groups, the soldiers may or may not follow the commands of the leaders. The insubordination would cause some confusion, delays and loss of men. Prince Bohemond was able to get the attention of most of the crusaders and more often than not they would follow his commands. He was intelligent, authoritative and fair when it came to most circumstances. Because of his leadership Prince Bohemond was requested to stay at Antioch to rule the city.

            Count Raymond of Toulouse and Godfrey of Bouillon continued on with the most of the remaining crusaders. Some stayed behind to assist Prince Bohemond with the running of Antioch. The crusaders were led toward Jerusalem by Raymond and Godfrey.

            During the month of December in 1098 the crusaders took over the town of Ma’arra which finally occurred after a month long siege. They massacred approximately 20,000 Islamic captives. It was a virtual blood bath. After two years of marching and fighting, the crusaders were worn out and hungry. Most of the horses were lost. The countryside was bleak concerning food. Some of the hungriest did the unthinkable. They cooked some of the dead Muslims and feasted on their flesh. Cannibalism was a practice that occurred either during desperate times or sometimes it served as a symbolism of victory.

            Finally, they reached Jerusalem and it was taken over in July of 1099.  Approximately 70,000 people were killed in the streets, mostly the Islamic people. A lot of Christian people and Jewish people were murdered, also. A large number of Jewish people were barricaded in a synagogue. The building was set on fire and the Jewish people were burned inside. Their screams could be heard for miles. The crusaders walked through large pools of blood as they cruised the streets looking for more victims to slaughter.

            The war was finally won for the Christians, all in the name of God. Jerusalem finally fell under the leadership of the Christians. The atrocity of the crusades has left a dark stain on the Christians. The bloodthirsty Christian soldiers closed the gates to Jerusalem and murdered every person who was not a crusader in the city; Christians, Muslims and Jewish people. Every man, woman and child was killed mercilessly under the rationale that the blood of the infidels would cleanse the Holy City (Asbridge, 2010).

The Great Divide: The Sunni's and Shi ites

The origin of the Sunni and Shi’ite split was laced with violence. The Shi’ites and Sunni’s were steadfast about their beliefs. Ali, a man who was married to Fatimid, Muhammad’s daughter, was supposed to be Muhammad’s successor according to the Shi’ites. The Sunni’s had someone else in mind concerning who was suitable to fill the role of leader of the Muslim empire. Even though both groups believed Muhammad was their prophet, his bloodline did not guarantee sound leadership according to the Sunnis. The Sunni leadership was fraught with corruption and greed which angered the Shi’ites even more. The original split between the two prominent Muslim Orders occurred shortly after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, in the year 632.

The Shi’ites held steadfast that Ali was considered the imam, a term introduced by the Shi’ites to indicate leadership and signifies the blood bond in connection to the Prophet Muhammad. Ali’s descendants took over the leadership of the Shi’ite community. Each imam chose their successor. The general population did not have a say which differed from the Sunni’s. The imam passed down a form of spiritual wisdom to the next leader. Imams served as spiritual and political leaders.

War was a common occurrence between the two caliphs. When Ali, Muhammad’s son-in-law, was the caliph he was killed fighting in the year 661. The campaign occurred near the town of Kufa, which is present-day Iraq. The violence and war caused a seemingly permanent split.

Hussein, Ali’s son, went to war against the Sunni’s because he refused to accept the rule of the caliph at the time. Hussein bravely fought against the Sunnis’ large army. He and 72 members of his family and comrades were up against a large Arab army of the caliph. They were completely annihilated. Hussein’s head was chopped off and held in triumph of the Sunni win in Damascus. Hussein’s death carries special meaning for the Shi’ites .         

            Hussein was considered a martyr by the Shi’ite people and the memory of him was held in high regard. An event was held annually in Karbala called the “Ashoura” to pay homage to the fallen hero who tried to fight for their rights and protect them. The ceremony was held also to teach valuable lessons. It was held on the tenth day of the Islamic month of the Muharram (Shuster, 2007).

            Even though the Shi’ites and Sunni’s were worlds apart when it came to decisions regarding leadership of the Muslim empire, they shared a lot of common traditions, beliefs, and doctrines. All Muslims believed Mohammad was the messenger and prophet assigned by Allah. All believe they must adhere to the revelations provided to them by the Prophet Mohammad. Allah’s messages were recorded in the Koran. The concepts of devoutness, striving for goodness, and social justice were fundamental to the Islamic people. All Muslims were expected to live in agreement with the five pillars of Islam: recital of the creed; five obligatory prayers each day; giving alms to the poor; fasting from sunrise to sunset during the month of Ramadan; and making a pilgrimage to Mecca once during a lifetime if one is physically and financially able. Both groups practiced the same theological beliefs.

            The Koran provided conflicting information about killing. Love and respect and living in a peaceful manner was described fully but on the other hand the Koran portrayed that Islamic theology required the Islamic people to eliminate anyone who did not support their beliefs, the opposite of living a peaceful life.

            The Shi’ites continued to lose political battles against the Sunni Muslim leaders. They continued to maintain their beliefs in the face of massive adversity. The Shi’ites decided to give up their fight to take over various territories. Outwardly, they gave the appearance they were a beaten people. Secretly, they worked with various groups such as the nomadic Muslim people to join them. Spies were placed in various places to find out some of the weak areas of the Sunni’s.

            The Sunni’s felt their opponents were fighting a losing battle. They felt their enemies had something up their sleeves. They were right regarding their mistrust.

            One of the Shi’ite leaders summoned a demon and agreed to give up his soul in five years and in exchange the demon inflicted the plague on the unsuspecting people. The demon was a fallen angel who was more than happy to help the human in exchange for his soul. Since their numbers were so few, they had to come up with sneaky ways to attack the Sunni’s.   

            “I am willing to give up my soul to you Armill if you help us, the Shi’ites defeat our mortal enemies,” said Ahmad.

            “What do you have in mind, my friend,” said Armill. He smiled wickedly at Ahmad.

            “I would like to take some of the Sunni monsters out when they least expect it. I want to use things like sand storms, poisons and diseases.”

            One day some of the Shi’ite Muslims put arsenic in some of the wine bottles in a synagogue in Syria, one of the Sunni holy meeting places. Many of the attendees at a prayer service fell dead shortly after drinking the wine from the poisoned bottles. The bottles that were tampered with were disposed of by one of the Shi’ite spies. The Shi’ites were not blamed for the deaths. They thought the one with the evil eye placed a curse of them.

            A Sunni preacher met with the Shi’ite preacher and they discussed the sharing of one of the holy meeting places in Baghdad. Many of the people in attendance at a Sunni prayer ceremony came down with a plague. The people had ugly boils all over their faces and bodies. They died an ugly death after vomiting blood profusely.

            The same fallen angel that was providing assistance to Ahmad was helping the Sunni’s in their effort of getting rid of the Shi’ite regime. Fallen angels, known also as demons, would play humans against one another. The demons would grant small portions of what was requested to make the one who gave up their soul believe they were getting their way. In the end, they would end up losing more than they gained from their exchange with a demon.

             Throughout history, the Muslims fought valiantly amongst one another and against the Christians to uphold their theological beliefs and maintain their land holdings. They have proven to be a force to be reckoned with, a formidable steadfast Islamic nation. Throughout history the Muslim empire has conquered many of the Europeans, Greeks and Romans who resided in prominent and prosperous areas such as Constantinople. Unnecessary sacrifices over a dispute about leadership have led to many deaths. The Islamic nation, laced with varying opinions about theological theories and leadership, believe they need to be upheld at any cost.

Haunted Holidays

Holidays were established based on mysterious beliefs throughout history. In order to schedule various holiday activities, a calendar had to be created. The first calendar was developed 10,000 years ago in Scotland, first to be used as an agricultural tool when many of the people transitioned from being hunters and gatherers to farmers. The discovery of the calendar was made possible by the discovery of the equal parts of days and nights four times a year which was determined by the equinox. They needed to know when to plant and harvest. If our ancestors did everything right according to the calendar and they did not have a successful crop yield, they thought the gods must be angry. Weather, the shorter and longer days and phases of the moon led to many of the holiday beliefs. Legends fostered many holiday practices. We still want to abide by some of the beliefs to stay in good graces with our divine forces. We went from celebrating holidays, religious and not religious, to celebrating birthdays, death anniversaries, historic events such as 911 and the day JFK was shot. A little cave in Ireland was where the first inkling of a Halloween holiday was born.
            In town called Rosecommon in Ireland there was a cave referred to as the Rafcrocan cave. A rabbit hole served as the first small veil in which spirits could get through the veil. The holiday was referred to as Samhain. The veil was referred to as the Borwigan and it was very thin. Food offerings were provided for the dead. If they were a begger or spirit, still had to feed them. The Celtic cut up turnips as a symbol of this holiday and in the U.S. pumpkins were used because they were more plentiful. The spirits could not go to heaven or hell so the lighting of a jack-o-lantern would help the spirits to cross over. The veil is the thinnest on the evening of October 31^st and the day of November 1^st. All souls night is November 1st. Things were getting destroyed so trick or treat was developed to prevent the destruction. Our ancestors thought it was better to teach children by using things they feared.

            On a cheerier note, a holiday referred to as “Saturnalia” was created in Rome which was held from December 21-2. All people were considered equal no matter what economic class or position they held. The holiday was celebrated by holding feasts, gift giving and orgies. All the people in Rome were permitted to attend.

            “Dia de Los Muertos” was a Mexican day of the dead. All dead citizens would be honored on this day. Today, it is believed there are more spirits than there were in the past and this is because we are finally looking for them more. This holiday Christianized and changed to honor all former souls. The honoring of the dead made it collectively sacred.

            The fertility goddess “Eustre” was associated with the creation of the first Easter. Christianity introduced Jesus’ resurrection. The belief in the fertility goddess was where our ancestors bought into the belief of associating Easter eggs and candy with the Easter holiday.

            Yuletide celebrations were created for various reasons. The Norse people used candles to keep the darkness away and evergreen leaves were placed over doors to keep bad spirits away. In Scandanavia, everyone was supposed to drank from the same cup. The evergreen was known for its strength to survive harsh winter weather so it was believed to portray special gifts. The upper, middle and lower worlds or realms were honored by specific rituals. When a Yule log was burned the one from last year had to be used to ignite the current year’s log. Different trees were burned such as the pine willow and holly and stood for different beliefs. The nativity was created to honor when Jesus was born. The actual date of Jesus’ birth appeared to be not important. Constantine used Christianity to unify Roman empire in 336 A.D. Soltice was on the 23^rd, Christmas Eve was the 24^th, and Christmas on the 25^th, this gave the Romans more days to party.

            Saint Nicolas was a bishop in Myra, Turkey in 278 A.D.. He came from a wealthy family. Nicolas gave all his wealth away. He decided to help out people with special needs. He decided to celebrate Christmas by giving and sharing. He was honored as a patron saint. The Dutch created Cinder Claus and the U.S. called him Santa Claus. In Germany during the earlier years there was a character named Krampus. December 5^th was the day he appeared. He would snatch bad children and eat them. Krumpus had hooves and horns. In Iceland during the Yuletide season, Gryla wanted to eat children, so she would bring the children to the mountain he lived on and put them in her stew. The story “Twas the Night Before Christmas” was written in 1823. Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The Coco Cola company a while ago decided to promote a fat santa with a beard. We must not forget the Grinch. Christmas is celebrated in many different ways all over the world.

            The creation of specific holidays and the celebration of harvests and other special events were made possible by the creation of the calendar. We learned about the solstice and equinox from our ancestors. We know when to plant seeds at optimal times. Our Halloween beliefs were fostered from a small opening in a cave in Ireland to the Norsemen and their superstitions. When you prepare to pass out candy at your door on Halloween, think about why this practice started.

           

           

           

The Anunnaki

Aliens have been tormenting humans for many years. These strange beings have abducted, conducted experiments involving humans and have studied humans. Humans, who were taken by force in spaceships, have been probed and examined. Families lost loved ones forever and some of these unfortunate humans returned to their homes dazed and confused, feeling violated. Some had their memories erased of the abduction. Portals to other dimensions, invisible to the naked eye, serve as doorways for the strange alien beings. Some of these beings want to infiltrate the human population and live among them. They do so by taking over a human’s body by a possession process and devouring the human souls. Humans have never been alone on this vast planet.

Aliens traveled from Nibiru to Earth. Nibiru passes by Earth approximately every 3,600 Earth years and some of the beings from this planet hop to Earth via worm holes as a result of their planet’s orbit which brought their planet close to Planet Earth. They came to Planet Earth to seek gold to patch the atmosphere of their planet. These alien beings were referred to as the Anunnaki. They numbered approximately two million when they first arrived on Earth.

These alien beings were mischievous, creative, highly scientific and intelligent. They made a major impact on Earth and its inhabitants for thousands of years. The beings from Nibiru, supposedly a warring planet, brought the idea of war to the earthlings? They were half god, half human with serpent characteristics.  Some have appeared to have snake like eyes and forked tongues to human sensitives, people who can see the real identity of strange beings. They possessed many godlike abilities and appeared to be rather large humans with strange features. Their heads were oval and they had pointy chins. The back of their heads was long and oblong. Their eyes were large and their skin was a rather ashy color. Powerful muscles lined their torsos and arms. The Anunnaki’s advanced scientific knowledge, physical strength and size led the human inhabitants to believe they were gods sent down from the heavens to provide humans with various advancements such as the building of elaborate structures such as aqueducts and pyramids. Humans were taught how to work with metals to alter the shape by the use of metallurgy. Earth was a rather young planet compared to others in the universe. Because of their size and abilities, the Anunnaki were feared and highly respected by many of Earth’s inhabitants.

They developed a complex astronomical/astrological system which served as the manner by which life on Earth was ordered, as it contained information crucial to the life force of the planet, such as the movements and interrelationship of the sun and moon. Their calculations were based on the number six. Because of this elaborate system many were able to become sea-faring individuals and they were also able to plant and harvest using the rotations of the moon as a guide. Their original domain when they arrived on this planet for the first time was Sumer. Cuneiform tablets tell the history in great detail of these advanced beings.     

 “When the King of Heaven, Anu, came to Earth with his second and legal heir Enlil,

Enki was assigned the command of Africa and of the new gold mining center in South Africa. As for Enlil, he became the Lord of the Command in Sumer and established his capital and temple abode in Nippur – the first Mission Control Center for their space travels… They had human bodies and exuberant sexuality, although they seem to have been ‘giants’ compared to the earthlings.

            Enki roamed the wilderness and study the life-forms, and he realized that the Seed of Life (the types of DNA) on this planet was very similar to the beings on Nibiru. There had been an original collision of a moon of Nibiru (at that time a nomad planet) with the ancient huge planet called Tiamat that partly exploded, thus creating an asteroid belt, ‘the Hammered Bracelet,’ and the larger part being thrust in a new orbit nearer the sun, thus becoming our Earth. As for Nibiru, the planet was then captured by the gravitational field of our sun and started to orbit it. Enki realized why Earth life-forms and their DNA resembled that of Nibiru: life on Earth had been seeded by the original collision with Nibiru’s moon,” (Hardy, 2014).

            Enlil was different from his brother Enki. The story of Enlil and Enki resembled that of the Cain and Abel story in the Bible. One was evil and the other good. Enlil was the most extreme of Nibirian characters. He was violent, prone to anger, indignant, jealous, and very self-centered. Like many rulers on planet Earth, he fit the bill for filling the role of a tyrannical king.

            Enki, on the other hand, had a powerful mind and astonishing reflective abilities. He grasped the idea of anticipation and had a strong purpose. He believed the humans needed to be more knowledgeable so they could understand their tasks.  What added to Enki’s decision to create smarter humans from the apelike humanoids were the complaints from the Anunnaki who were working in the mines, mining gold. They complained that it was difficult and exhausting work. They would like the humans to take over the work.

            Gold, highly sought after throughout the history of this planet, lasts forever. It is a durable mineral which conducts heat and energy efficiently. The gold jewelry from the ancient Egyptian time still holds its luster.

Enki was the first god, son of King Anu, to travel to Earth according to the Cuneiform tablets. Enki had a vast amount of knowledge about astronomy, physics, and engineering. He did not possess the knowledge about biology, medicine and genetics. Ninmah’s expertise in these areas afforded the perfection of the Earth-human race derived from the DNA of their alien race.

“Clay tablets unearthed in Mesopotamia, and dating as far back as 3,500 BCE, state that for an immense time Ninmah was dedicated to the Great Work with her half-bother and consort Enki, and she had brought to life successive generations of a ‘mixed creature’ by the blending of their own DNA, that of Anunnaki Gods – that ones who had come down from Heaven to Earth – with their DNA of an evolved ape woman” (Hardy, 2014).

          They made primitive workers out of human species. They took the essence from a young male Anunnaki and added it to an egg taken from an ape woman. The fertilized egg was implanted into an Anunnaki woman’s womb to create a more intelligent human, as part of a genetic engineering project. They needed humans intelligent enough to follow their orders. According to Zecharia Sitchin, the first implants occurred approximately 300,000 years ago.

          Ninmah served as the head scientist for the life sciences. She arrived on Earth with a group of women scientists to supervise the medical and health matters for the Anunnaki and the seeding and growing of medicinal and health enhancing plants for the Anunnaki and humans. Ninmah had domesticated animals transported to earth and assisted with their adaptation of earth’s land and air. It was her way of introducing agriculture and farming, a method of providing a healthier diet for the Anunnaki and humans. 

The Anunnaki used the word “lulu” which was referred to the ignorant human slaves.

Enki was associated with procreation with the human species while Enlil wanted to wipe out the human race. Adam and Eve or Adamu according to the cuneiform tablets, were visited by a snake. People were led to believe the snake was evil. However, there were complications concerning this belief.  The snake told the truth and the god did not. Adam and Eve did not die according to the Bible. Some theorists believe that Enlil was the god and Enki was the snake according to the cuneiform tablets. He wanted the humans to have knowledge and Enlil did not.

Nowhere in the Bible did it state the snake was Satan or the devil. Assumptions were made. Vast similarities exist between the writings in the Bible to those in the cuneiform tablets. Temptation was introduced while the first couple were tending the garden. Their time after not following orders of the first god was cursed, especially the female’s. The awareness of their sexual organs was how the human seed was compared with that of animals. It was evident that woman was the first person to take a leap into self-awareness and consciousness. The ability to reflect represented the capability of making moral distinctions. Sex represents the survival of any species and it was considered immoral on many occasions by various people in power.

It’s difficult to say what came first, the chicken or the egg. People of some form or

another from Neanderthals to homo sapiens have existed on this planet for millions of years according to a multitude of credible sources.

Where the first humans came into play has been in question? The Anunnaki arrived on the Planet Earth originally to find gold to patch the atmosphere of their planet. The Anunnaki used their own DNA to enhance the humans’ intelligence to make them able to follow orders more efficiently. How much of the technology and scientific breakthroughs can be attributed to the Anunnaki?

Monsters, Ghosts and Goblins

A plethora of things that go bump in the night could be considered watchers from malevolent ghosts to shadow people. Fairies, dragons, psychic vampires, shadow people, ghosts, leprechauns, aliens, and so much more have been reported by many people. Their existence has not been scientifically proven.  However, many people keep encountering them. Most of these beings are watching us. As proven during investigations, a multitude of these beings on this earth plane and from the other side can see us, hear us and respond to us.            

Ghosts

            Spectral visions of ethereal images float through the air in many locations. Ghosts are the most common paranormal entity. At least a third of living people have encountered one. A ghost is a spirit of a dead human being. A variety of types of ghosts exist: the Halloween ghost – a white sheet with holes for eyes; transitional ghosts who almost always appear to family members, loved ones, close friends, and others they had a close emotional link; purposeful ghosts who seem to have a specific reason for returning from the grave; graveyard specters who exist in the vicinity of  cemeteries; entity hauntings in which one of more ghosts haunt a specific location; and replay hauntings in which a situation replays itself in the presence of people who are sensitive to such phenomenon.

            To explain further about entity hauntings, hauntings of specific locations usually follow a particular pattern. It is typically the end result of violence, madness, or a tragedy such as a large explosion killing many or a mine collapsing. Ghosts have appeared when there were mass murders such as when various forms of genocide occurred to wipe out tribal communities. Many people have visited Gettysburg to experience the residual hauntings. Residual hauntings are like replay hauntings in which situations that existed for the person who is a ghost when they were alive occur over and over again when they are dead.

            Replay hauntings are different from entity hauntings. The ghost will repeat a behavior such as walking through a certain wall every night. The ghost will not and cannot communicate with humans and will not respond to humans. They are caught in a time loop and they keep repeating specific behaviors on a regular basis.

            Purposeful ghosts appear because they have unfinished business or they want to motivate a living human. The ghost may have hidden a sum of money and wants the living human to know where it is hidden, or perhaps the ghost bids his or her children good night one last time. Another more dangerous ghost is a vengeful ghost who is seeking revenge and will not give up until the person meets what they determine as their deserved fate. Innocent victims may pay the price for wrongful doings, also. The ghost may seek revenge on any human that crosses its path.

            Graveyard ghosts occupy many story telling sessions and are associated with folklore. Graveyard specters may hover over their graves or float over the graveyard and they usually do not speak or make any sounds.

            Poltergeists need to be mentioned. These are manifestations of human emotions. If the house is filled with anger, yelling, sadness, frustration and other negative emotions, a poltergeist may be created due to the disturbing emotional build up, they are known as noisy spirits. If there is an escalation of the activity, this could prove to be dangerous. People have died as a result of the violence as a result of poltergeist activity.

            If a person dies a sudden and possibly a violent death, the dying person may be caught up in extreme pain, fear, or other extreme emotions associated with how they died which may trap the dead person between two worlds. The ghost may remain fixated in the pain from their death along with the feelings associated with the death process. Strong emotions can bind a spirit to a place and create an entity haunting. Many haunted places where human tragedies occurred may not be haunted by a trapped soul but by gruesome emotional patterns projected into the atmospheric and physical substance of the location (Greer, 2002).

The Little People

          Little people have appeared all over the world, some groups revere them while others fear them. Some Native American groups in the United States hold ceremonies in their honor. They are known to be mischievous. The little people will take items and hide them or move them around to confuse people.  In England, they were referred to as Gnomes.

          Descriptions and identities of little people are abundant. They have been called the lost souls of the souls of pre-Christian people, doomed to roam the earth until their demise. Others believe they are elemental spirits or fallen angels residing in a different dimension from humans’ physical world. The little people were also considered to be the last of the pygmy race. They could be direct ancestors of homo sapiens from the dwarf-like australopithecines line of ancestry and that is why everyone around the world have a belief in the little people. Needless to say, they have not caused harm to anyone only some frustration over lost items (Shuker,2002).

Demons

          Demons have upheld their evil reputation for a long time. Movies such as the Exorcist have portrayed demonic possession and exorcism as a reality. Catholic priests are often called upon to rid a home or a person of a demonic possession. The possibility of evil spirits or demons frightens many people and others believe the term demon is a Christian concept. Gnostics and Cathars during ancient times believed that evil was a fact of the material level of existence and did not exist within the spiritual realm. Demonologists would beg to differ. Many people from modern times make the claim that demons are the remnants of the fallen angels, stuck on the earthly realm because they were banned from the heavens.

          Too many sources such as television shows and literature sources demonstrate the reality that demonic entities do exist. Amy Allan, during some of her walks on the Dead Files show, reported she has seen demonic beings. Many cultures believe in the demon lore. Notably, many victims have experienced and reported what could be deemed as demonic activity. It has been reported that demonic hauntings have occurred if there has been a regular practice of evil magic such as a blood sacrifice or the use of tarot cards.

          Individuals can experience demonic obsession in which the person cannot think clearly about a personal topic of obsession and/or develop serious mental illness. Other supernatural entities can also cause obsessive behaviors: ghosts and elementals. Demons can cause families to fight with one another and even cause serious physical harm to each other that may result in death. They are known to thrive on chaos. Demonic possession can cause a whole host of physical and behavioral maladies from insomnia, agitation and roaming to screaming fits. Sometimes the demon will speak through the person in a raspy voice and use languages unknown to the possessed person. Demons are known to be extremely dangerous and disruptive to humans (Greer, 2002). 

         

Shadow People

                                                            

          Shadow people have been a part of human repertoire throughout history. They are eerie specters that appear during the night and cause absolute panic and often paralyze us with fear. Shadow people often look like grim reapers who are either tall, six to eight feet tall, or short, three to five feet in height. They may come in pairs or more or are seen in a singular fashion. The shorter ones often have red eyes and seem more dangerous than the tall ones. Their shadows can fall into an entire spectrum of paranormal occurrence. They have been known to change shape into beautiful apparitions to allure humans, invade bodies for temporary possession or transform into monsters. Most shadow people are attracted to humans but some are attached to pieces of land. There are various types of shadow people: benign shadows; negative shadows; red eyed shadows; buzzing shadows; angry, hooded shadows; and shadows that attack. They seem to appear out of nowhere and can disappear into thin air like a puff of smoke. These mysterious dark figures have terrorized people for thousands of years (Offutt, 2009).

Witches and Warlocks

            Witches and Warlocks work with magic and can cast spells, hexes and curses on people. Some witches work with healing and helping humans. Some are evil and some are good. The Harry Potter Series depicts good and bad witches and warlocks. There is a good witch and bad witches in The Wizard of Oz.

Pyschic Vampires

          Psychic Vampires come in many shapes and sizes, but the most common characteristic of all psychic vampires is that they feed off the energy of humans. Many types of psychic vampires exist: Parasitic; Antisocial; Narcissistic; Schizoid; Cyberspace; Addictive; Paranoid; Socialized and Ambivalent. Groups of Psychic Vampires can meet as a group and feed off unsuspecting victims in public locations. Many of these individuals can manipulate the minds of humans usually to cover up what they are up to, which is their feeding behaviors. They will convince their victims that they are on the up and up and their unsuspecting victims will be coerced into falling in love with the vampire. Their victims become tired, and oftentimes can end up with physical maladies such as gastrointestinal problems. More and more is being learned about this type of vampire who watches, stalks and feeds off of their victims.

Many types of monsters exist in this world. Where they origin many have speculated.

Shadow people may reside in another dimension and visit the human dimension to scare or feed off of humans. Demons may be fallen angels.  Ghosts are dead humans. The little people may have many origins from ancient ancestors to pygmies. Fairies, ghouls, goblins and witches are beings that may appear to us in their true form. Many other monsters including the ones listed in this chapter have been proven to exist, some we are not aware of, and they can watch us and raise havoc in our lives.

         

Big Brother and Cyber Stalkers

            Edward Snowden was charged with theft and violations relating to the Espionage Act after he pulled off one of the most spectacular heists in the history of spy craft.  Stores such as Michaels had their systems hacked into.  Information from customer accounts was stolen taking their identities, unsuspecting victims buying art and craft supplies.  By using machines to swipe  credit and debit cards at a lot of stores was putting customers at risk. The convenience of on-line banking and on-line marketing also puts customers at risk. Coleen Rowley, FBI agent, compared Snowden to Benjamin Franklin, who was postmaster general in 1773. He took advantage of his position to provide letters from American officials who were secretly collaborating with British authorities. 

            Edward Snowden was born June 21, 1983.  He was an American computer specialist and former employee of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).  He served as a former contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA).  He became international news when he disclosed thousands of classified documents to several media outlets; Google, Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, AOL, PalTalk and Yahoo.  The documents revealed operational details of global surveillance programs run by the NSA (National Security Agency) and other governments: United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, with the cooperation of a number of businesses and European governments.  The release of classified material was referred as the most significant leak in U.S. history.  Internet surveillance programs such as PRISM, MUSCULAR, Tempora, and the large collection of U.S. and European telephone metadata provided access to personal internet accounts.  Today, smart phones, computers with web cams and smart televisions can also provide access to personal internet accounts.

Snowden leaked information from these documents to “The Guardian” and “The Washington Post” while he was employed under a NSA contract.  Snowden was referred to as a hero, a whistleblower, a dissident, a traitor and a patriot.  These disclosures inspired debates over mass surveillance, government secrecy, and brought up questions about national security and information privacy.  Two court rulings brought into question NSA’s bulk collection of telephone metadata.  Snowden brought to the attention of the public how easy it was tap into private servers and spy on people.

            Snowden was regarded as a fugitive by American authorities who charged him with espionage. A reminder that espionage is the practice of spying or the use of spies, usually by governments to obtain political and military information. He was residing in an undisclosed location Russia and sought asylum in Europe.  Snowden also served as Rector of the University of Glasgow, a three-year post.  He also served on the “Freedom of the Press Foundation board of directors.  Some of the media outlets and politicians have called for leniency in the form of clemency, amnesty and pardon.  Otherwise his acts are being heralded by many (Scherer, 2013).

            We are being watched.  The cell phone in our pockets tracks our movements and stores that information with our service providers.  Email chats and text messages map our social relations and records our thoughts.  Credit card purchases demonstrate our spending habits and tastes.  Mass transit data bases record our travel when we board subways and buses.  The search engines we enter on our computers such as Google preserves our searches and the information can be linked to our computers for a standard period of nine months.  Media sources have been implementing methods to hook consumers to their internet sources such as Instagram that posts a glimpse of the next item of possible interest in hopes the user will continue to view the site to check the next item. Advertisements for Candy Crush portray that they want to create an addiction to their site by presenting the joy and excitement of playing the game.

            Cyber bullying has come to attention of many caring adults. Young people have sent incredibly inappropriate and sadistic messages to other young people. Instead of considering the source these impressionable viewers take the messages to heart. Young people, usually preteen and teenagers, are susceptible to depression and feeling like their world is crumbling down around them when they feel singled out and ridiculed. An article written by Jennifer Latson in Psychology Today explained the painful result of loneliness and how many people are faced with the dilemma. More and more people are faced with heart wrenching loneliness. With the addiction of all the social media modalities, comes a distance to other people. Was that the overall plan of such ventures? Was the plan to create a separation? Instead of talking on the phone, people are texting. People are gaming more, using Xboxes, computers and other devices. Making fake friends by video chatting and playing against each other while gaming. Existing in a virtual world can set any one up to being cyber stalked. Cyber bullies and cyber stalkers are lurking on the internet seeking their next victim.

            Young people have been approached by adult men who are pretending to be their age. They try to set up dates with the unsuspecting young people. Lonely and desperate, they agree to meet the perverts. An animal with a different name has involved human trafficking, which is happening all over the world and even in unsuspected places such as Michigan. People, usually young women, are being picked up and sold as sex slaves. It can be dangerous world out there everyone. Slaves have been doing the bidding of others throughout the history of he world and it is still happening.

            The progression of technologies continues to add more data to the public grid, which is up for grabs for those who know how to hack and obtain personal information.  Some of the technologies involved wearable computing devices that monitor our pulse and other things we are doing.  Surveillance cameras are rigged with facial-recognition software.  The Nordstrom and Apple retail companies are exploring technology measure and record how long you linger before any single display.  The possibilities are scary and our information provides for the whole enterprise of public businesses.  Our information is wanted and used in ways that are not always in our best interests and violates our privacy (Scherer, 2013).

            The next time you swipe your card at Walmart or Michaels for that matter keep in mind who has privy to that information.  When you look up things by using search engines, remember that Google and other companies may be storing your information for future surveillance or for profit interests.  Snowden brought to attention how much information was being stored by the National Security Agency along with other governmental and private companies.  We are being watched by the very people who are supposed to be protecting us.