THE ANGRY OLD MAN

EXTRATERRESTRIAL VISITATIONS

                 (this is a paper that I wrote while in college) 

     While the idea of extraterrestrial life existing in other parts
of the universe has gained respectability, the companion idea of
extraterrestrial visitations has not. For what ever their reasons,
be it religious, scientific or just plain human arrogance, very few
individuals will accept such visits as being realistic.

     Yet, throughout the history of mankind, we find numerous 
reports and accounts of just such visits. Many come to us 
cloaked in antiquity as legends and folklore. Others are buried 
in religious rituals and symbolism's. But regardless of the form, 
the content is consistently the same. An outsider came from 
the sky, in some sort of fiery vehicle, performed extraordinary
feats and then returned to the sky.

     In the following pages we will examine just a few of 
these reports and accounts. They are not meant as proof of 
such visits, only that such visits are a possibility. If the 
accounts are read with an open mind, a mind uncluttered 
with religious prejudices and mysticism and a mind that 
isn't afraid to ask, "What if", then such visits do become
a realistic option. But only if we break our old habit in dealing
with the unknown. Ignoring it or ridiculing it in hopes it'll go 
away isn't the path to enlightenment. Instead, when you read 
these accounts, ask yourself, what was the basis for that 
report? What did the writer observe? And lastly, ask yourself, 
what would your grandfather, when he was your age, say if 
he was told that men will walk on the moon, or  that you 
could travel around the world in just a matter of hours. It 
all becomes a matter of perspective.

     We can start with some of man's earliest records, where 
we can find an abundance of reports where 'outsiders' were 
involved. There are ancient Chinese manuscripts that tell of 
great aerial battles where crops were destroyed and seas 
rose and boiled. In India they have an ancient chronicle 
called the Book of Dsyzn that reports how a small group of 
beings came to earth many thousands of years ago. It relates
how they came in a metal craft which circled the earth several 
times before landing.

     The account goes on to tell how these beings divided and
fought. One group, in a huge shining metal vessel, rose into
the air. From this vessel they launched a great shining lance 
that rode on a beam of light and destroyed the group on the 
ground. The people of earth that were near this group at the 
time were burned and those who entered the destroyed city 
became ill and died. Soon after the victors left the earth in 
their metal craft.

     Are we reading about a laser guided missile and radiation 
sickness that took place thousands of years ago?

     From the same area comes other accounts of 'flying 
machines'. Throughout ancient Sanskrit writings there are 
references to 'vimans' which translates to a celestial car, a 
flying chariot. For example, the Vana Parva relates how the 
God Indra came to earth in his golden vimana to take Arjuna 
to his home city in the celestial regions. After traveling through 
blank space, they landed at Indra's home. One of the things 
that impressed Arjuna was the vimanas flying in all directions.

     Not far from India, in the Euphrates Valley, its reported that
a Jewish ethnologist, Y.N. Iban A'haron, discovered two 
remarkable documents. The oldest document is Babylonian and 
is believed to be 7,000 years old, forming a part of the Hakaltha 
(Laws) and containing the following passage:
   "The privilege of operating a flying machine is great. The 
knowledge of flight is among the most ancient of our heritages, 
a gift from Those Upon High"

     Such tales abound in our part of the world as well. Many North
American Indian legends speak of "Those Above" with reverence. 
The Piute Indians, for example, believe they were created in the 
sky by the Great Spirit, who sent a big thunder-bird to earth to find 
a place for his children to live. The Maya's, who we know very little 
about, tell in their bible, the Popol Vuh, about Gods who knew 
everything and examined the entire earth. These Gods, says the 
Popol Vuh, were white men who came from the stars.

     Do we discount the Mayas as uneducated savages. If so, then 
how do we account for the number of incredible calculations they 
left behind. One which placed the length of a terrestrial year at 
365.2420 days. Our best estimate, with the help of computers, 
place it at 365.2422, just a .0002 difference.

     These examples are just a few among the many ancient 
records that suggest that man has been visited. They are not 
cited as proof, only as examples that some evidence exist that 
suggest such visits.

     Another excellent source of material that suggest such visits
is the Christian Bible. This collection of manuscripts is filled with
incidents and events that suggest such visits. Most of these are
called miracles and are given a mystical quality. But we have to 
ask, are they miracles or are they eye witness accounts of off 
world visits.
 

     For example, take the numerous references to clouds. In Exodus 
14 it was a cloud that led the Israelites to the Red Sea. Elsewhere
 we are told of voices coming from clouds, and eventually, Jesus 
being taken up in a cloud.

     Were these really clouds, or is the term cloud used to describe
some unknown object floating in the sky. Has the many translators, 
over the years tended to explain the unexplainable in terms they were
familiar with. At that time the only objects that existed in the skies
were birds and clouds.

     One item every freshman English student learns is the complexity
of translating a idea from one language to another. One such example
is the account of Elijah and his whirlwind. A student of the bible, a
Mr. H.Lawrence Crowell, states that the Aramaic words 'ruach cearah'
should be translated as 'power blast' instead of 'whirlwind'. Along
those same lines, Dr. Rocca A Errico, another Bible scholar and a
founder of the Aramaic Bible Center, Inc. claims that most English
versions of the Bible contain vast number of misinterpretations. He
claims that the language of Jesus was Aramaic, while most English
translations are from Greek. This translation from Aramaic to Greek to
English has resulted in many misinterpretations of the idioms used
originally. One example he pointed out was the account of Lot's wife
turning into a pillar of salt. The Aramaic figures of speech relating
this was in reality an idiom for having a stroke.

     I've just scratched the surface of suggestive bible passages. 
Forthe open minded many questions remain. Who were the "Sons 
of God who mated with the daughters of Man" (Geneses 6). Why 
do we associate angels with wings. The Greek word for angel is 
messenger; thus the word angel is an essentially functional 
description. Did these messengers fly? Was the account of Elijah 
(Kings) an eye witness account of a space vehicle landing?

     These are questions that cannot be answered. They can only be
speculated on. But stripped of their mysticism, these accounts do
suggest early man had visitors.

     The argument for ET visits wouldn't be complete without at least
one example from the present. Like our past, the present has numerous
incidents that readily suggest such visits. The most widely recognized
incidents are the UFO sightings. Ask yourself, are they real or just
mass hallucinations.

     One modern day incident is the Betty and Barney Hill incident.
This incident has been written up in a book by John Fuller, (The
Interrupted Journey) so I'll just go over the highlights here and why
this case is so interesting. For a complete account of this incident
and it's investigation I suggest you read Mr. Fuller's book.

     It began on Sept. 19th, 1961 when the Hills were driving down
from the Canadian border to their home in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
They saw a large object in the sky which eventually came close enough
to see clearly. They stopped the car and stared at the strange vehicle.

     Suddenly they found themselves driving down the road, some thirty-
five miles from where they sighted the object. Neither could remember
much about that thirty-five mile drive or the strange object they had
seen.

     For some time after they couldn't sleep and was troubled. They
went to a doctor, who eventually sent them to see a Dr. Benjamin
Simon, who placed them under hypnosis to diagnose their problem.
Under hypnosis a strange story was revealed, one that the Hills were
not consciously aware of.

     They each told, in separate sessions, of being taken into the
strange ship. Betty related how she had been examined by the 
occupants of the ship. At one point, Betty had asked one of the ships 
occupants about a picture on the wall. She was told that this was a 
map of their route. The heavy lines marked regular trade routes, and 
the broken lines recorded various space expeditions. Betty drew the 
map under hypnosis.

     Now comes the part that makes this incident special and of 
interest.

     Some years later, around 1969-71, a school teacher named Marjorie
Fish constructed a model star map. She also attempted to name the 
stars on the drawing that Betty Hill had made.

     Mrs. Fish stated that no earth astronomer in 1961-64 (the period
Betty Hill drew the map) would have known the triangle background
stars existed as a cluster. At that time (1961-64) the star catalogs
contained erroneous information. It would of been impossible for
Betty to have drawn the map from any prior knowledge.

     Mrs. Fish goes on to say that the lines represent a logical
travel pattern to investigate all the best stars for life from ZETA
RETICULI, best star for life to the next best star for life, etc.
Also, all the stars suitable for life in the Psyche volume are included
in Betty's drawing.

     As a conclusion, Mrs. Fish stated that, "since we did not have the
data to make such a map in 1961 when Betty saw it, or in 1964 when
she drew it, it could not be a hoax. Since the stars with lines to
them are such a select group, it is almost impossible that the
resemblance between Betty's map and reality could be coincidental.
Betty's map could only have been drawn after contact with extra-
terrestrials".

     As stated at the beginning of this paper, the examples are not
to be taken as proof. Instead they suggest that such visits have and
are taking place. Only time will tell if the suggestions are correct.