Original subtitles

Everyone, everything has a story to tell.

Some of these stories never see the light of day...

Remain a secret forever.

My story, on the other hand, surfaced by chance about 15 years ago.

A tale unknown until recently...

A mysterious, thought provoking, extraordinary story...

Right on this tiny planet lost in space.

Enter Homo Sapiens - namely "The Cognizant Human",

who appears as the main character in this extraordinary tale.

But what does man, from a mystical and scientific perspective

know about himself?

What we think we already know, soon gets blown in the wind.

Some incorrect, others lacking details.

New stuff keeps bubbling to the top.

Old taboos come tumbling down,

human history is re-written at every step of the way...

until the next discovery.

Should we dissect the 4 million years of human evolution

on this 4 billion year old planet,

through Homo Habilis, Homo Ergaster, Homo Erectus,

we find that the contemporary Human's prototype goes

only as far back as 200,000 years to Homo Sapiens.

A tiny dot amidst a very long line of evolution.

But from our perspective,

that is when the game truly began.

Three pounds of grey matter inside a skull,

began to work and continued to flourish

as it has done with no being before.

From the first art work on cave walls, to farming of the land

and to creating cultures, eventually our brain implemented

its most important achievement around 5,000 years ago.

Putting spike on stone, man created writing.

Records started being kept, thus written history was born.

The Cognizant Human, stood almost idle for 195,000 years,

started passing along written records 5,000 years ago,

and as a result, took off like a rocket.

With the impetus of the Industrial Revolution, 200 years ago,

and the push of the Communication Age through the last 20 years,

this rocket eventually reached light speed.

But hold on a minute. I already told you.

My story challenges common beliefs.

It goes off the beaten track.

Taboos come tumbling down here, and egos get crushed under it.

The essence of my story goes back 12,000 years.

May I introduce to you

"The World's First Temple".

The quest of insight to this extraordinary finding,

took me to several well known authorities in their field.

Namely, German archeologist Klaus Schmidt,

Practicing Sufi Turkish Metin Bobaroglu,

and East Indian astronomer B.G. Sidharth.

Supporting experts will appear as we go along.

Let's begin with Klaus Schmidt, head of Gobeklitepe archeological dig,

who brought this all to light.

He works for the German Archeological Institute,

has made Urfa his home for the last 25 years,

overseeing excavations in this area.

Enter Klaus Schmidt and his version of Gobeklitepe.

We're excavating here since 13 years,

what we understood with all this work is that it's really a sanctuary site,

it's not a normal settlement site like other sites we know from this period.

Sites like Cayanu Nevali Cori in Turkey,

or like Mureybed and Jefr elAhmar in Syria.

These are settlements but here it's very different.

We have mainly installations which are not have been used for domestic life,

it's clear they have been used for ritual purposes, religous purposes,

they are temples when we define it with a short word.

So this site mainly consists of Stone Age temples.

Stone Age temples? Gobeklitepe? But where on earth is this place?

Stone Age temples? Gobeklitepe? But where on earth is this place?

It is 12km away from Sanliurfa, on top of a hill,

in the middle of the "Fertile Crescent".

With the life support of Euphrates,

it is considered to be the birthplace of agriculture

going back 7-8 thousand years.

Urfa, one of the most mystical locations in Anatolia,

is also known as the "City of Prophets".

Take the seat of Abraham, Eyup,

add the proximity to the old city of Harran,

and Urfa's place in the history of religion

becomes more than significant.

Balikligol "Fish Lake" is considered to be another one of

such mystical places.

There is a verse in the 21st sura of Prophets in the Quran,

interpreted as to be about Balikligol:

They said, "If you are going to do anything,

burn him and protect your gods!"

And We said, "O fire! Be cool and harmless for Abraham!"

By all religious books, Abraham is considered to be

the father of monotheist religion.

If we dissect his name; we make some interesting discoveries.

Brahma, the supreme being in East Indian doctrine.

Or the ABA- RA- HIM,

"Father of the People of Light" in old Egypt.

Phonetically, both bear great resemblance to Abraham's name.

We still have no idea how this follower of God, father of monotheism

was connected to Gobeklitepe,

only 12 km. Away from Urfa and Balikligol.

Let us find out how Klaus Schmidt came upon this

once in a lifetime discovery.

I've found it in 1994, it was not completely unknown before

but I recognized the site as a sanctuary site of the 10th millennium.

So we are here in a very exposed position, on top of the mountain,

highest place here in the region.

It was clear that they have chosen this place because of its visibility.

It is the importance of the location.

It was not hidden in valley or in the plains

but it was on top of the highest mountain,

visible from all sides.

In terms of date determining an archeological find,

the biggest support comes from chemistry.

A test, called Radiocarbon dating,

was implemented on some of the samples from Gobeklitepe.

The result: The oldest of temples which saw the light of day,

was built 12,000 years ago.

What we are excavating now is belonging to 10th and 9th millennium.

But we don't have the oldest layers maybe the oldest layers

is a little bit earlier than 10th millennium.

Nearly 12,000 years.

A whopping 12,000 years ago.

When put in the perspective, some 7,000 years before

the megalithic monument in England, Stonehenge was ever made.

Of course the question here is

how and why would nomadic cavemen,

hunter-gatherers, even before reaching the age of settlement,

contemplate such a monument?

Was the Homo Sapiens who supposedly spread out from Africa

some 40,000 years ago, different from the Human we know today?

Who is this Stone Age character and what was he capable of?

This question is directed at Prof. Mehmet Ozdogan,

researcher extraordinaire of this era,

and head of the Prehistorical Archeology Department,

Istanbul University.

They mostly traveled, fished, hunted and gathered food,

but did not produce any. They developed it for a long time.

On the one hand there is the biological evolution of man,

which includes the ability to abstract,

the development of dexterity and the nervous system.

Their natural habitat was going through constant changes.

Man's technology developed along with it

and they came up with more sensitive tools.

Around 14,000 BP, following the last Ice Age,

climate turned into what we experience today

and climate belts started switched zones.

In our region, Southeast Anatolia, where nature is very bountiful,

the physical environment developed in such a way that settled life,

and pulled ahead of the agricultural phase.

Point well taken but

even if settlement is born, Gobeklitepe begs to differ.

It is not a settlement.

When even agriculture is still a far cry away,

and scripture has another 7,000 years to come,

what pushes the Neolithic human to create

such a monumental sacred complex?

It was a big surprise because we didn't expect such a developed architecture

in the context with late hunter gatherer societies.

Hunter gatherer societies had been dominating the human history

in old Stone Age, farming was not invented

and the common idea was from that very primitive beginnings

civilized way of life has been developed here

in the Near East with the settled societies

and now we understand it's much more complicated.

It all boils down to this.

New information forces us to review everything we supposedly knew

about human history.

Starting with hunter gatherers, before concepts such as settlement,

agriculture and livestock farming even developed,

brought into existence such an architectural feat.

The preservation is really fantastic, not in every circle

The preservation is really fantastic, not in every circle

but especially in D, which is very well preserved.

This preservation is explained because in Stone Age times

these circles had been buried completely.

It had been back filled with a lot of material,

some hundred cubic meters of materials had been used to bury these circles.

Say again? Buried temples? Apparently so.

These people, went to great lengths to entomb these structures,

and by doing so, created a hill of 300 meters in diameter

as seen in this photograph, before the excavation began.

Maybe that's why they call it Gobeklitepe in Turkish,

which means "Pot Belly Hill".

Let's move from structural to spiritual.

To build a temple, the first thing one needs is faith.

Did we come across any evidence that symbolize

the "Faith system" adopted by these people?

We see structures that are totally different and specially built in nature

which can be considered as temples.

In terms of its interior design, building techniques etc.

They are totally distinct from the rest of the habitations.

So what we have here is a special temple,

which symbolizes the faith system, hammering this image into society.

Apparently,11-12 thousand years ago,

there already was a notion of building

common use temples in South East Anatolia.

Such as in Cayanu Halan Cemi and Nevali Cori.

The likelihood of Gobeklitepe having taken the lead in this,

is quite plausible.

This was the first temple complex in this area.

As a result, during the following millennia,

the same pattern and order as in Gobeklitepe

was seen at cult structures in settlements all around.

There are high stone walls, niches, and a mobile wall built with pillars,

and terraces along the walls where possibly people

were able to sit and watch the ceremony.

The base is made of waterproof materials

such as terrazzo, sand, and stone.

We can deduct that; a ritual was being performed with liquid.

Whether it was water or blood is open for debate.

The liquid ritual pattern repeats itself in Cayanu

Where we also found ducts and drains, serving the same purpose.

Same as in Nevali Cori or Gobeklitepe,

there are animal sculptures, reliefs and paintings

open to all kind of interpretations. These are quite new.

What we are talking here is

deep symbolism, stylized art, paintings and sculptures.

Not hacked or scribbled by an ordinary person,

but created by an expert craftsman in this field.

Apparently there was a well defined hierarchy in society,

which requires a long history.

Societal hierarchy? Symbolism? Rituals where liquids were used?

We'll get in to details later but first comes a left brain question.

Just how did they do it?

What tools did the builders of Gobeklitepe Temples

use to erect and carve such monumental structures?

The main tool had been flint, which is very common in this region,

in Gobeklitepe there are tons of flint tools,

it was a normal tool for Stone Age people.

With flint they could carve limestones very easily

and very well to make the reliefs and sculptures and so on.

Here are the tools we assume they built these temples with.

A magnificent achievement...

Carving colossal blocks of limestone - 40-70 tons each -

with these simple utensils...

Considering that these mono-blocks of rock- the T shaped pillars

vary between 4 to 6 meters in height.

Furthermore, the quarry they got these blocks from, is about 2 km. Away.

And how they got them from there to the temple site

is another mystery in itself.

Then let's question the architecture of this "First Temple" known to us?

Was there a plan to all this?

There are not only one temple, there are many temples.

We know it from excavations and from geomagnetic researches,

there are at least 20 installations which we should call temple.

Mind boggling...

At Gobeklitepe only 6 out of 20 temples

have been unearthed as of today.

The tip of the iceberg, one might say.

Down below another 14 waiting to see the light.

And they following a main idea,

there are two huge monumental pillars in the center of such an installation,

there are enclosures, enclosed walls surrounding them

and there are more pillars set in the enclosure wall.

So we have periods more of a stone circle than of a building.

And it's quite clear that monumental stone circles had not been roofed,

so there were no roofs, there had been open air installations.

These same era temples from 12,000 years back

unearthed at Gobeklitepe, show three different styles of form.

They have been categorized as B, C, and D with all different patterns.

For example, while the pillars at C form a spiral,

the same at D have an elliptical pattern.

The surrounding pillars vary in numbers.

The only similarity between the two, is the twin T pillars at the center.

What on earth do these T shaped pillars depict?

The center of the whole story is T shapes,

because we can understand that T shape as a stylized human being.

We can be sure because in some cases

we have the arms, we have the fingers depicted.

Do we have a stylized human being?

Is this T shape a human being?

And so we understand these stone circles

as a gathering, as a meeting of such stone beings.

Very importantly, these are surrounded by other ones

which are looking similar, which are smaller, lesser size.

This first gathering that laid the foundation stone

of uncharted human history apparently happened at Gobeklitepe.

Then, what do these pillars represent?

So on these stone beings we have very often carvings of animals

or abstract symbols in combinations in scenes.

Sometimes they are acting on this pillars.

The idea that this stone beings telling us,

or the carvings telling us stories about them, what's going on.

They are telling us myths of this time.

Symbolic statements of Gobeklitepe passing us data

from 12,000 years back.

The abstract symbols, as well as vivid animal carvings of the fox,

boar, crane, snake, spider, and bull.

The hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt,

to our knowledge the birth place of scripture,

also known as the "sacred signs", were formed of symbols.

When we study the word "symbol" from old Greek "symbolein",

this is what we come across:

"In the broadest sense, a symbol is a device,

used as an identifying mark.

A symbol is also the key to understand

and recall the transcendental and timeless values it represents."

But how does the human mind produce symbols?

I found the answer to that question in Istanbul.

Let me introduce Metin Bobaroglu.

Author of numerous books on Ancient Wisdom

and Islamic Mysticism.

He hosts a TV show on Anatolian Wisdom.

Gobeklitepe had a special mention on one of his shows.

Symbolic expression requires a high level of consciousness

or an evolved state of mind.

In the age of hunter-gatherer societies,

it is quite unlikely for mankind

to convert a symbolic thought into a cultural object.

We didn't have such findings before.

To make sense of archeological findings,

we have to comprehend the language of mythology,

which is all about symbolic expression.

We have to look at it through the eyes of mythology.

Apparently, people at Gobeklitepe left the messages for the future,

by staying truthful to their primal times.

Shall we call this attempt pre-scripture?

Sure it's not writing in the sense of science

which can be phonetically expressed,

true writing means we have language.

But here we have something different, we have symbols

which are expressing stories maybe.

Not in connection with language,

not in connection with phonetic terms but ideas,

they are expressing ideas, they are expressing stories.

Symbolically speaking, among the unearthed portion,

the most expressive and resourceful temple at Gobeklitepe

is the temple 'D '

Temple 'D' is surrounded by 12 stylized humans

in the form of T shapes.

The number '12' is special in mythology and the history of religion.

We will look into that in a moment.

But for now let us look at the pillar called T number 33

and the symbols engraved on it.

This pillar we have very interesting sequence of motifs

which are here in a vertical row,

which is much more than just a decoration.

These sequences of motifs reminding us

maybe Egyptian hieroglyphs.

It's clear we don't have writing here but we have symbols

which we can understand partially, partially not.

We have snakes here it's clear but here it's a symbol,

it's a H shaped design, we don't know the meaning of this symbol.

This symbol appears on most of the T shaped pillars

excavated up to now.

In fact, it appears on almost every pillar at 'Temple D'

Here an animal, an unusual animal for depictions,

an insect like animal, six legs and body of an insect well depicted.

Again three snakes here in the lower part, followed by a very small animal

looking like a sheep or a goat.

And again an insect with eight legs, being a clearly spider.

And this sequences both sides shows heads of snakes here,

but the bodies of the snakes are not on this face

they are at the other face of the pillar.

They are coming around the pillar and giving here a frame

to this sequence of motifs.

On the southeast face of this pillar we see crane motifs.

There are many cranes at 'Temple D'

as well as on the other temples.

The crane is a significant symbol in many cultures.

It represents the teachings of Hermes in ancient Egypt.

It also appears in the traditional Kabuki Japanese Dance Drama,

and in Australian Aboriginal Dances.

I have also come across this symbol

while researching Anatolian Alaouite Faith.

If we make a connection to present Anatolia,

with the 12 services still in progress,

we see the Cem Ritual,

as a protected worship in Alaouite Faith.

Man has a tendency to protect their beliefs, the names of God,

their ways of praying, their rituals, and the symbols attached to it.

They may sacrifice everything, but their faith.

To view the Semah Ritual,

which is unquestionably the cornerstone of Alaouite Worship

from only an aesthetic and authentic dance perspective

would lack vision.

In Alaouite Faith, Semah and crane are an integral part

of the soul's symbolism.

Crane figure is an integral part of today's Semah.

Crane is a monogamous creature.

The symbolism here points to; the evolved Homo Sapiens,

having reached a higher level of consciousness,

whom identified as gods and goddesses, were also monogamous.

Their polygamous existence belonged to their elementary past.

Those who were monogamist amongst polygamist people

were described as gods and goddesses.

All this plays out in the Semah

and is symbolized through the crane.

God... Goddess?

Were the T shaped representations of humans in Gobeklitepe,

the first ever god depictions in mythology?

The concept of "God" enters history a whooping 7,000 years later,

with the Sumerians and the Egyptians.

As the dean of Sumerology, Noah Samuel Kramer once put it,

"History began with Sumer, because they were the ones

who came up with the cuneiform script."

Resource literature claims that the Sumerians,

as well as civilizations that followed,

namely the Akkadians, Assyrians and the Babylonians

all show polytheistic character.

There seems to be thousands of gods.

However, when it comes to the pioneers of writing, the Sumerians,

my own research begs to differ.

The "Sag Ba Tablet" written in both Sumer and Akkad languages.

Let's hear what it says.

Incantation, Oath, Insurmountable Circle of Oath

Insurmountable Divine Circle of Oath

Heaven and Earth's Unaltered Circle of Oath

God is One, and cannot be changed

God and Man shall not be divided

Contrary to the belief of Sumerian polytheism,

the "Unity of God and Man" text also corresponds to the "Mutual Oneness"

or Tawhid concept in Islamic mysticism.

Could "the Divine Circle of Oath" be interpreted as the Zodiac?

The Zodiac is considered the "House of the 12 Constellations"

astronomically, and "Home of the 12 signs of the Horoscope" astrologically.

These same 12 constellations as seen from earth,

during its full cycle around the Sun, called a year

have always been a major topic in astronomy,

and are the essence of astrology.

The quest for deeper knowledge on this subject

claimed to have originated in China or Babylon,

or India took me to Hyderabad.

Here, I met B.G. Sidharth.

My name is B.G. Sidharth.

I'm the founder director of the BM Birla Science Center

in Hyderabad India.

This happened about 25 years ago.

And my academic background is that, I'm an Astronomer and Physicist.

Astronomy has brought me to the field of Astronomical Chronology

and Archeo-Astronomy.

Because many ancient scriptures have a lot of

astronomical content in them.

Particularly the Indian scriptures which go by the name of "Vedas"

and also the mythology that originates from them.

So this interest of mine has really brought me

to a lot of astronomical dates.

Astronomical events are like calibraters of time.

And these dates then have to be checked with hard evidence.

As you can imagine, Dr. Sidharth was a goldmine,

As you can imagine, Dr. Sidharth was a goldmine,

as far as this subject was concerned.

Let's find out how far back humanity's involvement in Zodiac signs go.

The Zodiacal signs may not be exactly as they are today

but nevertheless the Zodiacal signs were used at the dawn of civilization

which is described in the Vedas, the dawn of agriculture.

Because these would needed for calendar,

the twelve months of the year,

the twelve "Adhityas" as they also called,

the twelve pillars as they have been described in later mythology.

These are very very old indeed.

Was the "Heaven's Unaltered Circle of Oath",

namely the Zodiac constellations known to humanity much earlier

than the scientific estimates put forward today?

Ancient wisdom as well as religion was onto the number 12

more often than not.

The clock we use today is based on number 12.

The Chinese calendar evolves around 12 animals.

The Hittites who ruled in Anatolia 3,800 years ago had 12 gods.

12 imams are the cornerstone of Alaouite faith.

As per the Old Testament, The Israelites consisted of 12 Tribes.

And last but not least, Jesus surrounded himself with 12 Apostles.

With a 6,000 year headstart could ground zero for all these 12's

be the 12 T shaped pillars in Temple D at Gobeklitepe?

In this context, was Temple D the "Earth's Unaltered Circle of Oath"

in the Sumerian Sag Ba text?

At the center of this temple, on the front face of one of the

symmetric T's facing West, namely pillar T number 31,

we see the relief of a taurine head.

The bull head relief is on front face, about chest high.

The Bull, or Taurus is also one of the 12 signs of the Zodiac.

To my opinion, Zodiacal constellations are more meaningful

when identified with a certain cultural understanding.

Ahigher civilized consciousness,

such as esoteric Hermetic tradition for example.

There are thesis that indicate the Zodiac, birthdates,

and the genetic codes interact with the rays coming from the stars.

These lead to certain traits in character, depicted by animal figures.

That points out the possibility of the evolution

in genetic structure of the species.

For example, the fox depicted in any story

told by La Fontaine or Rumi represents more of a traits in character of man

than the animal itself. Same with the bull.

It is a symbol of fertility, the dawn of civilization,

the beginning of agriculture.

In correlation with the horoscope, it does not only

symbolize the power and knowledge towards working the land.

But, more so to the self productive consciousness of our mind.

This is archetypal.

One of the most significant cave paintings from 30,000 years back,

taurine figures interpreted as vivications of hunting parties,

can be found at the Altamira and Lascoux caverns.

Also in many other cultures,

we come across similar taurine imagery.

A wall painting at Catalhoyukin in Anatolia dating back 9,000 years

stands out from the rest.

Portraying another hunting scene, this same theme,

the introduction of "Taurine Cult Belief" can also be seen

at sacred grounds on houses within the settlement complex.

3,000 years later, the taurine symbol appears as a god in ancient Egypt.

God Hathor was portrayed as a cow,

where God Apis was depicted as a bull.

Both bearing similar significance.

The sun imagery between the horns is called the "Royal Crown".

The bull symbol also emerges in Mesopotamia

at the era of ancient Egypt.

All Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian gods are depicted with

bull horns on their heads, all with headgear bearing horns.

This portrayal frequently appears on cylindric seals

as well as reliefs and sculptures of that era.

In fact, some archeologists argue that the number of horns defines

hierarchy among the gods.

A key question emerges... Why are gods depicted in this way?

The answer can be found in the Old Testament,

the first book of the monotheistic religions.

As described in Exodus, chapter 32:

"When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down

from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said,

"Come. Make us gods who will go before us.

For Moses who brought us up out of Egypt,

we don't know what has happened to him."

Aaron answered, "Take off the gold earrings that your wives,

your sons and your daughters wearing, and bring them to me."

And all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron.

He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast

in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool.

Then they said, "These are your gods, O Israel,

who brought you up out of Egypt."

In my opinion, the answer as to why the Israelites sculpted a calf

for the deity, instead of a lion or camel,

lies in the depiction of gods in Mesopotamia.

Research took me to Michelangelo's unusual Moses sculpture.

In this imagery Michelangelo puts two horns on the prophet's head.

This was later decoded as a word play.

The word "Keren" referring to horns in Hebrew has a parallel meaning,

and comes from the same word origin as "Koran".

Translation: Shining, glowing.

Synonymous wordplay can also be found in Sanskrit,

an ancient Indo-European language.

The word "Usya" has a double meaning of both

"Horns" and "Shining".

"Glowing" and "Shining" are concepts related to Jesus.

It has its origins both in the adjective of "Messiah",

and in depictions of the halo above Christ's head.

It seems in all doctrines, the bull is unquestionably the symbol of

enlightenment, illumination and shining.

This is common in all ancient traditions.

Take for instance the first letter of the alphabet, "A" or Alpha.

It is the bull, with its horns.

Take the letter "B" in Islamic mysticism

as in "Bismillah-ir-rahman-ir-rahim".

The prophet Ali states "I am the dot under the B."

It depicts horns, points to Dhul-Qarnayn.

There is a dot under the bi-horns.

Observing the structure of the brain, specifically the hypothalamus,

the black dot behind the nasal passage,

it gives us an idea about the letter "B".

The life energy is often called as sexual energy.

No, this term named by its function.

For example what term does Freud use? 'Libido', which is life energy.

When used to procreate, it turns into sexual energy.

But used in conjunction with awareness, it is Kundalini energy.

It is conceived as a snake coiled up in the spinal root.

People involved in mysticism, elevated their own vibrations

and the resonance of their consciousness with meditation

have experienced this.

Kundalini means "that which is coiled" in Sanskrit,

is associated with the snake.

This particular yoga discipline is aimed

at the practice of awakening this dormant, coiled up energy.

Evidently, the snake plays an important role in symbolic expression.

This ancient symbol, going back all the way to Adam and Eve,

and the emblem of medicine, also depicts change,

because of the frequent shedding of its skin.

So what can we deduce from the snake motifs at Gobeklitepe?

Most popular are the snakes.

But the snakes are sometimes in the groups,

you don't have only one snake but three or more.

So the number of the snakes is very high.

The snake symbol is really interesting.

We see it in prophets. Take the staff of Moses.

We read it in both Quran and Torah.

It turns into a snake and back to wooden staff.

When asked by God, in the Quran, "What is it you are holding?"

He says "This is the staff I cut from a tree, with which I herd my sheep,

and protect myself."

In the Quran, Moses and his staff come up in several suras,

recounting the same story.

Sura number 26: Moses said to them: "Throw what you are going to throw."

They threw their ropes and their sticks and said:

"By the mighty Pharaoh, we shall certainly be victorious".

Then Moses threw his staff

and it swallowed up all the falsehoods they have cast.

And the magicians were thrown down prostrate into prayers,

They said: "We believe in the Lord of the Worlds".

In Islamic mystic literature, the staff represents

willpower as it does in all esoteric doctrines.

To maximize the willpower in the human constitution,

and to raise it to the state of divinity,

absolute power to rule others, as in this case shown

symbolically by guiding and herding sheep.

Or to create a preeminent body to rule the inner animalistic qualities.

The snake represented here by the staff, has to rise as the snake

did in the desert, per the Old Testament.

In old Egypt, the Pharaohs carry a cobra on their head gear.

The prevailing symbol we come across when studying

ancient Egyptian wall paintings and frescos, is the snake.

Symbolized in a number of different categories with varying objectives,

the snake is mostly seen on the foreheads of gods and pharaohs.

Emerging from the forehead, also called the "Third Eye",

symbolizing higher consciousness

the snake is frequently associated with the god Ptah

and other gods in ancient Egypt.

However, in archeological circles,

the consensus rather is that the snake does not represent

consciousness at all.

Lets get some clarification from one of the foremost authorities

on Egyptology.

I'm W. El Saddik, director general of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Snakes and cobras were worshiped in Ancient Egypt for protection

and also to avoid the danger of the snakes and cobras have

or even the scorpion.

That's why from the very beginning the snakes were depicted.

One of the main characteristics of symbolism is multi-expression.

Therefore we can assume that the snake indicates characteristics

such as protection, change, time, and eternity.

Also symbolizes the awakening of the coiled up consciousness.

Then, is it too far fetched to think that the humans,

who have reached a higher level of consciousness,

are depicted in this way?

Human intelligence is a divine light, a cosmic energy.

And if we associated spine with the snake,

then this energy has to be reared up, awakened.

In the Quran this is called "akimus-salat",

namely "Revive the prayer". "Let the energy rise".

While taking all of this into consideration

interpreting the snake imagery at Gobeklitepe

is somewhat complicated.

While most of the snakes on the T shaped human depictions

move downward, some move just the opposite way,

upward.

Was the awakening of this potential energy inside the human

Was the awakening of this potential energy inside the human

eventuate 12,000 years ago? We do not know.

However, what seems to be clear is that there was an organized gathering

within those 20 temples at Gobeklitepe.

Temples built long before concepts such as settlement

and agriculture were adopted by hunter gatherers.

1,000 years after its construction, they had been buried,

and a mythological tale is embedded in animal depictions

and abstract symbols.

Let's dig deeper into this fascinating story by going back to India

and letting B.G. Sidharth take us through a crash course on Vedas.

The Vedas are the oldest surviving literature in the world.

And they are a big mystery,

because nobody has really understood the Vedas.

There is no clear interpretation of the various hymns.

Some scholars in the past

interpreted it, trying to fit it

into some historical perspective that they have.

What they basically try to prove was that

the Vedas originated around 1,500 BC.

But this was a conjecture, they said "You know it is before Buddha,

it's pre Buddhist, so it must have taken about 1,000 years

to compose these hymns. So 1,500 BC.

But really speaking 1,500 BC was just a lower limit.

They could be 10,000 BC.

But how does Mr. Sidharth interpret the Vedas?

Now my reading of the Vedas was completely different.

I find that the most consistent interpretation of the Vedas

comes from not religion, not philosophy but astronomy.

And what is the context?

The context is the calendar.

When human beings began an agricultural life style,

then they needed a calendar.

And for the calendar they have to look at the sky and get some data.

This data has to be refined more and more.

It's here that a meaningful interpretation of the Vedas comes.

What we are facing here, is a product of intellect, it was assembled by those

who lived 12,000 years ago and purely just studied the sky?

Then the question begs.

Does the pattern, the line up of these temples,

lead us back to astronomy?

Why all of the temples are facing south?

Well you see, there could be the significance that the winter solstice

takes place when the Sun is low in the South.

This could facilitate observations around winter solstice,

winter time, 21st of December.

Around that time...

Perhaps it was a very important time,

it was beginning of the year in ancient Indian traditions.

Even today first January is after winter solstice,

so it could have something to do with that.

And we must remember that Orion and Sirius,

they appear in that part of the sky.

I should say that Orion is in fact associated with 10,000 BC,

the events that took place around that time.

The Orion constellation and Sirius have a great significance

for different cultures around the world.

One such calendar stands head and shoulders above the rest,

a sacred calendar used in ancient Egypt

based on the initial rising of Sirius; then called Sothis.

Researchers such as John Anthony West and Graham Hancock

have the opinion, that the Orion Constellation and Sirius

have had a great impact on the construction of famous Sphinx at Giza

and the Great Pyramid.

At Gobeklitepe we are unable to reach such conclusions yet.

However, if we want to draw parallels with astronomy

then perhaps one of the 12 pillars surrounding Temple D

namely pillar number 43, with a myriad of symbolic depictions

could be of assistance through some of its motifs.

Although a part of it is still underground,

the exposed part shows a bird, carrying a sphere on its wings.

Exactly beneath that, we see a scorpion.

Again this could be really a symbolic representation

of something in the heavens.

For instance in this particular picture there is the scorpion,

there is also something that resembles a swan.

We know that the Milky Way, the whitish river like

band of light in the sky

begins near scorpious, the Scorpion, heavenly scorpion,

and passes through the swan. Cygnus the swan.

And that has been mentioned in Indian literature

as the Goddess Saraswati of the river Saraswati riding a swan.

In ancient Indian literature symbolically the Sun is described

as riding on a bird.

Perhaps this is a depiction of the bird carrying the Sun with it.

Numerous examples of the Sun being represented as a winged disc,

were already found in Anatolia, Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt.

What are the odds for the depictions on this pillar being a forefather

of symbolic celestial expression.

Quite high, one might say.

Cosmic dust of the Milky Way, the Sun, Scorpio...

but there are other symbols attract our attention.

For example, we don't have a clue of these three signs

that resemble a basket or a padlock.

On the other hand, the H shaped, twice used

symbol to the right, we have seen before.

The most fascinating image we have yet to come across is down below.

A decapitated human image with a bird portrayal next to it.

A similar figure was found at Catalhoyukin,

dating some 3,000 years after its first appearance at Gobeklitepe.

But the interesting part is that this figure was also associated

with a bird, the same as at Gobeklitepe.

And it does not stop here.

There is an another remarkable aspect.

While all the figures on the pillars, surrounding Temple D,

face inward towards the two T shaped pillars at the centre,

only these two figures face outward.

A decapitated human having an erection.

Is it too far-fetched to interpret this as an immature human

with no intellect, succumbing to his primal carnal urges?

Lets move on...

And see what other pillars of Gobeklitepe

exhibit other human imagery.

Yes, we have several sculptures depicting humans

but in the reliefs we have only two.

First we saw reliefs are always depicting animals,

for some years this hypothesis was working, animals or symbols.

But since 2006 we know there although can be included humans

and now in the enclosure F which we excavated last year,

again a human appeared.

The most amazing of such sculptures, the Urfa Sculpture,

was found at Yenimahalle region of Urfa.

This is the oldest human sculpture ever found.

Let me draw your attention to the two stripes on the chest,

pointing downward.

These things are some ornaments, some bracelet it's wearing,

so we have a lot of beads in our findings,

so it's a bracelet made of such beads.

A bracelet?

The same pattern appears on the T shapes in Temple F.

Do these point towards the hands seen below?

By the way, what do these hands represent?

It holds the phallus in its hands.

The hand position is it seems it's holding it's phallus

but it's not completely clear.

As we can see, the hand position on this particular one is not clear.

But referring again to the hand position, how about the other

larger sculpture found at Gobeklitepe.

It has like this.

Interesting, isn't it?

All the T shaped humanlikes in Gobeklitepe are illustrated

exactly with the same pattern in hand position

as these later dated sculptures.

Interestingly, there is a close resemblance to the

Islamic prayer stance, where the hands are folded

on top of each other.

This, we also come across in Tibetan, East Indian,

and Ancient Egyptian cultures.

Followed by the the Islamic culture, prayer stance hand beneath the belly,

indicating a meditative, withdrawn state of mind in the sense of worship.

An experience where the man's innermost powers

have started to rise and take over.

On the other hand, there is no portrayal of the mouth.

There is no mouth, that's true, that is a funny thing.

In Gobeklitepe we have a head also over life size

which quite clearly have been part of such a statue again no mouth, depicted.

The absence of mouth might be a taboo.

To comprehend something that was created by man

12,000 years ago is somehow tricky.

Especially when it has symbolic connotations.

Lets take another look at Temple D

which is surrounded by 12Tshaped pillars stylizing humans.

Which is surrounded by 12Tshaped pillars stylizing humans.

One of the concentrical pillars facing east exhibits two other symbols

at chest level.

One we have seen before, the ubiquitous 'H ' shaped symbol.

Looking at it frequently, it seems less and less of an 'H ' to me.

The image I see, however, looks more like two 'T 's holding hands.

Just like this.

Right below this 'H ', there is the other symbol.

A symbol we had come across during research.

Could this be the forefather of ancient Egypt's "Royal Crown" symbol?

Let's explore use and meaning of this symbol in ancient Egypt.

The solar disk is symbolizing the Sun God.

The Sun God was worshiped from the very beginning

in the Egyptian history.

That Solar Disk crown is not for people or for the Kings,

it is for the Gods and the Goddesses.

So, we have something akin to a Solar Disk Crown,

exclusive to Gods and Goddesses.

Then what is this crescent underneath? The Moon?

The Moon is a crescent moon, very thin moon, the Sun is symbolized

by a circle on top, with the dot inside.

Now we know that an eclipse of the Sun takes place just at new moon,

when the Moon is even smaller than a crescent,

when the Moon comes and covers the Sun.

So this would be a reference to an eclipse...

In fact, this could also be a sculpture of the very eclipse

that we were talking about "Tripurari" eclipse which took place

at the same place very near that.

"Tripurari" meaning "Three Cities" in Sanskrit...

is an important symbolic expression in Vedas.

Let's get some insight from Dr. Sidharth.

There were three cities,

one was made of iron, another was made of silver,

another was made of gold.

And these three cities were floating in the air.

Well you can imagine what they are.

Because the Earth is associated with iron, silver with the Moon

and golden with the Sun.

So the three were going in the air

and one of them was occupied by what are called "Danavas",

very wicked people we might say.

And so they had to be somehow they had to be subjugated.

So God said, Shiva said, "Ok I will do it,

but I will do it with only one arrow

and only at one instant of time".

And that instant came...

...and the city was destroyed.

So it clearly refers to an eclipse which occurred when the Sun

and the Moon were in the constellation of Pushya.

In my book also I had written that this would go back to 10,000 BC,

because we have astronomical references to that date.

The solar eclipse is one of the most dramatic natural occurrences

humans experience.

The first historical record of a solar eclipse goes back to 760 B.C.

King Barrakib of ancient Syria

made sure that this natural phenomenon was recorded

by engraving it on a sculpture, later found in Zincirli, Anatolia.

Such records are found on Babylonian and Assyrian reliefs.

Once again, we cannot help but ask,

has "Gobeklitepe Solar Eclipse Prototype"

been left as a message for the future?

And as the Sun and the Moon embrace in heavens, do the two T's

by holding hands, mimic the same on Earth?

The two T shapes in the center represent

the male and the female elements.

The Sun and Moon with two opposite 'T's are associated.

Figuratively, this male-female theme symbolizes unity, the fountain of life.

Furthermore it depicts that the male-female element is

the source of creation of the universe.

It exists in all its aspects,

from the subatomic level, to the largest galaxies.

This collaboration of male and female, negative and positive poles,

from electromagnetic fields,

all the way to the organic level creates life,

and is the source of the movement.

The Moon points to the female, and the Sun to the male element.

It seems clear that the male and female elements are symbolized

by the two central T's holding hands, both Sun and Moon in a solar eclipse.

All in all, what is the message here?

The quest for the first recordings of male and female elements,

took me back to the Sumerian texts.

The "Cattle and Grain" text is about a Sumerian legend.

It mentions a certain mound called "Du.Ku",

which was also interested Klaus Schmidt as well as me.

Funny story this Du.Ku story, it's not so popular

but I found this story in a book about Sumerian gods and spirits.

The mound of Du.Ku was mentioned there,

the Anuna gods, the anonymous gods without names,

on this mound agriculture had been invented.

In the "Cattle and Grain" text, the mound where agriculture

and livestock farming granted by gods to humans, described as follows:

In those days Enki says to Enlil:

"Father Enlil, Lahar and Ashnan,

They who have been created in the Du.Ku

Let us cause them to descend from the Du.Ku"

At the pure word of Enki and Enlil,

Lahar and Ashnan descended from the Du.Ku

For Lahar they set up the sheepfold.

Plants, herbs they present to him.

For Ashnan they establish a house,

Plow and yoke, they present to her.

Lahar, standing in his sheepfold,

a shepherd increasing the bounty of the sheepfold is he.

Ashnan, standing among the crops,

Amaid, kindly and bountiful is she.

Are the temples of Gobeklitepe behind the legend of Lahar and Ashnan,

which has its origins in Du.Ku?

Perhaps, this myth passed from generation to generation,

survived for 6,000 years.

Perhaps Sumerian legendary gods were basically humans

with high consciousness, displaying alternate awareness

having already reached a more developed level of evolution.

Technically speaking, were those the ones leaving us these messages?

So they do appear to be two types.

Now one possibility is that perhaps like we have Neanderthals

and others, there could have been more advanced

and less advanced species.

A hint for this comes from Ramayana,

where you have humans but you also have "Vanara" or semi-human,

now today we say that this means monkey.

But they could also mean some sort of species or even cave men,

you know belonging to an isolated region

which did not advance to that extent.

So it is possible, that is happening even today,

there are pockets, for example in Andaman Nicobar islands

where you have this "Ongi" and other tribes,

who are right from the days of bushman,

living side by side very advanced airports and naval ships and so on.

So it is definitely a possibility.

Obviously so. Then again, archeologists take the view

that there was a structure of two worlds:

The rulers and the ruled.

The main figure here seems, a certain group had the power

and was in fact governing this community.

Running the community in the name of the holy existence

and to carry one's self to a certain leadership status.

This is a new system.

Gordon Child once put it; "What ruins everything is,

someone claiming God's land saying "This land is mine"

and the rest says "Yes, it is yours".

And claimant goes on to say "God gave me the authority

and you will work for me" and everybody believes it.

This happens here.

And who might that be?

A tribe leader, a cunning priest, a witch,

someone experiencing positive hallucinations.

That's another story...

Someone who experiences "positive hallucinations".

This might explain the large mortars found at Gobeklitepe.

Does it look plausible that these were used for food preparation,

by hunter-gatherers?

Does it make more sense that these large devices,

found inside the temples, were part of ceremonial rituals

which took place here?

Maybe the main purpose was food preparations.

But I wanted to add that we can expect something else had been existing there,

like drugs for example. Because we know that

all societies in the world have some drugs,

different plants or different roots, or mushrooms and such a things.

So we can expect at Gobeklitepe also something had been existed

which we don't know.

So we don't have only to ask "Was it good for daily food?"

But also we have to think about other things.

Especially when you are at the site where ritual things

had been main part of the story.

Thinking of rituals where natural supplies were used in abundance,

shamanic practice comes to mind, as seen in other parts of the world.

Judging by that, can we draw to conclusion

that it was the shamans who conducted the rituals

and connected with the hereafter?

It is a question. So we can expect in Paleolithic period,

shamans had been existing into the site.

There were not only hunters and gatherers but also a group of people

later been called as shamans.

Now the question is what happened in Gobeklitepe,

there are still at the level of ecaterian society with shamans

and so on or are there already little bit different,

maybe developing hierarchical society.

Now the question is it on the level of shaman

or is it changed to the priests.

Priest that we know from the later period of Orient or Egypt,

a class of priests.

Isn't it odd to use the phrase "Priest"

for someone as back as 12,000 years?

I don't like to use this term but we cannot be sure about it,

because we don't have the written sources which we have later,

so we just have the stones.

To examine the most crucial piece of evidence

on the subject of priesthood, we go to the Urfa Archeological Museum.

I am holding here, the head of a statue that was rescued from

one of Nevali Cori's temples,

a Neolithic Age settlement now resting at the bottom of a reservoir.

Erected circa 500 years after Gobeklitepe,

this temple also has 12 T shaped pillars similarly lined up.

The structure reflects the same characteristics

as the ones in Gobeklitepe, with one significant distinction.

This particular piece in my hands.

The remainder of the face was destroyed.

Let's take a look at the back of this original sized head

and we see a snake slithering upwards.

It seems it belonged to someone who has reached

a higher level of awareness by the awakening of his Kundalini energy.

To me that is no mystery at all.

Though to many archeologists that proves to be a great puzzle.

The moment we correlate the civilization with the Vedic times,

that head clearly represents a Vedic priest.

Even today in India Vedic priests are like that.

They have a clean shaven head and there is a pig tail,

a snake like a pig tail right in the back of the head.

The portrayal of a Vedic priest in Nevali Cori, increases

the odds of an existing clergy at Gobeklitepe.

A class which was characterized as gods in later cultures.

The Ice Age have come to an end. The climate have changed.

Then the question begs, following the part of geographical changes

12,000 years ago, where did they come from?

The story of Atlantis.

Atlantis also was supposed to have been there at that time.

We have only a description from Plato,

who met an Egyptian priest who told him this.

But if you really look closely it all refers to a civilization

that existed around that time.

The lost continent of Atlantis.

An enigma that originated with the Greek philosopher Plato,

and has remained so for the last 2,400 years.

Plato raises the subject of Atlantis in two of his works:

"Timaeus" and "Critias".

Circular in shape and separated by canals,

this elusive civilization, according to Plato,

had a monument right at the center.

From Plato onward, many others dug deep into this subject

and the list is long.

But most significantly, researchers such as Immanuel Velikovsky,

James Churchward, Charles Hapgood,

Edgar Cayce, Graham Hancock and Rand Flemath

have spent lifetimes trying to uncover this myth,

with no scientific evidence to back it up.

Up to now, no one has a clue as to where this lost continent might be.

Now let's go back to the holy scripts and look for clues on this subject.

Maybe, that in previous holy scripts, some cultures disappeared

and that in the same environment a new culture arose.

Maybe, today in Anatolia we are finding evidence of these long lost cultures.

Perhaps, this is one of those civilizations,

such as the Ad tribe as cited in Quran.

Or one of the tribes that disappeared with the Great Flood.

Quran states that Eber was sent by god as a warning

to the people of Ad.

A people who because of the powers they possessed,

put themselves above all else.

...And remember when He made you successors after Noah's people

and gave you a stature tall among the nations...

And certainly We had established them in a prosperity

and power which We have not given to you...

Then as to Ad people, they behaved unjustly proud through the land,

and they said: "Who is superior to us in strength?"

Quran also mentions other traits of the same people...

Do you build a sign on every high place to amuse yourselves?

And do you get for yourselves fine buildings

in the hope of living therein forever?

But if you turn back, then indeed I have delivered to you the message

with which I have been sent to you,

and my Lord will bring another people to succeed you.

It is affirmed that civilization

has had new beginnings more than once.

According to one hypothesis, we are living in the twelfth civilization.

Fortieth, based on another.

If we correlate the disappearance and rebirth of civilizations

to science and physical information, then it is quite plausible.

Based on calculations such as the age of the Sun,

the time it travels to and from the heart of the galaxy

and in light of evidence of a black hole at the centre of the galaxy,

that our planet has gone through the doomsday scenario many times,

as the Sun approached there, during which civilizations disappeared

and new ones sprouted later on.

So in terms of perception, could the human mind compare

timelessness of the universe with the average human lifespan?

Timelessness of the universe with the average human lifespan?

Commenting on what might have existed

and occurred before Gobeklitepe is as hard as predicting aftermath.

Where did the builders of Gobeklitepe go?

And how did they resume their rituals?

I guess, when animals such as sheep and goats

were domesticated and formed flocks, people moved away with their herds.

The ruling class stayed, while the ruled took off.

This 40 cm. clay figurine was found in a Neolithic settlement in Adiyaman,

which was built about 2,000 years after the temples were buried.

This site is just 70 km. Away from Gobeklitepe.

Could this small statue be a clue to the fact that rituals have carried on?

Perhaps we can draw the same conclusion

from a clay vase found at Catalhoyukin.

On this vase we see a human figure with a T shaped head.

Can we deduce from this that 3 millennia after the temples

were buried at Gobeklitepe,

there were people still keeping the belief system alive?

Paintings found on the walls of a holy site at Latmos,

dating 4,000 years after Gobeklitepe was erected,

give us a similar impression.

Could the humans depicted in these paintings

actually be the Gods of Gobeklitepe?

The most similar complex to Gobeklitepe is

no doubt the one on the Spanish island of Minorca.

Built 5,000 years after, it looks exactly like Gobeklitepe.

But there is neither a depiction nor a symbol on any of the T pillars.

Could this site, Torralba den Salort be interpreted

as the living remnants of a belief system long lost?

Why should we be aware of all this?

Why should we be aware of all this?

Because I believe that all of these pushes us to revise everything

we knew about humanity up to now.

It opens up new scientific doors to explore.

Otherwise we will remain prisoners of the doctrines

that have been fed to us until now.

This way, we will have a chance to review everything we know so far.

But final solution, we don't have for the moment,

it's an argument to excavate more or to excavate other circles

not just to have more stones, and more pillars and all

but to understand better what is the story

this Stone Age people wanted to tell

to the visitor or the observer with this images and pictures.

There is still so much we don't know

and cannot decipher about Gobeklitepe.

From what the rituals really meant to why were the floors waterproof.

What went on in there?

Why were they buried a thousand years after construction?

There are a lot of questions with no answers

as to who ran the show.

I actually predicted, that there would be a civilization of this date,

which would be a Vedic civilization.

We can be certain of this though.

Undoubtedly there were the "ones" with higher awareness.

Worship was a crucial part of their existence.

Ultimately they left us the end product of their consciousness.

With every passing day,

another layer of the mystery gets uncovered.

As long as we keep an open mind to the unknown,

there is still a lot to be discovered and learnt from what comes out

from beneath the ground of Gobeklitepe.

This first temple, on this tiny planet,

in our vast universe...

in our vast universe...

To my mother