![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
DEEP ANCESTORS
Jul. 24th, 2023 09:44 amMany of us consider our Ancestors for only a few generations back. Some people do go further back but few will go beyond early “cave” Ancestors. (Note 1.) But, why not consider the Ancestors of “Deep Time,” the Ones who lived before Humans? Since as a species, we would not have come into being without Them, We have their lives are encoded in our genes.
I learned more about these Ancient Animals after my traumatic brain injury. Because I have a connection with animals, Mother Tyrannosaurus rex helped me to recover from my accident. Like many people, I wanted to learn more from the Dinosaurs. However, They told me to trace my human line back in time, before coming back to Them. By going back 700 million years to the Precambrian Supereon, I met many of these Ancient Beings who have messages for the Living today.
Why should we listen to these Ancient Ones? Knowing Them would give us perspectives on life that Living Animals cannot. Furthermore, these Deep Ancestors connect us to our Earth and to the Other Animals who live with us. Also, the secrets of life lie within these Ancient Animals, from whom we can discover how we are a part of the Great Chain of Being. (Note 2.)
These Ancient Dead can help us to understand our Human Ancestors, and the choices that They made in their lives. Moreover, we can apply to our World today, their knowledge from their Lost Worlds. From Them, We can learn how the Past becomes the Future. Why did a Fish decide to walk on land? Why would a Primate walk upright? What further guidance will we receive from our Deep Ancestors?
Our Deep Ancestors show us how to take the long view of time. What may seem like a disaster in the short-run, will turn out to be an impetus to a significant change. To meet the challenges that They faced, these Ancient Animals transformed Themselves. They teach us that if we prevent change, we will become extinct.
What these Ancient Animals teach people is that “Extinction Happens.” (Note 3.) The Great Cycle of Life, Death, and Rebirth is played out on a grand scale throughout the Earth’s history. Extinction clears out everything to allow the next generation to come into being. New life will appear in the changed world, while the older life will shape-shift into something better. For example, after the demise of the Dinosaurs, the Mammals multiplied and flourished. Meanwhile, some of the Dinosaurs transformed into the Birds of today.
Life on the Earth was pushed to the edge of extinction at least five times. (Note 4.) The worst happened about 250 million years ago (mya) when 90 percent of life was wiped out. However, our Deep Ancestors survived the Great Dying of the Permian Period to repopulate the Earth. We, the Living today, are the result of their endurance, and ability to change.
Our Deep Ancestors are more than simply interesting animals. They may seem far removed from us, but we carry Them inside of ourselves, as a part of our DNA. We would do well to listen and gain wisdom from Them especially on how to adapt to the changing times.
NOTES:
Note 1: The tracing of human ancestry, from prehistory to the present, is not a linear process. At present, the fossil records are incomplete to accomplish this. Instead, paleontologists will zigzag from known fossils to known fossils, and guess at the gaps in-between.
Note 2: In Alchemy, the Great Chain of Being is that all beings are linked into a chain. Since there is a unity of matter, the transformation from one part of the chain to the next is possible.
Note 3: A mass extinction event occurs when there is a sharp decrease in the diversity and abundance of life on earth. This usually happens when undue stress is placed on living things because of a changing environment. The “official zoological definition” is the decrease of two to five taxa such as Classes or Orders. Generally, this means that at least ten percent of all families, forty percent of all genera (genus), and seventy percent of all species die out at one time.
Note 4: There were five major extinction events in the earth’s history. The most severe was the Permian-Triassic Event (258 mya). Known as “The Great Dying”, 57 percent of all families, 83 percent of all general, and at least 90 percent of all species died out. In addition, this extinction event ended the primacy of mammal-like reptiles and ushered in the Age of Dinosaurs.
The second worst extinction event was the Ordovician-Silurian Event (443 mya), when 27 percent of all families and 57 percent of all genera died out. The only mass extinction of insects occurred at this time. After this event came the diversification of land species and new ecosystems.
The other extinction events were the Late Devonian Event (19 percent families, 50 percent genera, and 70 percent species, 354 mya) when the trilobites disappeared. The Triassic-Jurassic Event (23 percent families and 48 percent genera, 206 mya) saw the end of large amphibians and many mammal-like reptiles. The well-known Cretaceous-Paleogene (Tertiary) Event (17 percent families, 50 percent genera, and 75 percent species, 65 mya) wiped out the dinosaurs and gave rise to the Age of Mammals.
WORKS USED:
Haines, Tim and Paul Chambers, “The Complete Guide to Prehistoric Life.” Firefly: Ontario. 2006.
Pianka, Eric and Laurie Vitt, “Lizards: Windows to the Evolution of Diversity.” University of California: Berkeley. 2003.
Turner, Alan, “National Geographic Prehistoric Mammals.” National Geographic Society: Washington D.C. 2004.
Various, “Prehistoric Life.” Dorling Kindersley: New York. 2009.
