Posted: July 10,2020
The 12th Planet
Review
Is this our real past history? This book makes a compelling argument.
This book has impacted me in several ways. The first is by expanding my "historical horizon". To me the ancient Greeks and Romans and the ancient Chinese and Indian civilizations are the near-limit of my historical sense, with ancient Egypt at the very edge, occupying a mysterious and exotic distant past.
After reading the 12th Planet these civilizations appear relatively recent. This book points to even older civilizations. Beyond the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians are the twin empires of Assyria and Babylon. Even older than both is Akkad. Oldest still and first was Sumer.
But this book still takes us beyond that. We are shown the Great Flood of 11,000 BCE and the civilizations before that Deluge ruled by pre-Deluvial kings. And before the kings, before even Man, Man's creators, the alien Annunaki, who arrived here 445,000 years ago.
And beyond, even beyond, to the creation of the solar system. The creation of Earth through the collision between the planet Tiamat and the planet Nibiru, the 12th planet, the planet of the Annunaki.
Whew! For this sensation of stretching one's historical landscape alone you should read "The 12th Planet".
The claims being made by Sitchin are counter to accepted history and science, and certainly, to Christianity. If he didn't refer to any sources for these seemingly outlandish claims all these would just be an entertaining story, a wild theory. But throughout the book Sitchin does point to his sources. There are numerous sources from early civilizations as well as from Biblical passages. The bulk of the story is based on information from clay tablets written in cuneiform that have come to us from Babylon, Assyria, and Akkad. Tablets that point to a Sumerian origin. The sheer number of references inclines me to believe Sitchin and to believe the ancient astronaut theory he espouses. I am particularly impressed by how this theory gives enlightenment to certain passages in the Old Testament.
This book also raises some questions on my part like: Where are the Annunaki now? Why do we only find stone relics, surely the Annunaki, who are astronauts, would have used advanced metals and materials like the plastics we use today? Why have we never found anything other than stone and some common ancient metals like bronze? Sitchin has many more books in the Earth Chronicles series so I'm keen to find out if these questions will be answered.
In the end, you don't have to believe the book to enjoy it. It could be considered just a creative theory that is a good example of out-of-the-box thinking but not really the truth. I think the reaction to this book will depend a lot on the inclination of the reader. I, for one, am influenced by my early reading of Von Daniken's "Chariot of the Gods" (I must have been ten years old or so when I began perusing my Dad's paperback copy), I'm also an avid comicbook collector who is familiar with Kirby's Eternals tales from Marvel. All these has influenced me to being particularly susceptible to ancient astronaut theory. The fact that this book is so well researched, so well presented, has made me an adherent.
If you are, like me, inclined to ancient astronaut theory, reading Sitchin's "The 12th Planet" will prove to be an enjoyable and enlightening experience. Not only am I eager to read the rest of the books in the series I am equally eager to see if our continuing experience as we move to the future will reveal the truth or falsity of these claims. I'm betting on the former.
Perhaps my biggest takeaway from this book is this: There are no gods. The concept of godhood was created by aliens in order for them to control mankind, their creation. They are not gods, they're just more advanced beings. This is huge: There are no gods.
Synopsis
Man on Earth
Zechariah Sitchin points to the appearance of modern man around 35,000 BCE with the fossil record showing an evolutionary ancestor to modern man around 250,000 BCE. The curious thing is the appearance of Neanderthal man around 100,000 BCE. This means that the ancestry of man is not Neanderthal man and that our ancestor precedes Neanderthal man.
Sitchin then locks into specific dates. Approximately: 11,000 BCE, 7,000 BCE, and 3,000 BCE. In 11,000 BCE there was a big shift in farming knowledge followed by the cultivation of grain and vegetables. All of this coming from a small area in the ancient Near East in the Mesopotamian region. 7,000 BCE marks the wide use of pottery. 3,000 BCE saw the rise of civilization and cities.
Sitchin points out that several times mankind seemed to regress but inexpicably experienced a renewed blossoming. He also makes a case that viewed from the millenia before these times, mankind's speed of progress is astonishing, that left to evolution, Homo Sapiens should not have entered the world stage so early. Also, Sitchin suggests that we should all be living like hunter-gatherers at this time given the trend of human evolution before 11,000 BCE.
Civilizations
We are taken on a trip back through time beginning with the Greek and Roman civilizations. We are then shown the older Egyptian civilization and presented with the theory that the Greek and Roman civilizations stemmed from that of Egypt. This theory is rejected as Sitchin points out that the roots of Roman and Greek civilization is actualy Anatolia and Syria in Asia Minor or the ancient Near East.
Two ancient Near Eastern empires are the sources: Assyria and Babylon. Both flourishing from around 1,900 BCE to 600 BCE. Sitchin takes us farther back citing the common language of Assyria and Babylon. which is identified as Akkadian. Akkadian leads to the city of Akkad which points to the civilization of Sumer which can be traced to 3,800 BCE. Sitchin points to 3,800 BCE as the start of civilization because Sumer does not seem to have any precursors. Sumerian civilization is a fully realized civilization with all the aspects which we have come to recognize as part of a civilization.
According to the Sumerians, every worthwhile thing they have are from the gods.
Pantheons
Sitchin then moves on to a discussion about the gods, starting with the gods who are most familiar to a Western audience: the pantheons of Greece and Rome. Sitchin notes that the Greek gods came from Asia Minor and from farther inland; Zeus, for example, came to the Greek mainland via the ancient culture of the Minoans circa 2,400 to 1,400 BCE. From Greece Sitchin traces pantheons from the Hittites, the Hurrians, the Babylonians, the Assyrians, the Ankorites, and the Egyptians.
He notes the similarities between these pantheons such as a strict count of twelve major gods, a story of a chief god conquering a serpent or snake-like opponent before becoming chief, and stories about successions in the rulership of gods, three successions between older and younger gods, son inheriting from father through parricide. He traces this pantheons all the way to Sumer. When we reach Sumer there are no older pantheons. Sumer is the origin point of the stories of the gods.
The Gods of Sumer
The focus is transferred to the Sumerian gods and their stories. Sitchin tells of gods originating from Heaven and coming down to Earth. Of Anu, Heaven-dwelling chief of gods and his son Enlil, Earth-based and chief of gods among the Earth. Enlil ruled over people and appointed kings. Another son of Anu was the engineer-god Enki. Enlil is considered a thunder god or sky lord while Enki is considered a sea god or ocean lord. During the time of the Flood, Enlil was for the destruction of mankind but Enki was the one who saved the Mesopotamian Noah. It was Enki and his half-sister, Ninhursag, a doctor, who would be responsible for the creation of man.
These so-called gods each had cities that were given to them for stewardship. They had access to technology such as flying vehicles. They engaged in wars about succession. A particular detail is when the god Marduk became the principal god of Babylon. Marduk is a usurper, being a son of Enki not Enlil. The book points out that during that time there was an attempt to rewrite the ancient histories to point to Marduk as being the principal god instead of Enlil and Anu. Another notable detail is about the goddess Ishtar who will eventually become the Greek Aphrodite. Sitchin clearly admires this goddess for her intiative that eventually saw her being included in the pantheon of twelve major gods. Erishkegal is a god I am somewhat familiar with, knowing her as a demon god of some sort that is associated with the underworld. I am happily surprised to read that she is Sumerian in origin and rules the underworld with her consort Nergal; she is also the sister of Ishtar.
Focus is given to these gods being ancient astronauts. Sitchin presents seals, stellae, and other such relics to support this together with references to the Old Testament. We are also told documented experiences of three men like Gilgamesh, Adapa, and Enoch who had wanted to go up to Heaven on these wondrous ships. The famous story of the Tower of Babel is revealed as the story of Man's attempt to have his own ancient airport; an attempt foiled by angry gods.
Sumerian Astronomy
As an introduction to the topic of the 12th planet - the existence of an unknown member of our solar system - the book explores the advanced astronomical knowledge of the Sumerians. Knowledge so advanced that it is, in fact, useless to an Earth-based civilization. Sitchin sets forth arguments that this astronomical knowledge came from the Annunaki, the extraterrestrial travelers who came down to Earth.
The Birth of the Solar System
From the Sumerian records we are guided by Sitchin to an account of how the solar system came to be. At the start, our star system was composed of only the sun and a planet called Tiamat. In time, all the other planets we know except our own Earth coalesced. An invader planet from deep space called Nibiru smashed into Tiamat dividing her in two. Half of her became the asteroid belt, known as the Heavens. The other half became Earth.
The incident where Nibiru collided with Earth through its satellite, North Wind, is said to have seeded Earth with the basic rudiments for the formation of life. So life is said to have started in both Nibiru and Earth but life proceeded to become more advanced in Nibiru. This allowed space travellers to come from Nibiru to Earth at a time when life was in a much earlier stage on Earth.
The Annunaki
From the panoply of the planets we are brought back to Earth by Sitchin. There is a fascinating reference to the orbit of Nibiru lasting 3,600 years vs. 1 year for Earth. Because of this the theory is brought forward that 1 year for an Earthman equals 3,600 years for an Annunaki, a detail that gives the Annunaki impressively long lives when compared to us.
It gets even more fascinating when Sitchin now looks at ancient records of pre-Deluvial kings, ten rulers before the flood. According to the records these kings ruled for a total of 120 shars. Each shar is equivalent to one Annunaki year or 3,600 Earth years. This means that the pre-Deluvial kings ruled 432,000 years (120 shars) from the first arrival of the Annunaki to the Flood. This places the arrival of the Annunaki 445,000 years ago.
Excitement only increases when the biblical account of the Flood is referenced with the Bible clearly stating 120 years for mankind until the Flood. Sitchin clarifies that these are Annunaki years (shars) not human years. Looking at this information the Flood would have then occurred around 11,000 BCE.
Sitchin goes back for a return look at the Babylonian religious rituals and how they seem to be portraying the space journey of the Annunaki to Earth. There is also reference to an ancient planisphere that looks to be a detailed technical manual for the flight to Earth.
The narrative turns to the first journey to Earth. Sitchin describes what seems to be an initial aquatic landing in the Arabian Sea and the founding of the first cities. Sitchin notes that the cities are precisely planned to help navigators to land on Earth safely. The initial rule of Earth is given to Enki but he is supplanted by his younger brother Enlil.
Sichin explains that references to the Lower World do not refer to the world of the dead but the the lower hemisphere - specifically the African continent. And here is revealed the purpose of the Annunaki on Earth - to mine for gold. At first, the Annunaki undertake the mining themselves, but the work is so arduous and dangerous that they demand an alternative.
The Creation of Man
This alternative leads to the creation of us - of Man. We are referred to as "primitive workers" or Lulus. Based on the Sumerian and Akkadian records as well as on Biblical references Man was created by gene manipulation - combining the DNA of Homo Erectus with that of the alien Annunaki.
Delving into the Biblical tale of man's origin in the book of Genesis, Sitchin explains that the sin for which Man was expelled from the Garden of Eden was the ability to procreate. Initially man was not created with this ability but the god Enki somehow made it possible for man to mate and multiply.
The Flood
We are then shown that the Biblical Flood or the Deluge was an event directly related to the close of an ice age. That the Annunaki, with their superior technology, knew about it and managed to avoid it but knowingly left Man to its ravages in a bid to wipe us out. Once again it is Enki, the serpent of the Garden of Eden, who saves us. He contacts the Sumerian Utnapishtim - the man we know as Noah - and instructs him to build the ark. After the Deluge the gods make peace with the remnants of man and civilization is restarted.
Sitchin notes that mainstream historians record the sudden flourising of agriculture and animal domestication during this time, around 11,000 BCE; with new plant cultivations and domesticated animals coming from the hillsides of of Mesopotamia. Sitchin notes that the rate at which these new plant life and animals are produced is simply too fast for it to be attributed to breeding activities undertaken by men. He sees the hand of the Nefilim in these new advances in agriculture and livestock management. It is something that they had to teach Man if both the Annunaki and Man were to survive the post-Deluge environment. The advances were confined to the hillside because the plains of Mesopotamia where still too denuded to be habitable.
At this time too did the Annunaki begin to style themselves as gods and in order to better manage Man they created the kingship; appointing kings among men to enforce their edicts.