30
Sep
15

black / white / red

eastern coral snake.

It is said that the pyramids at Giza were originally clad in stone of three colors: black, white, and red. (I tried to find you a picture to illustrate this, but was unsuccessful—so you get an eastern coral snake instead, which I think is pretty cool as a consolation). However, the pyramids can be found on Youtube at 41:26 in episode 1 of The Pyramid Code: The Complete Series.)PyramidDatePalms

These three colors were somehow integral to the ancients’ technology. But the knowledge of the colors’ significance is lost to us today. It has been theorized by some that, far from being tombs, the pyramids were actually built as energy-generating machines; even in their dilapidated state, they still create measurable electric energy today.

Because of the ancient significance of these three colors, I have adopted them to facilitate my study of the runes. The 24 runes of the Elder Futhark can be arrayed in 3 wheels of 8 runic symbols each which emphasize the oppositional relationship that each rune has with its mate.

Fionn's Shield.

For example, Jera and Dagaz (the runes of the winter and summer solstices) and Ken and Beorc (the runes of the fall and spring equinoxes) are opposite one another and represent similar yet opposite phenomena in the wheel of the year. The same is true for Hagal and Laguz (both of which are harbingers of death), and for Thorn and Elhaz (which are both warning signs). The relationships as I have described them are superficial at best and will require a good deal of contemplation and meditation before I understand them to my satisfaction.

By depicting the three wheels in three colors and placing each wheel on one of three appropriate background field colors, I am hoping this will lead to deeper insights. So hopefully there will be more to come.

But what is the significance of these three colors? Frankly I don’t know yet.

In more recent history, the black-white-red flag were the Imperial colors of Germany’s Kaiser Reich. The flags of Egypt, Iraq, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen also all share red, white, and black horizontal stripes today (albeit in the reverse order as Germany’s old flag).Plakat_Lasst_die_alten_Fahnen_wehn_1932

After World War I, the colors of Imperial Germany became symbols of monarchist and nationalist protest, and were often used by right-wing organizations such as the Stahlhelm and Bund der Frontsoldaten. Many nationalist political parties during the Weimar period—such as the German National People’s Party and the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi Party) used the imperial colors, a practice that has continued today with the National Democratic Party of Germany.

The tricolor flag and the swastika flag both briefly served as the national flags of Germany until 1935 (one year after the death of president Paul von Hindenburg and Hitler’s elevation to Führer), when the dual flag arrangement was ended and the the swastika flag became the exclusive national flag of Germany. Yet the colors were retained.

So the associations below with these three colors are a mix of positives and negatives, just as the coral snake above is incredibly beautiful yet deadly poisonous. I suspect this must contribute to the color combination’s potency.

.

Black

Black derives its significance from the notion that new things get darker while they mature; and physical aging comes with spiritual maturity.

The Akans ( the largest meta-ethnicity and ethno-linguistic group in Ghana and the Ivory Coast in West Africa) blacken most of their ritual objects to increase their spiritual potency.

Black symbolizes an intensified spiritual energy, communion with the ancestral spirits, antiquity, spiritual maturity, and spiritual potency.

Black is a color to be used for promoting stability and protection, healing misunderstandings.

Black is required for all other colors to have depth and variation of hue—it’s a forceful feature and represents formality, dignity, force, convention, stability, and zero-tolerance.

Black is affiliated with the planets Saturn and Pluto.

Black’s zodiac signs are Capricorn and Scorpio.

Black’s mantra is: “I am endless”

The ancient Egyptians and Romans used black for mourning, as do most Europeans and Americans today.

The “Blackshirts” were the security troops in Hitler’s German army, also known as the SS.

Black often stands for secrecy.

Black humor is morbid or unhealthy and gloomy humor.

A “blackhearted” person is evil.

If a business is “in the black,” it is making money.

A “blacklist” is a list of persons or organizations to be boycotted or punished.

Black is associated with sophistication and elegance. A “black tie” event is formal.

A black belt in karate identifies an expert.

A black flag in a car race is the signal for a driver to go to the pits.

A blackguard is a scoundrel.

The ancient Egyptians believed that black cats had divine powers.

Black lung is a coal miner’s disease caused by the frequent inhaling of coal dust.

Blackmail is getting things by threat.

Black market is illegal trade in goods or money.

A black sheep is an outcast.

“Blackwash” (as opposed to “whitewash”) is to uncover or bring out in the light.

A blackout is a period of darkness from the loss of electricity, for protection against nighttime air raids, or, in the theater, to separate scenes in a play.

When you “black out,” you temporarily lose consciousness.

.

White

White derives its symbolism from the white part of egg and also from white clay used in spiritual purification, healing, sanctification rites and festive occasions.

In some situations it symbolizes contact with ancestral spirits, deities, and other unknown spiritual entities such as ghosts.

It is used in combination with black, green, gold, or yellow to express spiritual vitality and balance.

Contemplate the brilliance of a new white snow and how it pulls a blanket of peace over everything it touches—white stands for peace, cleansing, illumination, purity, innocence and the highest understanding.

White is affiliated with the planet Mercury and the Moon.

Its zodiac sign is Virgo.

White can be used for cleansing, establishing order, illumination and clarity

White’s mantra is: “I am illumined.”

A white flag is the universal symbol for truce.

White means mourning in China and Japan.

Angels are usually depicted wearing white robes.

The ancient Greeks wore white to bed to ensure pleasant dreams.

The Egyptian pharaohs wore white crowns.

The ancient Persians believed all gods wore white.

A “white elephant” is a rare, pale elephant considered sacred to the people of India, Thailand, Burma, and Sri Lanka; in this country, it is either a possession that costs more than it is worth to keep or an item that the owner doesn’t want but can’t get rid of.

It’s considered good luck to be married in a white garment.

White heat is a state of intense enthusiasm, anger, devotion, or passion.

To whitewash is to gloss over defects or make something seem presentable that isn’t.

A “white knight” is a rescuer.

A white list contains favored items (as opposed to a blacklist).

A “whiteout” occurs when there is zero visibility during a blizzard.

A “white sale” is a sale of sheets, towels, and other bed and bath items.

A “whited sepulcher” is a person who is evil inside but appears good on the outside, a hypocrite.

“White lightning” is slang for moonshine, a home-brewed alcohol.

A white room is a clean room, as well as a temperature-controlled, dust-free room for precision instruments.

White water is the foamy, frothy water in rapids and waterfalls.

.

Red

Is associated with sense of seriousness, readiness for a serious spiritual or political encounter.

It is also associated with blood, sacrificial rites and the shedding of blood.

Red is therefore used as a symbol of heightened spiritual and political mood, sacrifice and struggle.

Think fire and blood—red rushes to us with messages of passion, primal urges and power, action, pleasure, vibrance, radiance, and love.

Red is affiliated with the planet Mars.

Red’s zodiac sign is Aries.

Red can be used to boost energy booster, protection, to enhance libido.

Red’s mantra is: “I am ignited.”

For the ancient Romans, a red a flag was a signal for battle.

Because of its visibility, stop signs, stoplights, brake lights, and fire equipment are all painted red.

The ancient Egyptians considered themselves a red race and painted their bodies with red dye for emphasis.

In Russia, red means beautiful. The Bolsheviks used a red flag as their symbol when they overthrew the tsar in 1917. That is how red became the color of communism.

In India, red is the symbol for a soldier.

In South Africa, red is the color of mourning.

It’s considered good luck to tie a red bow on a new car.

In China, red is the color of good luck and is used as a holiday and wedding color. Chinese babies are given their names at a red-egg ceremony.

Superstitious people think red frightens the devil.

A “red-letter day” is one of special importance and good fortune.

In Greece, eggs are dyed red for good luck at Easter time.

To “paint the town red” is to celebrate.

Red is the color most commonly found in national flags.

In the English War of the Roses, red was the color of the House of Lancaster, which defeated the House of York, symbolized by the color white.

The “Redshirts” were the soldiers of the Italian leader Garibaldi, who unified modern Italy in the nineteenth century.

To “see red” is to be angry.

A “red herring” is a distraction, something that takes attention away from the real issue.

A “red eye” is an overnight airplane flight.

If a business is “in the red,” it is losing money.

.

۞

.

Weather Report

91° and Clear


3 Responses to “black / white / red”


  1. 1 Erik Roth
    September 30, 2015 at 11:00 pm

    This post has personal appeal: my last name, from my German ancestors, means “red” and my first name, from my Scandinavian ancestry, is commonly associated with the famous Viking known as that.

    But two thoughts come to mind regarding this consideration of coloring.

    That the Egyptian pyramids were originally clad in red, white, and black stone is stunning, and eye-opening, mind expanding news to me. I confess to not yet looking at the link, but I wonder if the color pattern(s) will appear there.

    Similarly, that evokes the hard-to-imagine fact that classical Greek and Roman temples and statuary, which we know from being bleached pure white, were originally painted in vivid colors.

    Secondly, the four-part Native American medicine wheel contains these three colors, plus an additional one: yellow. Of that significance or coincidence I am ignorant, but quite curious.

  2. October 1, 2015 at 10:31 am

    I’m glad this post has struck a chord with you especially, as I know you will probably start inquiring yourself. If you learn anything, I would be thankful to be clued-in. I was hesitant to publish this post, as it presents no conclusions, only the fact that the colors are significant (but I don’t know why).


Leave a comment