Thursday, April 08, 2004
On the Question of Mystery
I have long been fascinated with the mystery of the Shroud of Turin. By now, many have heard of this burial shroud which bears the imprint of the face and body of a dead man who has been brutally beaten and whose wounds strongly suggest he died from crucifixion. For centuries, it has been carefully preserved by the church authorities, for the faithful are convinced that the image imprinted on this piece of cloth is indeed that of the one known as Christ, the world's savior.
No one knows the actual origins of the shroud, nor its history in the first centuries after the crucifixion. Its authenticity has been a question of serious debate for many years. It has been subjected to many, many tests, and various theories have been put forth to dispute the claims of the believers.
The question of its actual date of origin seemed to be resolved definitively two years ago, when a piece of the material was subjected to carbon dating, and the results indicated it was cloth from the middle ages.
Now, according to a PBS documentary I watched last night, new evidence has emerged which calls all into question once more. And some of this new evidence presents mysteries themselves as intriguing as the original question of identity.
When the results of the carbon dating were announced, one of the researchers, a renowned scientist from a major British university, revealed the "irrefutable" conclusions with evident gratification, as if once again science had triumphed over faith and superstition. He pointed out that not every one would be convinced, and noted that some still insisted that the earth was flat.
It was a woman, however, one who relied not on technology but a traditional woman's craft, who called these results into question. She was a seamstress brought in to mend some of the damaged spots on the cloth. In making her repairs, she discovered something no one had noticed previously. The shroud was sewn together with a particular type of stitching which was also found at Massada, but which is unknown outside a time frame of a few decades around the time of Jesus' death. Most important, it is never found in stitching from the middle ages.
In fact, the sample subjected to the carbon dating may have led to false results, since it was a corner which was sometimes attached to a backing cloth for public display of the actual shroud.
Now, even more puzzling is this discovery: the image is quite dim to the naked eye, but under enhanced light it shows up almost as if it were an x-ray of the body. That is, it reveals not merely the surface features but certain elements beneath the surface--such as the thumb which lies beneath the folded hands. No camera could of itself discern such hidden aspects. No transfer of body fluids such as blood or sweat could capture them. One commentator (obviously convinced of the authenticity of the relic), even asserted that the shroud actually bears the imprint of these subsurface features because they were transferred during the ascension itself--the shroud, in effect, passed through the body of the rising spirit.
Probably the total mystery will never be fully solved. Even if it is proved that the death cloth bears the likeness of a crucified being from this early time period, there seems to be no way to be sure who that one is, since many thousands were crucified by the Romans at the beginning of the first millenium.
I myself am trying to keep an open mind on all of this. I am, admittedly, a bit skeptical of all religious claims, but part of me longs to be stunned by evidence of the miraculous. And in truth, like many who undergo kundalini experience, I encounter the unexplainable daily. Where does kundalini come from, what does it imply for a larger view of reality? Why are its appearances so unpredictable, and for what reason does it disappear for so long? Life changes irreversibly between the inbreath and the outbreath. Who can explain this mystery to us?
But life itself becomes richer, deeper, more profound, more bound with meaning because of what has happened. We can never uncover the full nature or purpose of the total process--we can only let it carry us ever deeper into its own irresistible realms.
No one knows the actual origins of the shroud, nor its history in the first centuries after the crucifixion. Its authenticity has been a question of serious debate for many years. It has been subjected to many, many tests, and various theories have been put forth to dispute the claims of the believers.
The question of its actual date of origin seemed to be resolved definitively two years ago, when a piece of the material was subjected to carbon dating, and the results indicated it was cloth from the middle ages.
Now, according to a PBS documentary I watched last night, new evidence has emerged which calls all into question once more. And some of this new evidence presents mysteries themselves as intriguing as the original question of identity.
When the results of the carbon dating were announced, one of the researchers, a renowned scientist from a major British university, revealed the "irrefutable" conclusions with evident gratification, as if once again science had triumphed over faith and superstition. He pointed out that not every one would be convinced, and noted that some still insisted that the earth was flat.
It was a woman, however, one who relied not on technology but a traditional woman's craft, who called these results into question. She was a seamstress brought in to mend some of the damaged spots on the cloth. In making her repairs, she discovered something no one had noticed previously. The shroud was sewn together with a particular type of stitching which was also found at Massada, but which is unknown outside a time frame of a few decades around the time of Jesus' death. Most important, it is never found in stitching from the middle ages.
In fact, the sample subjected to the carbon dating may have led to false results, since it was a corner which was sometimes attached to a backing cloth for public display of the actual shroud.
Now, even more puzzling is this discovery: the image is quite dim to the naked eye, but under enhanced light it shows up almost as if it were an x-ray of the body. That is, it reveals not merely the surface features but certain elements beneath the surface--such as the thumb which lies beneath the folded hands. No camera could of itself discern such hidden aspects. No transfer of body fluids such as blood or sweat could capture them. One commentator (obviously convinced of the authenticity of the relic), even asserted that the shroud actually bears the imprint of these subsurface features because they were transferred during the ascension itself--the shroud, in effect, passed through the body of the rising spirit.
Probably the total mystery will never be fully solved. Even if it is proved that the death cloth bears the likeness of a crucified being from this early time period, there seems to be no way to be sure who that one is, since many thousands were crucified by the Romans at the beginning of the first millenium.
I myself am trying to keep an open mind on all of this. I am, admittedly, a bit skeptical of all religious claims, but part of me longs to be stunned by evidence of the miraculous. And in truth, like many who undergo kundalini experience, I encounter the unexplainable daily. Where does kundalini come from, what does it imply for a larger view of reality? Why are its appearances so unpredictable, and for what reason does it disappear for so long? Life changes irreversibly between the inbreath and the outbreath. Who can explain this mystery to us?
But life itself becomes richer, deeper, more profound, more bound with meaning because of what has happened. We can never uncover the full nature or purpose of the total process--we can only let it carry us ever deeper into its own irresistible realms.
