All language subtitles for The Universe S08E02 The Pyramids

THE ANCIENT
PYRAMIDS OF THE PHARAOHS...

WERE THEY BUILT AS MERELY
COLOSSAL BURIAL TOMBS?

THE PYRAMIDS ARE AN ENORMOUS
FEAT OF ENGINEERING.

OR WAS THEIR REAL
PURPOSE NOT OF THIS EARTH?

THE PYRAMID IS THIS COSMIC
ENGINE ON THE GRANDEST SCALE.

WERE THESE MOUNDS
OF STONE DESIGNED AS TRANSPORT

SHIPS TO CARRY A PHARAOH'S SOUL AND
ALL HIS RICHES DEEP INTO THE HEAVENS?

THE PHARAOH WAS THOUGHT TO
TRAVEL AMONG THOSE STARS.

WHAT MIGHT HOLD THE
ULTIMATE SECRETS ABOUT HOW AND

WHY THEY WERE BUILT?

THOSE KINDS OF SHAFTS, WITH
SPECIFIC STELLAR DESTINIES, DO

NOT EXIST ANYWHERE ELSE
EXCEPT IN THE GREAT PYRAMID.

FROM THE SEARING
SANDS OF EGYPT TO THE BRILLIANT

BEACONS DEEP WITHIN OUR GALAXY,
WE EMBARK ON A JOURNEY TO

FINALLY UNLOCK AN
AGE-OLD MYSTERY.

ARE THE GREAT PYRAMIDS OF GIZA
CONNECTED TO THE UNIVERSE?

ANCIENT MYSTERIES SHROUDED
IN THE SHADOWS OF TIME.

NOW, CAN THEY FINALLY BE SOLVED
BY LOOKING TO THE HEAVENS?

THE TRUTH IS UP THERE,
HIDDEN AMONG THE STARS...

IN A PLACE WE CALL...
THE UNIVERSE.

THE ANCIENT PYRAMIDS OF GIZA,
MYSTICAL STACKS OF STONE THAT

LOOM ABOVE THE DESERT
SANDS OF EGYPT.

THESE ASTONISHING FEATS OF
ENGINEERING CONTINUE TO INSPIRE

AWE AND WONDER.

THEY ALSO HOLD ONE OF
MANKIND'S OLDEST SECRETS.

COULD THEY BE COSMIC LINKS
BETWEEN EARTH AND THE UNKNOWN

UNIVERSE ABOVE?

BASICALLY WHAT YOU'RE SEEING
WITH THE PYRAMIDS IS THIS COSMIC

WITH THE PYRAMIDS IS THIS COSMIC
ENGINE ON THE GRANDEST SCALE.

SO, BY GETTING THE KING
RESURRECTED IN THIS PYRAMID, IN

THIS COSMIC ENGINE, YOU
BASICALLY ENSURE THE SURVIVAL

INTO THE NETHERWORLD.

ALL WE KNOW FOR
CERTAIN IS THAT THESE ELUSIVE

MONUMENTS ONCE ENTOMBED THE
GREAT PHARAOHS WHO REIGNED

DURING EGYPT'S FOURTH
DYNASTY 4,500 YEARS AGO.

THE GREAT PYRAMID, THE LARGEST

OF THE THREE, IS ONE OF THE SEVEN
WONDERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD.

IT'S BUILT FOR THE PHARAOH
KHUFU, THE MOST POWERFUL RULER

OF THE OLD KINGDOM.

THE SECOND LARGEST IS MADE
FOR HIS SON, KHAFRE, AND THE

SMALLEST FOR HIS
GRANDSON, MENKAURE.

FOR 4,000 YEARS, THE GREAT
PYRAMID IS THE TALLEST MAN-MADE

STRUCTURE ON EARTH.

BUILT FROM OVER 2 MILLION
BLOCKS OF STONE, THE ICONIC

STRUCTURE COVERS AN AREA
OF SEVEN CITY BLOCKS.

THE FINISHED MASTERPIECE
IS ORIGINALLY COATED WITH

GLISTENING WHITE LIMESTONE AND
TOPPED WITH A GOLD-COVERED CAPSTONE.

WHAT DROVE THIS ANCIENT
CIVILIZATION TO CREATE SUCH

GRAND BURIAL TOMBS?

OR WERE THEY BURIAL TOMBS?

IS IT POSSIBLE THAT THE PYRAMIDS OF
GIZA HAVE A MORE PROFOUND PURPOSE?

>> THE PYRAMIDS WERE FIRST AND
FOREMOST A BURIAL PLACE BECAUSE

THEY HELD THE BODY OF THE
PHARAOH IN A SARCOPHAGUS, BUT

IT'S ALSO A SYMBOLIC WAY TO HELP

THE SOUL OF THE PHARAOH TO
GET TO HIS FINAL DESTINATION.

WERE THE PYRAMIDS
BUILT AS COSMIC ENGINES TO BEAM

THE PHARAOHS TO THE HEREAFTER,
AND WHERE IN THE UNIVERSE DID

THE EGYPTIANS BELIEVE THIS
LIFE BEYOND THE GRAVE EXISTED?

THE BURIAL REMAINS AND TREASURES
ONCE SEALED IN THESE TOMBS ARE

PLUNDERED WITHIN YEARS OF THEIR
COMPLETION, AND NO WRITTEN

DOCUMENTS EXIST ABOUT
THEIR CONSTRUCTION.

NO BLUEPRINTS HAVE SURVIVED.
TO DECODE THESE MYSTERIES,

EGYPTOLOGISTS CONSULT
THE SKY FOR ANSWERS.

TO THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS, THE
SKY WAS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT.

PERHAPS YOU CAN IMAGINE IN A
WORLD WITHOUT ELECTRICITY, WHERE

THERE'S NO LIGHT POLLUTION AT
NIGHT THE STARS ARE VERY CLEAR.

YOU CAN SEE THE MILKY WAY, SO
IT'S LIKE A WORLD UP THERE THAT

IS VERY MUCH PRESENT
AND VERY MUCH OBSERVED.

CRYPTIC CLUES ABOUT
THE PYRAMID'S CONNECTION TO THE

SKY CAN BE FOUND WITHIN THE
PYRAMID TEXTS, A SERIES OF

FUNERAL RITUALS AND SPELLS
INSCRIBED ON THE WALLS OF A

LATER TOMB FROM
THE FIFTH DYNASTY.

>> THE PYRAMID TEXTS COME ABOUT
IN THE LATE FIFTH DYNASTY,

PERHAPS 150, 200 YEARS AFTER THE
FOURTH DYNASTY, BUT WE CAN GUESS

THAT THOSE TEXTS REFLECT WHAT
WAS IMPORTANT TO THEIR ANCESTORS

WAS IMPORTANT TO THEIR ANCESTORS
AS WELL.

THESE SPIRITUAL TEXTS DESCRIBE
THE PHARAOH GOING FORTH

INTO THE NORTHERN SKY AND LIVING
AMONG THE "IMPERISHABLE ONES."

THESE E THE CIRCUMPOLAR STARS THAT
NEVER RISE OR SET BELOW THE HORIZON.

AFTER DEATH, A PHARAOH'S SOUL
IS DESTINED TO LIVE AMONG THESE

ETERNAL BEACONS THAT
SYMBOLIZE IMMORTAL GODS.

WHEN THE PHARAOH DIED, HE WAS
REGARDED AS THE EMISSARY OF THE

GODS, GOING TO THE SKY, BEING
TRANSFORMED INTO A CELESTIAL

BEING TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SAME
ACTIVITIES OF THE COSMIC ORDER

THAT THE SKY WAS ALREADY
CARRYING FORWARD.

BUT HOW DO THE
PYRAMIDS ENABLE THE PHARAOHS AND

THEIR ENTOMBEDREASURES TO
ASCEND DEEP INTO THE UNIVERSE?

WHEN ARCHEOLOGISTS BEGIN
EXCAVATING ON THE GIZA PLATEAU

THEY MAKE A STARTLING DISCOVERY.
THE SIDES OF ALL THREE PYRAMIDS

FACE THE FOUR CARDINAL
DIRECTIONS, NORTH-SOUTH AND

EAST-WEST, WITH
EXTREME ACCURACY.

WHAT'S MORE, THE ENTRANCE OF
EACH PYRAMID FACES DUE NORTH

WITH MASTERFUL PRECISION,
WITHIN 1/10 OF A DEGREE.

ARE THESE NEAR-PERFECT PROPORTIONS
A COINCIDENCE, OR CALCULATED?

AND FOR WHAT PURPOSE?

HERE WE ARE AT THE GIZA
PLATEAU, AT LEAST A MODEL OF IT,

AND YOU SEE THE
THREE GIZA PYRAMIDS.

KHUFU'S PYRAMID, THE LARGEST
ONE, KHAFRE'S PYRAMID, SLIGHTLY

SMALLER, AND THEN MENKAURE'S
PYRAMID'S THE SMALLEST ONE OF ALL.

THE ONE THING THEY ALL HAVE IN
COMMON IS THAT THEY HAVE THEIR

ENTRANCE ON THE NORTH SIDE.

THE NORTH-FACING
DOOR OF EACH PYRAMID OPENS TO A

LONG PASSAGEWAY THAT DESCENDS
DOWN TO A BURIAL CHAMBER WHERE

THE PHARAOH WAS ONCE ENTOMBED.

EACH ONE RESEMBLES A GIANT TELESCOPE
POINTED TOWARDS THE NORTHERN SKY.

ARE THE NORTHERN DOORS AND
PASSAGEWAYS DESIGNED TO BE

COSMIC PORTALS TO THE STARS?

IT'S OFTEN CALLED THE
DESCENDING PASSAGE, BUT FROM THE

SPIRIT'S POINT OF VIEW,
IT'S THE ASCENDING PASSAGE.

BECAUSE IT'S POINTING NORTH, IT
POINTS TO THE CIRCUMPOLAR STARS.

ONE OF THE ANALOGIES FOR THE
AFTERLIFE IS THAT THE SPIRIT

JOINS WITH THE
IMPERISHABLE STARS.

WHAT THAT MEANS, OF COURSE, IS
THAT THE SPIRIT, BECAUSE IT'S NO

LONGER PHYSICAL,
WILL NOT DIE AGAIN.

IT'S IMPERISHABLE, AND WE CAN
ONLY SPECULATE THAT THIS WAS

PERHAPS THE ORIGINAL
IDEA BEHIND THE PYRAMIDS

PERHAPS THE ORIGINAL
IDEA BEHIND THE PYRAMIDS

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS
DON'T HAVE GPS OR EVEN A COMPASS.

SO HOW DO THEY ASTRONOMICALLY
ALIGN THE MASSIVE PASSAGEWAYS

DUE NORTH WITH SUCH PRECISION?

THERE ARE A COUPLE OF
WAYS TO FIND TRUE NORTH.

ONE IS TO WATCH THE STARS AT
NIGHT AND LOOK AT PARTICULAR

THOSE STARS THAT NEVER SET BUT
JUST SEEM TO CIRCLE ONE POINT IN

JUST SEEM TO CIRCLE ONE POINT IN
THE SKY.

THAT POINT IS DIRECTLY
OVER THE NORTH POLE.

THAT'S BECAUSE THE EARTH SPINS
IN ITS ORBIT AND THE NORTH POLE

ALWAYS POINTS TO A SINGLE SPOT.

THE NORTH CELESTIAL POLE IS
THE POINT IN THE SKY THAT ALL

THE STARS ROTATE AROUND, SO EVEN
THE ANCIENT PEOPLES, THEY HAD AN

IDEA THAT THERE WAS A POINT IN
THE SKY THAT WAS FIXED, THAT

EVERYTHING MOVED AROUND IT.

ANCIENT EGYPTIANS COULD'VE
LOOKED GENERALLY TOWARD THE

NORTH AND WATCHED AS STARS
CIRCLE AROUND, AND BY ESTIMATING

THE CENTER OF THE CIRCULAR
MOTIONS THEY COULD'VE DETERMINED

WHERE NORTH IS.

ONCE PINPOINTING
THE NORTH CELESTIAL POLE, THE

ANCIENT EGYPTIANS COULD HAVE
CONSTRUCTED A DESCENDING

PASSAGEWAY TOWARDS THAT NORTHERN
DIRECTION IN THE SKY AND THEN

BUILT THE REST OF THE
PYRAMID ON TOP OF IT.

THE POLE STAR METHOD IS A
GOOD CANDIDATE FOR HOW THE

ANCIENT EGYPTIANS WOULD HAVE
ALIGNED THE DESCENDING PASSAGEWAY.

THE PASSAGEWAYS OF
THE PYRAMIDS WERE ORIENTATED

WITH SHEER PRECISION TO THE
NORTH IN THE DIRECTION OF THE

IMPERISHABLE, CIRCUMPOLAR STARS.

BUT DID THESE ASTRONOMICAL
ALIGNMENTS IMBUE THEM WITH THE

POWER TO PROPEL THE PHARAOHS'
SOUL TO LIVE AMONG THEIR STELLAR

GODS OF THE UNIVERSE?

THE PYRAMIDS OF
GIZA HOLD THE SECRETS OF AN

ANCIENT CULTURE THAT THRIVED
OVER 4,500 YEARS AGO.

ARE THESE COLOSSAL TOMBS
DESIGNED TO TRANSPORT THE

PHARAOHS AND ALL THEIR WORLDLY RICHES
TO A NEW HOME DEEP IN THE UNIVERSE?

AND IF SO, WHAT POWERS
THESE COSMIC MACHINES?

FOR THE EGYPTIANS, LIFE AFTER
DEATH WAS CRUCIAL, AND THE

MOTION OF THE PHARAOH INTO THE
SKY TO TAKE HIS RIGHTFUL PLACE

AMONG THE STARS IN THE NORTHERN
PART OF THE SKY WAS PART OF

THEIR RELIGION AND ONE OF THE
MAIN FUNCTIONS OF THE PYRAMID.

TO UNDERSTAND HOW
THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS COULD

CONCEIVE OF SUCH A JOURNEY WE
LOOK TO THE INTERNAL DESIGN OF

THE GREAT PYRAMID.

IT CONTAINS A SYSTEM OF
HIDDEN CORRIDORS AND ROOMS.

AT THE HEART OF THE STRUCTURE
IS THE KING'S CHAMBER.

IT CONTAINS AN EMPTY
SARCOPHAGUS, WHICH ONCE HELD THE

REMAINS OF THE PHARAOH KHUFU.

IN THIS SARCOPHAGUS, THE
PHARAOH'S BODY WAS PUT TO REST,

RIGHT ON THE CENTER AXIS OF
THE PYRAMID THAT PROTECTED IT.

THE PHARAOH'S BODY
IS ALSO PROTECTED THROUGH

MUMMIFICATION, A PROCESS THAT
INVOLVES REMOVING THE INTERNAL

ORGANS AND THEN
DRYING OUT THE CORPSE.

ONCE ALL THE MOISTURE IS GONE,
THE BODY IS WRAPPED IN LINENS.

AFTER THE DECEASED DECOMPOSES,
THE MUMMIFIED SKELETON ACTS AS A

SUBSTITUTE CORPSE, SYMBOLICALLY
PRESERVING THE PHARAOH'S LIFE

FORCE, OR KA, SO IT CAN JOIN
WITH THE PHARAOH'S SOUL, OR BA.

THIS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IF
THE PYRAMID IS A COSMIC ENGINE,

THE MUMMY IS KIND OF THE
CORE OF THE BATTERY.

BY MUMMIFICATION YOU BROUGHT
BACK TOGETHER, AT THE ANCHOR OF

THE MUMMY, THE BA AND THE KA.

THE UNIFICATION OF
THE BA AND KA IN THE MUMMIFIED

CORPSE MAY BE WHAT THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS BELIEVED IGNITED THE

COSMIC FUEL NEEDED TO BEAM A
PHARAOH'S SOUL TO THE AFTERLIFE

AMONGST THE STARS.

THAT MAKES SENSE OF WHY IT'S
IMPORTANT TO GET THE KING NOT

ONLY MUMMIFIED BUT ALSO ENSURING
THE DECEASED RELATIVE IS SET UP

IN THE AFTERLIFE.

BUT IS THE
DESCENDING PASSAGEWAY THE

MYSTICAL VAULT TO THE STARS?

OR DOES THE GREAT PYRAMID
POSSESS OTHER CELESTIAL PORTALS?

AND JUST WHERE IN THE UNIVERSE
MIGHT THEY TRANSPORT THE PHARAOH?

ON THE NORTH AND SOUTH WALLS OF THE
KING'S CHAMBER ARE TWO PECULIAR SHAFTS.

THEY PENETRATE ALL THE WAY THROUGH
THE PYRAMID TO THE OUTSIDE.

AT FIRST, THEY ARE THOUGHT TO BE
SOME SORT OF ANCIENT VENTILATION

SYSTEM, OR EVEN AN
ILLUMINATION FEATURE.

THERE WERE ALREADY SUGGESTIONS
THAT THEY WERE MEANT

TO LIGHT THE BURIAL CHAMBER WHEN
A CERTAIN STAR PASSED OVERHEAD

AT A CERTAIN TIME OF YEAR.

ASTRONOMERS BEGIN TO
STUDY THE DIRECTION OF THESE

SHAFTS MORE CLOSELY TO SEE IF THEY'RE
AIMED AT SPECIFIC POINTS IN THE SKY.

IF THE PYRAMIDS WERE
INTENTIONALLY ALIGNED WITH THE

HEAVENS, THE NORTH STAR WOULD BE
A LIKELY TARGET FOR THE SHAFTS.

BUT IT TURNS OUT THEY DON'T LINE
UP WITH THE NORTH STAR AT ALL,

EXCEPT THAT WHAT WE CALL THE
NORTH STAR TODAY, POLARIS,

WASN'T THE NORTH STAR
FOR THE EGYPTIANS.

THIS IS BECAUSE STARS MOVE ABOUT
THROUGH TIME DUE TO A PHENOMENON

CALLED PRECESSION.

I CAN EXPLAIN PRECESSION
ON EARTH WITH THIS TOY TOP.

AS WE SPIN THE TOP IT'S LIKE
THE EARTH SPINNING ON ITS AXIS.

YOU CAN SEE THERE IS A SLIGHT
WOBBLE, WHICH IS THE SAME THING

AS THE PRECESSION THAT WE
SEE OF EARTH'S SPIN AXIS.

EARTH'S AXIS OF
ROTATION SLOWLY ROTATES.

IT PRECESSES WITH A
PERIOD OF 26,000 YEARS.

SO IT POINTS TO DIFFERENT
LOCATIONS IN THE SKY AT

DIFFERENT TIMES OVER
THIS 26,000-YEAR CYCLE.

AND WE CAN ESSENTIALLY GO BACK
IN TIME AND DETERMINE WHERE IN

THE SKY IT WAS POINTING
AT A GIVEN TIME.

4,500 YEARS AGO,
WHEN THE PYRAMIDS WERE BUILT,

THE NORTH STAR WAS NOT POLARIS
BUT THUBAN, AND THE NORTHERN

SHAFT WOULD HAVE
POINTED RIGHT AT IT.

THE SOUTHERN SHAFT POINTED
NEAR THE BRIGHTEST STARS IN THE

CONSTELLATION OF ORION.

COULD THIS MEAN THAT RATHER THAN
THE PHARAOH'S PATHWAY TO THE

STARS THESE SHAFTS WERE MERELY
DESIGNED TO MAKE THE PYRAMID A

GIGANTIC OBSERVATORY?

THERE HAVE BEEN VERY ROMANTIC
NOTIONS ABOUT THE GREAT PYRAMID

BEING USED AS AN OBSERVATORY TO
OBSERVE THOSE STARS FROM DEEP

INSIDE THE PYRAMID.

THIS IS REALLY KIND OF SILLY
WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT.

YOU CAN JUST AS EASILY
OBSERVE THOSE STARS OUTSIDE.

YOU DON'T NEED TO GO INTO A
PYRAMID JUST TO LOOK AT THEM.

UPON CLOSER
INSPECTION, IT'S DISCOVERED THAT

THE SHAFTS SLIGHTLY BEND AT
EITHER END SO NO STARS CAN BE

SEEN DIRECTLY THROUGH THEM.

EGYPTOLOGISTS THEN BEGIN TO
WONDER WHETHER THE SHAFTS WERE

BUILT FOR A RITUALISTIC
RATHER THAN PRACTICAL PURPOSE.

THE SHAFTS, AS FAR AS WE CAN
TELL, ARE CONDUITS FOR THE

KING'S VITAL FORCE, FOR HIS
SOUL, HIS BA, TO GO TO THOSE

PLACES FOR RESURRECTION.

THEY ARE MAGICAL SHAFTS.

THAT'S WHY IT'S SO IMPORTANT TO
CONNECT THEM COSMICALLY TO THE

CIRCUMPOLAR STARS, TO ORION,
TO CONNECT THE PYRAMID TO THE

CARDINAL DIRECTIONS, BECAUSE
THEY DID THINK THEY ARE INDEED

CONNECTING TO THE COSMOS.

THOSE KINDS OF SHAFTS, WITH
SPECIFIC STELLAR DESTINIES, DO

NOT EXIST ANYWHERE ELSE
EXCEPT IN THE GREAT PYRAMID.

THAT SUGGESTS, OF COURSE,
THAT SOMEBODY IN DESIGNING AND

BUILDING THE GREAT PYRAMID GOT
AN IDEA THAT THIS WOULD BE A NEW

AND PERHAPS PARTICULARLY EFFECTIVE
EMBELLISHMENT FOR THE PHARAOH.

AND THE SHAFTS WOULD
TRANSPORT MORE THAN JUST

THE PHARAOH'S
SPIRIT TO THE STARS.

THEY'D ALSO CARRY ALONG ALL THE
MORTAL COMFORTS OF EGYPTIAN ROYALTY.

WITHIN TOMBS HAVE BEEN FOUND THE
ENTIRE HOUSEHOLD POSSESSIONS

OF THE PHARAOH, NOT ONLY
PERSONAL ITEMS, SUCH AS THE

PHARAOH'S ORGANS AND GROOMING
NECESSITIES, BUT ANY NUMBER OF

TREASURES THAT WOULD HELP ADD
COMFORT AND ELEGANCE TO THE

PHARAOH'S AFTERLIFE.

AN EVEN BIGGER
MYSTERY SURROUNDS THE SHAFTS.

WHY ARE THEY POINTED TO THE
NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN SKIES?

THE NORTHERN SHAFT WAS DIRECTED
TOWARDS THE STAR THUBAN, AN

IMPERISHABLE STAR, REPRESENTING
ETERNAL LIFE, BUT THE SOUTHERN

SHAFT IS EQUALLY SIGNIFICANT.

IT ONCE POINTED TO THREE
STARS IN THE BELT OF ORION, A

CONSTELLATION ASSOCIATED
WITH THE GOD OSIRIS.

OSIRIS WAS THE GOD
OF THE AFTERLIFE.

HE PRESIDED OVER THE SEASONS,
THE CYCLE OF LIFE AND DEATH.

SO HE WAS ONE OF THE MOST
IMPORTANT FIGURES IN ALL OF THE

EGYPTIAN PANTHEON.

THE PYRAMID POINTS TOWARD
THE CULMINATION OF THAT

CONSTELLATION IN THE SKY AND
THIS CONNECTS THE PYRAMID WITH

THE SKY IN A VERY IMPORTANT WAY.

RELIEFS IN LATER
EGYPTIAN BURIAL TOMBS DEPICT A

PHARAOH'S SOUL BEING RELEASED TO
ORION, WHERE IT BECOMES A LIVING STAR.

THERE, THE PHARAOH'S SPIRIT
JOINS OSIRIS, WHO SYMBOLIZES THE

CYCLE OF BIRTH, LIFE,
DEATH, AND RESURRECTION.

OSIRIS IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT
BRINGS A PLANT TO LIFE FROM A

SEED AND, ONCE THE PLANT DIES,
ALLOWS ITS SEEDS TO PRODUCE NEW

LIFE AND SO FORTH.

DOES THE SAME THING WITH
DECEASED PEOPLE, WHOSE SPIRITS

ENTER THE TOMB AT NIGHT, GO INTO
THE MUMMY, JOIN WITH THE POWER

OF OSIRIS, AND RECEIVE FROM THAT
POWER THE ABILITY TO COME TO

LIFE AGAIN IN THE MORNING.

ANOTHER STARTLING DISCOVERY
IS MADE IN THE QUEEN'S CHAMBER.

THE QUEEN WASN'T ENTOMBED THERE, BUT
IT CONTAINS TWO UNFINISHED SHAFTS.

ITS SOUTHERN SHAFT ONCE POINTED
TOWARDS THE STAR SIRIUS, WHO

REPRESENTS THE GODDESS ISIS,
AND CONSORT OF OSIRIS.

COULD THERE BE A DEEPER
CONNECTION TO ORION?

WHAT SECRETS COULD THIS
CONSTELLATION REVEAL ABOUT THE

GREAT PYRAMID AND ITS
CONNECTION TO THE UNIVERSE?

THE ANCIENT
PYRAMIDS OF GIZA, MESMERIZING

MONUMENTS BUILT
FOR ANCIENT KINGS.

YET THEIR TRUE FUNCTION
IS LOST TO TIME.

ARE THEY MAGICAL STAIRWAYS TO A
CELESTIAL HEREAFTER, OR IS THERE

AN EVEN DEEPER MEANING BEHIND
THEIR COSMICALLY INSPIRED DESIGN?

PERHAPS MORE PROOF CAN BE FOUND BY
LOOKING AT THE PYRAMIDS FROM ABOVE.

AERIAL IMAGES REVEAL THAT THE TWO
LARGER PYRAMIDS FORM A 45-DEGREE ANGLE.

HOWEVER, THE SMALLEST PYRAMID IS
SLIGHTLY OFFSET FROM THE OTHER TWO.

YOU SEE, THE THREE GIZA
PYRAMIDS SEEMED TO BE ALIGNED.

BUT IF YOU FOLLOW THE LINE YOU
SEE THAT YOU SORT OF BUMP INTO

MENKAURE'S PYRAMID.

IT'S QUITE OFF THE MAIN LINE
OF THE OTHER TWO PYRAMIDS.

WHY WOULD THE
ANCIENT ARCHITECTS BUILD THE

PYRAMIDS IN SUCH A WAY WHEN EACH
STRUCTURE IS ACCURATELY ALIGNED

WITH ONLY A TINY
MARGIN OF ERROR?

SOME BELIEVE THE ANSWERS CAN BE
FOUND IN THE SOUTHERN SHAFT OF

THE KING'S CHAMBER, LOCATED
IN THE GREAT PYRAMID.

IT ONCE POINTED TO THE THREE BELT
STARS IN THE CONSTELLATION ORION.

THE STARS FORM A DIAGONAL LINE, WITH
THE SMALLEST STAR SLIGHTLY OFFSET.

THEY BEAR A STRIKING RESEMBLANCE
TO THE LAYOUT OF THE PYRAMIDS.

SO WERE THE PYRAMIDS OF GIZA
BUILT TO HONOR THE THREE BELT

BUILT TO HONOR THE THREE BELT
STARS OF ORION?

THE BASIC IDEA'S THAT THE THREE
PYRAMIDS ARE MAPPED ON THE

GROUND TO REPRESENT THE THREE
STARS IN THE BELT OF ORION.

YOU CAN IMAGINE YOURSELF AS UP
ABOVE THE SKY LOOKING DOWN ON

THE EARTH, AS IF YOU COULD
GET OUTSIDE THE STARS, AS THE

ANCIENTS IMAGINED IT, AND
PROJECT THOSE STARS RIGHT DOWN

TO THE GROUND.

BUT THERE'S A SERIOUS
PROBLEM WITH THIS THEORY.

IN THE BELT OF ORION, THE
NORTHERNMOST STAR IS THE

SMALLEST ONE, WHEREAS ON THE
GIZA PLATEAU, THE NORTHERNMOST

PYRAMID IS THE LARGEST ONE.

HERE'S THE PROBLEM.

TO MAKE IT MATCH THE
PYRAMIDS YOU HAVE TO MAP THE

CONSTELLATION UPSIDE DOWN, AND
WE HAVE NO REASON TO THINK THAT

THE EGYPTIANS, OR ANYONE ELSE FOR
THAT MATTER, WOULD DO SUCH A THING.

SO WE KNOW THAT DIRECTIONS
MATTERED TO THE EGYPTIANS, AND

THEREFORE MAKING A
CONTRADICTION WITH THE MAPPING

JUST DOESN'T MAKE SENSE.

THAT'S AN INTERESTING
HYPOTHESIS.

IT SORT OF DEPENDS ON
HOW YOU LOOK AT ORION.

THE BELT STARS ALIGN IF YOU LOOK
AT IT ONE WAY AND DON'T ALIGN IF

YOU LOOK AT IT ANOTHER WAY, SO WE DON'T
REALLY KNOW WHETHER IT'S CORRECT.

AND THE
LESS-THAN-PERFECT DIAGONAL

LINEUP OF THE PYRAMIDS MAY HAVE
MORE TO DO WITH GEOGRAPHY AND

GEOLOGY THAN COSMIC INSPIRATION.

YOU SHOULD KEEP IN MIND THAT
THE GIZA PLATEAU DOESN'T REALLY

LOOK LIKE THIS
NICE SANDY SURFACE.

IT ACTUALLY HAD A
LOT OF QUARRIES.

THOSE GIANT PYRAMIDS WERE
BASICALLY BUILT FROM THE

LIMESTONE OF THE PLATEAU ON
WHICH THEY ARE STANDING, SO IT

MIGHT WELL BE THAT THERE'S ALSO
VERY PRACTICAL PURPOSES WHY

MENKAURE'S PYRAMID IS
A LITTLE BIT OFF LINE.

STILL, THE STARS IN
THE NIGHT SKY WOULD CERTAINLY

HAVE BEEN IMPORTANT MARKERS
TO THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS.

BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT STAR
IS THE ONE THEY COULD ONLY SEE

DURING THE DAY THE SUN.

THROUGHOUT EGYPTIAN MYTHOLOGY
BELIEFS CHANGE OVER TIME AND

GODS FALL IN AND OUT OF FAVOR.

BY THE FOURTH DYNASTY, THE
EGYPTIANS BEGIN TO EXHIBIT A

STRONG RELIGIOUS
DEVOTION TO THE SUN.

AT THE TIME, THE SUN IS VIEWED
AS A POWERFUL, MYSTERIOUS BALL

OF LIGHT THAT ARCHES ACROSS THE SKY
EACH DAY AND DISAPPEARS EACH NIGHT.

THEY OF COURSE DID NOT
KNOW WHAT THE SUN WAS.

YOU CAN SEE IT GOING ACROSS THE
SKY AND SETTING IN THE WEST.

WHERE DOES IT GO?

THEY HAD NO IDEA WHERE
IT WENT AT NIGHT.

THEY COULD ONLY SPECULATE THAT
SOMEHOW IT TRAVELED BENEATH THE

EARTH, AND WHEN IT SET IT DIED.

THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS THINK THEIR PHARAOHS

ALSO EXPERIENCE DEATH AND
REBIRTH LIKE THE RISING AND

SETTING SUN.

THE IDEA IS THAT THE SPIRIT,
WHEN THE PERSON HAS DIED, HAS

SOMEHOW GONE TO SLEEP AND NEEDS
TO WAKE UP AGAIN EVERY MORNING.

AND AFTER THIS HAPPENS THE
SPIRIT MAKES ITS WAY THROUGH THE

TOMB, JUST AS THE SUN
FINALLY EMERGES AT DAWN.

COULD THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS' BELIEF IN

RESURRECTION EXPLAIN WHY ALL
THREE PYRAMIDS ARE BUILT ON THE

WEST BANK OF THE NILE RIVER?

THESE PYRAMIDS HAVE A WHOLE SYSTEM
LINKED TO THAT EAST-WEST ORIENTATION.

THE SUN COMES UP IN THE EAST.

THAT'S THE NEW LIFE.

IT THEN GOES OVER AND SETS IN
THE WEST, AND THAT'S WHERE THE

PYRAMIDS ARE.

SO THE SETTING SUN
REPRESENTS DEATH.

PERHAPS THE PYRAMIDS
TRANSPORT THE PHARAOHS

TO THE SUN RATHER THAN
THE NIGHTTIME STARS.

THE GEOMETRIC SHAPE OF A PYRAMID
IS OFTEN VIEWED AS A SOLAR SYMBOL.

ITS STEEPED-SLOPED SIDES ARE
COMPARED TO THE SUN'S RAYS,

WHICH ACT AS RAMPS
TO THE HEAVENS.

EVEN ITS FORMER WHITE VENEER
IS INTERPRETED AS A MIRROR

REFLECTING SUNLIGHT.

ONE THING THAT IS CLEAR, THEY
CHOSE WHITE TURA LIMESTONE TO

CLAD THESE PYRAMIDS
FOR A REASON.

THIS BRIGHT, WHITE, GLEAMING
PYRAMID RIGHT UP ABOVE YOU IS

MEANT TO BE THE SUN REFLECTING
DOWN ON YOU, LIKE THE KING BEING

PROJECTED UP BY THIS MACHINE.

SO THE SYMBOLISM WAS THERE.

SO IS THE SUN THE
KEY TO SOLVING THE ANCIENT

MYSTERY OF THE PYRAMIDS?

NEW EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THEY'RE
MORE THAN COSMICALLY ENERGIZED

TOMBS IN A DESERT GRAVEYARD.

THEY MIGHT BE PART OF A
MYSTERIOUS SOLAR CULT.

AFTER 4,500 YEARS,
THE ANCIENT PYRAMIDS OF GIZA

REMAIN SHROUDED IN
MYSTERY AND INTRIGUE.

WERE THESE MASSIVE MOUNDS OF
STONE BUILT TO TRANSPORT THE

PHARAOHS TO LIVE AMONG THE
NORTHERN, CIRCUMPOLAR STARS DEEP

IN SPACE, OR WAS THE REAL
DESTINATION CLOSER TO HOME...

THE SUN?

THE PASSAGEWAYS LEADING FROM THE
BURIAL CHAMBERS OF THE PYRAMIDS

APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN DELIBERATELY
ORIENTED IN THE DIRECTION OF

THE NORTHERN STARS.

YET THE GEOMETRIC SHAPE AND
GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION OF THESE

TOMBS SUGGEST A SOLAR INFLUENCE.

THE GIZA PYRAMIDS NOT ONLY
HAVE THIS NORTHERN DIRECTION,

WHICH IS REALLY IMPORTANT
BECAUSE THAT IS WHERE THE SOUL

OF THE KING LEAVES THE PYRAMIDS
TO JOIN THE CIRCUMPOLAR STARS,

BUT THEY ALSO HAVE AN EAST-WEST
ORIENTATION AND THAT IS RELATED

TO THE SOLAR CIRCLE.

SO THE SUN COMES UP IN THE
EAST, GOES OVERHEAD, GOES UNDER

IN THE WEST, AND IN THE WEST
IS WHERE THE PHARAOH IS BURIED.

DO THE PYRAMIDS
POSSESS A SPIRITUAL CONNECTION

TO THE NIGHTTIME
STARS OR THE SUN?

THE GIZA PLATEAU REVEALS SOME
OF ITS COVETED SECRETS WHEN

OBSERVING IT FROM ABOVE.

THE SOUTHEAST CORNERS OF THE
THREE PYRAMIDS FORM A DIAGONAL

LINE IN THE DIRECTION OF THE
SACRED SITE OF HELIOPOLIS.

TODAY IT'S BURIED BENEATH THE
BUSTLING CITY OF CAIRO, BUT IT

WAS ONCE HOME TO A SOLAR CULT
THAT WORSHIPS THE SUN GOD, RA.

I THINK IT WOULD BE A BIT
RADICAL TO SUGGEST THAT THREE

GENERATIONS OF PYRAMID BUILDERS AT
GIZA WERE FOLLOWING A MASTER PLAN.

BUT CERTAINLY KHAFRE COULD
HAVE ADJUSTED HIS PYRAMID TO

KHUFU'S, AND SO MENKAURE HIS
PYRAMID WITH RESPECT TO KHAFRE'S.

THE DIAGONAL
DIRECTION OF THE PYRAMIDS

TOWARD HELIOPOLIS
RAISES NEW QUESTIONS.

WERE THESE SACRED TOMBS
DEVOTED TO A CULT OF THE SUN?

I THINK THAT THE ALIGNMENT ON
THE GIZA PLATEAU IS RELATED TO

THE SUN GOD RA BECAUSE THERE SEEMS
TO BE A CLEAR LINK TO HELIOPOLIS.

SO THAT REALLY SUGGESTS A SOLAR LINK,
RATHER THAN A CELESTIAL OR STELLAR LINK.

PERHAPS A MORE
CONVINCING DISCOVERY IS FOUND AT

THE BASE OF THE PYRAMIDS.

THE EAST-WEST SIDES OF EACH
BURIAL TOMB ARE MORE PRECISELY

ALIGNED WITH THE CARDINAL
DIRECTIONS THAN THE

NORTH-SOUTH SIDES.

THIS SUGGESTS THAT THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS MIGHT HAVE USED THE

RISING AND SETTING POSITIONS OF
THE SUN, RATHER THAN THE NORTH

STAR, TO ALIGN THE PYRAMIDS.

ANCIENT EGYPTIANS COULD HAVE
USED THE SUN TO DETERMINE THE

DIRECTION OF NORTH BY LOOKING AT A SHADOW,
SIMILAR TO THE IDEA OF A SUNDIAL.

AS THE SUN IS RISING IN THE
EAST, A SUNDIAL CASTS A LONG

SHADOW POINTING
GENERALLY TO THE WEST.

AS THE SUN RISES AND TRAVERSES
ITS JOURNEY ACROSS THE SKY, THE

POSITION OF THAT SHADOW CHANGES AND THE
SHADOW ACTUALLY SHORTENS WITH TIME.

WHEN THE SHADOW IS THE
SHORTEST, IT'S POINTING NORTH.

ENGINEER GLEN DASH
HAS BUILT A SOLAR "GNOMON," A

VERTICAL ROD THAT ACTS LIKE
A GIANT SHAFT ON A SUNDIAL.

HE WANTS TO TEST HOW THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS MIGHT HAVE USED THE

SUN'S SHADOW TO ACCURATELY ALIGN THE
BASES, OR CASINGS, OF THE PYRAMIDS.

THE SOLAR GNOMON METHOD IS
BASICALLY THE SAME METHOD THAT

WE TEACH THE BOYS
AND GIRL SCOUTS.

IT'S AS SIMPLE AS COULD BE.

YOU TAKE A ROD AND YOU STICK IT
INTO THE GROUND, AND YOU WATCH

THE SHADOW PRODUCED BY THE SUN
OVER THE COURSE OF THE DAY.

THE SUN'S SHADOW IS
PROJECTED FROM THE GNOMON, OR

VERTICAL ROD ONTO A SMALL WOODEN
BLOCK RESTING ON A PLATFORM.

THE EXPERIMENT IS PERFORMED NEAR
THE SUMMER SOLSTICE WHEN THE SUN

ACHIEVES ITS MAXIMUM ELEVATION
ANGLE, AND THEREFORE CASTS A

SHARP SHADOW.

WE WATCH THE SHADOW
EVERY MINUTE OR SO.

WE CENTER THE SHADOW IN THE
CROSSHAIRS, IT'S ON THE ANGLED

BLOCK, AND WE MARK
IT ON THE PAPER.

ONCE IT'S PROJECTED FROM THE
BLOCK, AT THAT PARTICULAR MOMENT

WE GET A LINE ACROSS THE PAPER
THAT'S CALLED A "DECLINATION

LINE," AND THAT'S THE PATTERN
THAT THE SUN MAKES AS IT MOVES

ACROSS THE SKY OVER
THE COURSE OF THE DAY.

HERE WE GO.

LET'S SEE HOW WE DID.

AT THE END OF THE DAY YOU TAKE
A PIECE OF STRING, YOU DRAW A

CIRCLE AROUND THE ROD, AND THAT
CIRCLE IS GONNA INTERCEPT THE

DECLINATION LINE AT TWO POINTS.

THOSE TWO POINTS LIE EXACTLY
EAST-WEST, SO YOU CAN DRAW AN

EAST-WEST LINE.

PERPENDICULAR TO
THAT IS NORTH-SOUTH.

THE EXPERIMENT WORKS.

DASH IS ABLE TO FIND TRUE NORTH
WITHIN 1/20 OF A DEGREE USING

THIS PRIMITIVE SOLAR METHOD.

I THINK OTHER PEOPLE WILL
COME TO THE CONCLUSION FAIRLY

QUICKLY THAT THE SUN PLAYED
A MAJOR ROLE IN PYRAMID

ALIGNMENTS AND MAY HAVE BEEN
THE METHOD OF CHOICE FOR

ALIGNING THE CASINGS
OF THE PYRAMIDS.

BUT COULD THERE BE
A DEEPER RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN

THESE REMARKABLY ACCURATE SOLAR
ALIGNMENTS AND THE FATE OF THE

PHARAOHS BURIED IN THE PYRAMIDS?

TWO ANCIENT SHIPS ARE EXCAVATED
FROM ELONGATED PITS DISCOVERED

AROUND THE GREAT PYRAMID.

ONE IS A 142-FOOT-LONG
CEDAR VESSEL WITH 12 OARS.

THE EXACT FUNCTION OF THESE
ROYAL BOATS IS UNKNOWN.

ARE THEY FUNERAL BARGES TO
CARRY THE MUMMIFIED KING ALONG

THE NILE RIVER TO THE PYRAMIDS,
OR MIGHT THESE BOATS SERVE

A SYMBOLIC PURPOSE, A
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM TO CARRY

THE PHARAOH TO AN AFTERLIFE
IN THE DISTANT UNIVERSE?

IN EGYPT, IF YOU WANTED TO GET
FROM ONE SIDE OF THE RIVER

TO THE OTHER YOU NEEDED A
FERRYMAN, AND THEY IMAGINED THE

SAME THING IN THE AFTERLIFE FOR
THE SPIRIT, TO PERSUADE THE

FERRYMEN IN THE NEXT WORLD TO FERRY
THE SPIRIT TO THE OTHER SIDE.

THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS BELIEVE THE DEAD

TRAVERSE THROUGH DANGEROUS
WATERS TO REACH THEIR ETERNAL

DESTINATION IN THE SKY.

AT NIGHT, THE DECEASED PHARAOH
ACCOMPANIES THE SUN GOD RA IN

HIS BOAT THROUGH THE PERILOUS
UNDERWORLD, BETWEEN SUNSET AND SUNRISE.

NIGHT IN ANCIENT EGYPT IS A
VERY DANGEROUS TIME, AND THEY

CAN IMAGINE THE SAME THING FOR
THE SPIRIT PROCEEDING THROUGH

THE NIGHT OF ITS DEATH INTO
THE MORNING OF ITS AFTERLIFE.

THE ROYAL BOATS AS
WELL AS THE SHAPE, LOCATION, AND

ALIGNMENT OF THE PYRAMIDS ALL
POINT TO THE INFLUENCE OF A SUN

CULT ON THE GIZA PLATEAU.

BUT THE PYRAMIDS' TRUE
CONNECTION TO THE UNIVERSE MIGHT

BE FOUND ELSEWHERE ON THE GIZA
PLATEAU, BEHIND THE MYSTERIOUS

FACE OF THE GREAT SPHINX.

THE ANCIENT
PYRAMIDS OF GIZA.

ARE THEY MERELY PHYSICAL TOMBS,
OR SPIRITUAL VEHICLES THAT

PROPEL THE PHARAOHS TO AN
AFTERLIFE IN THE DISTANT SKY?

THE ALIGNMENTS OF PASSAGEWAYS
AND SHAFTS INDICATE A CONNECTION

TO THE NIGHTTIME STARS, WHILE
THE SHAPE AND DIAGONAL PLACEMENT

OF THE PYRAMIDS, AS WELL AS THE
EXCAVATION OF SOLAR BOATS, SHOW

A DEVOTION TO THE SUN.

YET RECENT ARCHEOLOGICAL
EVIDENCE INDICATES ANOTHER

IMPOSING FEATURE OF THE GIZA
PLATEAU MIGHT HOLD THE ULTIMATE

SECRETS OF THESE
MYSTERIOUS MONUMENTS.

IN FRONT OF THE PYRAMIDS IS
THE SPHINX, A GIGANTIC LION

SCULPTURE BEARING A HUMAN HEAD.

TALLER THAN A SIX-STORY
BUILDING, THE HALF-HUMAN,

HALF-BEAST IS ONE OF THE LARGEST AND
MOST FAMOUS STATUES IN THE WORLD.

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS MADE
THE SPHINX RIGHT OUT OF THE

NATURAL ROCK BY QUARRYING AROUND
IT AND LEAVING A CORE FROM WHICH

THEY CARVED THE LION BODY
AND THE PHARAOH'S HEAD.

FOR THOUSANDS OF
YEARS, THE CROUCHING LION

BAFFLES EGYPTOLOGISTS.

NO INSCRIPTIONS ARE FOUND ON THE
SCULPTURE THAT REVEAL WHEN IT

WAS BUILT OR FOR WHAT PURPOSE.

BUT WITHIN ANCIENT CULTURES, THE
LION IS A SUN SYMBOL AND A HUMAN

HEAD ON AN ANIMAL OFTEN SIGNIFIES
ROYAL INTELLIGENCE AND POWER.

THERE IS THIS IDEA OF THE
KING ON A LION'S BODY

REPRESENTING THE POWER OF
KINGSHIP IN RELATION TO BOTH THE

CELESTIAL AND SOLAR THEOLOGY.

THE SPHINX PROTECTS THE COSMOS.

THE SPHINX PROTECTS THE
ORDER OF THE ENTIRE WORLD.

UNRAVELING THE
MEANING BEHIND THE SPHINX

REQUIRES EXAMINING
ITS ERODED FACE.

WHO IS THIS HUMAN-HEADED LION?

THE STATUE LIES AT THE BASE OF
A LONG CAUSEWAY LEADING TO THE

SECOND LARGEST PYRAMID THAT
ENTOMBED THE PHARAOH KHAFRE.

BUT DOES THE MONUMENTAL
SCULPTURE BEAR THE LIKENESS OF

KHAFRE OR HIS FATHER KHUFU?

I SEE SOME POSSIBILITY THAT
THE SPHINX ACTUALLY COULD BE A

KIND OF MONUMENTAL GATEPOST AT
THE MAJOR ENTRANCE UP TO THE

GIZA PLATEAU OVER
THREE GENERATIONS.

MAYBE IT WAS BEGUN
IN KHUFU'S REIGN.

DURING THE SPRING
AND FALL EQUINOX, A REMARKABLE

SOLAR PHENOMENON OCCURS
ON THE GIZA PLATEAU.

AS THE SUN PASSES OVER THE TOP
OF THE SPHINX, IT RESTS DIRECTLY

BETWEEN THE PYRAMIDS OF KHUFU
AND KHAFRE, CREATING AN AKHET,

THE SUN SYMBOL OF ANCIENT EGYPT.

PERHAPS THE SPHINX IS THE
GUARDIAN OF THE HORIZON,

PROTECTING THE PHARAOHS AS THEY
FOLLOW THE PATH OF THE SUN OVER

THE HORIZON AND INTO THE AFTERLIFE
AMONGST THE NORTHERN STARS.

IT SEEMS MORE THAN COINCIDENCE
THAT THEY TOOK THE

SPHINX AND ITS TEMPLE AND THEY
MOVED THEM LIKE THAT SO YOU'D

GET THAT ALIGNMENT, THAT THE SUN
SETS MIDWAY BETWEEN THE KHUFU

AND THE KHAFRE PYRAMIDS.

THERE'S VERY GOOD EVIDENCE THAT
THE SUN CULT, AS WE CALL IT, WAS

BECOMING VERY IMPORTANT
DURING THIS TIME.

SO WHAT CAN WE
CONCLUDE ABOUT THE REAL PURPOSE

FOR THE BUILDING OF
THE ANCIENT PYRAMIDS?

WITH THE INFORMATION COLLECTED
TO DATE, IT IS WELL WITHIN

REASON TO CONSIDER THAT THE
ICONIC MONUMENTS ARE DESIGNED TO

LAUNCH THE PHARAOHS TO THE SKY,
WHERE THEY DWELL AMONG BOTH THE

SUN AND NORTHERN STARS.

THE EGYPTIAN IDEA OF THE
AFTERLIFE IS REALLY COOL.

AFTERLIFE IS REALLY COOL.
THEY IMAGINED TRAVELING IN THE

DAYLIGHT WITH THE SUN ON HIS
BOAT ACROSS THE SKY, AND AT

NIGHT JOINING WITH THE
IMPERISHABLE STARS.

FOR THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS, THE PRACTICE OF

ASTRONOMY WENT BEYOND MYTH.

BOTH THE STARS AND THE SUN MAY
HAVE EVEN GUIDED THEM IN THEIR

MASTERFUL CREATION OF
THE PYRAMIDS THEMSELVES.

THEY MAY HAVE ALIGNED THE
PYRAMID ITSELF AND THE TOMB

CHAMBER, USING THE SUN, FOR THE
EAST-WEST ORIENTATION, WHERE

THE DESCENDING PASSAGEWAY WAS
SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO GET

THE SPIRIT OF THE KING TO THE
IMPERISHABLE ONES, AND THAT

WOULD HAVE REQUIRED A
CELESTIAL ALIGNMENT.

SO IT MAKES SENSE FROM A
SPIRITUAL POINT OF VIEW THAT

THEY WOULD HAVE ALIGNED THE
CASINGS OF THE PYRAMID WITH THE

SUN BUT THE DESCENDING
PASSAGEWAY WITH THE STARS.

BY LOOKING AT HOW
ASTRONOMY IS USED TO HELP BUILD

THESE MONUMENTS, WE ARE GIVEN
A RARE GLIMPSE INTO AN ANCIENT

CULTURE THAT IS HIGHLY
CIVILIZED, WHERE ASTRONOMY,

ARCHITECTURE, AND RELIGION ARE
WOVEN TOGETHER AS ONE, A SOCIETY

THAT IS KEENLY AWARE OF THE
UNIVERSE AND ITS IMPORTANCE TO

LIFE ON EARTH AND THEIR
BELIEF IN THE HEREAFTER.