The Orion Project: A Novel

by Edward Marin

  Linda was looking forward to asking him about Akhenaton, his pharaoh who had reigned for seventeen turbulent years before mysteriously disappearing. He’d distinguished himself by abandoning the ancient Egypt religion and starting a new monotheistic one, although he was best remembered today as the father of King Tut and for being depicted in paintings as having a protruding belly, wide hips, and slender limbs. Linda hoped to learn more about the pharaoh’s views as described in his Hymn to the Sun, which appeared to come from a highly enlightened soul.

  As she’d hoped he would, during their next exchange, Tonemcadu told them about Akhenaton for whom he seemed to have a great affection. He explained how he’d been a great leader who’d implemented many reforms for the benefit of his people as well as a spiritual being and a great family man.

  The more they learned about Tonemcadu in the next few days, the more they grew to like him, viewing him less as a project to be studied for professional reasons and more as a human being with personal qualities that drew them to him.

  He seemed obsessed with learning everything he could about the modern world, and Linda was reminded that in his culture ignorance was akin to sin. Ancient Egyptians believed that if people do bad things, it’s because they don’t know better. Since human beings do what they believe is in their best interest, they would always choose to do the right thing if they had full knowledge of the consequences of their failure to do so. Therefore, not being peaceful or loving was seen as the result of ignorance rather than evil.

  In response to one of their questions, Tonemcadu wrote that he, like most people born in ancient Egypt, revered animals. “It’s because we found in them qualities which humans don’t possess to the same extent. Dogs are more capable of unconditional love, cows and other herbivores more peaceful, elephants more noble. They are all more in balance with nature and cause less harm. Humans may be more intelligent, but intelligence was not so highly valued in our society as it is in yours.”

  “Why not?” Dan and Linda wrote. “Please tell us more.”

  “We didn’t view intelligence as the best way to arrive at truth--not to a truth that matters, such as how to be happy or understand the divine. Intelligence is so limited that it can at best help us to solve problems that don’t matter in the great scheme of things or to rationalize our preconceived notions. Our opinions are usually shaped more by our feelings of love, hate, sexual desire, ambition than by an objective and detached view of the facts.

  “Those emotions in turn are influenced by our perspectives as parents, children, mates, friends, co-workers, employees, and so on. A tree can be to the left or to the right depending on where an observer is standing. In the same way, a characteristic can be either a quality or a flaw depending on who is judging, on the time period, on the culture. That is why highly intelligent people often reach completely different conclusions about a given subject. There is enough evidence in the universe to support any opinion with a credible theory if the perspective is right.

  “Therefore the only way to know what is true and what isn’t is to be able to see things from every possible perspective at the same time. Achieving this is in the domain of the spiritual and not the intellectual, because it involves letting go of our pride, then looking at things from a place of tolerance and love.”

  When Dan pointed out that the intellect had to be used to make those distinctions, Tonemcadu wrote that in his culture people believed that: “When we finally understand that we cannot understand,that is when we’ve understood what we need to know. The mind is finite, but the truth is not. Therefore, the answers are not intellectual, but at a much higher level. When we understand that, then we know. Then we give up our egos and learn to listen to our heart, which is where the real answers lie. The less we think, the more the answers come, because we tap universal wisdom rather than the limited human brain.”

  More and more, Dan and Linda learned how different his world had been. Central to his concerns was his people’s belief that there was no separation between religion, philosophy, art, literature, science, architecture and that the purpose of life was to develop the soul.

  They discussed how his views were consistent with the Egyptian Book of the Dead, which stated that an enlightened individual could say: “I do not tamper with divine balance. I stop not a god when he comes forth. I do not offend the god who is at the helm. I do not harm my kinsmen. I do not kill. I am not an adulterer. I do not rob. I do not tell lies instead of truth. I do no wrong or mischief to others.” People believed that if they didn’t live according to those principles, their soul would disappear after death. If they followed them only at times, they would reincarnate. But if they followed them faithfully, they would reach a state of eternal contentment and wisdom.

  Tonemcadu seemed to have a good idea of where he was, based on the positions of the stars he watched every evening. One day he wrote a question about what had happened to the original inhabitants of the land, whom he knew had different physical characteristics from those of the people he saw on TV.

  The question caught Linda by surprise. She talked to Dan about it, and they concluded that Tonemcadu’s culture had probably established contact with the western hemisphere thousands of years ago. If such contact had taken place, it would lend credence to the theory that America was what Plato referred to as the continent of Atlantis, which he described as an advanced civilization “at a distant point in the Atlantic Ocean,” with cultural links to ancient Egypt. The theory was also supported by the fact that the base of the largest Maya Pyramid in Central America is the same size as that of the Great Pyramid in Egypt and by the twenty ton Olmec heads in the Gulf Coast of Mexico, which resemble Nubian statues.

  More and more, Linda felt that they were learning rather than teaching. And they were finding out that there was still a huge amount of knowledge Tonemcadu could share.

  CHAPTER 7

  Now that his hosts had offered to take him to Egypt, Tonemcadu felt free to spend all of his time learning about the modern world. He was feeling much more comfortable with English, though he could understand it better that he could speak it. This was especially true when he tried to convey an idea or express a feeling. This new language emphasized concepts that hadn’t been prevalent in his time, while having no equivalent for others that were essential to his reality.

  He was convinced that a part of becoming fluent would include understanding values central to the lives of moderns. He hoped he would soon reach that point and be able to talk to his hosts about things that went beyond everyday issues. As much as he enjoyed their written exchanges of ideas, he couldn’t wait until they could communicate verbally.

  A few days later, Linda made a change in her teaching method. Instead of following Tonemcadu around the house pointing to different objects, she simply wrote the words she wanted to teach him in both hieroglyphics and western characters and placed them next to pictures of the items they represented. He would then study on his own, taking advantage of the phonetic nature of Egyptian writing, and they’d go over the pronunciation of new words he learned at set times during the day. Thanks to this new system, he was not only able to learn faster, but also to associate the sounds of the English words with the corresponding letters. As a result, he was teaching himself to read and write English.

  It only took him days to learn the basics. Before long he was becoming a voracious reader of science, literature, religion, but, above all, of history, spending hours a day learning about the major events that had happened in the last 3,300 years.

  He was going through Dan and Linda’s library at a great rate. One book about a discovery in Florida at the beginning of the twentieth century held a particular fascination for him. A man named Edward Leedskalnin had started building a coral castle near Florida City in 1918 after having moved to the US from his native Latvia. A diminutive man in poor health, he claimed to have constructed it alone, in the same way as the ancient Egyptians, by raising and setting in place blocks of stone weighing
many tons with no major equipment other than the machines he had made himself. Although he was secretive about his method, two boys who spied on what he was doing once said that they saw him floating coral blocks “like hydrogen balloons.”

  A few years later he relocated his construction ten miles away in less than a month by transporting each block on a makeshift truck he would load himself while he was alone. On one occasion, the driver returned after leaving for a shorter time than Leedskalnin had expected and was surprised to see several multi-ton blocks already stacked. He had recalled that: “It was impossible to have stacked those gigantic blocks in under thirty minutes even with a steam-powered derrick. And Ed had no equipment, just a simple tackle and chain hoist. Yet, there they were, piled like cord-wood.”

  Tonemcadu read the account and knew exactly how it had been done.

  CHAPTER 8

  One morning about one month after Tonemcadu’s awakening, he and Linda were going over new English words he’d learned. He could express concepts now, a development she was saving as a surprise for Dan. And his accent was improving, though sometimes he stumbled over a particular word. Despite his best efforts, he was having trouble pronouncing “hyperbole” and kept saying “hipperbole” instead, which Linda found comical.

  She was laughing, bending over him, showing him how she positioned her mouth to create the correct sound, and didn‘t hear the knock at the front door. She only realized it had been opened when a female voice behind them said, “Hi.” She turned to see her friend Martha standing about three feet away and jerked away from Tonemcadu.

  “I let myself in since no one came to open,” Martha said, looking from Linda to Tonemcadu, then back at Linda. “I heard voices, so I assumed you and Dan were having breakfast. Hope I’m not disturbing you.”

  “Of course. I mean, not at all. Nice to see you, Martha. What are you doing in town?”

  “I had to come to Chicago for a school interview. It’s been real hectic, but I wanted to see you and Dan before I left. I forgot your home number, so I just decided to drop by. Hope you don’t mind.”

  “I’m glad you did. How long will you be in town?”

  “My flight’s at twelve forty-five.”

  “So you won’t get to see Dan. He’s always asking me how’s your nosy friend.”

  “Nosy? Why does he call me nosy?”

  “He’s just kidding. You know how he is.”

  Martha glanced at Tonemcadu. “Well, since I’m so nosy, aren’t you going to introduce me?”

  Linda smiled.

  “Of course. Where are my manners? I’m so sorry, Martha, this is Tonem, He’s a friend of ours from Egypt.”

  Martha offered her hand and Tonemcadu followed suit. An awkward handshake ensued; Tonemcadu’s first, Linda realized.

  “I see you’re wearing a number fifty-two University of Michigan football T-shirt,” Martha said. “I assume you weren’t on the same college team as Dan?”

  “Tonem has only been in our country a few weeks,” Linda said. “And he speaks little English. So tell me, Martha, can I drive you to the airport? That way we’ll have a chance to catch up in the car.”

  “No thanks, I have a rental.”

  The two women chatted for a while longer, then Martha said she had to leave. Linda hugged her.

  “Nice to meet you, Tonem,” she said at the door. “Bye, Linda. Give Dan a hello from your nosy friend.”

  Linda couldn’t help feeling uneasy about Martha’s stopover. It wasn’t just the fact that an outsider now knew about Tonemcadu’s presence in their home. Even though Martha had no idea who their guest was, she really was nosy. Right now she was probably wondering about what she’d seen and how she could find out more.

  And that T-shirt!

  “Let‘s take him shopping over the weekend,” she said when Dan got home from work. “He needs to have his own clothes. And this would give him a chance to observe modern life outside our house. He’s taught us so much about his world, it’s time we started returning the favor, don’t you think?”

  On the day they decided to go to the store, Linda made a conscious effort to look at the city through the eyes of someone who, like Tonemcadu, had never seen it before. For the first time, she noticed how big, boxy, clean and gray it was. How its streets buzzed with an energy she’d always associated more with New York than Chicago. How the sound of the drivers blowing their horns, the bright colors of the publicity panels, the feel of the wind, even the smell of the fumes could be intoxicating. And how the people, whether rushing somewhere or just chatting at an outdoor restaurant, made it vibrate with life.

  They took him to the Marshall Fields department store, where they ended up buying three pairs of slacks and three shirts.

  “This has to be the most excitement he’s seen in way over three thousand years,” Linda said on the drive back as they were entering Lake Shore Drive.

  Dan looked through the rear view mirror at Tonemcadu.

  “What did you think of our city?”

  Tonemcadu looked back at him with a smile.

  “It’s big and energetic and beautiful,” he said with his slight accent.

  Dan slowed down the car and was silent for a moment.

  “You also built big buildings in your country,” he said finally.

  Linda realized that he was struggling not to show his astonishment at hearing Tonemcadu respond so fluently.

  “Yes, we did, but they were different,” Tonemcadu said.

  “They were very different. What I don’t understand is, why did you live in simple mud houses that were destroyed with the annual flooding of the Nile, when you had the know-how to build pyramids?”

  “Each culture has different priorities and values.”

  “That’s true, but why didn’t you use your technology to live more comfortable lives?”

  “We believed that living in a house close to nature, we were closer to the divine. If a structure has a lot of technology, it has a lot of human input.”

  “In that case, why did you build complex structures like your pyramids or your temples?”

  “Because we believed that pyramids must last forever since they represent the afterlife, which is never-ending.”

  “Seeking comfort is a natural instinct. Even animals do it,” Dan said, raising his voice. “I still don’t see why your people didn’t.”

  “Okay, guys, we’re almost home. Let’s just be thankful that we were able to have this first real conversation,” Linda said. Obviously, Dan was now more focused on making his point and having the last word than on learning about Tonemcadu’s culture. Something important was going on here; why did he have to mess it up by showing so little sensitivity? He’d never reach the top of his profession handling himself like that. If only he could be more centered, more like Tonemcadu.

  As he was about to pull into their driveway, Linda turned and smiled at Tonemcadu in the back seat.

  “Even I had no idea how far you’ve come,” she said. “It’s amazing how fluent and articulate you’ve become in such a short time.”

  “It all finally came together,” Tonemcadu said. “Thanks to your help and the books I’ve been reading.”

  “You express yourself better than most native speakers. Very impressive.”

  In reality, Linda was awe-struck. In less than a month, he’d succeeded in mastering English, while she’d studied ancient Egyptian for years and could never have had a conversation in that language. And she’d been at the top of her class.

  She was also amazed that he’d been so modest about his ability to hold forth in his new language. Then she realized, he hadn’t needed it in their study sessions. He’d saved it until he was in a situation where he wanted to speak.

  CHAPTER 9

  After they got home, Tonemcadu thought about the conversation he’d had with Dan in the car. His host’s reaction reinforced his impression that the search for a more comfortable life was what most influenced modern culture. People seemed to believe that
physical comfort would bring them emotional comfort. As a result, they behaved as if the more things they accumulated, the happier they’d be.

  Such a world view could hardly be more different from the one in his time, when it was believed that happiness was the state reached once a person no longer had needs and was content in the present. Life was seen as the process of learning to relinquish the human attachment to things, including, at death, the attachment to the body. It was believed that once the basic needs for food and shelter were met, emotionally healthy people would be content.

  CHAPTER 10

  A few days after his extraordinary conversation with Tonemcadu, Dan came home from work, slammed the door behind him, and stormed into the kitchen, where Linda was peeling potatoes with a large kitchen knife.

  “What kind of day did you have?” he said.

  “Not so hot. I think I may be coming down with something.”

  “Well, my day included a call from Martha, whose nosiness seems to have been rewarded when she came over here the other day.”

  “I know. I wish it hadn’t happened, but--”

  “Wish what hadn’t happened? I guess I know why you didn’t tell me she dropped by.”

  Linda laid down the knife on the counter, looked up at him, and crossed her arms over her chest.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “What did Martha see when she walked in on you? She didn’t tell me, but you’d better.”

  “She couldn’t have seen anything because there was nothing to see! Nothing! We were having a lesson.” She marched across the kitchen and stood right in front of him.

  “What‘s wrong with you?”

  Dan started pacing. Linda looked at his face. He no longer looked angry, just frustrated.