[Primary Source] -Monarchy- Sir Walter Ralegh, 1599

from The Dutie of a King in His Royal Office

Sir Walter Ralegh, 1599

---

       The state of monarchie is the supremest thing upon earth; for kings are not only Gods lieutenants upon earth, and sit upon Gods throne, but even by God himselfe they are called gods. There be three principall similitudes that ilustrate the state of monarchie: one taken out of the word of God; and the two other out of the grounds of policie and philosophie. In the scriptures, kings are called gods; and so their power, after a certaine relation, compared to the divine power. Kings are also compared to fathers of families: for a king is truely parens patriæ, the politique father of his people. And, lastly, kings are compared to the head of this microcosme of the body of man.
       Kings are justly called gods; for that they exercise a manner or resemblance of divine power upon earth. For, if you will consider the attributes of God, you shall see how they agree in the person of a king. God hath the powere to create or destroy, make or unmake, at his pleasure; to give life or send death, to judge all, and not to be judged nor accountable to none; to raise low things, and to make high things low at his pleasure, and to God are both soule and body due. And the like power have kings: they make and unmake their subjects; they have powers of raising and casting down; of life and of death; judges over all their subjects, and in all causes, and yet accountable to none but God only. They have power to exalt low things, and abase high things, and make of their subjects like men at the chesse; a pawne to take a bishop or a knight, and to cry up or down any of their subjects, as they do their money. And to the king is due both the affection of the soule and the service of the body of his subjects. And, therefore, that reverend bishop here amongst you, though I heare, that by divers he was mistaken, or not well understood, yet did he preach both learnedly and truly anent this point concerning the power of a king; for what he spake of a kings power in abstracto, is most true in divinitie: for to emperours, or kings that are monarches, their subjects bodies and goods are due for their defence and maintenance. But if I had been in his place, I would only have added two words, which would have cleared all; for, after I had told as a divine what was due by the subjects to their kings in generall all subjects were bound to relieve their king; so to exhort them, that, as we lived in a setled state of a kingdome, which was governed by his own fundamentall lawes and orders, that, according thereunto, they were now (being assembled for this purpose in parliament) to consider how to help such a king as now they had; and that according to the ancient forme and order established in this kingdome: putting so a difference between the generall power of a king in divinity and the setled and established state of this crown and kingdome. And I am sure that the bishop meant to have done the same, if he had not been straited by time, which, in repect of the greatnesse of the presence, preaching before me, and such an auditory, he durst not presume upon.
       As for the father of a familie, they had of old, under the law of nature, patriam postestatem, which was potestatem vitæ et necis, over the children or familie (I mean such fathers of families as were the lineall heires of those families whereof kings did originally come;) for kings had their first originall from them, who planted and spread themselves in colonies through the world. Now a father may dispose of his inheritance to his childten at his pleasure; yea, even disinherit the eldest upon just occasion, and preferre the youngest, according to his liking; make them beggars or rich at his pleasure; restraine or banish out of his presence, as he finds them give cause of offence, or restore them in favour againe with the penitent sinner: so may the king deale with his subjects.
       And, lastly, as for the head of the naturall body, the head hath the power of directing all the members of the body to that use which judgement in the head thinkes most convenient. It may apply sharp cures, or cut off corrupt members, let blood in what proportion it thinkes fit, and as the body may spare, but yet is all this power ordained by God ad ædificationem, non ad destructionem; for although God have power, as well of destruction as of creation or maintenance, yet will it not agree with the wisdome of God to exercise his power in the destruction of nature, and overturning the whole frame of things, since his creatures were made, that his glory might thereby be the better expressed: so were he a foolish father that would disinherit or destroy his children without cause, or leave off the carefull education of them; and it were an idle head that would, in place of physicke, so poyson or phlebotomize the body.

Ancient Light #5 Mixed Martial Arts vs Ancient Combat Sports #MMA

Ancient Light Episode #5 Mixed Martial Arts vs Ancient Combat Sports

Episode five is Ancient Light's first long-form show. Host and historian, Steve Dotson presents a comparison of systems making up modern MMA and Systems which make up Ancient Pankration.

:33 Highlight of Modern MMA landscape
1:43 Evolution in modern MMA; "Rise of the kickers" Steve "Wonderboy" Thompson
3:20 Traditional martial arts (not ancient) & MMA
5:57 Main Argument; systems comparison
8:11 Modern boxing & heavy hands
10:00 Modern kicking systems: Muay Thai, TKD, Karate, Tournament style karate, kickboxing; Bill "Superfoot" Wallace; Steve "Wonderboy" Thompson
12:32 Modern Wrestling Systems
14:27 Submission systems
18:25 Specific systems: Muay Thai, Judo, modern athleticism, Chemical enhancement
26:45 Ancient unarmed combat systems; Boxing; Wrestling; Unmentioned Systems, [I will dedicate an entire episode to Prankration]; Athleticism: strength, unique training methods, lactic acid tolerance training example, chemical enhancement in the ancient world.

Topics mentioned in the show: MMA, UFC, Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson, Conor McGregor, Rhonda Rousey, Muay Thai, Judo, Jiu Jitsu (Brazilian & Japanese), kickboxing, tae kwon do, karate, tournament fighting, submissions, boxing, wrestling, Greece, Roman-Greco, gladiators, combat, sports, olympic lifting, scientific training & conditioning, lactic acid tolerance, explosive strength, steroids, performance enhancing drugs, take-downs, athleticism, ancient Greek pottery, rear naked choke (hadaka jime), juji gatame (cross-body arm bar) (I call it a scissor arm lock in the show, but that is not the conventional term for it. Many commentators simply call it an arm bar).

The Rygar Exercise: Assessing Ancient Themes in Visual Art

I began this article during the 30 year anniversary of the game. I update this article occasionally with new visual themes & ideas.

A Beloved Video Game

At an age when video games tend to mean the most, I was a zealot of the so-called third generation of video games, one who played on 8-bit graphic consoles such as the Nintendo (NES) and Sega systems. The era produced hits such as 'Super Mario Brothers,' 'Zelda,' 'Contra,' and the original 'Sonic the Hedgehog.' I had a NES console. I spent the most time on Mario, 'Zelda,' 'Kung Fu,' 'Pro Wrestling,' 'Castlevania' and 'Dragon Warrior.' My favorite game in the 8-bit graphics world was 'Rygar.' It was set in an ancient mythological world. The hero, Rygar, was on a quest to destroy the leader of the dominant empire in order to restore peace to the land. Rygar had a flexible weapon which is somewhat similar to the type of weapon used by Simon Belmont from the game 'Castlevania.' The "Diskarmor" was a chain weapon with a shield at the end of the it, sometimes illustrated as more of a giant band saw.

Fig. 1 Rygar Arcade Flyer, Japan.

Like many games, the original version was first an arcade game, which usually had better graphics. Each console recreated the arcade game, each one taking on different aspects of the original game.

The Exercise

The visual themes of Rygar can serve as a fun exercise in assessing ancient themes. You should avoid ascribing intentions to the creators and designers of the game, and instead, think of this exercise as a game of dissecting an amalgamation and identifying the pieces.

The Discarmor

     The discarmor was Rygar's main weapon. I can't think of an exact equivalent to this weapon in any cultural from any time-period. A shield that comes back to the user reminds one more of Captain America than some ancient hero like Herakles with his club, or Apollo with his bow.

     The historical weapon (more like legendary) most similar to Rygar's discarmor, I think, is the flexible weapon which was thrown over the enemies head, as one pulled the cord, blades would open up inside the head bag and decapitate the one wearing it. This Chinese weapon is known in the west as the "Flying Guillotine." 

Fig. A nice view of Rygar's discarmor in motion

Fig. The Flying Guillotine

The Diadem

The small crown was well known, especially seen on coins, in the ancient world. Alexander the Great wore a diadem with his mixed Persian and Greek garb.

The Persian King, Darius I. Behistun Inscription.

The Pants

Rygar is wearing pants. Why would this standout to an ancient historian? Greeks did not wear pants. As a matter of fact, they belittled cultures who wore the restrictive garments. The Greeks equated pant-wearing with the Persians. The "Other" wore pants. 

The Shoes

In the assorted artwork related to Rygar, the shoe style is inconsistent. There is a lack of sandal and sandal style wraps in Rygar artwork, which indicate an ancient Greek ethnicity. Small shoes remind me of an ancient Persian item.

The Title

"Warrior of Argus." Argos? What heros in ancient Greek myth are from Argos? Perseus, for one. 

Perseus

The Resurrected Warrior

In the Rygar story the hero is sometimes portrayed as a resurrected warrior. Other versions of the game has him as the new force taking over an old corrupt empire.

Resurrected Gods: Osiris (Egyptian), Dionysos (Greek), Quetzalcoatl (Aztec), Christ (Jewish), Mithra (Persia), Krishna (India).

Krishna, India.

The Meditating Sage

Along the way, the Hero of Rygar is aided by buff monks hidden inside caves and towers. These monks are seated in what looks like a classic meditation position reminiscent of Eastern Indian traditions. One sage even has a large third eye (Ajna), a staple of Indian religious systems.

The Survey

SteveDotson‏@SteveDotson

#Rygar looks like he is an ancient... [Survey for upcoming podcast]

67%Greek

33%Persian

00%Eastern Indian

00%Celt

In your circles

36 people

Retro Video Games

Steve Dotson

Discussion  -  Apr 30, 2016

If you had to choose, from what culture is the hero of the video game #Rygar? I will be talking about this on my podcast soon. Please leave your comments below. Feel free to explain your answer if you like.

Steve Dotson's photos

14

Glynner Me

Apr 30, 2016

+

1
2
1

 

Reply

With all the jaguars he was jumping on in the early stages I assumed he was Incan. That was a great game, though.

Marcelo Lima

Apr 30, 2016

Still love it to this day ....😉

Jeremy Riley

Apr 30, 2016

I would vote for Incan as well

Bram Patelski

May 1, 2016

That box art doesn't look like the nes version. Or is it different from the EU box art?

Steve Dotson

May 1, 2016

This is not the nes version, good call. It is, I am told, a promo for the US arcade version. 

James Caley

May 1, 2016

Greek

Anthony Starks

May 1, 2016

Greek or Roman

STBill

May 2, 2016

Isn't the official story about a Greek hero that is resurrected to defeat evil? SEGA's Altered Beast has the same story BTW. I wonder if one of them stole the idea from the other?

Steve Dotson

May 2, 2016

+

1
2
1

From what I can find, the hero of Rygar is not mentioned as anything specific until the 2002 release, where he is intentionally Greek. It is possible the original makers intended the hero to be Greek, but the release from the late 80s (arcade and nes) shows imagery which is non-Greek. I don't want to give it away, I will be talking about it soon in my ancient history show. All in fun. Rygar was my all-time fav new game without a doubt.


Read more

Steve Dotson

May 2, 2016

new = nes


Anthony Starks

May 2, 2016

+

1
2
1

+STBill u right I think rygar came out fitst

Marian Frost

May 3, 2016

In the early ones Rome, in the ps2 one Greek. ?

Dating of Global Pyramid Structures

The above graphic shows the approximate dating of pyramid structures around the world. It has become a recent popular trend for people to claim the great pyramid structures from around the world were constructed around the same time because ancient Annunaki aliens were enslaving mankind and/or teaching us to form civilization. The ancient sources talk about the Annunaki and other creatures who came from the water to give mankind the tools of civilization. These ancient myths and great pyramid structures appear on the vital cusp of early civilization. Early civilizations depended on highly organized agricultural production. The ancient societies of Egypt and Southern Iraq were tight hierarchies of aristocratic families, powerful priests, and laborers. Early urban societies have many shared attributes. They appear on highly fertile alluvial soil along great rivers which carry minerals from distant mountains. Egypt had the Nile river valley the Sumerians had the Euphrates. This hierarchy based mass organized labor urban society were marvels in themselves. Organized labor allowed great building feats to be possible in the off-season so-to-speak. When the time is over for planting and harvesting farmers needed to be organized to maintain and dig canals which carried water to the garden plots. Powerful  leaders pulled their laborers from the masses who toiled in the fields. The pyramid or ziggurat structure is a result of several factors. First, it is a highly stable structure which could be built to great heights prior to the use of columns and arches. It is a naturally stable shape for early builders. The "mastaba" shape is the base of the Ziggurat. Labor could build one layer each year and after many seasons a high ziggurat would tower over their city, houses, and fields. Second, these great feats are a result of a collective effort. This collective effort is symptomatic of the conditions of our earliest known urban civilizations. To ascribe these feats to ancient aliens, for example, is to ignore great amounts of information we have about the origins of human civilization. However, this does not disprove the existence of aliens, it only says aliens are unnecessary for humans to organize and form urban civilization.

A Mastaba

Pax

The Finger Strength of Emperor Tiberius

The Finger Strength of Emperor Tiberius

"Tiberius was a big, strong man, above average in height. He was broad across the shoulders and chest... His left hand was the more dexterous and stronger one; it had joints so tough that he would drill right through a whole fresh apple with his finger, and a quick flick of it would injure the head of a boy, or even a young man" (Suetonius 68 Trans. Donna W. Hurley).

The above passage was written by an ancient author who was not out to give Tiberius a good name. Unfortunately, we have no idea if the emperor's fingers on his left hand were really this strong. My initial question is: How attainable are both of the finger feats of Tiberius? If this is passage is true, Tiberius was a large man, so genetics would play a role. Also, did he engage in some sort of training which gave him a strength/stability advantage? I will explore more of these questions and look for some answers in this short article.

When I hear about the sort of finger strength that would enable one to "drill right through a whole fresh apple..." and "injure the head of a boy..." I usually find references like these among the recorded feats of Chinese or Okinawan martial artists. In those historical systems, there is the Spear Hand technique or a One Finger Strike, for example. With enough conditioning one could, theoretically, penetrate a hard apple.

The finger flick strike mentioned by Suetonius appears in Kung-Fu movies such as Jet Li's Fist of Legend. In one fight scene, a fighter misses with his punch, but then opens his fist and strikes the opponent on the head with the back of his fingers. I doubt this strike will be integrated into cage fighting anytime soon, but it could serve as a distraction to the opponent as one recovers from a failed punch. Similarly, one sees MMA fighters flick out their open hands to break the rhythm and sight-line of his or her adversary. Sometimes this defensive or set-up technique turns into an illegal eye poke (YouTube search "Jon Jones Eye Poke"). The eye poke, in my opinion, is one of the most practical martial art techniques.

If I were to create a training routine to develop a stronger finger flick, it might look something like this:

Supplementary Progressive Strength Resistance Training
Reverse Wrist Curls
Rubber Band finger extensions
Wide grip stone cylinder: lateral, frontal, and rear Deltoid Flyes
Shoulder Rotator Work
Heavy Rope Whipping Various Angles
Power frontal with barbell or kettlebell
Hand and Grip work to increase the Mass of the hand and wrist

Strikes with & without bands
Limited range finger flick
Limited range wrist flick
Full arm thrust with flick
Rotating back arm strike wrist flick
Transverse core work
Isolation of whipping motions
Small factures and tears of bones and joints through various methods

Progressive Testing
Wrist flick breaking of weak to sturdy wooden sticks
Test improvements with acceleration on a candle flame

The sort of conditioning one would endure for a powerful finger thrust would involve plunging one's hand in various materials in order to strengthen the hand and thicken the skin around the striking surface. One can search on YouTube for footage of people performing spear hand strikes on various things, especially watermelon.

Fastest time to pierce 4 coconuts with 1 FINGER! - Guinness World Records Classics

In conclusion, the feat of plunging one's fingers into a piece of hard fruit is uncommon, but certainly attainable. Tiberius was a large and strong man, making this feat more believable. The act of injuring a young man or boy with the flick of the fingers is easily more subjective than plunging the fingers into hard fruit. I do not know if this flick was only performed with a small motion of the wrist, the fingers only, or if Tiberius put his elbow or shoulder into it. To injure a head is a general statement. If Tiberius was leaving a bruise or knocking boys down or unconscious from only a flick of the fingers, this would be both sadistic and impressive. Suetonius does not make it clear. Perhaps he would flick an attendant boys head and the boy would feign injury to avoid a harsher punishment. Tiberius might have employed more of a whipping motion with a slight extension of the arm and the snapping of the wrist. This could certainly wobble a lad. I am curious to find out if Tiberius would perform what I will, for now on call the "Tiberius Flick," out of either cruel sport or as a habitual harsh disciplining tool.

If you are interested in information on ancient combat sports, check out this episode of Ancient Light where I compare ancient fighters to modern Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighters.