Mollusk and Man. The Nautilus' Relation to the Human Embryo
Six hundred meters deep, at the bottom of the ocean's floor, lies the chambered
nautilus, an ancient creature. The chambered nautilus is a mollusk that dates back four-hundred
fifty million years and once ruled the open waters. For those that are unfamiliar with the nautilus its
most recognizable and memorable characteristic is its shell. The nautilus has a coiled shell that
is lined with mother-of-pearl; it is divided into a series of larger compartments, the most
recent being the one in which the creature resides. The nautilus regulates it's buoyancy through
the use of a tube that runs through the walls that seperates the chambers called a siphuncle.
Right now you're wondering, "Why would this person write something about this
boring creature?" The only thing about the nautilus that interests me is it's shell. The nautilus'
shell forms a golden spiral. A golden spiral can be formed by placing quarter circles in each
square of a golden rectangle. For more information on the golden ratio check out my node
The Golden Ratio: Nature's Formula for Perfection.
These golden spirals, or logarithmic spirals, are another inherent aspect of the fascinating world of sacred
geometry. What signifigance does this mollusk's shell formation hold? We ourselves, humans,
too, at one point in our lives, carry on this universal trait. After conception the human
embryo begins to develop and goes through about 40 different stages of development. As the
embryo develops it unfolds in a spiral. This spiral is a logarithmic spiral. For those nine
months we have a temporary, but significant connection with the universe.
Think
about that. The fact that at a point in our lives we actually hold something in common with the universe we
exist in, but even more astounding we have something in common with a mollusk. A mollusk! This
creature, this bottom feeder without idea of self and has no other instinct than to survive and to
reproduce. Just as I discuss in The Golden Ratio: Nature's Formula for Perfection this personalizes
mathematics to such a fantastic degree. Mathematics can show our connection with a bottom feeding
oceanic creature. It is much, much more than problems on a page. This manifestation exemplifies
a unity like no other; this is no hollow new age religion, and it is not religious doctrine thats
truth is dependent on faith.