A commonly encountered symbol in astronomy and astrophysics books is the "circumpunct."
In astrophysics, units such as and
are used for mass and luminosity, respectively. They are read as "Solar Mass" and "Solar Luminosity," meaning "the mass and luminosity of the Sun." So, when we say 30
, it means the mass of 30 Suns!
Until now, I casually used these units, thinking of only as a symbol for the Sun. However, I was surprised to learn its significant meaning from Dan Brown's novel "The Lost Symbol," so I'd like to summarize it.
Meaning of the circumpunct:
In astronomy:
In "The Lost Symbol," the circumpunct is described as follows:
・This holds countless meanings.
・In ancient Egypt, it symbolized the Sun God Ra.
・It is also used in modern astronomy as a symbol of the Sun.
It was part of the hieroglyphs representing the Sun God Ra in ancient Egypt and was used as a symbol of the Sun in modern astronomy.
It also serves as the origin of the Chinese character "日" (meaning "the sun") as a symbol of the Sun in ancient China.
In psychology:
In Jungian psychology, this symbol is used to express the concepts of "ego and self."
The central dot represents the ego, and the self is the whole comprising the central dot.
In alchemy:
The circumpunct is used in alchemy as a symbol for gold. It holds various other significant meanings. It's fascinating how throughout history and across different cultures, this simple symbol has been imbued with profound significance.
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