Page 259 - Foundations

or an eagle. The Egyptian name for this latter constellation was Naz, “The Hawk,” which also means
“Coming swiftly down.” In my judgment, this is the more authentic symbol for the constellation now
recognized as Canis Major. The image of a dog is hardly befitting that of the Coming Savior of
mankind, and Christ’s adversary, Satan, is never figured as a hare in the Bible, but rather as a serpent.
Hawks are natural adversaries of snakes. I have witnessed a hawk carrying a serpent through the sky
on more than one occasion.

It is worth noting that the brightest star in the heavens is Sirius, which is commonly called “the dog
star.” This star is found in the constellation Canis Major, whose more original emblem was likely that
of the Hawk. The name Sirius means “Prince,” and nearby is the star Mirzam meaning “Ruler.” Also
in this constellation are the stars Adara, “the Glorious,” and Wezea, “the Bright, the Shining.”

Similarly, the Egyptians of long ago identified the constellation Canis Minor as Sebak, meaning
“Conquering, or Victorious.” They depicted it with the body of a man and the head of a hawk.
Kenneth Fleming states that the very earliest name found in any of the zodiacs for this constellation
is Procyon, meaning “Redeemer, Savior.” Thus, as in the symbols of the Twins, we have two dogs
which are actually two hawks, symbolizing the dual nature of Christ as the Prince and Glorious Ruler
of creation, as well as being the Savior and Redeemer of mankind.

Cancer

The message of this constellation and its associated decans appears to be that of the people of God
held fast. It prophesies of the saints held securely in the safety of their union with Christ. As with
many of the zodiacal images, there are varied depictions and names associated with the constellations
of Cancer, but a central theme is very much discernible. A crab is noted by its two great claws. The
claws are used for grasping and holding something firmly. When I was 15 and 16 years old, I worked
for a time with my father running a crab boat on the Georgia coast. We had crab traps scattered
throughout a section of the Atlantic intracoastal waterway, and filled up seven 50 gallon drums each
day with blue crabs harvested from the Georgia waters. Working with crabs, I learned very quickly
to stay out of reach of their claws. When they grabbed you they pinched very hard, and would not let
go.