Nothing lasts forever at the center of the universe. But occasionally, a once prominent idea that has faded from glory can reascend to a central position. This is what I call the “Thuban Phenomenon,” named after the former "North Star." Let me explain the origin of this wonderful metaphor.
Our current “North Star” is Polaris. It’s the star around which all the other stars appear to rotate, and it signifies true north in the night sky. But Polaris’ role as the center of things isn’t permanent. This is because as the earth rotates on its axis, it also wobbles like a spinning top. This means that over a 26,000 year period the earth's axis draws a ring through the northern sky, and any star along the ring gets a turn as the "North Star."
One of Polaris’ predecessors in the role of “North Star” is Thuban, a star in the constellation Draco the dragon. Thuban was the naked-eye star closest to the north pole from roughly 4000 BC until 1800 BC. This means that Thuban was the “guiding light” the ancients looked to for finding true north. For example, the Egyptians used Thuban to align the Great Pyramids of Giza. Neolithic British tribes used Thuban to lay out Stonehenge. And early Babylonians used astronomical records from a Thuban-centered night sky to create their highly accurate calendar.
But as I said, nothing lasts forever. Due to perturbations in the earth’s rotational axis, Thuban has gradually drifted away from the pole over the last 4,000 years. As the earth works its way through its wobble cycle, Thuban will move almost 47 degrees off the pole by 10,000 AD. But here’s the fascinating part: Thuban will again work its way toward celestial north, and by the year 20,300 AD, it will again be the earth’s “North Star.”
I think the “Thuban Phenomenon” is a wonderful metaphor that we can apply to our own lives in particular and to the human sphere in general.
This is how it works. Let’s suppose that in a earlier period of your life, you have a “star” that is your “guiding light” — it’s at the center of your universe. This “star” could be an idea, another person, a belief, an activity, a philosophy, or a relationship, that guides your thinking and actions.
But then you change. Just as the earth has its own perturbations, your own axis also changes — you develop new interests, learn new skills, meet new people, and change locations — such that you find new “guiding lights.” And your original “north star” drifts off toward the periphery.
Now, here’s where the “Thuban Phenomenon” comes into play. Just as a former north star can regain its central position, it sometimes happens that one of our own former central ideas or beliefs can re-ascend to take on a dominant position in our thinking. When this happens, we can say that this idea has achieved its “Thuban” quality.
Here a few examples of the “Thuban Phenomenon.” An obvious candidate is religion. I think we’ve all seen — either personally or in others — examples where an individual has been deeply moved by a particular belief, then abandoned that belief, and then returned to that “guiding star” later in life. The same thing can happen with the political views one holds. I’ve also seen it in sports: I’ve known people who were excellent age-group swimmers, and then gave up the sport in their late teens, and then when their lives began to fall apart in 40s, they became avid Masters swimmers — and the sport helped them get their lives back together.
Implications of the "Thuban Phenomenon" for creative thinking: sometimes ideas and strategies that were once successful in another era, but which have since gone out of usage, can be relevant once again in a new era or within a new context. Thus, it can be useful to look to the past for inspiration.
Where has the "Thuban Phenomenon" worked in your life? What have been your “Thubans”? What Thubans do you see in society?
In my own case, I think that my book shelf was a better indicator of my world view twenty years ago than it is today. And I believe that it will be an even less of an indicator in the future. That's because many of the ideas and
images that I pick up today aren't from the pages of a book, but
from the screens of my various digital appliances. It's difficult to
display those in an easy-to-grasp way for the casual browser.
