Illustration of an ancient compass

206 BCE Compass

The book of science

Tom Sharp

Chinese, Han dynasty electromagnetism Illustration of Hebrew calendar

Compass

Invented during the Han dynasty to help feng shui practitioners arrange people’s lives to best align with qi, the invisible forces that bind everything together, Chinese military and mariners began to use compasses during the Song dynasty for navigating in bad weather.

Spoons, tadpoles

A lodestone suspended from a silk string. The south-pointing spoon thrown onto the ground. A south-pointing needle shaped like a tadpole, or a south-pointing fish, floating in a bowl water.

Methods

To magnetize a needle rub it with a lodestone or heat it red hot and douse it in water while pointing it toward the pole.

Geomancy

The earth around us has its yin, exerting, and its yang, receiving, even though elements interfere. The compass swings from the south. A massif, sometimes hidden underground, water below a lake, shapes hidden forces. It’s useless to oppose them and it’s easy to make a mistake. This is why you need our help. Our aura of confidence helps. We have a simple condition. Don’t ask if you think you know better.

The compass extended the seasons when commerce and piracy could be conducted on the seas. In Europe, it helped create a source of wealth independent of royalty and the church.

See also in The book of science:

Readings in wikipedia: