View allAll Photos Tagged December
Batemans was Rudyard Kipling's home
Joseph Rudyard Kipling (/ˈrʌdjərd ˈkɪplɪŋ/ rud-yərd kip-ling, About this sound listen (help·info); 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)[1] was an English journalist, short-story writer, poet, and novelist.
Kipling's works of fiction include The Jungle Book (1894), Kim (1901), and many short stories, including "The Man Who Would Be King" (1888).[2] His poems include "Mandalay" (1890), "Gunga Din" (1890), "The Gods of the Copybook Headings" (1919), "The White Man's Burden" (1899), and "If—" (1910). He is regarded as a major innovator in the art of the short story;[3] his children's books are classics of children's literature; and one critic described his work as exhibiting "a versatile and luminous narrative gift".[4][5]
Kipling was one of the most popular writers in the United Kingdom, in both prose and verse, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.[3] Henry James said: "Kipling strikes me personally as the most complete man of genius, as distinct from fine intelligence, that I have ever known."[3] In 1907, at the age of 42, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, making him the first English-language writer to receive the prize, and its youngest recipient to date.[6] He was also sounded out for the British Poet Laureateship and on several occasions for a knighthood, both of which he declined.[7]
Kipling's subsequent reputation has changed according to the political and social climate of the age[8][9] and the resulting contrasting views about him continued for much of the 20th century.[10][11] George Orwell called him a "prophet of British imperialism".[12] Literary critic Douglas Kerr wrote: "[Kipling] is still an author who can inspire passionate disagreement and his place in literary and cultural history is far from settled. But as the age of the European empires recedes, he is recognised as an incomparable, if controversial, interpreter of how empire was experienced. That, and an increasing recognition of his extraordinary narrative gifts, make him a force to be reckoned with."
wikipedia
Mare iarnă o picatu,
Florile sunt dalbe...
Oile toate-or zbieratu,
Florile sunt dalbe...
Păstorii le-or auzitu,
Florile sunt dalbe...
Jos la ele-or coborâtu,
Florile sunt dalbe...
A long winter has surprised us,
White are the flowers...
All sheep were bleating,
White are the flowers...
The shepherds heard them,
White are the flowers...
They came down towards them,
White are the flowers...
(Ștefan Hrușcă - Florile dalbe)
Extraordinary Beauty Statue
__________________________
Tiruvannamalai (Tamil: Tiruvaṇṇāmalai IPA: [ˈtiɾɯʋaɳːaːmalɛi̯], also Thiruvannamalai or Trinomali and Trinomalee during British times) is a town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The town is administered by a special grade municipality that covers an area of 16.33 km2 and had a population of 144,278 in 2011. It is the administrative headquarters of Tiruvannamalai District. Roadways are the major mode of transport in Tiruvannamalai, while the town also has rail connectivity. Chennai International Airport is the nearest domestic and international airport to the town. Tiruvannamalai is named after the central deity of the Annamalaiyar Temple, Annamalaiyar. The Karthigai Deepam festival is celebrated during the day of the full moon between November and December, and a huge beacon is lit atop the Annamalai hill. The event is witnessed by three million pilgrims. On the day preceding each full moon, pilgrims circumnavigate the temple base and the Annamalai hills in a worship called Girivalam, a practice carried out by one million pilgrims yearly.
Located on the foothills of Annamalai hills, Tiruvannamalai has been ruled by the Pallavas, the Medieval Cholas, the Later Cholas, Hoysalas, the Vijayanagar Empire, the Carnatic kingdom, Tipu Sultan, and the British. It served as the capital city of the Hoysalas. The town is built around the Annamalaiyar Temple like other Nayak capitals. Tiruvannamalai is administered by a special-grade a municipality constituted in 1886. Tiruvannamalai has an average elevation of 200 metres and experiences a hot and humid climate. Being a pilgrimage town, most of the people are employed in the tertiary sector. There are 25 elementary schools, nine high schools, 18 higher secondary schools, four arts & science colleges, one government medical college and four engineering colleges in the town.
ETYMOLOGY AND LEGEND
In Hindu mythology, Parvati, wife of Shiva, once closed the eyes of her husband playfully in a flower garden at their abode atop Mount Kailash. Although only a moment for the gods, all light was taken from the universe, and the earth, in turn, was submerged in darkness for years. Parvati performed penance with other devotees of Shiva, and her husband appeared as a column of fire at the top of Annamalai hills, returning light to the world. He then merged with Parvati to form Ardhanarishvara, the half-female, half-male form of Shiva. The Annamalai, or red mountain, lies behind the Annamalaiyar temple, and is associated with the temple of its namesake. The hill is sacred and considered a lingam, or iconic representation of Shiva, in itself. Another legend is that once, while Vishnu and Brahma contested for superiority, Shiva appeared as a flame, and challenged them to find his source. Brahma took the form of a swan, and flew to the sky to see the top of the flame, while Vishnu became the boar Varaha, and sought its base. The scene is called lingothbava, and is represented in the western wall at the sanctum of most Shiva temples. Neither Brahma nor Vishnu could find the source, and while Vishnu conceded his defeat, Brahma lied and said he had found the pinnacle. In punishment, Shiva ordained that Brahma would never have temples on earth in his worship. In Tamil, the word Arunam means red or fire and Asalam means hill. Since Shiva manifested himself in the form of fire in this place, this name Arunachalam came to be associated with Annamalai hill and the town. The first mention of Annamalai is found in Tevaram, the seventh century Tamil Saiva canonical work by Appar and Tirugnanasambandar.
HISTORY
The history of Tiruvannamalai revolves around the Annamalaiyar Temple. The recorded history of the town dates back to the ninth century, as seen from a Chola inscriptions in the temple. Further inscriptions made before ninth century indicate the rule of Pallava kings, whose capital was Kanchipuram. The seventh century Nayanar saints Sambandar and Appar wrote of the temple in their poetic work, Tevaram. Sekkizhar, the author of the Periyapuranam records both Appar and Sambandar worshiped Annamalaiyar in the temple. The Chola Kings ruled over the region for more than four centuries, from 850 to 1280, and were temple patrons. The inscriptions from the Chola king record various gifts like land, sheep, cow and oil to the temple commemorating various victories of the dynasty.
The Hoysala kings used Tiruvannamalai as their capital beginning in 1328. There are 48 inscriptions from the Sangama Dynasty (1336–1485), two inscriptions from Saluva Dynasty, and 55 inscriptions from Tuluva Dynasty (1491–1570) of the Vijayanagara Empire, reflecting gifts to the temple from their rulers. There are also inscriptions from the rule of Krishnadeva Raya (1509–1529), the most powerful Vijayanagara king, indicating further patronage. Most of the Vijayanagara inscriptions were written in Tamil, with some in Kannada and Sanskrit. The inscriptions in the temple from the Vijayanagara kings indicate emphasis on administrative matters and local concerns, which contrasts the inscriptions of the same rulers in other temples like Tirupathi. The majority of the gift related inscriptions are for land endowments, followed by goods, cash endowments, cows and oil for lighting lamps. The town of Tiruvannamalai was at a strategic crossroads during the Vijayanagara Empire, connecting sacred centers of pilgrimage and military routes. There are inscriptions that show the area as an urban center before the precolonial period, with the city developing around the temple, similar to the Nayak ruled cities like Madurai.
During the 17th century, Tiruvannamalai came under the dominion of the Nawab of the Carnatic. As the Mughal empire came to an end, the Nawab lost control of the town, with confusion and chaos ensuing after 1753. Subsequently, there were periods of both Hindu and Muslim stewardship of the temple, with Muraru Raya, Krishna Raya, Mrithis Ali Khan, and Burkat Ullakhan besieging the temple in succession. As European incursions progressed, Tiruvannamalai was attacked by French Soupries, Sambrinet, and the English Captain Stephen Smith. While some were repelled, others were victorious. The French occupied the town in 1757 and it came under the control of the British in 1760. In 1790, Tiruvannamalai town was captured by Tippu Sultan, who ruled from 1750–99. During the first half of the 19th century, the town came under British rule.
GEOGRAPHY
Tiruvannamalai is situated 185 km from the state capital Chennai and 210 km from Bangalore. The height of the Annamalai hill is approximately 814 m. Tiruvannamalai is located at 12°N 79.05°E. It has an average elevation of 200 metres. The town is located to the east of Eastern Ghats. The topography of Tiruvannamalai is almost plain sloping from west to east. Tiruvannamalai experiences hot and dry weather throughout the year. The temperature ranges from a maximum of 40 °C to a minimum of 20 °C. Like the rest of the state, April to June are the hottest months and December to January are the coldest. Tiruvannamalai receives scanty rainfall with an average of 815 mm annually, which is lesser than the state average of 1,008 mm. The southwest monsoon with an onset in June and lasting up to August brings scanty rainfall. Bulk of the rainfall is received during the northeast monsoon in the months of October, November and December. The average humidity of the town is 77% and varies between 67% to 86%. During the summer months of April to June, the humidity ranges from 47–63%. The municipality covers an area of 16.3 km2.
ECONOMY
Tiruvannamali is a temple town and a major pilgrimage centre in Tamil Nadu. The town is the marketing and service town for the surrounding places. Being the administrative headquarters of the Tiruvannamalai district, Tiruvannamalai has a lot of tertiary sector activities. Trade and commerce and service activities are the major contributors to the economy of the town. In 1991, 7.93% of the population was involved in primary sector, 21.34% in secondary sector and 70.73% in tertiary sector activities. The town had a female work participation of 11%. Due to the urbanisation from 1971, there has been dip in primary sector activities and a proportional increase in the tertiary sector activities. There is limited agricultural activity within the town limits. The secondary sector involves manufacturing and construction, whose growth has remained stable over the decades. There are a number of oil mills, rice mills and agro based industries within the Tiruvannamalai town limits. The tertiary sector activities of trade, commerce, transport, storage, communication and other services has been increasing due to the increasing number of tourists to the town. The patronage to Girivalam has increased informal economic activities around the town. The major commercial activities are concentrated around Car Street, Thiruvoodal Street, Kadambarayan Street, Asaliamman Koil Street, Sivanpada Street and Polur Road.
All major nationalised banks such as State Bank of India, Indian Bank, Central Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Bank of India and private banks like ICICI Bank, Karur Vysya Bank have their branches in Tiruvannamalai. All these banks have their automated teller machines located in various parts of the town.
CULTURE
The Annamalaiyar Temple is the most prominent landmark of Tiruvannamalai. The temple complex covers an area of 10 ha, and is one of the largest temples in India. It houses four gateway towers known as gopurams. The tallest is the eastern tower, with 11 stories and a height of 66 m, making it one of the tallest temple towers in India. The temple has numerous shrines, with those of Annamalaiyar and Unnamulai Amman being the most prominent. The temple complex houses many halls; the most notable is the thousand-pillared hall built during the Vijayanagar period.
The Annamalaiyar temple is one of the Pancha Bhoota Stalas, or five Shiva temples, with each a manifestation of a natural element: land, water, air, sky or fire. In Annamalaiyar temple, Shiva is said to have manifested himself as a massive column of fire, whose crown and feet could not be found by the Hindu gods, Brahma and Vishnu. Aathara Stala are Shiva temples which are considered to be personifications of the Tantric chakras of human anatomy. The Annamalaiyar temple is called the Manipooraga stalam, and is associated with the Manipooraga chakra. The temple is revered in Tevaram, the Tamil Saiva canon and classified as Paadal Petra Sthalam, one of the 276 temples that find mention in the Saiva canon.
The most important festival of the Annamalaiyar temple is celebrated during the Tamil month of Karthikai, between November and December, concluding with the celebration of Karthikai Deepam. A huge lamp is lit in a cauldron, containing three tons of ghee, at the top of the Annamalai hills during the Deepam. To mark the occasion, the festival deity of Annamalaiyar circumambulates the mountain. Inscriptions indicate that the festival was celebrated as early as the Chola period (850–1280) and was expanded to ten days in the twentieth century.
Every full moon, tens of thousands of pilgrims worship Annamalaiyar by circumambulating the Annamalai hill barefoot. The circumambulation covers a distance of 14 kilometres, and is referred as Girivalam. According to Hindu legend, the walk removes sins, fulfils desires and helps achieve freedom from the cycle of birth and rebirth. Offerings are made in a string of tanks, shrines, pillared meditation halls, springs and caves around the hill.
Tirumalai is an ancient Jain temple complex in the outskirts of Tirvannamalai that houses three Jain caves, four Jain temples and a 4.9 m high sculpture of Neminatha dated from the 12th century and the tallest Jain image in Tamil Nadu.
The Ramana Ashram and ashram of Yogi Ramsuratkumar, located around the Annamalai hill are popular visitor attractions of Tiruvannamalai. The Sathanur Dam over the Thenpennair river located 20 km southwest of the town is a prominent picnic spot. This 786.37 m Dam is 44.81m high and can store 207,300,000 cubic meters of water. A scenic park is also present adjacent to this dam. Ulagalantha Perumal Temple in Tirukoyilur and Thiruvarangam, situated 20 km south of Tiruvannamalai are prominent Vishnu temples that are located around Tiruvannamalai.
WIKIPEDIA
Tigger wondering what it is I'm going at my computer. I'm working on my camera program - I tried to explain that to her but she was satisfied just to be a test subject and wandered off soon afterwards.
My haircut seems to resemble that of a coconut a lot of the time since I've been in Thailand. The man at the beach bar at Mae Head was keen to sell his coconuts - they didn't have too many paying customers
On 13 December 1990 my Citroën BX was produced in the French factory.
Today, exactly 25 years later, I have celebrated its 25th birthday.
IJmuiden, the Netherlands.
Oulu, Pitkämöljä, December 2018, Mamiya RB67, Mamiya-Sekor 127 mm, Kodak Tri-x, f8, 1/60, R09 1+100 60 minutes, Epson V700.
The Artist Shed is proud to be participating in the Snowbound Hunt from December 1st to 12th.
This is a very big and very festive sim hunt with many gifties hiding high and low. The gifts range from L$0 to L$25 each, depending on the designer.
I made some sweet treats to get your holiday party started...
1. Toasted Marshmallow Cupcakes - L$10
2. Spiced Cocoa for Two - L$10
3. Hint of Mint Candy Canes - L$10
You'll be looking for a cream coloured tree ornament if you want to find my gifts. Each store has a different coloured ornament and you can see them all at the landing point. Happy Holidays!
Visit: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Lucky%20Star/129/130/21
with ANA.
follow me on instagram : instagram.com/anisabejleri/
follow me on google+ : plus.google.com/u/0/112789296813584761457/posts
Happy shortest day!
The moment of solstice falls tonight, December 21st, but unusually it's not until tomorrow morning that the solstice's closest sunrise will be celebrated at Stonehenge- seen here silhouetted by glow from the lights of Larkhill Camp.
202 frames layered in StarStaX from many hundreds captured; the remaining frames were lost to lens fogging. Exif shown is for a single frame.
_____
» LongExposures website and blog