View allAll Photos Tagged Divination
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
SHAMANISM by Miles Cantelou,
the September 2025 exhibition @ The Annex of Nitroglobus
A while ago I visited Miles's Scirocco Art gallery and was immediately taken by one of his intriguing exhibitions of abstract works mainly in fierce red. I didn't hesitate and contacted Miles, inviting him to exhibit at Nitroglobus.
Super proud he said YES and created the Shamanism collection.
Miles explains in his lines all about shamanism, so I won't do that here. Please read his description.
I hope you will enjoy this exhibition as much as I do.
dido haas, owner/curator
Nitroglobus
****
Opening party: Monday 1 September, 12 PM SLT (21 hrs CET)
Music by DJ Joss Floss
LM to the gallery: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sunshine%20Homestead/166/4...
****
Description by the artist:
Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritual energies into the physical world for healing, divination, or to aid human beings in some other way.
Beliefs and practices categorised as shamanic have attracted the interest of scholars from a variety of disciplines, including anthropology, archaeology, history, religious studies, philosophy, and psychology. Hundreds of books and academic papers on the subject have been produced, with a peer-reviewed scholarly journal being devoted to the study of shamanism..... Wikipedia
Medium....Acrylic, Acrylic ink and Photography.
Render Process...Ink line sketched, scanned to PC, photography and post camera blending added to sketch, then printed on forex board for final painting process.
More of Miles:
www.flickr.com/photos/omjavimiles/
marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/127500
LM to Miles his Scirocco Art Gallery (9 exhibitions): maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Power%20Point/234/240/21
In downtown Paprihaven, the girls are headed to Duper's Super as preparations for Thanksgiving at the Simmons continue.
Buckley: Oh, let's stop at Reigny Daze!
Tracy: We don't have time, Buckley! Thanksgiving is toMORow! Hello? This is our third trip to Dupers!
Buckley: Hey, it wasn't my idea to add lemon meringue pie to the list.
Briar: Oh, look, Creepers Sneakers is having a big Thanksgiving sale!
Tracy: Lemon meringue is SO good!
Buckley: HAHAAHA!!
Tracy: What's so funny??
Buckley: On Paprichat, Erin said some action guy's been hitting on Trajetta... and she's been really dressing up now!
Tracy: Those girls always dress up.* And... I've never been sure about Fashions dating Actions.**
Briar: I think RC's dad is dating a Fashion.***
Tracy: Mr. Cooper was married to an Fashion. But she died in the war.
Briar: Oh, that's sad.
Buckley: RC looks very Action.
Briar: *giggles* RC is totally action! There's a looooot of Fashions waiting out his on/off with Shasta.
Tracy: RC definitely takes after his dad, but Cloe and Cici are definitely Fashions.
Buckley: Some big, hunky Action starts giving me attention, I'm all for that! I'm like, "WHUT UUUUP!"
Briar: HAHA!
Tracy: You don't think that's weird? I mean, crossing that boundary with Actions?
Buckley: I guess it's weird coz you don't have many nexus like Paprihaven or Coopers Town where they coexist. But there's nothing wrong with it, right?
Briar: Yeah, when we were watching Cooperstown on TV, wasn't that really good lookin action dating a fashion? What was his name? 'Hawk Fang'?
Buckley: Hawk Fang??
Tracy: Are you talking about Pierce Falcon and Vinona??****
Buckley: HAWK FANG!! GWAAHAHAA!
Briar: *giggles*
Buckley: Was Vinona a fashion??
Tracy: Totally. Slim, non-gripping hands. Big anime eyes.
Buckley: That's right...
Briar: Well, like Buck said, it's rare just because of circumstances, but there can't be anything wrong with it. The Bible says somewhere that in Jesus, there's no difference.
Tracy: True that. Galatians 3:28, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus." It just warns not to be unequally yoked.
Buckley: I dunno how many actions you're gonna find that read the Bible.
Briar: Cam and RC do! Pastor Calvin is an action.
Tracy: Well, whether this question, or anything else, God always has the answer in His Word.
Briar: Yep! And we can always ask Him! James 1:5 , "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. "
Buckley: HAAAHAHA!!
Tracy: What now??
Buckley: Erin posted a pic of Trajetta with a meme, 'Ready for ACTION!'
Briar: HAHAHA!!
Tracy: Oh, dear.
•───────────︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵────────────•
A year of the shows and performers of the Bijou Planks Theater.
___________________________________________________
Subjectivity and the Will of God
If you rely on internal, subjective messages and promptings from the Lord, what prevents you from imagining the input you want from Him? Moreover, what reliable, objective mechanism exists to keep you from misinterpreting your own imagination as divine instruction?
Many good souls and even some heroes of our faith fall into that same error, mistaking imagination for revelation. Many—perhaps most—Christians believe God uses subjective promptings to guide believers in making major decisions. But, a thorough search of church history would undoubtedly confirm that most believers who lean heavily on immediate “revelations” or subjective impressions ostensibly from God end up embarrassed, confused, disappointed, and frustrated.
So how are we supposed to determine the divine will? Virtually every Christian grapples with the question of how to know God’s will in any individual instance. We particularly struggle when faced with the major decisions of adolescence—what occupation or profession we will pursue, whom we will marry, whether and where we will go to college, and so on. Most of us fear that wrong decisions at these points will result in a lifetime of disaster.
Unfortunately, many of the books and pamphlets on discerning God’s will are filled with mystical mumbo-jumbo about seeking a sense of peace, listening for a divine “call,” putting out a “fleece,” and other subjective signposts pointing the way to God’s will. That kind of “discernment” is not at all what Scripture calls for. If we examine everything the Bible has to say about knowing God’s will, what we discover is that everywhere Scripture expressly mentions the subject, it sets forth objective guidelines. If we put those guidelines together, we get a fairly comprehensive picture of the will of God for every Christian. We can summarize them like this:
It is God’s will that we be saved. “The Lord is . . . not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). “God our Savior . . . desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3–4).
It is God’s will that we be Spirit-filled. “Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. . . . Be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:17–18).
It is God’s will that we be sanctified. “For this is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thessalonians 4:3).
It is God’s will that we be submissive. “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men” (1 Peter 2:13–15).
It is God’s will that we suffer. “Therefore, let those also who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right” (1 Peter 4:19). “For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake” (Philippians 1:29). “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12).
If all those objective aspects of God’s will are realities in your life, you needn’t fret over the other decisions you must make. As long as the options you face do not involve issues directly forbidden or commanded in Scripture, you are free to do whatever you choose.
Whatever you choose? Yes, within the limits expressly set forth in God’s Word. If those five objective principles are consistently true in your life—if you are saved, Spirit-filled, sanctified, submissive, and suffering for righteousness’ sake—you are completely free to choose whatever you desire.
In fact, God providentially governs your choice by molding your desires. Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.” That doesn’t mean merely that He grants the desires of your heart; it suggests that He puts the desires there. So even when we choose freely, His sovereign providence guides the free choices we make! What confidence that should give us as we live our lives before God!
Haddon Robinson wrote: “When we lift our inner impressions to the level of divine revelation, we are flirting with divination.” In other words, those who treat subjective impressions as revelatory prophecy are actually practicing a form of fortune-telling. Those willing to heed inner voices and mental impressions may be listening to the lies of a deceitful heart, the fantasies of an overactive imagination, or even the voice of a demon. Once objective criteria are cast aside, there is no way to know the difference between truth and falsehood. Those who follow subjective impressions are by definition undiscerning. Mysticism and discernment simply do not mix.
- John MacArthur, Adapted from Reckless Faith
___________________________________________________
* They certainly do! Trajetta enjoying the azaleas:
[https://www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/33094283862/]
** An ongoing debate in Paprihaven, seen in various scenes such as Paprihaven 1620!
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/52683654653
*** Cam Cooper is indeed dating the lovely Bonnie Bailey, as seen two days ago!
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/54945142388
**** Yep, that was it! Def not 'Hawk Fang'.
www.flickr.com/photos/135742756@N07/39528612572/
Previous Days of Thanksgiving on Paprihaven:
2015:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/23317265455/
2016:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/31221411415/
2017:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/38546781536/
2018:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/44152794180/
2019:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/49128237531/
2020:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/50641046658/
2021:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/51701007283/
2022:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/52517742153/
2023:
www.flickr.com/photos/paprihaven/53346631177/
2024:
United Kingdom, London, Kew Gardens
Halloween is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows' Day. In popular culture, Halloween has become a celebration of horror and is associated with the macabre and the supernatural. One theory holds that many Halloween traditions were influenced by Celtic harvest festivals, particularly the Gaelic festival Samhain, which is believed to have pagan roots. Celebrated in Ireland and Scotland for centuries, Irish and Scottish immigrants brought many Halloween customs to North America in the 19th century, and then, through American influence, various Halloween customs spread to other countries by the late 20th and early 21st century. Popular activities during Halloween include trick-or-treating (or the related guising and souling), attending Halloween costume parties, carving pumpkins or turnips into jack-o'-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, divination games, playing pranks, visiting haunted attractions, telling frightening stories, and watching horror or Halloween-themed films.
A Mayan Calendar - a holiday souvenir from Palenque, Chiapas Mexico.
"Time was extremely important to the Maya, they made elaborate and accurate calendars and used them in charting the movements of the sun, moon, stars and even planets.
These calendars served a variety of purposes both practical and sacred. They were used in astronomical calculations, divination and recording important events, such as the reigns of rulers and their conquests.
The Maya used what is now known as the calendar round which is made up of 3 interlocking cycles. A cycle of 20 names, a cycle of 13 numbers (which forms the 260-day sacred calendar) and a 365 days solar year. 52 years will pass until the three cycles line up again."
www.mayaarchaeologist.co.uk/public-resources/maya-world/m...
"Round, like a circle in a spiral
Like a wheel within a wheel......."
From vikingmarked at Bronseplassen, Høvåg, Norway.
Runes are magical divination signs that work just as well today as they did 2100 years ago when they were made.
Дельфиниум — цветок чудесный.
Он оберег и талисман.
Он приворот любви известный
Капризных, изошрённых дам.
Дельфиниум — источник яда,
Цветок печали, тень тоски.
Он притяжение для взгляд.
Он нежность ласковой руки..Во все времена Дельфиниум удивляет своими формами и красотой цветения.
Его стебель может вырасти крохой, не достигнув и десяти сантиметров от
земли, или подняться в высоту, словно трехметровая мачта. Его соцветия
напоминают цветущую пирамиду или фонтанчик, ликующий под лучами солнца.
А, как поразительна цветовая гамма бутонов Дельфиниума! Среди ажурных
листьев раскрываются лазоревые, белые, лиловые или голубые, красные или
кремовые лепестки, и с нескрываемым любопытством, из центра махровых
соцветий смотрят с лепестков белые "глазки". Но самый примечательный цвет
у Дельфиниума – это “синий”, символизирующий красоту небес и вечность,
глубину морей и благородство происхождения, совершенство, мирную жизнь..На самом деле цветок Дельфиниум не так безобиден, как выглядит. Не стоит
им лакомиться каким-нибудь животным, тем более людям, потому что ядовит.
Яд Дельфиниума сравним… разве только с ядом таинственного "кураре". Даже
пчелы, прилетающие к такому растению- медоносу, готовят "пьяный" мед...Но, если хочется приворожить кого-то, то Дельфиниум незаменим. В руках
опытного ведьмака он пригоден для создания “зелья любви”. Для суеверных
людей Дельфиниум может служить оберегом. Засушите, обязательно синий,
Дельфиниум и спрячьте в льняной мешочек. Затем, перед ночным сном повести
на шею не для взгляда посторонних глаз. Тогда кошмарные видения или
бессонница тут же прекратятся..Еще древние славяне готовили из Дельфиниума лекарство, заживляющее раны.
Отсюда второе, очень странное его название "живокость". Но не вздумайте
сами готовить такое лекарство. Потому что рецепта давно нет в помине.
Возможно, он зарыт глубоко в земле на далеком, необитаемом острове и под
каким-нибудь о-о-огромных размеров деревом, возле которого грозная охрана
- огнедышащий дракон..Дельфиниумы благородны в происхождении…. С Олимпа Боги улыбались сей красе.
Они с терпением относятся к тени и солнцу, весенним заморозкам, несгибаемые
при порывах, холодящих нас, ветров. Махровые “фонтанчики”, подобные мечте,
блистают на свету, когда в росе. Изящные Дельфиниумы цветут в садах и кто
увидит их, воскликнет: ”А-а-ах!”...........................................................................................
Delphinium is a wonderful flower.
He is a talisman and a talisman.
He is a famous love spell
Capricious, sophisticated ladies.
Delphinium is a source of poison,
A flower of sadness, a shadow of longing.
It attracts the eye.
He is the tenderness of a loving hand......At all times, Delphinium surprises with its forms and the beauty of flowering.
Its stem can grow tiny, not reaching ten centimeters from
the ground, or rise in height, like a three-meter mast. Its inflorescences
resemble a blooming pyramid or a fountain, rejoicing under the rays of the sun.
And, how amazing is the color scheme of Delphinium buds! Among the openwork
leaves, azure, white, purple or blue, red or
cream petals open, and with undisguised curiosity,
white "eyes" look from the petals from the center of the terry inflorescences. But the most remarkable color
of the Delphinium is “blue”, symbolizing the beauty of the heavens and eternity,
the depth of the seas and the nobility of origin, perfection, peaceful life....In fact, the Delphinium flower is not as harmless as it looks. It is not worth
them to feast on any animal, especially people, because it is poisonous.
The poison of Delphinium is comparable... except with the poison of the mysterious "curare". Even
bees arriving at such a honey plant prepare "drunk" honey...But if you want to enchant someone, then Delphinium is irreplaceable. In the hands
of an experienced witcher, it is suitable for creating a “love potion". For superstitious
people, Delphinium can serve as a talisman. Dry, necessarily blue,
Delphinium and hide it in a linen bag. Then, before going to sleep at night, lead
to the neck not for the sight of prying eyes. Then the nightmarish visions or
insomnia will immediately stop. Even the ancient Slavs prepared a medicine from Delphinium that heals wounds.
Hence its second, very strange name "larkspur". But do not try
to prepare such a medicine yourself. Because there is no recipe in sight for a long time.
Perhaps it is buried deep in the ground on a distant, uninhabited island and under
some oh-oh-huge tree, near which there is a formidable guard
- fire-breathing dragon. Delphiniums are noble in origin.... From Olympus, the Gods smiled at this beauty.
They are patient with the shade and the sun, spring frosts, unyielding
in the gusts of winds that chill us. Terry “fountains”, like a dream,
shine in the light when in dew. Elegant Delphiniums bloom in gardens and anyone
who sees them will exclaim: ”A-a-ah!”.
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
Double click to view
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
The morning after the Blot, 21st of June. Solstice and full moon, magical night.
I will bring the film from Blot 2024 on Youtube in September. Hoping to beat the hit record from Blot 2014 of almost 75 thousand.
Blót (Old Norse and Old English) or geblōt (Old English) are religious ceremonies in Germanic paganism that centred on the killing and offering of an animal to a particular being, typically followed by the communal cooking and eating of its meat. Old Norse sources present it as a central ritual in Old Nordic religion that was intimately connected with many wider aspects of life. Large blót are often described as taking place in halls, organised by the rulers of the region who were expected to carry out the practice on behalf of the people. Blót were central to the legitimacy of rulers and Christian rulers refusing to hold them were at times replaced by more willing alternatives and driven out of the land. Smaller, household blót were sometimes recorded as being led by women. Beyond strengthening legitimacy for the ruling elites, the performance of blót was often in order to ensure the fertility of the land, a good harvest and peace, although they are also recorded as being performed for divination or to achieve desired results in legal matters.
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
Double click to view
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
The fair lady (Ascot scene): www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3ywa-9Cu4M
'Bye Bye Life' ('ALL THAT JAZZ' end scene): www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyXYPsDsOHY
Tarot card XIII, the nameless:
" 'Death (XIII)' is the thirteenth trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks. It is used in Tarot, tarock and tarocchi games as well as in divination.
The 'Death' card commonly depicts a skeleton riding a horse. Surrounding it are dead and dying people from all classes, including kings, bishops and commoners. Some decks, such as the Tarot of Marseilles, omit the name from the card.
Some frequent keywords used by tarot readers for the interpretation of Death are:
Ending of a cycle ----- Loss ----- Conclusion ----- Sadness
Transition into a new state ----- Psychological transformation
Finishing up ----- Regeneration ----- Elimination of old patterns
Being caught in the inescapable ----- Good-byes ----- Deep change. "
(in Wikipedia)
Outfit created by Cutea Benelli (Grim Bros.)
Second Life - Spookyville (SeaChel Barkadeer)
♡Details♡
＠Kawaii Project
Earring: SIGMA Bead drop earrings
Nail: [Celesticat] Witch's Brew Nails - FATPACK
Tops: {K} Bela SWEATER FATPACK
Hair: KMH - Hair F241 Fatpack
Furniture: (Wednesday[+] ~ Divination Life Set)
Wednesday[+] ~ Divination Life ~ Tarot Cards
Wednesday[+] ~ Divination Life ~ Crystals & Candles
Wednesday[+] ~ Divination Life ~ Crystal & Lava Lamp
Ayize had been asked by a young girl from the nearby settlement to see if there was any future between her and the strange boy from a far off land.
@Redeux 14th-21st August 2020
Poet's Heart Tribal
Enyo Armor
*Tentacio* Ankara headpiece
The Hoopoes have dramatic black and white wing patterns (the patterns vary between the species) that show in flight.
Their habitat is open cultivated ground with short grass or bare patches. They spend much time on the ground hunting insects and worms. That diet may have been among the reasons the Hoopoe is included on the Old Testament's list of unclean birds (see Leviticus 11:19 and Deuteronomy 14:18).
The Hoopoe is 25–29cm long, with a 44–48cm wingspan. This black, white and pink bird is quite unmistakable, especially in its erratic flight, which is like that of a giant butterfly. The crest is erectile, but is mostly kept closed. It walks on the ground like a starling.
The song is a trisyllabic "oop-oop-oop", which gives rise to its English and scientific names.
Hoopoes in human culture
* The Hoopoe featured in Greek mythology. Once a man, Tereus was transformed into the form of a Hoopoe. The character featured prominently in Aristophanes' Birds.
* In Islam, the Hoopoe is associated with King Solomon who spoke with animals, ( in Arabic the Prophet Suleyman ) and he tells him of the Queen of Sheba and her magnificent land. Quran 27:20-28.
* In classical Chinese poetry, the Hoopoe is depicted as a celestial messenger often bearing news of the spring. The Hoopoe is generally considered auspicious in China thanks to its unique beauty.
* On the other hand, the word "dupe" was originally a French dialect word for a Hoopoe, which was applied to unintelligent people because the bird was considered to look stupid.
* A hoopoe figures centrally in The Conference of the Birds, one of the central works of Sufi literature.
* Hoopoes and their blood are often-called-for instruments in many medieval Western magical practices, often associated with various kinds of divination and necromancy.
* Hoopoes are featured in some Medieval Bestiaries, where they are claimed to care for their parents when they get old.
These beautiful birds are very rare and only exist in the remote corners of Bangladesh few in numbers.
Lens: Sigma Zoom Telephoto 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO DG Macro
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel XTi
Location: Khagrachori, Bangladesh
All contents herein are copyrighted © by Shabbir Ferdous Photography
Except where otherwise noted. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.
After drinking, you can have the grounds read; tasseography - a form of divination. Turn the cup over onto the saucer, rotate a few times, the grounds will leave lines and shapes all for interpretation.
Light painting on black glass.
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
Hylotelephium telephium (synonym Sedum telephium), known as orpine, livelong, frog's-stomach, harping Johnny, life-everlasting, live-forever, midsummer-men, Orphan John and witch's moneybags, is a succulent perennial groundcover of the family Crassulaceae native to Eurasia.
The name Telephium was thought to be named after a surgical term for an ulcer that was particularly difficult to cure. This in turn was named after King Telephus who suffered from a spear wound that would not heal.
The plant has been used medicinally, being used by the Romans to treat wounds, and in later times to treat internal ulcers. It has also been used for love-divination.
De/From: Wikipedia
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es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween
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Halloween o Hallowe'en (contracción de All Hallows 'evening; literalmente en castellano, «víspera de Todos los Santos»), también conocido como Víspera de Todos los Santos, Noche de Todos los Santos, Noche de los Muertos, Noche de Brujas, Víspera de Difuntos o Allhalloween, es una celebración internacional que tiene lugar el 31 de octubre, víspera de la fiesta cristiana occidental del Día de Todos los Santos. Aparece especialmente vinculado al primer tramo de Allhallowtide, el tiempo del año litúrgico dedicado a recordar a los muertos, incluidos los santos (a través de sus reliquias), mártires y todos los fieles difuntos.
Se celebra internacionalmente en la noche del 31 de octubre, sobre todo en la angloesfera, como Canadá, Estados Unidos, Irlanda o el Reino Unido, y, en menor medida, en otros lugares como España e Iberoamérica. A pesar de pertenecer al mundo anglosajón, en Australia y Nueva Zelanda no se observa esta costumbre tanto como en los demás países.
Una teoría sostiene que muchas tradiciones de Halloween pueden haber sido influenciadas por los antiguos festivales de cosecha celtas, particularmente el festival gaélico Samhain, con raíces paganas; algunos eruditos sostienen que puede ser el resultado del sincretismo causado por la cristianización del Samhain como Día de Todos los Santos, junto con su víspera, por la Iglesia primitiva.14 Otros académicos creen, sin embargo, que Halloween comenzó únicamente como una fiesta cristiana, siendo la vigilia del Día de Todos los Santos.
Las actividades de Halloween incluyen el dulce o truco (o el disfraz y el alma relacionados), asistir a fiestas de disfraces de Halloween, tallar calabazas en jack-o'-lanterns, encender hogueras, menear manzanas, juegos de adivinación, hacer bromas, visitar atracciones embrujadas, contar historias que producen miedo, además de ver películas de terror. En muchas partes del mundo, las celebraciones religiosas cristianas de la víspera de Todos los Santos, incluida la asistencia a los servicios religiosos y el encendido de velas en las tumbas de los muertos, siguen siendo populares, aunque en otros lugares es una forma más comercial y celebración secular. Algunos cristianos históricamente se abstuvieron de comer carne en la víspera de Todos los Santos, una tradición que se refleja en el consumo de ciertos alimentos vegetarianos en este día de vigilia, como manzanas, panqueques de papa y pasteles del alma.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween
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Halloween or Hallowe'en (a contraction of "All Hallows' evening"), also known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve, is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows' Day. It begins the observance of Allhallowtide, the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the departed.
One theory holds that many Halloween traditions were influenced by Celtic harvest festivals, particularly the Gaelic festival Samhain, which are believed to have pagan roots; some go further and suggest that Samhain may have been Christianized as All Hallow's Day, along with its eve, by the early Church. Other academics believe Halloween began solely as a Christian holiday, being the vigil of All Hallow's Day. Celebrated in Ireland and Scotland, in the 19th century, Irish and Scottish migrants brought many Halloween customs to North America, and then through American influence, Halloween spread to many other countries by the 21st century.
Halloween activities include trick-or-treating (or the related guising and souling), attending Halloween costume parties, carving pumpkins into jack-o'-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, divination games, playing pranks, visiting haunted attractions, telling scary stories, as well as watching horror films. For some people, the Christian religious observances of All Hallows' Eve, including attending church services and lighting candles on the graves of the dead, remain popular,[26][27][28] although for others it is a secular celebration. Some Christians historically abstained from meat on All Hallows' Eve, a tradition reflected in the eating of certain vegetarian foods on this vigil day, including apples, potato pancakes, and soul cakes.
A macro view of a Chinese coin with incense smoke passing through the squared center, taken for the Macro Mondays group theme, "Smoke." The frame represents a span of one-inch across.
This is an image of one of three coins that came with a copy of the I Ching, which translates to "Book of Changes." The I Ching is an approximately 5000-year-old Chinese divination manual and is one of the oldest works in existence.
Strobist/technical info:
The coin was secured by a gooseneck clamp and angled slightly toward the camera. It was illuminated by two Nikon SB900 speedlights and the red LED of a Coast TX10 Quad Color flashlight.
The speedlights were positioned at nine- and one-o'clock, each one-foot above and two-feet away from the coin. The 9-o'clock speedlight was fired in Manual mode @ 1⁄2 power through a Neewer 24" x 24" soft box (to illuminate the front of the coin). The one-o'clock speedlight was fired in Manual mode @ 1⁄16 power through a gridded snoot (to illuminate the smoke behind the coin).
The TX10 was shown for a 2s exposure from underneath to create the red highlight.
The SB900s were triggered by three PocketWizard Plus Xs.
Lens: Tokina AT - X M100 AF PRO D (AF 100mm f / 2.8 Macro) with a 12mm extension tube attached.
#MacroMondays
#Smoke
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
Excerpt from www.gardinermuseum.on.ca/event/linda-rotua-sormin-uncerta...:
Linda Rotua Sormin: Uncertain Ground is the culmination of over 20 years of remarkable exploration and innovation, bringing together clay, sculpture, video, sound, hand-cut watercolour painting, and digital fabrication in a multi-sensory environment that asks how life in the modern, cosmopolitan city can coexist with memories and experiences of our ancestral traditions.
Raised in Canada and Thailand, artist Linda Rotua Sormin has emerged as a leading voice in sculpture with her fearless, monumental structures. Continually pushing clay beyond its limits, Sormin’s web-like forms burst through the boundaries of the medium, literally breaking apart and re-convening in new forms. Colonial artifacts, everyday kitsch, and fragments from the artist’s studio floor dangle and nestle within the latticework.
In her first solo museum exhibition and largest project to date, Sormin delves into her lineage among the Batak people of Sumatra in the Indonesian archipelago, exploring how images and ideas of her ancestors have, sometimes unwittingly, infused her artistic practice. She studied traditional Batak divination books, available to her only in European museum collections, with access strictly controlled, as well as the script and spoken language of her ancestors. Building on her research, Sormin weaves a rich family history of shamanic and other spiritual practices fragmented by colonialism, Christianization, and diaspora.
The exhibition unfolds on three levels: a central raised platform evokes a volcanic lake with an underworld of mythical beasts and coded divination texts; a tangle of precarious ceramic sculptures suggests an earthly middle ground inhabited by humans; and a suspended projection screen references a celestial realm of spirits and birds. The result is an environment that feels alive and in motion, offering audiences an encounter that is both visceral and contemplative.
Excerpt from www.gardinermuseum.on.ca/event/linda-rotua-sormin-uncerta...:
Linda Rotua Sormin: Uncertain Ground is the culmination of over 20 years of remarkable exploration and innovation, bringing together clay, sculpture, video, sound, hand-cut watercolour painting, and digital fabrication in a multi-sensory environment that asks how life in the modern, cosmopolitan city can coexist with memories and experiences of our ancestral traditions.
Raised in Canada and Thailand, artist Linda Rotua Sormin has emerged as a leading voice in sculpture with her fearless, monumental structures. Continually pushing clay beyond its limits, Sormin’s web-like forms burst through the boundaries of the medium, literally breaking apart and re-convening in new forms. Colonial artifacts, everyday kitsch, and fragments from the artist’s studio floor dangle and nestle within the latticework.
In her first solo museum exhibition and largest project to date, Sormin delves into her lineage among the Batak people of Sumatra in the Indonesian archipelago, exploring how images and ideas of her ancestors have, sometimes unwittingly, infused her artistic practice. She studied traditional Batak divination books, available to her only in European museum collections, with access strictly controlled, as well as the script and spoken language of her ancestors. Building on her research, Sormin weaves a rich family history of shamanic and other spiritual practices fragmented by colonialism, Christianization, and diaspora.
The exhibition unfolds on three levels: a central raised platform evokes a volcanic lake with an underworld of mythical beasts and coded divination texts; a tangle of precarious ceramic sculptures suggests an earthly middle ground inhabited by humans; and a suspended projection screen references a celestial realm of spirits and birds. The result is an environment that feels alive and in motion, offering audiences an encounter that is both visceral and contemplative.
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
Macro Mondays: New
Scene is 2.75" across
Every New Year's Eve we do Divination by Kinder Egg, just for fun. Everyone takes a Kinder Egg and makes the toy inside, and the toy reveals something the year ahead will bring you.
I got this anthropomorphic banana with added pieces (which fit on the banana's head) showing various beach symbols. Best interpretation: there's a tropical vacation in my future! More likely interpretation: 2023 will be totally bananas.
Happy New Year, all!
Bring on a New Year with many open doors and possibilities in abundance to all! Good things will happen for us in 2020 provided we do our part of being kind and sending out positivity to the universe. The universe is a conscience so ask for guidance through meditation or prayer or divination.
That said keep your eyes to the sky for these upcoming events in the coming year!
Six Eclipses, Four Supermoons and A Rare ‘Great Solstice Appulse’
With that I leave you with a closing thought of just how blessed each and every one of you have made me feel this year! I can not thank you all enough!
This year more in-depth 10 card layouts will be $2020 L!
$220 L for a three card past present future layout.
Please drop me a notecard in Second Life to make arrangements.
Song inspiration: Taylor Swift - New Year's Day youtu.be/VfTuOc30DW4
(Surrounded by Teaberry leaves). "Go ask Alice"
Such an interesting Mushroom. This mushroom contains two psychoactive alkaloids, ibotenic acid and muscimol. It has been used since antiquity as an intoxicating substance as well as in shamanic contexts and divination.
Just spent about 20 minutes writing an essay about how I did this shot and Flickr threw a wobbler and took me back to square 1 so here's a brief outline. Tested exposure, span domes at 45 degree increments. Zoom pulled the street lights then back inside to expose my hands with the beauty dish on 1/64 power.
This is number 314 of my 365.
🔮A little bit of magic to brighten up my day
A little bit on moonlight to guide me on my way.✨
---------
✨.:Short Leash:. Luna Divination Tray //
Available at Mainstore: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Short%20Leash/198/141/26
✨JIAN Chinchilla
maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Jian/215/149/22
✨Hair: DOUX - Rain
maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Secrets/163/154/23
✨REED - RAVENA SET: Top and Skirt
Available at Mainstore:http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Calidea/96/62/951
Grey Heron - Ardea Cinerea
The grey heron (Ardea cinerea) is a long-legged predatory wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more northern parts migrate southwards in autumn. A bird of wetland areas, it can be seen around lakes, rivers, ponds, marshes and on the sea coast. It feeds mostly on aquatic creatures which it catches after standing stationary beside or in the water or stalking its prey through the shallows.
The birds breed colonially in spring in "heronries", usually building their nests high in trees. A clutch of usually three to five bluish-green eggs is laid. Both birds incubate the eggs for a period of about 25 days, and then both feed the chicks, which fledge when seven or eight weeks old. Many juveniles do not survive their first winter, but if they do, they can expect to live for about five years.
In Ancient Egypt, the deity Bennu was depicted as a heron in New Kingdom artwork. In Ancient Rome, the heron was a bird of divination. Roast heron was once a specially-prized dish; when George Neville became Archbishop of York in 1465, four hundred herons were served to the guests.
The grey heron has a slow flight, with its long neck retracted (S-shaped). This is characteristic of herons and bitterns, and distinguishes them from storks, cranes, and spoonbills, which extend their necks.
Fish, amphibians, small mammals and insects are taken in shallow water with the heron's long bill. It has also been observed catching and killing juvenile birds such as ducklings, and occasionally takes birds up to the size of a water rail. It may stand motionless in the shallows, or on a rock or sandbank beside the water, waiting for prey to come within striking distance. Alternatively, it moves slowly and stealthily through the water with its body less upright than when at rest and its neck curved in an "S". It is able to straighten its neck and strike with its bill very fast.
Small fish are swallowed head first, and larger prey and eels are carried to the shore where they are subdued by being beaten on the ground or stabbed by the bill. They are then swallowed, or have hunks of flesh torn off. For prey such as small mammals and birds or ducklings, the prey is held by the neck and either drowned, suffocated, or killed by having its neck snapped with the heron's beak, before being swallowed whole. The bird regurgitates pellets of indigestible material such as fur, bones and the chitinous remains of insects. The main periods of hunting are around dawn and dusk, but it is also active at other times of day. At night it roosts in trees or on cliffs, where it tends to be gregarious.
Population:
UK breeding:
13,000 nests
UK wintering:
63,000 birds
Excerpt from www.gardinermuseum.on.ca/event/linda-rotua-sormin-uncerta...:
Linda Rotua Sormin: Uncertain Ground is the culmination of over 20 years of remarkable exploration and innovation, bringing together clay, sculpture, video, sound, hand-cut watercolour painting, and digital fabrication in a multi-sensory environment that asks how life in the modern, cosmopolitan city can coexist with memories and experiences of our ancestral traditions.
Raised in Canada and Thailand, artist Linda Rotua Sormin has emerged as a leading voice in sculpture with her fearless, monumental structures. Continually pushing clay beyond its limits, Sormin’s web-like forms burst through the boundaries of the medium, literally breaking apart and re-convening in new forms. Colonial artifacts, everyday kitsch, and fragments from the artist’s studio floor dangle and nestle within the latticework.
In her first solo museum exhibition and largest project to date, Sormin delves into her lineage among the Batak people of Sumatra in the Indonesian archipelago, exploring how images and ideas of her ancestors have, sometimes unwittingly, infused her artistic practice. She studied traditional Batak divination books, available to her only in European museum collections, with access strictly controlled, as well as the script and spoken language of her ancestors. Building on her research, Sormin weaves a rich family history of shamanic and other spiritual practices fragmented by colonialism, Christianization, and diaspora.
The exhibition unfolds on three levels: a central raised platform evokes a volcanic lake with an underworld of mythical beasts and coded divination texts; a tangle of precarious ceramic sculptures suggests an earthly middle ground inhabited by humans; and a suspended projection screen references a celestial realm of spirits and birds. The result is an environment that feels alive and in motion, offering audiences an encounter that is both visceral and contemplative.
A shaman in the Nordic context was a spiritual figure, often linked to seiðr, who acted as a mediator between the human and the spirit world. They practiced ritual magic, divination, healing, and communication with gods, ancestors, or spirits. Using chants, staffs, drums, or symbolic garments, they entered trance states to seek hidden knowledge, influence fate, or provide guidance for their community. Workt with in www.perplexity.ai/
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories
Grey Heron - Ardea Cinerea
Best viewed .....Double click!
The grey heron (Ardea cinerea) is a long-legged predatory wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more northern parts migrate southwards in autumn. A bird of wetland areas, it can be seen around lakes, rivers, ponds, marshes and on the sea coast. It feeds mostly on aquatic creatures which it catches after standing stationary beside or in the water or stalking its prey through the shallows.
The birds breed colonially in spring in "heronries", usually building their nests high in trees. A clutch of usually three to five bluish-green eggs is laid. Both birds incubate the eggs for a period of about 25 days, and then both feed the chicks, which fledge when seven or eight weeks old. Many juveniles do not survive their first winter, but if they do, they can expect to live for about five years.
In Ancient Egypt, the deity Bennu was depicted as a heron in New Kingdom artwork. In Ancient Rome, the heron was a bird of divination. Roast heron was once a specially-prized dish; when George Neville became Archbishop of York in 1465, four hundred herons were served to the guests.
The grey heron has a slow flight, with its long neck retracted (S-shaped). This is characteristic of herons and bitterns, and distinguishes them from storks, cranes, and spoonbills, which extend their necks.
Fish, amphibians, small mammals and insects are taken in shallow water with the heron's long bill. It has also been observed catching and killing juvenile birds such as ducklings, and occasionally takes birds up to the size of a water rail. It may stand motionless in the shallows, or on a rock or sandbank beside the water, waiting for prey to come within striking distance. Alternatively, it moves slowly and stealthily through the water with its body less upright than when at rest and its neck curved in an "S". It is able to straighten its neck and strike with its bill very fast.
Small fish are swallowed head first, and larger prey and eels are carried to the shore where they are subdued by being beaten on the ground or stabbed by the bill. They are then swallowed, or have hunks of flesh torn off. For prey such as small mammals and birds or ducklings, the prey is held by the neck and either drowned, suffocated, or killed by having its neck snapped with the heron's beak, before being swallowed whole. The bird regurgitates pellets of indigestible material such as fur, bones and the chitinous remains of insects. The main periods of hunting are around dawn and dusk, but it is also active at other times of day. At night it roosts in trees or on cliffs, where it tends to be gregarious.
Population:
UK breeding:
13,000 nests
UK wintering:
63,000 birds
Thanks to all who take the time to view, Comment or Fav, It is Always Appreciated.
The Danish 15 x 4 m yacht Flying Picus approaching Helsingør in May, 2012.
"Picus was a figure in Roman mythology, the first king of Latium. He was the son of Saturn, also known as Stercutus. He was the founder of the first Latin tribe and settlement, Laurentum, located a few miles to the Southeast of the site of the later city of Rome. He was known for his skill at augury and horsemanship. According to Festus he got his name as a consequence of the fact that he used to rely on a woodpecker for the purpose of divination."
(Wikipedia)
Featured in Explore on Jan. 13, 2023 at #284
This deck is the Druid Plant Oracle, comparable to the Herbal Tarot, a deck I also have. However, the oracle is entirely botanical and the individual cards have no connection to the tarot archetypes. The lovely blue-flowered herb on top is borage, of course, a personal favourite. I keep the oracle wrapped in a handkerchief I tie-dyed.
I don't hold Pagan beliefs or practice divination. I appreciate the cards because I'm a botany geek and they're beautifully illustrated. I use them as a tool for contemplation, which might run parallel to divination, I suppose. The question isn't, "What's going to happen?" but "What should I do? What's my job?" The cards don't know the answer, but they help me ponder the question.
Project 365, 2022 Edition: Day 11/365
Theme of the week: A pile of things
Thank you to everyone who visits, faves, and comments.
Jokhang (Lhaden Tsuglakhang)(Jowokhang) ཇོ་ཁང་
Jokhang by Cameron Warner (July 22, 2010) Introduction The Jokhang (jo khang) is the largest temple in Lhasa and arguably the most important pilgrimage site in Tibet. Its most famous inhabitant, the Jowo Śākyamuni (jo bo shākya mu ne) is the most revered Buddhist statue in Tibet. It is customary for Tibetans visiting Lhasa to visit the temple for an audience with the Jowo Śākyamuni immediately upon arrival in the city and again on the way out of town. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Jokhang anchors the oldest neighborhood in Lhasa and functions as the center of religious life for many Tibetans as well as a popular tourist destination. Geographic Location The Jokhang anchors the Tibetan quarter of present-day Lhasa at a geomantically auspicious site chosen by Wencheng Gongzhu (Tib. rgya bza' kong jo). Songtsen Gampo and his two foreign consorts, Bhṛkutī and Wencheng Gongzhu built the temple on top of a small pond called the Milk Lake ('O thang mtsho), north of the right arm of the Kyichu River (Skyid chu) and southeast of the first Potala Palace on Mount Marpori. Early History Songtsen Gampo, the first emperor of Tibet, founded the Jokhang around 640 to house the Jowo Mikyö Dorjé statue (though this is disputed in present scholarship). According to most Tibetan historians, Bhṛkutī, a Nepalese princess of the Licchavi dynasty, brought the Jowo Mikyö Dorjé to Tibet as part of her dowry to become an imperial consort of Songtsen Gampo. The Nepalese connection is still evident in the South Asian layout of the central temple structure and the wood-carved lintels around the doorways of each chapel, most of which are original. After some initial difficulties in construction of the temple, Songtsen Gampo's Chinese consort, Wencheng Gongzhu, performed a divination to select the most auspicious site. Animals helped to fill-in a small lake north of the Kyichu (Skyid chu) river. One of the many names of the temple, Rasa Trülnang (Ra sa 'phrul snang), reflects some of its mythological origins. The name has been interpreted to mean the temple that was "magically-manifested" ('phrul snang) and constructed with earth (sa) transported by goats (ra). However, the etymology of "rasa" most likely refers to Lhasa's origin as a medieval walled-town (rawe sa) (Pommaret-Imaeda ed., 2003: 21). "Trülnang" recalls how Songtsen Gampo magically manifested 108 avatars of himself to assist in the construction of the temple. Much of the early history of the temple is shrouded in myth including how the Jowo Śākyamuni (jo bo shākya mu ne) came to be in the Jokhang. According to Tibetan ecclesiastical history, originally the Jowo Śākyamuni resided in another Lhasa temple, the Ramoché and was later moved to hide it from an invading Chinese army. The name "Jokhang" originally referred to the Jowo Śākyamuni's chapel in particular, the Tsangkhang Uma (Gtsang khang dbus ma), or Central Chapel. The small village of Rasa's name changed to Lhasa (the place of the gods) as it developed around the temple itself. Some of the other names of the temple reflect similar ideas such as Lhadan (Lha ldan) Tsuklagkhang. Middle History The majority of our knowledge of the history of the Jokhang comes from two different genres of Tibetan literature: ecclesiastical histories and catalogues of the temple (dkar chag), usually written to commemorate particular renovations. In the genre of ecclesiastical history, the most important text is the Vase-shaped Pillar Testament (Bka' chems ka khol ma), reputedly an autobiography written by Songtsen Gampo himself and hidden within the temple for the benefit of future generations. It includes accounts of both the construction of the temple and the early history of the Jowo Śākyamuni. However, the various extant recensions of the text date to no earlier than the late eleventh century and therefore it should be read as a document reflecting the concerns of Tibetans from that time period. Around that time, Zangkar Lotsawa (Zangs dkar Lo tsa ba 'Phags pa shes rab) from Ngari (mnga' ris skor gsum) moved the original image in the Central Chapel, the Akṣobhya Buddha (mi 'khrugs pa) to make room for renovations. He expanded the size of the chapel by moving the east-facing wall outwards and moved the Jowo Śākyamuni from his hiding place into the Central Chapel (KPGT II 448; Vitali, 1990: 78). The most authoritative account of Zangkar Lotsawa's work comes from the historian Pawo Tsuklag Trengwa (Dpa' bo Gtsug lag phreng ba) (1504-1566), in his Feast for Scholars: An Ecclesiastical History (Chos 'byung mkhas pa'i dga' ston). The history of the Jokhang cannot be separated from the political history of the Lhasa valley, Read more: places.thlib.org/features/15474/descriptions/236#ixzz1tQg...
Wren Troglodytes Troglodytes
The Eurasian wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as the wren.
The scientific name is taken from the Greek word troglodytes (from trogle a hole, and dyein to creep), meaning cave-dweller and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting arthropods or to roost.
This small, stump-tailed wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the robin. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In most of northern Europe and Asia, it nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather, it may do so in parties, consisting of either the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
The male wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7. These are called cock nests but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of grass, moss, lichens or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
In European folklore, the wren is the king of the birds, according to a fable attributed to Aesop by Plutarch, when the eagle and the wren strove to fly the highest, the wren rested on the eagle's back, and when the eagle tired, the wren flew out above him. Thus, Plutarch implied, the wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristotle and Plutarch called the wren basileus (king) and basiliskos (little king).
In German, the wren is called Zaunkönig (king of the fence). An old German name was “Schneekönig” (snow king), and in Dutch, it is “winterkoning” (winter king), which all refer to king. In Japan, the wren is labelled king of the winds, and the myth of The Wren Among the Hawks sees the wren successfully hunt a boar that the hawks could not, by flying into its ear and driving it mad.
It was a sacred bird to the druids, who considered it king of all birds and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a wren, known as Jenny Wren in nursery rhymes. A wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
Population:
UK breeding:
8,600,000 territories