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Shot @ Hebal Lake, a ready to destroy ganesh idol made of POP, after Ganesh Chadurthi.
The most serious impact of the Ganesh festival on the natural environment is due to the immersion of idols made of Plaster of Paris into lakes, rivers and the sea. Traditionally, the Ganesh idol was sculpted out of earth taken from nearby one’s home. After worshipping the divinity in this earth idol, it was returned back to the Earth by immersing it in a nearby water body. This cycle represented the cycle of creation and dissolution in Nature.
However, as the production of Ganesh idols on a commercial basis grew, the earthen or natural clay was replaced by Plaster of Paris. Plaster is a man made material, easier to mould, lighter and less expensive than clay. However, plaster takes much longer to dissolve and in the process of dissolution releases toxic elements into the water body. The chemical paints used to adorn these plaster idols, themselves contain heavy metals like mercury and cadmium.
On the final day of the Ganesh festival thousands of plaster idols are immersed into water bodies by devotees. These increase the level of acidity in the water and the content of heavy metals. The day after the immersion, shoals of dead fish can be seen floating on the surface of the water body as a result of this sudden increase.
Gods are for worship, not for the show.
Such early morning he came out quite dark but I bet I find him again in better light. Ya have to look at this one big to appreciate it.
Posted BIG!!!!!!!!!!!
This is not the place to loiter around for too long, both in terms of exposing the photographic equipment and one's well-being. It is quite amazing that anything grows in this area, but this tree's attempt to flourish proved to be a futile attempt, with bucket loaders constantly moving about alongside the railway line. SY 1397 stands with its air pump in operation to power the side-tipping wagon's mechanism as fly ash is discharged with the assistance of a bucket loader. In this harsh environment it is hardly surprising that 'expendable' steam traction continues to be used for such duties.
© Gordon Edgar - All rights reserved. Please do not use my images without my explicit permission
Some 80% of Scotland’s land mass is under agricultural production, making the industry the single biggest determinant of the landscape we see around us. Scotland’s farmers, crofters and growers produce output worth around £2.9 billion a year, and are responsible for much of Scotland’s £5 billion food and drink exports. The export target for 2017 is £7.1 billion.
Around 67,000 people are directly employed in agriculture in Scotland – this represents around 8% of the rural workforce and means that agriculture is the third largest employer in rural Scotland after the service and public sectors. It is estimated that a further 360,000 jobs (1 in 10 of all Scottish jobs) are dependent on agriculture.
The agri-food sector is now the UKs largest manufacturing sector.
Around 85% of Scotland is classified as Less Favoured Area. This is an EU classification which recognises natural and geographic disadvantage.
There are large numbers of farms in north west Scotland, but these are significantly smaller in terms of the numbers of livestock/area of crops grown than farms elsewhere. Sheep farming is the predominant type of farming in the north west and there are also many sheep farms in the south of the country. Larger cereal farms are concentrated in the east. Beef farming takes place throughout Scotland, but is particularly common in the south west. This area also has the bulk of the dairy industry.
Work Day, 03/10/2020, Brooklyn, OH
Apple iPhone 7 Plus
iPhone 7 Plus back dual camera 6.6mm f/2.8
ƒ/2.8 6.6 mm 1/440 20
Striated Heron
Butorides striata
June 3rd, 2023
Nightcliff, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
Canon EOS R5
Canon EF 600mm f4L IS III USM lens
It's amazing how seamlessly this Striated Heron dissolves into the rugged textures of its rocky environment.
Chipmunks are adorable little critters in their natural environments. They are curious and very active.
In the yard, they are a different matter. They eat the strawberries and other berries. They burrow along the foundations and chew wooden areas. They dig up flowers and flower bulbs.
Chipmunks rarely come to our yard, now that Annie is in control of all small rodents.
Textures from Jai Johnson and one of mine.
The swallows and martins are a group of passerine birds in the family Hirundinidae which are characterised by their adaptation to aerial feeding. Swallow is used colloquially in Europe as a synonym for the Barn Swallow.
This family comprises two subfamilies: Pseudochelidoninae (the river martins of the genus Pseudochelidon) and Hirundininae (all other swallows and martins). Within the Hirundiniae, the name "martin" tends to be used for the squarer-tailed species, and the name "swallow" for the more fork-tailed species; however, there is no scientific distinction between these two groups.[1] The family contains around 83 species in 19 genera.
The swallows have a cosmopolitan distribution across the world and breed on all the continents except Antarctica. It is believed that this family originated in Africa as hole-nesters; Africa still has the greatest diversity of species.[1] They also occur on a number of oceanic islands. A number of species are long-distance migrants. A few species of swallow and martin are threatened with extinction by human activities, although other species have benefited from human changes to the environment and live in around humans.(Text from Wikipedia)
French postcard by PSG, no. 947. Photo: Aubert-Philips.
French France Gall (1947) rocketed to fame in the 1960's as a naive young singer performing songs written by Serge Gainsbourg. In 1965 she won the Eurovision Song Contest with his Poupée de cire, poupée de son. But, after meeting and marrying, French singer-songwriter Michel Berger, her career was completely turned around and she soon went on to make a name for herself as one of the top female artists on the French music scene.
Isabelle Geneviève Marie Anne Gall was born in 1947 in Paris. She grew up in a highly creative musical environment. Her father was lyricist Robert Gall, and her mother, singer Cécile Berthier, was the daughter of Paul Berthier, the organist of Auxerre Cathedral and co-founder of the famous French children's choir Petits Chanteurs à la Croix de Bois. Isabelle learnt to play the piano and the guitar at an early age. In her early teens Isabelle went on to form her own group with her brothers. In 1963, Robert Gall encouraged his daughter to record songs and send the demos to a musical publisher, Denis Bourgeois. She auditioned for Bourgeois at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, and was subsequently signed to Philips. Bourgeois encouraged her to record four tracks with French jazz musician, arranger and composer Alain Goraguer. The first airplay of France's first single Ne sois pas si bête (Don't Be So Silly), occurred on her 16th birthday. It soon rocketed to the top of the French charts, selling a cool 200,000 copies. France Gall went on to make a major name for herself in the midst of the yé-yé craze (the fashionable 1960's sound which fused Anglo-Saxon rock'n'roll with French variété). The legendary singer/songwriter Serge Gainsbourg was asked by Bourgeois to write songs for Gall. Gainsbourg's N'écoute pas les idoles (Don't listen to the idols) became Gall's second single; it reached the top of the French charts in March 1964. At the same time, Gall made her live debut, opening for Sacha Distel in Belgium. She teamed up with Distel's business manager, Maurice Tézé, who was also a lyricist. This allowed her to create an original repertoire, unlike the majority of her yé-yé contemporaries who sang adaptations of Anglophone hits.
In addition to songs written by her father, France Gall's success in the 1960’s was built on songs written by big names among French composers and lyricists: Gérard Bourgeois, Jean-Pierre Bourtayre, Joe Dassin, and many others. Gall's songs often featured lyrics based on a stereotypical view of the teenage mind. Elaborate orchestrations by Alain Goraguer blended styles, permitting her to navigate between jazz, children's songs, and anything in between. Examples of this mixed-genre style included Jazz à gogo and Mes premières vraies vacances. Gall and Gainsbourg's association produced many popular singles, continuing through the summer of 1964 with the hit song Laisse tomber les filles (Forget the girls) followed by Christiansen. Having previously resisted, Gall gave in to her managers at the end of 1964 and recorded a single intended for children. The song Sacré Charlemagne was a hit in 1965, selling 2 million copies. Gall was then selected to represent Luxembourg for the 1965 Eurovision Song Contest. Out of the 10 songs proposed to her, she chose Gainsbourg's Poupée de cire, poupée de son. On 20 March 1965, Gainsbourg, Gall, and Goraguer attended the finals of the song contest in Naples, where the song was booed during rehearsals. Her performance was broadcast live to an audience of 150 million viewers and although Gall's delivery during the live show was not of the highest standard, she went on to triumph in style. Success at Eurovision ensured that Gall became even more known outside Europe and she recorded Poupée de cire, poupée de son in French, German, Italian and Japanese. There appears to be no English version released by France Gall herself, although there was an English cover by the English 60’s star Twinkle. Ironically, France Gall was not representing France, but Luxembourgat the Eurovision Song Contest. Some French critics reproached Gall and Gainsbourg for having won for Luxembourg and not for their own countr, but Poupée de cire, poupée de son went on to become a huge hit in France
In 1965 a tv film was distributed in the United States directed by Jean-Christophe Averty and dedicated to the songs of France Gall. She was then sought by Walt Disney to appear as Alice in a musical film version of Alice in Wonderland. Although Gall had insisted she did not want to become involved in film work, this was the only project which appealed to her, but the project was cancelled after Disney's death in 1966. Gall appeared in the television film Viva Morandi (1966), made in the same psychoanalytical mould as the Fellini film Giulietta degli Spiriti (1965, Federico Fellini). Gall played La Grâce alongside Christine Lebail who played La Pureté, both singing Les Sucettes in a segment which was prominently labelled ‘fantasy’, in a clear reference to the song's sexual undertones. She also appeared in the tv-film Le lapin de Noël (1967), based on a story by Roland Topor. Later she was approached by director Bernardo Bertolucci for the leading female role in Last Tango in Paris (1972), but she firmly rejected this offer. In 1993 Gall once again considered appearing on screen for a cinematographic collaboration with her best friend, the screenplay writer Telsche Boorman. Like the Disney film, this planned project was never completed due to the death of Boorman in 1996. Her songs were ften featured on film soundtracks, like Poupée de cire, poupée de son in Ba'al Ba'al Lev/Gotta Have Heart (1997, Eytan Fox) Teenie Weenie Boppie in A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries (1998, James Ivory) and Besoin d'amour in 40 mg d'amour par jour/40 mg of love each day (2005, Charles Meurisse)
In 1966, FranceGall was voted France's no. 1 female pop star. That year she went on to score another huge hit with Bébé Requin (Baby Pop), a song co-written by Gainsbourg and Joe Dassin. Later Gall described the lyrics as ‘brutal’, but the dark undertones are not easily perceived when one hears the song as sung by the then 18 year-old girl. However, the undertones in her next hit song were not so easily missed, and caused a scandal when it was released. Gainsbourg deliberately filled the song Les Sucettes (Lollipops) with double-meanings and strong sexual innuendo. On the surface, the lyrics tell the innocent tale of a girl named Annie who enjoys lollipops. However, it is clear that Gainsbourg intentionally created the theme as a metaphor for oral sex. Although a big hit, the song sat in stark contrast to genuinely innocent songs on the same album such as Je me marie en blanc (White Wedding) and Ça me fait rire (It makes me laugh). The public furore over Les Sucettes would throw Gall’s career off-track for years, and Gall was not left unscathed by the experience. She belatedly understood that she had been used: the song was deliberately conceived with the aim of attracting publicity. All her records which followed, even expunged of the Gainsbourg signature, would be suspiciously viewed as having crass commercial motivations. Her song dedicated to John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr., Bonsoir John John would be tarred with accusations of necrophilia. Sullied by her association with Gainsbourg, her songs failed to chart for a long time afterwards.
Although struggling in her home country, France Gall regularly recorded in Germany from 1966 to 1972, in particular with the composer and orchestrator Werner Müller. She had a successful German career with songs by Horst Buchholz and Giorgio Moroder: Love, l'amour und liebe (1967), Hippie, hippie (1968), Ich liebe dich, so wie du bist (I love you the way you are) (1969) and Mein Herz kann man nicht kaufen (My heart is not for sale) (1970). Gall had several other releases in France in 1968, none of which aroused any great interest. At the end of 1968, on reaching the age of 21, Gall separated from Denis Bourgeois and stretched her wings upon the expiration of her contract with Philips. The early seventies continued to be a barren period for Gall. Although she was the first artist to be recorded in France for Atlantic Records in 1971, her singles C'est cela l'amour (1971) and Chasse neige (1971), faltered in the charts. In 1972, Gall, for the last time, recorded songs by Gainsbourg, Frankenstein and Les Petits ballons, but these also failed to chart. She remained firmly in the media spotlight, dating 60's idol Claude François, then going on to enjoy a four-year relationship with another popular French singing star, Julien Clerc (1970 - 1974). From the 1970’s onwards, Gall started regularly visiting Senegal, where she in 1990 bought her hideaway on the island of N'Gor, close to Dakar.
1974 proved to be a major turning point in France Gall's personal life as well as in her professional career. She then first met the French singer/songwriter Michel Berger. Shortly after this initial meeting Michel Berger and France Gall began a passionate relationship, and the couple would rarely be seen apart. Berger created a whole new repertoire for her and France Gall soon made a major comeback on the French music scene, rocketing to the top of the charts with her new single La Déclaration in 1974. This proved to be the first of many hits which Berger wrote especially for Gall. Indeed, each of the singer's successive albums would contain several best-selling hits. Meanwhile, their relationship was beginning to become increasingly serious and in 1976 they married. France Gall shared years of work and family life with Michel Berger, becoming one of the most popular showbiz couples of France. In 1988 her hit Ella, elle l'a (Ella She Has It), a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, topped the charts in many countries. After Berger’s sudden death in 1992, France Gall continued to perform her late husband's repertoire at every opportunity, participating in countless gala tributes held in Berger's honour. The couple had two children, Pauline and Raphaël. Sadly, in 1997, tragedy blighted her life once again, when her daughter Pauline died at the age of 19. France retired, but in 2004 a new France Gall compilation was released, Evidemment. It proved to be a another huge hit.
Sources: Radio France Internationale Musique, Wikipedia and IMDb.
Changing environment by beavers. 2e pass lith, Ilford mg paper. The print got a nice green tint after toning in undiluted Fotospeed antique dye toner.
I have a love/hate relationship with HDR images.
On one hand, if it's done well (see this article: www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/hdr-plea.shtml), the results can be stunning and remain true to what the human eye sees. If done poorly (too much tone mapping / compression), it ends up looking conspicuously unnatural, as if we've reverted to throwing a whole bunch of creative filters on in Photoshop. Caveat: "poorly" is a subjective term here as this is all based on my interpretation of what I consider pleasing to the eye. If you like your HDR surrealistic, all the more power to you.
The X100 is only capable of +/- 1EV via 3 exposures when bracketing, so that's what I've merged here via HDR Efex. I tried going +/- 2EV by manually exposing, but the results when merged had too much ghosting from the delay between shots. My goal was to accurately represent the entire tonal range from the flare of the setting sun to the colour in the clouds and the shadowed rocks in the foreground.
I think this came out looking pretty natural. Agree? Disagree? Voice yourselves; I'm looking for some constructive feedback as this is my first HDR image.
Before this area was protected as a national park, it was a scientific reserve within the State Forest, and was thus a biological environment of near pristine condition. It is a gem in the much larger national park
In a few decades, the relationship between the environment, resources and conflict may seem almost as obvious as the connection we see today between human rights, democracy and peace.
Hoya CPL Filter
Lee .6 GND Filter
Photo © Tristan Savatier - All Rights Reserved - License this photo on www.loupiote.com/7987811078
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Loads of pressurized gasoline and propane gas are blown-up around the base of "the man" at the end of the Burning Man Festival. They use a controlled BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion).
Can't we burn that "man" thing without blowing up that much fossil fuel? This is not environmentally friendly at all. It's just a big orchestrated pyrotechnic show like those you see at Disney World or Hollywood. We don't need that. Am I the only one to feel that way?
By the way, I was in the crowd with everyone else when I took this photo, I did not have an "Inner Circle Pass" this year. Camera was handheld, no tripod.
Photo taken at the Burning Man 2012 festival (Black Rock Desert, Nevada).
If you like this photo, follow me on instagram (tristan_sf) and don't hesitate to leave a comment or email me.
A hand fan is an instrument and a fashion accessory designed so that with a rhythmic and variable play of the wrist, air can be moved and cooling is facilitated when in a hot environment.
HISTORY: The umbel or parasol and the flabellum, a large fixed fan with a long handle, are considered precedents in Egypt —at least since the 19th dynasty— and in Asia of the modest and functional folding fan and its western variants.
Already in the tomb of Tutankhamun, two fans with precious metal handles were deposited as part of the pharaoh's trousseau.
An essential object in Chinese and Japanese cultures, both in ceremonies and in theater, which synthesizes the fantasy of these peoples in the different types of fans.
In China, the origin of the rigid fan dates back to 2697 BC. C., with the emperor Hsiem Yuan.
LANGUAGE AND SECRET CODES: Progressively a complicated language of codes was developed, according to the movement and position of the fans.
Thus, for example, quickly fanning oneself looking into your eyes translated as "I love you madly", but if it was done slowly, the message was very different: "I am married and you are indifferent to me".
Opening the fan and showing it was equivalent to: “you can wait for me”.
Holding it with both hands advised a cruel “you better forget me”.
If a woman dropped her fan in front of a man, the passionate message was "I belong to you".
If she supported him open on her chest at the level of the heart: "I love you."
If she covered her face with the open fan: "Follow me when I go."
If she rested it on her right cheek it was equivalent to a "yes", but if she rested it on her left it was a resounding and cruel "no". Source: Wikipedia.
Photo taken in Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, Spain.
UNA HERRAMIENTA TRADICIONAL PARA AYUDAR CON EL CALOR DEL VERANO, 2023
Un abanico de mano es un instrumento y un complemento de moda ideado para que con un juego de muñeca rítmico y variable se pueda mover aire y facilitar la refrigeración cuando se está en un ambiente caluroso.
HISTORIA: La umbela o quitasol y el flabellum, gran abanico fijo de largo mango, se consideran precedentes en Egipto —al menos desde la dinastía XIX— y en Asia del modesto y funcional abanico plegable y sus variantes occidentales.
Ya en la tumba de Tutankamón se depositaron, como parte del ajuar del faraón, dos abanicos con mango de metales preciosos.
Objeto esencial en las culturas china y japonesa, tanto en ceremonias como en el teatro, que sintetiza la fantasía de estos pueblos en los diferentes tipos de abanico.
En China, el origen del abanico rígido se sitúa hacia 2697 a. C., con el emperador Hsiem Yuan.
LENGUAJE Y CÓDIGOS SECRETOS: Progresivamente se llegó a desarrollar un complicado lenguaje de códigos, según el movimiento y posición de los abanicos.
Así, por ejemplo, abanicarse rápidamente mirándote a los ojos se traducía como “te amo con locura”, pero si se hacía lentamente, el mensaje era muy distinto: “estoy casada y me eres indiferente”.
Abrir el abanico y mostrarlo equivalía a un: “puedes esperarme”.
Sujetarlo con las dos manos aconsejaba un cruel “es mejor que me olvides”.
Si una mujer dejaba caer su abanico delante de un hombre, el mensaje era apasionado "te pertenezco".
Si lo apoyaba abierto sobre el pecho a la altura del corazón: “te amo”.
Si se cubría la cara con el abanico abierto: “Sígueme cuando me vaya”.
Si lo apoyaba en la mejilla derecha equivalía a un “sí”, pero si lo apoyaba sobre la izquierda era un “no” rotundo y cruel. Fuente: Wikipedia.
Foto tomada en Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, España.
"Trinity-Bellwoods is an inner city neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is bounded on the east by Bathurst Street, on the north by College Street, on the south by Queen Street West, and by Dovercourt Road on the west. It has a large Portuguese (mostly originally from the Azores and Madeira islands) and Brazilian community, and many local Lusitanian-Canadian businesses are located along Dundas Street West, continuing west into Little Portugal; this stretch further west along Dundas is known as Rua Açores.
The neighbourhood takes its name from Trinity Bellwoods Park, built around the former Garrison Creek ravine. Bounded on the north by Dundas Street West and on the south by the Queen Street West district, the park is immediately accessible from major pedestrian and bicycling thoroughfares. And it is bounded on the east and west by quiet residential streets. Accordingly, the park has a large natural "constituency". The park also sports a range of environments, including tennis courts, a playground, a hockey rink, a dog walking bowl, a grove, a range of picnic tables, a greenhouse, a community center, and a swimming pool. The northwestern panhandle is home to a farmer's market on Tuesday afternoons from spring to fall.
Toronto (/təˈrɒntoʊ/ tə-RON-toh; locally [təˈɹɒɾ̃ə] or [ˈtɹɒɾ̃ə]) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anchor of the Golden Horseshoe, an urban agglomeration of 9,765,188 people (as of 2021) surrounding the western end of Lake Ontario, while the Greater Toronto Area proper had a 2021 population of 6,712,341. Toronto is an international centre of business, finance, arts, sports and culture, and is recognized as one of the most multicultural and cosmopolitan cities in the world.
Indigenous peoples have travelled through and inhabited the Toronto area, located on a broad sloping plateau interspersed with rivers, deep ravines, and urban forest, for more than 10,000 years. After the broadly disputed Toronto Purchase, when the Mississauga surrendered the area to the British Crown, the British established the town of York in 1793 and later designated it as the capital of Upper Canada. During the War of 1812, the town was the site of the Battle of York and suffered heavy damage by American troops. York was renamed and incorporated in 1834 as the city of Toronto. It was designated as the capital of the province of Ontario in 1867 during Canadian Confederation. The city proper has since expanded past its original limits through both annexation and amalgamation to its current area of 630.2 km2 (243.3 sq mi).
The diverse population of Toronto reflects its current and historical role as an important destination for immigrants to Canada. More than half of residents were born outside of Canada, more than half of residents belong to a visible minority group, and over 200 distinct ethnic origins are represented among its inhabitants. While the majority of Torontonians speak English as their primary language, over 160 languages are spoken in the city. The mayor of Toronto is elected by direct popular vote to serve as the chief executive of the city. The Toronto City Council is a unicameral legislative body, comprising 25 councillors since the 2018 municipal election, representing geographical wards throughout the city.
Toronto is a prominent centre for music, theatre, motion picture production, and television production, and is home to the headquarters of Canada's major national broadcast networks and media outlets. Its varied cultural institutions, which include numerous museums and galleries, festivals and public events, entertainment districts, national historic sites, and sports activities, attract over 43 million tourists each year. Toronto is known for its many skyscrapers and high-rise buildings, in particular the tallest free-standing structure on land outside of Asia, the CN Tower.
The city is home to the Toronto Stock Exchange, the headquarters of Canada's five largest banks, and the headquarters of many large Canadian and multinational corporations. Its economy is highly diversified with strengths in technology, design, financial services, life sciences, education, arts, fashion, aerospace, environmental innovation, food services, and tourism. Toronto is the third-largest tech hub in North America after Silicon Valley and New York City, and the fastest growing." - info from Wikipedia.
The fall of 2022 I did my 3rd major cycling tour. I began my adventure in Montreal, Canada and finished in Savannah, GA. This tour took me through the oldest parts of Quebec and the 13 original US states. During this adventure I cycled 7,126 km over the course of 2.5 months and took more than 68,000 photos. As with my previous tours, a major focus was to photograph historic architecture.
On this trip I had a surprise 4 day layover in Toronto.
Now on Instagram.
Christian naturism is the practise of naturism or nudism by Christians. This form of naturism is not to be confused with what Durkheim termed "naturism" as an explanation for the origin of religion[1] in which the forces of nature form the origin of religion.Naturism is the practice of recreational social nudity in a natural environment, such as at a beach, lake, or in a forest or other wilderness area. It is not certain that Christian naturism exists in any formal organisations, however, there are informal (mostly online) networks of Christians who practise naturism.Many of the early protagonists of naturism were Christians. For example, authors such as Ilsley Boone, Henry S. Huntington and Elton Raymond Shaw were writers of books on naturism and on Christianity. The dean of St Paul's Cathedral, the Very Revd William Inge, known as Dean Inge, offered support to the cause of naturists in his support of the publishing of Maurice Parmelee's book, The New Gymnosophy : Nudity and the Modern Life.[5] Dean Inge was also critical of town councillors who were insisting that bathers wear full bathing costumes.Many Christian naturists have very little disagreement with the core beliefs of long-established churches, and may even be members. They feel the error of mandatory dress is cultural, rather than anything related to salvation.[citation needed] Nor is such an error unprecedented. For example, in the 20th century, churches largely abandoned any teaching which promoted racial separation and segregation.[7] Likewise, Christian naturists perceive a gap between scripture and Victorian era modesty (which to some extent is still observed today).Christian naturists believe that much of Christianity has misinterpreted the events of the Garden of Eden story and the Fall of Man. According to this interpretation, God could see the sin that Adam and Eve had committed by eating the forbidden fruit. It was for this reason alone that the couple was ashamed, and therefore tried to hide by covering their bodies with fig leaves. They were not motivated to dress by being able to see one another nude. (If that were the case, Adam and Eve would have immediately run off in opposite directions, rather than remain together.[citation needed]) Although God subsequently clothed them with animal skins, he made no mandate for humans to be dressed in public.
The human body was God's final and greatest earthly creation. Requiring the body to be covered rivals the legalism of the Pharisees. Many people have been deceived into thinking that their clothing keeps them from sin, when in fact the opposite is true.There are a number of ministers and priests in the contemporary nudist movement. In fact, the modem nudist movement was largely organized by ordained religious leaders, as discussed more fully in Chapter 8. These religious leaders used as their justification the many parts of the Judaic-Christian Bible which speak of accepting the human body without shame (such as references to those apostles who were fishermen, naked at their work). Religious nudists use these quotations as an answer to the fundamentalist preachers who sermonize about God’s demand for clothing.
For example, the Rev. Martin Wadestone, author of “Nudism and Christianity,” writes: “Actually, in the light of the Bible, there is no sin in nudity itself; but if a person uses the nudity for lustful or immoral purposes he has misused it, and this constitutes a sin. The Bible does not speak against nudity nor does it teach that the body is shameful. There is reference to shame in nudity, but this shame was produced in the mind of man, not by divine ordination.”This was also the belief of at least five groups in the history of Christianity: the Carpocrations, Adamites, Adamianis, Encratites, and Marcosians. Most of the historical information we have concerning the beliefs and practices of these early Christians comes to us, in fact, through the recorded criticisms and diatribes of Roman Catholic Church authorities, since these authorities have largely destroyed the writings of those they considered heretical.Platonic philosopher Carpocrates, born in Alexandria, Egypt in the second century A.D., believed in one God as creator of the world and all things in it. He combined the Christian ideal of the brotherhood of man with portions of Plato’s Republic, advocating that the glories of God should not be hidden. He urged Christians, both male and female, to look upon the natural body with gratitude for the creative force of God-love. His disciples suffered ridicule and sometimes severe persecution but continued their practices into the fourth century A.D. Records indicate that nude statues and a museum were created to honor this sect. It was the Carpocrations who first portrayed Christ’s body in the exposed form commonly seen to this day.The Adamianis existed in the second and third centuries A.D. They were a group that hoped to regain the innocence mankind lost in the Garden of Eden and, consequently, worshiped in a state of nakedness and lived as a nudist community. It’s believed that groups of Adamianis used deserted pagan temples for their own rituals.Some generations later, Encratites and Marcosians, who developed out of the Adamiani tradition, appeared on the scene. The Encratites were vegetarians and many, if not all, practiced nudism. In ancient Gaul (France), a Gnostic teacher named Marcus and his followers became known as Marcosians and were well established in the Rhone Valley by the third century. Irenaeus, a conservative Christian writer of the day, criticized their nudity and religious beliefs, remarking: “Marcus is regarded by these senseless and brain cracked as working miracles.”The Adamites (no connection with the Adamianis) were an active sect in Bohemia during the fifteenth century A.D. They were part of the Hussite Reformation. This group set up numerous religious nude communities.Natural-living Christians were referred to by traditionalists as “Gnostic heretics,” because their Christian doctrines were influenced by esoteric teachings and Eastern mystical thought. Henry de Horatev has written that, while in one sense they could be considered Gnostics, “they were not Gnostics but just plain radical Christians.”These “in-the-buff” religious groups were not exhibitionists, preferring to live in isolated and inaccessible seclusion, protected by the forests in Gaul, the deserts in Egypt, and the islands of Greece.
They built sturdy stone walls for privacy and protection from the hostile communities surrounding them. DeHoratev reflects, “How much it is to be regretted that the only records we have of the early Christian nudists come to us from hostile censorious quarters! Let us hope that someday, in some European or African monastery or tomb, there will be discovered a cache of lost Gnostic books which will shed new light on the persecuted groups of the nudists of antiquity, just as the Dead Sea Scrolls have brought new understanding to the old Hebrew literature.”Other prominent figures in the Bible also participated in social nudity (see scripture below). Being nude is a wholesome way of life, and an acceptable state of dress which was never condemned by God in the Bible. Christian naturists note there is no command in the Adam and Eve story, or elsewhere in the Bible, to wear clothing.
While "openness" and "loving people for who they are" are common concepts throughout Christianity, they are especially emphasized in Christian naturism through "body acceptance." Having a perfect body as the world sees fit is totally unimportant for both males and females of all ages
Many of the prohibitions of present-day nudity (both within Christianity and society at large) originate from the 19th-century Victorian era, rather than scripture. Two centuries ago, except for a Puritan minority and Anabaptist sects, Christians did not generally equate nudity with sexuality.Christian naturists view the story of the Garden of Eden as a model for their beliefs. It is also the main scripture where their interpretation disagrees with denominations where clothing is required. When Adam and Eve were created and placed in the garden as a couple by God, they were both naked and "felt no shame". (Genesis 2:25) They see Adam and Eve being in the blameless state that God had intended them to be. God knew that they were naked, as this was how he had created them.Even before Eve's creation, God had warned Adam "...but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:17) Despite God's warning, first Eve, then Adam, eat the forbidden fruit after being persuaded by the devil in the form of a serpent. (Genesis 3:1-6) Upon doing so, they immediately realize that they are naked, and sew fig leaves together as coverings.Shortly thereafter, Adam and Eve hear God walking in the garden, which results with them fearfully hiding among the trees. God queries Adam, "Where are you?" In spite of the fig leaves, Adam replies that he is afraid because of his nakedness. God further asks Adam, "Who told you that you were naked?" Only God, Adam, Eve, and the devil are a party to this matter, as there are no other humans on the planet at this time. Therefore, Christian naturists believe it was the devil who told Adam and Eve that they were naked. Their shame was not of God; nor would the fig leaves cover this shame, regardless of their genitals being covered. God was displeased not only by their disobedience of eating the forbidden fruit, but also with Adam and Eve's subsequent attempt to cover up their bodies.Christian naturists maintain the fig leaves were worn in a futile attempt to hide what the couple had done from God—not each other, noting they were married, and equally guilty of the same original sin.[9] The second sin was to cover parts of the body.[10] The devil had chosen the sexual organs as the area of shame because, unlike God, he has no ability to create life. As the next chapter begins with Adam and Eve engaging in appropriate marital sexual relations,[11] they conclude the couple would have seen each other naked subsequent to the fall of mankind.Having thus sinned, and no longer living nude by their own accord, God expels them from the Garden of Eden. He also made garments from animal skins to replace the fig leaves.
There are other references to nudity in the Bible, such as:[
1 Samuel 19:24 He (Saul) stripped off his robes and also prophesied in Samuel's presence. He lay that way all that day and night. This is why people say, "Is Saul also among the prophets?"
2 Samuel 6:20-23 As the Ark of the Covenant finally arrives in Jerusalem, King David dances nude within sight of slave girls. For this he is strongly denounced by his wife, Michal. David replies "I will celebrate before the Lord. I will become even more humble than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor." The Scripture immediately following adds: "And Michal (daughter of Saul) had no children to the day of her death." (For a woman in the ancient Near East to be barren was considered one of the worst curses possible.[citation needed])
2 Samuel 11 While King David was rebuked by God for his lust of Bathsheba (a married woman), nothing was said about her nude bathing.
Isaiah 20:2 The Lord says to Isaiah: "Take off the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet." And he did so, going around stripped and barefoot.
Micah 1:8a (Micah speaking:) Because of this [Jacob's transgression] I will weep and wail; I will go about barefoot and naked.
Matthew 6:25 and Luke 12:22-23 Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?"
Mark 14:51-52 "A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind."
John 19:23-24 "When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, ... "Let's not tear [the undergarment]," they said to one another. "Let's decide by lot who will get it...." Many paintings and films depict Christ's crucifixion with Him wearing a loin cloth, but this is consistent neither with scripture nor with the normal method of a Roman crucifixion.
Gospel of Thomas Although no major Christian group accepts this book as canonical or authoritative (its translation was unavailable until the 20th century), it relates a conversation between Jesus and his disciples:
His disciples asked, "When will you become revealed to us and when shall we see you?" Jesus answered, "When you disrobe without being ashamed and take up your garments and place them under your feet like little children and tread on them, then will you see the son of the Living One, and you will not be afraid."
To many people, the word witchcraft conjures up visions of evil Hailoween hags on broomsticks or strange and perhaps depraved rituals of nudity and sex. However, some historians believe that witchcraft is the oldest religion in the world and, therefore, quite respectable despite the prevalent prejudices of Judaism and Christianity. These historians of religion say that witchcraft’s fertility rites are only a worship and awe of nature, and that the monthly new-moon “esbats” and seasonal “sabbats” are only ceremonial rituals in an appeal to the gods for fecundity of the earth and fertility of its inhabitants. The wordwitchcraft, for example, actually means “craft of the wise,” since Wicca,” its root, means “wise one.” As civilization developed, this old religion became a blend of fertility cults, Egyptian occultism, and ancient kabbalistic studies.A fascinating tale of early sun worship and nudity was unearthed in 1887 at Tell-el-Amarna, a small Egyptian village on the banks of the Nile some 200 miles south of Cairo. There, an Arab woman accidentally stumbled upon the baked-clay tablet archives of Pharaoh Akhen-Aton (1385-1353 B.C.). It was learned through the subsequent translation of these tablets that the brilliant young pharaoh and his exquisitely beautiful queen, Nefertiti, considered the sun, Aton, to be the true wellspring of life and thus justified the practice of nudism for spiritual and physical advancement.Because of the discovery of these tablets and other artifacts at Tell-el Amarna, the seat of Pharaoh Akhen-Aton’s government, it is now well known that he was not only a great religious reformer and mystic, who disputed the pantheism of the traditional priesthood, but also a poet of great sensitivity. On the scattered stones that had formed the original wall of Aton’s Temple, archaeologists have found and deciphered the pharaoh’s famous “Hymn to Aton, the Sun God,” a portion of which appears in the Hebrew scriptures as Psalm 104 of the Old Testament. “Through this poem,” writes J. Herman in King& Queen of the Sun,“the pharaoh reveals himself to be a lover of beauty in nature, in art, and in man.”During British control of India, the gymnosophist practice of nudism was greatly curtailed. However, now that there is an independent Republic of India, the jains are again unhampered in their religious practice of nudity. In India today, some women have also joined the ranks of the naked Jain ascetics.The Khajurako temple is not an isolated example of a great tolerance for nudity in ancient India. Other Indian temples, such as the revered shrines at Konarak and Ellora, also display highly realistic erotic sculptures. These representations were obviously not regarded as obscene by the people who lived at the time they were created. Their directness of statement and their placement at central public locations shows that they were an essential part of the living experience of the community, part of the fabric of their social, educational, and religious life.This attitude was carried to such extremes that huge numbers of innocent people were murdered. It is now known that the great majority of those unfortunate victims had no connection with wrong-doing other than being identified as immoral and evil by their fearful neighbors and enemies. Of course, it is conceivable that there were a few witches at the time who used their potions and pills for personal profit and revenge, as their accusers claimed, just as some witches must have “cursed” their persecutors with great forcefulness. But the Wicca tradition as a whole was a religion celebrating joy, health, and fruitful harvests.This old religion is having a renaissance today as part of the “New Age” interest in metaphysics and psychic phenomena. Meditation and hypnosis, traditional tools of witchcraft, are now popular methods of “raising consciousness” toward accomplishing personal and global changes. Flowers, herbs, and crystals, the natural sacraments of the old religion, are also widely used by New Agers in their healing rituals.Much of the evil that has been attributed to witchcraft is actually part of the quite different traditions of Satanism and/or Devil Worship. Cults of this type were based on atheistic hedonism rather than on nature worship. Like witches, the members also practiced ritualistic nudity, but their emphasis was on orgiastic sexuality. Their “black mass” was centered around a nude woman as the altar, and their rites included liberal usage of drugs and hallucinogenic potions.
This view shows the variety of coastal environments in this portion of Humboldt County. This is the mouth of Guthrie Creek southwest of Ferndale. The dry growth in the foreground is representative of the south facing slope leading down to the creek. In the background to the right is the Pacific Ocean. To the left is a north facing slope of redwood, coast cypress and Douglas fir
"But that's the glory of foreign travel, as far as I am concerned. I don't want to know what people are talking about. I can't think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything. Suddenly you are five years old again. You can't read anything, you have only the most rudimentary sense of how things work, you can't even reliably cross a street without endangering your life. Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses."
— Bill Bryson
The Atlas Cedar has just been put on the endangered species list.. ツ ツ ツ
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