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A Sintra ...Portugal .....A la Quinta da Regaleira !
Tour inversée de 27 m de profondeur environ , avec un monumental escalier en spirale .... espace étrange , mystérieux avec une connotation sacrée !
Domaine Ray Jane
Au Domaine Ray Jane, on est vigneron de père en fils depuis 1288! Un véritable savoir-faire grâce à un magnifique vignoble situé en plein coeur de la renommée appellation « Bandol ». Alain Constant est un vigneron passionné, ses vins sont travaillés avec amour, dans les règles de l’art, et certifiés « bio » de surcroît. La famille produit également « la Cuvée de la Ville de Sanary », à partir des parcelles situées au Cabanon des Vignes à Sanary. Visiter Le Domaine Ray Jane, c’est également la possibilité de « s’abreuver » de l’Histoire du Vin et de la Vigne avec un musée unique, autour d’une collection d’outils de tonneliers et de la vigne, avec plus de 30 000 pièces!
Parcours Olfactif
A La Maison du Terroir et du Patrimoine, l’appellation « Bandol » est à l’honneur, au travers d’un parcours olfactif pédagogique et ludique qui permet de découvrir les principes arômes présents dans les trois couleurs. Un voyage initiatique pour mieux appréhender la grande richesse de cette appellation.
Ray Jane Estate
At Domaine Ray Jane, we have been winegrowers from father to son since 1288! A real know-how thanks to a magnificent vineyard located in the heart of the renowned “Bandol” appellation. Alain Constant is a passionate winemaker, his wines are worked with love, in the rules of the art, and certified "organic" in addition. The family also produces "Cuvée de la Ville de Sanary", from plots located at Cabanon des Vignes in Sanary. Visiting Domaine Ray Jane is also the opportunity to “drink” from the History of Wine and Vine with a unique museum, around a collection of coopers 'and vines' tools, with more than 30,000 pieces!
Olfactory course
At La Maison du Terroir et du Patrimoine, the appellation "Bandol" is in the spotlight, through an educational and fun olfactory journey which allows you to discover the aroma principles present in the three colors. An initiatory journey to better understand the great richness of this appellation.
Les 9 toiles présentées sont donc conçues comme une décomposition du vocabulaire cinétique : couleurs, lumières, formes et suggestion du mouvement sont évoqués, sans toutefois parvenir aux caractéristiques de ce mouvement (jeux d'optique, sensation d'expansion dans l'espace, etc.), générant ainsi interrogations et frustrations chez le spectateur.La vidéo quant à elle, est construite comme une augmentation du vocabulaire cinétique1 : la peinture a disparu, le mouvement n'est plus suggéré, il existe concrètement à travers l'animation visuelle et la scénographie. L'exagération distillée avec humour par le duo de frères, se présente au public comme une véritable expérience, un parcours initiatique conçu pour provoquer une réaction physique chez le spectateur : les éléments plastiques sont perçus par l'œil, éprouvés par le corps et doivent générer à terme, des projections mentales.
The 9 paintings presented are thus conceived as a decomposition of the kinetic vocabulary : colors, lights, forms and suggestion of the movement are evoked, without however reaching the characteristics of this movement (optical games, sensation of expansion in the space, etc.), thus generating interrogations and frustrations for the viewer. The video, for its part, is constructed as an increase in the kinetic vocabulary: the painting has disappeared, the movement is no longer suggested, it exists concretely throughout the world. visual animation and scenography. The exaggeration distilled with humor by the duo of brothers, is presented to the public as a real experience, an initiatory course designed to provoke a physical reaction in the viewer: the plastic elements are perceived by the eye, experienced by the body and must eventually generate mental projections.
Les 9 toiles présentées sont donc conçues comme une décomposition du vocabulaire cinétique : couleurs, lumières, formes et suggestion du mouvement sont évoqués, sans toutefois parvenir aux caractéristiques de ce mouvement (jeux d'optique, sensation d'expansion dans l'espace, etc.), générant ainsi interrogations et frustrations chez le spectateur.La vidéo quant à elle, est construite comme une augmentation du vocabulaire cinétique1 : la peinture a disparu, le mouvement n'est plus suggéré, il existe concrètement à travers l'animation visuelle et la scénographie. L'exagération distillée avec humour par le duo de frères, se présente au public comme une véritable expérience, un parcours initiatique conçu pour provoquer une réaction physique chez le spectateur : les éléments plastiques sont perçus par l'œil, éprouvés par le corps et doivent générer à terme, des projections mentales.
The 9 paintings presented are thus conceived as a decomposition of the kinetic vocabulary : colors, lights, forms and suggestion of the movement are evoked, without however reaching the characteristics of this movement (optical games, sensation of expansion in the space, etc.), thus generating interrogations and frustrations for the viewer. The video, for its part, is constructed as an increase in the kinetic vocabulary: the painting has disappeared, the movement is no longer suggested, it exists concretely throughout the world. visual animation and scenography. The exaggeration distilled with humor by the duo of brothers, is presented to the public as a real experience, an initiatory course designed to provoke a physical reaction in the viewer: the plastic elements are perceived by the eye, experienced by the body and must eventually generate mental projections.
La Cathédrale de Chartres possède un des plus beaux exemples de labyrinthe médiéval (XIIIe s.). On peut l'admirer le vendredi lorsque les chaises ordinairement disposées dessus sont enlevées. Les visiteurs peuvent alors le parcourir.
Ici, ce n'est pas un exercice mental car il n'y a qu'une entrée et une arrivée au centre symbolisée par une fleur à 6 pétales. Le parcours peut-être assimilé à une expérience initiatique qui s'effectuait à genoux sur une distance de 523 m en aller-retour en mettant à l'épreuve le corps et l'esprit. Il se parcourait à Pâques pour la résurrection du Christ.
The Cathedral of Chartres has one of the finest examples of medieval labyrinth (thirteenth century). It can be admired on Fridays when the chairs ordinarily arranged on it are removed. Visitors can then browse it. Here, it is not a mental exercise because there is only one entrance and one arrival in the center symbolized by a flower with 6 petals. The course can be likened to an initiatory experience that was carried out on one's knees over a distance of 523 m round trip by testing the body and mind. It was walked through at Easter for the resurrection of Christ.
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Développement dans du Rodinal 1+25
Alice got immersed in a strange world after following the white rabbit in a hurry and falling through a never-ending tunnel. In her initiatory journey, she got confronted to several difficult choices.
Upon eating a cake that carried the tag "Eat me", she grew out of proportions, bigger than the house she was in. Later, she got offered drinking up a potion from a bottle that carried the tag "Drink me". That helped her shrink down to a normal size again.
What would have happened, had she encountered a beautiful rose enclosed in a bottle carrying the tag "Smell me"?...
Pipistrello_Il Cerimoniere Iniziatico
"Quando un Pipistrello vola nella nostra notte interiore ... siamo chiamati a calarci all'interno dei nostri timori per esaminarli da vicino. Grazie al capovolgimento del nostro punto di vista a questa nuova prospettiva, nascerà in noi la fiducia nelle nostre capacità. Il Pipistrello ci parla di una prova iniziatica: l'attraversamento della Notte Buia dell'Anima, come la chiama Coehlo."
Pipistrello_The Initiatory Ceremonial Master
"When a Bat flies into our inner night... we are called to descend inside our fears to examine them closely. Thanks to the reversal of our point of view to this new perspective, confidence in our abilities will be born in us. The Bat tells us about an initiatory test: the crossing of the Dark Night of the Soul, as Coehlo calls it."
I testi citati sono di Federica Zizzari, tratti da "Animali Guida" ed. Vivida. The texts cited are by Federica Zizzari, taken from "Animali Guida" ed. Vivida.
www.vividabooks.it/product-page/animali-guida
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2014 © luis f. lopez
web: www.luisfrlopez.com/
facebook: www.facebook.com/luisflopezphotography
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Una gruta de aura mitológica, cargada de leyenda, de características de extraordinaria belleza. Utilizada como escondite de la población frente a las invasiones de piratas del norte de África en los siglos XVI y XVII. Años después se convertiría en visita obligada de eruditos y científicos europeos.
Cesar Manrique y Jesús Soto, desplegaron su conocimiento de la luz y las sombras, para extraer la luminosidad de la piedra y realzar las formas caprichosas de la lava en su devastador camino. La gama cromática de ocres, grises, negros y rojizos reinan en este paraíso de la oscuridad y por efecto de la luz dibuja grotescos paisajes y espectaculares estructuras rocosas. Es como adentrarse en un viaje iniciático al centro de la tierra.
The cave of the greens
A grotto with a mythological aura, charged with legend, with characteristics of extraordinary beauty. Used as a hiding place for the population against the pirate invasions of North Africa in the 16th and 17th centuries. Years later it would become a must for European scholars and scientists.
Cesar Manrique and Jesús Soto, displayed their knowledge of light and shadows, to extract the luminosity of the stone and enhance the capricious forms of the lava in its devastating path. The chromatic range of ocher, gray, black and reddish reign in this paradise of darkness and the effect of light draws grotesque landscapes and spectacular rocky structures. It is like entering an initiatory journey to the center of the earth.
Mi agradecimiento a tod@s, por los más de 8 millones de visitas que recibo en redes.
Let me say a huge thank you, for over than 8 million visits that I receive in networks.
Groups managed by: agustin ruiz morilla
Architecture&Photography: by invitation
www.flickr.com/groups/14665391@N23/pool/with/49105545208/
Caminando: by invitation:
www.flickr.com/groups/4130021@N20/
Retrato Portrait: Miradas: by invitationwww.flickr.com/groups/14665391@N23/pool/with/49105545208/
La catedral de Santiago de Compostela es un templo de culto católico situado en la ciudad homónima, en el centro de la provincia de La Coruña, en Galicia (España). Acoge el que, según la tradición, es el sepulcro del Apóstol Santiago, lo cual convirtió al templo en uno de los principales destinos de peregrinación de Europa durante la Edad Media a través del llamado Camino de Santiago, una ruta iniciática en la que se seguía la estela de la Vía Láctea comunicando la península ibérica con el resto del continente. Esto fue determinante para que los reinos hispánicos medievales participaran en los movimientos culturales de la época; en la actualidad sigue siendo un importante destino de peregrinación.
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The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela is a Catholic worship temple located in the city of the same name, in the center of the province of La Coruña, in Galicia (Spain). It welcomes what, according to tradition, is the sepulcher of the Apostle James, which made the temple one of the main pilgrimage destinations of Europe during the Middle Ages through the so-called Camino de Santiago, an initiatory route in which it was followed The wake of the Milky Way communicating the Iberian peninsula with the rest of the continent. This was determinant for the medieval Hispanic kingdoms to participate in the cultural movements of the time; It is still an important pilgrimage destination.
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Pythagoras was a Greek philosopher and mathematician best known for his famous Pythagorean theorem. With all the relevant numerical and geometrical evidence, he had created a full-bodied system for the science of celestial bodies where the planets and stars moved according to mathematical equations. He was the founder of an initiatory philosophical movement called Pythagorism or Pythagoreanism. The so-called Pythagoreans believed that the principles of mathematics were the principles of all things
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27.jan.10 - 1.801 / 105 / 391 / 5 galleries
SNAKES always remind me of the fairy tale of "The green snake and the beautiful lily.
i had the pleasure to read Rudolf Steiners take on it in the 80ties.Have read this fascinating tale-its more than that- many times and shared it with children and addults
The above one is a shot thru a glass window at the zoo in Basel-switzerland from aug.09.
J. W. von Goethe "Das Märchen von der grünen Schlange und der schönen Lilie
("Das Märchen" ist die letzte Erzählung aus Goethe's Novellenzyklus "Unterhaltungen deutscher Ausgewanderter" von 1795, zuerst erscheinen in der von Schiller hrsg. Zeitschrift "Die Horen")
www.dreigliederung.de/gliederung/goethesmaerchen.html
www.heilpflanzen-welt.de/maerchen/goethe-das-maerchen-lit...
Time Is at Hand: Rosicrucian Nature of Goethe's "Fairy Tale of the Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily" and the Mystery Dramas of Rudolf Steiner
In 1795 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe produced his tale of tales-The fairytale of "The Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily," an extraordinary masterwork that is unique among Goethe's works.
An initiatory fable of transformation, the tale arose out of the Rosicrucian, alchemical impulses that play an important role in Faust and Goethe's other writings.
Among those influenced by it was Rudolf Steiner, whose mystery dramas employ similar themes.
The authors begin by placing the fairytale against the background of Goethe's life and cultural setting.
They then discuss its importance in the development of Steiner's spiritual science.
Finally, they describe its visual language, profound mystical insights, and relevance for us today.
The book includes Carlyle's classic translation of the tale and illustrations, plus Steiner's essay on its inner meaning.
The authors offer a positive look at the possibilities of the twenty-first century.
They view Goethe's fairytale as fully relevant to our time, just as it was when Goethe first wrote it.
Synopsis
Places the fairytale against the background of Goethe's life and cultural setting.
This title discusses its importance in the development of Steiner's spiritual science.
It describes its visual language, mystical insights, and relevance for us.
www.amazon.de/Time-Hand-Rosicrucian-Goethes-Beautiful/dp/...
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Drago_ Il Protettore del Tesoro
"Demoniaco e angelico insieme, il Drago è il custode iniziatico del tesoro, quello che solo i grandi eroi possono conquistare, sconfiggendo appunto il Drago stesso. Antico come l'universo, saggio e spietato insieme, questa creatura domina ed esercita la forza dei quattro elementi. ... E' protettore dei doni dell'anima e al tempo stesso rappresenta le sue facoltà più oscure e impenetrabili."
Drago_ The Protector of the Treasure
"Demonic and angelic together, the Dragon is the initiatory guardian of the treasure, the one that only great heroes can conquer, defeating the Dragon itself. As old as the universe, wise and ruthless at the same time, this creature dominates and exercises the strength of the four elements. ... He is the protector of the soul's gifts and at the same time represents its darkest and most impenetrable faculties."
I testi citati sono di Federica Zizzari, tratti da "Animali Guida" ed. Vivida. The texts cited are by Federica Zizzari, taken from "Animali Guida" ed. Vivida.
Bing Image Creator
(Pour la version française, voir la page précédente dans cette galerie)
A Vital Odyssey — Living within a living world (Poësia)
Patrice Photographiste
Release
To all my colleagues and friends at Flickr,
I am happy to announce the publication of my book “A Vital Odyssey—Living within a Living World (Poësia)”, in English and French versions. This digital publication is accessible for free, and it is available in multiple formats and on various digital platforms (see: Where and how to get the book, below).
For the past three years, I have worked as an author and self-publisher of this book. However, when it came time to publish, I had an uneasy feeling: is it appropriate to go ahead with the launch when the world’s skies are seriously darkening, generating tension, anxiety and chaos?
I was thinking about this impasse when a passage from the book came back to me. It reads: “Our world seems to be in crisis. . . But from the outset, I will argue the idea that there is more to admire, to rethink and to repair in this world than to despair” (p 109).
This was the very meaning I had given to “A Vital Odyssey” from its first pages: to revive our sensitivity to the primordial voices of our planet and our feeling of ecological belonging to its biosphere. From there, we could rethink our relationship with nature, and repair what can be repaired. So, the time had come to act.
This book is not a traditional photographic album. Instead, it constitutes an illustrated essay with a philosophical scope. Its first part, Roots, takes the form of an initiatory story. A sensitive being crosses a natural world that amazes him and in which he rediscovers his primordial roots, his ecological belonging, and the language to bear witness to it. In his eyes, the Earth becomes Poësia.
The second part gives its title to the book, A Vital Odyssey. It offers a more literary and analytical reflection, which draws on history, philosophy and science to try to understand why we have arrived here.
We can no longer ignore its conclusion: Inhabiting a living world requires more than the technical ingenuity that a so-called superior species can demonstrate. This species must transcend its natural impulses to demonstrate the highest ethics towards its own kind, towards other species, towards Life, and towards their common habitat. Living within a living world is a subtle and demanding art. And it is within us, and nowhere else, that lies the source of this vital art for the future of us all. Learning to cherish and respect our living world would constitute a good starting point. It would carry a salutary evolution for future generations.
This captivating and moving epic offers a perspective that I hope is lucid, benevolent and perhaps also a different regarding this vital issue of our time. I encourage you to share it with your friends and anyone else searching for a ray of hope, just like us all.
I sincerely thank my colleagues at Flickr for their support. More personal acknowledgements appear at the end of the book.
Enjoy reading! Feel free to share your comments and thoughts.
WHERE AND HOW TO GET THE BOOK
Two international digital bookstores have made it possible for me to publish this book free of charge, for you and for me, in both languages. I emphasize this.
1. On the PAYHIP platform, in EPUB format (lightened to make it easier to handle on tablets) and in PDF format. This very simple digital library does not require you to open a user account. You simply enter your email address, and you receive a thank you, that's all.
French (EPUB): payhip.com/b/ZTIDw
French (PDF): payhip.com/b/o5OcP
English (EPUB): payhip.com/b/VPkEC
English (PDF): payhip.com/b/zlhxG
EPUB and PDF formats are suitable for most devices. EPUB is generally preferred. Windows PC users should make sure they have an EPUB reader installed on their device to read this format. If necessary, you can get it here: apps.microsoft.com/detail/9PFSPMJKKQHT?hl=neutral&gl=...
2. On APPLE BOOKS, in EPUB full format (large format, ideal for computers and Apple tablets) in about sixty countries. You must have an Apple account or open one to download the book. Windows PC users are invited to follow the procedures recommended by Apple and Microsoft.
French: books.apple.com/us/book/id6742410237
English: books.apple.com/us/book/id6742412144
Please note: The book will soon be available for free download from various public institutions, including Library and Archives Canada and “Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec”.
Links will be added here when available.
Les clés de Saint Georges
Symbole double, ouverture et fermeture, la clé a à la fois un rôle d'initiation et de discrimination. La clé ouvre la voie initiatique. Le pouvoir des clés est celui qui permet de lier et de délier, d'ouvrir ou de fermer le ciel. Selon la terminologie alchimique, c'est le pouvoir de coaguler et de dissoudre.
Elle est donc aussi l'attribut de saint Pierre qui ouvrait et fermait l'accès au Royaume des Cieux. Selon la terminologie hermétique, la clef est reliée aux Grands Mystères et Petits Mystères. Dans les contes et légendes, elles marquent les étapes de la purification et de l'initiation.
- Wikipédia -
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Symbol doubles, opening and closure(lock), the key has at the same time a role of initiation and discrimination. The key opens the initiatory way. The power of keys is the one who allows to bind(connect) and to loosen(free), to open or to close the sky. According to the alchemical terminology, it is the power to coagulate and to dissolve.
It is also the attribute of Saint Peter) which opened and closed the access to the Celestial kingdom. According to the hermetic terminology, the key is connected(bound) with the Big Mysteries and Small Mysteries. In the tales and the legends, they mark the stages of the purification and the initiation.
Les 9 toiles présentées sont donc conçues comme une décomposition du vocabulaire cinétique : couleurs, lumières, formes et suggestion du mouvement sont évoqués, sans toutefois parvenir aux caractéristiques de ce mouvement (jeux d'optique, sensation d'expansion dans l'espace, etc.), générant ainsi interrogations et frustrations chez le spectateur.La vidéo quant à elle, est construite comme une augmentation du vocabulaire cinétique1 : la peinture a disparu, le mouvement n'est plus suggéré, il existe concrètement à travers l'animation visuelle et la scénographie. L'exagération distillée avec humour par le duo de frères, se présente au public comme une véritable expérience, un parcours initiatique conçu pour provoquer une réaction physique chez le spectateur : les éléments plastiques sont perçus par l'œil, éprouvés par le corps et doivent générer à terme, des projections mentales.
The 9 paintings presented are thus conceived as a decomposition of the kinetic vocabulary : colors, lights, forms and suggestion of the movement are evoked, without however reaching the characteristics of this movement (optical games, sensation of expansion in the space, etc.), thus generating interrogations and frustrations for the viewer. The video, for its part, is constructed as an increase in the kinetic vocabulary: the painting has disappeared, the movement is no longer suggested, it exists concretely throughout the world. visual animation and scenography. The exaggeration distilled with humor by the duo of brothers, is presented to the public as a real experience, an initiatory course designed to provoke a physical reaction in the viewer: the plastic elements are perceived by the eye, experienced by the body and must eventually generate mental projections.
"What is the premonitory capacity of a work of art. Isn't the initiatory dimension of a work the real issue?" Anthony Thomas
The work Présage was sculpted with a chainsaw in 2020 by French artist Antoine Thomas from Archigny, France; a project initiated by the Festival of Visual Arts in the Atlantic (FAVA). Then this pine wood sculpture was submerged under 25 meters of water at the bottom of Chaleur Bay and was anchored there by diver Daniel Archer. The work spent a winter there under the ice; a process that was formerly used in parts of Europe to give durability to boat masts. The Omen sculpture was brought out of the sea in 2003.
The work Présage was spectacularly unveiled in 2005 on this very site, when a wooden structure that surrounded it was set on fire. Thus revealing it in its slender form.
The partners in this project are the FAVA, Daniel Archer, Les Forces Steel of Caraquet, N.-B. and Béton Gloucester Ltée, of Bertrand N.-B.
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"Quelle est la capacité prémonitoire d'une œuvre d'art. La dimension initiatique d'une œuvre n'est-elle pas le véritable enjeu ?" Antoine Thomas
L'œuvre Présage a été sculptée à la scie à chaine en 2020 par l'artiste français Antoine Thomas de Archigny, France ; un projet initié par le Festival des arts visuels en Atlantique (FAVA). Puis cette sculpture en bois de pin a été immergée sous 25 mètres d'eau au fond de la Baie des Chaleurs et y a été ancrée par le plongeur Daniel Archer. L'œuvre y a passé un hiver sous les glaces ; un procédé qui était anciennement utilisé dans certaines régions d'Europe pour donner de la durabilité aux mâts de bateaux. La sculpture Présage a été sortie de la mer en 2003.
L'œuvre Présage a été dévoilée en 2005 de façon spectaculaire sur ce site même, alors qu'une structure de bois qui l'entourait a été enflammée. la révélant ainsi dans sa forme élancée.
Les partenaires de ce projet sont le FAVA, Daniel Archer, Les Forces Steel de Caraquet, N.-B. et Béton Gloucester Ltée, de Bertrand N.-B.
The indigenous Kunggkari peoples land is documented as being on the Thomson and Cooper (Barcoo) rivers west to Jundah; north to Westland and near Longreach; east to Avington, Blackall, and Terrick Terrick; south on the western flank of the Grey Range to Cheviot Range, Powell Creek, and Welford, including the vicinity of Yaraka. The Kunggkari are not to be confused with the Kunggari of the upper Nebine Creek.
There were at least five hordes with names terminating in [-bara] and [-mari], meaning men. The men of Jundah area today prefer the pronunciation ['Ku:ngka'ri], others use the accepted version; other valid variations are ['Kunghari] and ['Ku:ngka:i].
They were one of the tribes that did not adopt the rite of circumcision into their initiatory practices.
Alternative Names: Koonkerri, Kunggari, Kungeri, Koongerri, Torraburri (horde), Yankibura (horde), Yangeeberra, Mokaburra (horde), Tarawalla (name given to eastern dialect).
Source: SA Museum.
The indigenous Kunggkari peoples land is documented as being on the Thomson and Cooper (Barcoo) rivers west to Jundah; north to Westland and near Longreach; east to Avington, Blackall, and Terrick Terrick; south on the western flank of the Grey Range to Cheviot Range, Powell Creek, and Welford, including the vicinity of Yaraka. The Kunggkari are not to be confused with the Kunggari of the upper Nebine Creek.
There were at least five hordes with names terminating in [-bara] and [-mari], meaning men. The men of Jundah area today prefer the pronunciation ['Ku:ngka'ri], others use the accepted version; other valid variations are ['Kunghari] and ['Ku:ngka:i].
They were one of the tribes that did not adopt the rite of circumcision into their initiatory practices.
Alternative Names: Koonkerri, Kunggari, Kungeri, Koongerri, Torraburri (horde), Yankibura (horde), Yangeeberra, Mokaburra (horde), Tarawalla (name given to eastern dialect).
Source: SA Museum.
2014 © luis f. lopez
web: www.luisfrlopez.com/
facebook: www.facebook.com/luisflopezphotography
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The Mithraic Mysteries were a mystery religion practised in the Roman Empire from about the 1st to 4th centuries AD. The name of the Persian god Mithra (proto-Indo-Iranian Mitra), adapted into Greek as Mithras, was linked to a new and distinctive imagery. Writers of the Roman Empire period referred to this mystery religion by phrases which can be anglicized as Mysteries of Mithras or Mysteries of the Persians; modern historians refer to it as Mithraism,[1] or sometimes Roman Mithraism.The mysteries were popular in the Roman military.
Worshippers of Mithras had a complex system of seven grades of initiation, with ritual meals. Initiates called themselves syndexioi, those "united by the handshake".They met in underground temples (called mithraea), which survive in large numbers. The cult appears to have had its centre in Rome.
Numerous archaeological finds, including meeting places, monuments and artifacts, have contributed to modern knowledge about Mithraism throughout the Roman Empire.The iconic scenes of Mithras show him being born from a rock, slaughtering a bull, and sharing a banquet with the god Sol (the Sun). About 420 sites have yielded materials related to the cult. Among the items found are about 1000 inscriptions, 700 examples of the bull-killing scene (tauroctony), and about 400 other monuments.[9] It has been estimated that there would have been at least 680 mithraea in Rome.[10] No written narratives or theology from the religion survive, with limited information to be derived from the inscriptions, and only brief or passing references in Greek and Latin literature. Interpretation of the physical evidence remains problematic and contested.
The Romans regarded the mysteries as having Persian or Zoroastrian sources. Since the early 1970s the dominant scholarship has noted dissimilarities between Persian Mithra-worship and the Roman Mithraic mysteries. In this context, Mithraism has sometimes been viewed as a rival of early Christianity with similarities such as liberator-saviour, hierarchy of adepts (archbishops, bishops, priests), communal meal and a hard struggle of Good and Evil (bull-killing/crucifixion).The name Mithras (Latin, equivalent to Greek “Μίθρας” is a form of Mithra, the name of an Old Persian god– a relationship understood by Mithraic scholars since the days of Franz Cumont. An early example of the Greek form of the name is in a 4th century BC work by Xenophon, the Cyropaedia, which is a biography of the Persian king Cyrus the Great.
The exact form of a Latin or classical Greek word varies due to the grammatical process of declension. There is archeological evidence that in Latin worshippers wrote the nominative form of the god’s name as “Mithras”. However, in Porphyry’s Greek text De Abstinentia («Περὶ ἀποχῆς ἐμψύχων»), there is a reference to the now-lost histories of the Mithraic mysteries by Euboulus and Pallas, the wording of which suggests that these authors treated the name “Mithra” as an indeclinable foreign word.
Related deity-names in other languages include
Sanskrit Mitra (मित्रः), the name of a god praised in the Rig Veda.In Sanskrit, "mitra" means "friend" or "friendship"
the form mi-it-ra-, found in an inscribed peace treaty between the Hittites and the kingdom of Mitanni, from about 1400 BC.
Iranian "Mithra" and Sanskrit "Mitra" are believed to come from an Indo-Iranian word mitra meaning "contract, agreement, covenant".
Modern historians have different conceptions about whether these names refer to the same god or not. John R. Hinnells has written of Mitra / Mithra / Mithras as a single deity worshipped in several different religions. On the other hand, David Ulansey considers the bull-slaying Mithras to be a new god who began to be worshipped in the 1st century BC, and to whom an old name was applied.
Mary Boyce, a researcher of ancient Iranian religions, writes that even though Roman Empire Mithraism seems to have had less Iranian content than historians used to think, still "as the name Mithras alone shows, this content was of some importance.Much about the cult of Mithras is only known from reliefs and sculptures. There have been many attempts to interpret this material.
Mithras-worship in the Roman Empire was characterized by images of the god slaughtering a bull. Other images of Mithras are found in the Roman temples, for instance Mithras banqueting with Sol, and depictions of the birth of Mithras from a rock. But the image of bull-slaying (tauroctony) is always in the central niche.Textual sources for a reconstruction of the theology behind this iconography are very rare. (See section Interpretations of the bull-slaying scene below.)
The practice of depicting the god slaying a bull seems to be specific to Roman Mithraism. According to David Ulansey, this is "perhaps the most important example" of evident difference between Iranian and Roman traditions: "... there is no evidence that the Iranian god Mithra ever had anything to do with killing a bull."n every Mithraeum the centrepiece was a representation of Mithras killing a sacred bull, called the tauroctony.
The image may be a relief, or free-standing, and side details may be present or omitted. The centre-piece is Mithras clothed in Anatolian costume and wearing a Phrygian cap; who is kneeling on the exhausted bull, holding it by the nostrils[33] with his left hand, and stabbing it with his right. As he does so, he looks over his shoulder towards the figure of Sol. A dog and a snake reach up towards the blood. A scorpion seizes the bull's genitals. A raven is flying around or is sitting on the bull. Three ears of wheat are seen coming out from the bull's tail, sometimes from the wound. The bull was often white. The god is sitting on the bull in an unnatural way with his right leg constraining the bull's hoof and the left leg is bent and resting on the bull's back or flank.[34] The two torch-bearers are on either side, dressed like Mithras, Cautes with his torch pointing up and Cautopates with his torch pointing down. Sometimes Cautes and Cautopates carry shepherds' crooks instead of torches.
Tauroctony from the Kunsthistorisches Museum
The event takes place in a cavern, into which Mithras has carried the bull, after having hunted it, ridden it and overwhelmed its strength.[38] Sometimes the cavern is surrounded by a circle, on which the twelve signs of the zodiac appear. Outside the cavern, top left, is Sol the sun, with his flaming crown, often driving a quadriga. A ray of light often reaches down to touch Mithras. At the top right is Luna, with her crescent moon, who may be depicted driving a biga.[39]
In some depictions, the central tauroctony is framed by a series of subsidiary scenes to the left, top and right, illustrating events in the Mithras narrative; Mithras being born from the rock, the water miracle, the hunting and riding of the bull, meeting Sol who kneels to him, shaking hands with Sol and sharing a meal of bull-parts with him, and ascending to the heavens in a chariot.[39] In some instances, as is the case in the stucco icon at Santa Prisca mithraeum, the god is shown heroically nude. Some of these reliefs were constructed so that they could be turned on an axis. On the back side was another, more elaborate feasting scene. This indicates that the bull killing scene was used in the first part of the celebration, then the relief was turned, and the second scene was used in the second part of the celebration.Besides the main cult icon, a number of mithraea had several secondary tauroctonies, and some small portable versions, probably meant for private devotion, have also been found.[The second most important scene after the tauroctony in Mithraic art is the so-called banquet scene.The banquet scene features Mithras and the Sun god banqueting on the hide of the slaughtered bull. On the specific banquet scene on the Fiano Romano relief, one of the torchbearers points a caduceus towards the base of an altar, where flames appear to spring up. Robert Turcan has argued that since the caduceus is an attribute of Mercury, and in mythology Mercury is depicted as a psychopomp, the eliciting of flames in this scene is referring to the dispatch of human souls and expressing the Mithraic doctrine on this matter. Turcan also connects this event to the tauroctony: the blood of the slain bull has soaked the ground at the base of the altar, and from the blood the souls are elicited in flames by the caduceus.Mithras is depicted as being born from a rock. He is shown as emerging from a rock, already in his youth, with a dagger in one hand and a torch in the other. He is nude, standing with his legs together, and is wearing a Phrygian cap.
However, there are variations. Sometimes he is shown as coming out of the rock as a child, and in one instance he has a globe in one hand; sometimes a thunderbolt is seen. There are also depictions in which flames are shooting from the rock and also from Mithras' cap. One statue had its base perforated so that it could serve as a fountain, and the base of another has the mask of the water god. Sometimes Mithras also has other weapons such as bows and arrows, and there are also animals such as dogs, serpents, dolphins, eagles, other birds, lion, crocodiles, lobsters and snails around. On some reliefs, there is a bearded figure identified as Oceanus, the water god, and on some there are the gods of the four winds. In these reliefs, the four elements could be invoked together. Sometimes Victoria, Luna, Sol and Saturn also seem to play a role. Saturn in particular is often seen handing over the dagger to Mithras so that he can perform his mighty deeds.
In some depictions, Cautes and Cautopates are also present; sometimes they are depicted as shepherds.
On some occasions, an amphora is seen, and a few instances show variations like an egg birth or a tree birth. Some interpretations show that the birth of Mithras was celebrated by lighting torches or candles.[One of the most characteristic features of the Mysteries is the naked lion-headed figure often found in Mithraic temples, named by the modern scholars with descriptive terms such as leontocephaline (lion-headed) or leontocephalus (lion-head). He is entwined by a serpent (or two serpents, like a caduceus), with the snake's head often resting on the lion's head. The lion's mouth is often open, giving a horrifying impression. He is usually represented as having four wings, two keys (sometimes a single key), and a scepter in his hand. Sometimes the figure is standing on a globe inscribed with a diagonal cross. In the figure shown here, the four wings carry the symbols of the four seasons, and a thunderbolt is engraved on the breast. At the base of the statue are the hammer and tongs of Vulcan, the cock, and the wand of Mercury. A more scarcely represented variant of the figure with a human head is also found.
Although animal-headed figures are prevalent in contemporary Egyptian and Gnostic mythological representations, an exact parallel to the Mithraic leontocephaline figure is not found.
The name of the figure has been deciphered from dedicatory inscriptions to be Arimanius (though the archeological evidence is not very strong), which is nominally the equivalent of Ahriman, a demon figure in the Zoroastrian pantheon. Arimanius is known from inscriptions to have been a god in the Mithraic cult (CIMRM 222 from Ostia, 369 from Rome, 1773 and 1775 from Pannonia).
While some scholars identify the lion-man as Aion (or Zurvan, or Cronus) others assert that it is Ahriman.[51] There is also speculation that the figure is the Gnostic demiurge, (Ariel) Ialdabaoth. Although the exact identity of the lion-headed figure is debated by scholars, it is largely agreed that the god is associated with time and seasonal change.[53] An occultist, D. J.Cooper, speculates to the contrary that the lion-headed figure is not a god, but rather represents the spiritual state achieved in Mithraism's "adept" level, the Leo (lion) degree. Rituals and worship[edit]
According to M. J. Vermaseren, the Mithraic New Year and the birthday of Mithras was on December 25. However, Beck disagrees strongly.Clauss states: "the Mithraic Mysteries had no public ceremonies of its own. The festival of natalis Invicti [Birth of the Unconquerable (Sun)], held on 25 December, was a general festival of the Sun, and by no means specific to the Mysteries of Mithras." Mithraic initiates were required to swear an oath of secrecy and dedication, and some grade rituals involved the recital of a catechism, wherein the initiate was asked a series of questions pertaining to the initiation symbolism and had to reply with specific answers. An example of such a catechism, apparently pertaining to the Leo grade, was discovered in a fragmentary Egyptian papyrus (P.Berolinensis 21196),and reads:
... He will say: 'Where ... ?
... he is/(you are?) there (then/thereupon?) at a loss?' Say: ... Say: 'Night'. He will say: 'Where ... ?' ... Say: 'All things ...' (He will say): '... you are called ... ?' Say: 'Because of the summery ...' ... having become ... he/it has the fiery ... (He will say): '... did you receive/inherit?' Say: 'In a pit'. He will say: 'Where is your ...?... (Say): '...(in the...) Leonteion.' He will say: 'Will you gird?' The (heavenly?) ...(Say): '... death'. He will say: 'Why, having girded yourself, ...?' '... this (has?) four tassels. Very sharp and ... '... much'. He will say: ...? (Say: '... because of/through?) hot and cold'. He will say: ...? (Say): '... red ... linen'. He will say: 'Why?' Say: '... red border; the linen, however, ...' (He will say): '... has been wrapped?' Say: 'The savior's ...' He will say: 'Who is the father?' Say: 'The one who (begets?) everything ...' (He will say): '('How ?)... did you become a Leo?' Say: 'By the ... of the father'. ... Say: 'Drink and food'. He will say '...?'
'... in the seven-...
Almost no Mithraic scripture or first-hand account of its highly secret rituals survives;with the exception of the aforementioned oath and catechism, and the document known as the Mithras Liturgy, from 4th century Egypt, whose status as a Mithraist text has been questioned by scholars including Franz Cumont. The walls of Mithraea were commonly whitewashed, and where this survives it tends to carry extensive repositories of graffiti; and these, together with inscriptions on Mithraic monuments, form the main source for Mithraic texts.
Nevertheless, it is clear from the archeology of numerous Mithraea that most rituals were associated with feasting – as eating utensils and food residues are almost invariably found. These tend to include both animal bones and also very large quantities of fruit residues.The presence of large amounts of cherry-stones in particular would tend to confirm mid-summer (late June, early July) as a season especially associated with Mithraic festivities. The Virunum album, in the form of an inscribed bronze plaque, records a Mithraic festival of commemoration as taking place on 26 June 184. Beck argues that religious celebrations on this date are indicative of special significance being given to the Summer solstice; but this time of the year coincides with ancient recognition of the solar maximum at midsummer, whilst iconographically identical holidays such as Litha, St John's Eve, and Jāņi are observed also.
For their feasts, Mithraic initiates reclined on stone benches arranged along the longer sides of the Mithraeum – typically there might be room for 15 to 30 diners, but very rarely many more than 40 men. Counterpart dining rooms, or triclinia, were to be found above ground in the precincts of almost any temple or religious sanctuary in the Roman empire, and such rooms were commonly used for their regular feasts by Roman 'clubs', or collegia. Mithraic feasts probably performed a very similar function for Mithraists as the collegia did for those entitled to join them; indeed, since qualification for Roman collegia tended to be restricted to particular families, localities or traditional trades, Mithraism may have functioned in part as providing clubs for the unclubbed.However, the size of the Mithraeum is not necessarily an indication of the size of the congregation.
Each Mithraeum had several altars at the further end, underneath the representation of the tauroctony, and also commonly contained considerable numbers of subsidiary altars, both in the main Mithraeum chamber and in the ante-chamber or narthex.[68] These altars, which are of the standard Roman pattern, each carry a named dedicatory inscription from a particular initiate, who dedicated the altar to Mithras "in fulfillment of his vow", in gratitude for favours received. Burned residues of animal entrails are commonly found on the main altars indicating regular sacrificial use. However, Mithraea do not commonly appear to have been provided with facilities for ritual slaughter of sacrificial animals (a highly specialised function in Roman religion), and it may be presumed that a Mithraeum would have made arrangements for this service to be provided for them in co-operation with the professional victimarius of the civic cult. Prayers were addressed to the Sun three times a day, and Sunday was especially sacred.
It is doubtful whether Mithraism had a monolithic and internally consistent doctrine. It may have varied from location to location. However, the iconography is relatively coherent. It had no predominant sanctuary or cultic centre; and, although each Mithraeum had its own officers and functionaries, there was no central supervisory authority. In some Mithraea, such as that at Dura Europos, wall paintings depict prophets carrying scrolls,but no named Mithraic sages are known, nor does any reference give the title of any Mithraic scripture or teaching. It is known that intitates could transfer with their grades from one Mithraeum to another.
Mithraeum
See also: Mithraeum
A mithraeum found in the ruins of Ostia Antica, Italy
Temples of Mithras are sunk below ground, windowless, and very distinctive. In cities, the basement of an apartment block might be converted; elsewhere they might be excavated and vaulted over, or converted from a natural cave. Mithraic temples are common in the empire; although unevenly distributed, with considerable numbers found in Rome, Ostia, Numidia, Dalmatia, Britain and along the Rhine/Danube frontier; while being somewhat less common in Greece, Egypt, and Syria.According to Walter Burkert, the secret character of Mithriac rituals meant that Mithraism could only be practiced within a Mithraeum.Some new finds at Tienen show evidence of large-scale feasting and suggest that the mystery religion may not have been as secretive as was generally believed.
For the most part, Mithraea tend to be small, externally undistinguished, and cheaply constructed; the cult generally preferring to create a new centre rather than expand an existing one. The Mithraeum represented the cave to which Mithras carried and then killed the bull; and where stone vaulting could not be afforded, the effect would be imitated with lath and plaster. They are commonly located close to springs or streams; fresh water appears to have been required for some Mithraic rituals, and a basin is often incorporated into the structure. There is usually a narthex or ante-chamber at the entrance, and often other ancillary rooms for storage and the preparation of food. The extant mithraea present us with actual physical remains of the architectural structures of the sacred spaces of the Mithraic cult. Mithraeum is a modern coinage and mithraists referred to their sacred structures as speleum or antrum (cave), crypta (underground hallway or corridor), fanum (sacred or holy place), or even templum (a temple or a sacred space).
In their basic form, mithraea were entirely different from the temples and shrines of other cults. In the standard pattern of Roman religious precincts, the temple building functioned as a house for the god, who was intended to be able to view through the opened doors and columnar portico, sacrificial worship being offered on an altar set in an open courtyard; potentially accessible not only to initiates of the cult, but also to colitores or non-initiated worshippers.Mithraea were the antithesis of this.
Degrees of initiation
In the Suda under the entry "Mithras", it states that "no one was permitted to be initiated into them (the mysteries of Mithras), until he should show himself holy and steadfast by undergoing several graduated tests."Gregory Nazianzen refers to the "tests in the mysteries of Mithras".
There were seven grades of initiation into the mysteries of Mithras, which are listed by St. Jerome.Manfred Clauss states that the number of grades, seven, must be connected to the planets. A mosaic in the Ostia Mithraeum of Felicissimus depicts these grades, with symbolic emblems that are connected either to the grades or are just symbols of the planets. The grades also have an inscription beside them commending each grade into the protection of the different planetary gods. In ascending order of importance, the initiatory grades were:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithraic_mysteries
In the Mithraic ceremonies, there were seven degrees of initiations: Corax (Raven), Nymphus (Bridegroom), Miles (Soldier), Leo (Lion), Perses (Persian),Heliodromus (Courier of the Sun), and Pater (Father). Those in the lowest ranks, certainly the Corax, were the servants of the community during the sacred meal of bread and water that formed part of the rite.
The area where the concentration of evidence for Mithraism is the most dense is the capital, Rome, and her port city, Ostia. There are eight extant mithraea in Rome of as many as seven hundred (Coarelli 1979) and eighteen in Ostia. In addition to the actual mithraea, there are approximately three hundred other mithraic monuments from Rome and about one hundred from Ostia. This body of evidence reveals that Mithraism in Rome and Ostia originally appealed to the same social strata as it did in the frontier regions. The evidence also indicates that at least some inhabitants knew about Mithraism as early as the late first century CE, but that the cult did not enjoy a wide membership in either location until the middle of the second century CE.
As the cult in Rome became more popular, it seems to have "trickled up" the social ladder, with the result that Mithraism could count several senators from prominent aristocratic families among its adherents by the fourth century CE. Some of these men were initiates in several cults imported from the eastern empire (including those of Magna Mater and Attis, Isis, Serapis, Jupiter Dolichenus, Hecate, and Liber Pater, among others), and most had held priesthoods in official Roman cults. The devotion of these men to Mithraism reflects a fourth-century "resurgence of paganism," when many of these imported cults and even official Roman state religion experienced a surge in popularity although, and perhaps because, their very existence was increasingly threatened by the rapid spread of Christianity after the conversion of the emperor Constantine in 313 CE.
global.britannica.com/topic/heliodromus
Mithraism had a wide following from the middle of the second century to the late fourth century CE, but the common belief that Mithraism was the prime competitor of Christianity, promulgated by Ernst Renan (Renan 1882 579), is blatantly false. Mithraism was at a serious disadvantage right from the start because it allowed only male initiates. What is more, Mithraism was, as mentioned above, only one of several cults imported from the eastern empire that enjoyed a large membership in Rome and elsewhere. The major competitor to Christianity was thus not Mithraism but the combined group of imported cults and official Roman cults subsumed under the rubric "paganism." Finally, part of Renan's claim rested on an equally common, but almost equally mistaken, belief that Mithraism was officially accepted because it had Roman emperors among its adherents (Nero, Commodus, Septimius Severus, Caracalla, and the Tetrarchs are most commonly cited). Close examination of the evidence for the participation of emperors reveals that some comes from literary sources of dubious quality and that the rest is rather circumstantial. The cult of Magna Mater, the first imported cult to arrive in Rome (204 BCE) was the only one ever officially recognized as a Roman cult. The others, including Mithraism, were never officially accepted, and some, particularly the Egyptian cult of Isis, were periodically outlawed and their adherents persecuted.
ecole.evansville.edu/articles/mithraism.html
Some words were enough for God to precipitate the most beautiful of his creatures at the bottom of the abyss. Lucifer, the carrier of Light, pulled(entailed) with him a third(third party) of the angels in its revolt. Hell was created for him. We know the continuation(suite) … The column of July Place de la Bastille, was set up between 1833 and 1840. In its summit, thrones the "Spirit of liberty" conceived(designed) by the sculptor Auguste Dumont. Curious tribute returned by Louis Philippe to the insurgents who knocked down(spilled) Charles X and the Absolute monarchy three years earlier. Lucifer picked up. No detail misses(is lacking) … Torch in the hand, the Angel has just broken his chains(channels) and dashes to new conquests. Under its impressive base is a crypt sheltering some 500 rests of Fighters of 1830, as well as Egyptian mummy brought back(reported) by Napoleon.Durant la commune de Paris en 1870, après avoir abattu la colonne Vendôme, les communards s’en prirent à celle de la Bastille… sans succès. Ni le dispositif d’explosifs souterrains, ni le tir d’une trentaine d’obus depuis les buttes Chaumont n’en virent pas à bout. La flamme du porteur de Lumière refusa de s’éteindre…
During the municipality of Paris in 1870, having brought(shot) down the column Vendôme, the Communards took themselves in that of the Bastille unsuccessfully. Neither the device(plan) of subterranean explosives, nor the shooting(firing) of around thirty shells since mounds Chaumont transfer(fire) it to end. The flame of the carrier of Light refused to go out …Lucifer was so far away...?
« Non Serviam »- « Je ne servirai pas ! »
Quelques mots suffirent à Dieu pour précipiter la plus belle de ses créatures au fond de l’abîme. Lucifer, le porteur de Lumière, entraîna avec lui un tiers des anges dans sa révolte. L’enfer fut créé pour lui. Nous connaissons la suite…La colonne de Juillet Place de la Bastille, fut érigée entre 1833 et 1840. À son sommet, trône le « Génie de La Liberté » conçu par le sculpteur Auguste Dumont. Curieux hommage rendu par Louis Philippe aux insurgés qui renversèrent Charles X et la Monarchie absolue trois ans plus tôt. Lucifer a repris du poil de la bête. Aucun détail ne manque… Torche à la main, l’Ange vient de briser ses chaînes et s’élance vers de nouvelles conquêtes. Sous son imposant piédestal se trouve une crypte abritant quelques 500 restes des combattants de 1830, ainsi qu’une momie égyptienne rapportée par Napoléon.Durant la commune de Paris en 1870, après avoir abattu la colonne Vendôme, les communards s’en prirent à celle de la Bastille… sans succès. Ni le dispositif d’explosifs souterrains, ni le tir d’une trentaine d’obus depuis les buttes Chaumont n’en virent pas à bout. La flamme du porteur de Lumière refusa de s’éteindre…
www.pariszigzag.fr/histoire-insolite-paris/qui-est-vraime...
Kenya Airways?
Masais (or massais) warriors jumping, Nkama village, Kenya. Many people in Kenya (local ones) told me that Masais will no longer exist in the next years, as they live in the most touristic area. The Masais meet a lot of foreigners, and even if most of them have now a mobile phone, and use MPesa (mobile paiement), they still live in mud houses, and their cattle is their only wealth. I must confess that most of the pictures of Masais i saw from Kenya before my trip were not ...Masais, but Samburu, Turkana, etc! I will try to show you the differences!
The Maasais live only on the Tanzania-Kenya border, along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands.They have been deported from their best traditional grazing lands, that are now known as the Maasai Mara National Reserve, the Amboseli National Park, and other protected forests. The Maasai comprise 5 clans. They have reputation of fierce warriors. But they are traditionally seminomadic, and live off their cattle almost exclusively. The Maasai believe that all cattle belong to them and they are known to be cattle raiders. Cattle raiding used to be a common inter tribal activity. The livestock is a sign of wealth and is traditionally used to pay bridewealth for the wedding. Women are worth 10 cows. They consistently come from another village. Parents are the ones who negociate for the marriage. In the Maasai community, women construct the huts, collect firewood, bring water, milk the herds of cattle and cook for the family. Young boys look after the beasts while the warriors protect the clan. Older men take care of the daily operations in the community. The Maasai live in families in a Manyatta (a form of enclosed homestead), surrounded by a fence made of thorny bushes to protect them and their livestock from intruders and predators. Each Manyatta has about 10 to 20 huts known as "Inkajijik". These huts are made of tree branches, mud, grass and cow dung. If a man has more than one woman, he must build another house to welcome his second wife (to avoid rivalry). So a man who has 3 wifes must own 3 houses and therefore be rich. In the Maasai culture, the colorful ornaments are dedicated to their beauty, which is one of the most important aspects. Visual arts consist mainly of body decoration and beaded ornaments. These decorations are displayed in their dances, which are a popular art form. Women wear beaded necklaces and bangles, and men a red checked shuka (Maasai blanket). The warriors carry a spear and a ball-ended club, and paint their body with ochre. Maasai's diet includes meat, cow blood 2 times a week, and a lot of milk. The cows are bled by opening a vein in the neck with a blunt arrow or knife. The blood is then drunk on it’s own or with milk. The Maasai speak a Nilotic language, called Maa. They believe in one God, Ngai (meaning "One Creator God"), the creator and giver of all things. They also believe in witchcraft. In each tribal group, there is a prophet who is seen as helping to cope with the endemic sorcery, by the means of protective medicines and advices for the rituals. In addition to the prophets, they also have diviners who are supposed to have the power to diagnose illnesses and causes of misfortune, and can prescribe a range of herbal medicines and ritual cures. Despite the fact that some members have moved to cities, many have kept their customs. The most distinctive feature of Maasai society is the age system for men, divided in sets and spaced apart by about fifteen years. Excision, as well as circoncision, is an initiatory ceremony that mark the passage to adulthood. Although excisions are prohibited in Kenya, it is widespread throughout the country, especially in rural areas. Only 4 ethnic groups (Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) out of 42 don't practise it. According to the ethnies and regions, excisions vary considerably and range from 4.1% in the western region to 98.8% in the North-Est. They are common within the Somali (97%), Kisii (96%) and Maasai (93%) while they are less frequent among the Kikuyu (34%) and Kamba (27%). The kenyan law is rarely enforced and it sometimes lead this practice to clandestinity instead of slowing it down. For the 3 months of recovery period after excision, Maasai girls wear jewellery and chalk make-up, to show they must not be seen by men. Circumcision happens at the age of 18 in the Maasai tribes. Maasai woman are not allowed to attend the ceremony. Boys who show their pain with tears during the operation, are considered as cowards and bear this shame all his life. On the contrary, the ones who don't cry during circumcision are authorized to hunt colorful birds with their bow and arrows. Then they make a headdress indicating their new warrior's status. After the operation, boys go in their mother's hut to drink cow's fresh blood to recover their forces. The promotion of warriors to elderhood involve two distinct ceremonies. The 4 days eunoto ceremony raise the warriors to the senior warrior status. For this occasion, warriors gather in the same village. They are led by a ritual leader (olotuno). Each one of them has a part of his head shaved by his mother, which often makes them cry. It symbolizes the end of their freedom and of the bond with their mother. At the end of the ritual, the warrior can select any girl to marry. The olghesher ceremony promote them to senior elderhood thanks to which they have the power to bless and curse, and become protective leaders of the next new age-set. During one of the ceremonies, maasai girls accompany their lover to the ceremonial dance. Pearl neacklaces and headbands follow the rhythm. This is the sole moment when girls can choose freely 3 lovers among the warriors.Traditionally, as long as the father was alive, no son has final control over his cattle nor over his choice in marriage. At marriage, the bride is allocated a herd of cattle, from which all her sons will build up herds of their own. In any case, women are raised to accept her submission to her future husband.
Les Maasais vivent seulement sur la frontière entre la Tanzanie et le Kenya, le long de la Grande Valley du Rift sur des terres arides et semi-arides. Ils ont été déplacés de leurs meilleurs pâturages, qui sont maintenant devenus la Réserve Nationale Maasai Mara, le Parc National Amboseli, et d'autres forêts protégées.Les Maasai comprennent 5 clans. Ils ont la réputation de farouches guerriers. Mais ils sont traditionnellement semi-nomades, et vivent de leur bétail presque exclusivement. Les Pour les Maasai, le bétail leur appartient et ils sont connus pour le piller chez d'autres tribus. Le pillage de bétail a longtemps été chose commune dans les activités inter-tribales. Le bétail est signe de richesse et est traditionnellement utilisé pour payer la prix de la mariée pour le mariage. Les femmes valent 10 vaches. Elles viennent systématiquement d'un autre village. Les parents sont ceux qui négocient pour le mariage. Dans la communauté Maasai, les femmes construisent les huttes, collectent le bois pour le feu, apportent de l'eau, traient les troupeaux de bétail et cuisinent pour la famille. Les jeunes garçons surveillent les bêtes tandis que les guerriers protègent le clan. Les aînés s'occupent des opérations quotidiennes dans la communauté. Les Maasai vivent en famille dans une Manyatta (une sorte de propriété familiale rurale fermée), entourée d'une barrière faite de buissons épineux pour les protéger avec leur bétail des intrus et prédateurs. Chaque Manyatta a environ 10 à 20 huttes appelées "Inkajijik". Ces huttes sont faites de branches d'arbre, boue, herbe et bouse de vache. Si un homme a plus d'une femme, il doit construire une autre maison pour accueillir sa seconde femme (pour éviter la rivalité). De fait, un homme qui a 3 femmes doit posséder 3 maisons et donc être riche. Dans la culture Maasai, les parures colorées sont dédiées à leur beauté, ce qui est un des aspects les plus importants. Les arts visuels consistent principalement en des décorations corporelles et des parures avec des perles. Ces décorations sont affichées dans leurs dances, qui sont la forme d'art la plus populaire. Les femmes Maasai portent des colliers de perles et des bracelets et les hommes des « shuka » (couvertures Maasai) à carreaux rouges. Les guerriers portent une lance et une massue dont l'extrémité est composée d'une boule, et se peignent le corps avec de l'ocre. L'alimentation des Maasai inclut de la viande, du sang 2 fois par semaine et beaucoup de lait. Les vaches sont saignées en leur ouvrant une veine dans le cou avec une flèche spéciale ou un couteau. Le sang est ensuite bu tout seul ou avec du lait. Les Maasai parlent une langue nilotique, appelée Maa.Ils croient en un Dieu, Ngai (ce qui signifie "Dieu créateur"), le créateur et donateur de toute chose. Ils croient aussi dans la sorcellerie. Dans chaque groupe tribal, il y a un prophète qui est considéré comme aidant à affronter les sortilèges endémiques, au moyen de traitements protecteurs et de conseils pour les rituels. En plus des prophètes, ils ont aussi des devins qui sont censés avoir le pouvoir de diagnostiquer les maladies et les causes d'infortune, et peuvent prescrire une série de médicaments à base de plantes et de remèdes rituels. Malgré le fait que certains membres se soient installés dans les villes, beaucoup ont gardé leurs coutumes. La caractéristique la plus remarquable de la société Maasai est le système d'âges pour les hommes, divisé en sections et séparé par environ une quinzaine d'années. L'excision, comme la circoncision, est une cérémonie initiatique qui marque le passage à l'âge adulte. Malgré le fait que les excisions soient interdites au Kenya; cela reste répandu à travers le pays, surtout dans les régions rurales. Seuls quatre groupes ethniques (les Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) sur 42 ne pratiquent pas les excisions. Selon les ethnies et les régions, les excisions varient considérablement, allant d’une moyenne de 4,1% dans la région occidentale à 98,8% dans le Nord Est du pays. Elles sont communes chez les Somali(97%), Kisii (96%) et Maasai (93%), alors qu’elles sont les moins fréquentes chez les femmes Kikuyu (34%) et Kamba (27%).La loi kenyane est rarement appliquée et a parfois poussé la pratique à la clandestinité au lieu de la freiner. Pour la convalescence de 3 mois après l'excision, les filles Maasai portent des bijoux et du maquillage à la craie, pour montrer qu'elles ne doivent pas être vues par les hommes. La circoncision se passe à l'âge de 18 ans dans les tribus Maasai. Aucune femme Maasai n'est autorisée à assister à la cérémonie. Les garçons qui ne montrent pas leur douleur avec des larmes durant l'opération, sont considérés comme peureux et portent cette honte toute leur vie. Au contraire, ceux qui ne pleurent pas durant la circoncision sont autorisés à chasser des oiseaux colorés avec leur arc et flèches. Ensuite ils fabriquent des coiffes indiquant leur nouveau statut de guerrier. Après l'opération, les garçons vont dans la hutte de leur mère pour boire du sang de vache frais afin de recouvrer leurs forces. La promotion des guerriers à la sagesse implique deux cérémonies distinctes. La cérémonie eunoto de 4 jours élève les guerriers au rang de guerrier supérieur. Pour cette occasion, les guerriers se rassemblent dans le même village. Ils sont menés par un chef de rituel (olotuno). Chacun d'entre eux a une partie de sa tête rasée par sa mère, ce qui les fait souvent pleurer. Cela symbolise la fin de leur liberté et du lien avec leur mère. A la fin du rituel, le guerrier peut sélectionner la fille qu'il veut pour se marier. La cérémonie olghesher les promeut à la sagesse des aînés grâce à laquelle ils ont le pouvoir de bénir et maudire, et deviennent les chefs protecteurs de la classe d'âge suivante.Durant l'une des cérémonies, les filles maasai accompagnent leur amoureux à la danse cérémoniale. Les colliers et bandeaux de perles suivent le rythme.C'est le seul moment où les filles peuvent choisir librement 3 amants parmi les guerriers. Traditionnellement, tant que le père est vivant, aucun fils n'a le contrôle sur le bétail ni sur le choix pour son mariage. Lors du mariage, on attribue à la fiancée un troupeau de bêtes, à partir desquels tous ses fils accumuleront leurs propres troupeaux. Dans tous les cas, les femmes sont élevées pour accepter la soumission à leur futur mari.
© Eric Lafforgue
Mithraic Relief - (late third century A.D.) - Baths of Diocletian - National Museum of Rome - Rome
Mitra (o Mithra, nell'etimologia originale persiana), venerato sin dal 1200 a.C. Citato nei Veda, i testi sacri dell'Induismo, è associato al culto solare, e veniva venerato come dio dell'onestà, dell'amicizia e dei patti
Presso gli antichi Romani il culto mitraico cominciò a diffondersi nel I sec. a.C., importato dalle legioni che tornavano dalle campagne militari nell'Oriente. Per questo motivo, e per la durezza di alcune delle prove iniziatiche che l'adepto doveva superare, il culto era prettamente diffuso tra i militari, ed era comunque aperto ai soli uomini. Durante il III sec. il culto venne incentivato dagli stessi imperatori, che vi vedevano un ottimo strumento di propaganda con il quale si assicuravano la fedeltà e l'impegno in battaglia dei soldati. Durante questo stesso periodo, tuttavia, il mitraismo cominciava anche a fondersi con il culto del Sol Invictus, ma, soprattutto, con il nascente culto cristiano, finendo pian piano soppiantato da questo
Secondo la dottrina base del mitraismo, Mitra era un dio nato da una roccia e destinato ad assicurare la salvezza del mondo. Per fare ciò fu comandato dal dio Sole (per mezzo di un corvo) di uccidere un Toro, che rappresentava la pienezza della vita. Mitra, con l'aiuto di un cane, riesce a condurre il toro in una caverna, dove lo intrappola. Sollevando la testa del toro per le narici, il giovane gli pianta il coltello nel fianco e riesce ad ucciderlo. Dal corpo del toro morente nascono tutte le piante necessarie per la vita dell'uomo: in particolare il grano, che si genera dal midollo, e la vite, che nasce dal sangue caduto a terra.
Mitra (or Mithra, in the original Persian etymology), revered since 1200 BC Quoted in the Vedas, the sacred texts of Hinduism, is associated with the solar cult, and was revered as a god of honesty, friendship and covenants
In the ancient Romans the Mithraic cult began to spread in the first century. a.C., imported from the legions returning from military campaigns in the East. For this reason, and for the hardness of some of the initiatory tests that the adept had to overcome, the cult was purely widespread among the military, and was nevertheless open only to men. During the III century the cult was encouraged by the emperors themselves, who saw an excellent propaganda tool with which they assured the loyalty and commitment in battle of the soldiers. During this same period, however, Mithraism also began to merge with the cult of the Sol Invictus, but, above all, with the nascent Christian cult, gradually ending supplanted by this
According to the basic doctrine of Mithraism, Mithras was a god born of a rock and destined to ensure the salvation of the world. To do this he was commanded by the sun god (by means of a raven) to kill a bull, which represented the fullness of life. Mitra, with the help of a dog, manages to lead the bull into a cave, where he traps him. Raising the bull's head through the nostrils, the young man plants the knife in his side and manages to kill him. From the body of the dying bull are born all the plants necessary for the life of man: in particular the grain, which is generated from the marrow, and the vine, which is born of blood fallen to the ground.
Luca Giordano (Naples, October 18, 1634 - Naples, January 12, 1705) - Apollo and Marsyas (1659-60) Oil on canvas size 205×259 cm - Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte, Naples
Il dipinto, uno dei più felici esempi di pittura del Seicento napoletano, è esposto nel museo napoletano accanto all'Apollo e Marsia eseguito da Jusepe de Ribera nel 1637 e di cui ne ha costituito il prototipo.
Le similitudini tra la versione di Ribera e quella del suo allievo appaiono immediatamente evidenti anche se, comunque, la tela di Giordano è concepita in generale su tonalità più scure e pennellate più rapide e sfumate, apprese queste ultime durante la sua esperienza veneta. Analogie con la versione del maestro spagnolo sono riscontrabili oltre che nella struttura generale della composizione, costruita sulla diagonale dell'albero, seppur speculare rispetto alla versione di Ribera, anche nei più piccoli dettagli, quali: il volto straziato di Marsia, la disperazione dei satiri sullo sfondo della scena, gli strumenti musicali oggetto della contesa posti sui vertici della diagonale, la scelta di rappresentare il supplizio nella sua fase iniziatica, il colore glicine della mantella di Apollo, lo stesso dio che, posto in primo piano, si appresta a scorticare il satiro partendo dalle sue zampe legate all'albero.
The painting, one of the finest examples of seventeenth-century Neapolitan painting, is on display in the Neapolitan museum next to Apollo and Marsyas executed by Jusepe de Ribera in 1637 and of which it was the prototype.
The similarities between Ribera's version and that of his pupil are immediately apparent even if, however, Giordano's canvas is generally conceived in darker tones and more rapid, shaded brushstrokes, the latter learned during his experience in Venice. Similarities with the version of the Spanish master can be found not only in the general structure of the composition, built on the diagonal of the tree, although mirroring the version of Ribera, even in the smallest details, such as: Marsyas' torn face, the despair of the satyrs in the background of the scene, the musical instruments that are the object of contention placed on the vertices of the diagonal, the choice to represent the torture in its initiatory phase, the wisteria color of Apollo's cloak, the same god who, placed in the foreground, is preparing to flay the satyr starting from his legs tied to the tree.
North Adelaide Congregational Chapel
The foundation stone of the new chapel, to be erected in North Adelaide, for the church and congregation under the pastoral care of the Rev Mr Jefferis, will be laid this afternoon by the Rev T Q Stow. It is to be hoped that a numerous attendance may be present.
Should the designs be carried out, the intended new Chapel will be one of the most beautiful churches in the colony, if not the most beautiful of all. Those who may be unable to attend at the laying of the foundation stone will have an opportunity of taking part in the subsequent proceedings of the day, which include a tea, and public meeting in the evening. The services connected with the laying of the foundation stone are advertised to commence at half-past 3 o'clock.
Ref: South Australian Advertiser (Adelaide SA) Tuesday 15 May 1860
FIFTY YEARS AGO
A RELIGIOUS JUBILEE
BROUGHAM-PLACE CHURCH
For many years one of the handsomest and most conspicuous buildings in Adelaide has been the Congregational Church in Brougham Place, North Adelaide.
The excellent proportions of the main structure and of a shapely tower have always been a source of pride, not only to its congregation, but also to the whole community. From whatever elevated position in the metropolis North Adelaide is viewed that classic tower "pointing heavenward" is a feature of attraction.
The church speaks silently but with eloquence of the faith and confidence of the Congregationalists of a by-gone generation, for although so long a period has passed since it was originally opened the edifice is still worthy to stand in the front rank of the ecclesiastical buildings of the capital, which is known all over Australia, whether rightly or wrongly, as "the city of churches."
The time of jubilee has come, and tomorrow the series of services in honour of that notable event will begin.
Dr Jefferis has prepared a valuable record in connection with its first half-century. He deals not only with the building itself, as also with the growth of the cause of which it is the commodious home. To the Colonial Missionary Society, he remarks, is owed "the first overt act to found a Congregational Church, in South Australia."
In the year 1837 the Rev T Quinton Stow was sent to Adelaide, where he arrived when the State was barely a year old. He conducted service first in a tent, next in a pine hut thatched with reeds, and then in a church in Gawler Place, which now forms part of the factory of Messrs A Simpson & Son. Thence the congregation passed to Stow Memorial Church in Flinders Street. Mr Stow it was who selected the site for the future church in North Adelaide, and collected the money to pay for it. Two members of his church resident in that part of the city (Messrs Thomas Frost and Manoah Morris) were associated with him in the initiatory work.
On the advice of Dr Halley, principal of New College, the Rev J Jefferis, pastor of Saltaire Church, who had been urged by his doctors to seek a warmer climate, was invited to come to Adelaide. He accepted, and on April 24, 1859 he arrived with his newly-married wife. In the meanwhile a hall in Tynte Street, North Adelaide, had been secured and the first services were held there on May 15, 1859 the Revs T Q Stow and F W Cox taking part. Three months later at a public meeting it was resolved "without delay to secure the erection of the intended Congregational Church," and a committee of 32 was appointed with that object.
On October 20, 1859, the church was formed by 52 persons entering into fellowship.
The first church meeting was held on December 2, when the Rev J Jefferis accepted the offered pastorate. Mr George Fife Angas presented the Sunday School, which began with 16 classes and 180 scholars, with a library. Mr Frost was the first superintendent. Sunday and weekday church services were all well attended.
At the last church meeting of the year the pastor announced that the building committee had selected a design for the church submitted by Messrs Hamilton & Wright. The tenders being too high the basement of the building was begun under the supervision of Mr Frost on May 15, 1860, exactly a year after the first service in the hall.
Mr Stow laid the foundation stone, and later there was a tea and public meetings in Archer Street Methodist Church. Among the gentlemen who took part in the gathering, and who are still living, were Sir Charles Todd and Mr R A Tarlton. In aid of the building fund there was a course of lectures in White's Rooms (now the Tivoli Theatre) by Sir Richard Hanson, Sir Charles Todd, the Revs Isaac New and Dr Jefferis.
A bazaar yielded £705. One Sunday an unknown friend put £100 in the collection plate, and Mr R Barr Smith gave £500, with £100 a year for current expenses.
On February 22, 1861, the new church, still in an unfinished state, was opened by the Rev T Q Stow.
On March 4, 1861, the Young Men's Society was definitely begun, and it was the first of its kind in the State, if not in Australia.
"In the early years of the society an audience of 400 or 500 listeners was readily secured," says Dr Jefferis, for lectures.
The Sunday School flourished, too, and within a year 250 scholars were admitted, while it attained a strength of 400, with 40 teachers, and its juvenile Missionary Society raised £1,000 in five years for the London Missionary Society.
The Young Christians' Union was established in 1874, its aims and methods being singularly like those of the Christian Endeavor movement," of which it was the forerunner.
The mission to Lower North Adelaide then known as Irishtown - was started in November, 1860. An empty store was engaged there as a Sunday School, with Mr Richard Searle as Superintendent. Today it is the chief auxiliary of the church.
For some time the Houghton Church pulpit was supplied by lay brethren from North Adelaide, and in 1876 the two churches were affiliated. High-water mark was reached at North Adelaide in 1876, in which year the church income was £1,343.
In March, 1877, Dr Jefferis left for Sydney after a happy ministry of 18 years. He was succeeded by the Rev Osric Copland in May, and during his pastorate the Medindie church was built. The Rev Samuel Hebditch followed in 1884, and in 1889 he gave place to the Rev Frederic Hastings, who remained until November, 1893. In January 1894, Dr Jefferis, who had in the meantime gone to England, returned as pastor, and five years later the Rev W H Lewis, of Ballarat, became co-pastor. Dr Jefferis retired on March 6, 1901, having been pastor altogether for a quarter of a century. Mr Lewis remained until February, 1905 and then resigned.
For two years and four months the church was without a minister, but on May 29, 1907, the Rev A E Gifford, of Malvern, Victoria, accepted the charge of the church, and he still fills the pastorate.
The original committee of the church, appointed in 1855 were Captain Bagot, Messrs Thomas Graves, Robert Stuckey, Alexander MacGeorge, John Richardson, Daniel Kekwick, Thomas Frost and Manoah Morris
Ref: Advertiser (Adelaide SA) Saturday 16 October 1909
TRADITON AND ANTITRADITION
291. Tradition means a handing over: the handing over of a supertemporal circle of principles here in time.
292. Tradition is the atemporal thrown into temporality.
293. Knowledge of the origin, knowledge of the path, knowledge of the all-transcending, ultimate goal: this is metaphysical realisation.
294. Tradition springs forth from the eternal, points at the eternal, and in the human modality of being represents the aspiration towards the eternal.
295. Metaphysical tradition is at the same time solar and polar: polar for though it appears in the earthly-human sphere, yet it is of heavenly origin and for this reason its origin is not subject to the whirlpool of existence (samsara), it is solar for the powers characteristic of my self-awareness which provide the rule of the auton are present in it.
296. There is only one primordial tradition for there is only one metaphysics, and there is only one metaphysics for there is only one being.
297. Tradition can never be identified simply with metaphysical doctrines or with symbology bearing a doctrinal value, and even less with the archaic documents that present these. Tradition is the total acceptance of a world and the total denial of another.
298. Metaphysically speaking, tradition is nothing other than »remembrance«, and the bearing of the connection with the origin. Modernity, however, is not only the lack of this »remembrance«, but at the same time the denial of this metaphysical »remembrance« and aims at the destruction of every kind of representation of remembrance.
299. The most sinister thing is forever if something subsists, but not truly; this is really much worse than if it disappeared. Since if something does not truly subsist, it will sooner or later come to function as a caricature and antithesis of the original.
[It especially refers to those legitimate traditional, spiritual and initiatory organisations which have maintained their continuity, but whose original features have gradually faded away or turned directly to their opposites.]
The Sanctuary of the “Great Gods,” a.k.a. the Kábeiroi (or Cabiri, Κάβειροι) in Samothrace ( Samothraki, Σαμοθρᾴκη) Island.
There an initiatory mystery was taking place repeatedly throughout ancient times; the mystery promised safety and prosperity to seamen.
The Kábeiroi’s names were sacred, hence secret in ancient times. Yet nowadays we know their names:
—Axieros (Ceres, Ἀξίερος, Δημήτηρ)
—Axiokersa (Persephone, Ἀξιοκέρσα ἢ Περσεφόνη),
—Axiokersos #(Hades, the god of the underworld, Ἀξιόκερσος, Ἅιδης / ᾅδης) &
—Casmilos (Mercury or Hermes, Κασμίλος ἢ Καδμίλος ἢ Ἑρμῆς).
"The whole is other than the sum of the parts"
Composition based on excerpts and fragments extracted from a lithography by Raymond Moretti.
Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz double bassist, composer and bandleader. His compositions retained the hot and soulful feel of hard bop, drawing heavily from black gospel music and blues, while sometimes containing elements of Third Stream, free jazz, and classical music. He once cited Duke Ellington and church as his main influences.
Mingus espoused collective improvisation, similar to the old New Orleans jazz parades, paying particular attention to how each band member interacted with the group as a whole. In creating his bands, he looked not only at the skills of the available musicians, but also their personalities. Many musicians passed through his bands and later went on to impressive careers. He recruited talented and sometimes little-known artists, whom he utilized to assemble unconventional instrumental configurations. As a performer, Mingus was a pioneer in double bass technique, widely recognized as one of the instrument's most proficient players.
Nearly as well known as his ambitious music was Mingus's often fearsome temperament, which earned him the nickname "The Angry Man of Jazz". His refusal to compromise his musical integrity led to many onstage eruptions, exhortations to musicians, and dismissals. Because of his brilliant writing for midsize ensembles, and his catering to and emphasizing the strengths of the musicians in his groups, Mingus is often considered the heir of Duke Ellington, for whom he expressed great admiration. Indeed, Dizzy Gillespie had once claimed Mingus reminded him "of a young Duke", citing their shared "organizational genius".
Mingus' compositions continue to be played by contemporary musicians ranging from the repertory bands Mingus Big Band, Mingus Dynasty, and Mingus Orchestra, to the high school students who play the charts and compete in the Charles Mingus High School Competition.
Gunther Schuller has suggested that Mingus should be ranked among the most important American composers, jazz or otherwise. In 1988, a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts made possible the cataloging of Mingus compositions, which were then donated to the Music Division of the New York Public Library for public use. In 1993, The Library of Congress acquired Mingus's collected papers—including scores, sound recordings, correspondence and photos—in what they described as "the most important acquisition of a manuscript collection relating to jazz in the Library's history". Source Wikipedia.
Raymond Moretti was born in Nice on July 23th, 1931. His Italian parents were fleeing fascism.
In 1947 he painted "Moses breaking the Tablets of the Law," now at the Museum of the University of Jerusalem.
Spotted by Jean Cocteau, also living in the south of France, they painted together gouaches and one oil on the theme of "The Age of Aquarius." Moretti met and worked with another great artist, Pablo Picasso, who will be present all along his career and in difficult times.
In 1965, Raymond Moretti holds an important exhibition, " World Screaming" in Paris, with twelve oils of 12 m² each, including his version of "Guernica". His career was launched. In 1973, his sculpture "The Monster", so named by Joseph Kessel, is exposed at "La Defense" in Paris. This monumental work occupies an area of 1000 m² on five floors.
In 1977, he committed to publishers Armand and Georges Israel, to defend him on the national and international scene. An alliance that will last over twenty years in which they will create many bibliophile books and more than two hundred exhibitions of the painter in the world. Among the major projects Moretti, a decoration of the Forum des Halles in Paris of a gigantic mural of 200 m² dedicated to the history of humanity, and book illustrations like "De Gaulle" by Malraux, the "Haggadah of the Fifth Cup "(1980)," Massada ","initiatory path" with the great Master Michel de Just (1981), "Man of La Mancha"(1985) and "The poetic works" (1986) by Jacques Brel, or the book "Les Illuminations" of Rimbaud, who will receive the Golden Eagle, the highest award given to an international art book (1982)...
Passionate about music, especially jazz, he devoted part of his works to this art, culminating with the book "Jazz" (1984) with Frank Tenot, Daniel Filipacchi, Michel Legrand, Claude Nougaro. Still very present in the 1990s, we note that decoration of a tower at "La Defense" in Paris which rises to 32 meters adorned with 672 tubes of glass fibers, or 20 years of collaboration with the literary magazine on the occasion of the commemoration of the 300th issue in 1992. Source artsper.com
Poço Iniciático
Quinta da Regaleira/ Sintra
Projeto Artístico fotográfico "Lisboa/ Sintra, com Outra Alma"
Ver e observar Lisboa "Arredores" com outro olhar...com outra Alma.
Artistic Project / Photo "Lisbon/ Sintra, another Soul"
See and observe Lisbon "surroundings" with different view ... with another soul.
Quinta da Regaleira e o Poço Iniciático. Trata-se de uma galeria subterrânea em espiral, de 27 metros, por onde se descem nove patamares até às profundezas da terra. Este é o caminho por onde se desce à terra, ou num percurso contrário, se sobe ao céu, consoante a natureza do percurso iniciático escolhido. Os nove patamares lembram os nove círculos do Inferno, as nove secções do Purgatório e os nove céus do Paraíso, segundo a Divina Comédia de Dante.
A principal ideia, por detrás, desse poço Iniciatico é a de morrer e voltar a nascer num rito de iniciação ligado à terra, uma vez que esta é o útero materno de onde provem a vida, mas também a sepultura para onde voltará.
Quinta da Regaleira and is Initiation Well. It is an underground gallery spiral of 27 meters, where are nine levels down to the depths of the earth. This is the way which goes down to the ground, or in a contrary way, it rises to the sky, depending on the nature of the chosen initiatory path. The nine levels remind the nine circles of Hell, the nine sections of Purgatory and the nine heavens of Paradise, according to Dante's Divine Comedy.
The main idea behind this Initiation Well is to die and be born again in an initiation rite grounded, since this is the womb from which stems life, but also the grave where return.
Cruz de Fierro en el Monte Irago./ Iron Cross on Mount Irago.
Imagen inspirada en esta canción llena de sentimiento y belleza, potenciada por las imágenes creadas por Inga Birgisdóttir para el videoclip, una escena casi estática, donde van apareciendo una serie de siluetas que se comunican con señales luminosas.
El Camino de Santiago es una senda iniciática. Se inicia en Roncesvalles y termina en Finisterre (Galicia-España), casi 900 kilómetros, se puede hacer andando, a caballo o bicicleta.
La cruz de fierro es un crucero que se halla en el punto más alto del Camino de Santiago francés, a unos 1500 metros de altitud.
Todo peregrino debe cargar en su mochila una piedra de su lugar de origen y llevarla hasta alcanzar este punto. Al arrojarla se librará de las cargas y culpas que haya ido cargando durante su vida. La piedra tiene que ser tan grande como los propios pecados.
Image inspired by this song, full of feeling and beauty, enhanced by images created by Inga Birgisdottir for the video, a nearly static scene, where appear a series of silhouette who communicate with light signals.
The Way of St. James is an initiatory path. It starts at Roncesvalles and ends at Finisterre (Galicia-Spain), almost 900 kilometers, can be done walk on horseback or bicycle.
The iron cross is a cruise that is at the highest point of the french Way of St. James, about 1500 meters.
Every pilgrim should carry in his backpack a stone of their home and bring up to this point. When you throw will get rid of the burdens and guilt that has been charging for his life. The stone has to be as big as our own sins.
Parcourt initiatique vers une vie plus sereine , le chemin de Saint Jacques offre du temps à la réflexion , ainsi qu'à l'observation ... De l'ombre à la lumière . //// Travels initiatory towards a more serene life, saint Jacques's path offers of time on second thought, as well as in the observation... Of the shade into the light
Homily on the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Matthew 15:21-28
“Persistence in Faith”
There is a beautiful image that stands out in our reading of this Gospel. It is the image of a persistent mother, pleading to the Lord on behalf of her ill daughter. Her persistence is striking!
A single voice is crying out in the crowd “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!”
She persists even though the disciples are requesting that she be sent away.
“Lord, Help Me” she says again.
At this point even Jesus, seems to be bending to the mood of the crowd, his mission is to the Jews not the despised Canaanites. He tells her that “it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She replies” Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of the masters.” Her undeniable forcefulness eventually is seen by Jesus as a Faith, which he will not ignore. “O woman, great is your faith!” Jesus heals her daughter in that very hour.
We can relate to this story because we have tenacious mothers, and I include grandmothers, that are adorned with this innate quality to persist in any given situation to empty themselves for a loved one. If we ponder for a moment, I am certain we can all recall an event- a story…that is as moving as the woman in our reading.
We are encouraged by the Church to embrace Jesus’ mother who is our greatest example of quiet persistence. At the wedding of Cana Mary’s determination provokes Jesus to turn the water into wine, an event that begins his ministry. Mother Mary remained in the shadows as she accompanied her son throughout his life…and we are greatly moved by the image of her “persistence” to follow and support her son through his passion, death, and resurrection.
How many Mothers and Grandmothers are praying for the children and grandchildren? When their bodies have grown old, and pain is a constant companion, do not be fooled! Their power is “now” in their prayers, whether lying in bed, or kneeling in a church. I suspect, through their persistent prayers…. they are always on God’s radar. These mothers are so important and so are their targeted prayers. Blessed is the one who has been targeted. How many grandchildren have been led to baptism font because of grandmothers? These faithful women, are the silent heroes, building up the Kingdom of God. They too are soldiers, who are equipped with a rosary in one hand and scripture in the other! They silently pray novenas and light candles that flicker into the night. Like the woman in our reading they are determined to be heard.
Sometimes it may seem that women are not seen or heard in the Church. Having been in ministry now for many years, I can attest I see you! I see your self emptying qualities! On many occasions, I have witnessed the quiet tending to parish life, by these invisible heroes. Now, if you want something done, it is usually the persistence of women who follow it through.
Because this Gospel reading was focused on a woman, I could not help but focus on the beautiful qualities of this individual; her faith, persistence, and self sacrifice and I naturally thought of the women I know in my life that have moved me in the way they live out the gospel message. But persistence is a human quality that is shared by all of humanity and by each individual in a unique way especially as it relates to serving in the Body of Christ.
Our chief model is Jesus Christ. Is not the incarnation, a sign of a persistent God who refuses to give up on us? Like the incarnation where God emptied himself to become one with us…we are called through our baptism to retrieve our noble image of what we were created to be. We do this when we make efforts to forget self and serve the other as Jesus did. Each of us, are called to be diligent disciple!
Today, we have with us, individuals from the RCIA. Debra, Reed and Sandy have heard the voice of this persistent God and have been diligently preparing for this day. In normal times they would have celebrated their initiatory sacraments at the Easter Vigil. Having gone through the process myself, I can relate with their longing to be joined into the Mystical Body of Christ. Their long wait ends today! We are privileged to celebrate with them as they receive the sacraments. Like the woman in our Gospel reading, their persistence makes their faith visible to us! Now let us join them in the feast of the Eucharist.
-rc
The Maasais live only on the Tanzania-Kenya border, along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands.They have been deported from their best traditional grazing lands, that are now known as the Maasai Mara National Reserve, the Amboseli National Park, and other protected forests. The Maasai comprise 5 clans. They have reputation of fierce warriors. But they are traditionally seminomadic, and live off their cattle almost exclusively. The Maasai believe that all cattle belong to them and they are known to be cattle raiders. Cattle raiding used to be a common inter tribal activity. The livestock is a sign of wealth and is traditionally used to pay bridewealth for the wedding. Women are worth 10 cows. They consistently come from another village. Parents are the ones who negociate for the marriage. In the Maasai community, women construct the huts, collect firewood, bring water, milk the herds of cattle and cook for the family. Young boys look after the beasts while the warriors protect the clan. Older men take care of the daily operations in the community. The Maasai live in families in a Manyatta (a form of enclosed homestead), surrounded by a fence made of thorny bushes to protect them and their livestock from intruders and predators. Each Manyatta has about 10 to 20 huts known as "Inkajijik". These huts are made of tree branches, mud, grass and cow dung. If a man has more than one woman, he must build another house to welcome his second wife (to avoid rivalry). So a man who has 3 wifes must own 3 houses and therefore be rich. In the Maasai culture, the colorful ornaments are dedicated to their beauty, which is one of the most important aspects. Visual arts consist mainly of body decoration and beaded ornaments. These decorations are displayed in their dances, which are a popular art form. Women wear beaded necklaces and bangles, and men a red checked shuka (Maasai blanket). The warriors carry a spear and a ball-ended club, and paint their body with ochre. Maasai's diet includes meat, cow blood 2 times a week, and a lot of milk. The cows are bled by opening a vein in the neck with a blunt arrow or knife. The blood is then drunk on it’s own or with milk. The Maasai speak a Nilotic language, called Maa. They believe in one God, Ngai (meaning "One Creator God"), the creator and giver of all things. They also believe in witchcraft. In each tribal group, there is a prophet who is seen as helping to cope with the endemic sorcery, by the means of protective medicines and advices for the rituals. In addition to the prophets, they also have diviners who are supposed to have the power to diagnose illnesses and causes of misfortune, and can prescribe a range of herbal medicines and ritual cures. Despite the fact that some members have moved to cities, many have kept their customs. The most distinctive feature of Maasai society is the age system for men, divided in sets and spaced apart by about fifteen years. Excision, as well as circoncision, is an initiatory ceremony that mark the passage to adulthood. Although excisions are prohibited in Kenya, it is widespread throughout the country, especially in rural areas. Only 4 ethnic groups (Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) out of 42 don't practise it. According to the ethnies and regions, excisions vary considerably and range from 4.1% in the western region to 98.8% in the North-Est. They are common within the Somali (97%), Kisii (96%) and Maasai (93%) while they are less frequent among the Kikuyu (34%) and Kamba (27%). The kenyan law is rarely enforced and it sometimes lead this practice to clandestinity instead of slowing it down. For the 3 months of recovery period after excision, Maasai girls wear jewellery and chalk make-up, to show they must not be seen by men. Circumcision happens at the age of 18 in the Maasai tribes. Maasai woman are not allowed to attend the ceremony. Boys who show their pain with tears during the operation, are considered as cowards and bear this shame all his life. On the contrary, the ones who don't cry during circumcision are authorized to hunt colorful birds with their bow and arrows. Then they make a headdress indicating their new warrior's status. After the operation, boys go in their mother's hut to drink cow's fresh blood to recover their forces. The promotion of warriors to elderhood involve two distinct ceremonies. The 4 days eunoto ceremony raise the warriors to the senior warrior status. For this occasion, warriors gather in the same village. They are led by a ritual leader (olotuno). Each one of them has a part of his head shaved by his mother, which often makes them cry. It symbolizes the end of their freedom and of the bond with their mother. At the end of the ritual, the warrior can select any girl to marry. The olghesher ceremony promote them to senior elderhood thanks to which they have the power to bless and curse, and become protective leaders of the next new age-set. During one of the ceremonies, maasai girls accompany their lover to the ceremonial dance. Pearl neacklaces and headbands follow the rhythm. This is the sole moment when girls can choose freely 3 lovers among the warriors.Traditionally, as long as the father was alive, no son has final control over his cattle nor over his choice in marriage. At marriage, the bride is allocated a herd of cattle, from which all her sons will build up herds of their own. In any case, women are raised to accept her submission to her future husband.
Les Maasais vivent seulement sur la frontière entre la Tanzanie et le Kenya, le long de la Grande Valley du Rift sur des terres arides et semi-arides. Ils ont été déplacés de leurs meilleurs pâturages, qui sont maintenant devenus la Réserve Nationale Maasai Mara, le Parc National Amboseli, et d'autres forêts protégées.Les Maasai comprennent 5 clans. Ils ont la réputation de farouches guerriers. Mais ils sont traditionnellement semi-nomades, et vivent de leur bétail presque exclusivement. Les Pour les Maasai, le bétail leur appartient et ils sont connus pour le piller chez d'autres tribus. Le pillage de bétail a longtemps été chose commune dans les activités inter-tribales. Le bétail est signe de richesse et est traditionnellement utilisé pour payer la prix de la mariée pour le mariage. Les femmes valent 10 vaches. Elles viennent systématiquement d'un autre village. Les parents sont ceux qui négocient pour le mariage. Dans la communauté Maasai, les femmes construisent les huttes, collectent le bois pour le feu, apportent de l'eau, traient les troupeaux de bétail et cuisinent pour la famille. Les jeunes garçons surveillent les bêtes tandis que les guerriers protègent le clan. Les aînés s'occupent des opérations quotidiennes dans la communauté. Les Maasai vivent en famille dans une Manyatta (une sorte de propriété familiale rurale fermée), entourée d'une barrière faite de buissons épineux pour les protéger avec leur bétail des intrus et prédateurs. Chaque Manyatta a environ 10 à 20 huttes appelées "Inkajijik". Ces huttes sont faites de branches d'arbre, boue, herbe et bouse de vache. Si un homme a plus d'une femme, il doit construire une autre maison pour accueillir sa seconde femme (pour éviter la rivalité). De fait, un homme qui a 3 femmes doit posséder 3 maisons et donc être riche. Dans la culture Maasai, les parures colorées sont dédiées à leur beauté, ce qui est un des aspects les plus importants. Les arts visuels consistent principalement en des décorations corporelles et des parures avec des perles. Ces décorations sont affichées dans leurs dances, qui sont la forme d'art la plus populaire. Les femmes Maasai portent des colliers de perles et des bracelets et les hommes des « shuka » (couvertures Maasai) à carreaux rouges. Les guerriers portent une lance et une massue dont l'extrémité est composée d'une boule, et se peignent le corps avec de l'ocre. L'alimentation des Maasai inclut de la viande, du sang 2 fois par semaine et beaucoup de lait. Les vaches sont saignées en leur ouvrant une veine dans le cou avec une flèche spéciale ou un couteau. Le sang est ensuite bu tout seul ou avec du lait. Les Maasai parlent une langue nilotique, appelée Maa.Ils croient en un Dieu, Ngai (ce qui signifie "Dieu créateur"), le créateur et donateur de toute chose. Ils croient aussi dans la sorcellerie. Dans chaque groupe tribal, il y a un prophète qui est considéré comme aidant à affronter les sortilèges endémiques, au moyen de traitements protecteurs et de conseils pour les rituels. En plus des prophètes, ils ont aussi des devins qui sont censés avoir le pouvoir de diagnostiquer les maladies et les causes d'infortune, et peuvent prescrire une série de médicaments à base de plantes et de remèdes rituels. Malgré le fait que certains membres se soient installés dans les villes, beaucoup ont gardé leurs coutumes. La caractéristique la plus remarquable de la société Maasai est le système d'âges pour les hommes, divisé en sections et séparé par environ une quinzaine d'années. L'excision, comme la circoncision, est une cérémonie initiatique qui marque le passage à l'âge adulte. Malgré le fait que les excisions soient interdites au Kenya; cela reste répandu à travers le pays, surtout dans les régions rurales. Seuls quatre groupes ethniques (les Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) sur 42 ne pratiquent pas les excisions. Selon les ethnies et les régions, les excisions varient considérablement, allant d’une moyenne de 4,1% dans la région occidentale à 98,8% dans le Nord Est du pays. Elles sont communes chez les Somali(97%), Kisii (96%) et Maasai (93%), alors qu’elles sont les moins fréquentes chez les femmes Kikuyu (34%) et Kamba (27%).La loi kenyane est rarement appliquée et a parfois poussé la pratique à la clandestinité au lieu de la freiner. Pour la convalescence de 3 mois après l'excision, les filles Maasai portent des bijoux et du maquillage à la craie, pour montrer qu'elles ne doivent pas être vues par les hommes. La circoncision se passe à l'âge de 18 ans dans les tribus Maasai. Aucune femme Maasai n'est autorisée à assister à la cérémonie. Les garçons qui ne montrent pas leur douleur avec des larmes durant l'opération, sont considérés comme peureux et portent cette honte toute leur vie. Au contraire, ceux qui ne pleurent pas durant la circoncision sont autorisés à chasser des oiseaux colorés avec leur arc et flèches. Ensuite ils fabriquent des coiffes indiquant leur nouveau statut de guerrier. Après l'opération, les garçons vont dans la hutte de leur mère pour boire du sang de vache frais afin de recouvrer leurs forces. La promotion des guerriers à la sagesse implique deux cérémonies distinctes. La cérémonie eunoto de 4 jours élève les guerriers au rang de guerrier supérieur. Pour cette occasion, les guerriers se rassemblent dans le même village. Ils sont menés par un chef de rituel (olotuno). Chacun d'entre eux a une partie de sa tête rasée par sa mère, ce qui les fait souvent pleurer. Cela symbolise la fin de leur liberté et du lien avec leur mère. A la fin du rituel, le guerrier peut sélectionner la fille qu'il veut pour se marier. La cérémonie olghesher les promeut à la sagesse des aînés grâce à laquelle ils ont le pouvoir de bénir et maudire, et deviennent les chefs protecteurs de la classe d'âge suivante.Durant l'une des cérémonies, les filles maasai accompagnent leur amoureux à la danse cérémoniale. Les colliers et bandeaux de perles suivent le rythme.C'est le seul moment où les filles peuvent choisir librement 3 amants parmi les guerriers. Traditionnellement, tant que le père est vivant, aucun fils n'a le contrôle sur le bétail ni sur le choix pour son mariage. Lors du mariage, on attribue à la fiancée un troupeau de bêtes, à partir desquels tous ses fils accumuleront leurs propres troupeaux. Dans tous les cas, les femmes sont élevées pour accepter la soumission à leur futur mari.
© Eric Lafforgue
The Massai live only on the Tanzania-Kenya border, along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands.They have been deported from their best traditional grazing lands, that are now known as the Maasai Mara National Reserve, the Amboseli National Park, and other protected forests.
The Maasai comprise 5 clans. They have reputation of fierce warriors. But they are traditionally seminomadic, and live off their cattle almost exclusively. The Maasai believe that all cattle belong to them and they are known to be cattle raiders. Cattle raiding used to be a common inter tribal activity. The livestock is a sign of wealth and is traditionally used to pay dowry for the wedding. Women are worth 10 cows. They consistently come from another village. Parents are the ones who negociate for the marriage. In the Maasai community, women construct the huts, collect firewood, bring water, milk the herds of cattle and cook for the family. Young boys look after the beasts while the warriors protect the clan. Older men take care of the daily operations in the community. The Maasai live in families in a Manyatta (a form of enclosed homestead), surrounded by a fence made of thorny bushes to protect them and their livestock from intruders and predators. Each Manyatta has about 10 to 20 huts known as "Inkajijik". These huts are made of tree branches, mud, grass and cow dung. If a man has more than one woman, he must build another house to welcome his second wife (to avoid rivalry). So a man who has 3 wifes must own 3 houses and therefore be rich. In the Maasai culture, the colorful ornaments are dedicated to their beauty, which is one of the most important aspects. Visual arts consist mainly of body decoration and beaded ornaments. These decorations are displayed in their dances, which are a popular art form. Women wear beaded necklaces and bangles, and men a red checked shuka (Maasai blanket). The warriors carry a spear and a ball-ended club, and paint their body with ochre. Maasai's diet includes meat, cow blood 2 times a week, and a lot of milk. The cows are bled by opening a vein in the neck with a blunt arrow or knife. The blood is then drunk on it’s own or with milk. The Maasai speak a Nilotic language, called Maa.
They believe in one God, Ngai (meaning "One Creator God"), the creator and giver of all things. They also believe in witchcraft. In each tribal group, there is a prophet who is seen as helping to cope with the endemic sorcery, by the means of protective medicines and advices for the rituals. In addition to the prophets, they also have diviners who are supposed to have the power to diagnose illnesses and causes of misfortune, and can prescribe a range of herbal medicines and ritual cures. Despite the fact that some members have moved to cities, many have kept their customs. The most distinctive feature of Maasai society is the age system for men, divided in sets and spaced apart by about fifteen years. Excision, as well as circoncision, is an initiatory ceremony that mark the passage to adulthood. Although excisions are prohibited in Kenya, it is widespread throughout the country, especially in rural areas. Only 4 ethnic groups (Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) out of 42 don't practise it. According to the ethnies and regions, excisions vary considerably and range from 4.1% in the western region to 98.8% in the North-Est. They are common within the Somali (97%), Kisii (96%) and Maasai (93%) while they are less frequent among the Kikuyu (34%) and Kamba (27%). The kenyan law is rarely enforced and it sometimes lead this practice to clandestinity instead of slowing it down. For the 3 months of recovery period after excision, Maasai girls wear jewellery and chalk make-up, to show they must not be seen by men. Circumcision happens at the age of 18 in the Maasai tribes. Maasai woman are not allowed to attend the ceremony. Boys who show their pain with tears during the operation, are considered as cowards and bear this shame all his life. On the contrary, the ones who don't cry during circumcision are authorized to hunt colorful birds with their bow and arrows. Then they make a headdress indicating their new warrior's status. After the operation, boys go in their mother's hut to drink cow's fresh blood to recover their forces. The promotion of warriors to elderhood involve two distinct ceremonies. The 4 days eunoto ceremony raise the warriors to the senior warrior status. For this occasion, warriors gather in the same village. They are led by a ritual leader (olotuno). Each one of them has a part of his head shaved by his mother, which often makes them cry. It symbolizes the end of their freedom and of the bond with their mother. At the end of the ritual, the warrior can select any girl to marry. The olghesher ceremony promote them to senior elderhood thanks to which they have the power to bless and curse, and become protective leaders of the next new age-set.
During one of the ceremonies, maasai girls accompany their lover to the ceremonial dance. Pearl neacklaces and headbands follow the rhythm. This is the sole moment when girls can choose freely 3 lovers among the warriors.Traditionally, as long as the father was alive, no son has final control over his cattle nor over his choice in marriage. At marriage, the bride is allocated a herd of cattle, from which all her sons will build up herds of their own. In any case, women are raised to accept her submission to her future husband.
© Eric Lafforgue
The Massai live only on the Tanzania-Kenya border, along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands.They have been deported from their best traditional grazing lands, that are now known as the Maasai Mara National Reserve, the Amboseli National Park, and other protected forests.
The Maasai comprise 5 clans. They have reputation of fierce warriors. But they are traditionally seminomadic, and live off their cattle almost exclusively. The Maasai believe that all cattle belong to them and they are known to be cattle raiders. Cattle raiding used to be a common inter tribal activity. The livestock is a sign of wealth and is traditionally used to pay dowry for the wedding. Women are worth 10 cows. They consistently come from another village. Parents are the ones who negociate for the marriage. In the Maasai community, women construct the huts, collect firewood, bring water, milk the herds of cattle and cook for the family. Young boys look after the beasts while the warriors protect the clan. Older men take care of the daily operations in the community. The Maasai live in families in a Manyatta (a form of enclosed homestead), surrounded by a fence made of thorny bushes to protect them and their livestock from intruders and predators. Each Manyatta has about 10 to 20 huts known as "Inkajijik". These huts are made of tree branches, mud, grass and cow dung. If a man has more than one woman, he must build another house to welcome his second wife (to avoid rivalry). So a man who has 3 wifes must own 3 houses and therefore be rich. In the Maasai culture, the colorful ornaments are dedicated to their beauty, which is one of the most important aspects. Visual arts consist mainly of body decoration and beaded ornaments. These decorations are displayed in their dances, which are a popular art form. Women wear beaded necklaces and bangles, and men a red checked shuka (Maasai blanket). The warriors carry a spear and a ball-ended club, and paint their body with ochre. Maasai's diet includes meat, cow blood 2 times a week, and a lot of milk. The cows are bled by opening a vein in the neck with a blunt arrow or knife. The blood is then drunk on it’s own or with milk. The Maasai speak a Nilotic language, called Maa.
They believe in one God, Ngai (meaning "One Creator God"), the creator and giver of all things. They also believe in witchcraft. In each tribal group, there is a prophet who is seen as helping to cope with the endemic sorcery, by the means of protective medicines and advices for the rituals. In addition to the prophets, they also have diviners who are supposed to have the power to diagnose illnesses and causes of misfortune, and can prescribe a range of herbal medicines and ritual cures. Despite the fact that some members have moved to cities, many have kept their customs. The most distinctive feature of Maasai society is the age system for men, divided in sets and spaced apart by about fifteen years. Excision, as well as circoncision, is an initiatory ceremony that mark the passage to adulthood. Although excisions are prohibited in Kenya, it is widespread throughout the country, especially in rural areas. Only 4 ethnic groups (Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) out of 42 don't practise it. According to the ethnies and regions, excisions vary considerably and range from 4.1% in the western region to 98.8% in the North-Est. They are common within the Somali (97%), Kisii (96%) and Maasai (93%) while they are less frequent among the Kikuyu (34%) and Kamba (27%). The kenyan law is rarely enforced and it sometimes lead this practice to clandestinity instead of slowing it down. For the 3 months of recovery period after excision, Maasai girls wear jewellery and chalk make-up, to show they must not be seen by men. Circumcision happens at the age of 18 in the Maasai tribes. Maasai woman are not allowed to attend the ceremony. Boys who show their pain with tears during the operation, are considered as cowards and bear this shame all his life. On the contrary, the ones who don't cry during circumcision are authorized to hunt colorful birds with their bow and arrows. Then they make a headdress indicating their new warrior's status. After the operation, boys go in their mother's hut to drink cow's fresh blood to recover their forces. The promotion of warriors to elderhood involve two distinct ceremonies. The 4 days eunoto ceremony raise the warriors to the senior warrior status. For this occasion, warriors gather in the same village. They are led by a ritual leader (olotuno). Each one of them has a part of his head shaved by his mother, which often makes them cry. It symbolizes the end of their freedom and of the bond with their mother. At the end of the ritual, the warrior can select any girl to marry. The olghesher ceremony promote them to senior elderhood thanks to which they have the power to bless and curse, and become protective leaders of the next new age-set.
During one of the ceremonies, maasai girls accompany their lover to the ceremonial dance. Pearl neacklaces and headbands follow the rhythm. This is the sole moment when girls can choose freely 3 lovers among the warriors.Traditionally, as long as the father was alive, no son has final control over his cattle nor over his choice in marriage. At marriage, the bride is allocated a herd of cattle, from which all her sons will build up herds of their own. In any case, women are raised to accept her submission to her future husband.
© Eric Lafforgue
The Massai live only on the Tanzania-Kenya border, along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands.They have been deported from their best traditional grazing lands, that are now known as the Maasai Mara National Reserve, the Amboseli National Park, and other protected forests.
The Maasai comprise 5 clans. They have reputation of fierce warriors. But they are traditionally seminomadic, and live off their cattle almost exclusively. The Maasai believe that all cattle belong to them and they are known to be cattle raiders. Cattle raiding used to be a common inter tribal activity. The livestock is a sign of wealth and is traditionally used to pay dowry for the wedding. Women are worth 10 cows. They consistently come from another village. Parents are the ones who negociate for the marriage. In the Maasai community, women construct the huts, collect firewood, bring water, milk the herds of cattle and cook for the family. Young boys look after the beasts while the warriors protect the clan. Older men take care of the daily operations in the community. The Maasai live in families in a Manyatta (a form of enclosed homestead), surrounded by a fence made of thorny bushes to protect them and their livestock from intruders and predators. Each Manyatta has about 10 to 20 huts known as "Inkajijik". These huts are made of tree branches, mud, grass and cow dung. If a man has more than one woman, he must build another house to welcome his second wife (to avoid rivalry). So a man who has 3 wifes must own 3 houses and therefore be rich. In the Maasai culture, the colorful ornaments are dedicated to their beauty, which is one of the most important aspects. Visual arts consist mainly of body decoration and beaded ornaments. These decorations are displayed in their dances, which are a popular art form. Women wear beaded necklaces and bangles, and men a red checked shuka (Maasai blanket). The warriors carry a spear and a ball-ended club, and paint their body with ochre. Maasai's diet includes meat, cow blood 2 times a week, and a lot of milk. The cows are bled by opening a vein in the neck with a blunt arrow or knife. The blood is then drunk on it’s own or with milk. The Maasai speak a Nilotic language, called Maa.
They believe in one God, Ngai (meaning "One Creator God"), the creator and giver of all things. They also believe in witchcraft. In each tribal group, there is a prophet who is seen as helping to cope with the endemic sorcery, by the means of protective medicines and advices for the rituals. In addition to the prophets, they also have diviners who are supposed to have the power to diagnose illnesses and causes of misfortune, and can prescribe a range of herbal medicines and ritual cures. Despite the fact that some members have moved to cities, many have kept their customs. The most distinctive feature of Maasai society is the age system for men, divided in sets and spaced apart by about fifteen years. Excision, as well as circoncision, is an initiatory ceremony that mark the passage to adulthood. Although excisions are prohibited in Kenya, it is widespread throughout the country, especially in rural areas. Only 4 ethnic groups (Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) out of 42 don't practise it. According to the ethnies and regions, excisions vary considerably and range from 4.1% in the western region to 98.8% in the North-Est. They are common within the Somali (97%), Kisii (96%) and Maasai (93%) while they are less frequent among the Kikuyu (34%) and Kamba (27%). The kenyan law is rarely enforced and it sometimes lead this practice to clandestinity instead of slowing it down. For the 3 months of recovery period after excision, Maasai girls wear jewellery and chalk make-up, to show they must not be seen by men. Circumcision happens at the age of 18 in the Maasai tribes. Maasai woman are not allowed to attend the ceremony. Boys who show their pain with tears during the operation, are considered as cowards and bear this shame all his life. On the contrary, the ones who don't cry during circumcision are authorized to hunt colorful birds with their bow and arrows. Then they make a headdress indicating their new warrior's status. After the operation, boys go in their mother's hut to drink cow's fresh blood to recover their forces. The promotion of warriors to elderhood involve two distinct ceremonies. The 4 days eunoto ceremony raise the warriors to the senior warrior status. For this occasion, warriors gather in the same village. They are led by a ritual leader (olotuno). Each one of them has a part of his head shaved by his mother, which often makes them cry. It symbolizes the end of their freedom and of the bond with their mother. At the end of the ritual, the warrior can select any girl to marry. The olghesher ceremony promote them to senior elderhood thanks to which they have the power to bless and curse, and become protective leaders of the next new age-set.
During one of the ceremonies, maasai girls accompany their lover to the ceremonial dance. Pearl neacklaces and headbands follow the rhythm. This is the sole moment when girls can choose freely 3 lovers among the warriors.Traditionally, as long as the father was alive, no son has final control over his cattle nor over his choice in marriage. At marriage, the bride is allocated a herd of cattle, from which all her sons will build up herds of their own. In any case, women are raised to accept her submission to her future husband.
© Eric Lafforgue
The Massai live only on the Tanzania-Kenya border, along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands.They have been deported from their best traditional grazing lands, that are now known as the Maasai Mara National Reserve, the Amboseli National Park, and other protected forests.
The Maasai comprise 5 clans. They have reputation of fierce warriors. But they are traditionally seminomadic, and live off their cattle almost exclusively. The Maasai believe that all cattle belong to them and they are known to be cattle raiders. Cattle raiding used to be a common inter tribal activity. The livestock is a sign of wealth and is traditionally used to pay dowry for the wedding. Women are worth 10 cows. They consistently come from another village. Parents are the ones who negociate for the marriage. In the Maasai community, women construct the huts, collect firewood, bring water, milk the herds of cattle and cook for the family. Young boys look after the beasts while the warriors protect the clan. Older men take care of the daily operations in the community. The Maasai live in families in a Manyatta (a form of enclosed homestead), surrounded by a fence made of thorny bushes to protect them and their livestock from intruders and predators. Each Manyatta has about 10 to 20 huts known as "Inkajijik". These huts are made of tree branches, mud, grass and cow dung. If a man has more than one woman, he must build another house to welcome his second wife (to avoid rivalry). So a man who has 3 wifes must own 3 houses and therefore be rich. In the Maasai culture, the colorful ornaments are dedicated to their beauty, which is one of the most important aspects. Visual arts consist mainly of body decoration and beaded ornaments. These decorations are displayed in their dances, which are a popular art form. Women wear beaded necklaces and bangles, and men a red checked shuka (Maasai blanket). The warriors carry a spear and a ball-ended club, and paint their body with ochre. Maasai's diet includes meat, cow blood 2 times a week, and a lot of milk. The cows are bled by opening a vein in the neck with a blunt arrow or knife. The blood is then drunk on it’s own or with milk. The Maasai speak a Nilotic language, called Maa.
They believe in one God, Ngai (meaning "One Creator God"), the creator and giver of all things. They also believe in witchcraft. In each tribal group, there is a prophet who is seen as helping to cope with the endemic sorcery, by the means of protective medicines and advices for the rituals. In addition to the prophets, they also have diviners who are supposed to have the power to diagnose illnesses and causes of misfortune, and can prescribe a range of herbal medicines and ritual cures. Despite the fact that some members have moved to cities, many have kept their customs. The most distinctive feature of Maasai society is the age system for men, divided in sets and spaced apart by about fifteen years. Excision, as well as circoncision, is an initiatory ceremony that mark the passage to adulthood. Although excisions are prohibited in Kenya, it is widespread throughout the country, especially in rural areas. Only 4 ethnic groups (Luo, Luhya, Teso and Turkana) out of 42 don't practise it. According to the ethnies and regions, excisions vary considerably and range from 4.1% in the western region to 98.8% in the North-Est. They are common within the Somali (97%), Kisii (96%) and Maasai (93%) while they are less frequent among the Kikuyu (34%) and Kamba (27%). The kenyan law is rarely enforced and it sometimes lead this practice to clandestinity instead of slowing it down. For the 3 months of recovery period after excision, Maasai girls wear jewellery and chalk make-up, to show they must not be seen by men. Circumcision happens at the age of 18 in the Maasai tribes. Maasai woman are not allowed to attend the ceremony. Boys who show their pain with tears during the operation, are considered as cowards and bear this shame all his life. On the contrary, the ones who don't cry during circumcision are authorized to hunt colorful birds with their bow and arrows. Then they make a headdress indicating their new warrior's status. After the operation, boys go in their mother's hut to drink cow's fresh blood to recover their forces. The promotion of warriors to elderhood involve two distinct ceremonies. The 4 days eunoto ceremony raise the warriors to the senior warrior status. For this occasion, warriors gather in the same village. They are led by a ritual leader (olotuno). Each one of them has a part of his head shaved by his mother, which often makes them cry. It symbolizes the end of their freedom and of the bond with their mother. At the end of the ritual, the warrior can select any girl to marry. The olghesher ceremony promote them to senior elderhood thanks to which they have the power to bless and curse, and become protective leaders of the next new age-set.
During one of the ceremonies, maasai girls accompany their lover to the ceremonial dance. Pearl neacklaces and headbands follow the rhythm. This is the sole moment when girls can choose freely 3 lovers among the warriors.Traditionally, as long as the father was alive, no son has final control over his cattle nor over his choice in marriage. At marriage, the bride is allocated a herd of cattle, from which all her sons will build up herds of their own. In any case, women are raised to accept her submission to her future husband.
© Eric Lafforgue
In 1917 the occultist Baron Rudolf von Sebottendorf, the Gurdjeff disciple Karl Haushofer, the ace pilot Lothar Waisz, Prelate Gernot of the secret "Societas Templi Marcioni" (The Inheritors of the Knights Templar) and Maria Orsic, a transcendental medium from Zagreb met in Vienna. They all had extensively studied the "Golden Dawn", its teachings, rituals and especially its knowledge about Asian secret lodges. Sebottendorf and Haushofer were experienced travellers of India and Tibet and much influenced by the teachings and myths of those places. During the First World War Karl Haushofer had made contacts with one of the most influential secret societies of Asia, the Tibetan Yellow Hats" (dGe-lugs-pa). This sect was formed in 1409 by the Buddhist reformer Tsong-kha-pa. Haushofer was initiated and swore to commit suicide should his mission fail. The contacts between Haushofer and the Yellow Hats led in the Twenties to the formation of Tibetan colonies in Germany.
The four young people hoped that during these meetings in Vienna they would learn something about the secret revelatory texts of the Knights Templar and also about the secret fraternity Die Herren vom Schwarzen Stein ("The Lords of the Black Stone"). Prelate Gernot was of the "Inheritors of the Knights Templar", the only true Templar society. They are the descendants of the Templars of 1307 who passed on their secrets from father to son - until today. Prelate Gernot apparently told them about the advent of a new age - the change-over from the Age of Pisces to the Age of Aquarius.
They discussed that our solar year - according to the twelve revolutions of the moon - was divided into twelve months and thus the revolution of our sun around the great central sun (the Black Sun of ancient myths) was also divided into twelve parts. Together with the precession of the cone-shaped proper movement of the Earth due to the inclination of the axis this determines the length of the world age. Such a "cosmic month" is then 2,155 years, the "cosmic year" 25,860 years long. According to the Templars the next change is not just an ordinary change of the age, but also the end of a cosmic year and the start of an absolutely new one.
The main part of the discussions dealt with the background of a section of the New Testament, Matthew 21:43. For there Jesus addressed the Jews:
Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.
The complete original text that is kept in the archives of the "Societas Ternpli Marcioni" says it even more clearly. But the point is: In that text Jesus actually names the "people", He talks to Teutons serving in the Roman legion and he tells them that it is THEIR people that he had chosen. That was what Sebottendorf and his friends wanted to know for sure: That the Teutonic, i.e. the German, people were commissioned to form the realm of light upon Earth - in the "Land of the Midnight Mountain" (Germany). The place where the ray would meet the Earth was given as the Untersberg near Salzburg.
What was the legend of the Untersberg mountain, at which Hitler spent many hours gazing from his study in the Berghof? Historians guess that, like King Arthur, Frederick Barbarossa is buried there, waiting for a call to arise from the dead to come to his country's aid in its hour of need. That is not the legend of the Untersberg, though.
In 1220, Templar Komtur Hubertus Koch, returning with a small party from the Crusades, passed through Mesopotamia, and near the old city of Nineveh in modern Iraq, received an apparition of the goddess Isais (first child of goddess Isis and god Set). She told him to withdraw to the Untersberg mountain, build a house there and await her next apparition.
Whether that is true or not, in 1221, Koch erected his first Komturei at the foot of Ettenberg near Markt Schellenberg. A second, larger structure followed. It is believed that over the next few years, underground galleries were excavated into various areas of the Untersberg, and in one of them a temple to Isais was built.
A second apparition occurred in 1226 and were repeated on occasions until 1238. During this period the Templars received Die Isais Offenbarung, a series of prophesies (recently published) and information concerning the Holy Grail. The Templars at Jerusalem had knowledge of these visitations, over which the Church drew a veil of silence. What follows is only tradition, but may be of interest.
It is the German tradition that the Templars were ordered to form a secret scientific sect in southern Germany, Austria and northern Italy to be known as "Die Herren vom Schwarzen Stein" - The Lords of the Black Stone - or DHvSS for short, and this is said to be the true, hidden meaning of SS.
The Holy Grail ("Ghral" is holy stone, Persian-Arabic) was said to be a black-violet crystal, half quartz, half amethyst, through which Higher Powers communicated with humanity. It was given into the safe-keeping of the Cathars, and smuggled out of the last stronghold at Montsegur, France, and hidden, by four Cathar women on the night of 14 March 1244. There is a Cathar legend that 700 years after the destruction of the Cathar religion the Holy Grail would be returned to its rightful holders, DHvSS, or the SS?
Ruins of Montsegur
the "Teehaus"
It may be of interest to note in this connection that the Tea House designed by Hitler and built atop the Mooslahnerkopf at Obersalzberg, the stone pavillion still standing today, bears a striking resemblance to Montsegur when viewed at certain angles from the foot of the great rocky outcrop. Whether this was a coincidence remains in the mind of the beholder.
At the end of September 1917 Sebottendorf met with members of the "Lords of the Black Stone" at the Untersberg to receive the power of the "Black-Purple Stone" after which the secret society was named.
The "Lords of the Black Stone" who formed out of the Marcionite Templar societies in 1221 led by Hubertus Koch who had set as their aim the fight against evil and the building of Christ's realm of light.
A circle formed around Baron Rudolf von Sebottendorf, who wrote about this in a book that was later banned by the Nazi’s Bevor Hitler Kam (Before Hitler Came), that via the "Teutonic Order" in 1918 in Bad Aibling became the "Thule Gesellschaft".
The themes they tried to link to politics were scientific magic, astrology, occultism and Templar knowledge as well as "Golden Dawn" practices like Tantra, Yoga and Eastern meditation.
The Thule-Gesellschaft believed, following the Revelation of Isais, in a Coming Saviour (German: Heiland = the Holy One), the "Third Sargon" who would bring to Germany glory and a new Aryan culture.
Guido von List (1905)
Some of the most important teachings influencing the Thule-Gesellschaft was the Aryo-Germanic construction of religion (Wihinei) by the philosopher Guido von List, the Glacial Cosmology by Hans Hörbiger and a leaning towards the anti-Old Testament early Christianity of the Marcionites. The innermost circle at any rate had vowed to fight World Judaism and Freemasonry and its lodges.
In the eyes of the Thule Gesellschaft, from which later emerged the DAP (German Workers' Party), the NSDAP (National Socialist German Workers' Party), the SS (Schutzstaffel), the Jewish people who had been charged by the Old Testament god JAHVEH to "raise havoc on Earth" were the reason why the world was always caught up in war and discord.
Far from being a fringe secret society, the Thule Gesellschaft had members that reached into the German Aristocracy. It essentially had all of the beliefs expounded by Rosenberg and was the group that Hitler first came to at the beginnings of his rise to power.
It was exclusively a rich man’s society and drew its members from the upper echelons of Bavarian Society, and was not open to the middle class or the workers of Germany
Indeed one had to show pure Aryan lineage back to the 30 Years War in order to join, one could not be deformed or even be just plain old ‘ugly’, one had to be one of the ‘beautiful people’. It was at this time that the Prime Minister of the Bavarian government, Kurt Eisner (a Jew) was assassinated by a disgruntled young count Anton Graf Arco, who had been refused admission to the Thule Society, presumably because he was of Jewish decent. One of the prime suspects that the police questioned was the Society’s leader. Here we can understand that elitism and racism was an important part of the belief systems of those who formulated the early Nazi doctrine. The assassination transpired in an atmosphere of general fear among the Bavarian elite that Bolsheivism (communism, and with it wealth confiscation) was making important inroads at the end of the war and that there was too much ‘Jewish influence’. This was ‘confirmed’ by the election of the Jewish socialist, Kurt Eisner.
Sebottendorff, the leader of the Thule society, was known as an adept at astrology, alchemy divining rods and other occult practices and it was his belief that the Jews were really in control of the Freemasonic lodges that probably led to their eventual seizure and closure when the Nazi’s took power. Indeed, the whole idea of brotherhood that typified freemasonic beliefs was at odds with what the Thulists believed. Indeed Sebottendorff went so far as to say that ‘equality is death’; Thus, freemasons were also singled out by the Nazi’s. He spread his propaganda through Der Münchener Beobachtera newspaper that he purchased because he needed an avenue with which to spread his profane doctrine.
As conditions in Germany worsened, it became clear that much of the population was ready for a change. Food had become very scarce and most Germans were hungry and some were even starving. People were reduced to eating dog biscuits and horsemeat. The mark had lost most of its value and discontent was spreading. It was in this atmosphere in which many began to long for and fanaticize for a better world and fundamental change in Germany. There were fights in the streets and beer halls as well as fights between occult and political groups.
Members of these groups were not averse to using terrorism to gain their political aims and to put it as briefly as possible, the Thulists wanted to bring together all the anti-Semitic forces in Germany into forceful political action, both legal (elections) and illegal (terrorism).
The common theme of the more successful occult groups has always been to hold economic views in keeping with the politics and interests of the wealthier classes. In so doing wealthy patrons and converts can help finance the movement and give it an air of legitimacy. This was violently demonstrated when Hitler betrayed the S.A. who were the working class Germans that assisted Hitler on his way to power. The German elite as well as the SS wanted to rid themselves of this proletarian riff-raff and thus, during the night of the long Knives, the SA (or Brownshirts) was done away with by Hitler and the Elitist SS.
It all started with the Thule Gesellschaft, pagan, anti-Semitic, right-wing aristocratic society founded by a Freemason and Eastern mystic named Baron Rudolf von Sebottendorff. They met every Saturday in Munich’s Four Season’s Hotel to discuss things like runes (an old German alphabet), racial evolution, Nordic mythology and German nationalism. Registered under the name "Thule Gesellschaft" as a "literary-cultural society", in order to fool the communist Red Army now controlling Munich, this group had originally been known as the Germanenorden, or the German Order of the Holy Grail.
The Germanenorden had an impressive series of initiatory rituals, replete with knights in shining armor, wise kings, mystical bards and forest nymphs, including a Masonic-style program of secrecy, initiation and mutual cooperation. But they were not copying the ideological aspects of Freemasonry. What the Germanenorden became was, essentially, an anti-Masonry: a Masonic-style society dedicated to the eradication of Freemasonry itself. Their symbol was a Swastika on top of a long dagger, and their beliefs had been influenced largely by the writings of Guido von List and Lanz von Liebenfels.
Liebenfels had founded the neo-pagan, Sswastika-waving "Order of the New Templars" on Christmas Day, 1907, along similar ideological lines. In that same year, occult researcher Guido von List began The List Society, part of a then-developing "völkish" (folkish) movement extolling the virtues of Norse heritage, heritage which could be traced by reading the Edda, a compilation of Icelandic legends which Hitler would later take great interest in. The völkish movement itself was based in part on the ideas of Madame Helena Blavatsky, founder of the Theosophical Society famous for her books Isis Unveiled and The Secret Doctrine. She wrote that humanity was descendant from a series of imperfect races which had once ruled the earth, and which all had a common Atlantean origin dating back millions of years, culminating in the Aryan race, which had at one point possessed supernatural powers but had since lost them. She also romanticized about the occult significance of the Swastika, of Lucifer, "The Light-Bearer", and of a cabal of spiritual "Hidden Masters" called the Great White Brotherhood, who guided human evolution from their abode in the Himalayas and who Blavatsky herself purported to channel during her many self-induced trances.
And the philosophy of List and Liebenfels took this a bit further, to the extent that the Aryan race was the only "True" humanity, and that the Jews, along with a host of other undesirables, or "minderwertigen" ("beings of inferior value") were sapping the race of its strength and purity through the evil machination of Christianity, Freemasonry, capitalism and Communism. They believed that the Aryan race had come from a place called Thule, the north pole, where there was an entrance to a vast underground area populated by giants. Among the völkish cults it was believed that - as soon as the Germans had purified the planet of the pollution of the inferior races - these Hidden Masters, these Supermen from Thule, would make themselves known, and the link which had been lost between Man and God would be forged anew.
These were the beliefs of the members of the Thule Gesellschaft when they met on November 9, 1918 to discuss something of immediate concern; The Communist control of Munich. After a rousing speech by Sebottendorf, the Thule Society began to prepare for a counter-revolution, stockpiling weapons and forming alliances with other like-minded groups, such as the Pan-Germans, the German School Bund and the Hammerbund.
The following year, on April 7, a Bavarian Soviet Republic was proclaimed in Munich, causing the Prime Minister of Bavaria to run off to Bamberg in order to prevent a total Communist take-over of the government. Six days later the Thule-Organized Palm Sunday Putsch failed to overcome the Communists in Munich, and now the Thule members were on the Red Army’s Most Wanted list. Sebottendorf got busy organizing an army of Freikorps (Freekorps) to counter-attack. (One of the units of the Freikorps, the Ehrhardt Brigade, later became part of the German Army, and eventually, part of the S.S.)
On April 26, the Red Army raided Thule headquarters and began making arrests, including the well-connected Prince von Thurn und Taxis. On April 30, Walpurgisnacht, they were executed in the Luitpold High School courtyard. The following day, their obituaries were published in Sebottendorf’s newspaper Münchener Beobachter (which would evolve one year later in to the official Nazi publication, Völkischer Beobachter.)
The citizens of Munich became outraged.
The Thule Society organized a citizen rebellion, which was joined by the 20,000-member Freikorps, and together they marched, "beneath a Swastika flag, with Swastikas painted on their helmets, singing a Swastika hymn." By May 3, after much bloodshed and destruction, the Communists in Munich were defeated. But there was much work to be done. The Soviet threat was still very real.
With the help of the local police and military, the Thule began organizing a more full-scale national revolt, using connections with societies of wealthy intellectuals. They also began recruiting among Germany’s working class, by forming a group called the German Worker’s Party, which met regularly in beer halls to discuss the threat of Jews, Communists, and Freemasons. This group would later become the National Socialist German Workers’ Party - The Nazi Party, and in November 1923, they would make their first attempt at national takeover, the failed Beer Hall Putsch, led by a man who had originally been sent by the German Army to spy on them - Adolf Hitler.
We all know what the Nazi party went on to accomplish. What most people do not know is the extent to which those actions were inspired by the occult beliefs of their perpetrators. The most extreme aims of the Thule Society would all eventually become official policy of the Third Reich, while its purely metaphysical and occult characteristics were adopted wholeheartedly by the S.S.
Hitler himself was fascinated by the occult. While he was a college student he began reading Von Liebenfels’ magazine, Ostara. Later in 1909, while he was living in poverty in a men’s dormitory and hawking his paintings on the street, Hitler actually met Liebenfels in his office, looking "so distraught and so impoverished that the New Templar himself gave Hitler free copies of Ostara and bus fare back home."
Hitler’s friend Josef Greiner recalls in his memoirs how obsessed young Adolf was with astrology, religion, occultism, magic and yoga. Hitler loved Wagner, as we know, especially The Ring Cycle, Parsifal, Lohengrin and Rienzi. It was from Wagner that Hitler gained his affinity for knighthood, chivalry, and the Quest of the Holy Grail, a pagan, Teutonic Grail. In 1915, Hitler was at war, and while in the trenches, wrote a poem, one which "sings the praises of Wotan, the Teutonic Father God, and of runic letters, magic spells, and magic formulas." So there is no doubt that Hitler’s interest in occultism and paganism ran deep. There is doubt, however, as to whether or not Hitler actually performed any magical operations himself. Tthis was not in his nature, a nature inclined towards action, doing stuff, accomplishing things here on Earth, in the 3rd dimension. He did not have the time and the patience necessary for real spiritual endeavors. Hitler was a paranoid and the occult holds special attractions for the paranoid. But Hitler as a cultist? As a black-robed, ritual-performing, invocation-chanting priest of Satan? Probably not.
But Hitler as a tool of other cultists? Probably so.
In fact, a number of people deeply involved in the occult would have great influence on him and play essential roles in the development of the Third Reich. It would do us well to examine them one by one.
Dietrich Eckart
Hitler, while working as the leader of the German Worker’s Party, became friends with Thulist Dietrich Eckart, who published a newspaper called Auf Gut Deutsch (In Good German), which ranks with the Völkischer Beobachter as a racist sheet with intellectual pretensions. Eckart had a tremendous effect on Hitler, and it was he who first introduced Hitler to all the wealthy and powerful people he needed make his crusade possible, including Henry Ford, who would later contribute "vital financial support" to the Nazi party. From Eckart, Hitler learned a great deal about the esoteric sciences, and it is said that they occasionally attended seances and talked to ghosts. Eckart, who died after the Beer Hall Putsch, is quoted as saying, "Hitler will dance, but it is I who play the tune."
Alfred Rosenberg
Eckart protegé, and soon Hitler’s as well, was Alfred Rosenberg, a man who would later become one of the architects of official Nazi policies. One of these policies was that all of the Masonic temples in all of the Nazis occupied territories were to be raided, and the goods shipped back to Rosenberg himself. This was done by Franz Six and Otto Ohlendorf, both occultists. Rosenberg was also friends with another occultist named Walther Darré, who became agricultural minister of the Third Reich. Together they ran around the nation drumming up support for an official state religion based on the worship of the Old Gods, a religion that included purifying the Aryan race of elements that were in the process of polluting it and diluting the strength of its blood.
Erik Jan Hanussen
In 1932, after his Nazi Party had lost much ground in the Reichstag, and his mistress Eva Braun had shot herself on Halloween Night, Hitler turned to his friend Erik Jan Hanussen, a well-known astrologer and occultist whom he had met back in 1926. Hanusen is supposed to have taught Hitler a number of exaggerated gestures to use in public speaking, ones which could be seen and understood from far away, and which would communicate a message through body language even if a person could not hear what he was saying. Hanussen had never read Hitler’s stars before, but on this occasion in 1932, upon request, he drew up an astrological chart for the future Führer, and told Hitler that his troubles stemmed from an evil hex that someone had cast on him. Furthermore, he said, the only way to get rid of it was for someone to go to a butcher’s backyard located in Hitler’s hometown -- at midnight, on a full moon -- and pull a mandrake out of the ground.
For those who don’t know, a mandrake is a "man-shaped" root with supposed medicinal properties which, according to European folklore, will emit an ear-shattering scream upon being uprooted. Sometime a dog would be sent on a suicide mission to pull the root while the magician plugged his own ears.
Hanussen performed the ritual himself, and on January 1st of 1933 came to Hitler predicting that he would return to power on the 30th of that month, a date roughly equivalent to the pagan sabbat of Oimelc. Of course, as is known to history, that is exactly what happened. A few weeks later, during a seance held on February 26, Hanussen predicted that the Communists would make another attempt at revolution in Germany, one that would begin by setting an important government building on fire. The next day the Reichstag was in flames and Hitler had all the excuse he needed to go from Chancellor of Germany to Führer of the Third Reich. Six weeks later, Hanussen was mysteriously murdered.
Wilhelm Gutberlet
There was also another astrologer, a shareholder in the Völkischer Beobachter who had been Hitler’s close friend since the days of the German Worker’s Party in 1919. In the memoirs of Walter Schellenberg he is described as "a Munich physician who belonged to the intimate circle around Hitler". Gutberlet believed in the ‘sidereal pendulum’, an astrological contraption, and claimed that this had given him the power to sense at once the presence of any Jews or persons of partial Jewish ancestry, and to pick them out in any group of people. Hitler availed himself of Gutberlet’s mystic power and had many discussions with him on racial questions.
Rudolf Hess
A friend of Hitler’s from way back, he had been arrested at the Beer Hall Putsch with him in 1923, and had transcribed Hitler’s Mein Kampf (originally titled Four and a Half Years of Struggle Against Lies, Stupidity and Cowardice) while they were both in prison. He later became Hitler’s Deputy Führer. He was an "intimate" of the Thule Society and was way into the occult. Hess introduced Hitler to one of his professors, Karl Haushofter, a man with an interest in astrology who claimed clairvoyance. Haushoffer later came to wield considerable power in Germany by founding the Deutsche Akadamie, and by heading the University of Munich’s Institute Geopolitik -- "A kind of think tank-cum-intelligence agency", according to Levenda. He was vital in forming the Nazi alliances with Japan and South America, and was responsible for the adoption of the Lebensraum ("Living Space") policy, which stated that "a sovereign nation, to ensure the survival of its people, had a right to annex the territory of other sovereign nations to feed and house itself."
Himmler and the S.S.
The S.S. (Schutzstaffel) was originally formed as a personal bodyguard to Hitler, and numbered around 300 when Heinrich Himmler joined. But when he rose to its leadership in 1929, things changed a bit. Four years later, membership had soared to 52,000. He established headquarters at a medieval castle called Wewelsburg, where his secret inner order met once a year. According to Walther Schellenberg’s memoirs:
Each member had his own armchair with an engraved silver nameplate, and each had to devote himself to a ritual of spiritual exercises aimed mainly at mental concentration. The focal point of Wewelsburg, evidently owing much to the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, was a great dining hall with an oak table to seat twelve picked from the senior Gruppenführers. The walls were to be adorned with their coats of arms.
Underneath this dining hall there was kept a so-called "realm of the dead", a circular well in which these coats of arms would be burnt and the ashes worshipped after the "knight" had died. (There are tales of Himmler using the severed heads of deceased S.S. officers to communicate with ascended masters). In addition to this, each knight had his own room, "decorated in accordance with one of the great ancestors of Aryan majesty." Himmler’s own room was dedicated to a Saxon King Henry the Fowler, whose ghost Himmler sometimes conversed with.
Outside of the inner order, SS officers were discouraged from participating in Christian ceremonies, including weddings and christenings, and celebrated the Winter Solstice instead of Christmas. The traditional day of gift exchange was switched to the day of the summer solstice celebration. These ceremonies were replete with sacred fires, torchlit processions, and invocations of Teutonic deities, all performed by files of young blond-haired, blue-eyed Aryan supermen. Although Himmler admired the ceremonial nature of Catholicism and modeled the S.S. partially on the Order of the Jesuits, he also despised Christianity for what he considered its weak, masochistic nature. He held further resentment because of the persecution of German witches during the Inquisition.
Himmler, along with Richard Darré, was responsible for absorbing The Ahnenerbe Society "a kind of seminary and teaching college for the future leaders of the Thousand Year Reich", into the S.S. The Ahenenerbe was devoted to some odd völkish studies, each of which had a subdivision dedicated to it: Celtic Studies, Externsteine (near Wewelsburg), where the world-tree Yggdrasil was supposed to reside, Icelandic research; Tibetan research, Runic studies; a strange new twist on physics called the "World Ice Theory", an archeological research in an effort to find evidence of past Aryan presence in remote locations all over the world, such as South America, giving rise to "Aryans discovered America" stories.
Another theory propounded by Himmler was that babies that had been conceived in cemeteries would inherit the spirits of whoever was buried there, and actually published lists of cemeteries that were good for breeding because of the Teutonic heroes resting therein. Himmler was obsessed with the concept of the Holy Grail, and hired researchers to try and prove that the Grail was actually a Nordic pagan artifact.
The Allied Occult Offense
Himler was obsessed by the idea that British Intelligence was being run by the Rosicrucian order, and that occult adepts were in charge of MI5. Whether or not that was true, the Germans were certainly not the only participants in the war using the power of magick to their advantage. Levenda provides the details of a "Cult Counterstrike" organized by the intelligence agencies of the U.S. and Britain, an effort centering around the "most evil man in the world", the Great Beast 666, Aleister Crowley.
Crowley had gone to live in New York during WWI after being rejected for military service by the British government, and began writing "pro-German propaganda" for a magazine called The Fatherland, published by George Viereck. Crowley took over as editor. He later claimed that he had really been working for British Intelligence, because his articles were so outlandish that the journal was reduced to absurdity, a caricature of serious political discussion, which would help the British cause more than harm it.
There is some evidence to suggest that Crowley was working for MI5 during this time, spying on his fellow OTO initiate Karl Germer, a German intelligence agent, so perhaps his excuse for working for The Fatherland is sound. Whatever the case, he was definitely hired by MI5 during WWII.
Crowley had become friends with author Dennis Wheatley, well-known for a number of fiction and non-fiction books based on the occult who had once worked for Winston Churchill’s Joint Planning Staff. He had been introduced to Crowley by a journalist named Tom Driberg, who would later become a spy for MI5 as well, and who would come into possession of Crowley’s diaries shortly after his death in 1947. Wheatley also introduced Crowley to yet another MI5 agent, Maxwell Knight.
Knight was the real historical figure behind the fictional character "M" in all the James Bond novels, written by Knight’s friend in the Department of Naval Intelligence, Ian Fleming. Crowley met Knight for dinner at Wheatley’s house, and it was there that Crowley agreed to take them both on as magick students. Later, Ian Fleming dreamed up a way to use Crowley’s expertise in a scheme against the Germans.
The scheme involved an Anglo-German organization known as "The Link", a supposed "cultural society" which had once been under the leadership of Sir Barry Domville, Director of Naval Intelligence from 1927 to 1930. The Link had been investigated by Maxwell Knight in the 1930s because of its involvement in German spy operations, and was soon dissolved after much incriminating evidence was found.
As Levenda describes, Fleming "thought that the Nazis could be made to believe that the The Link was still in existence, they could use it as bait for the Nazi leadership. The point was to convince the Nazis that The Link had sufficient influence to overthrow the Churchill government and thereby to install a more pliable British government, one which would gladly negotiate a separate peace with Hitler."
The suggestion came in the form of fake astrological advice passed on to the gullible Rudolf Hess, who was already under the delusion that only he could talk the British into peace with Germany, and that it was his destiny to do so. One of his staff astrologers, Dr. Ernst Schulte-Strathaus, under British employ, encouraged Hess to make his mission to England on May 10, 1941 a significant date because of a rare conjunction of six planets in the sign of Taurus. The Duke of Hamilton was also enlisted to let Hess know that he would be happy to entertain him should he plan to go through with such an endeavor.
So Hess, a trained pilot, embarked on a rather dangerous solo flight to the British Isles, parachuting into Scotland donned in various occult symbols, where he was immediately arrested by the waiting Brits.
Fleming tried to obtain permission for Crowley to debrief Hess in order to develop intelligence on the occult scene in the Third Reich and particularly the Nazi leadership. But this permission was denied, and Hess spent the rest of his days in prison not being much use to anybody. What could have been a major propaganda coup against the Nazis went utterly wasted, as if by tacit agreement on both sides.
After Hess’ arrest, Hitler denounced him as a crazed madman, and began persecuting astrologers and occultists in his own domains more so than ever before. Crowley continued trying to help the Allied cause, but most of his ideas were rejected.
One, however, while initially dismissed, was later implemented. This involved dropping occult pamphlets on the German countryside that predicted a dire outcome for the war and depicted the Nazi leadership as Satanic. A forgery of a popular German astrological magazine called Zenit was created and dropped onto enemy battlefields. It was set for full-scale distribution, but the delivery was intercepted by the Gestapo before it could be completed.
Besides Crowley, there were other occultists involved in the fight against the Third Reich. One of Crowley’s protegés, Jack Parsons, who was the Head of the Agapé O.T.O. Lodge in California as well as a charter member of both Cal-Tech and the Jet propulsion Laboratory, invented the "Greek Fire" rocket propellant which was widely used by the United State Navy between 1944 and 1945. It was a solution that could have only come from someone with a working knowledge of the arcane lore of alchemy and magic.
[Parsons later killed himself in an accident involving fulminate of mercury. He had been driven crazy and proclaimed himself the Anti-Christ after becoming involved with one "Frater H", who was actually a spy sent by Naval Intelligence to infiltrate the O.T.O. That spy’s name was L. Ron Hubbard!]
There was also a Golden dawn initiate named Sam Untermyer, an attorney and wealthy philanthropist once called a "Satanist" by a British newspaper. Untermyer started the "Non-Sectarian Anti-Nazi League to Champion Human Rights" and the "World-Anti-Nazi Council", which both promoted the boycott of German products. He also donated money to the hunt for Nazi agents coming into New York. And with the help of a man named Richard Rollins, he started a secret society called "the Board" which engaged in counterespionage against Nazi groups who were recruiting in the United States.
World War II was a magick war, and a holy war, a war in which both sides consider themselves to be fighting the forces of evil. It was a war operated behind the scenes by mystical adepts using their esoteric knowledge of symbolism, astrology, meditation, astral travel, clairvoyance, and mind control against the enemy. A war inspired by age-old beliefs in the Elder Gods of Europe’s ancient past.