Zeyon: One of the last Great Beings Know as the Ventrillions. Zeyon is One of if Not the most powerful being in the Multiverse Capable of taking on Huge armies Single handily, His Super speed ,Strength, time Manipulation , strategic Capabilities , And Genius intellect Make him A match for anyone!

Alice: Diana has really gotten my curiosity up, Batman. Quite a declaration! The greatest mind in the Justice League!

 

Batman: ...

 

Wonder Woman: (thinking) Oh no, I know that look. Alice, be careful with what you say. Should I interrupt? No, it would do no good.

 

Alice: Why, it's actually like a gauntlet being thrown down. I think such an intellect should be tested.

 

Batman: ...

 

== Markovia- Five Months Ago==

 

Slade Wilson. If anyone asked who was the best killer in the business, chances are, his name would be the first to come up every time. Trained in the US army, he was the only one in his squad to volunteer for the experiments that would grant him enhanced strength, intellect and a healing factor. When Strange recruited him in Markovia, toppling a monarchy of some kind, he was quick to suss out his true agenda (or one of them at least). The only member to know the truth about Arkham City, Strange was adamant he be put in charge, the only one he was sure he could trust. So long as the money didn't run out, which was never going to be an issue with the Court of Owls.

 

====Today====

 

*The fire basks them in an orange glow.*

 

Talia- Tea?

 

Miranda- Yes.

 

*She pours a stream of Chinese tea from the teapot, and they drink*

 

Talia- Your father was once a powerful man, and a friend of the League. He must be proud of you.

 

* "He is." she replies, not taking her eyes off the tea, sipping it slowly in case it's poisoned. Talia watches her curiously, it was ten years ago when they first drank tea together, and she had been just as suspicious then*

 

Talia- Good. I'm glad.

 

Miranda- Still with *your* dad, I presume?

 

*Talia stokes the flames with a wooden stick*

 

Talia I work with him, yes. But, I am here now, not as your enemy, but as an old friend, and as a sister, warning you. Turn back.

 

*Miranda rises*

 

Miranda- Yeah, no, I don't think so. Thanks for the tea. And, uh, knocking out Chancer for a bit.

 

Talia- Please. There is no safe space for your family. Ra's Al Ghul is a man of great resources, you know this. If The Demon's Head has decided that your family must be punished, that your husband must pay, you must understand that there is no place on earth where they can go where they can't reach them. But it is not too late for you. My father is still fond of you, if you would only-

 

Miranda- I'm not going back Talia. You should be the one joining *me.* Help us stop him, before he destroys Gotham, or whatever it is he's planning.

 

...

 

Talia- My father has sired hundreds of children, many of whom have perished in the name of his cause. In spite of his fondness for myself and for you, he will not hesitate to sacrifice either of us, if we were to stand in his way. He may be a man of honour, but even he has his limits. And he is tired of betrayal. Unfortunately for you, neither Hugo Strange nor The Court of Owls follow those same principles. Do you truly believe your husband has any hope in completing the Trials?

 

*Miranda had no intention of killing her. But in that moment, she was contemplating slapping her across the face*

 

Talia- I mean no disrespect, but he is not you, he is not my beloved, nor is he my father. You know that toys or not, he is but one man who's "training" has been conducted solely by arsonists and drug addicts in asylums and prisons, and when he challenges him, my father will draw his sword through his chest, and end him.

  

==San Francisco- Four Months Ago==

 

Alcatraz Island has changed a lot in the last year. The present home of the Suicide Squad, it has been completely renovated to accommodate the task force, and the scores of potential members and prisoners. One such inmate caught the attention of Senator Wade Eilling four years ago, when he fought the entire Justice League to a standstill. His real name may be purged from any computer database in the world, but his alias is well known by every government agency from Washington to Louisiana. Prometheus. He would become the second recruit of Task Force XI, much to the protests of Amanda Waller, who's warnings went unheeded. He didn't need to be a team player, Eilling thought, he didn't need to like the feds. He just needed to wear that helmet, and wear it well.

 

==========

 

*Those were Black Mask's men they'd past. Preparing for a siege of some kind. Armour, guns, makeshift tanks. Selina growled. Roman Sionis was far from a friend of hers, and she'd very much like to keep out of his territory*

 

Selina- Just where are we going?

 

Drury- The old GCPD precinct. About a hundred yards that way

 

Selina- The one you burnt down?

 

Drury- The one Gar- Yeah, that was us. We can set up a camp there, meet up with Miranda, and contact Chuck, Chuck Brown. He'll know what's going on.

 

Norbert- If he's alive.

 

Drury- Don't think like that Norbert.

 

*And yet, amidst the ruins and gunfire, it was hard for either of them not to rule it out. If only they knew all the Misfits had been through, and all which was still to come.*

 

==Brazil- Three Months Ago==

 

The Copperhead Gang was born out of poverty, living in the slums of Rio, quickly taking over the favellas and establishing a vicious syndicate of drugs, murder, and occasionally cannibalism. Only two ever left for the States, the most talented out of all of them. One, Larissa Diaz, specialised in poisons, and acrobatics, currently resides in Central City, as one of the city's biggest crime bosses. The other, a John Doe, a body contortionist, was deported to a Brazilian jail after Edward Nygma sent out an anonymous tip when a previous team-up saw him throttled one too many times. This Copperhead's skills are just as great as his unpredictability, but there was no doubt in Strange's mind he'd come in handy.

 

========

 

She brought him to an old warehouse, filled with C-Listers. A few glared at him. The Iceberg Shooting, and the ensuing hunt had hurt them badly. They didn't quite like Needham. He didn't blame them. But of course, they liked Penguin even less. Rigger offers a handshake, and Needham takes it, addressing the assembly.

 

Needham- None of you shoulda come here. You don't know what Penguin's capable of.

 

Rigger- We knew what we signed on for. Didn't we lads? We're getting you out of here, and we're doing it tonight.

 

*A pair of gloved hands clap, and from behind Zeiss emerges*

 

"Actually, I don't think you do. Penguin isn't the one you have to worry about. It's me"

 

Rigger- And who the hell are you, Mohawk Man?

 

*Dragonfly spits on the ground*

 

Meghan- Zeiss. His name is Zeiss.

 

He smirked. "My reputation precedes me. Let's make this interesting." He slicks back his hair, and he tosses his guns to the side, and empties his pocket. "Now we've leveled the playing level... Let's begin"

 

Ten was first. He ran at Zeiss with everything he had, but was thrown to the ground almost instantaneously. Rigger was next, firing blasts of Napalm from his gun, none landing their mark. He was grabbed from behind and pushed into the dirt. To add insult to injury, Zeiss jumped on his leg, snapping it in two. A perfect compound fracture. Dragonfly flew in furiously, trading blows, but he sweeped her off her feet, knocking off balance, leaving her vunerable enough for him to take her out next. Then came the Spiders. Eric Needham was done letting people get hurt because of him- he and Violet rushed Zeiss, and for a while it looked like they might just beat him. Then he pinned Needham's arm behind his back, and dislocated it. Then he did it again with the other arm. Distracted, and rushing to Needham's aid, Silken Spider was the last to fall.

 

Zeiss- What a disappointment. Oh we-

 

A squirt of ketchup covers his face. And he snarls. "Almost forgot about you." Mitchel Mayo, bottle in hand stands defia- he stands. "I... I should've used the peanut oil." Zeiss nods mockingly. "Well, it'd be a shame to break up the set."

 

==Manchester- Two Months Ago==

 

And lastly, the wildcard. Ever since he was a boy Abner Krill had an obsession with the round, the dotted and the circular. Some blamed it on autism, others claimed it was a form of OCD. But, whatever the case, as he drank from a perfectly round coconut, atop a bar stool in the middle of his living room, one thing was certain- it was one hell of a quirk, and manifested itself in nearly aspect of his life. His latest in a long line of girlfriends was a Geordie called Dot.

With a gimmick like his, many wrote him off as a C-Lister. He let them believe that, kept the attention away from him. If they took a second to think about exactly how much power he has, he'd never get a moment's peace from the idiots wanting to have a go with his tech. He turns to his visitors, a bald man with a pair of dark glasses and a beard that couldn't possibly be real and his equally bald colleague with a spruce moustache, and reached into his pocket.

 

"Skittle?"

 

"No," Strange replies. Abner shrugs, and pours the whole packet into his mouth, washing it down with some more coconut milk straight from the source

 

"Sorry about that, was a bit peckish. So what's this job anyhow?"

 

==========

 

Len- Chuck.

 

Chuck- Len.

 

Len- You look like shit.

 

*"You don't. Soda please" he replies faintly. Len nods, and fills the glass with something that's definitely not cola.*

 

Chuck- You shouldn't be here. Bartending. Not here.

 

Len- Neither should you. Needham escapes, you were the last one to see him... If I can connect the dots, then so can-

 

Chuck- I can't explain it, not now, not-

 

"Well, you better explain it. Fast."

 

Sionis- Where's my Spider, Charlie?

 

==Arkham City- Four Days Ago==

 

"I want in."

 

Strange turned to the bearded, shaggy haired imbecile behind the glass. He'd stop scratching the walls. That was some progress, though they'd still spot him pacing about on all fours every now and again. They'd caught him nine months prior, when he'd broken into Julian Day's cell with a kitchen knife, and he had been hissing at the guards ever since. Strange, the file said he had brown eyes, but it was green ones staring at him now.

 

Strange- Absolutely not.

 

"I'm a wild animal Doc. Need to feel the wind on my face, need to kiss a girl or two. Need a cell that's not two meters big!"

 

Strange- And how can you assure me you won't simply kill me or Mr Day?

 

"Can't. But you're a shrink. Admit it, you're curious"

 

Strange- Very well Thomas. I will see what I can do.

 

He kicked his lips. Then spat out a hairball.

 

"What?"

   

With each visit to Ladakh, I end up writing an essay on beauty. Has happened before and it happens again this time around. I'm not even surprised.

 

If there is one reason why Ladakh pulls me back year after year, it would be 'The People'. Not only are they genuinely kind and soft hearted but they define the word 'Beauty' in true sense.

 

In a world where beauty is applied in layers, smiles measured in grams and deeds connected to returns, here we have a place in middle of no where, away from all the madness of our "developed" world - with locals leading life as it's meant to be. Keeping it real and keeping it simple.

 

The idea of beauty is not the physical appearance of a person. Rather, it is an understanding of their culture, lifestyle and mannerisms that gives perceptual experience to one’s eyes, ears, intellect, and moral sense. Natural, powerful, real beauty originates from within the heart of individuals and when it blossoms, it is expressed in the most captivating, exquisite, and alluring manner which is hard to contain. Its contagious and I get a good dose of it with every visit to Ladakh. It's these people - the Ladakhis - who define the idea of beauty to me - in and out - period.

 

Yet another image of Padma Lamu - The Aryan. Everything said above holds true for this little girl. She defines beauty the right way.

 

#NikonD5 #Nikkor85mm

 

www.subodhshetty.com

 

#TMLE2017 #PhotowalkDubai #Workshops

 

#SoulTherapy #Ladakh2017

Dedicated to Tuvok

Security Chief – Spaceship Voyager – TV Series “Stark Trek”

To me he represents the energy of Logos, Apollo, Intellect, Rationalism I call A5.

  

HKD

 

Ansichtssache

Thema Nr. 9

 

Was sind meine Ansichten über den Intellekt? – A5

Wissen – Bewusstsein – Spiritualität – Religion

 

Für mich ist der Intellekt die Fähigkeit des Erkennens und der Differenzierung. Über ihn habe ich gelernt, mir selbst Rechenschaft über meine emotionale und schließlich geistige Befindlichkeit abgeben zu können.

Wer bin ich? Woher komme ich? Wo stehe ich? Welche Richtung schlage ich in meinem Leben ein?

 

Die Fragen selbst formulieren sich mit Hilfe des Intellekts und die Antworten sind das Ergebnis einer ausgiebigen Expansion des philosophischen und psychologischen Wissens.

 

Durch die Funktion des Intellekts wird die Emotionalität als solche und ihre Färbungen erkannt. Zweifellos drücken auch Tiere Emotionen aus, doch der mit seinem Schwanz wedelnde Hund besitzt nur den körperlichen Ausdruck seiner Freude.

 

Als kleines Kind lag die Motivation zur Ausbildung von Sprache und Wissen in mir verborgen und diese Sehnsucht nach Licht und Erkennen, das Streben nach „Gott“ und schließlich die Rückanbindung an „Ihn“ (religio = Rückanbindung) entwickelte sich aus ein und derselben Motivationskraft, nämlich der innerpsychischen Funktion des Intellekts, der für mich zur Grundkraft des Logos gehört.

 

Logos, Intellekt, Ratio… Ich verwende diese Begriffe häufig analog, manchmal differenziere ich sie noch untereinander, doch fasse ich sie in meinem Konzept unter der Bezeichnung Motivationskraft A5 zusammen.

 

Ich habe dieser Kraft in meinem Leben den Umstand meiner relativen Freiheit von der Ignoranz zu verdanken.

Durch Erkenntnis der Notwendigkeit der Vereinigung der Gegensätze von Logos und Eros, öffnete ich mich auch für die Hinwendung zur konkreten Erfahrung des Geistes und seiner Aspekte.

Der Logos führte mich zu Schamanen im Himalaya nachdem ich in Kathmandu (Nepal) zuvor die Stupa von Bodnath (buddhistisches Heiligtum) besucht und dort meine geistigen und intellektuellen Wurzeln geehrt habe.

 

Neben Ägypten liegt die andere Hochburg antiker geistiger Hochkulturen in Nordindien und dem heutigen Pakistan. Der philosophische und psychologische Buddhismus, den ich so nenne, um ihn respektvoll von der Volksreligion und ihren Regeln zu unterscheiden, gehört für mich zu den höchsten Erkenntnissen über die Aspekte des Geistes. Natürlich speist sich auch der Buddhismus aus noch älteren Quellen der Weisheit, ich möchte nur die indische „Advaita“ Tradition nennen.

 

Der Philosoph und Mystiker Ramesh Balsekar ist ein neuzeitlicher Vertreter dieser Weisheit. Seinen logisch präzisen Aussagen und nachvollziehbaren Schlussfolgerungen habe ich viele Erkenntnisse zu verdanken unter anderem die Auflösung der Restbestände meines christlichen Schuldbewusstseins.

 

Erkenntnis ist befreiend. Das Licht übte auf mich stets eine magische Anziehungskraft aus. Doch ich bin kein Lichtarbeiter. Ich kann meine emotionalen Wurzeln nicht leugnen, meine dunklen menschlichen Aspekte wie Neid, Eifersucht, Antipathie, Angst und Gier.

Natürlich ist meine ethische und gute Seite nicht erfreut über diese unbequemen Emotionen, doch werden sie vom Intellekt anerkannt und nicht verurteilt. Hagel, Sturm und Winter sind, was sie sind. Ich bin ein logisch orientierter Vertreter der Mitte, des mittleren Pfades und in so fern bringe ich das Licht des Herzens.

 

Der Weg zurück ins Herz, in dem Himmel und Erde, irdische Lust und geistige Klarheit vereint werden können, war für mich der logisch richtige Schritt. Logos und Eros sind antagonistische Pole – aus der Perspektive der Einheit in ihrer stärksten Ausprägung jeweilige Extreme. Daher erschien es mir unmöglich, ein nur geistiges Leben zu führen, wie es stark von A5 motivierte Menschen wollen und können.

 

Wer aus den Star-Trek-Serien Mr. Spok oder Tuvok kennt, hat Abbilder vor Augen, die ganz hervorragend auf „Menschen“ passen, die extrem von der Logik beherrscht werden. Aus der Sicht der Mitte, wird ein Mensch tatsächlich von einer Motivationskraft beherrscht. Sie macht mit ihm, was sie will und er kann sich nicht beherrschen, ob bei Schokolade, Sex oder geistiger Bildung.

 

Ohne die Motivationskraft die dem Logos, dem Intellekt oder der Ratio entspringt wäre mir Selbsterkenntnis nicht möglich. Ich danke den Gottheiten Apollon, Manjushri und allen anderen Göttern des Lichtes, die mir mit ihrer Einsichtsfähigkeit den Weg zurück ins Herz ebneten.

Im Licht ihrer Sonne vereinen sich Selbstliebe und Selbsthass zum Abenteuer Leben.

 

HKD

  

Digital Art – own resources

 

HKD

 

Mind Flayers and Intellect Devourers. Oh my!

“Totalitarianism is not a historical coincidence. In the final analysis, it is the logical consequence of mechanistic thinking and the delusional belief in the omnipotence of human rationality. As such, totalitarianism is the defining feature of the Enlightenment tradition.” ‒ Mattias Desmet

 

Totalitarianism is a product of the Enlightenment tradition. It places faith in human rationality. It’s a belief system in which man’s intellect can save man, the world, and the universe. Man will solve man’s problems, thus bringing salvation to mankind. Its priests desire to form a new society built on rationality. They want a world without pain and suffering. They even want to conquer death. Science, man’s new religion, has its own creation story. In this story, man has been reduced to particles that interact according to the laws of mechanics. Life and mankind were randomly produced without any purpose or direction. Man is seen as a machine; he works (repetitively) as a machine; he will merge with machine. The universe is also a machine, and it too will eventually be manipulated. The spiritual elect of this religion look forward to an artificial heaven on earth, where man and nature have been replaced by perfect technological clones. Once this happens, man will have conquered both man and nature. He will then gain eternal life. He will synthetically live forever. “Amen and Hallelujah!” shout the transhumanists. As a result, the totalitarians will have realized their goal of a superman/super race like the New Soviet Man/Aryan Race. The idolatry of science, which aims to create a perfect world, will ultimately result in a dystopian nightmare. Their rationality will become irrational. Secular humanism will fail.

 

“Man is at last becoming aware that he alone is responsible for the realization of the world of his dreams, that he has within himself the power for its achievement.” – Humanist Manifesto I

 

With science came technological advancement. These advances separated man from nature, tradition, and family. The industrial revolution changed the social fabric of society. Before industrialization, most families lived in rural areas and did agricultural work. The family worked together to support itself. Multiple generations lived together in the same area. Extended families were an important part of society. After industrialization, many families moved to urban areas and did manufacturing work. They became cogs in the machine, working meaningless jobs. This movement split up the extended family unit. Then there was one: the nuclear family. “The dynamics of industrialization contributed to the rise of single-parent families. Factors such as increased divorce rates, the normalization of out-of-wedlock childbirth, and the empowerment of women to raise children independently all played a role in this shift.” As you can see, the nuclear family has not fared too well. Technology produced the radio, television, and social media, which have created an antisocial society. Technology was supposed to make life easier; it was supposed to make us happier, yet it has made us lonely and unhappy. Society has lost its meaning. People come home from meaningless jobs, only to live meaningless social lives online. Wolves chase after those separated from the herd, because they are easy targets. When the isolated are rounded up and killed, no one will fight for them because they are isolated from the herd. Those who are alone and isolated will be seen as useless eaters by their enemies. “To keep you is no gain; to kill you is no loss.” Indeed, a lonely society is very prone to accepting totalitarianism.

 

The Enlightenment was supposed to empower us, yet we have become more powerless. The Enlightenment was supposed to make us more independent, yet we have become more dependent. Plus, technology is controlled by the few. With science, a perfect artificial world is being built. It’s creating a fake Garden of Eden that is full of genetically modified foods, lab-grown meat, sex dolls that look like Eve, and synthetic-fiber clothing to hide our naked bodies of sin. Don’t eat the genetically modified fruit, it will kill you! Automated machines, robots, and artificial intelligence will replace man’s toil. Artificial wombs will replace the pain of childbirth. The digital paradise being constructed dehumanizes us. It steals our humanity. It makes us insecure, unempathetic, narcissistic, apathetic, cowardly, lonely, and isolated. An insecure society is less resilient. An insecure society is easier to control. An unempathetic, narcissistic, apathetic, and cowardly society will look the other way when people are rounded up and killed. A lonely and isolated society is weak and submissive. They feel empty and meaningless, and they have little self-worth. Such a society yearns for direction and authority. They are weak and lazy and want someone (the state) to take care of them.

 

We have a dumbed-down society. The education system teaches us how to be cogs in the machine. Mass media is a giant propaganda machine, indoctrinating the masses. The ignorant zombies have been trained to listen to the experts. These experts lead the sheep with twisted data and statistics. Thus, the people are easily led. Safety: give up your freedom of privacy to fight terror. Misinformation: give up your freedom of speech to fight hate speech. 15-minute cities: give up your freedom of movement to fight climate change. Mass immigration: give up your culture for multiculturalism. Abortion is women’s health. Euthanasia is good. By the way, how many genders are there? Society has been molded and shaped. You have been taught what to think, not how to think.

 

“I don’t want a nation of thinkers, I want a nation of workers.” ‒ John D. Rockefeller

 

Students have been indoctrinated and radicalized by feminism, gender theory, critical race theory, and decolonialism. The goal: abolish women, gender, race, borders and nations. All hail the tranhumanist new world order! The youth are taught that capitalism is bad and socialism is good. They’ve been taught to hate their own country, traditions, values, and culture. They’ve been taught to hate their own race! Humiliation is a tool of control to shape and guide them. If a person loses their identity, they can be easily manipulated and brainwashed. Our youth have been taught that a communist revolution is necessary to overthrow capitalism. The end justifies the means! Therefore, radicals in the education system have raised up an army of woke activists. These woke evangelists have been poisoned by envy, hate, and bitterness. It doesn’t help that subversive billionaires are pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into supposed ‘organic’ protests, which are being organized by professional protesters (communist agitators). Wokeism is the new puritan movement of today, with its moral values and commandments. These born-again socialists preach the dialectic gospel of social(ist) justice and equality. These radicalized saints promise a perfect world. A radicalized society is prone to accepting totalitarianism. In fact, it’s extremely prone to accepting totalitarianism. Especially when the youth are radicalized!

 

“Give me just one generation of youth, and I’ll transform the whole world.” ‒ Vladimir Lenin

 

Science, the religion of the day, has become corrupted. Fraud in scientific research is increasing. Falsified scientific papers are becoming more and more common. The perception of reality can be steered by crunching numbers in any desired fashion. (Climate change data is famous for distorting numbers.) Totalitarians mold the perception of reality with propaganda. The COVID-19 hysteria, with its “follow the science,” was proof of its degeneration. People blindly became disciples of the experts. Their apostles commanded: Mask up, even though it’s ineffective! Social distance, even though it’s useless! Take a PCR test, even though it’s unreliable! Take the vaccines, even though they haven’t been properly tested! Ivermectin is bad, even though it can help some patients! The population must be locked down, even though it’s physically and mentally bad for their health and weakens their immune system! Herd immunity, what’s that? Small businesses must be shutdown, even though big corporations like Walmart can stay open! Schools must be shut down, even though the average age of death is 70+ years old! Fire the unvaccinated healthcare workers, even though the emergency rooms are supposedly full and short-staffed! TicTok nurses! Dance, baby, dance! We’re in a pandemic, can’t you see!?! Falsely mark down unrelated deaths as COVID deaths—beef up those numbers! Big numbers, big money! Since this is science, we must suppress opposing ideas! Science that censors different opinions is not science. Much of society faithfully trusted the science, with its religious experts and scientific doctrines, numbers and graphs. In Nazi Germany, children were conditioned to accept any form of authority without question. Without question, many people blindly obeyed the COVID restrictions. To this day, some people mask up in public. They are religious zealots! They still haven’t woken up from their indoctrination. The science of today: take a big pharma flu shot, rather than rely on your own immune system; take a big pharma flu shot, rather than eat foods that are high in antioxidants like vitamin C. Could you not just find a natural vitamin C supplement? Nope! We love big pharma! We love big corporations! We love Big Brother! We love fascism! Since you’ve been trained to be a consumer, you’ll consume what has been marketed to you. Oh, the science of propaganda! Ah, the science of marketing!

 

“Scientism has remained to this day one of the strongest Gnostic movements in Western society.” – Eric Voegelin

 

During COVID-19, people were not only begging for totalitarian measures, but they were applauding them. They wanted strict rules to ease their uncertainty, fear, and insecurity. They coped with their insecurity by running others down. The big bad enemies were not the Jews, but the unvaccinated. Fear needs an enemy! People were calling for the unvaccinated to be rounded up. Some even wanted the unvaccinated killed. This made them feel more secure, like they had the upper hand. They had the camaraderie of the mob; they felt like they belonged! The extra rules helped ease their anxiety. They felt more in control of their fear. The fellowship of the mob helped to further ease their stress and insecurity. There is security in numbers! They rebuked, denounced, and excommunicated heretical friends and relatives who strayed from the holy narrative. They felt righteous, because they were supposedly fighting for a righteous cause. This made them feel virtuous. They were crusaders for the truth, and they felt heroic! They felt relief as they took out their frustrations on their enemies. They blew off steam! They felt good! They felt energized!

 

These people had an authoritarian mindset. Their true selves, their true natures, came to the surface. They had a mob mentality. They had a pack mentality. These people were so filled with fear, hysteria, and panic that they could not think straight. They lost their ability to calm down and think things through. They could not regulate their fears and emotions. As a result, they could not think critically. How can one think critically in a panic? In fact, since they were taught to be cogs in the machine, they weren’t really taught to be critical thinkers. Just as a child must learn how to walk, a child must be taught how to critically think. They were taught to solve problems related to the machine, but they were not taught to think outside the machine. That is why they say things like: I support free speech, ‘but’ not hate speech. They don’t even understand how speech operates under the framework of free speech. They literally can’t understand the concept of free speech! It’s over their heads. Will these people ever change? Nope, I’ve yet to see any of them apologize for their actions during COVID. Given the right crisis, our society will accept totalitarianism.

 

Big government, with its increased bureaucracy, administration, and management, loves to make ever-increasing rules and regulations. We are drawing closer and closer to totalitarianism. We will soon have a totalitarian system with digital biometric IDs, central bank digital currencies, and social credit scores. We are becoming a total surveillance society. Our data is being collected, tracked, analyzed, and sold. COVID caused a worldwide hypnosis, a mass hysteria, in which the masses were ready to trade their freedoms for safety. Nothing much has changed. The world’s population is slowly being boiled like a frog; it’s slowly being corralled into a worldwide authoritarian system. Like Nazi Germany, many today would pick totalitarianism if they were promised economic solutions in a time of financial hardship. If we had another great depression like the 1930s, many in our decadent society would pick a totalitarian system. They would choose digital IDs, CBDCs, and social credit scores if they could receive universal basic income to feed their families. Is it really a stretch to see why people would accept the Mark of the Beast?

 

In the fourth industrial revolution, man will physically merge with technology. Of course, this technology is supposed to make man smarter and healthier. It’s supposed to turn man into the perfect superman. How can the imperfect make the perfect? Man is an imperfect sinner. He has sinned against God. God is perfect, and sin is imperfect. Perfection and imperfection do not mix. Righteousness and sin do not mix. Light expels darkness, God expels sin. God’s punishment for sin is death. God will permit sinful man to utilize his strength and rationality to attempt to work out his own salvation. Ultimately, man will fail. Christ will return to stop man from destroying all life on earth at the battle of Armageddon (Matthew 24:22). Jesus will destroy those who, in their sin, are destroying the earth (Revelation 11:18). Jesus first came as a sacrificial Lamb for the atonement of sins. The second time, Jesus will come as a roaring lion to destroy His enemies. His enemies will choose His imposter, the antichrist. They will accept the transhuman Mark of the Beast. As a result, they will forfeit salvation. Only in Christ (the perfect sacrifice) is sin forgiven. Will you accept His salvation? Or will you try, in your sin, to work out your own salvation?

 

Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and fellowship with him, and he with Me.”

 

Several years ago I created a group for women called WIIPS (Women of Intellect, Influence, Power & Strength) I believe a woman can be a most delicate, refined and elegant creature but beneath that demure facade lies a fierce warrior....Mari

 

Breaking Benjamin - Blow Me Away (Good Song)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTjnhS96Nyo

 

Bonnie Tyler-I Need A Hero

www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBwS66EBUcY

 

Where have all the good men gone and where are all the gods ?

Where's the street-wise Hercules to fight the rising odds ?

Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed ?

Late at night I toss and I turn and I dream of what I need

 

I need a hero, I'm holding out for at hero 'till the end of the night

He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast

And he's gotta be fresh from the fight

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the morning light

He's gotta be sure and it's gotta be soon

And he's gotta be larger than life, larger than life

 

Doo doo doo doooo, doo doo doo doooo, doo doo doo doooo

Aaahhh, aaahhh

 

Somewhere after midnight, in my wildest fantasy

Somewhere just beyond my reach

There's someone reaching back for me

Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat

It's gonna take a superman to sweep me off my feet

 

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the end of the night

He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast

And he's gotta be fresh from the fight

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the morning light

He's gotta be sure and it's gotta be soon

And he's gotta be larger than life

 

I need a hero, I'm holding out for at hero 'till the the end of the night

 

Up where the mountains meet the heavens above

Out where the lightning splits the sea

I could swear there is someone somewhere, watching me

Through the wind and the chill and the rain and the storm and the flood

I can feel his approach, like a fire in my blood

 

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the end of the night

He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast

And he's gotta be fresh from the fight

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the morning light

He's gotta be sure and it's gotta be soon

And he's gotta be larger than life

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the end of the night

He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast

And he's gotta be fresh from the fight

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the morning light

He's gotta be sure and he's gotta be soon

And he's gotta be larger than life

I need a hero, I'm holding out for a hero 'till the end of the night

strobist-info:-sb900-thru-beauty dish-front-sb900s-thru-umbrella- left-and-right-of-subject

the bird with the intellect and mildly destructive curiosity of a toddler with a can opener.

"You were always meant to be Batgirl, Barbara."

 

('Batgirl' and motorcycle by DC Collectibles / DC Icons 'Batgirl of Burnside' Deluxe Figure)

 

Diorama by RK

cof

www.brianfolchetti.com

 

You have to view this LARGE

 

If you were to break me up into nine different people, these are most likely the people you'd get:

 

1) The gangster

2) The computer geek

3) The professional

4) The daddy

5) The photographer

6) The sports nut

7) The preppy bully

8) The gamer

9) The intellect

 

Strobist:

AB800 w/ Softbox above camera

AB800 w/ reflector camera left and behind high

Triggered with Cybercyncs

 

Follow me on Twitter

“In the morning I bathe my intellect in the stupendous and cosmogonal philosophy of the Bhagavad gita, since whose composition years of the gods have elapsed, and in comparison with which our modern world and its literature seem puny and trivial; and I doubt if that philosophy is not to be referred to a previous state of existence, so remote is its sublimity from our conceptions.

 

I lay down the book and go to my well for water, and lo! there I meet the servant of the Bramin, priest of Brahma and Vishnu and Indra, who still sits in his temple on the Ganges reading the Vedas, or dwells at the root of a tree with his crust and water jug. I meet his servant come to draw water for his master, and our buckets as it were grate together in the same well. The pure Walden water is mingled with the sacred water of the Ganges.”

― Henry David Thoreau, Walden: Or, Life in the Woods

Here's a so-called Phantom Cranefly, Ptychoptera sp. (I think: contaminata). It's decorating a Spring-green Bramble leaf. I watched it land and it was carefully folding in its wings, almost geometrically. Ptychoptera, in fact, comes from the Greek and means something like: Folded Wings.

I wonder what they do all day. I read somewhere that the adults don't eat or only very little. Perhaps they just wait to multiply although I suspect Geometric Multiplication is just above their intellects.

Whatever... but they're really quite beautiful.

2016 Sydney Chinese New Year: Opera House lit red

  

Year of the Monkey

 

"People born in the Year of the Monkey are fun-loving, energetic and inquisitive. Their intellect allows them to adapt to any situation, they are confident, charismatic, loyal and inventive.

Sometimes, the Monkey can be a little too curious for his or her own good, as well as careless, restless, immature and arrogant."

  

whatson.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/posts/lunar-lanterns

The Standard Poodle combines expansive intellect and stunning good looks. This Poodle is COCO MILLER, a flamboyant redhead (who wears a goatee) and a country gentleman.

An organic entity found wounded and close to death, the BR4-1N was grafted into a spaceship to ensure her survival. She now serves as part of the fleet using her superior intellect to strategise attack patterns before relaying them to the other fighters.

 

This is the 3rd ship in my fleet of Neo Classic Space inspired attack craft.

It would be a lie to say Belle Reve Penitentiary had seen worse days. Even in times of riot, attack by supervillains, and the occasional inspection by the IRS, Belle Reve had stood strong, and retained an air of cold defiance in the face of adversity.

 

But Belle Reve had never seen anything like this. Thick, twisted kudzu gripped its fingers around every surface that unrecognizable fungi did not grow. Brilliant flowers twisted into themselves, each petal pronged and barbed. There was not a surface of the facility that was not covered in foliage

 

And absolutely none of it was natural.

 

A green flash vomits the Squad violently to the border of the verdant invasion, a good seven hundred feet from the Belle Reve doors.

 

Boomerang: Strewth, what a landing.

 

Deadshot: Bend, what the hell?

 

Angelo Bend, baffled, shakes his device with a ferocity, hitting any button, hoping for any results.

 

Angle-Man: I . . . The device won’t work, I dunno! Look, Every time I try and use it, it shorts out.

 

Sonar: Perhaps your inferior intellect has finally broken it.

 

Deadshot: Don’t start, Wladon. Bend, you’ve gotta have a damn good reason for this.

 

Angle-Man: I don’t know! I tell you, I don’t know! Maybe it really has just shorted out finally!

 

Armageddon: Uh, ‘scuse me for talkin’ out of turn here, but uh, that Exclamation fellah mentioned any tech they send in they lose communications with. Maybe this is the same kinda thing?

 

Sonar thinks for a minute, then attempts one of his sound blasts. All he succeeds in is blowing one of his own fingertips off.

 

Sonar: AAAHH, Aaahh, Sweet lord, what has brought this upon me?!

 

Boomerang: I’d say y’own inferior intellect, eh?

 

Deadshot: So the both of you are dead weight, got it.

 

He rips off a shred of Sonar’s cape and wraps it around his half a finger.

 

Deadshot: Just as well, if Flag and Co. never came out, there’s nothing saying we will either. May as well have a few guaranteed survivors.

 

At their feet, there’s a noticeable difference in the grass. At the border of where the surreal foliage stops, the grass is longer, coarser, and a deeper shade of green. None of them notice however. None but Mike Aparo, plucking a single blade and inspecting it closely. He hisses in his mask, and tears the blade in half.

 

Deadshot: Alright, Harkness, Conway, Aparo, you’re with me. Aparo?

 

Boomerang: Looks like he’s scarpered, mate.

 

And indeed, a trail of footprints imbedded in the soft grass, the size and shape of Mike Aparo’s boots, leads steadily into the greenery.

 

-----------------------------------------------------

 

The sound of birdsong is a sound entirely out of place in Belle Reve, and yet, the sing-song twittering of birds unknown came from the rafters far overhead. The architecture appears to have shifted slightly, but it was impossible to tell in that strangling, suffocating foliage. Vines snaked their way through old windows, up cell bars and darted in and broke down doors.

 

Bodies lay strewn about in violent, and impossible positions. One corpse is practically reduced to a skeleton, a vine jammed through his hip-bone, crawling through his ribcage and ripping through his skull. There’s a broken, frail pair of glasses next to him.

 

Captain Boomerang’s eye is caught by a glint below his feet. He bends down to inspect it, and stands again with a pair of dog tags in his fingers.

 

“Doc Evans,” He reports, quietly.

 

The other two stop and turn around slowly.

 

“He one of the Task Force fellas?” Asks Armageddon. There’s a hint of anxiety in his drawl.

 

“Yeah,” replies Deadshot, “the brainiest one. Doesn’t bode well.” Despite the birdsong, there’s a stillness to the air. It makes him uncomfortable. He shifts on his feet, and wishes for a rifle.

 

Boomerang flips the tags through his fingers absently and says “Y’notice he’s nothin’ but bones? I may not be a genius cobber, but even I know y’can’t melt down to ya clackers in only a matter of hours.”

 

After a minute, Deadshot replies, “You’re not wrong, but that’s not the issue at hand.”

 

Then it hits them, the faint smell of chemicals. “Sirs,” Armageddon pipes up again, “I think I found the trail of our Mister Orange.”

 

Slashed like a gaping wound through the foliage, a sizzling, chemical burned trail snakes out in front of them. Following it, carefully stepping over thick roots and passing spiny plants, eventually they come across Agent Orange, wildly spraying some corrosive chemical over everything around him. He cackles gleefully as he arcs poison in all directions.

 

“Oh the glorious, delicious scent of pesticide!” He cries.

 

Deadshot shouts his name, and hurries up to him, careful not to get any of the sizzling fluid on himself. He wraps his hands around Agent Orange’s collar

 

“Breathe deeply,” says Aparo, “Inhhaallle all the flavorrrrr.”

 

“This isn’t a goddamn vacation,” Deadshot hisses acidly, “You stick to the mission, you follow my lead, you defoliate what I point at. Understood?”

 

Agent Orange giggles and nods, but says nothing of intelligence. Deadshot lets him go, and orders Armageddon to the front. Armageddon and his Axe. He swings mightily and chops heavily, carving through the undergrowth like so much butter.

 

“So eh, have we got a cardinal in mind eh?” Asks Boomerang, swatting away at an insect species that never existed before today.

 

“Come again?” says Deadshot, flatly.

 

“A direction, mate. Otherwise we’ll just wander around this bloody jungle ‘till we too are moldy bones.”

 

“I say we get to the monitor room,” Says Deadshot after a minute. “At the very least, maybe we can salvage some footage from last night, maybe find out what went wrong.”

 

“Do we actually plan on extracting the other team, sir?” Huffs Armageddon, his arms slowly growing weary.

 

“If we come across ‘em,” Deadshot replies, his scope training on a passing bird, “If not, we know what happened to at least one of ‘em.”

 

In the distance, comes a rattling wheeze that quickly descends into a dismal, low moan. Steadily, it grows, and grows, exploding into a crescendo of wailing, mournful, ear-splitting noise. A wicked, teeth-shattering bawl. The Squad all drop and ready their weapons, whirling their heads in every direction, but nothing comes.

 

The moaning stops.

 

“What the hell was that?!” Shouts Boomerang.

 

“Doesn’t matter,” Deadshot manages to spit out. “Doesn’t matter. Let’s just keep moving.”

 

---------------------------------------------

 

In the mess hall, the first signs of violence made themselves truly apparent. Frozen bodies, petrified with lichens and rigor mortis, lay strewn everywhere. One prisoner’s remains grew into one of the long tables, bisected in half by it’s surface. One duo died locked in combat, scratching and biting at each other’s throats. Another still, had stabbed forks into his own hands, and remained seated upright, long after death. Dozens of bodies rested in this way. And all of them were covered in mushrooms.

 

Boomerang makes the effort to wrap his scarf around the lower part of his face, thankful that the accessory finally had a use except as a handle for The Flash to grab him by. Silently, grimly, the four pass through the mess hall, and down into the nearest corridor.

 

The corridor, they realize, leads to the guardrooms. This did not use to be the case. The staircase, once straightforward and short, winds down and down, plunging into the earth, winding in spirals. The walls, soft and slimy to the touch, seemed to heave lightly, as if breathing on their own. As if alive. Tiny, incandescent plants lined the walls, and provided low light in the descent.

 

The Guardroom, when they reached it, seemed surprisingly unchanged, save for a thick layer of dust over everything, ashen and gray.

 

“Alright,” Says Boomerang, “We need ta take bloody stock.”

 

“Meaning?” Replies Deadshot.

 

“I don’t understand,” Says Armageddon shakily, “I ain’t been here long, but I don’t remember any of this place bein like this.” He buries his face in his hands, muttering something about “them walls, them walls . . . “

 

“Meaning,” says Boomerang, “meaning that th’rookie’s right. The stairs didn’t used to go in bloody circles. And what happened to all those poor blokes up there, eh? What drove em to mad killin’? Why’s this room been mostly untouched. What the hell is going on in here?”

 

Agent Orange fiddles with his gun, muttering about green.

 

Deadshot looks to each of the squaddies. He senses the growing restlessness. As calm as he possibly can, he says,

 

“I can’t pretend I know. But if we can find the monitor room, maybe we can figure it out.”

 

“Yeah,” says Boomerang after a minute, “yeah, fair enough.”

 

Then, there’s a humming. A buzzing. At first, like a cloud of bees, then like a swirl of dissonant voices, coming from the stairs behind them. It grows louder, slowly, but steadily. It grows closer just as fast. A warm, gold light begins to slowly trickle in ahead of it.

 

“Run.” Whispers Deadshot.

 

Boomerang, Armageddon, and Agent Orange all bolt out the door to the rear that didn’t exist until today. Deadshot takes a deep breath as the sputtering voices grow louder. For a second, he considers facing it. For a second, he considers fighting. Then, on the wall, a small, framed picture of a girl, almost entirely obscured by dust, catches his eye. He picks it up, dusts it off, places it on his belt, and sprints off after the others.

 

I'm intrigued in this quote by Jung mentioning "hands."

1. I, the pure, stainless and infinite Consciousness beyond maya, look upon this body in action like the body of another.

 

2. The mind, the intellect, the senses, etc. are all the play of Consciousness. They are unreal and seem to exist only due to lack of insight.

 

3. Unmoved by adversity, a friend of all the world in prosperity, without ideas of existence and non-existence, I Live free from misery.

 

4. Inactive am I, desireless, clear as the sky, free from hankering, tranquil, formless, everlasting and unmoving.

 

5. I have now clearly understood that the five elements, the three worlds and I myself are pure Consciousness.

 

6. I am above everything ; I am present everywhere ; I am like space; I am that which (really) exists; I am unable to say anything beyond this.

 

7. Let imaginary waves of universe rise or fall in me who am the ocean of infinite Consciousness ; there is no increase or decrease in me.

 

8. How wonderful that in me, the infinite ocean of Consciousness, waves of jivas (individual souls) rise, sport for a while and disappear according to their nature.

 

9. The world which has come into existence on account of my ignorance has dissolved likewise in me. I now directly experience the world as supreme bliss of Consciousness.

 

10. I prostrate to myself who am within all being, the ever free Self abiding as inner consciousness.

 

---

 

Yoga Vasishta Sara - SELECTED VERSES - Meditation on the Self

   

In mythology, and in the study of folklore and religion, a trickster is a character in a story (god, goddess, spirit, human, or anthropomorphisation), which exhibits a great degree of intellect or secret knowledge, and uses it to play tricks or otherwise disobey normal rules and conventional behaviour.

"Final and perfect happiness can consist in nothing else than the vision of the Divine Essence...

Consequently, for perfect happiness the intellect needs to reach the very Essence of the First Cause. And thus it will have its perfection through union with God as with that object, in which alone man's happiness consists."

– St Thomas Aquinas, Summa theologiæ, Ia IIæ, 3, 8.

 

Detail from a painting in the Cathedral of San Cristobal de La Laguna in Tenerife.

 

My sermon for Trinity Sunday 2020 can be read here.

LILAC will align and balance all of the chakra centers of the body and it spiritualizes the intellect. It awakens mental clarity and its essence can help us to link more productively with the kingdom of nature spirits. Lilac draws protective spirits into one’s life and it is a wonderful fragrance to use in meditation to open to your spirit guides. Sitting near or beneath a lilac while meditating opens doors to the Faerie Realm. Lilac also activates greater clairvoyance. The faeries of this flower are musical in their communication. Mostly, it helps us realize that there is an inherent beauty within all things. This is a time to balance spiritual activities with intellectual activities. Spirit is close and willing to work with you. Now is the time to open and develop trust with your guides. ~Nature Speaks - Ted Andrews

From the moment you came into this world

A ladder was placed in front of you

That you might escape

From earth you became plant,

From plant you became animal,

Afterwards you became a human being,

Endowed with knowledge, intellect and faith.

 

Behold the body, born of dust,

How perfect it has become!

Why should you fear its end?

When were you ever made less by dying?

When you pass beyond this human form,

No doubt you will become an angel

And soar through the heavens!

 

But don't stop there.

Even heavenly bodies grow old.

Pass again from the heavenly realm

And plunge into the vast ocean of consciousness.

Let the drop of water that is you

Become a hundred mighty seas.

 

But do not think that the drop alone

Becomes the ocean,

The ocean, too, becomes the drop!

 

Rumi

I think I'm pretty good at reading people .... My first thought about John was that I myself never looked so good in a crisp blue pinstripe shirt and sharp white linen clamdigger drawstring pants ..... and I've certainly never been able to grow my beard with that wild and beautiful abandon .... but after spending our first few moments together ... I wasn't quite sure if John was a college lecturer and eccentric ... or just bat shit crazy and homeless ... After several more connections over time I'm afraid my assessment confirmed the latter two .... I saw still that John's sharpness and clarity was always somewhat there ... but most times it was distant and gave way to flights of near insanity and delusions ... well ... there's the rub .... I've been around a few blocks and seen alot of stuff in my time ... yet still couldn't at first glance draw a clear distinction between the two .... in truth turns out John embodies both of those natures ... articulate and precise and charming - (I think you can clearly see those qualities in his eye's twinkle) - but here he is ... in spite of that charm and intellect that I first saw ... he was living on the street ... sometimes dapper ... other times discheveled .... some times coherent ...most times not .... and I'd come to know also that apparently he's in and out of trouble with the police ... I guess the point is that life itself can be pretty delicate .... and just to be aware and careful to always try to walk that fine and fragile line that guides us to our higher spiritual nature .... and try ... like your life depends on it ... to keep the balance ....

Life is always inspiring, the scenery around us, the situations we find ourselves in and the people we meet can all contribute to some great moments of inspiration.

 

Our entire environment is interconnected with its life forms, which are interconnected and inter-reliant on each other. The complexity is enormous, perhaps beyond the scope of the limited human intellect. Within this fabric of life there is a perfect consistency and response to influences, until man steps in and begins breaking apart the individual elements thread by thread without understanding the fabric which is the whole.

 

If you look at a piece of fabric or knitting, there is always one side that looks beautiful. Then, when you turn it over, there is the messy side. The side that contains all of the loose yarns and threads. You can't have one side without the other. Both are necessary for creating the finished piece. And, the same can be said about life. It's not about perfection but opening to the life that you are living and working with what life presents you.

 

Problems are the texture in the fabric of life, nothing more. Without them, our lives would be flat, lacking excitement and fulfillment.

 

Our basic emotions like Joy, Acceptance, Fear, Surprise, Sadness, Disgust, Anger & Anticiaption forms a base of the fabric with the interwoven complex emotions like Love, Disappointment, Contempt, Aggressiveness, Optimism and Submission creating the design pattern of life.

 

So at the end it again boils down to the singular most important thing, Our Attitude is creating the fabric of our life... We are all provided with the same base of fibers, what fabric we create is always different.

 

Have a nice Fabric...

 

Taken: Tana Bana (Weaving) Festival at Lok Virsa Museum, Islamabad, Pakistan

 

View Large

The title is a quote by Swami Vivekananda.

*

The statue Quadriga by Carl Johan Dyfverman.

OK, what do I say here. This is tough. I'm not going to be around much since I'll be starting this new job on Monday. As wonderful as it is to finally have work after such a long drought, I am going to miss the time I've been able to share my thoughts, feelings, panicky outbursts, joys, humor, life and art with you all here terribly. I'll still post when I have the chance of course, but I doubt there'll be much opportunity to leave those in-depth commentaries where word matches image so uniquely. That does pain me greatly, since I know how much it's been appreciated by everyone. I will comment and make my presence known on your photo pages and groups whenever I can, as much as possible, so please don't think I have forgotten you. God, how could I possibly after all we've been through together? Oh, brother, OK...

 

I just need to say this.....I doubt any of you will ever truly know just how much you've helped me to grow as a photographer, but even moreso, as a person. Your suggestions and critiques, your love and compassion, your generosity and consideration, have all been a boon to my spirit for these past 11 months. You have shown me it's OK to express myself openly and honestly, to admit to being flawed, to try new things regarding my work, and to stand tall in the face of adversity. I have said many times that photography has been my salvation - from depression and anxiety, from self-pity and creative malaise. It's pulled me up from the depths and helped me to breathe again. And when I felt like I was sinking under the weight of the world, I reached out a hand and someone HERE grabbed it, and lifted me back above the darkness. How can one adequately thank another for that kind of devotion? I cannot even begin to come close. All I can hope is that you can FEEL the fervent thumping of my heart, and know it's because of you.

 

As I've written before, this online community in particular flourishes because we're all truly connected in our words and deeds. Each of us counts on the other for inspiration and encouragement. And when it comes to simply wanting an "escape," we can rely on our neighbors in Flickrland to offer a shoulder to cry on, a joke to lighten our spirits, or a picture that will leave our jaws hanging with a beauty we'd never expect to witness in our bleakest of hours. What a wonderful gift to be blessed with in life!

 

So, THANK YOU - humbly and deeply and completely - for every small and enormous thing. If I could wrap my arms around the world, I would embrace you all. Know that down every challenging path, in every worrisome moment, in every beautiful and wondrous instance, that you walk beside me. You are my family. You are my friends. Walter Winchell said "A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." Thank you for walking in to MY LIFE.

 

I love you, each and every one......

__________________________________________________

 

If you can, please make a contribution towards the disaster relief

efforts in New Orleans by donating to the American Red Cross.

__________________________________________________

 

[+]

 

As a way of returning the extraordinary generosity and support you

have all shown me in this great community, whenever I upload a new

pic or series of shots this year, I'll provide a link to another flickr

photog whose work, personality, or spirit I feel you should discover.

 

Visit and introduce yourself. Make a friend. Share the love.

 

Open your eyes to Deena_Rooney today.

🏁⏳ Get ready for the ultimate race! Outsmart the AI to prove humanity's superiority in intellect, and outlast other contestants in our new game, Ascension – launching in 4 days! 💥 Show your skills and Ascend to win!

 

Dare to join the challenge? Enter to win a Game HUD, your access to Ascension. 🚀

 

🚨 Visit our Facebook for our giveaway: MadPea FB Page

“Intellect takes us along in the battle of life to a certain limit, but at the crucial moment it fails us. Faith transcends reason. It is when the horizon is the darkest and human reason is beaten down to the ground that faith shines brightest and comes to our rescue.” - Mohandas Gandhi

Seen on our afternoon walk.

 

Rebirth, wisdom, fluidity, wholeness, transmutations, sexuality, look for transitions, changes and new opportunities. Creative forces are awakening with heightened intuition. Snake can teach about shedding what is not needed; perceptions, attitudes, ideals. Snake shows how to access vitality, ambitions and dreams along with intellect and personal power. What things are surfacing that you need to strike out and take advantage of? Perhaps a time to rest and reflect? Listen to your intuition and visions at this time. Contemplate the colors, striking ability and activity of the snake type to further understand what snake is saying.

Undress my mind.

Slowly unzip my imagination.

Reach in and caress my intellect.

Unbutton my thoughts,

And tickle my brilliance.

"If we listened to our intellect we'd never have a love affair. We'd never have a friendship. We'd never go in business because we'd be cynical: "It's gonna go wrong." Or "She's going to hurt me." Or, "I've had a couple of bad love affairs, so therefore . . ." Well, that's nonsense. You're going to miss life. You've got to jump off the cliff all the time and build your wings on the way down."

-Ray Bradbury

=====Butchinsky's=====

 

Grant *on TV* - The supervillain Ultra Humanite has been transferred to a secure ward on Stryker's Island. Doctors suggest he hasn't much time left. Humanite has reformed since his early days battling the Justice Society and later Superman. He has been using his vast intellect to improve the prison facilities and has been providing clean energy to Metropolis' east coast. In other news, the last of the Secret Society trials have come to an end. For her role in Lex Luthor's plots, Volcana has been issued a life sentence in Stryker's Island. For more on this story, we bring you to Lois Lane.

 

Spinner- Lois Lane eh? What a babe... Who'd have thought a gal like her would end up with a farm boy like Kent?

 

Bolt- I met Kent once. He poured water on me. Accidentally. But even so, it's what got me locked up.

 

Reaper- You two read his article on Luthor? Was a real eye-opener, you know. He might even get a Pulitzer...

 

Bolt- Yeah... These big guys like Luthor never really care about small fries like us.

 

Spinner- Did you hear Billings got out today?

 

Bolt- No way! How?

 

Reaper- I'd assume they felt sorry for him. On account of his chewed off leg.

 

Spinner- Summin' like that. I think he got a cash settlement too.

 

Bolt- Prick. I wish I had my leg chewed off

 

Reaper- *sigh* At least Dekker's still in Arkham, I feel a lot safer anyway.

 

*Gar enters the bar*

 

Planet Master- Lynns! Come take a seat up here!

 

Gar- I'll pass. Len, did Tweed send you a package to give to me?

 

Len- Hold on. ... *thinks I'm his fucking postie does he?* This the thing?

 

Gar- That'll be it. My new suit. This one's starting to smell.

 

Bolt- *Sniff* Are you sure it's the suit? Do you even shower?

 

Gar- Can't. I don't wanna risk all this skin peeling off.

 

Darhk- Ah ... I think I shall pass on the wings Len.

 

Spinner- Is that really why you stink? Or is it because you're living in Walker's old cave?

 

Gar- I'm not... Listen dickwad, my house burned down in a session of passionate love with my ex. Not that you'd know what that's like. Sex with a women that is. I imagine you get burned a lot.

 

Spinner- That's it. I don't have to take this from you, you got me killed!

 

Gar- I also got you ressurected so shut your trap.

 

Spinner- Oh yeah? Well I... alright. *sits back down*

 

Gar- Good. Now, I'm going home.

 

Darhk- To the cav- ?

 

Gar- Yes! To the fucking cave!

 

*Ding*

 

Billings- Ah Lynns, do you want to give me a quote for my-

 

Gar- Fuck you!

 

Billings- Well. Someone's not getting a free copy. Gentlemen! You got any quotes?

 

Bolt- Here's one: "Fuck You."- Gar Lynns.

 

Billings- Very mature. I'll come back another time.

 

???- Wait. You want dirt? I can give you dirt.

 

Billings- I'm listening...

 

Len- Hey hey hey! We've talked about this! If you're going to plot- do it outside! I don't need another lawsuit.

Jagadguru Sri Sri Sri Dr. Nirmalanandanatha Mahaswami Ji blessing his follower who is touching his feet.

 

According to the Hindu tradition, when you touch the feet of a Guruji, you are in turn blessed with knowledge, intellect, strength and fame.

To Lie is for him the air of a mission

For facts and bold truths hold no gleaming submission

For the lies he has told have no seeming a bottom

The depth of his evil

The course that he plays

Is often from somewhere obscure and a maze

Of tricks and lines and spellings off putting

As sure as his waist line expands from lacked footing

He’s lazy, he’s proud, and he’s not very charming.

His intellects challenged his profanity shocking.

He mocks and he belittles,

He scorns and he scoffs,

At girls talking climate and Kurds who have fought…

On behalf of this country he currently betrays,

The dreams of the immigrants and shames us for decades.

The blight of his treacherous years of undoing

Will be the downfall of democracy’s cooing…

Come tired, come poor come chase on this land

The dreams that the forefathers dreamt of and planned

For migrants and workers of all shades and sizes

The dreams that they chased have all been forgotten

For greed rules the house that once was for right

No longer about justice or doing what’s right.

Corruption has taken the President's chair and

All who support it, seemingly; don’t care.

 

o-o-o-o-o

 

This series is available now via BLURB under the title NARCISSUMP The Malignancy Killing Democracy order here: www.blurb.com/b/9763758-family-book-standard

 

This just might be the official White House portrait of the worst President in History.

 

Title inspired by: Par Par Bogey Bogey Par Par from Home for the Holidays. Read the article:

the-toast.net/2013/08/15/sports-and-title-ix/

 

Narcissump (www.flickr.com/photos/185479982@N05/)

 

Narcissump is featured as he pictures himself an elite royal and a semi-professional golf player and an American Hero!

 

1sixthworld.com/

& 1sixth.co/

 

Instagram:

www.instagram.com/1sixthworld/

 

Photos by Steve McKinnis of stevemckinnis.com

Character is higher than intellect. A great soul will be strong to live as well as think.

Intellect is in itself a mode of exaggeration and destroys the harmony of any face. (Wilde)

 

once, if i remember well, my life was a feast

where all hearts opened and all wines flowed.

one evening i seated beauty on my knees, and i

found her bitter, and i cursed her

i armed myself against justice

i fled, o witches, o misery, o hate, to you has

my treasure been entrusted!

i contrived myself to purge my mind of all human hope (Rimbaud)

 

EXPLORE. September 18, 2008.

 

The Getty Center, Los Angeles. A very fine museum. I was fascinated by a whole array and various works of the fine arts, especially the painting exhibits. Aside from Van Gogh's "Irises", another work that excited and fascinated me was this of Franz Xaver Winterhalter's "Portrait Of Leonilla".

 

The model is an embodiment of pure royal elegance. And the painter, a true master.

 

You be the judge.

 

Portrait of Leonilla, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn.

 

Franz Xaver Winterhalter.

 

German, 1843

Oil on canvas

56 x 83 1/2 in.

 

In a daring pose reminiscent of harem scenes and odalisques, the Princess Leonilla of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn reclines on a low Turkish sofa on a veranda overlooking a lush tropical landscape. Only her unassailable social position made it possible for Franz Xaver Winterhalter to use such a sensual pose for a full-length portrait in Paris in 1843.

 

Known for her great beauty and intellect, the Princess is resplendent in a luxurious gown of ivory silk moiré with a pink sash around her waist. A deep purple mantle wraps around her back and falls across her smooth arms. Under carefully arched eyebrows, her heavy lidded eyes gaze languidly at the viewer while she artfully toys with the large pearls around her neck. Winterhalter contrasted sumptuous fabrics and vivid colors against creamy flesh to heighten the sensuality of the pose, the model, and the luxuriant setting. ~ Source: The Getty Center, Los Angeles.

  

Photo of the finest details of soap bubbles from the soap bubbles macro abstract photography assignment captured via Minolta MD Macro Rokkor-X 100mm F/4 lens. Inside the creative halls of the 494 ∞ Labs. Mid December 2021.

 

Exposure Time: 1/250 sec. * ISO Speed: ISO-1250 * Aperture: F/4 * Bracketing: None * Color Temperature: 3900 K * Adaptor: 1:1 Extension Tube * Tele-Converter: Deitz 2X MC-4 M/MD

"Euclid's Elements is certainly one of the greatest books ever written, and one of the most perfect monuments of the Greek intellect."

 

Bertrand Russell, A History of Western Philosophy, p. 211

 

My entry in the preliminary round of the 2018 Bio-Cup, of course! I was set from the start on offering something entirely original. After a days or two muddling through various unsatisfying 'elements' from alchemy, technology, and science, I suddenly recalled the Greek mathematician Euclid's authorship of the landmark geometry textbook entitled Elements, and knew I would depict him. In a Bionicle twist, he now wields Geometry powers in addition to his trademark compass and straightedge! I look forward to your thoughts, hope you enjoy, and wish my fellow participants good luck in the Bio-Cup!

Throbbing Gristle

An Endless Discontent

Ian Trowell

Intellect (2023)

 

"This book situates the British band Throbbing Gristle as both a lens and critical tool for England during the punk years and the Winter of Discontent. Using detailed archival research and testimony from key performances, it plots the impact and affective reach of the band. 20 b/w illustrations."

(©Intellect Books)

Press L - BIG screen recommended!

Spent an absorbing afternoon at the Rubin Museum that specializes in Tibetan and Nepalese Art. Lots to photograph and all so beautifully lit!

 

"Although he is known by many attributes, Ganesha's elephant head makes him easy to identify. Ganesha is widely revered as the remover of obstacles, the patron of arts and sciences and the deva of intellect and wisdom.

 

As the god of beginnings, he is honoured at the start of rituals and ceremonies. Ganesha is also invoked as patron of letters and learning during writing sessions." Wikipedia.

 

Sandstone, 11th Century. Seen at the Rubin Museum of Art, New York.

Definition of the soul; the spirit or immaterial part of man, the seat of human personality, intellect, will, and emotions, regarded as an entity that survives the body after death.

 

The definition of the soul is something different for everybody, I think. I'm fascinated by it and that's why I wanted to make this. It's your soul that makes you, you. Not your body or your pretty face.

 

This is inspired

 

500px | facebook page | blog | tumblr | pinterest

The eagle has been associated with the belief in renewal or rebirth. In a fragment of an ancient Babylon text, there is the story of King Erana being taken to the heavens on the wings of an eagle. It was a widely used custom in many ancient cultures to release eagles at the funeral of a ruler: the flight of an eagle, as the body was cremated, symbolized the departure of the soul to live among the gods. In Palmya, in ancient Syria, the eagle was associated with the sun-god; and thought capable of rejuvenation like the phoenix. As a killer of snakes and dragons, the eagle represents the victory of the light forces over the dark. The positive traits of this kingly bird are energy, renewal, contemplation, acuity of vision of vision, and royal heritage which substantiates it being an attribute of the god Jupiter.In Christian iconography the eagle is often seen to symbolize John the Evangelist, the ascension of the prophet Elijah, and the ascension of Jesus Christ. The eagle's ability to fly high is why it symbolizes Christ's ascension and is frequently depicted on baptismal founts.

The eagle's alchemical symbolism can readily be recognized in that the goals of alchemy are the transmutation of base (impure) metals or spirits into more purer or finer ones. This called for the destruction of the base metals to release the spirit and the renewal or reunion of the spirit in the new one. This is a renewal process, the death one the one and birth of the new, symbolized in the eagle. The eagle is thought as a royal bird as alchemy was called the royal art.In its psychological association the eagle shares and opposite symbolism which can be reversed through personal effort. Being symbolic of St. John the evangelist most firmly established in the intellectual realm, the eagle symbolizes the height of intellectual activity; however, this bird also can represent the degrading, consuming passion, of the intellect, which causes humans not to be ruled by the mind but the body. The eagle displays such behavior when he interrupts his elegant flight to swoop down on his prey to satisfy his carnal needs. At times humans behave the same way, their passions control them. This is the reason the eagle symbolized Adam, the first man, in medieval bestiaries: Adam, too, who originally dwelt close to heaven, lost his glory when sighting the forbidden fruit. Humankind like the eagle can improve its status by returning to the intellectual realm. This also has alchemical symbolism: when an experiment failed the alchemist had to start over again. A.G.H.

www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/~alchemy/eagle.html

Philalèthe nous affirme que chacune des réitérations prend le nom d'aigle; la cinquième Aigle résout la lune avec 7 à 9 spécimens pour atteindre la splendeur du soleil . Aigle en grec ancien viens de éclat lumière flambeau.l’Aigle de Jean, c’est ce qui donne les pouvoirs ou la clairvoyance ou la lucidité ou l’ésotérisme. L’aigle du monde, c’est le prédateur et les pouvoirs malsains.

Un alchimiste déclarera que le globe symbolise éventuellement le matras philosophique, mais surtout les quatre éléments par la croix du globe et le feu avec ses degrés successifs pour régénérer la matière et lui-même par la même occasion. L’image (la croix, la rose, le matras surmonté d’une croix, etc..) est extérieure, les degrés des feux secrets et les moyens, intérieurs. Il ajoutera que sa connaissance supplémentaire vient d’un don de Dieu, de la grâce, ou simplement de ses facultés de réflexion et d’interrogation. Et un jour, Cela se produit. Enfin, dans le symbolisme solaire, la répartition par quatre, ou le cercle coupé par une croix symbolise le cycle solaire et accessoirement d’anciennes techniques « des mangeurs ou Maîtres de feux » (le globe lorsqu’il est entouré de flammes, la voie de la salamandre, les marcheurs sur les braises, etc..). Et un jour, ces adeptes pratiquent des choses impensables, comme de prendre dans la voie du feu, un objet en métal rougi à blanc comme dernière et ultime épreuve. La croix est la Rédemption et le cercle le Monde tant pour le chrétien ésotérique que pour l’alchimiste, ou simplement le chercheur qui veut en savoir plus et à qui le monde pourra éventuellement appartenir, sans qu’il ne soit plus tout à fait de ce monde : l’appartenance, la non-appartenance, la performance ne sont qu’illusions. Les trois croix supprimées dans certaines représentations notaient un triple sens ou trois répétitions d’un même processus, une première opération étant l’obtention du soufre alchimique ou médecine du premier ordre, la seconde, le soufre du second ordre, la troisième la croix centrale, les médecines du troisième ordre ou pierre mystique. Ce symbole est rappelé par les trois colonnes mystérieuses du premier appartement avec les Mots Foi, Espérance, Charité, mots qui permettent d’entreprendre le voyage de trois jours, (alchimiquement le travail des trois ordres) de l’orient vers le septentrion, de l’occident au midi, c’est à dire dans les quatre directions ou selon les quatre éléments anciens, en faisant 33 tours. Faut-il signaler, puisque 33 tours c’est long, qu’en faisant qu’un tour, l’ancien sens est perdu (sans jeu de mot). Et qu’en ne gardant que les Mots (F.E.C.), dans le sens social, l’humain a toute juste une partie des clés de sa responsabilité dans ses rapports avec lui-même et les autres, mais uniquement au niveau externe. Faut-il alors signaler le tablier noir, l’ouvre au noir, passant par le sang - (l’oeuvre au rouge) du grade de chevalier de l’Aigle (du Pélican, de Rose-Croix, d’Heredom, de Saint André, de Parfait Maçon écossais 4ième, etc..) repris dans le R.E.A.A. au 18ième. et l’Aigle rappelaient la puissance de l’Homme divin, héritée de celle du Père ou du Fils dans le symbolisme chrétien, à l’image du Pélican qui soufre mais se sacrifie pour nourrir son ou ses enfants, donc sa progéniture, ou ses héritiers spirituels, bien au-delà du sens social, par l’interne et l’externe. Et l’Aigle de Jean, c’est ce qui donne les pouvoirs ou la clairvoyance ou la lucidité ou l’ésotérisme. L’aigle du monde, c’est le prédateur et les pouvoirs malsains. Jésus Nazaremus Rex Judeorum etc..

Cette formule vidée de son sens catholique n’est pas inintéressante non plus. Elle souligne la dérision (l’humour ?) de Ponce Pilate celui qui se lave les mains et qui provoque un homme pour qu’il affirme sa royauté et son destin sur le monde, alors qu’il s’agit du monde intérieur, sans rapport avec le monde profane de la puissance terrestre. Dans de nombreuses écoles, ce thème du divin en l’homme, pour qu’il exerce son pouvoir créateur et royal, des facultés cachées en l’homme pour qu’il se réalise, prend parfois des proportions de l’ordre du titanesque, mais aussi de l’illusion de puissance soulignée par Axel (volonté de puissance et volonté de l’ego basé sur la mort, les armes et l’or) face à Janus, son Maître instructeur (basé sur la maîtrise du Soi et sur la Vie), et par les multiples pérégrinations de la tribu de Juda. La royauté de Jésus, issu de Juda, donc le pouvoir de puissance de tout homme, c’est l’homme royal, à la puissance de ses facultés. Nazareth d’où il vient et non Bethléem (qui signifie la naissance de l’enfant) d’où Jésus de Nazareth ou Jésus le Nazarénien, ou Jésus le Nazoréen (celui qui a été consacré, mais dans ce cas, pour certains théologiens qui refusent cette théorie, il n’aurait pas été roi, encore moins Dieu, puisque seulement prince en jouant sur les qualités, et la seule consécration possible étant l’oint de David ou céleste) est en fait la ville où il passe, où il aura une vie secrète en revenant d’Égypte. Il ne s’arrête pas en chemin, car cette ville représente l’ancienne foi, l’ancienne loi, l’ancienne connaissance, la ville de l’ancienne Rome et c’est de là qu’il commencera son périple. Si la royauté de Jésus est en mouvement, si elle va vers son destin de mourir pour la régénération, tout homme est concerné par une dynamique de la présence et du mouvement régénérateur, sorte de mort à soi-même et en même temps de lucidité accrue, pour agrandir son champ d’action et reconquérir ses puissances et ses facultés dans sa vie (en trois jours, par la voie rapide, en quelques quarante jours selon Balsamo, en fait pendant un certain temps ou toute une vie). Il quitte alors le royaume des morts et de la mort, pour la Vie.Dans l’optique judaïque. Nazareth était la ville où devaient s’accomplir les prophéties," nazir" signifie séparé, mais aussi consacré. Celui qui passe par Nazareth est aussi celui qui a été consacré, l’élu selon l’éthique. Le mot assyrien veut dire aussi celui qui est maudit ou ensorcelé, celui qui fait un voeu, celui qui s’abstient. L’homme pour être rétabli, pour être sanctifié, pour retrouver ses facultés latentes, pour atteindre sa divinité doit passer par un certain état signifié par le Nazaréat, rite hébraïque. Dans la tradition juive, Samson, consacré au rite, au-delà de la mort et ayant obtenu la force, Samuel dont les cheveux ne furent jamais coupés, Jacob qui bénit Joseph selon la bénédiction du nazaréen le citant prince entre ses frères, Judas Machabée qui emmène les consacrés au temple, interdit aux profanes, Saint Jean Baptiste consacré au rite du Nazaréat, Saint Paul, Saint Jacques le Mineur sont les exemples ou traces de ce vieux rituel hébraïque. Le Christ est appelé le Nazaréen, ainsi que les tous premiers chrétiens. Nazareth, le Nazaréat, est le symbole de l’ascétisme, pour un temps déterminé ou pour la vie des élus consacrés, leurs voeux ne portaient que sur des pratiques extérieures (se couper les cheveux, s’abstenir de certains aliments, etc.).Il s’agit d’un rite remontant à l’époque patriarcale, issu selon Cyrille de rites égyptiens, vraisemblablement venu de Chaldée, pour consacrer une partie de la vie d’un homme au culte divin, sans être prêtre pour autant. Le rite consiste à se séparer des hommes pour se consacrer à la divinité ou à la recherche spirituelle, en pleine connaissance de cause. Il semble que Martines de Pasqually s’inspire pour ses émules de telles pratiques ascétiques (jeune, chasteté, abstinence de certaines parties du corps de l’animal, prières, onctions, purifications, etc.) avant les cérémonies d’initiation. Sur Juda. Dès lors les dogmes, les croyances ne peuvent être que provisoires, dans Nazareth pour sortir de l’enceinte, et revenir au royaume de la royauté de la tribu de Juda de la dernière lettre (Judéorum). Quelle est cette tribu ? C’est celle qui se nombrait à 77.600 hommes, depuis l’âge de vingt ans et au-delà, bons pour la milice, ou dans le camp de Juda, 186.400 et qui partent toujours en tête : Juda est le lionceau, le lion, la lionne. L’homme de Juda est celui qui possède le sceptre et le bâton de commandement, (Thème repris par Martinez de Pasqually pour les Reaux+). Il fait obéir les peuples, il conduit l’homme au combat. Ses attributs sont la Gloire, la Force et la Souveraineté. C’est de cette tribu que naîtra Jésus. En contrepartie de cette puissance chthonienne, dans sa partie obscure, le lion de Juda est terrible, c’est un prédateur, avide de butin et de puissance, symbolisé par le règne de David et de Salomon. De ce peuple sont élus les Juges. Maconniquement Zorobabel est issu de la tribu de Juda, comme Prince. Ce sont des Élus. Ou selon l’optique du Nazaréat, des hommes de haute vertu morale, qui réservent une partie de leur vie pour devenir plus parfaits, plus purs et plus exemplaires, par pureté et consécration. L’emblème de la rose mystique sur la croix renvoie également à la mystique juive et au Zohar, où la communauté est la Rose et où le mot Moroth signifie à la fois Lumières ou Malédiction et que dans le « pays de la vie » il convient « de tailler les fleurs qui existent dans ce pays » au moment où l’arc-en-ciel apparaît. Le calice (utilisé au 18ième pour les agapes) est la coupe des bénédictions, de même que la rose mystique, considérée aussi comme calice du salut, et qui repose sur les cinq doigts de la main ou cinq pétales. Inri est en fait synonyme du Mot mystique de quatre lettres et le symbole de l’alliance n’est pas autre chose que le chapelet des 42 noms ou quarante deux grains de matière fécondante pour opérer l’ouvre de la création. Les fleurs qu’il convient de tailler renvoient à l’expression « Telle que la rose entre les épines, telle est ma bien aimée entre les filles » où la rose est la communauté. Elle est rouge et blanche (comme la pierre cubique qui sue sang -rouge- et eau -blanc- du tracé de loge) et elle correspond aux piliers tantôt de la rigueur tantôt de la clémence. Emprunté à la cabale juive du Zohar et des mystiques espagnols, le thème évoque les trois croix et la lumière, peut-être issue des trois écoles visitées par le Messie lui-même relié au Saint Beni Soit-il, ou Messias (mot utilisé par les martinistes de Martinez), celle de Rabbi Simeon, celle d’Ezechias, roi de Juda cité en IV Rois et par Isaîe, et celle d’Ahias (III Rois), elles-mêmes liées par des colonnes aux écoles célestes et aux mystères cabalistiques, où la lumière est plus éclatante que la lumière du soleil. (Ainsi le rituel déclare que le maçon ne fait plus de planches, mais grave des colonnes au nom de la Trinité et le signe de reconnaissance montre le Ciel ; le bijou est or et argent, symboles solaires). Le Zohar (I, 4) précise, « vous qui êtes en bas dans le sommeil réveillez-vous. Vous avant de monter ici transformez l’obscurité en clarté (un thème du 18ième). Ceux qui n’ont pas espéré (un thème du grade : Espérance) n’ont aucune part ici ». S’étonnant qu’un homme puisse entrer dans le monde céleste avec ses habits terrestres, (thème de la transfiguration), Rabbi Siméon constate avec Rabbi Hiya la gloire du juste qui « marche dans les voies de la justice au milieu des sentiers de la prudence, pour enrichir ceux qui m’aiment et pour remplir leurs trésors » (thème du grade La charité). Le sage par la formule « alchimique » Inri (intérieur) sera celui qui découvre dans les ténèbres ce qui est dans les profondeurs. Il sera ainsi capable d’unir les ténèbres et la lumière pour faire naître le Verbe qui fait découvrir les Mystères, c’est à dire de séparer lumière et ténèbres, donc discerner la lumière parmi les ténèbres. « Et la lumière de la lune sera aussi éclatante que celle du soleil » du Talmud pour unir le jour et la nuit est le même symbole que le soleil et la lune figurant au-dessus ou des côtés de la rose mystique dans les rituels alchimiques de ce 18ième degré et qui permet la conjonction vers la Pierre chose une et unique. Sur Rafel, la Nature à régénérer, et la Rose alchimique. Dans l’action alchimique, l’alchimiste du Pseudo Lulle est montré devant Tobie et l’archange Raphael. La nature s’arrache les cheveux ou gémit. Un ange au-dessous tient le monde, la sphère. L’initié reçoit dans le monde les secrets de l’alchimie, puisque Tobie rend la vue à son père aveugle. L’alchimie dans la suite du texte est considérée comme une agriculture céleste, par corruption, décomposition mortification, puis renaissance. L’ange sert d’intermédiaire entre l’homme et la Nature. Dans « Les remontrances de Nature à l’alchimiste errant », les trois racines de l’alchimie sont indiquées, par les trois racines dans le sol (les trois colonnes) et l’arbre se sépare en quatre branches (la croix) où les rameaux voit s’épanouir une fleur jaune à cinq pétales (la rose aux cinq pétales) qu’arrose la couleur jaune des rayons célestes (la fleur solaire). Igne, le feu secret est dans l’athanor sous Dame Nature. Celle-ci est ailée comme l’Archange et couronnée des différentes planètes. Souvent les roses sont blanches et rouges. Dans Azoth, le hérault rouge (rose mystique) est représenté comme le fils puissant du soleil et de la lune, la rose est rouge, le lys blanc. Le nombre 7 du rituel renvoie au nombre de purifications nécessaires pour purifier encore la matière qui sue, ce qui signifie que Igne doit être constant par le feu : l’eau passe par le Lion au midi et l’ours au Nord.

A Bourges, la rose est entourée de trois couronnes ou cinq feuilles en étoile et plus loin, une sphère dans une coupe est enflammée. Le vitrail des Cordeliers à Paris garde le même symbolisme que la rose entourée d’une couronne d’épines. Ici, la rose se trouve en germination à partir du cour qui saigne, avec cinq larmes, au lieu de la pierre qui sue dans une couronne d’épines. La rose se nommait Rota lorsqu’elle était centrale, ou feu de roue (dans nos campagnes, on garde encore à la St Jean d’été, le feu mis et tournant sur la roue du chariot dont la plupart ont perdu le symbole). Cependant, s’il s’agit du thème chrétien (à ne pas confondre avec catholique) et l’ésotérisme de Jean que le rituel évoquait, c’est en complément autre chose, c’est d’abord l’errance dans les ténèbres dans l’attente de la régénération et l’illumination. Car le thème chrétien ésotérique n’est pas la récompense dans l’au-delà. L’enseignement ardu de Jean est pour ceux qui se réalisent ici et maintenant et pas dans le paradis futur (Je meurs à la présence future pour être attentif à la présence immédiate). Dans le rite de perfection, la deuxième chambre est appelée enfer, et l'Alchimiste sera conduit par un mot sur quatre, mot qui est bien l’archange Rafael, dans la formule n° 2 ou Raphaël. Dans cette version, non par le christianisme, mais par la cabale des noms et des nombres, Rafael fait quand même partie citons Deny l’aréopagite « des Anges et de ceux des anges qui se caractérisent par une masse de sagesse et de connaissances, » l’aptitude à recevoir les dons de la lumière (que reflète ce degré). Rafael (utilisé dans certains rituels de la G.D. et cabalistiques pour garder une région du monde) est en relation avec la voie cardiaque martiniste et de Saint Jean : le grade est la Rédemption par l’amour. Il est « le guérisseur de Dieu », l’archange du Soleil, maître du rayonnement physique et spirituel (dans le grade, la lumière disparaît puis revient). Dans l’optique du rituel, il est le Maître des Chevaliers, comme régulateur solaire avec le métal or et la Sephirah Tipheret, la Beauté (Sagesse, Force et Beauté du premier appartement du grade) avec l’argent. Il préside à la prière du matin. Mais quels que soient les noms, le nom ineffable du Tétragramme hébraïque a été latinisé à l’aide de trois lettres plus une d’alphabet moderne, et ce sans vraisemblablement dénaturer l’esprit de ceux qui savaient très bien que ce mot était perdu et qu’il s’agissait d’un rappel de la tradition hébraïque notamment, aussi par l’utilisation dans ce rituel du chandelier à sept branches éteint, puis rallumé. On ne peut pas faire mieux comme symbole de l’extinction des lumières du temple et la réanimation, ainsi que la perte et découverte de la parole perdue, rappel d’anciens rites solaires et d’évocation de la lumière des cultes de Mithra, puis égyptianisé, hellénisé et enfin christianisé. Dans le rite français, lors de l’extinction, le rituel déclarait « Celui qui était venu pour régénérer l’humanité a été méconnu et mis à mort » et lors de la réanimation, le maître devait prononcer « La doctrine de celui qui mourut honteusement est devenue l’un des flambeaux de la Vérité ». Si ce n’est l’allusion au Christ et à l’évangile, que serait-ce sinon indiquer le sens de la régénération et la manière d’être un flambeau, même sans être chrétien, en rapport avec d’anciens cultes et processus d’évolution ? Le18ième est à la fois un grade charnière, mais aussi un grade reposant sur un enseignement initiatique de haute valeur basé sur la Rose-Croix, le chandelier à sept branches ou la Menorah et la Cène du repas rituélique, basé sur une alchimie oubliée, une cabale qui ne dit pas son nom, le Johannisme plus ou moins perdu et d’antiques notions liée à la lumière et aux transformations internes. Issu du grade de chevalier Rose croix de Kilwining et d’heredom, ce rituel trop complexe et trop lourd à comprendre intégralement a donné lieu très rapidement à des versions simplifiées. Mais les versions simplifiées omettent des détails qui avaient leur importance pour les initiateurs des grades. Et trop de simplification devient indigeste, comme de substituer un repas par un biscuit vitaminé puis par une pilule. Pour Berteaux, il n’est donc pas étonnant que chaque époque ait conduit à des modifications et que l’on voit bien « l’incidence de l’esprit du temps ». Ainsi les hommes ont fait les rituels en fonction de leur choix. L’on trouve des rituels basés sur les Testaments, sur la Philosophie, la sociologie, la psychologie, etc. et seule la comparaison de plusieurs rituels permet de découvrir des sens nouveaux ou plus approfondis par les détails. Plus on raccourcit, moins il en reste. Les supprimer, c’est faire autre chose. A chacun son chemin !

 

hautsgrades.over-blog.com/article-330180.html

On Explore! July 5, 2007, #435

Thank you very much to all of you my dear Flickr friends for your so kind comments!

 

Discover the new Giverny Spirit collection here:

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Nihil est in intellectu quod non fuerit prius in sensu!

SAN TOMMASO D'AQUINO

 

Nothing is in the intellect that was not first in the senses!

 

Rien n'existe de rationnel qui n'ait d'abord été perçu par les sens!

 

Nell'intelletto non vi è nulla che non sia stato prima nei sensi!

 

Nada hay en el intelecto que no haya estado antes en los sentidos!

 

Nichts gibt es im Intellekt, was nicht bereits den Sinnen bekannt war!

 

в интеллекте нет ничего такого, чего раньше не было бы в чувствах!

 

لا يوجد أي شيء في الفكر لم يكن أولاً في الأحاسيس

 

才智里没有不先通过感觉的

 

Daar is niks in die intellek wat nie eers in die sintuie was nie!

 

Não há nada na mente, que não estivesse antes nos sentidos!

 

Ničega nema u razumu čega prije nije bilo u osjetilima!

 

V rozumu není nic, co předtím nebylo ve smyslech!

 

Der findes intet i intellektet, som ikke først fandtes i sanserne!

 

Niets bestaat er in het intellect, dat er niet eerst in de zinnen was!

 

Pole olemas mõistusepäraseid asju, mis poleks enne seda olnud tunnetuslikud!

 

Mielessä ei ole mitään mikä ei ensin olisi ollut aisteissa!

 

τίποτα δεν υπάρχει στο πνεύμα που δεν ήταν πρώτα στις αισθήσεις

 

אין דבר בסכל שלא היה קודם ברגש

 

A szellem semmi olyat nem tartalmaz, ami elobb ne lett volna meg már az érzékekben!

 

知性にインプットされているものとは、まず先に感覚を通じて取り込まれてきたものに他ならない

 

모든 이성은 처음에는 감성에서 시작된다

 

Viss kas ir prātā, vispirms bija sajūtā!

 

Intelekte nėra nieko tokio, ko anksčiau nebuvo jausmuose!

 

هیچ چیزی در هوش وجود ندارد تا زمانی که نخست در احساس وجود نداشته باشد

 

W intelekcie nie ma niczego, czego nie było wcześniej w zmysłach!

 

în intelect nu este nimic mai mult decât ceea ce a fost înainte în simţuri!

 

ништа нема у разуму што претходно није било у чулима!

 

V rozume nie je nič, čo nebolo predtým v zmysloch!

 

Det finns inget i intellektet som inte först funnits i sinnena!

 

ไม่มีสิ่งใดที่อยู่ในสติปัญญาแต่ไม่อยู่ในสามัญสำนึก

 

如果沒有感知任何事情，就不會產生任何智慧

 

Akıldaki hiçbirşey daha önce hislerde bulunmamış değildir!