View allAll Photos Tagged Intellection

10 of 10 for my final critique in my Digital Photography class. (I didn't post 4, because they're actually already on my flickr!)

 

Thanks guys for all the feedback! I did well in my Digital Photography class and the critique, I got an A!! :)

An often overlooked bird.....some might think ugly, but, I think their face is full of character and intellect.

Hicks’s Peaceable Kingdom

Many people would recognize the work of Edward Hicks (1780-1849) in his Peaceable Kingdom paintings. But it would be a rare person who would know much more about his life and beliefs, which were totally connected with them. Some think of him as a colonial folk artist, untrained and self-taught, simple, sweet, or naive. That view is partially true, but also misleading. Although Hicks was self-taught, he developed sophisticated technical ability and had an educated and penetrating intellect.

 

His career started as a decorator of carriages and maker of signs. Some of the signs were patriotic, such as views of Washington crossing the Delaware with the moon penetrating storm clouds, like the cosmic eye of God, observing and approving of the events. Another was a wooden placard adorned with the face of Benjamin Franklin. The most curious sign to us might be the one of a joyful jumble of hats for a hatter named Jacob Christ, who surprisingly came from Nazareth, albeit Pennsylvania.

 

At first his fellow Quakers looked a bit askance at his profession, and because of this, at one time he gave It up to be a farmer. He was unsuccessful at farming, however, and returned to his brushes. It was honest work, so fellow members of his meeting eventually forgave him, especially since he was becoming a strong preacher, traveling among many meetings. He did agree with them about certain vanities in art and refused to paint portraits, which were too ego-centered.

 

He worked at the time when both the United States and modern American Quakerism were young. His spiritual beliefs came from Barclay and 18th-century quietism, which espoused simplicity, self-discipline, and contact with the Inner Light. FIias Hicks, his second cousin, was a central figure in a religious storm. Edward Hicks was a spokesman, in word and in image, for those who became known as the Hicksites. It broke his heart to see Quakers becoming worldly, with excessive material goods and inflated pride, and leaning towards the creation of a spiritual elite. He felt this corrosion also in the authoritarian control of elders, as mere men, and not as followers of the Inner Spirit of Christ. He had a genuine feeling for the Scriptures, along with hope for a continuing sense of insight open to all. Some of the divisions between urban and rural Quakers have been laid at the feet of visiting Quakers from England, justly or unjustly. In his travels, Hicks spoke much of this.

 

He also spoke of something else: his own education included ancient concepts of animal symbolism with its references to aspects of human personality. These symbols came into his paintings. The lion was quick-tempered and willful. The wolf was full of melancholy and reserved. The bear was sluggish and greedy. The leopard, buoyant. In his paintings, these were both animal qualities with potential violence as well as the aforementioned rage, egoism, greed, etc. personified.

 

His "signature" subject of the peaceable kingdom slowly evolved. His symbols of the animals were joined to a quotation of Isaiah's prophecy in the Bible (Isa. 11:6): The wolf shall also dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.

 

The Peaceable Kingdom paintings portray a delicate balance of difficult and unresolved issues. The lion-ego poses the greatest threat. The wild animals are seemingly domesticated and brought into line with loving kindness. However, their expression of pop-eyed puzzlement is not lost on any viewer. For the moment, they are behaving themselves, eating bovine food and not the little lambs. Hicks's paintings over the years show an increasingly subtle rendering of these animals and children clustered together. His concern is revealed through a tree that appears as if struck by lightning, splitting it. These are not mere decorations added for the naturalistic setting. The divided tree remains a major element in his paintings. As with the animal symbolism, other figures could represent concepts like "justice" or "purity." Originally a sign painter, Hicks continued to make "signs," except that now we have to call them symbols.

 

The little child had appeared in earlier paintings representing liberty and freedom from autocratic oppression. Politically, that meant kings and princes for' Hicks. But spiritual freedom also has to be obtained. There is a struggle against a foe, not British Quakers or material riches, but the weakness and characteristics of a willful self. The true foe was a self-willed, egotistical, greedy, lustful, or slanderously poisonous self Hicks rejected the authority of the self-aggrandized. He sought the authority of a purer self, washed by the Inner Light, which could reveal religious understandings, even if possibly at odds with established views.

 

This search was not his alone, and there was resistance to it. A face-off came, with dire results culminating in a division amongst Quakers. For Friends there were many words, not necessarily all polite. Hicks laid the blame upon the inherent human propensities that when uncontrolled turn wild. He felt that a peaceable kingdom was possible, that the child would lead them, that the lamb would lie down with the wolf, etc. Across the ravine was seen an example of William Penn demonstrating how it could be done. There might be other groups of Quakers, with Elias Hicks among them, representing what the artist felt were the better aspects of humankind, wrapped in long ribbons, with messages such as "Mind the Inner Light." Deeper in the paintings, in colorful satu- rations of light, might be seen a hilltop with a figure and twelve followers, indicating something even loftier, but with no written labels.

 

Edward Hicks allows us to see the Light coming out of all living beings and the world, speaking to that which shines within every one of us.

Imām Husseīn ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (a.s.) when he reminded Muawiya of [the use of] his intellect, said, ‘The intellect is only perfected through following the truth’ , to which Muawiya replied, ‘There is only one thing in your chests [i.e. you attribute everything to the truth].’

 

Imām Husseīn ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (a.s.)

A`alam al-Din, p. 298; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 472

 

الإمامُ الحسينُ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ) ـ لَمّا تَذاكَروا العَقلَ عِندَ مُعاوِيَةَ ـ: لا يَكمُلُ العَقلُ إلّا بِاتِّباعِ الحَقِّ ، فقالَ مُعاوِيَةُ: ما في صُدورِكُم إلّا شَيءٌ واحِدٌ.

Celastraceae (staff vine or bittersweet family) » Celastrus paniculatus

 

see-LAS-trus -- from the ancient Greek kelastros, the name of another tree

pan-ick-yoo-LAY-tus or pan-ick-yoo-LAH-tus -- referring to the flower clusters (panicles)

 

commonly known as: black-oil plant, celastrus, oriental bittersweet, intellect tree, staff tree • Bengali: kijri, malkangani • Gujarati: માલકંગના malkangana • Hindi: मालकंगनी malkangani • Kannada: ಭವಮ್ಗ bhavamga, ಜೊತಿಷ್ಮತಿ jotishmati, ಕರಿಗನ್ನೇ kariganne, ಕೊಉಗಿಲು kougilu • Konkani: माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Marathi: कांगुणी kanguni, माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Oriya: korsana, pengu • Sanskrit: अलवण alavan, ज्योतिषमति jyotishmati, कन्गु kangu • Tamil: குவரிகுண்டல் kuvarikuntal, மண்ணைக்கட்டி mannai-k-katti, வாலுளுவை valuluvai • Telugu: కాసరతీగె kasara-tige, మానెరు maneru • Urdu: کنگني مال malkanguni

 

Native to: India, China, Sri Lanka, south-east Asia

  

References: Flowers of India • Sahyadri Database • ENVIS - FRLHT • eFlora

‘Love and intellect cannot stay together in one head.’ - His Holiness Younus AlGohar

 

A Faruqi String of Seven Madani Pearls

 

Amir-ul-Muminin Sayyiduna 'Umar Faruq A'zam has stated:

 

1. He who avoids talking uselessly is blessed with intellect and wisdom.

 

2. He who avoids useless gazing i.e. looking around unnecessarily, gains tranquillity of the heart.

 

3. He who refrains from useless eating (meaning, one who refrains from eating excessively or eating different type of food without any hunger merely for pleasure) is bestowed with pleasure in 'Ibadah(worship).

 

4. He who refrains from useless laughter is granted awe and dignity.

 

5. He who refrains from joking around and mockery, is blessed with light of Iman (faith).

 

6. He who refrains from fondness of this worlds, is given fondness of the afterlife.

 

7. He who refrains from finding faults in others, is blessed with the ability to rectify his own faults. (Derived from Al-Munabbihat, p.89)

 

All the Viewers are requested to kindly share this Image to as many people as you can and post your Comments about this Photo. It will be sadqa-e-jaria for us.

 

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Sometimes colors really add nothing to an image and even seem to be an insult to the intellect of the observer. As is the case here. I mean: who above the age of 2 does not know skies usually are blue, clouds white and grass green?

So, if it were not for the possibility to be aqble to convert color images to black and white, I would have thrown this one out already a long time ago.

 

This photo is part of a collection of my Jim Warren favorites, meaning that I did not paint this. This is not my work; I am merely helping to introduce it to those who care to look.

 

Here is the artist's website:

www.jimwarren.com/site/

 

www.jimwarren.com/site/index.php?option=com_gallery2&...

mini toy bus and color tone

China and India

   

english

 

Ganesha (Sanskrit: गणेश; IAST: Gaṇeśa ), also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh, also known as Ganapati (Sanskrit: गणपति; IAST: gaṇapati), Vinayaka (Sanskrit: विनायक; IAST: Vināyaka), and Pillaiyar (Tamil: பிள்ளையார்), is one of the deities best-known and most widely worshipped in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains, Buddhists, and beyond India.

Although he is known by many other attributes, Ganesha's elephant head makes him easy to identify.Ganesha is widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles and more generally as Lord of Beginnings and Lord of Obstacles (Vighnesha (Sanskrit: विघ्नेश; IAST: Vighneśa), Vighneshvara (Sanskrit: विघ्नेश्वर; IAST: Vighneśvara), patron of arts and sciences, and the deva of intellect and wisdom. He is honoured at the beginning of rituals and ceremonies and invoked as Patron of Letters during writing sessions. Several texts relate mythological anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits and explain his distinct iconography.

 

Ganesha emerged a distinct deity in clearly recognizable form in the 4th and 5th centuries CE, during the Gupta Period, although he inherited traits from Vedic and pre-Vedic precursors. His popularity rose quickly, and he was formally included among the five primary deities of Smartism (a Hindu denomination) in the 9th century. A sect of devotees called the Ganapatya, (Sanskrit: गाणपत्य; IAST: gāṇapatya), who identified Ganesha as the supreme deity, arose during this period. The principal scriptures dedicated to Ganesha are the Ganesha Purana, the Mudgala Purana, and the Ganapati Atharvashirsa.

 

Etymology and other names

 

Ganesha has many other titles and epithets, including Ganapati and Vigneshvara. The Hindu title of respect Shri (Sanskrit: श्री; IAST: śrī; also spelled Sri or Shree) is often added before his name. One popular way Ganesha is worshipped is by chanting a Ganesha Sahasranama, a litany of "a thousand names of Ganesha". Each name in the sahasranama conveys a different meaning and symbolises a different aspect of Ganesha. At least two different versions of the Ganesha Sahasranama exist; one version is drawn from the Ganesha Purana, a Hindu scripture venerating Ganesha.

The name Ganesha is a Sanskrit compound, joining the words gana (Sanskrit: गण; IAST: gaṇa), meaning a group, multitude, or categorical system and isha (Sanskrit: ईश; IAST: īśa), meaning lord or master. The word gaņa when associated with Ganesha is often taken to refer to the gaņas, a troop of semi-divine beings that form part of the retinue of Shiva (IAST: Śiva). The term more generally means a category, class, community, association, or corporation. Some commentators interpret the name "Lord of the Gaņas" to mean "Lord of Hosts" or "Lord of created categories", such as the elements. Ganapati (Sanskrit: गणपति; Tamil: கணபதி; IAST: gaṇapati), a synonym for Ganesha, is a compound composed of gaṇa, meaning "group", and pati, meaning "ruler" or "lord". The Amarakosha, an early Sanskrit lexicon, lists eight synonyms of Ganesha : Vinayaka, Vighnarāja (equivalent to Vignesha), Dvaimātura (one who has two mothers), Gaṇādhipa (equivalent to Ganapati and Ganesha), Ekadanta (one who has one tusk), Heramba, Lambodara (one who has a pot belly, or, literally, one who has a hanging belly), and Gajanana (IAST: gajānana) ; having the face of an elephant).

Vinayaka (Sanskrit: विनायक; Tamil: விநாயகா; IAST: vināyaka) is a common name for Ganesha that appears in the Purāṇas and in Buddhist Tantras. This name is reflected in the naming of the eight famous Ganesha temples in Maharashtra known as the Ashtavinayak (aṣṭavināyaka). The names Vighnesha (Sanskrit: विघ्नेश; IAST: vighneśa) and Vighneshvara (Sanskrit: विघ्नेश्वर; vighneśvara) (Lord of Obstacles) refers to his primary function in Hindu mythology as the master and remover of obstacles (vighna). The widespread name of Ganesha in Thailand is Phra Phikanet or Phra Phikanesuan, both of which are derived from Vara Vighnesha and Vara Vighneshvara respectively, whereas the name Kanet (from Ganesha) is rather rare. In the Kundalini, Ganesha is the presiding deity of 'Mooladhara Chakra" and hence referred to as "Mooladhara Murthy" signifying that he is the Lord to be propitiated at the beginning of any event.

A prominent name for Ganesha in the Tamil language is Pille(பிள்ளை) or Pillaiyar(பிள்ளையார்) (Little Child). A. K. Narain differentiates these terms by saying that pille means a "child" while pillaiyar means a "noble child". He adds that the words pallu(பல்லு), pella, and pell in the Dravidian family of languages signify "tooth or tusk", also "elephant tooth or tusk". Anita Raina Thapan notes that the root word pille in the name Pillaiyar might have originally meant "the young of the elephant", because the Pali word pillaka means "a young elephant".

In the Burmese language, Ganesha is known as Maha Peinne (မဟာပိန္နဲ, pronounced [məhà pèiɴné]), derived from Pali Mahā Wināyaka (မဟာဝိနာယက).

  

portugues

 

No hinduísmo, Ganexa ou Ganesha (sânscrito: गणेश ou श्रीगणेश (quando usado para distinguir status de Senhor) (ou "senhor dos obstáculos," seu nome é também escrito como Ganesa ou Ganesh e algumas vezes referido como Ganapati) é uma das mais conhecidas e veneradas representações de deus. Ele é o primeiro filho de Shiva e Parvati, e o esposo de Buddhi (também chamada Riddhi) e Siddhi. Ele é chamado também de Vinayaka em Kannada, Malayalam e Marathi, Vinayagar e Pillayar (em tâmil), e Vinayakudu em Telugu. 'Ga' simboliza Buddhi (intelecto) e 'Na' simboliza Vijnana (sabedoria). Ganesha é então considerado o mestre do intelecto e da sabedoria. Ele é representado como uma divindade amarela ou vermelha, com uma grande barriga, quatro braços e a cabeça de elefante com uma única presa, montado em um rato. É habitualmente representado sentado, com uma perna levantada e curvada por cima da outra. Em geral, antepõe-se ao seu nome o título Hindu de respeito 'Shri' ou Sri.

 

Ganesha é o símbolo das soluções lógicas e deve ser interpretado como tal. Seu corpo é humano enquanto que a cabeça é de um elefante; ao mesmo tempo, seu transporte (vahana) é um rato. Desta forma Ganesha representa uma solução lógica para os problemas, ou "Destruidor de Obstáculos". Sua consorte é Buddhi (um sinônimo de mente) e ele é adorado junto de Lakshmi (a deusa da abundância) pelos mercadores e homens de negócio. A razão sendo a solução lógica para os problemas e a prosperidade são inseparáveis.

 

O culto de Ganesha é amplamente difundido, mesmo fora da Índia. Seus devotos são chamados Ganapatyas.

According to the 10th century philosopher, Abu Hayyan al-Tawhidi, calligraphy is "… Jewellery fashioned by the hand from the pure gold of the intellect". In addition the words themselves came to represent power, protection and blessing. The written word, as early as the 7th century, was adopted as the distinctive symbol of Islam. Arabic inscriptions continued to be used throughout the Islamic world on buildings and coins to signify the authority of Muslim rule.

 

Qur'an Page | Museum of Islamic Art, Doha, Qatar

 

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Lens: Zeiss Distagon T* 2/25 ZE

Focal Length: 25 mm

Exposure: ¹⁄₃₀ sec at f/2.5

ISO: 640

“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

Celastraceae (staff vine or bittersweet family) » Celastrus paniculatus

 

see-LAS-trus -- from the ancient Greek kelastros, the name of another tree

pan-ick-yoo-LAY-tus or pan-ick-yoo-LAH-tus -- referring to the flower clusters (panicles)

 

commonly known as: black-oil plant, celastrus, oriental bittersweet, intellect tree, staff tree • Bengali: kijri, malkangani • Gujarati: માલકંગના malkangana • Hindi: मालकंगनी malkangani • Kannada: ಭವಮ್ಗ bhavamga, ಜೊತಿಷ್ಮತಿ jotishmati, ಕರಿಗನ್ನೇ kariganne, ಕೊಉಗಿಲು kougilu • Konkani: माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Marathi: कांगुणी kanguni, माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Oriya: korsana, pengu • Sanskrit: अलवण alavan, ज्योतिषमति jyotishmati, कन्गु kangu • Tamil: குவரிகுண்டல் kuvarikuntal, மண்ணைக்கட்டி mannai-k-katti, வாலுளுவை valuluvai • Telugu: కాసరతీగె kasara-tige, మానెరు maneru • Urdu: کنگني مال malkanguni

 

Native to: India, China, Sri Lanka, south-east Asia

  

References: Flowers of India • Sahyadri Database • ENVIS - FRLHT • eFlora

"Intellectual, (Lat.) belonging to the Intellect, Spiritual."

– 'Glossographia Anglicana nova; or, A dictionary interpreting such hard words of whatever language, as are at present used in the English tongue' (1707).

 

"[General System Theory]... is a logico-mathematical field, the subject matter of which is the formulation and derivation of those principles which hold for systems in general."

– Ludwig von Bertalanffy, 'Problems of Life' (1952).

 

"Many psychiatrists and psychologists refuse to entertain the idea that society as a whole may be lacking in sanity. They hold that the problem of mental health in a society is only that of the number of ‘unadjusted’ individuals, and not of a possible unadjustment of the culture itself."

– Erich Fromm, 'The Sane Society'.

 

Adhya Sharma

Youth (12 years and under)

"Ganesha - Lord of Intellect"

2022

Works on Paper (watercolor, pencil, ink, charcoal, pastel, marker, crayon, digital)

8"x12"

Photographed from our running bus.

  

My experience

 

We entered Yellowstone NP through the eastern entrance using U.S. Route 14. It had been a moderate snow fall in the end of the first week of October, 2017. From few kilometers before reaching Yellowstone Lake, remnants of devastating wild fire were being evident. It was a shocking sight for me at the beginning and could not perceive how fire had devastated hundreds of acres of alpine forests in the valleys and atop the hills. But when I had a closer look to the floor of the forests, I was amazed by the facts how nature maintains its ecological balance! Numerous tiny siblings are growing besides the burnt and decaying logs. The future forests of the park are coming alive.

   

The park seemed to me the world’s finest natural laboratory and archive to study and understand all the faculties of human intellect.

   

The qualities of the photographs are not satisfactory, because they were taken so fast through the glass windows of our running bus. But I didn’t want to miss such life time opportunities. The overall beauties were essentially more important than technicalities, as I always believe.

 

Our luck didn’t favor anyway in this park trip, when our tour guide had declared a forecast for heavy snowfall next day since morning. He therefore decided to visit as many spots as possible in a single day, and not to wait for day-2. I hurried through the trails taking as many snaps as possible.

 

The next day heavy snowfall started since 9 am, and our guide cancelled the day-2 trip. Thanks God…we covered somehow all the spots on the first day.

 

I hope, you may like my Yellowstone series…

     

Description

 

Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Approximately 96 percent of the land area of Yellowstone National Park is located within the state of Wyoming. The Park spans an area of 8,983 km2 comprising lakes, canyons, rivers and mountain ranges. The park is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features. It has many types of ecosystems, but the subalpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests eco-region.

   

It was established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. Yellowstone was the first national park in the U.S. and is also widely held to be the first national park in the world. Native Americans have lived in the Yellowstone region for at least 11,000 years. Aside from visits by mountain -men during the early to mid-19th century, organized exploration did not begin until the late 1860s.

 

The park contains the headwaters of the Yellowstone River, from which it takes its historical name. Although it is commonly believed that the river was named for the yellow rocks seen in the ‘Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone’, the Native American name source is unclear.

     

Yellowstone Lake is one of the largest high-elevation lakes in North America and is centered over the Yellowstone Caldera, the largest supervolcano on the continent. The caldera is considered as an active volcano. It has erupted with tremendous force several times in the last two million year. The Yellowstone Caldera is the largest volcanic system in North America. It has been termed a "supervolcano" because the caldera was formed by exceptionally large explosive eruptions. The magma chamber that lies under Yellowstone is estimated to be a single connected chamber, about 60 km long, 29 km wide, and 5 to 12 km deep. Yellowstone Lake is up to 400 feet deep and has 180 km of shoreline.The lake is at an elevation of 7,733 feet above sea levels. Half of the world's geysers and hydrothermal features are there in Yellowstone, fueled by this ongoing volcanism. Lava and rocks from volcanic eruptions cover most of the land area of Yellowstone. The park is the centerpiece of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the largest remaining nearly-intact ecosystem in the Earth's northern temperate zone. In 1978, Yellowstone was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

In May 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey, Yellowstone National Park, and the University of Utah created the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO), a partnership for long-term monitoring of the geological processes of the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field, for disseminating information concerning the potential hazards of this geologically active region.

   

Hundreds of species of mammals, birds, fish, and reptiles have been documented, including several that are either endangered or threatened. The vast forests and grasslands also include unique species of plants.Yellowstone Park is the largest and most famous megafauna location in the contiguous United States. Grizzly bears, wolves, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk live in this park. The Yellowstone Park bison herd is the oldest and largest public bison herd in the United States.

   

Forest fires occur in the park each year. In the largest forest fires of 1988, nearly one third of the park was burnt.

   

Yellowstone has numerous recreational opportunities, including hiking, camping, boating, fishing and sightseeing. Paved roads provide close access to the major geothermal areas as well as some of the lakes and waterfalls. During the winter, visitors often access the park by way of guided tours that use either snow coaches or snowmobiles.

     

Fire in Yellowstone NP

 

Causes of wildfire in Yellowstone NP

 

Wildfire has had a role in the dynamics of Yellowstone’s ecosystems for thousands of years. Although many fires were caused by human activities, most ignitions were natural. The term "natural ignition" usually refers to a lightning strike. Afternoon thunderstorms occur frequently in the northern Rocky Mountains but release little precipitation, a condition known as ‘dry lightning’. In a typical season there are thousands of lightning strikes in Yellowstone. Lightning strikes are powerful enough to rip strips of bark off of a tree in a shower of sparks and blow the pieces up to 100 feet away. However, most lightning strikes do not result in a wildfire because fuels are not in a combustible state.

   

The great fire incidence of 1988

 

The Yellowstone fires of 1988 collectively formed the largest wildfire in the recorded history of Yellowstone National Park in the United States. Starting as many smaller individual fires, the flames quickly spread out of control due to drought conditions and increasing winds, combining into one large conflagration which burned for several months. The fires almost destroyed two major visitor destinations and, on September 8, 1988, the entire park closed to all non-emergency personnel for the first time in its history. Only the arrival of cool and moist weather in the late autumn brought the fires to an end. A total of 793,880 acres, or 36 percent of the park was affected by the wildfires.

   

Fire incidence, 2016

 

As of September 21, 2016, 22 fires (human and lightning-caused) have burned more than 62,000 acres in Yellowstone National Park, making it the highest number of acres burned since the historic 1988 fire.

   

Heritage and Research Center

 

The Heritage and Research Center is located at Gardiner, Montana, near the north entrance to the park. The center is home to the Yellowstone National Park's museum collection, archives, research library, historian, archeology lab, and herbarium. The Yellowstone National Park Archives maintain collections of historical records of Yellowstone and the National Park Service. The collection includes the administrative records of Yellowstone, as well as resource management records, records from major projects, and donated manuscripts and personal papers. The archives are affiliated with the National Archives and Records Administration.

   

A Quick Overview Map of Yellowstone

 

(www.yellowstonepark.com/park/overview-map-yellowstone)

 

Free Yellowstone Trip Planner:

 

( www.yellowstonepark.com/travel-guides/yellowstone-trip-pl...)

 

8 Best Yellowstone Geyser Basins and Map

 

( www.yellowstonepark.com/things-to-do/yellowstone-geyser-b... )

 

National Park Maps

 

( www.yellowstonepark.com/park/national-park-maps )

 

Interactive map of ALL Yellowstone thermal features at the Yellowstone Research Coordination Network

 

( www.rcn.montana.edu )

  

For more info on our trip to the Summer Palace, check out

Postcard Intellect

Front row l-r: owlbear; intellect devourer; lamia; cave fisher; basilisk. Middle row l-r: shambling mound; two mummies; carrion crawler. Back row l-r: ochre jelly; giant; black pudding.

 

The ochre jelly and black pudding in the back row are my own sculpts, the left mummy is available from Mega Miniatures (originally a Metal Magic fig by Hobby Products), the right mummy is by Ral Partha, the owlbear by Archive and the rest are from Grenadier. Figures date from 1975-1988.

...Intellect on the offensive

“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

Artist: Alex Outka

Address: 400 Marquette NW

Location: City/County Government Building, 5th Floor

628

Metro Youth Purchase Award

Photographed from our running bus.

  

My experience

We entered Yellowstone NP through the eastern entrance using U.S. Route 14. It had been a moderate snow fall in the end of the first week of October, 2017. From few kilometers before reaching Yellowstone Lake, remnants of devastating wild fire were being evident. It was a shocking sight for me at the beginning and could not perceive how fire had devastated hundreds of acres of alpine forests in the valleys and atop the hills. But when I had a closer look to the floor of the forests, I was amazed by the facts how nature maintains its ecological balance! Numerous tiny siblings are growing besides the burnt and decaying logs. The future forests of the park are coming alive.

 

The park seemed to me the world’s finest natural laboratory and archive to study and understand all the faculties of human intellect.

 

The qualities of the photographs are not satisfactory, because they were taken so fast through the glass windows of our running bus. But I didn’t want to miss such life time opportunities. The overall beauties were essentially more important than technicalities, as I always believe.

Our luck didn’t favor anyway in this park trip, when our tour guide had declared a forecast for heavy snowfall next day since morning. He therefore decided to visit as many spots as possible in a single day, and not to wait for day-2. I hurried through the trails taking as many snaps as possible.

The next day heavy snowfall started since 9 am, and our guide cancelled the day-2 trip. Thanks God…we covered somehow all the spots on the first day.

I hope, you may like my Yellowstone series…

  

Description

Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Approximately 96 percent of the land area of Yellowstone National Park is located within the state of Wyoming. The Park spans an area of 8,983 km2 comprising lakes, canyons, rivers and mountain ranges. The park is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features. It has many types of ecosystems, but the subalpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests eco-region.

 

It was established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. Yellowstone was the first national park in the U.S. and is also widely held to be the first national park in the world. Native Americans have lived in the Yellowstone region for at least 11,000 years. Aside from visits by mountain -men during the early to mid-19th century, organized exploration did not begin until the late 1860s.

The park contains the headwaters of the Yellowstone River, from which it takes its historical name. Although it is commonly believed that the river was named for the yellow rocks seen in the ‘Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone’, the Native American name source is unclear.

  

Yellowstone Lake is one of the largest high-elevation lakes in North America and is centered over the Yellowstone Caldera, the largest supervolcano on the continent. The caldera is considered as an active volcano. It has erupted with tremendous force several times in the last two million year. The Yellowstone Caldera is the largest volcanic system in North America. It has been termed a "supervolcano" because the caldera was formed by exceptionally large explosive eruptions. The magma chamber that lies under Yellowstone is estimated to be a single connected chamber, about 60 km long, 29 km wide, and 5 to 12 km deep. Yellowstone Lake is up to 400 feet deep and has 180 km of shoreline.The lake is at an elevation of 7,733 feet above sea levels. Half of the world's geysers and hydrothermal features are there in Yellowstone, fueled by this ongoing volcanism. Lava and rocks from volcanic eruptions cover most of the land area of Yellowstone. The park is the centerpiece of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the largest remaining nearly-intact ecosystem in the Earth's northern temperate zone. In 1978, Yellowstone was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In May 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey, Yellowstone National Park, and the University of Utah created the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO), a partnership for long-term monitoring of the geological processes of the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field, for disseminating information concerning the potential hazards of this geologically active region.

 

Hundreds of species of mammals, birds, fish, and reptiles have been documented, including several that are either endangered or threatened. The vast forests and grasslands also include unique species of plants.Yellowstone Park is the largest and most famous megafauna location in the contiguous United States. Grizzly bears, wolves, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk live in this park. The Yellowstone Park bison herd is the oldest and largest public bison herd in the United States.

 

Forest fires occur in the park each year. In the largest forest fires of 1988, nearly one third of the park was burnt.

 

Yellowstone has numerous recreational opportunities, including hiking, camping, boating, fishing and sightseeing. Paved roads provide close access to the major geothermal areas as well as some of the lakes and waterfalls. During the winter, visitors often access the park by way of guided tours that use either snow coaches or snowmobiles.

  

Fire in Yellowstone NP

Causes of wildfire in Yellowstone NP

Wildfire has had a role in the dynamics of Yellowstone’s ecosystems for thousands of years. Although many fires were caused by human activities, most ignitions were natural. The term "natural ignition" usually refers to a lightning strike. Afternoon thunderstorms occur frequently in the northern Rocky Mountains but release little precipitation, a condition known as ‘dry lightning’. In a typical season there are thousands of lightning strikes in Yellowstone. Lightning strikes are powerful enough to rip strips of bark off of a tree in a shower of sparks and blow the pieces up to 100 feet away. However, most lightning strikes do not result in a wildfire because fuels are not in a combustible state.

 

The great fire incidence of 1988

The Yellowstone fires of 1988 collectively formed the largest wildfire in the recorded history of Yellowstone National Park in the United States. Starting as many smaller individual fires, the flames quickly spread out of control due to drought conditions and increasing winds, combining into one large conflagration which burned for several months. The fires almost destroyed two major visitor destinations and, on September 8, 1988, the entire park closed to all non-emergency personnel for the first time in its history. Only the arrival of cool and moist weather in the late autumn brought the fires to an end. A total of 793,880 acres, or 36 percent of the park was affected by the wildfires.

 

Fire incidence, 2016

As of September 21, 2016, 22 fires (human and lightning-caused) have burned more than 62,000 acres in Yellowstone National Park, making it the highest number of acres burned since the historic 1988 fire.

 

Heritage and Research Center

The Heritage and Research Center is located at Gardiner, Montana, near the north entrance to the park. The center is home to the Yellowstone National Park's museum collection, archives, research library, historian, archeology lab, and herbarium. The Yellowstone National Park Archives maintain collections of historical records of Yellowstone and the National Park Service. The collection includes the administrative records of Yellowstone, as well as resource management records, records from major projects, and donated manuscripts and personal papers. The archives are affiliated with the National Archives and Records Administration.

 

A Quick Overview Map of Yellowstone

(www.yellowstonepark.com/park/overview-map-yellowstone)

Free Yellowstone Trip Planner:

( www.yellowstonepark.com/travel-guides/yellowstone-trip-pl...)

8 Best Yellowstone Geyser Basins and Map

( www.yellowstonepark.com/things-to-do/yellowstone-geyser-b... )

National Park Maps

( www.yellowstonepark.com/park/national-park-maps )

Interactive map of ALL Yellowstone thermal features at the Yellowstone Research Coordination Network

( www.rcn.montana.edu )

   

Let's Get It Started, in here...

 

And the base keep runnin' runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and

runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and runnin', and...

 

In this context, there's no disrespect, so, when I bust my rhyme, you break your necks.

We got five minutes for us to disconnect, from all intellect collect the rhythm effect. Obstacles are inefficient, follow

your intuition, free your inner soul and break away from tradition.

Coz when we beat out, girl it's pullin without. You wouldn't believe how we wow shit out.

Burn it till it's burned out. Turn it till it's turned out. Act up from north, west, east, south.

  

Everybody, everybody, let's get into it.

Get stupid.

Get started, get started, get started.

Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here. Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here.

Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here. Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here.

Yeah.

 

Lose control, of body and soul.

Don't move too fast, people, just take it slow.

Don't get ahead, just jump into it.

Ya'll here a body, two peices to it.

Get stutted, get stupid.

You'll want me body people will walk you through it.

Step by step, like you're into new kid.

Inch by inch with the new solution.

Trench men hits, with no delusion.

The feeling's irresistible and that's how we movin'.

  

Everybody, everybody, let's get into it.

Get stupid.

Get started, get started, get started.

Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here. Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here.

Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here. Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here.

Yeah.

 

Runnin' runnin', and runnin' runnin', and runnin' runnin', and runnin runnin' and... Come on ya'll let's get...Oohhoo!

Aha, let's get oohhoo... in here (right now yeah.) Cookoo, aha, let's get, cookoo, in here... Cookoo, aha, let's get,

cookoo, in here...ow, ow, ow...

ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya...

 

Let's get ill, that's the deal.

At the gate, we'll bring the bud top drill. (Just)

Lose your mind this is the time,

Ya'll test this drill, Just and bang your spine. (Just)

Bob your head like epilepsy, up inside your club or in your bentley.

Get messy, loud and sick.

Ya'll mount past slow mo in another head trip. (So)

Come then now do not correct it, let's get pregnant let's get hectic.

  

Everybody, everybody, let's get into it.

Get stupid. (Come on)

Get started (come one) , get started (yeah), get started.

Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here. Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here. (R-E-T-A-R-D-E-D)

Let's get started (ha), let's get started in here. Let's get started (ha), let's get started (woah, woah, woah) in here.

Yeah.

Oohhoo! Aha, oohhoo... in here... Cookoo, aha, cookoo, in here (S-T-A-R-T-D-E-D)... Cookoo, aha, let's get, cookoo, in here...ow, ow, ow...

ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya, ya...

 

Runnin' runnin', and runnin' runnin', and runnin' runnin', and runnin' runnin'

 

Cartoon from Punch magazine 1867.

Punch the London magazine of wit, satire and political humour.

Celastraceae (staff vine or bittersweet family) » Celastrus paniculatus

 

see-LAS-trus -- from the ancient Greek kelastros, the name of another tree

pan-ick-yoo-LAY-tus or pan-ick-yoo-LAH-tus -- referring to the flower clusters (panicles)

 

commonly known as: black-oil plant, celastrus, oriental bittersweet, intellect tree, staff tree • Bengali: kijri, malkangani • Gujarati: માલકંગના malkangana • Hindi: मालकंगनी malkangani • Kannada: ಭವಮ್ಗ bhavamga, ಜೊತಿಷ್ಮತಿ jotishmati, ಕರಿಗನ್ನೇ kariganne, ಕೊಉಗಿಲು kougilu • Konkani: माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Marathi: कांगुणी kanguni, माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Oriya: korsana, pengu • Sanskrit: अलवण alavan, ज्योतिषमति jyotishmati, कन्गु kangu • Tamil: குவரிகுண்டல் kuvarikuntal, மண்ணைக்கட்டி mannai-k-katti, வாலுளுவை valuluvai • Telugu: కాసరతీగె kasara-tige, మానెరు maneru • Urdu: کنگني مال malkanguni

 

Native to: India, China, Sri Lanka, south-east Asia

  

References: Flowers of India • Sahyadri Database • ENVIS - FRLHT • eFlora

Glory to the courage, labour and intellect of the Soviet people!

 

by V. Viktorov, 1962

Celastraceae (staff vine or bittersweet family) » Celastrus paniculatus

 

see-LAS-trus -- from the ancient Greek kelastros, the name of another tree

pan-ick-yoo-LAY-tus or pan-ick-yoo-LAH-tus -- referring to the flower clusters (panicles)

 

commonly known as: black-oil plant, celastrus, oriental bittersweet, intellect tree, staff tree • Bengali: kijri, malkangani • Gujarati: માલકંગના malkangana • Hindi: मालकंगनी malkangani • Kannada: ಭವಮ್ಗ bhavamga, ಜೊತಿಷ್ಮತಿ jotishmati, ಕರಿಗನ್ನೇ kariganne, ಕೊಉಗಿಲು kougilu • Konkani: माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Marathi: कांगुणी kanguni, माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Oriya: korsana, pengu • Sanskrit: अलवण alavan, ज्योतिषमति jyotishmati, कन्गु kangu • Tamil: குவரிகுண்டல் kuvarikuntal, மண்ணைக்கட்டி mannai-k-katti, வாலுளுவை valuluvai • Telugu: కాసరతీగె kasara-tige, మానెరు maneru • Urdu: کنگني مال malkanguni

 

Native to: India, China, Sri Lanka, south-east Asia

  

References: Flowers of India • Sahyadri Database • ENVIS - FRLHT • eFlora

 

"It is clear to me that treading the path of felicity is the determination of the intelligent (folk) and its neglect is the heedlessness of the ignorant.

 

translation of a chapter from al-Ghazali’s Criterion of Action (Mizan al-‘Ammal) Ed. By S. Dunyah (dar al-Marraif Press, Cairo, 1964) pp. 194-197. Translation by Muhammad Hozien

 

How could someone travel this road without any knowledge of it?"

 

THAT SAGGINESS IN SEEKING BLISS IS AKIN TO ABSURDITY[1]

 

What we mean by eternal bliss is: Everlasting without demise, pleasure without effort, felicity without tragedy, prosperity without poverty, perfection without defect, and esteem without humiliation.

 

As a whole: Everything imagined be it a request of a petitioner or an aspiration of a yearner that is eternally forever in a manner that will not be diminished by the passage of time and extinction of generations.

 

Indeed, if the whole world is full of grains and a bird was to pilfer a single grain every one thousand years then the grains will be exhausted, not diminishing anything from everlasting eternity.

 

This then will not need any encouragement to request it nor incriminating slackness in seeking it after confirming its existence? Since every intelligent being will scurry for lesser gains than this and it will not hold him back even if the way to accomplish it is arduous, and requires leaving the worldly pleasures, and endure a multitude of hardships.

 

The time spent in adversity is finite and what is missed is minimal for the worldly pleasures are transitory and easily exhausted.

 

As for the intelligent person it is easy for him to part with petty amount in order to gain its multiple ten fold. That is why you see everyone in commerce and industry and even in the pursuit of knowledge will withstand all kinds of humiliations, poverty, hardships, and intolerable pain, eagerly desiring a gain of a pleasure in the future that is greater than what they miss at the present moment, a limited increase. How is it then that they will not leave present conditions in order to reach priceless and unlimited gains?

 

There is not an intelligent being in creation that is eager to gain wealth when asked to spend a dinar to wait a month in order to gain pure gold surely his ego will quickly allow him to spend it. Even though it may will be requested at that very instance, indeed that a person who will not even withstand the pains of hunger, for example, in that time period in order that he may achieve an abundant reward in the future will not be considered sane.

 

It may that it will not be imagined to exist in creation, even though that death is always looming and threatening over everyone and gold will not benefit anyone in the hereafter.

 

It may be that he will die in that month or a day after that month and will not benefit from that gold. All this will not deter his opinion in spending it for his eagerness in reaping that reward. How is it then that the opinion of the intelligent being is deceived in bearing the burden of desires in his life which is at maximum one hundred years and the reward for it is everlasting bliss?

 

However the reluctance of creation in following the path of felicity is due to their lack of conviction in the final day. For even the deficient intellect will quickly judge to go on the path of felicity over one with complete intelligence.

  

[1] Being a translation of a chapter from Abu Hamid al-Ghazali’s Criterion of Action (Mizan al-‘Ammal) Ed. By S. Dunyah (dar al-Marraif Press, Cairo, First Edition, 1964) pp. 180-181. Translation by Muhammad Hozien.

  

In his famous autobiography, The Deliverer from Error, al-Ghazālī reconstructs the way the science of ethics is supposed to have developed. Al-Ghazālī contends that the philosophical ethics taught by the Arabic Aristotelians necessarily depends upon prior revelations handed to religious aspirants of a vaguely Sufi stamp. Al-Ghazālī’s argument is reminiscent of similar ones made in late antiquity; I maintain, however, that for al-Ghazālī the point bears added systematic significance. Given the central position held by the purification of the soul in al-Ghazālī’s conception of true religion, he can hardly admit that the philosophers should have discovered independently any of the philosophical ethics al-Ghazālī himself espouses. It is the supernatural power of prescribed ritual acts that ultimately allows al-Ghazālī to maintain the superiority of religiously predicated ethics. Leaving aside Ghazālī's ethics of character, the article examines his treatment of the ethics of action in Iqtiṣād, Iḥyāʾ and Mustaṣfā and finds a consistent theory. The ethical meaning of wājib is defined as "necessary for an agent's interest." The main interest for man is personal salvation. Al-Ghazali, who lived in the eleventh century of the Christian era, was one of the greatest Muslim thinkers. He had an encyclopaedic knowledge and wrote a great number of "books on many subjectsj ethics, Islamic jurisprudence, theology, metaphysics and logic. Ethics occupied a central position in his thought. He set forth his ethical views in many books according to the need and interest of various categories of his readers. Since his thought developed through several stages, the books he wrote including those on ethics are usually divided in accordance with these stages. They have been arranged chronologically by such scholars as Maurice Boyges, W. Montgomery Watt, George F. Hourani, ^Abd-ar-Rahman Badawl and Farid Jabre. The creative part of al-GhazalPs life may broadly be divided into two phases, the early period and the later period which began from his conversion to Islamic mysticism (sufism). His ethical works belonged to both periods and are coloured with their characteristics. There is disagreement on the authenticity of some of the works attributed to al-Ghazali, Some ethical works ascribed to him as of the later period of his life are of doubtful authenticity in their entirety, while some ethical works of both periods are shown to be spurious only in part. Some ideas in an ethical work of a moderate size of the earliest period or, more accurately, of the transitional period, are regarded as superseded by those set forth in his later works. In view of these established facts regarding al-Ghazall's works on morals, any study of them which does not take these facts into consideration may not "be regarded as revealing the truth about him in its entirety. Such a study misleads readers and scholars with regard to al-Ghazall and engenders various theories of his life. Unfortunately, all of the very few studies hitherto made on his ethics are partly based upon the unauthentic books, unauthentic parts of books and the books containing the superseded ideas, as they are also based upon the authentic books. Besides thtis mixing the non- Ghazalian or superseded Ghazalian ideas with the genuine Ghazalian teachings, they often failed to investigate the basic moral principles which are explicit or implicit in his teaching and also to give as complete a description of it as possible in the length of a book. They are unsatisfactory on various other accounts also. Therefore, there is a need for a study of his ethics which is based only upon those ethical works which all the scholars have accepted as authentic and which have not been superseded by others. Such a study should give readers a true knowledge and understanding of this great man and of his thought concerning moral problems. The present work is an effort to meet this need. It is a new approach to the study of al-Ghazsli's ethical theory for it seeks to present this theory in a reasonably complete form "by drawing only upon materials from Ms genuine works or genuine parts of works which have not "been superseded. Among the works of the earlier period, therefore, Mizan al-rAmal (Criterion o f Action) is discarded altogether; (reference to it is made in a few places only for the sake of comparison). Out of the large number of the ethical works of the later period whose authenticity has "been generally accepted, almost a score is selected to constitute the basis of the present study, since to make use of all Ms works would be impossible in a limited period of time. Efforts are also made in tMs work to bring to light the principles of al-Ghazalis ethics. Sometimes it has been found necessary to enquire into the sources of his inspiration and ideas. This study, however, does not seek, except very rarely, to determine the influence of al-Ghazali's ethics upon the subsequent development of ethical thought in Islam or in Christianity - a task which may form the subject-matter of a separate study.

 

ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.640142

 

THAT THE ROAD TO FELICITY IS KNOWLEDGE AND ACTION

 

(p. 194)

 

If you say: "It is clear to me that treading the path of felicity is the determination of the intelligent (folk) and its neglect is the heedlessness of the ignorant.

 

How could someone travel this road without any knowledge of it?

 

How could I know that knowledge and action are the path [to felicity] in order to tread upon it?"

 

You have two ways of knowing it:

 

First, one that is agreeable to the prior methodology, and it is that you should consider what the three groups agreed upon.

 

Indeed they were united in [the belief] that success and salvation will not be achieved save by knowledge and action together.

 

They have agreed that knowledge is nobler than action. It is as though action is its achievement. Knowledge steers action to arrive at its destination.

 

Allah, the Most High, states:

 

{To Him pious speech rises, And the righteous action advances it higher}

 

The pious speech is known through study of knowledge. It [pious speech] is what is elevated and falls in place. Action is like a servant; it elevates and bears it. Indeed this is a remark pointing to the prestige of knowledge.

 

(p. 195)

 

The teaching of the first group who are the ones that subscribe to the first definition of the literalist who link salvation with knowledge and action. Proving this is beyond enumeration.

 

The majority of Sufis and philosophers who believe in Allah and The Final Day are all in agreement that felicity is reached through knowledge and worship, even though they differed in its mode.

 

Their differences are in the minute exposition of knowledge and action. The suspension (of action) in light of this [above mentioned] agreement is imbecility.

 

Whosoever is overwhelmed by an ailment and the consensus of medical texts and consultations, with their varying specialties, state that the cure for the malady is a "cold cure".

 

The abstention (from taking the cure) by the patient is a stupidity in his intellect. Indeed, it is a requirement of intellect to initiate the measures [of taking the cure].

 

Indeed, he may then find [an independent] means; until that is realized, not by imitating the masses on the contrary by verifying the true reality of the malady and the ways that are valid for its cause to be cured. He will then rise with clear vision if he searches, becomes independent, surge above the perigee of imitation (mimicry) and compliance to the apogee of scrutiny.

 

The Sufis and other groups claim that it is possible to reach the realization [of that station] with cognition and verification.

 

Not realizing the reality of death is the removal of the instrument from useful function to the annihilation of the user. Knowing that the felicity, delight and repose are attaining its distinctive perfection

 

Knowing the distinctive perfection of humanity is the realization of the reality of rationals for what it is, not by what is illusionary and sensible, which it has in common with animals.

 

(p. 196)

 

Knowing that the soul itself is thirsty for it, [knowledge and action], and by its nature, has prepared for it. What distracts the body is overwhelming afflictions and its occupation with carnal desires. However, he may destroy and over power those desires and free himself from its servitude and bondage.

 

If he has devoted (himself) to contemplation and meditation in the majesty of the heavens and earth, indeed in contemplating the marvels of what is created in himself then he would have attained his personal [level of] perfection.

 

Indeed, then he would be blissful on earth for there is no significance of felicity save for the soul's attainment of its potential perfection; even though the levels of perfection are countless.

 

However, he will not feel that delight so long as he is in this world prohibited by senses, illusions, and afflictions of the soul. [The situation is] similar to the person who was presented with a savory dish but his taste buds are numb and [numbness] dissipates then he will sense the ultimate delectation.

 

Death is like the dissipation of anesthetizing for I have heard from elite Sufis, saying that the advanced student to the way of Allah will perceive paradise while he is on Earth and that the loftiest Firdaws is within his heart if he would only attain it.

 

Its attainment is by freeing oneself from the trappings of the world and the placement of all his effort in contemplating divine matters until the divine revelation is clearly manifested to him.

 

This is achieved when his soul is purified from these [earthly] defilements. The attainment of this station is true felicity. Action is the aid in its fulfillment.

 

Those are a group that claimed gnosis by knowledge and action towards felicity. What they have said is sound and, they claim, will not be known except by struggle and devotional exercises.

 

As Allah most high has stated:

 

{and those that struggle in Our path We will guide them to Our path}

 

Your only path is to struggle and dedicate yourself to the cause; conceivably the reality of the situation will be manifested either by negation or substantiation.

 

It is enough [proof] for you to embark on knowledge and action. The consensus of the three [groups] is [enough], if your aim of the question is not argumentative. Indeed, if your aim is the achievement of success, just like the ill who seek a cure, not disputation. If you seek it with the consensus of various classes of medical experts.

 

ghazali.org/works/mizan-en2.htm

The Kaldanes have no organs considered unnecessary, and devote nearly all of their body volume to brain matter.

Photographed from our running bus.

  

My experience

We entered Yellowstone NP through the eastern entrance using U.S. Route 14. It had been a moderate snow fall in the end of the first week of October, 2017. From few kilometers before reaching Yellowstone Lake, remnants of devastating wild fire were being evident. It was a shocking sight for me at the beginning and could not perceive how fire had devastated hundreds of acres of alpine forests in the valleys and atop the hills. But when I had a closer look to the floor of the forests, I was amazed by the facts how nature maintains its ecological balance! Numerous tiny siblings are growing besides the burnt and decaying logs. The future forests of the park are coming alive.

 

The park seemed to me the world’s finest natural laboratory and archive to study and understand all the faculties of human intellect.

 

The qualities of the photographs are not satisfactory, because they were taken so fast through the glass windows of our running bus. But I didn’t want to miss such life time opportunities. The overall beauties were essentially more important than technicalities, as I always believe.

Our luck didn’t favor anyway in this park trip, when our tour guide had declared a forecast for heavy snowfall next day since morning. He therefore decided to visit as many spots as possible in a single day, and not to wait for day-2. I hurried through the trails taking as many snaps as possible.

The next day heavy snowfall started since 9 am, and our guide cancelled the day-2 trip. Thanks God…we covered somehow all the spots on the first day.

I hope, you may like my Yellowstone series…

  

Description

Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Approximately 96 percent of the land area of Yellowstone National Park is located within the state of Wyoming. The Park spans an area of 8,983 km2 comprising lakes, canyons, rivers and mountain ranges. The park is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features. It has many types of ecosystems, but the subalpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests eco-region.

 

It was established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. Yellowstone was the first national park in the U.S. and is also widely held to be the first national park in the world. Native Americans have lived in the Yellowstone region for at least 11,000 years. Aside from visits by mountain -men during the early to mid-19th century, organized exploration did not begin until the late 1860s.

The park contains the headwaters of the Yellowstone River, from which it takes its historical name. Although it is commonly believed that the river was named for the yellow rocks seen in the ‘Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone’, the Native American name source is unclear.

  

Yellowstone Lake is one of the largest high-elevation lakes in North America and is centered over the Yellowstone Caldera, the largest supervolcano on the continent. The caldera is considered as an active volcano. It has erupted with tremendous force several times in the last two million year. The Yellowstone Caldera is the largest volcanic system in North America. It has been termed a "supervolcano" because the caldera was formed by exceptionally large explosive eruptions. The magma chamber that lies under Yellowstone is estimated to be a single connected chamber, about 60 km long, 29 km wide, and 5 to 12 km deep. Yellowstone Lake is up to 400 feet deep and has 180 km of shoreline.The lake is at an elevation of 7,733 feet above sea levels. Half of the world's geysers and hydrothermal features are there in Yellowstone, fueled by this ongoing volcanism. Lava and rocks from volcanic eruptions cover most of the land area of Yellowstone. The park is the centerpiece of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the largest remaining nearly-intact ecosystem in the Earth's northern temperate zone. In 1978, Yellowstone was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In May 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey, Yellowstone National Park, and the University of Utah created the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO), a partnership for long-term monitoring of the geological processes of the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field, for disseminating information concerning the potential hazards of this geologically active region.

 

Hundreds of species of mammals, birds, fish, and reptiles have been documented, including several that are either endangered or threatened. The vast forests and grasslands also include unique species of plants.Yellowstone Park is the largest and most famous megafauna location in the contiguous United States. Grizzly bears, wolves, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk live in this park. The Yellowstone Park bison herd is the oldest and largest public bison herd in the United States.

 

Forest fires occur in the park each year. In the largest forest fires of 1988, nearly one third of the park was burnt.

 

Yellowstone has numerous recreational opportunities, including hiking, camping, boating, fishing and sightseeing. Paved roads provide close access to the major geothermal areas as well as some of the lakes and waterfalls. During the winter, visitors often access the park by way of guided tours that use either snow coaches or snowmobiles.

  

Fire in Yellowstone NP

Causes of wildfire in Yellowstone NP

Wildfire has had a role in the dynamics of Yellowstone’s ecosystems for thousands of years. Although many fires were caused by human activities, most ignitions were natural. The term "natural ignition" usually refers to a lightning strike. Afternoon thunderstorms occur frequently in the northern Rocky Mountains but release little precipitation, a condition known as ‘dry lightning’. In a typical season there are thousands of lightning strikes in Yellowstone. Lightning strikes are powerful enough to rip strips of bark off of a tree in a shower of sparks and blow the pieces up to 100 feet away. However, most lightning strikes do not result in a wildfire because fuels are not in a combustible state.

 

The great fire incidence of 1988

The Yellowstone fires of 1988 collectively formed the largest wildfire in the recorded history of Yellowstone National Park in the United States. Starting as many smaller individual fires, the flames quickly spread out of control due to drought conditions and increasing winds, combining into one large conflagration which burned for several months. The fires almost destroyed two major visitor destinations and, on September 8, 1988, the entire park closed to all non-emergency personnel for the first time in its history. Only the arrival of cool and moist weather in the late autumn brought the fires to an end. A total of 793,880 acres, or 36 percent of the park was affected by the wildfires.

 

Fire incidence, 2016

As of September 21, 2016, 22 fires (human and lightning-caused) have burned more than 62,000 acres in Yellowstone National Park, making it the highest number of acres burned since the historic 1988 fire.

 

Heritage and Research Center

The Heritage and Research Center is located at Gardiner, Montana, near the north entrance to the park. The center is home to the Yellowstone National Park's museum collection, archives, research library, historian, archeology lab, and herbarium. The Yellowstone National Park Archives maintain collections of historical records of Yellowstone and the National Park Service. The collection includes the administrative records of Yellowstone, as well as resource management records, records from major projects, and donated manuscripts and personal papers. The archives are affiliated with the National Archives and Records Administration.

 

A Quick Overview Map of Yellowstone

(www.yellowstonepark.com/park/overview-map-yellowstone)

Free Yellowstone Trip Planner:

( www.yellowstonepark.com/travel-guides/yellowstone-trip-pl...)

8 Best Yellowstone Geyser Basins and Map

( www.yellowstonepark.com/things-to-do/yellowstone-geyser-b... )

National Park Maps

( www.yellowstonepark.com/park/national-park-maps )

Interactive map of ALL Yellowstone thermal features at the Yellowstone Research Coordination Network

( www.rcn.montana.edu )

   

AN ENERGY PHOTO REPORT FROM EARL R. STONEBRIDGE

 

"In my honest opinion, people, this is the size of the intellect of those who believe American industry will succeed by using green power," he said.

 

"Incidentally, scientists have discovered that glaciers were melting in the 1700s at the same rate as today. So, if you want to get rid of coal and oil, you might as well turn off your lights now."

__________________________________________________________________________

 

Earl R. Stonebridge is an avid supporter of using our nation's supply of natural gas. He has written extensively on the benefits of how our use of natural gas could completely change the nature of energy in North America, making the import of middle-eastern oil no longer necessary.

Celastraceae (staff vine or bittersweet family) » Celastrus paniculatus

 

see-LAS-trus -- from the ancient Greek kelastros, the name of another tree

pan-ick-yoo-LAY-tus or pan-ick-yoo-LAH-tus -- referring to the flower clusters (panicles)

 

commonly known as: black-oil plant, celastrus, oriental bittersweet, intellect tree, staff tree • Bengali: kijri, malkangani • Gujarati: માલકંગના malkangana • Hindi: मालकंगनी malkangani • Kannada: ಭವಮ್ಗ bhavamga, ಜೊತಿಷ್ಮತಿ jotishmati, ಕರಿಗನ್ನೇ kariganne, ಕೊಉಗಿಲು kougilu • Konkani: माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Marathi: कांगुणी kanguni, माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Oriya: korsana, pengu • Sanskrit: अलवण alavan, ज्योतिषमति jyotishmati, कन्गु kangu • Tamil: குவரிகுண்டல் kuvarikuntal, மண்ணைக்கட்டி mannai-k-katti, வாலுளுவை valuluvai • Telugu: కాసరతీగె kasara-tige, మానెరు maneru • Urdu: کنگني مال malkanguni

 

Native to: India, China, Sri Lanka, south-east Asia

  

References: Flowers of India • Sahyadri Database • ENVIS - FRLHT • eFlora

Celastraceae (staff vine or bittersweet family) » Celastrus paniculatus

 

see-LAS-trus -- from the ancient Greek kelastros, the name of another tree

pan-ick-yoo-LAY-tus or pan-ick-yoo-LAH-tus -- referring to the flower clusters (panicles)

 

commonly known as: black-oil plant, celastrus, oriental bittersweet, intellect tree, staff tree • Bengali: kijri, malkangani • Gujarati: માલકંગના malkangana • Hindi: मालकंगनी malkangani • Kannada: ಭವಮ್ಗ bhavamga, ಜೊತಿಷ್ಮತಿ jotishmati, ಕರಿಗನ್ನೇ kariganne, ಕೊಉಗಿಲು kougilu • Konkani: माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Marathi: कांगुणी kanguni, माळकांगोणी malkangoni • Oriya: korsana, pengu • Sanskrit: अलवण alavan, ज्योतिषमति jyotishmati, कन्गु kangu • Tamil: குவரிகுண்டல் kuvarikuntal, மண்ணைக்கட்டி mannai-k-katti, வாலுளுவை valuluvai • Telugu: కాసరతీగె kasara-tige, మానెరు maneru • Urdu: کنگني مال malkanguni

 

Native to: India, China, Sri Lanka, south-east Asia

  

References: Flowers of India • Sahyadri Database • ENVIS - FRLHT • eFlora

Just saying # lol

Fuchsia ..hanging around

Snowdrop ...an early bird

Cyclamen.. snug as a bug in a rug

 

Found the little snowdrop this morning and had to take its picture as November is a bit early bless it :0))

 

The symbolism of flowers is often determined both by colour and type. When sending flowers based on symbolism, it is often easiest to choose them by colour, since the list of symbolic meanings for each different type of flower can be somewhat lengthy. Generally, white is symbolic of purity and innocence. Red represents passion and love. Pink also symbolizes love as well as happiness, beauty and friendship. Yellow is associated with purity, truth and intellect whereas orange is symbolic of warmth, creativity and growth. Green also represents growth as well as hope, renewal and fertility. Blue is a symbol of peace, tranquility and healing while purple represents devotion, faith, nobility and spirituality.

  

Good day to you !

 

The Muggeridge has returned from Beneath and seeks to engage Trolls in debate, with his Intellect Of The Titans, which he has got.

 

"You, there, Troll !" he demands "Explain to me about Sir Picanuper's buttocks, vis a vis their claimed perfection."

 

"But Sir Picanuper's buttocks do not claim perfection !" defends the Troll, applying logic.

"Well, somebody does !"

"Ah, I see..." says the Troll, and taps his nose, also winks.

 

"Defend the proposition that each of Sir Picanuper's buttocks are more prefect than the other !"

 

"Well, they just are...it stands to reason !" says the Troll, now applying perfect calm and reasonableness, alongside strict logic.

 

"Er, er..." says the Muggeridge. "I'm smarter than Donald Trump, you know..."

 

The Muggeridge looks around for turnips to throw, but none are to be found. He mouths dirty words under his breath.

 

"I'll be back..."

  

Walk Tall !

I feel most deeply that this whole question of Creation is too profound for human intellect. A dog might as well speculate on the mind of Newton! Let each man hope and believe what he can.

(Charles Darwin)

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