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"Khajuraho"
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Location Madhya Pradesh, India Edit this at Wikidata
Coordinates 24°51′08″N 79°55′20″E
Criteria Cultural: (i), (iii) Edit this on Wikidata[1]
Reference 240
Inscription 1986 (10th Session)
Khajuraho Group of Monuments is located in India
Khajuraho Group of Monuments
Location of Khajuraho Group of Monuments
[edit on Wikidata]
The Khajuraho Group of Monuments is a group of Hindu and Jain temples in Madhya Pradesh, India, about 175 kilometres (109 mi) southeast of Jhansi. They are one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India.[2][3] The temples are famous for their nagara-style architectural symbolism and their erotic sculptures.[4]
Most Khajuraho temples were built between 950 and 1050 by the Chandela dynasty.[5] Historical records note that the Khajuraho temple site had 85 temples by the 12th century, spread over 20 square kilometers Of these, only about 25 temples have survived, spread over 6 square kilometers.[3] Of the various surviving temples, the Kandariya Mahadeva Temple is decorated with a profusion of sculptures with intricate details, symbolism and expressiveness of ancient Indian art.[6]
The Khajuraho group of temples were built together but were dedicated to two religions, Hinduism and Jainism, suggesting a tradition of acceptance and respect for diverse religious views among Hindus and Jains in the region.[7]
Contents
1 Location
2 History
3 Description
3.1 Architecture of the temples
4 Construction
5 Chronology
6 Arts and sculpture
7 Tourism and cultural events
8 See also
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links
Location
The Khajuraho monuments are located in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, in Chhatarpur district, about 620 kilometres (385 mi) southeast of New Delhi. The temples are near a small town also known as Khajuraho,[8] with a population of about 20,000 people (2001 Census).
Khajuraho is served by Civil Aerodrome Khajuraho (IATA Code: HJR), with services to Delhi, Agra, Varanasi and Mumbai.[9] The site is also linked by the Indian Railways service, with the railway station located approximately six kilometres from the entrance to the monuments .
The monuments are about 10 kilometres off the east-west National Highway 75, and about 50 kilometres from the city of Chhatarpur, which is connected to the state capital Bhopal by the SW-NE running National Highway 86.
The 10th century Bhand Deva Temple in Rajasthan was built in the style of the Khajuraho monuments and is often referred to as 'Little Khajuraho'.
History
The Khajuraho group of monuments was built during the rule of the Chandela dynasty. The building activity started almost immediately after the rise of their power, throughout their kingdom to be later known as Bundelkhand.[10] Most temples were built during the reigns of the Hindu kings Yashovarman and Dhanga. Yashovarman's legacy is best exhibited by The Lakshmana Temple. Vishvanatha temple best highlights King Dhanga's reign.[11]:22 The largest and currently most famous surviving temple is Kandariya Mahadeva built in the reign of King Vidyadhara.[12] The temple inscriptions suggest many of the currently surviving temples were complete between 970 and 1030 CE, with further temples completed during the following decades.[7]
The Khajuraho temples were built about 35 miles from the medieval city of Mahoba,[13] the capital of the Chandela dynasty, in the Kalinjar region. In ancient and medieval literature, their kingdom has been referred to as Jijhoti, Jejahoti, Chih-chi-to and Jejakabhukti.[14]
Khajuraho was mentioned by Abu Rihan-al-Biruni, the Persian historian who accompanied Mahmud of Ghazni in his raid of Kalinjar in 1022 CE; he mentions Khajuraho as the capital of Jajahuti.[15] The raid was unsuccessful, and a peace accord was reached when the Hindu king agreed to pay a ransom to Mahmud of Ghazni to end the attack and leave.[14]
Khajuraho temples were in active use through the end of 12th century. This changed in the 13th century; after the army of Delhi Sultanate, under the command of the Muslim Sultan Qutb-ud-din Aibak, attacked and seized the Chandela kingdom. About a century later, Ibn Battuta, the Moroccan traveller in his memoirs about his stay in India from 1335 to 1342 CE, mentioned visiting Khajuraho temples, calling them "Kajarra"[16][17] as follows:
Until the 12th century, Khajuraho was under Hindu kings and featured 85 temples. Central India was seized by Delhi Sultanate in 13th century. Under Muslim rule, some temples were destroyed and the rest left in neglect. Ruins of some old temples (Ghantai temple above) are still visible.
...near (Khajuraho) temples, which contain idols that have been mutilated by the Moslems, live a number of yogis whose matted locks have grown as long as their bodies. And on account of extreme asceticism they are all yellow in colour. Many Moslems attend these men in order to take lessons (yoga) from them.
— Ibn Battuta, about 1335 CE, Riḥlat Ibn Baṭūṭah, Translated by Arthur Cotterell[18]
Central Indian region, where Khajuraho temples are, remained in the control of many different Muslim dynasties from 13th century through the 18th century. In this period, some temples were desecrated, followed by a long period when they were left in neglect.[7][10] In 1495 CE, for example, Sikandar Lodi’s campaign of temple destruction included Khajuraho.[19] The remoteness and isolation of Khajuraho protected the Hindu and Jain temples from continued destruction by Muslims.[20][21] Over the centuries, vegetation and forests overgrew, took over the temples.
In the 1830s, local Hindus guided a British surveyor, T.S. Burt, to the temples and they were thus rediscovered by the global audience.[22] Alexander Cunningham later reported, few years after the rediscovery, that the temples were secretly in use by yogis and thousands of Hindus would arrive for pilgrimage during Shivaratri celebrated annually in February or March based on a lunar calendar. In 1852, Maisey prepared earliest drawings of the Khajuraho temples.[23]
Nomenclature
The name Khajuraho, or Kharjuravāhaka, is derived from ancient Sanskrit (kharjura, खर्जूर means date palm,[24] and vāhaka, वाहक means "one who carries" or bearer[25]). Local legends state that the temples had two golden date-palm trees as their gate (missing when they were rediscovered). Desai states that Kharjuravāhaka also means scorpion bearer, which is another symbolic name for deity Shiva (who wears snakes and scorpion garlands in his fierce form).[26]
Cunningham’s nomenclature and systematic documentation work in 1850s and 1860s have been widely adopted and continue to be in use.[23] He grouped the temples into the Western group around Lakshmana, Eastern group around Javeri, and Southern group around Duladeva.[27]
Khajuraho is one of the four holy sites linked to deity Shiva (the other three are Kedarnath, Kashi and Gaya). Its origin and design is a subject of scholarly studies. Shobita Punja[28] has proposed that the temple’s origin reflect the Hindu mythology in which Khajuraho is the place where Shiva got married; with Raghuvamsha verse 5.53, Matangeshvara honoring ‘’Matanga’’, or god of love.
Description
Sections and orientation of Khajuraho temples.
The temple site is within Vindhya mountain range in central India. An ancient local legend held that Hindu deity Shiva and other gods enjoyed visiting the dramatic hill formation in Kalinjar area.[27] The center of this region is Khajuraho, set midst local hills and rivers. The temple complex reflects the ancient Hindu tradition of building temples where gods love to play.[27][29]
The temples are clustered near water, another typical feature of Hindu temples. The current water bodies include Sib Sagar, Khajur Sagar (also called Ninora Tal) and Khudar Nadi (river).[30] The local legends state that the temple complex had 64 water bodies, of which 56 have been physically identified by archeologists so far.[27][31]
All temples, except[27] one (Chaturbhuja) face sunrise - another symbolic feature that is predominant in Hindu temples. The relative layout of temples integrate masculine and feminine deities and symbols highlight the interdependence.[28] The art work symbolically highlight the four goals of life considered necessary and proper in Hinduism - dharma, kama, artha and moksha.
Of the surviving temples, 6 are dedicated to Shiva and his consorts, 8 to Vishnu and his affinities, 1 to Ganesha, 1 to Sun god, 3 to Jain Tirthankars.[27] For some ruins, there is insufficient evidence to assign the temple to specific deities with confidence.
An overall examination of site suggests that the Hindu symbolic mandala design principle of square and circles is present each temple plan and design.[32] Further, the territory is laid out in three triangles that converge to form a pentagon. Scholars suggest that this reflects the Hindu symbolism for three realms or trilokinatha, and five cosmic substances or panchbhuteshvara.[27] The temple site highlights Shiva, the one who destroys and recycles life, thereby controlling the cosmic dance of time, evolution and dissolution.[28]
The temples have a rich display of intricately carved statues. While they are famous for their erotic sculpture, sexual themes cover less than 10% of the temple sculpture.[33] Further, most erotic scene panels are neither prominent nor emphasized at the expense of the rest, rather they are in proportional balance with the non-sexual images.[34] The viewer has to look closely to find them, or be directed by a guide.[35] The arts cover numerous aspects of human life and values considered important in Hindu pantheon. Further, the images are arranged in a configuration to express central ideas of Hinduism. All three ideas from Āgamas are richly expressed in Khajuraho temples - Avyakta, Vyaktavyakta and Vyakta.[36]
The Beejamandal temple is under excavation. It has been identified with the Vaidyanath temple mentioned in the Grahpati Kokalla inscription.[37]
Of all temples, the Matangeshvara temple remains an active site of worship.[28] It is another square grid temple, with a large 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) high and 1.1 metres (3.6 ft) diameter lingam, placed on a 7.6 metres (25 ft) diameter platform.[27]
The most visited temple, Kandariya Mahadev, has an area of about 6,500 square feet and a shikhara (spire) that rises 116 feet.[10][27]
Jain temples
Main article: Jain temples of Khajuraho
The Jain temples are located on east-southeast region of Khajuraho monuments.[38] Chausath jogini temple features 64 jogini, while Ghantai temple features bells sculptured on its pillars.
Architecture of the temples
The layout plan of Kandariya Mahadeva Temple. It uses the 64 pada grid design. Smaller Khajuraho temples use the 9, 16, 36 or 49 grid mandala plan.[39]
Khajuraho temples, like almost all Hindu temple designs, follow a grid geometrical design called vastu-purusha-mandala.[40] This design plan has three important components - Mandala means circle, Purusha is universal essence at the core of Hindu tradition, while Vastu means the dwelling structure.[41]
The design lays out a Hindu temple in a symmetrical, concentrically layered, self-repeating structure around the core of the temple called garbhagriya, where the abstract principle Purusha and the primary deity of the temple dwell. The shikhara, or spire, of the temple rises above the garbhagriya. This symmetry and structure in design is derived from central beliefs, myths, cardinality and mathematical principles.[42]
The circle of mandala circumscribe the square. The square is considered divine for its perfection and as a symbolic product of knowledge and human thought, while circle is considered earthly, human and observed in everyday life (moon, sun, horizon, water drop, rainbow). Each supports the other.[29] The square is divided into perfect 64 sub-squares called padas.[40]
Most Khajuraho temples deploy the 8x8 (64) padas grid Manduka Vastupurushamandala, with pitha mandala the square grid incorporated in the design of the spires.[39] The primary deity or lingas are located in the grid’s Brahma padas.
Khajuraho temples use the 8x8 (64) Vastupurusamandala Manduka grid layout plan (left) found in Hindu temples. Above the temple’s brahma padas is a Shikhara (Vimana or Spire) that rises symmetrically above the central core, typically in a circles and turning-squares concentric layering design (right) that flows from one to the other as it rises towards the sky.[29][43]
The architecture is symbolic and reflects the central Hindu beliefs through its form, structure and arrangement of its parts.[44] The mandapas as well as the arts are arranged in the Khajuraho temples in a symmetric repeating patterns, even though each image or sculpture is distinctive in its own way. The relative placement of the images are not random but together they express ideas, just like connected words form sentences and paragraphs to compose ideas.[45] This fractal pattern that is common in Hindu temples.[46] Various statues and panels have inscriptions. Many of the inscriptions on the temple walls are poems with double meanings, something that the complex structure of Sanskrit allows in creative compositions.[26]
All Khajuraho temples, except one, face sunrise, and the entrance for the devotee is this east side.
An illustration of Khajuraho temple Spires (Shikhara, Vimana) built using concentric circle and rotating-squares principle. Four spires (left) are shown above, while the inside view of one Shikara ceiling (right) shows the symmetric layout.
Above the vastu-purusha-mandala of each temple is a superstructure with a dome called Shikhara (or Vimana, Spire).[41] Variations in spire design come from variation in degrees turned for the squares. The temple Shikhara, in some literature, is linked to mount Kailash or Meru, the mythical abode of the gods.[29]
In each temple, the central space typically is surrounded by an ambulatory for the pilgrim to walk around and ritually circumambulate the Purusa and the main deity.[29] The pillars, walls and ceilings around the space, as well as outside have highly ornate carvings or images of the four just and necessary pursuits of life - kama, artha, dharma and moksa. This clockwise walk around is called pradakshina.[41]
Larger Khajuraho temples also have pillared halls called mandapa. One near the entrance, on the east side, serves as the waiting room for pilgrims and devotees. The mandapas are also arranged by principles of symmetry, grids and mathematical precision. This use of same underlying architectural principle is common in Hindu temples found all over India.[47] Each Khajuraho temple is distinctly carved yet also repeating the central common principles in almost all Hindu temples, one which Susan Lewandowski refers to as "an organism of repeating cells".[48]
Construction
The temples are grouped into three geographical divisions: western, eastern and southern.
The Khajuraho temples are made of sandstone, with a granite foundation that is almost concealed from view.[49] The builders didn't use mortar: the stones were put together with mortise and tenon joints and they were held in place by gravity. This form of construction requires very precise joints. The columns and architraves were built with megaliths that weighed up to 20 tons.[50] Some repair work in the 19th Century was done with brick and mortar; however these have aged faster than original materials and darkened with time, thereby seeming out of place.
The Khajuraho and Kalinjar region is home to superior quality of sandstone, which can be precision carved. The surviving sculpture reflect fine details such as strands of hair, manicured nails and intricate jewelry.
While recording the television show Lost Worlds (History Channel) at Khajuraho, Alex Evans recreated a stone sculpture under 4 feet that took about 60 days to carve in an attempt to develop a rough idea how much work must have been involved.[51] Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone.[52] They concluded that these temples would have required hundreds of highly trained sculptors.
Chronology
The Khajuraho group of temples belong to Vaishnavism school of Hinduism, Saivism school of Hinduism and Jainism - nearly a third each. Archaeological studies suggest all three types of temples were under construction at about the same time in late 10th century, and in use simultaneously. Will Durant states that this aspect of Khajuraho temples illustrates the tolerance and respect for different religious viewpoints in the Hindu and Jain traditions.[53] In each group of Khajuraho temples, there were major temples surrounded by smaller temples - a grid style that is observed to varying degrees in Hindu temples in Angkor Wat, Parambaran and South India.
The largest surviving Saiva temple is Khandarya Mahadeva, while the largest surviving Vaishnava group includes Chaturbhuja and Ramachandra.
Kandariya Mahadeva Temple plan is 109 ft in length by 60 ft, and rises 116 ft above ground and 88 ft above its own floor. The central padas are surrounded by three rows of sculptured figures, with over 870 statues, most being half life size (2.5 to 3 feet). The spire is a self repeating fractal structure.
Temples, religious affiliations and consecration years
Sequence Modern Temple name Religion Deity Completed by
(CE)[27][54] Image
1 Chausath Yogini Hinduism Devi, 64 Yoginis 885 Khajuraho,Chausath-Yogini-Tempel2.jpg
2 Brahma Hinduism Vishnu 925
3 Lalgun Mahadev Hinduism Shiva 900 India-5696 - Flickr - archer10 (Dennis).jpg
4 Matangeshwar Hinduism Shiva 1000 India-5772 - Flickr - archer10 (Dennis).jpg
5 Varaha Hinduism Vishnu 950 India-5595 - Flickr - archer10 (Dennis).jpg
6 Lakshmana Hinduism Vaikuntha Vishnu 939 India-5679 - Flickr - archer10 (Dennis).jpg
7 Parshvanatha Jainism Parshvanatha 954 Le temple de Parshvanath (Khajuraho) (8638423582).jpg
8 Vishvanatha Hinduism Shiva 999 India-5749 - Visvanatha Temple - Flickr - archer10 (Dennis).jpg
9 Devi Jagadambi Hinduism Devi, Parvati 1023 Khajuraho Devi Jagadambi Temple 2010.jpg
10 Chitragupta Hinduism Sun, Chitragupta 1023 India-5707 - Flickr - archer10 (Dennis).jpg
11 Kandariya Mahadeva (Largest temple) Hinduism Shiva 1029 Temple at Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, India.jpg
12 Vamana Hinduism Vamana 1062 Khajuraho Vaman Temple 2010.jpg
13 Adinath Jain Temple Jainism Adinatha 1027 Adinath Jain Temple Khajuraho 12.jpg
14 Javeri Hinduism Vishnu 1090 Javari Temple, Khajuraho.jpg
15 Chaturbhuja Hinduism Vishnu 1110 Khajuraho Chaturbhuja Temple.jpg
16 Duladeo (Duladeva) Hinduism Shiva 1125 Khajuraho Dulhadeo 2010.jpg
17 Ghantai Jainism Adinatha 960 A ruin, pillars at Khajuraho, India.jpg
18 Vishnu-Garuda Hinduism Vishnu 1000
19 Ganesha Hinduism Shiva 1000
20 Hanuman Hinduism Hanuman 922[55] Hanuman Inscription at Khajuraho.jpg
21 Mahishasuramardini Hinduism Mahishasuramardini 995 Khajuraho India, Lakshman Temple, Sculpture 10.JPG
22 Shantinatha temple Jainism Shantinatha 1027 Jain group of temples - Khajuraho 09.jpg
Arts and sculpture
Khajuraho temples are famous for their erotic arts. These constitute about 10% of total art displayed at the monuments.
Erotic sculptures
The Khajuraho temples feature a variety of art work, of which 10% is sexual or erotic art outside and inside the temples. Some of the temples that have two layers of walls have small erotic carvings on the outside of the inner wall. Some scholars suggest these to be tantric sexual practices.[56] Other scholars state that the erotic arts are part of Hindu tradition of treating kama as an essential and proper part of human life, and its symbolic or explicit display is common in Hindu temples.[6][57] James McConnachie, in his history of the Kamasutra, describes the sexual-themed Khajuraho sculptures as "the apogee of erotic art":
"Twisting, broad-hipped and high breasted nymphs display their generously contoured and bejewelled bodies on exquisitely worked exterior wall panels. These fleshy apsaras run riot across the surface of the stone, putting on make-up, washing their hair, playing games, dancing, and endlessly knotting and unknotting their girdles....Beside the heavenly nymphs are serried ranks of griffins, guardian deities and, most notoriously, extravagantly interlocked maithunas, or lovemaking couples."
Over 90% of the art work at the temple is about daily life and symbolic values in ancient Indian culture.
The temples have several thousand statues and art works, with Kandarya Mahadeva Temple alone decorated with over 870. Some 10% of these iconographic carvings contain sexual themes and various sexual poses. A common misconception is that, since the old structures with carvings in Khajuraho are temples, the carvings depict sex between deities;[58] however the kama arts represent diverse sexual expressions of different human beings.[59] The vast majority of arts depict various aspects the everyday life, mythical stories as well as symbolic display of various secular and spiritual values important in Hindu tradition.[3][6] For example, depictions show women putting on makeup, musicians making music, potters, farmers, and other folks in their daily life during the medieval era.[60] These scenes are in the outer padas as is typical in Hindu temples.
There is iconographic symbolism embedded in the arts displayed in Khajuraho temples.[6] Core Hindu values are expressed in multitude of ways. Even the Kama scenes, when seen in combination of sculptures that precede and follow, depict the spiritual themes such as moksha. In the words of Stella Kramrisch,
This state which is “like a man and woman in close embrace” is a symbol of moksa, final release or reunion of two principles, the essence (Purusha) and the nature (Prakriti).
— Stella Kramrisch, 1976[29]
The Khajuraho temples represent one expression of many forms of arts that flourished in Rajput kingdoms of India from 8th through 10th century CE. For example, contemporary with Khajuraho were the publications of poems and drama such as Prabodhacandrodaya, Karpuramanjari, Viddhasalabhanjika and Kavyamimansa.[61] Some of the themes expressed in these literary works are carved as sculpture in Khajuraho temples.[26][62] Some sculptures at the Khajuraho monuments dedicated to Vishnu include the Vyalas, which are hybrid imaginary animals with lions body, and are found in other Indian temples.[63] Some of these hybrid mythical art work include Vrik Vyala (hybrid of wolf and lion) and Gaja Vyala (hybrid of elephant and lion). These Vyalas may represent syncretic, creative combination of powers innate in the two.[64]
Tourism and cultural events
Temples layout map – Khajuraho Group of Monuments.
The temples in Khajuraho are broadly divided into three parts : the Eastern group, the Southern Group and the Western group of temples of which the Western group alone has the facility of an Audio guided tour wherein the tourists are guided through the seven eight temples. There is also an audio guided tour developed by the Archaeological Survey of India which includes a narration of the temple history and architecture.[65]
The Khajuraho Dance Festival is held every year in February.[66] It features various classical Indian dances set against the backdrop of the Chitragupta or Vishwanath Temples.
The Khajuraho temple complex offers a light and sound show every evening. The first show is in English language and the second one in Hindi. It is held in the open lawns in the temple complex, and has received mixed reviews.
The Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development has set up kiosks at the Khajuraho railway station, with tourist officers to provide information for Khajuraho visitors.
See also
List of megalithic sites
Jain temples of Khajuraho
Ajanta Caves
Badami Chalukya architecture
Western Chalukya architecture
Hindu temple
Madan Kamdev
Hemvati
Kama Sutra
Kamashastra
References
"World Heritage Day: Five must-visit sites in India".
Khajuraho Group of Monuments UNESCO World Heritage Site
Philip Wilkinson (2008), India: People, Place, Culture and History, ISBN 978-1405329040, pp 352-353
Gopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam, ed. India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 179.
Devangana Desai (2005), Khajuraho, Oxford University Press, Sixth Print, ISBN 978-0-19-565643-5
James Fergusson, Norther or Indo-Aryan Style - Khajuraho History of Indian and Eastern Architecture, Updated by James Burgess and R. Phene Spiers (1910), Volume II, John Murray, London
"Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
Khajuraho airport AAI, Govt of India
G.S. Ghurye, Rajput Architecture, ISBN 978-8171544462, Reprint Year: 2005, pp 19-24
Sen, Sailendra (2013). A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. ISBN 9789380607344.
Devangana Desai 2005, p. 10.
also called Erakana
Mitra (1977), The early rulers of Khajuraho, ISBN 978-8120819979
J. Banerjea (1960), Khajuraho, Journal of the Asiatic Society, Vol. 2-3, pp 43-47
phonetically translated from Arabic sometimes as "Kajwara"
Director General of Archaeology in India (1959), Archaeological Survey of India, Ancient India, Issues 15-19, pp 45-46 (Archived: University of Michigan)
Arthur Cotterell (2011), Asia: A Concise History, Wiley, ISBN 978-0470825044, pp 184-185
Michael D. Willis, An Introduction to the Historical Geography of Gopakṣetra, Daśārṇa, and Jejākadeśa, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Vol. 51, No. 2 (1988), pp. 271-278; See also K.R. Qanungo (1965), Sher Shah and his times, Orient Longmans, OCLC 175212, pp 423-427
Trudy King et al., Asia and Oceania: International Dictionary of Historic Places, ISBN 978-1884964046, Routledge, pp 468-470
Alain Daniélou (2011), A Brief History of India, ISBN 978-1594770296, pp 221-227
Louise Nicholson (2007), India, National Geographic Society, ISBN 978-1426201448, see Chapter on Khajuraho
Krishna Deva (1990), Temples of Khajuraho, 2 Volumes, Archaelogical Survey of India, New Delhi
kharjUra Sanskrit English Dictionary, Koeln University, Germany
vAhaka Sanskrit English Dictionary, Koeln University, Germany
Devangana Desai (1996), Chapter 7 - Puns and Enigmatic Language in Sculpture in The Religious Imagery of Khajuraho, Project for Indian Cultural Studies, Columbia University Archives
Rana Singh (2007), Landscape of sacred territory of Khajuraho, in City Society and Planning (Editors: Thakur, Pomeroy, et al), Volume 2, ISBN 978-8180694585, Chapter 18
Shobita Punja (1992), Divine Ecstasy - The Story of Khajuraho, Viking, New Delhi, ISBN 978-0670840274
Stella Kramrisch, The Hindu Temple, Vol 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-81-208-0222-3
Ibn Battuta in his 1335 CE memoirs on Delhi Sultanate mentioned the temples to be near a mile long lake, modern water bodies are much smaller and separate lagoons; Director General of Archaeology in India (1959), Archaeological Survey of India, Ancient India, Issues 15-19, pp 45-46 (Archived: University of Michigan)
The number 64 is considered sacred in Hindu temple design and very common design basis; it is symbolic as it is both a square of 8 and a cube of 4.
Brahma temple is 19 feet square; Kandariya Mahadev has a four fused square grid; Matangeshvara temple is a 64 grid square; etc. See G.S. Ghurye, Rajput Architecture, ISBN 978-8171544462, Reprint Year: 2005, pp 19-25; and V.A. Smith (1879), "Observations on some Chandel Antiquities", Asiatic Society of Bengal, Vol. 48, Part 1, pp 291-297
D Desai (1996), The religious imagery of Khajuraho, Project for Indian Cultural Studies, ISBN 978-8190018418
Desai states that Khajuraho and Orissa Hindu temples are distinctive in giving erotic kama images the same weight as others and by assigning important architectural position; in contrast, surviving sculpture from temples of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Mysore show that there kama and sexual images were assigned to insignificant parts of the temple; Meister suggests that this aspect of eroticism in temple design and equal weight reflects evolution of design ideas among Hindu artisans, with temples built in later medieval centuries placing equal weight and balance to kama; see Meister, Michael (1979). "Juncture and Conjunction: Punning and Temple Architecture". Artibus Asiae. 41 (2–3): 226–234. JSTOR 3249517. doi:10.2307/3249517.
Edmund Leach, The Harvey Lecture Series. The Gatekeepers of Heaven: Anthropological Aspects of Grandiose Architecture, Journal of Anthropological Research, Vol. 39, No. 3 (Autumn, 1983), pp 243-264
Bettina Bäumer, A review, Artibus Asiae, Vol. 59, No. 1/2 (1999), pp. 138-140
Cunningham, Alexander (1880). Report of Tours in Bundelkhand and Malwa in 1874-75 and 1876-77. 8 Hastings Street, Calcutta: Office of the Superintendent of Government Printing. p. 22. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
James Fergusson, Jaina Architecture - Khajuraho History of Indian and Eastern Architecture, Updated by James Burgess and R. Phene Spiers (1910), Volume II, John Murray, London
Meister, Michael W. (April–June 1979). "Maṇḍala and Practice in Nāgara Architecture in North India". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 99 (2): 204–219. JSTOR 602657. doi:10.2307/602657.
Meister, Michael (1983). "Geometry and Measure in Indian Temple Plans: Rectangular Temples". Artibus Asiae. 44 (4): 266–296. JSTOR 3249613. doi:10.2307/3249613.
Susan Lewandowski, The Hindu Temple in South India, in Buildings and Society: Essays on the Social Development of the Built Environment, Anthony D. King (Editor), ISBN 978-0710202345, Routledge, pp 68-69
Stella Kramrisch (1976), The Hindu Temple Volume 1, ISBN 81-208-0223-3
Meister, Michael W. (March 2006). "Mountain Temples and Temple-Mountains: Masrur". Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. 65 (1): 26–49. JSTOR 25068237. doi:10.2307/25068237.
Meister, Michael W. (Autumn 1986). "On the Development of a Morphology for a Symbolic Architecture: India". RES: Anthropology and Aesthetics. Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology (12): 33–50. JSTOR 20166752.
Devangana Desai, Khajuraho, Oxford University Press Paperback (Sixth impression 2005) ISBN 978-0-19-565643-5
Rian et al (2007), Fractal geometry as the synthesis of Hindu cosmology in Kandariya Mahadev Temple, Khajuraho, Building and Environment, Vol 42, Issue 12, pp 4093-4107, doi:10.1016/j.buildenv.2007.01.028
Trivedi, K. (1989). Hindu temples: models of a fractal universe. The Visual Computer, 5(4), 243-258
Susan Lewandowski, The Hindu Temple in South India, in Buildings and Society: Essays on the Social Development of the Built Environment, Anthony D. King (Editor), ISBN 978-0710202345, Routledge, Chapter 4
V.A. Smith, "Observations on some Chandel Antiquities", Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Volume 48, pp 290-291
"Lost Worlds of the Kama Sutra" History channel
"Lost Worlds of the Kama Sutra," History Channel
Lehner, Mark (1997) The Complete Pyramids, London: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05084-8. pp. 202–225
Will Durant (1976), Our Oriental Heritage - The Story of Civilization, ISBN 978-0671548001, Simon & Schuster
From inscription or estimated from other evidence
Cunningham in Archaeological Survey Reports noted that one of two Hanuman statues bears an inscription of 868 CE
Rabe (2000), Secret Yantras and Erotic Display for Hindu Temples, Tantra in Practice (Editor: David White), ISBN 978-8120817784, Chapter 25, pp 434-446
See:
Heather Elgood (2000), Hinduism and the Religious Arts, ISBN 978-0304707393, Bloomsbury;
Stella Kramrisch, The Hindu Temple, Volume 1, ISBN 81-208-0223-3, pp 92-96;
Alain Danielou (2001), The Hindu Temple: Deification of Eroticism, ISBN 978-0892818549, pp 101-119
"Khajuraho". Liveindia.com. Retrieved on 2014-07-14.
Alain Danielou (2001), The Hindu Temple: Deification of Eroticism, ISBN 978-0892818549
George Michell, The Hindu Temple: An Introduction to Its Meaning and Forms, University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226532301, pp 117-123 and pp 56-58
L. H. Gray, Journal of American Society, Vol. 27
H.M. Woodward (1989), The Lakṣmaṇa Temple, Khajuraho, and Its Meanings, Ars Orientalis, Vol. 19, pp. 27-48
Smith, David (1 January 2013). "Monstrous Animals on Hindu Temples, with Special Reference to Khajuraho": 27–43. doi:10.1558/rosa.v7i1-3.27. Retrieved 9 February 2015.
The Lakṣmaṇa Temple, Khajuraho, and Its Meanings, Hiram W. Woodward, Jr., Ars Orientalis, Vol. 19, (1989), pp. 27-48
Tourists to Khajuraho will now have an audio compass The Times of India (25 August 2011)
Khajuraho Festival of Dances
In Nepali language 'Shanti' means peace that why this pagoda style stupa,lying at an altitude of about 1100m above the sea level is also called peace pagoda. Built by monk,Nochidastu Fuji under instruction of his guru Myohoji in 1973 the stupa is about 5km up the hill both from southern edge of Phewa lake and Chorepatan.The majestic stupa has four diferent statutes of Lord Buddha in each direction installed by Japan,Nepal, Srilanka and Thailand. The pinnacle of the stupa is from Srilanka.
To reach Shanti stupa the visitors have two options either by boating to southern edge of Phewa lake followed by hiking or from Chorepatan or Phumdibhumdi on a cab, bike or half an hour walk up the hill. Lovers of wilderness and solitude perfer to scale the hill from the Phewa lake as the journey goes through dense forest accompanied by songs of birds and circkets.On reaching the top of the hill, eye soothing view of Mount Annapurna and Fistail, Phewa lake,unending landscapes and green lush forest magnetises the visitors.Towering Pagoda style Peace stupa, and its surrounding garden,like its name fills the visitors with spiritual ecstasy and jubilant mood.The stupa is not just a Buddhist pilgrimage but also a palce for Hindus to worship that why it also exihibits quintessence of religious tolarance in Nepal.
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Ultra cropped tank and gloves from [QE] Designs @ the Main Store. Shorts + Nails, too!
Info & links on my Blog ~ aznanasfandangles.blogspot.com/2024/08/qesnarkyshirt.html
English (and French) language books of a literary bent available for purchase at the classically beautiful Isseido Antique Bookstore in Jimbocho.
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Please take your time... and enjoy it large on black
Laos is blessed with some of Asia’s nicest rivers, and many of them are mellow. Children spent the day at school, and by the afternoon they were doing the chores required of them…building a fire for the kitchen, sweeping the leaves into a pile, or caring for the young siblings strapped to their back …young boys and girls from the age of seven or eight attentive to the baby’s every need. Amongst this was the laughter of children playing in the river. But sometimes they skip their days at school, going fishing and collecting snails from the river, or using long bamboo poles to knock crickets from the trees. They eat the crickets live or drop them into bottles and take them home for lunch or dinner.
Photo taken nearby the Tad Lo waterfall near the little town Kieng Than Lei - Laos. These ragged little urchins spend most of their days not at school, but fishing and collecting snails from the river. School is important for ethnic minority kids, they should attend and complete primary education in order to overcome rural/urban, ethnic in the area of literacy and education. But it isn't that easy. The reason to skip school are the family economic considerations, involvement in family maintenance and subsistence tasks, the lack of perceived benefits from education. While poverty and lack of access are issues. In addition to these, ethnic minority kids have to face further barriers to education, including the distance from school facilities, their extreme poverty, and additional cultural barriers and the lack of fluency in the national language, Lao. The ethnic kids speak their own language. About 32% of all Laotians are related to Ethnic groups. Totally 160 ethnic groups and speak 82 distinct living languages.
...an old lady washing her clothes in the river gave us a beautiful smile; the Laos people are so friendly. Kids have a great time running on the rampart, swimming in the Sexet river at the Tad Lo waterfall, taking boat rides along the river and playing. A bit futher south men washing their elephants in the river. Lao seems a bit like heaven, the laughter is often & sincere, the rivers are cool and clean and not a speck of modern civilization in sight. In my perspective it is some of the best Laos can offer.
Placeta de Sant Serni & Font. Historic center, Canillo, Vall d'Orient, Andorra, Pyrenees - (c) Lutz Meyer
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The Red Bridge ~ Notre Dame de Paris ~ MjYj
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Thanks everyone, thanks for all the votes,comments,
visits, support, critics, invites, awards, etc ...
but danielle has been on of my closest friends since we were in the third grade. this makes me want to take intimate portraits of all of my close friends and family. i want to keep a piece of them with me forever. i want to shoot them the way that i see them.
“Down,” the soldier hissed, yanking Adrienne and pulling her into the shadow of a jagged rock formation.
Two Horocyclians had landed only yards away.
Adrienne heard them before she fully saw them—rapid clicking, layered and rhythmic, unmistakably a language. Through a narrow gap in the rocks she caught glimpses of their towering forms, mantis like silhouettes shifting in the heat shimmer. They paced in slow, deliberate arcs, probing the sand with their forelimbs, occasionally lifting a spined back leg to scratch with an almost absentminded grace.
A cold realization slid through her.
They were studying the tracks—her tracks, and the soldier’s—tasting the dust, lifting their heads to orient toward the very place she hid.
More Horocyclians arrived, their wings beating the air into a low thunder. The clicking intensified, a rapid exchange of chirps and pulses. Their heads snapped between the footprints and the direction the tracks led, movements too precise, too synchronized to be anything but communication.
Beside her, the soldier had gone rigid. He crouched deeper into the rocks, knuckles white around his weapon. “Don’t move,” he whispered.
The Horocyclians reacted instantly. Every head jerked toward their hiding place. They had heard!
Two broke from the group and began advancing—slow, cautious, their bodies swaying, heads rotating with insectile precision.
Adrienne pressed herself as far back into the stone as she could, but she wasn’t fully concealed. She could feel the air shift as the creatures approached.
One reached the rock formation. A massive claw slid into view, hooking around the edge of the rock—directly above her. The clicking rose to a deafening staccato. A thick drop of brown fluid dripped from the creature’s mouth and splattered beside her hand.
Adrienne went still, lungs locked, certain the Horocyclian would sense the two of them trembling in the shadows.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You can view Quantum Fold episodes in order from the beginning in the album titled, "Quantum Fold":
www.flickr.com/photos/199076397@N02/albums/72177720326169...
You can view Quantum Fold II episodes in order from the beginning in the album titled, "Quantum Fold II":
www.flickr.com/photos/199076397@N02/albums/72177720331313...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Broken Glass Bokeh
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Took this shortly after being afraid for my life (in Amsterdam) of an overtanned old man with missing teeth who I thought was going to kidnap me or worse, when really he was just warning me that I was almost stepping on his dog.
Language barriers cause a lot of unneeded anxieties sometimes.
An old lady sat right in front of me, by a window side of a train compartment. She wore aristocracy like no other; around 75-80 years old, travelling alone from Kolkata. Her son would receive her from the station. She was communicating with her son over the cell phone. She was on the edge of her mood, at times relaxed and sometimes fidgety, as the train was running late. She was an expressive woman, as her gestures reflected her mood. She was ignorant about everything happening in the compartment, as she was eager to reach the station on time. I took a few shots of her gestures with my cell phone camera, secretly. They turned out to be pretty productive, as natural documentation of one’s body languages.
Doi Suthep the hilltop near Chiangmai resonates with chanting of Buddhist prayers and hymns in the evening.
The wat here is from the Theravada school of Buddhism which believes in the teachings and practices as enunciated in the original Pali scriptures.
During the day time there is not much to do for the monks, specially the older ones. I espied three monks sitting on the ornate wooden chairs, relaxing with a dog in close attendance. They were murmuring in soft Thai language of which I have no knowledge. Peace seemed to hang somnolent over the place.
_DSC3084 nef
Cassandra Cain is a fictional superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Kelley Puckett and Damion Scott, Cassandra Cain first appeared in Batman #567 (July 1999). The character is one of several who have assumed the role of Batgirl. Over the years, she has also assumed the names of Black Bat and Orphan.
Cassandra's origin story presents her as the daughter of assassins David Cain and Lady Shiva. She was deprived of speech and human contact during her childhood as conditioning to become the world's greatest assassin.
Consequently, Cassandra grew up to become an expert martial artist and developed an incredible ability to interpret body language to the point of reading complex thoughts, while simultaneously developing limited social skills and remaining mute and illiterate.
Cassandra was the first Batgirl to star in her own ongoing Batgirl comic book series. She was replaced as Batgirl by Stephanie Brown in a 2009 storyline. She returned in late 2010, where she was shown working as an anonymous agent of Batman in Hong Kong before adopting the new moniker of Black Bat.
The character was brought back to mainstream continuity after the company-wide reboot in Batman & Robin Eternal, using the code name Orphan, previously used by her father, David Cain. The character's full history was restored in DC's 2021 Infinite Frontier relaunch.
Fictional character biography
Early history
Cassandra's birth and childhood are revealed in the Batgirl series. While seeking a perfect bodyguard for Ra's al Ghul, David Cain finds a potential mother when he sees Sandra Wu-San fighting her sister Carolyn in a martial arts tournament.
Believing that Sandra is holding back for Carolyn, Cain lures Sandra into a trap, sparing her life. David and Sandra have a child, and Sandra leaves the child for David to raise, setting out to become Lady Shiva.
Cain trains Cassandra from birth to be an assassin. She is not taught to read or write; instead, reading body language is her only language. She is able to read people's movements and predict what they are going to do.
When she is eight, Cain takes her to kill a businessman. As the man dies, Cassandra reads what he is feeling, realizes what she did, and runs away from her father.
After that, her activities are a mystery, until she first appears during the "No Man's Land" story arc.
No Man's Land
During the "No Man's Land" storyline, after Gotham is leveled by an earthquake and isolated, Cassandra Cain saves Commissioner Gordon's life and gains Bruce Wayne's approval, and, eventually, becomes the new Batgirl.
Her father, David Cain, sends a video of Cassandra's first murder to Bruce Wayne (Batman) attempting to disrupt her status. However, Wayne continues to accept Cassandra after she takes several bullets to save the life of a hired assassin, proving her devotion to protecting human life.
Batgirl
Bruce Wayne sends Cassandra to Barbara Gordon, currently functioning as Oracle. Barbara says she prefers to live alone but since Cassandra is never home and doesn't talk, it is just like living alone.
A telepath "rewires" Cassandra's brain so that she can think with words and use language, but these abilities come at some cost to her ability to read people's body language.
As she had relied completely on this ability to fight, she is unable to effectively fight crime. Worried, Bruce Wayne takes away her costume and begins training her in defensive skills.
Cassandra soon discovers that the assassin Lady Shiva can read people like she used to be able to and asks Shiva to reteach her.
Lady Shiva accepts on the condition that they would have a duel to the death a year later. As Cassandra would rather be "perfect for a year" instead of "mediocre for a lifetime", she accepts the offer.
When the women fight in a year's time, Cassandra dies within minutes. Realizing Cassandra had a death wish, Shiva then restarts her heart, so that they can have a real fight. In the subsequent fight, Cassandra beats Shiva but does not kill her.
Though not known for her private life, Cassandra does have a one-time romance with Conner Kent after meeting him on a cruise ship. He shares her first kiss, and she even visits him at his home in Smallville, though the relationship never becomes serious.
Cassandra then helps Batman control the violence of a gang war in Gotham City.
Later, Batgirl moves to Blüdhaven with Tim Drake (the third Robin) at Batman's suggestion and with his financial support.
There, Deathstroke takes on a contract from the Penguin to kill Batgirl and decides to let his daughter, Rose (the current Ravager), do the job instead. Cassandra beats Rose by playing on her emotions to leave her open for a critical strike, giving Deathstroke no choice but to get her medical attention.
During this time, Cassandra starts developing a friendship with Brenda, the woman who owns the local coffee shop, and even a very short-lived relationship with a boy named Zero. Unfortunately, her friends are all killed in the Blüdhaven disaster.
Cassandra also goes undercover for Batman, as Kasumi, in the Justice League Elite, working under Sister Superior to track and eliminate metahuman threats to the population.
She works with the Batman's old fellow Justice League members Green Arrow and the Flash, and forms a bond with Coldcast, who is the first Leaguer to whom she reveals her identity.
Although he is subsequently accused of murder, she and the rest of the team soon realize that he has been manipulated by renegade Elite member Menagerie, who was himself being manipulated by the spirit of Manchester Black as he tried to drive his sister to destroy London.
As the JLA falls, the Elite, united by the spirit of the deceased Manitou Raven, free Vera and vanquish Black, although the team disbands after this last mission.
Cassandra gathers evidence that indicates that Shiva could be her mother, and seeks her out to confirm this, rejoining the League of Assassins. After she is proclaimed by Nyssa al Ghul as the "One Who Is All", the students of the League are split, half following Shiva, and the others Cassandra.
In the following confrontation, Cassandra is mortally wounded by her "adoptive brother", the Mad Dog, while heroically saving one of the students under her leadership. Shiva revives Cassandra in a Lazarus Pit, then answers Cassandra's questions about her parentage.
When Cassandra asked Shiva whether she was still killing, whether she would ever stop, Shiva says she was, and responds, "It's why I had you", so Cassandra agrees to fight her to the death once more.
After a closely matched battle, Cassandra manages to break Shiva's neck, paralyzing her. She appears ready to place Shiva in the Lazarus Pit, but Shiva pleads with her not to do so. Instead, Cassandra impales Shiva on a hook hanging over the pit, apparently killing her. Cassandra then abandons the identity of Batgirl and returns to her life as a wanderer.
⚡ Happy 🎯 Heroclix 💫 Friday! 👽
_____________________________
A year of the shows and performers of the Bijou Planks Theater.
Secret Identity: Cassandra Cain
Publisher: DC
First appearance: Batman #567 (July 1999)
Created by: Kelley Puckett (Writer)
Damion Scott (Artist)
This column, the second highest structure in the Afrikaans Language Monument, represents South Africa and the declaration of the Republic of South Africa in 1960. Its placement in the pool is to symbolise the idea of the language as a living, growing entity, which needs sustenance for its survival.
The Afrikaans Language Monument (Afrikaans: Afrikaanse Taalmonument) is located on a hill overlooking Paarl, Western Cape Province, South Africa. Officially opened on 10 October 1975, it commemorates the semicentenary of Afrikaans being declared an official language of South Africa separate from Dutch. Also, it was erected on the 100th anniversary of the founding of Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners (the Society of Real Afrikaners) in Paarl, the organisation that helped strengthen Afrikaners' identity and pride in their language.
The monument, surprisingly post-modern for the product of an authoritarian right-wing state, consists of various tapering structures of a convex and concave nature, symbolising the influences of different languages and cultures on Afrikaans itself, as well as political developments in South Africa, as follows:
* three columns symbolise the European heritage of the language. The columns are from high to low to illustrate Europe’s diminishing influence on Afrikaans.
* three convex mounds on a podium symbolise the African influences on the language
* a wall on the stairway symbolises the influence of the Malay language and culture, placed between the curves of Western Europe and Africa as a separate entity. Yet it forms a unity with the two forces of Western Europe and Africa that merge to form the bridge that symbolically depicts the roots of Afrikaans.
* the highest column (about 57m high) symbolises the growth of Afrikaans and is open at the top. The other writer that inspired the architect, CJ Langenhoven, wrote that Afrikaans grows like a “fast-rising arch”; the second very high column represents South Africa and the declaration of the Republic of South Africa in 1960.
There is also an open stadium at the bottom of the structure where concerts and events are held.
This description incorporates text from the English Wikipedia and the official Afrikaanse Taalmuseum & -monument website.
Urban Chronicles ~ Notre Dame de Paris ~ MjYj
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Language is one of the most important skills we will ever learn. Everything we do at home or work requires us to communicate with our families, friends and colleagues. Without language it is incredibly difficult to share our thoughts and feelings with others, to make lasting friendships, to give and receive information and to learn about the world in which we live.
St. Patrics Cathedral on 2016 Christmas Eve.
New York’s First Cathedral: The Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral
Written by Joyce Mendelsohn, 2001
Edited and updated by James E. Garrity, 2015
The Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral is the original Cathedral of the Archdiocese of New York. Since its construction 200 years ago on the corner of Mott and Prince, it has stood as the heart of old New York; a beacon for the Catholic faithful and an American symbol of religious freedom. Originally the center of a once impoverished Irish community, St. Patrick’s has expanded to serve a diverse community of Catholics from Italian, Hispanic, Asian, and various other origins. Today, our Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral remains a vital force in the community which proudly unites Catholics through worship, social groups and spiritual guidance.
The History of Catholicism in New York
The history of our city's Catholicism begins in the 17th century with French-born Fr. Isaac Jogues, a Jesuit who landed in New York State. Fr. Jacques was one of the North American Martyrs sent as missionaries to the Quebec Hurons in the early 1640s. He escaped capture and torture by an Iroquois war party in 1643 with the help of Dutch Calvinists who smuggled him by boat to New Amsterdam (later renamed New York) where he was warmly welcomed as “a martyr of Jesus Christ” by Willem Kieft. Father Jogues sailed back to Europe upon learning that 18 different languages were spoken among the settlement population numbering some 500, described as having “the arrogance of Babel.” He later returned as an Iroquois missionary though he was seized and murdered in 1649 by a member of the Mohawk tribe. His canonization was in 1930 by Pope Pius XI.
Peter Stuyvesant proceeded Kieft with openly hostility to public worship by religions other than the Dutch Reformed Church which remained even after the British gained control in 1664 of what became New York. The small Catholic population only gained esteem in 1674, when King James II (a Roman Catholic convert) granted religious liberty to the province which still lacked a its own place of worship. In 1683, King James II appointed an Irish Catholic Colonel Thomas Dongan to govern New York under his “Charter of Liberties and Privileges” which granted religious freedom to all Christians. However, the fall of the Catholic Stuarts in England due to the Protestant “Glorious Revolution” of 1688 drove Dongan from his post, ending the brief religious liberty in the province and ushering in a law in 1700 that prohibited Catholic priests from entering the city as per the provincial assembly. Despite these restrictions, Jesuit Ferdinand Steenmayer snuck into the city to celebrate Mass in secret on several brave occasions.
Upon the anti-Catholic law being repealed (1784) in the now sovereign state of New York, an Irish Capuchin friar Charles Whelan arrived in the city to help organize what would become the first Catholic parish in the independent United States. New York’s Catholic community numbered less than 1,000 of the total 230,000 populating the land from French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, and Irish descent. Nevertheless, the Roman Catholic Church in the City of New York was incorporated in 1785, led by the French consul and largely financed by a donation from King Charles III of Spain. Construction then commenced on the first Catholic house of worship in the city - St. Peter’s Church.
Opening Mass was celebrated on November 1, 1786, in the small, Georgian- style building located on the corner of Barclay and Church streets in lower Manhattan. Severely damaged in the Great Fire of 1835 (a conflagration that raged for three days and destroyed 674 buildings), the original wood frame building was replaced in 1840 by the present monumental granite structure, designed in the classicaltradition.
Pierre Toussaint And Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton
Two extraordinary parishioners are connected with St. Peter’s Church: Pierre Toussaint, who is being considered for canonization, and Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first native-born American saint.
Toussaint, born in Haiti in 1766, was brought as a slave to New York in 1787. When his owners fell upon hard times, he became a successful hairdresser, at the same time quietly waiting on and supporting the household. After the death of his owners, the former slave purchased his wife’s freedom and became a leader of the free black community in New York.
Pierre Toussaint devoted his life to aiding the poor and the sick—opening his home to black orphans, raising funds to support a Catholic orphanage and school, and entering quarantined zones to nurse victims of epidemics that ravaged the city.
Toussaint worshiped at St. Peter’s Church for sixty-six years and was buried in the cemetery of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral in 1853. In 1989, his remains were removed and brought to St. Patrick’s Cathedral uptown as the first step in the cause for his beatification. Within St. Peter’s Church is a life-size marble statue of Elizabeth Ann Seton, who was born in New York in 1774 into a devout Episcopalian family. At age nineteen, Elizabeth Ann Bayley married wealthy businessman William Seton. They raised a family of five children in a gracious home at 7 State Street facing Battery Park, which is now the Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton. As a young wife and mother who became deeply involved in assisting the poor, Mrs. Seton was widely known as the “Protestant Sister of Charity.” After her husband’s death, the widow—always deeply spiritual—was drawn to Catholicism and in 1805 was received into the Catholic faith at St. Peter’s Church.
Elizabeth Ann Seton turned for guidance to BishopJohnCarroll. He had been appointed as the first Bishop in the United States in 1789 and in Baltimore presided over America’s first diocese— encompassing all of the thirteen original colonies. At Bishop Carroll’s urging, she moved her family to Baltimore in 1808 to open a Catholic girls’ school—marking the beginning of the Catholic system of parochial schools in the United States. Mother Seton founded the Sisters of Charity—the first Catholic religious order in America. Her order was successful in establishing orphanages and hospitals and developing the parochial school system. Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton died at age fifty- two in 1821 and was canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1975.
Father Antony Kohlmann
In response to the needs of a growing number of Catholic immigrants, Pope Pius VII established the Diocese of New York in 1808, which included all of New York State and a portion of northern New Jersey. Archbishop Carroll chose Alsatian-born Father Antony Kohlmann, along with several of his fellow Jesuits, to organize the new diocese. When Father Kohlmann arrived in the new diocese, he described the Catholic population as consisting “of Irish, some hundreds of French and as many Germans; in all according to the common estimation of 14,000 souls.” A parcel of land on Mott Street on the comer of Prince Street was chosen for the construction of New York’s first Cathedral. It was to rise on land that had been purchased in 1801 and 1803 by St. Peter’s Church for a burial ground. (The graves were removed to another site.) At the time, Canal Street was the northern boundary of the built-up portion of Manhattan. The Cathedral, erected in the midst of meadows, hills, and woodlands, was referred to as the “new church out of town.” (It was still a rural area in 1820 when a fox was caught in the churchyard!) Funds for construction came from large numbers of poor Irish immigrants—at considerable personal sacrifice—and from several wealthy Catholic laymen, including Andrew Morris (an Irish immigrant) —the first Catholic ever to be elected to public office in New York State to serve on the Common Council—and Cornelius Heeney (another immigrant from Ireland), a business partner of John Jacob Astor. On June 8, 1809, Father Kohlmann officiated before an assembled crowd of 3,000 at the laying of the cornerstone for St. Patrick’s Cathedral—the second Roman Catholic Cathedral in America (Baltimore’s Cathedral was the first) and the second Catholic church in New York (after St. Peter’s).
The new Cathedral was the first house of worship in the United States to be dedicated to Ireland’s patron saint, Saint Patrick, who organized the Irish Church in the fifth century. Known as the Apostle of Ireland, Patrick was consecrated as Bishop circa 432. He traveled tirelessly throughout Ireland, preaching, writing, and teaching, converting chiefs and bards, gathering followers, establishing churches and schools, building monasteries, and performing miracles. Since specific rules for canonization were not set down until the tenth century, local veneration of St. Patrick evolved into his sainthood.
The new Cathedral was designed by Joseph Mangin, a French-born architect and engineer, who arrived in New York in 1745 and soon established a reputation as a skilled architect and builder. In 1802, Mangin, along with native- born architect John McComb Jr., won the competition for the design of New York’s present City Hall (completed in 1812) with their plans for an exquisite French Renaissance exterior and a splendid Federal-style interior.
Mangin designed a grand and magnificent structure for St. Patrick’s Cathedral—proclaiming the strength and presence of the Catholic community as a force within the city. At the time of construction, it was the largest church building in the city—over 120 feet long and 80 feet wide and rising to a height of 75 feet with an 85-foot inner vault. The Cathedral—with its massive rough-cut stone facade punctuated by niches for statuary, pointed-arch doorways, and a large tracery-ornamented gable window—was one of the first Gothic Revival churches in America. The interior space was marked by tall, clustered iron columns that divided the body of the church into three naves surmounted by Gothic arches. Painted wall surfaces and natural light streaming through tall windows added to the spiritual quality of the interior. The Cathedral formally opened on Ascension Day, May 4, 1815, with a crowd of 4,000 worshippers and dignitaries, including Mayor DeWitt Clinton, and a greater number overflowing into the streets.
The first Bishop appointed to the diocese was Irish-born Richard Luke Concanen.The Napoleonic Wars prevented him from reaching New York and he died in Italy in 1810. The work of governing as administrator of the diocese continued to be carried out by Father Kohlmann, who devoted himself to fund raising and overseeing construction of the Cathedral. He maintained those responsibilities until the arrival in November 1815 of the second Bishop, sixty-five-year-old John Connolly, an Irish Dominican theologian who was held in high repute by both Pius VI and Pius VII. Bishop Connolly directed the construction of several new churches in the diocese and founded an orphanage in a wood-frame building at 32 Prince Street, across from the Cathedral, that was staffed in 1817 by three Sisters of Charity sent to New York by Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton. Pierre Toussaint, a leading financial supporter, generously contributed funds to the orphanage for close to forty years.
The Sisters established St. Patrick’s School in 1822. The original orphanage and school building was replaced in 1826 by the present red-brick convent and school designed in the Federal style and distinguished by an exquisite doorway of the period. For more than 180 years, the Sisters of Charity continued their tradition of service— first in the orphanage and then in St. Patrick’s School. The school had educated generations of Irish, Italian, French, Hispanic, Chinese, and German children. St. Patrick’s School boasted a distinguished roster of graduates—leaders in business, film, theater, arts, teaching, and the full spectrum of vocations and professions. The school (which had been New York’s oldest surviving parochial school) was forced to close in 2010 due to insufficient enrollment. In 1823, Bishop Connolly invited Cuban-born Fr. Felix Varela to New York to start a pastoral ministry among poor Irish immigrants, who made up the majority of the 35,000 Catholics living in the city. Father Varela—a social activist and advocate of Cuban independence—served as pastor in several diocese churches and is best remembered for his staunch support for the Irish in the face of growing anti-Catholic sentiment.
Bishop Connolly’s entire episcopacy was plagued by a severe shortage of priests. He brought Fr. Michael O’Gorman (who he ordained in Ireland before leaving for New York) with him from Ireland, and in 1820, he ordained Fr. Richard Bulger (another Irishman) to the priesthood. Father Bulger thus was the first priest to be ordained in New York City. Fathers Bulger and O’Gorman regularly traveled to New Jersey, to upstate New York, and to Brooklyn on Long Island to celebrate Masses for the Catholics there, since there were no resident priests in those locations at that time. Both Father Bulger and Father O’Gorman became ill in November of 1824 as a result of tending to the sick and dying of the diocese, and they both passed away within a week of each other at their residence on Broadway. They had been living in the same residence as Bishop Connolly, and when they died, the Bishop, who officiated at both of their burials, caught a bad cold and he died a few months later in February of 1825. Fathers O’Gorman and Bulger (and other early priests of the diocese) were buried in the courtyard in front of the church. A commemorative bronze plaque was placed upon the gravesite in 2010.
At the time of Bishop Connolly’s death, the diocese was composed mainly of working class Irish parishioners. The appointment of his successor, Fr. John Dubois—a French educator and missionary—was viewed with disappointment by the Irish community. Forced out of France in 1791 by the French Revolution, Father Dubois arrived in America with letters of introduction from the Marquis de Lafayette to James Monroe and Patrick Henry. Father Dubois settled in Virginia, where he built a church and opened a school in Emmitsburg, Maryland, that became Mount St.Mary’s College. In 1826, when he was consecrated the third Bishop of New York, there were twelve churches in the diocese for a Catholic population of about 150,000, served by only eighteen priests. By 1837, the numbers had grown to thirty-eight churches and forty priests. Plagued by ill health, Bishop Dubois requested a coadjutor. In 1838, the Rev. John Joseph Hughes was elevated to the episcopy as Bishop of Basileopolis at St. Patrick’s Cathedral and was then appointed coadjutor bishop to Dubois. In the following year, he was made administrator-Apostolic of New York. Bishop Dubois died in 1842 at the age of seventy-eight and is buried in front of the Cathedral, as he had personally requested.
St. John Neumann
Six years before his death, Bishop Dubois had welcomed a twenty- five-year-old theological student named John Neumann to the diocese. Neumann—who was canonized by Pope Paul IV in 1977 as America’s first male saint—was born in Bohemia (now the Czech Republic) and attended seminary in Prague. Since his ordination had been delayed by the government, Neumann came to New York as a missionary. The young man was ordained to priesthood at St. Patrick’s on June 28, 1836, and sent to upstate New York to work among German-speaking Catholics. Renowned for his outstanding mission and pastoral work and for his holiness and charity, Neumann was appointed the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia in 1852, where he died in 1860.
The multitudes of Irish Catholics who arrived in New York in the 19th century were mainly uneducated peasants leaving behind an impoverished existence in their native homeland due to harsh British colonial rule. And, after 1845, they were also fleeing from the Great Hunger—the potato famines that killed more than one million Irish and drove some two million more to America. The new immigrants lived in squalor, crowded into rotting structures and wretched tenements, eking out a miserable living, and suffering from disease and extreme poverty. These Famine Irish turned in large numbers to the church for solace.
The fourth Bishop of St. Patrick’s, who succeeded Bishop Dubois in 1842, was himself the son of poor Irish farmers and weavers. In 1817, at age twenty, John Joseph Hughes (born in Annaloughan, County Tyrone)emigrated to the United States and briefly settled in Pennsylvania before entering Mount St. Mary’s College, where he was ordained to the priesthood in 1826. Father Hughes spent the next twelve years in Philadelphia serving as pastor of several churches and was widely admired for his skillful management, strong leadership qualities, and outspoken defense of the church. Arriving in New York in 1838, Father Hughes served first as coadjutor and later administrator-Apostolic of New York. He was appointed a bishop in 1842—the first prelate to be consecrated at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Bishop Hughes faced two daunting challenges—presiding over a diocese that was experiencing unprecedented growth and protecting Catholics and their churches from the growing hostility of native-born Protestants.
Beginning in the 1830s, the city had experienced several outbreaks of violence led by nativists against Catholics. In 1831, the tiny, wood-frame structure of St. Mary’s Church (the third Catholic church in New York, organized in 1826) on Sheriff Street was burnt to the ground by arsonists. (A substantial stone church, still standing, was built to replace it in 1833 on Grand Street.) The burning of St. Mary’s Church compelled the Trustees of the Cathedral to approve the construction of the brick wall— which surrounds the church—in 1834. Frequent brawls and street riots between Protestants and Catholics led to the founding in 1836 of the Ancient Order of Hibernians (Latin for “Irish”) as a mutual benefit society and self- defense group. In the following years, nativist mobs had advanced on St. Patrick’s several times but were turned back after receiving reports that armed Irish defenders— posted by Bishop Hughes—were stationed along Prince Street and behind those brick walls which had been specifically constructed to protect the Cathedral.
In 1844, James Harper (of the famed Harper publishing family) was elected Mayor of New York as the candidate of the anti-immigrant American Republican Party. At the same time, Protestants and Irish Catholics in Philadelphia clashed in rioting that claimed the lives of some thirty Irishmen and resulted in the burning of Catholic churches and convents. Bishop Hughes vigorously defended the rights of Irish Catholics against this rising movement of bigotry and bloodshed. He organized thousands of Irish men to defend the Cathedral. As a massive anti-Catholic torchlight parade gathered in City Hall Park, ready to march up the Bowery to the Cathedral, he stationed sharpshooters on the protective walls surrounding the building. Bishop Hughes sent a letter to Mayor Harper warning that if any harm came to a single Catholic person or Catholic church, the city would be turned into “a second Moscow” (referring to the burning of Moscow during Napoleon’s invasion in 1812). The Bishop’s powerful message and forceful actions are credited with averting the anticipated violent anti-Catholic outbreak in New York.
In 1851, young men from the neighborhood around the Cathedral organized a militia regiment, known locally as the Second Regiment of Irish Volunteers. It was officially accepted as part of the New York State Militia and designated as the Sixty-Ninth Regiment. Commonly called the “Fighting Irish,” its green insignia was composed of a decorative shield flanked by two Irish wolfhounds standing on a ribbon inscribed with the Regimental motto, “Gentle When Stroked, Fierce When Provoked.” The Sixty-Ninth Regiment served in every campaign from Bull Run to Appomattox during the Civil War and fought in the Spanish-American War and the Mexican Border Campaign. Legendary hero Colonel William “Wild Bill” Donovan, chaplain Father Francis P. Duffy, and poet Joyce Kilmer were with the Regiment in bitter fighting in France during World War I. The “Fighting Sixty- Ninth” has been a fixture in the United States Army ever since and last saw action in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since 1907, the Regiment has been a unit of the New York Army National Guard.
Bishop Hughes was consecrated as Archbishop of New York in 1850 and continued a vigorous mission of building churches, schools, and hospitals. In 1842, when appointed bishop, he presided over a diocese of fifty churches, forty priests, and 200,000 Catholics. At his death in 1864, the numbers had increased to eighty-five churches, 150 priests, and a population of over 400,000 Catholics.
In a far-seeing move that many ridiculed at the time as “Hughes’ Folly,” the Archbishop proposed the construction of a new Cathedral in an undeveloped area far uptown on Fifth Avenue between 50th and 51st streets. Andrew Morris and Cornelius Heeney had purchased the rural property in 1810 on behalf of Father Kohlmann for the sum of $11,000 for the use of the Jesuit boys’ school that he had started downtown. In 1812, he established a school for girls near the boys’ school, run by the Ursuline nuns. The schools were no longer in existence when Archbishop Hughes laid the cornerstone for the new Cathedral on August 15, 1858.
During the Civil War, Archbishop Hughes served as the envoy of President Lincoln on a successful overseas mission to dissuade European countries from supporting the Confederacy. In gratitude, Lincoln petitioned Pope Pius IX to name Archbishop Hughes as America’s first Cardinal. But the death of this indomitable leader in January 1864 came before that honor could come to pass. His memory was honored by tributes from President Lincoln and other statesmen and his body viewed by over 200,000 common people who solemnly came to worship in the Cathedral. He was entombed in the crypts below the Cathedral and remained there until the “New” Cathedral was completed uptown—his remains were then removed to a crypt there in 1883. The Cathedral uptown holds the remains of all of the archbishops and cardinals that have served the Archdiocese since the death of Archbishop Hughes.
Archbishop Hughes’ successor in 1864 as the second Archbishop of the diocese was Bishop John McCloskey. He was born in Brooklyn in 1810 to Irish immigrant parents (his parents are both interred in the cemetery surrounding the Old Cathedral) and, at age eleven, entered Mount St. Mary’s College in Emmitsburg, distinguishing himself as an outstanding student. After graduation, the fifteen-year-old returned to New York with the intention of pursuing a career in law. But after a near-fatal accident in 1827, the young man decided instead to study for the priesthood. Young McCloskey was under the guardianship of Cornelius Heeney (who dedicated his fortune to the care of poor children at the end of his life), and the young man was taught Latin by Thomas S. Brady (buried in the crypts below the Cathedral). He was taught proper English elocution by Charlotte Melmoth, the first Shakespearean actress to come to America, who opened a school in Brooklyn when her acting career ended. (She was buried in an unmarked grave in the churchyard cemetery surrounding the Cathedral.) McCloskey returned to Emmitsburg as a seminarian and later taught Latin at the college. In 1830, he was ordained to the priesthood at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral and remained until 1834 before taking a leave to study in Rome. Upon his return, Father McCloskey was instrumental in starting a seminary in Nyack under Bishop Dubois. (The seminary was destroyed by fire just prior to its opening in the 1830s. Arson was suspected, but the case was never investigated fully.) Father McCloskey became the first president of St. John’s College (later renamed Fordham University), founded by Archbishop Hughes in 1841.
Reverend McCloskey served as coadjutor bishop of New York from 1844–1847 and first Bishop of Albany from 1847 to 1864 before his appointment as Bishop to the New York diocese. Later raised to archbishop, he was highly respected as a pioneer in Catholic education and a clergyman of great spiritual strength and humility. During the tenure of Archbishop McCloskey, a disaster of tragic proportions struck on the night of October 6, 1866, when a catastrophic fire destroyed all but the outer walls of the Old Cathedral.
The five-alarm fire began in the packing room (filled with straw and wood shavings) of a porcelain dealer at 44 Crosby Street and quickly spread to nearby buildings. Showers of sparks fell on the lath and plaster roof of St. Patrick’s, which was soon a blazing inferno. As huge fragments of the burning roof crashed down into the sanctuary, filling the building with flames and smoke, a crowd of parishioners, led by Fathers McGeehan and Mullen, rushed inside to remove precious religious articles. They were successful in rescuing the Blessed Sacrament, vestments, several vessels, a number of oil paintings, and silver candlesticks just moments before the entire structure was engulfed by fire.
Archbishop McCloskey resolved to rebuild the Cathedral and commissioned architect Henry Engelbert (known for his designs of the College of Mount Saint Vincent in Riverdale) to reconstruct St. Patrick’s. Engelbert designed a severely plain facade of smooth brown stucco, facing Mott Street, lacking the detail and grace of the original exterior. The splendid interior, however, was rebuilt with a ceiling of ribbed vaults and arches carried on clustered piers. An altar screen of carved figures, representing the Apostles, is surmounted by a pointed arch stained-glass window above a painting of the figure of Christ. Completed in less than two years, the Cathedral was rededicated by Archbishop McCloskey on the Feast of St. Patrick—March 17, 1868.
The foremost ecclesiastical event in the history of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral took place in the restored structure on April 27, 1875, with the investiture of Archbishop McCloskey as the first American to be named Cardinal. Several Papal emissaries, seven archbishops, twenty bishops, hundreds of priests, and thousands of laymen attended the ceremony of solemnity and celebration. After its construction was completed, His Eminence John Cardinal McCloskey moved his seat uptown to the magnificent new St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Fifth Avenue, which was formally dedicated on May 25, 1879. The historic St. Patrick’s downtown then became a simple parish church.
Since that time, the church has remained the heart of an active parish with an ever-changing population. (Parish boundaries run from Wooster Street to the Bowery, between Hester Street and East Fourth Street.) Beginning in the 1880s, Italian immigrants poured into the area centered on Mulberry Street that came to be known as Little Italy. (Earlier in the 1800s, Lorenzo Da Ponte, who had written librettos for several of Mozart’s operas, lived on Spring Street, and his opulent Funeral Mass took place in the Cathedral in August of 1838.) Large numbers of Hispanic and Chinese newcomers to America make up a significant portion of the present population. Recent years have seen the transformation of previously commercial areas, such as SoHo and NoHo, into residential communities largely populated by people in the arts and media. Currently, many young people are making the entire area their home. Their youthful energy has breathed much life into St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral parish.
As the 200th anniversary of the laying of the cornerstone of the Old Cathedral approached, Msgr. Donald Sakano, who had been appointed pastor of the venerable church in 2007, began to plan for what would be a six-year Bicentennial Celebration (since it took six years for the church o be completed in the early 1800s). Monsignor Sakano marshaled the assistance of historians familiar with church and city history as well as people in the parish community for the purpose of putting together a celebration that would highlight the great history of the church.
A slogan for the Bicentennial Celebration (which we are currently in the midst of) was selected: “Embracing the future as we celebrate our past.”
The Bicentennial Celebration of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral began with a Mass celebrated by His Excellency, Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of New York, held in the Old Cathedral on June 7, 2009, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the laying of the church’s cornerstone. Various church and civic leaders attended Mass and the related events. A parade was held in which, among other events, (a) the Ancient Order of Hibernians, or “AOH,” marched to the church and stood shoulder-to-shoulder around its perimeter wall in commemoration of the AOH’s defense of the church against physical attack by the nativist, anti-Catholic “Know-Nothings” at the request of then-Bishop (later Archbishop) “Dagger John” Hughes and (b) the April 1861 parade of the famed “Fighting 69th” regiment—a unit of the Irish Brigade—as it marched off to the Civil War was re-enacted.
At that same June 7, 2009, Mass celebrating the laying of the cornerstone of the church, Archbishop Dolan announced from the pulpit that an application would be made to the Holy See requesting that St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral be awarded basilica status. This honor is bestowed upon churches that have historical or other kinds of significance for the Catholic Church and which affords certain ceremonial privileges for a church so honored.
It did not take a long time for the application to be honored; His Excellency Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan announced from the altar of the “new” Cathedral at the annual St. Patrick’s Day Mass on March 17, 2010, that His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI had awarded Basilica status to the Old Cathedral, effective (fittingly) on March 17, 2010.
All of the people who have had connections over the years with the Old Cathedral are rightfully proud to learn that this wonderful old church has been so honored by His Holiness Pope Benedict. Old St. Patrick’s is the only church within The Archdiocese of New York to have ever attained Basilica status—a fitting honor for such a historically and ecclesiastically significant edifice within the great City of New York.
Deeply rooted in the community, The Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral continues its tradition of providing for the spiritual needs of Catholics of all ages. In 2013, the Basilica once again became a place where Roman Catholics could be buried on the island of Manhattan. A columbarium was erected early in the year for the purpose of accepting the cremated remains of parishioners and friends of the Basilica, and more columbaria are in the building stages as of this writing. Once again, Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral is an honored burial place for the faithful departed of New York City—the exact purpose that the pioneer Catholic community of New York City had originally intended for the land when it was purchased in 1801.
The hooded merganser is a species of fish-eating duck in the subfamily Anatinae. It is the only extant species in the genus Lophodytes. The genus name derives from the Greek language: lophos meaning 'crest', and dutes meaning 'diver'.
A little excerpt from my favourite piece of music. Bach's Chaconne for Classical Guitar. And yes, it is as difficult as it looks.
InstantFAVE contest winner for November www.flickr.com/groups/28965835@N00/
Helluva Shot contest winner 20th November
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The bimble's over, its time to call it a day !
They've already had their dinners.
Next, the chauffeur must feed himself.
(And that will reawaken the Girls interest)
DOGGIE LANGUAGE, THE BOOK!
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Peony symbolizes many thing In the language of flowers,
a happy marriage and virility in Japan,
prosperity in China,
to the French hardiness or heaviness
for the British bashful shame
and in an American language of the flowers: anger or a frown
also his meaning has found like an aphrodisiac
Paeonia officinalis or European peony,is accepted in my country as a symbol of happy marriage and prosperity, and it's called a Božur.
~•~•~ ~•~•~ ~•~•~ ~•~•~
10th century.The Chinese name for the peony is "sho yu'"; meaning, most beautiful.
and represents prosperity. A legend says it was created by the moon goddess to reflect the moon’s beams during the night.
A similar belief about the peony lighting up the night comes from a Greek writer Aelianus (3rd century) who writes of one kind of peony that grows by the sea, opens at Summer solstice and shines like fire, while another kind, hidden away among the herbs during the day, at night shines like a star.
During the Middle Ages, "lunatics" were covered with peony leaves and petals, to cure them.
It was also believed that keeping peony seeds under your pillow, could prevent nightmares.
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Texture by les brumes