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Looking out from the walls of Nottingham Castle in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire. The castle is located in a commanding position on a natural promontory known as "Castle Rock", with cliffs 130 feet (40 m) high to the south and west.
There is some uncertainty whether a castle existed on the site before the Norman Conquest. If there was it would have been smaller and far less elaborate in design than the one that stood there afterwards.
The first Norman castle of a motte-and-bailey design, and was built in 1067, on the orders of William the Conqueror. This wooden structure was replaced by a far more defensible stone castle during the reign of Henry II, and was imposing and of a complex architectural design.
For centuries the castle served as one of the most important in England for nobles and royalty alike. It was in a strategic position due to its location near a crossing of the River Trent; and it was also known as a place of leisure being close to the royal hunting grounds at Tideswell and also the royal forests of Barnsdale and Sherwood Forest.
In 1194, a historic battle took place at Nottingham castle when the supporters of Prince John captured it. The castle was the site of a decisive siege when King Richard I, returned to England and besieged the castle with the siege machines he had used at Jerusalem.
The castle ceased to be a royal residence by 1600 and was largely rendered obsolete. At the start of the English Civil War, in August 1642, Charles I chose Nottingham as the rallying point for his armies, but soon after he departed, the castle rock was made defensible and held by the parliamentarians. Commanded by John Hutchinson, they repulsed several Royalist attacks, and they were the last group to hold the castle. After the execution of Charles I in 1649, the castle was razed to prevent its re-use.
After the restoration of Charles II in 1660, the present 'Ducal Mansion' was built by Henry Cavendish, 2nd Duke of Newcastle on the foundations of the previous structure. Despite the destruction of the keep and fortifications of the upper bailey, some rock cut cellars and medieval pointed arches survive beneath the mansion, together with a long passage to the bottom of the rock, commonly known as Mortimer's Hole.
After a time the mansion became a derelict shell until it was restored in 1875 by Thomas Chambers Hine, and opened in 1878 by the Prince of Wales, (later King Edward VII) as Nottingham Castle Museum, the first municipal art gallery in the UK outside London. The gatehouse of the medieval castle and much of the walling of the outer bailey was retained as a garden wall for the Ducal mansion.
The ducal mansion is still in use as a museum and art gallery. It houses most of the City of Nottingham's fine and decorative art collections, galleries on the history and archaeology of Nottingham and the surrounding areas, and the regimental museum of the Sherwood Foresters.
Krishna is considered the supreme deity, worshipped across many traditions of Hinduism in a variety of different perspectives. Krishna is recognized as the eighth incarnation (avatar) of Lord Vishnu, and one and the same as Lord Vishnu one of the trimurti and as the supreme god in his own right. Krishna is the principal protagonist with Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita also known as the Song of God, which depicts the conversation between the Royal Prince Arjuna and Krishna during the great battle of Kureksetra 5000 years ago where Arjuna discovers that Krishna is God and then comprehends his nature and will for him and for mankind. In present age Krishna is one of the most widely revered and most popular of all Indian divinities.
Krishna is often described and portrayed as an infant eating butter, a young boy playing a flute as in the Bhagavata Purana, or as an elder giving direction and guidance as in the Bhagavad Gita. The stories of Krishna appear across a broad spectrum of Hindu philosophical and theological traditions. They portray him in various perspectives: a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero, and the Supreme Being. The principal scriptures discussing Krishna's story are the Mahabharata, the Harivamsa, the Bhagavata Purana, and the Vishnu Purana.
Krishna's disappearance marks the end of Dvapara Yuga and the start of Kali Yuga (present age), which is dated to February 17/18, 3102 BCE. Worship of the deity Krishna, either in the form of deity Krishna or in the form of Vasudeva, Bala Krishna or Gopala can be traced to as early as 4th century BC. Worship of Krishna as Svayam Bhagavan, or the supreme being, known as Krishnaism, arose in the Middle Ages in the context of the Bhakti movement. From the 10th century AD, Krishna became a favourite subject in performing arts and regional traditions of devotion developed for forms of Krishna such as Jagannatha in Odisha, Vithoba in Maharashtra and Shrinathji in Rajasthan. Since the 1960s the worship of Krishna has also spread in the Western world, largely due to the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.
NAMES AND EPITHETS
The name originates from the Sanskrit word Kṛṣṇa, which is primarily an adjective meaning "black", "dark" or "dark blue". The waning moon is called Krishna Paksha in the Vedic tradition, relating to the adjective meaning "darkening". Sometimes it is also translated as "all-attractive", according to members of the Hare Krishna movement.
As a name of Vishnu, Krishna listed as the 57th name in the Vishnu Sahasranama. Based on his name, Krishna is often depicted in murtis as black or blue-skinned. Krishna is also known by various other names, epithets and titles, which reflect his many associations and attributes. Among the most common names are Mohan "enchanter", Govinda, "Finder of the cows" or Gopala, "Protector of the cows", which refer to Krishna's childhood in Braj (in present day Uttar Pradesh). Some of the distinct names may be regionally important; for instance, Jagannatha, a popular incarnation of Puri, Odisha in eastern India.
ICONOGRAPHY
Krishna is easily recognized by his representations. Though his skin color may be depicted as black or dark in some representations, particularly in murtis, in other images such as modern pictorial representations, Krishna is usually shown with a blue skin. He is often shown wearing a silk dhoti and a peacock feather crown. Common depictions show him as a little boy, or as a young man in a characteristically relaxed pose, playing the flute. In this form, he usually stands with one leg bent in front of the other with a flute raised to his lips, in the Tribhanga posture, accompanied by cows, emphasizing his position as the divine herdsman, Govinda, or with the gopis (milkmaids) i.e. Gopikrishna, stealing butter from neighbouring houses i.e. Navneet Chora or Gokulakrishna, defeating the vicious serpent i.e. Kaliya Damana Krishna, lifting the hill i.e. Giridhara Krishna ..so on and so forth from his childhood / youth events.
A steatite (soapstone) tablet unearthed from Mohenjo-daro, Larkana district, Sindh depicting a young boy uprooting two trees from which are emerging two human figures is an interesting archaeological find for fixing dates associated with Krishna. This image recalls the Yamalarjuna episode of Bhagavata and Harivamsa Purana. In this image, the young boy is Krishna, and the two human beings emerging from the trees are the two cursed gandharvas, identified as Nalakubara and Manigriva. Dr. E.J.H. Mackay, who did the excavation at Mohanjodaro, compares this image with the Yamalarjuna episode. Prof. V.S. Agrawal has also accepted this identification. Thus, it seems that the Indus valley people knew stories related to Krishna. This lone find may not establish Krishna as contemporary with Pre-Indus or Indus times, but, likewise, it cannot be ignored.
The scene on the battlefield of the epic Mahabharata, notably where he addresses Pandava prince Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita, is another common subject for representation. In these depictions, he is shown as a man, often with supreme God characteristics of Hindu religious art, such as multiple arms or heads, denoting power, and with attributes of Vishnu, such as the chakra or in his two-armed form as a charioteer. Cave paintings dated to 800 BCE in Mirzapur, Mirzapur district, Uttar Pradesh, show raiding horse-charioteers, one of whom is about to hurl a wheel, and who could potentially be identified as Krishna.
Representations in temples often show Krishna as a man standing in an upright, formal pose. He may be alone, or with associated figures: his brother Balarama and sister Subhadra, or his main queens Rukmini and Satyabhama.
Often, Krishna is pictured with his gopi-consort Radha. Manipuri Vaishnavas do not worship Krishna alone, but as Radha Krishna, a combined image of Krishna and Radha. This is also a characteristic of the schools Rudra and Nimbarka sampradaya, as well as that of Swaminarayan sect. The traditions celebrate Radha Ramana murti, who is viewed by Gaudiyas as a form of Radha Krishna.
Krishna is also depicted and worshipped as a small child (Bala Krishna, Bāla Kṛṣṇa the child Krishna), crawling on his hands and knees or dancing, often with butter or Laddu in his hand being Laddu Gopal. Regional variations in the iconography of Krishna are seen in his different forms, such as Jaganatha of Odisha, Vithoba of Maharashtra, Venkateswara (also Srinivasa or Balaji) in Andhra Pradesh, and Shrinathji in Rajasthan.
LITERARY SOURCES
The earliest text to explicitly provide detailed descriptions of Krishna as a personality is the epic Mahabharata which depicts Krishna as an incarnation of Vishnu. Krishna is central to many of the main stories of the epic. The eighteen chapters of the sixth book (Bhishma Parva) of the epic that constitute the Bhagavad Gita contain the advice of Krishna to the warrior-hero Arjuna, on the battlefield. Krishna is already an adult in the epic, although there are allusions to his earlier exploits. The Harivamsa, a later appendix to this epic, contains the earliest detailed version of Krishna's childhood and youth.
The Rig Veda 1.22.164 sukta 31 mentions a herdsman "who never stumbles". Some Vaishnavite scholars, such as Bhaktivinoda Thakura, claim that this herdsman refers to Krishna. Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar also attempted to show that "the very same Krishna" made an appearance, e.g. as the drapsa ... krishna "black drop" of RV 8.96.13. Some authors have also likened prehistoric depictions of deities to Krishna.
Chandogya Upanishad (3.17.6) composed around 900 BCE mentions Vasudeva Krishna as the son of Devaki and the disciple of Ghora Angirasa, the seer who preached his disciple the philosophy of ‘Chhandogya.’ Having been influenced by the philosophy of ‘Chhandogya’ Krishna in the Bhagavadgita while delivering the discourse to Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra discussed about sacrifice, which can be compared to purusha or the individual.
Yāska's Nirukta, an etymological dictionary around 6th century BC, contains a reference to the Shyamantaka jewel in the possession of Akrura, a motif from well known Puranic story about Krishna. Shatapatha Brahmana and Aitareya-Aranyaka, associate Krishna with his Vrishni origins.
Pāṇini, the ancient grammarian and author of Asthadhyayi (probably belonged to 5th century or 6th century BC) mentions a character called Vāsudeva, son of Vasudeva, and also mentions Kaurava and Arjuna which testifies to Vasudeva Krishna, Arjuna and Kauravas being contemporaries.
Megasthenes (350 – 290 BC) a Greek ethnographer and an ambassador of Seleucus I to the court of Chandragupta Maurya made reference to Herakles in his famous work Indica. Many scholars have suggested that the deity identified as Herakles was Krishna. According to Arrian, Diodorus, and Strabo, Megasthenes described an Indian tribe called Sourasenoi, who especially worshipped Herakles in their land, and this land had two cities, Methora and Kleisobora, and a navigable river, the Jobares. As was common in the ancient period, the Greeks sometimes described foreign gods in terms of their own divinities, and there is a little doubt that the Sourasenoi refers to the Shurasenas, a branch of the Yadu dynasty to which Krishna belonged; Herakles to Krishna, or Hari-Krishna: Methora to Mathura, where Krishna was born; Kleisobora to Krishnapura, meaning "the city of Krishna"; and the Jobares to the Yamuna, the famous river in the Krishna story. Quintus Curtius also mentions that when Alexander the Great confronted Porus, Porus's soldiers were carrying an image of Herakles in their vanguard.
The name Krishna occurs in Buddhist writings in the form Kānha, phonetically equivalent to Krishna.
The Ghata-Jâtaka (No. 454) gives an account of Krishna's childhood and subsequent exploits which in many points corresponds with the Brahmanic legends of his life and contains several familiar incidents and names, such as Vâsudeva, Baladeva, Kaṃsa. Yet it presents many peculiarities and is either an independent version or a misrepresentation of a popular story that had wandered far from its home. Jain tradition also shows that these tales were popular and were worked up into different forms, for the Jains have an elaborate system of ancient patriarchs which includes Vâsudevas and Baladevas. Krishna is the ninth of the Black Vâsudevas and is connected with Dvâravatî or Dvârakâ. He will become the twelfth tîrthankara of the next world-period and a similar position will be attained by Devakî, Rohinî, Baladeva and Javakumâra, all members of his family. This is a striking proof of the popularity of the Krishna legend outside the Brahmanic religion.
According to Arthasastra of Kautilya (4th century BCE) Vāsudeva was worshiped as supreme Deity in a strongly monotheistic format.
Around 150 BC, Patanjali in his Mahabhashya quotes a verse: "May the might of Krishna accompanied by Samkarshana increase!" Other verses are mentioned. One verse speaks of "Janardhana with himself as fourth" (Krishna with three companions, the three possibly being Samkarshana, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha). Another verse mentions musical instruments being played at meetings in the temples of Rama (Balarama) and Kesava (Krishna). Patanjali also describes dramatic and mimetic performances (Krishna-Kamsopacharam) representing the killing of Kamsa by Vasudeva.
In the 1st century BC, there seems to be evidence for a worship of five Vrishni heroes (Balarama, Krishna, Pradyumna, Aniruddha and Samba) for an inscription has been found at Mora near Mathura, which apparently mentions a son of the great satrap Rajuvula, probably the satrap Sodasa, and an image of Vrishni, "probably Vasudeva, and of the "Five Warriors". Brahmi inscription on the Mora stone slab, now in the Mathura Museum.
Many Puranas tell Krishna's life-story or some highlights from it. Two Puranas, the Bhagavata Purana and the Vishnu Purana, that contain the most elaborate telling of Krishna’s story and teachings are the most theologically venerated by the Vaishnava schools. Roughly one quarter of the Bhagavata Purana is spent extolling his life and philosophy.
LIFE
This summary is based on details from the Mahābhārata, the Harivamsa, the Bhagavata Purana and the Vishnu Purana. The scenes from the narrative are set in north India mostly in the present states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat.
BIRTH
Based on scriptural details and astrological calculations, the date of Krishna's birth, known as Janmashtami, is 18 July 3228 BCE. He was born to Devaki and her husband, Vasudeva, When Mother Earth became upset by the sin being committed on Earth, she thought of seeking help from Lord Vishnu. She went in the form of a cow to visit Lord Vishnu and ask for help. Lord Vishnu agreed to help her and promised her that he would be born on Earth. On Earth in the Yadava clan, he was yadav according to his birth, a prince named Kamsa sent his father Ugrasena (King of Mathura) to prison and became the King himself. One day a loud voice from the sky (Akash Vani in Hindi) prophesied that the 8th son of Kamsa's sister (Devaki) would kill Kamsa. Out of affection for Devaki, Kamsa did not kill her outright. He did, however, send his sister and her husband (Vasudeva) to prison. Lord Vishnu himself later appeared to Devaki and Vasudeva and told them that he himself would be their eighth son and kill Kamsa and destroy sin in the world. In the story of Krishna the deity is the agent of conception and also the offspring. Because of his sympathy for the earth, the divine Vishnu himself descended into the womb of Devaki and was born as her son, Vaasudeva (i.e., Krishna).[citation needed] This is occasionally cited as evidence that "virgin birth" tales are fairly common in non-Christian religions around the world. However, there is nothing in Hindu scriptures to suggest that it was a "virgin" birth. By the time of conception and birth of Krishna, Devaki was married to Vasudeva and had already borne 7 children. Virgin birth in this case should be more accurately understood as divine conception. Kunti the mother of the Pandavas referenced contemporaneously with the story of Krishna in the Mahabharata also has divine conception and virgin birth of Prince Karna.
The Hindu Vishnu Purana relates: "Devaki bore in her womb the lotus-eyed deity...before the birth of Krishna, no one could bear to gaze upon Devaki, from the light that invested her, and those who contemplated her radiance felt their minds disturbed.” This reference to light is reminiscent of the Vedic hymn "To an Unknown Divine," which refers to a Golden Child. According to F. M. Müller, this term means "the golden gem of child" and is an attempt at naming the sun. According to the Vishnu Purana, Krishna is the total incarnation of Lord Vishnu. It clearly describes in the Vishnu Purana that Krishna was born on earth to destroy sin, especially Kamsa.
Krishna belonged to the Vrishni clan of Yadavas from Mathura, and was the eighth son born to the princess Devaki, and her husband Vasudeva.
Mathura (in present day Mathura district, Uttar Pradesh) was the capital of the Yadavas, to which Krishna's parents Vasudeva and Devaki belonged. King Kamsa, Devaki's brother, had ascended the throne by imprisoning his father, King Ugrasena. Afraid of a prophecy from a divine voice from the heavens that predicted his death at the hands of Devaki's eighth "garbha", Kamsa had the couple locked in a prison cell. After Kamsa killed the first six children, Devaki apparently had a miscarriage of the seventh. However, in reality, the womb was actually transferred to Rohini secretly. This was how Balarama, Krishna's elder brother, was born. Once again Devaki became pregnant. Now due to the miscarriage, Kamsa was in a puzzle regarding 'The Eighth One', but his ministers advised that the divine voice from the heavens emphasised "the eight garbha" and so this is the one. That night Krishna was born in the Rohini nakshatra and simultaneously the goddess Durga was born as Yogamaya in Gokulam to Nanda and Yashoda.
Since Vasudeva knew Krishna's life was in danger, Krishna was secretly taken out of the prison cell to be raised by his foster parents, Yasoda and Nanda, in Gokula (in present day Mathura district). Two of his other siblings also survived, Balarama (Devaki's seventh child, transferred to the womb of Rohini, Vasudeva's first wife) and Subhadra (daughter of Vasudeva and Rohini, born much later than Balarama and Krishna).
CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH
Nanda was the head of a community of cow-herders, and he settled in Vrindavana. The stories of Krishna's childhood and youth tell how he became a cow herder, his mischievous pranks as Makhan Chor (butter thief) his foiling of attempts to take his life, and his role as a protector of the people of Vrindavana.
Krishna killed the demoness Putana, disguised as a wet nurse, and the tornado demon Trinavarta both sent by Kamsa for Krishna's life. He tamed the serpent Kāliyā, who previously poisoned the waters of Yamuna river, thus leading to the death of the cowherds. In Hindu art, Krishna is often depicted dancing on the multi-hooded Kāliyā.
Krishna lifted the Govardhana hill and taught Indra, the king of the devas, a lesson to protect native people of Brindavana from persecution by Indra and prevent the devastation of the pasture land of Govardhan. Indra had too much pride and was angry when Krishna advised the people of Brindavana to take care of their animals and their environment that provide them with all their necessities, instead of worshipping Indra annually by spending their resources. In the view of some, the spiritual movement started by Krishna had something in it which went against the orthodox forms of worship of the Vedic gods such as Indra. In Bhagavat Purana, Krishna says that the rain came from the nearby hill Govardhana, and advised that the people worshiped the hill instead of Indra. This made Indra furious, so he punished them by sending out a great storm. Krishna then lifted Govardhan and held it over the people like an umbrella.
The stories of his play with the gopis (milkmaids) of Brindavana, especially Radha (daughter of Vrishbhanu, one of the original residents of Brindavan) became known as the Rasa lila and were romanticised in the poetry of Jayadeva, author of the Gita Govinda. These became important as part of the development of the Krishna bhakti traditions worshiping Radha Krishna.
Krishna’s childhood reinforces the Hindu concept of lila, playing for fun and enjoyment and not for sport or gain. His interaction with the gopis at the rasa dance or Rasa-lila is a great example of this. Krishna played his flute and the gopis came immediately from whatever they were doing, to the banks of the Yamuna River, and joined him in singing and dancing. Even those who could not physically be there joined him through meditation. The story of Krishna’s battle with Kāliyā also supports this idea in the sense of him dancing on Kāliyā’s many hoods. Even though he is doing battle with the serpent, he is in no real danger and treats it like a game. He is a protector, but he only appears to be a young boy having fun. This idea of having a playful god is very important in Hinduism. The playfulness of Krishna has inspired many celebrations like the Rasa-lila and the Janmashtami : where they make human pyramids to break open handis (clay pots) hung high in the air that spill buttermilk all over the group after being broken by the person at the top. This is meant to be a fun celebration and it gives the participants a sense of unity. Many believe that lila being connected with Krishna gives Hindus a deeper connection to him and thus a deeper connection to Vishnu also; seeing as Krishna is an incarnation of Vishnu. Theologists, like Kristin Johnston Largen, believe that Krishna’s childhood can even inspire other religions to look for lila in deities so that they have a chance to experience a part of their faith that they may not have previously seen.
THE PRINCE
On his return to Mathura as a young man, Krishna overthrew and killed his maternal uncle, Kamsa, after quelling several assassination attempts from Kamsa's followers. He reinstated Kamsa's father, Ugrasena, as the king of the Yadavas and became a leading prince at the court. During this period, he became a friend of Arjuna and the other Pandava princes of the Kuru kingdom, who were his cousins. Later, he took his Yadava subjects to the city of Dwaraka (in modern Gujarat) and established his own kingdom there.
Krishna married Rukmini, the Vidarbha princess, by abducting her, at her request, from her proposed wedding with Shishupala. He married eight queens - collectively called the Ashtabharya - including Rukmini, Satyabhama, Jambavati, Kalindi, Mitravinda, Nagnajiti, Bhadra and Lakshmana. Krishna subsequently married 16,000 or 16,100 maidens who were held captive by the demon Narakasura, to save their honour. Krishna killed the demon and released them all. According to social custom of the time, all of the captive women were degraded, and would be unable to marry, as they had been under the Narakasura's control. However Krishna married them to reinstate their status in the society. This symbolic wedding with 16,100 abandoned daughters was more of a mass rehabilitation. In Vaishnava traditions, Krishna's wives are forms of the goddess Lakshmi - consort of Vishnu, or special souls who attained this qualification after many lifetimes of austerity, while his two queens, Rukmani and Satyabhama, are expansions of Lakshmi.
When Yudhisthira was assuming the title of emperor, he had invited all the great kings to the ceremony and while paying his respects to them, he started with Krishna because he considered Krishna to be the greatest of them all. While it was a unanimous feeling amongst most present at the ceremony that Krishna should get the first honours, his cousin Shishupala felt otherwise and started berating Krishna. Due to a vow given to Shishupal's mother, Krishna forgave a hundred verbal abuses by Shishupal, and upon the one hundred and first, he assumed his Virat (universal) form and killed Shishupal with his Chakra. The blind king Dhritarashtra also obtained divine vision to be able to see this form of Krishna during the time when Duryodana tried to capture Krishna when he came as a peace bearer before the great Mahabharat War. Essentially, Shishupala and Dantavakra were both re-incarnations of Vishnu's gate-keepers Jaya and Vijaya, who were cursed to be born on Earth, to be delivered by the Vishnu back to Vaikuntha.
KURUKSHETRA WAR AND BHAGAVAD GITA
Once battle seemed inevitable, Krishna offered both sides the opportunity to choose between having either his army called narayani sena or himself alone, but on the condition that he personally would not raise any weapon. Arjuna, on behalf of the Pandavas, chose to have Krishna on their side, and Duryodhana, Kaurava prince, chose Krishna's army. At the time of the great battle, Krishna acted as Arjuna's charioteer, since this position did not require the wielding of weapons.
Upon arrival at the battlefield, and seeing that the enemies are his family, his grandfather, his cousins and loved ones, Arjuna is moved and says his heart does not allow him to fight and he would rather prefer to renounce the kingdom and put down his Gandiv (Arjuna's bow). Krishna then advises him about the battle, with the conversation soon extending into a discourse which was later compiled as the Bhagavad Gita.
Krishna asked Arjuna, "Have you within no time, forgotten the Kauravas' evil deeds such as not accepting the eldest brother Yudhishtira as King, usurping the entire Kingdom without yielding any portion to the Pandavas, meting out insults and difficulties to Pandavas, attempt to murder the Pandavas in the Barnava lac guest house, publicly attempting to disrobe and disgracing Draupadi. Krishna further exhorted in his famous Bhagavad Gita, "Arjuna, do not engage in philosophical analyses at this point of time like a Pundit. You are aware that Duryodhana and Karna particularly have long harboured jealousy and hatred for you Pandavas and badly want to prove their hegemony. You are aware that Bhishmacharya and your Teachers are tied down to their dharma of protecting the unitarian power of the Kuru throne. Moreover, you Arjuna, are only a mortal appointee to carry out my divine will, since the Kauravas are destined to die either way, due to their heap of sins. Open your eyes O Bhaarata and know that I encompass the Karta, Karma and Kriya, all in myself. There is no scope for contemplation now or remorse later, it is indeed time for war and the world will remember your might and immense powers for time to come. So rise O Arjuna!, tighten up your Gandiva and let all directions shiver till their farthest horizons, by the reverberation of its string."
Krishna had a profound effect on the Mahabharata war and its consequences. He had considered the Kurukshetra war to be a last resort after voluntarily acting as a messenger in order to establish peace between the Pandavas and Kauravas. But, once these peace negotiations failed and was embarked into the war, then he became a clever strategist. During the war, upon becoming angry with Arjuna for not fighting in true spirit against his ancestors, Krishna once picked up a carriage wheel in order to use it as a weapon to challenge Bhishma. Upon seeing this, Bhishma dropped his weapons and asked Krishna to kill him. However, Arjuna apologized to Krishna, promising that he would fight with full dedication here/after, and the battle continued. Krishna had directed Yudhisthira and Arjuna to return to Bhishma the boon of "victory" which he had given to Yudhisthira before the war commenced, since he himself was standing in their way to victory. Bhishma understood the message and told them the means through which he would drop his weapons - which was if a woman entered the battlefield. Next day, upon Krishna's directions, Shikhandi (Amba reborn) accompanied Arjuna to the battlefield and thus, Bhishma laid down his arms. This was a decisive moment in the war because Bhishma was the chief commander of the Kaurava army and the most formidable warrior on the battlefield. Krishna aided Arjuna in killing Jayadratha, who had held the other four Pandava brothers at bay while Arjuna's son Abhimanyu entered Drona's Chakravyuha formation - an effort in which he was killed by the simultaneous attack of eight Kaurava warriors. Krishna also caused the downfall of Drona, when he signalled Bhima to kill an elephant called Ashwatthama, the namesake of Drona's son. Pandavas started shouting that Ashwatthama was dead but Drona refused to believe them saying he would believe it only if he heard it from Yudhisthira. Krishna knew that Yudhisthira would never tell a lie, so he devised a clever ploy so that Yudhisthira wouldn't lie and at the same time Drona would be convinced of his son's death. On asked by Drona, Yudhisthira proclaimed
Ashwathama Hatahath, naro va Kunjaro va
i.e. Ashwathama had died but he was nor sure whether it was a Drona's son or an elephant. But as soon as Yudhisthira had uttered the first line, Pandava army on Krishna's direction broke into celebration with drums and conchs, in the din of which Drona could not hear the second part of the Yudhisthira's declaration and assumed that his son indeed was dead. Overcome with grief he laid down his arms, and on Krishna's instruction Dhrishtadyumna beheaded Drona.
When Arjuna was fighting Karna, the latter's chariot's wheels sank into the ground. While Karna was trying to take out the chariot from the grip of the Earth, Krishna reminded Arjuna how Karna and the other Kauravas had broken all rules of battle while simultaneously attacking and killing Abhimanyu, and he convinced Arjuna to do the same in revenge in order to kill Karna. During the final stage of the war, when Duryodhana was going to meet his mother Gandhari for taking her blessings which would convert all parts of his body on which her sight falls to diamond, Krishna tricks him to wearing banana leaves to hide his groin. When Duryodhana meets Gandhari, her vision and blessings fall on his entire body except his groin and thighs, and she becomes unhappy about it because she was not able to convert his entire body to diamond. When Duryodhana was in a mace-fight with Bhima, Bhima's blows had no effect on Duryodhana. Upon this, Krishna reminded Bhima of his vow to kill Duryodhana by hitting him on the thigh, and Bhima did the same to win the war despite it being against the rules of mace-fight (since Duryodhana had himself broken Dharma in all his past acts). Thus, Krishna's unparalleled strategy helped the Pandavas win the Mahabharata war by bringing the downfall of all the chief Kaurava warriors, without lifting any weapon. He also brought back to life Arjuna's grandson Parikshit, who had been attacked by a Brahmastra weapon from Ashwatthama while he was in his mother's womb. Parikshit became the Pandavas' successor.
FAMILY
Krishna had eight princely wives, also known as Ashtabharya: Rukmini, Satyabhama, Jambavati, Nagnajiti, Kalindi, Mitravinda, Bhadra, Lakshmana) and the other 16,100 or 16,000 (number varies in scriptures), who were rescued from Narakasura. They had been forcibly kept in his palace and after Krishna had killed Narakasura, he rescued these women and freed them. Krishna married them all to save them from destruction and infamity. He gave them shelter in his new palace and a respectful place in society. The chief amongst them is Rohini.
The Bhagavata Purana, Vishnu Purana, Harivamsa list the children of Krishna from the Ashtabharya with some variation; while Rohini's sons are interpreted to represent the unnumbered children of his junior wives. Most well-known among his sons are Pradyumna, the eldest son of Krishna (and Rukmini) and Samba, the son of Jambavati, whose actions led to the destruction of Krishna's clan.
LATER LIFE
According to Mahabharata, the Kurukshetra war resulted in the death of all the hundred sons of Gandhari. On the night before Duryodhana's death, Lord Krishna visited Gandhari to offer his condolences. Gandhari felt that Krishna knowingly did not put an end to the war, and in a fit of rage and sorrow, Gandhari cursed that Krishna, along with everyone else from the Yadu dynasty, would perish after 36 years. Krishna himself knew and wanted this to happen as he felt that the Yadavas had become very haughty and arrogant (adharmi), so he ended Gandhari's speech by saying "tathastu" (so be it).
After 36 years passed, a fight broke out between the Yadavas, at a festival, who killed each other. His elder brother, Balarama, then gave up his body using Yoga. Krishna retired into the forest and started meditating under a tree. The Mahabharata also narrates the story of a hunter who becomes an instrument for Krishna's departure from the world. The hunter Jara, mistook Krishna's partly visible left foot for that of a deer, and shot an arrow, wounding him mortally. After he realised the mistake, While still bleeding, Krishna told Jara, "O Jara, you were Bali in your previous birth, killed by myself as Rama in Tretayuga. Here you had a chance to even it and since all acts in this world are done as desired by me, you need not worry for this". Then Krishna, with his physical body ascended back to his eternal abode, Goloka vrindavan and this event marks departure of Krishna from the earth. The news was conveyed to Hastinapur and Dwaraka by eyewitnesses to this event. The place of this incident is believed to be Bhalka, near Somnath temple.
According to Puranic sources, Krishna's disappearance marks the end of Dvapara Yuga and the start of Kali Yuga, which is dated to February 17/18, 3102 BCE. Vaishnava teachers such as Ramanujacharya and Gaudiya Vaishnavas held the view that the body of Krishna is completely spiritual and never decays (Achyuta) as this appears to be the perspective of the Bhagavata Purana. Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (an incarnation of Lord Sri Krishna according to the Bhavishya Purana) exhorted, "Krishna Naama Sankirtan" i.e. the constant chanting of the Krishna's name is the supreme healer in Kali Yuga. It destroys sins and purifies the hearts through Bhakti ensures universal peace.
Krishna never appears to grow old or age at all in the historical depictions of the Puranas despite passing of several decades, but there are grounds for a debate whether this indicates that he has no material body, since battles and other descriptions of the Mahabhārata epic show clear indications that he seems to be subject to the limitations of nature. While battles apparently seem to indicate limitations, Mahabharata also shows in many places where Krishna is not subject to any limitations as through episodes Duryodhana trying to arrest Krishna where his body burst into fire showing all creation within him. Krishna is also explicitly described as without deterioration elsewhere.
WORSHIP
VAISHNAVISM
The worship of Krishna is part of Vaishnavism, which regards Vishnu as the Supreme God and venerates His associated avatars, their consorts, and related saints and teachers. Krishna is especially looked upon as a full manifestation of Vishnu, and as one with Vishnu himself. However the exact relationship between Krishna and Vishnu is complex and diverse, where Krishna is sometimes considered an independent deity, supreme in his own right. Out of many deities, Krishna is particularly important, and traditions of Vaishnava lines are generally centered either on Vishnu or on Krishna, as supreme. The term Krishnaism has been used to describe the sects of Krishna, reserving the term "Vaishnavism" for sects focusing on Vishnu in which Krishna is an avatar, rather than as a transcendent Supreme Being.
All Vaishnava traditions recognise Krishna as an avatar of Vishnu; others identify Krishna with Vishnu; while traditions, such as Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Vallabha Sampradaya and the Nimbarka Sampradaya, regard Krishna as the Svayam Bhagavan, original form of God. Swaminarayan, the founder of the Swaminarayan Sampraday also worshipped Krishna as God himself. "Greater Krishnaism" corresponds to the second and dominant phase of Vaishnavism, revolving around the cults of the Vasudeva, Krishna, and Gopala of late Vedic period. Today the faith has a significant following outside of India as well.
EARLY TRADITIONS
The deity Krishna-Vasudeva (kṛṣṇa vāsudeva "Krishna, the son of Vasudeva") is historically one of the earliest forms of worship in Krishnaism and Vaishnavism. It is believed to be a significant tradition of the early history of the worship of Krishna in antiquity. This tradition is considered as earliest to other traditions that led to amalgamation at a later stage of the historical development. Other traditions are Bhagavatism and the cult of Gopala, that along with the cult of Bala Krishna form the basis of current tradition of monotheistic religion of Krishna. Some early scholars would equate it with Bhagavatism, and the founder of this religious tradition is believed to be Krishna, who is the son of Vasudeva, thus his name is Vāsudeva; he is said to be historically part of the Satvata tribe, and according to them his followers called themselves Bhagavatas and this religion had formed by the 2nd century BC (the time of Patanjali), or as early as the 4th century BC according to evidence in Megasthenes and in the Arthasastra of Kautilya, when Vāsudeva was worshiped as supreme deity in a strongly monotheistic format, where the supreme being was perfect, eternal and full of grace. In many sources outside of the cult, the devotee or bhakta is defined as Vāsudevaka. The Harivamsa describes intricate relationships between Krishna Vasudeva, Sankarsana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha that would later form a Vaishnava concept of primary quadrupled expansion, or avatar.
BHAKTI TRADITION
Bhakti, meaning devotion, is not confined to any one deity. However Krishna is an important and popular focus of the devotional and ecstatic aspects of Hindu religion, particularly among the Vaishnava sects. Devotees of Krishna subscribe to the concept of lila, meaning 'divine play', as the central principle of the Universe. The lilas of Krishna, with their expressions of personal love that transcend the boundaries of formal reverence, serve as a counterpoint to the actions of another avatar of Vishnu: Rama, "He of the straight and narrow path of maryada, or rules and regulations."
The bhakti movements devoted to Krishna became prominent in southern India in the 7th to 9th centuries AD. The earliest works included those of the Alvar saints of the Tamil country. A major collection of their works is the Divya Prabandham. The Alvar Andal's popular collection of songs Tiruppavai, in which she conceives of herself as a gopi, is the most famous of the oldest works in this genre. Kulasekaraazhvaar's Mukundamala was another notable work of this early stage.
SPREAD OF THE KRISHNA-BHAKTI MOVEMENT
The movement, which started in the 6th-7th century A.D. in the Tamil-speaking region of South India, with twelve Alvar (one immersed in God) saint-poets, who wrote devotional songs. The religion of Alvar poets, which included a woman poet, Andal, was devotion to God through love (bhakti), and in the ecstasy of such devotions they sang hundreds of songs which embodied both depth of feeling and felicity of expressions. The movement originated in South India during the seventh-century CE, spreading northwards from Tamil Nadu through Karnataka and Maharashtra; by the fifteenth century, it was established in Bengal and northern India.
While the learned sections of the society well versed in Sanskrit could enjoy works like Gita Govinda or Bilvamangala's Krishna-Karnamritam, the masses sang the songs of the devotee-poets, who composed in the regional languages of India. These songs expressing intense personal devotion were written by devotees from all walks of life. The songs of Meera and Surdas became epitomes of Krishna-devotion in north India.
These devotee-poets, like the Alvars before them, were aligned to specific theological schools only loosely, if at all. But by the 11th century AD, Vaishnava Bhakti schools with elaborate theological frameworks around the worship of Krishna were established in north India. Nimbarka (11th century AD), Vallabhacharya (15th century AD) and (Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu an incarnation of Lord Sri Krishna according to the Bhavishya Purana) (16th century AD) all inspired by the teachings of Madhvacharya (11th century AD) were the founders of the most influential schools. These schools, namely Nimbarka Sampradaya, Vallabha Sampradaya and Gaudiya Vaishnavism respectively, see Krishna as the supreme God, rather than an avatar, as generally seen.
In the Deccan, particularly in Maharashtra, saint poets of the Varkari sect such as Dnyaneshwar, Namdev, Janabai, Eknath and Tukaram promoted the worship of Vithoba, a local form of Krishna, from the beginning of the 13th century until the late 18th century. In southern India, Purandara Dasa and Kanakadasa of Karnataka composed songs devoted to the Krishna image of Udupi. Rupa Goswami of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, has compiled a comprehensive summary of bhakti named Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu.
IN THE WEST
In 1965, the Krishna-bhakti movement had spread outside India when its founder, Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, (who was instructed by his guru, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura) traveled from his homeland in West Bengal to New York City. A year later in 1966, after gaining many followers, he was able to form the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), popularly known as the Hare Krishna movement. The purpose of this movement was to write about Krishna in English and to share the Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy with people in the Western world by spreading the teachings of the saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. In an effort to gain attention, followers chanted the names of God in public locations. This chanting was known as hari-nama sankirtana and helped spread the teaching. Additionally, the practice of distributing prasad or “sanctified food” worked as a catalyst in the dissemination of his works. In the Hare Krishna movement, Prasad was a vegetarian dish that would be first offered to Krishna. The food’s proximity to Krishna added a “spiritual effect,” and was seen to “counteract material contamination affecting the soul.” Sharing this sanctified food with the public, in turn, enabled the movement to gain new recruits and further spread these teachings.
WIKIPEDIA
I presume the Pennsylvania Railroad put up these position light signals in Marion, Ohio. However, they might be of Norfolk & Western origin as it, too had position light signals and acquired this line from the Pennsy in 1964. (Scanned from color negative film)
Did a speed and flash position test this morning- just to show how easy these are, took the 14 shots that make up these pics in eight minutes including a flash dismantle/reposition. The first 4 shots are with the flash in the position I started with last year which ends up low and to the left- the idea was to minimise the flash reflection on the drops- think it succeeded. Last two shots are with the flash in my normal "macro" position- they are different -same drop but I moved the flower a bit behind them :)
see www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/231773479/ and www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/231773478/ for two of the individual shots
History in the course of time
More than 800 years of history Bernhardsthal is more than 800 years of history of a local community in a border and bridge position at a central point in Europe.
History of Bernhardsthal
Again and again, it was more than the fate of the locals alone which had been decided here - again and again it was the pan-European movement that captured the place. One by one, they appeared in the Thaya-March area: Illyrians and Celts, Quads and Herulians, Huns and Lombards, Slavs and Avars, Bavarians and Franks, Magyars and Mongols, Hussites and Utraquists, Hajduks and Swedes, Turks and Kurds, Frenchmen, Prussians and Russians. They cleared and missioned, blackmailed and burned, remained, or passed by like a wild hunt. Between confrontation and penetration, construction and destruction, fear and hope, a year is a fixed point: the first documentary mention of the place - 1171.
1171 - what happened in Europe at this time? In the Roman-German empire, Emperor Frederick I Babarossa ruled. It was the time of the castles and knights and monastic culture, of the manorial systems and evolution of the town charter and of new German settlement waves which captured even Bohemia and the distant Transylvania. Just, in 1156, the Emperor of Austria had been loyal to the duchy on the other side, the Bohemian duke Vladislav II, and received the royal crown. Court Days and Princely councils, expeditions to Italy, the defeat of Henry the Lion underlined the power of the central European empire, which in the south even reached Sicily. Bruges and Venice were the highly evolving trade centers in Europe. Political movement had captured the continent: In the Russian area, Kiev's pre-eminence fell, new centers in the north-east announced themselves - Moscow was first mentioned in 1147.
In the southeast, Serbian unity was just founded in 1171, Serbia and Bulgaria began to shake off Byzantine rule. Hungary was about to restore its supremacy in Dalmatia, Croatia and Bosnia. In England, Henry II succeeded in sustaining his claim to power, and Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, was murdered by royal knights in 1170. In 1171 the English conquest of Ireland began. In Egypt, Saladin began to expand, which was to lead to Tripoli, Damascus, and Jerusalem. In China, above all, the South was booming in economic development. Already, paper money and book printing, gunpowder and magnet needle were used.
But back to Bernhardsthal: With the world, the place has been connected since ancient times to the nearby Amber Road, which led from the Adriatic to the Baltic Sea. Events all around the world repeatedly stamped the centuries of its history.
Prehistory and Time of the Teutons: Archaeological finds earmark the Bernhardsthaler area as a significantly older settlement basis, as the year 1171 suggests - stretching back to the Neolithic, Bronze Age and older and younger Iron Age. Hallstatt burial mounds point to Illyrians, followed by the Celts.
9th century: Franconian mission movement and Great Moravian empire. The Slavic tribes lived in the Weinviertel (Wine District) and were interspersed with the Germanic population.
10th century: Magyar collision and German counter-movement. Emergence of Magyar riders also in the March-Thaya area. By the counteroffensive of the German kingship, a new settlement wave follows east. From 976, the Babenbergs in the regained marches area on the Danube came to power.
11th century: Stabilization of borders. Around 1045, the boundary was essentially stabilized. Thus the framework for settlement and integration into the social structure of the empire had also been drawn. The settler wave also captured the Wine District and the Bavarian population came to the fore, marking the time as the peasant clearing.
12th century: the first documentary mention. In the year 1171, the name Bernhardsthal was mentioned for the first time in the Klosterneuburg Tradition Codex, when the monastery Klosterneuburg acquired land here.
13th century: First, the Mongols appeared, hordes of riders who broke in over the Russian steppes, triumphed in 1241 near Liegnitz in Silesia, in the same year at Muhi on the Sjo in Hungary, pervading Moravia, sprawling to the Wine District. Before and after, however, the Thaya-March area was a multiple site of Bohemian and Hungarian incursions, condensed under Premysl Otakar II until the great decision. When the last Babenberger died in 1246, that Premysl Otakar had attacked southwards on Austria and across Styria and Carinthia to the Adriatic, and had penetrated eastward into Upper Hungary. To the south of the Bernhardsthaler area, on the Marchfeld near Dürnkrut, he lost battle and life against Rudolf von Habsburg. The consequences of the event, the retreat of the beaten ones, the advance of the victors, also touched Bernhardsthal.
14th century: from 1328 to 1336 the incursions of the Bohemian king John of Luxembourg lined up. Among the castles conquered by the Bohemians was also Bernhardsthal, which was then owned by the Haunvelder. The Hungarians under Charles I of Anjou also contributed, and also laid their hands on Bernhardsthal. The Wehinger, who had now been entrusted with Bernhardsthal, temporarily secured the market right for the place. A dangerous approach to the end of the century. First pirates from Moravia.
15th century: robber barons, Hussites and Utraquists. Bands or groups of robbers from Austria, Moravia and Hungary - with centers in Hohenau and Laa - troubled the Thaya-March area. In 1470 Bernhardsthal was sold to the Liechtensteiner.
16th century: Emerging Turkish danger. In 1529 they stood at the gates of Vienna. For the first time, one made acquaintance up the river March with the pillagers. After the retaliation, the Habsburgs - from Ferdinand I now also King of Bohemia and Hungary - ruled the west and north-west of the Hungarian kingdom. The Danubian and Alpine countries, Bohemia and Hungary should face a common development. The Thaya-March region was now the stage of the eastern front of the Turks.
17th century: Hajduks and Swedes. In Hungary, an uprising had broken out. In 1605, pillagers of Hajduks crossed the March and also plundered Bernhardsthal. A little later, the Mercenary regiments of the Thirty Years' War struck the gates. It was not until 1648, when the peace was concluded, that marauding and quartering, extortion, robbery, and murders ended. In 1163 Turks again crossed the March, plundered and forced prisoners into slavery - even Bernhardsthal was in flames.
18th century: Kurutzs and imperial occupation. Around 1704, due to the incursions of Kurutzs the wine-producing region and South Moravia too were again threatened by fear and distress. In 1705 they also attacked Bernhardsthal. In the next few years, imperial units remained present to protect the places at risk. In the following decades but Austria, under Maria Theresia, faced the defense of its superpower status and at the same time its consolidation.
19th century: Frenchmen, Prussia and Cholera: In 1805 Bernhardsthal saw Frenchmen on the advance, before and after their victory in Austerlitz. In 1809 the place saw the French for the second time. The year 1866 brought the Prussians also to Bernhardsthal as the winner of Königsgrätz. They were quartered as well as before the French which brought a lot of stress for the place. The cholera in the years 1831 and 1866 supplemented the picture of the 19th century.
20th century: Two great wars went over Europe in this century. Bernhardsthal also had to pay its duty. Bernhardsthaler found distant graves on theaters of war of both wars. Nevertheless, after 1945, the place steered into an impressive phase of peaceful construction.
Geschichte im Wandel der Zeit
Über 800 Jahre Geschichte Bernhardsthal sind über 800 Jahre Geschichte einer Ortsgemeinschaft in einer Grenz- und Brückenposition an einem zentralen Punkt Europas.
Geschichte Bernhardsthal
Immer wieder war es mehr als das Schicksal der Ortsbewohner allein, das hier entschieden worden ist, - immer wieder war es gesamteuropäische Bewegung, die den Platz erfasste. Nacheinander tauchten sie im Thaya-March- Bereich auf: Illyrer und Kelten, Quaden und Heruler, Hunnen und Langobarden, Slawen und Awaren, Baiern und Franken, Magyaren und Mongolen, Hussiten und Utraquisten, Heiducken und Schweden, Türken und Kurutzen, Franzosen, Preußen und Russen. Sie rodeten und missionierten, erpreßten und brandschatzten, blieben oder zogen vorbei gleich einer wilden Jagd. Zwischen Auseinandersetzung und Durchdringung, Aufbau und Zerstörung, Angst und Hoffnung tritt ein Jahr als fixer Punkt: Die erste urkundliche Nennung des Ortes - 1171.
1171 - was geschah in Europa in dieser Zeit? Im römisch-deutschen Reich herrrschte Kaiser Friedrich I. Babarossa. Es war die Zeit der Burgen und Ritter und klösterlicher Kultur, der Grundherrschaften und Stadtrechtsentwicklung und neuer deutscher Siedlungswellen, die selbst Böhmen erfassten und das ferne Siebenbürgen. Eben, 1156 hatte der Kaiser Österreich zum Herzogtum jenseits der Grenze, der Böhmenherzog Vladislav II., freu treu und Hilfe die Königskrone erhalten. Hof- und Fürstentage, Italienzüge, die Niederwerfung Heinrichs des Löwen unterstrichen die Machtstellung des zentraleuropäischen Kaisertums, das im Süden selbst auf Sizilien griff. Brügge und Venedig waren die sich groß entwickelnden Handeslzentren Europas. Politische Bewegung hatte den Kontinent erfasst: Im russischen Bereich ging die Vormachtsstellung Kievs zurück, neue Zentren im Nordosten kündigten sich an - Moskau war 1147 erstmals erwähnt worden.
Im Südosten wurde eben 1171 die serbische Einheit begründet, Serbien und Bulgarien setzten an, die byzantinische Herrschaft abzuschütteln, Ungarn war kurz davor, seine Oberhoheit in Dalmatien, Kroatien und Bosnien wiederherzustellen. Im Westen setzte in England Heinrich II. seinen Herrschaftsanspruch nachhalktig durch, 1170 wurde Thomas Becket, der Erzbischof von Canterbury von königlichen Rittern ermordet, 1171 begann die englische Eroberung Irlands. In Ägypten setzte Saladin zur Expansion an, die bis Tripolis, Damskus und Jerusalem führen sollte. In China stand vor allem der Süden in blühender wirtschaftlicher Entwicklung. Schon wurden Papiergeld und Buchdruck; Schießpulver und Magnetnadel verwendet.
Aber zurück zu Bernhardsthal: Mit der Welt war der Platz seit altersher über die unweit vorüberführende Bernsteinstraße verbunden, die von der Adria zur Ostsee führte. Die Welt rundum drückte den Jahrhunderten seiner Geschichte immer wieder den Stempel auf.
Urgeschichte und Germanenzeit: Die Bodenfunde weisen den Bernhardsthaler Raum als bedeutend älteren Siedlungsgrund aus, als die Jahreszahl 1171 vermuten lässt - zurückreichend bis in die Jungsteinzeit, Bronzezeit und ältere und jüngere Eisenzeit. Hallstattliche Hügelgräber weisen auf Illyrer hin, auf die die Kelten folgten.
9. Jahrhundert: Fränkische Missionsbewegung und Großmährisches Reich. Im Weinviertel lebten Slawenstämme, von germanischer Restbevölkerung durchsetzt.
10. Jahrhundert: Magyarenanprall und deutsche Gegenbewegung. Auftauchen von Magyarenreitern auch im March-Thaya-Bereich. Durch die Gegenoffensive des deutschen Königtums folge eine neue Siedlungswelle in Richtung Osten. Ab 976 gelangen im rückgewonnenen Markengebiet an der Donau die Babenberger zur Herrschaft.
11. Jahrhundert: Stabilisierung der Grenzen. Um 1045 wurde die Grenzlage im wesentlichen stabilisiert. Dadurch war auch der Rahmen für Besiedelung und Einordnung in die Gesellschaftsstruktur des Reiches gezogen. Die Siedlerwelle erfasste auch das Weinviertel und ließ das bairische Bevölkerungselement in den Vordergrund treten undprägt die Zeit als die bäuerliche Rodung.
12. Jahrhundert: Die erste urkundliche Nennung. Im Jahre 1171 wurde der Name Bernhardsthal zum ersten mal urkundlich - im Klosterneuburger Traditionskodex - erwähnt, als das Stift Klosterneuburg hier Grundbesitz erwarb.
13. Jahrhundert: Zunächst tauchten die Mongolen auf, Reiterscharen, die über die russiche Steppen hereinbrachen, 1241 bei Liegnitz in Schlesien, im selben Jahr bei Muhi am Sjo in Ungarn siegreich, Mährend durchziehend, bis ins Weinviertel ausschwörmend. Vorher und nachher aber war der Thaya-March-Bereich mehrfach Schauplatz böhmischer und ungarischer Einfälle, verdichtet unter Premysl Otakar II. bis zur großen Entscheidung. Als 1246 der letzte Babenberger gestorben war, hatte jener Premysl Otakar südwärts auf Österreich und über Steiermark und Kärnten bis an die Adria gegriffen und war ostwärts in Oberungarn eingedrungen. Südlich des Bernhardsthaler Raumes, auf dem Marchfeld bei Dürnkrut verlor er gegen Rudolf von Habsburg Schlacht und Leben. Die folgen des Geschehens, der Rückzug der Geschlagenen, der Vormarsch der Sieger, berührte auch Bernhardsthal.
14. Jahrhundert: Ab 1328 bis 1336 reihten sich die Einfälle des Böhmenkönig Johann von Luxemburg. Unter den Burgen die die Böhmen eroberten war auch Bernhardsthal das damals im Besitz der Haunvelder war. Auch die Ungarn unter Karl I. von Anjou wirkten ein und legten ebenfalls die Hand auf Bernhardsthal. Die nun mit Bernhardsthal belehnten Wehinger erwirkten 1370 für den Ort vorübergehend das Marktrecht. Ein gefährlicher Anssatz zum Ende des Jahrhunderts. Erste Raubritterzüge aus Mähren.
15. Jahrhundert: Raubritter, Hussiten und Utraquisten. Raubgruppen aus Östereich, Mähren und Ungarn - mit Zentren in Hohenau und Laa - beunruhigten den Thaya-March-Bereich. 1470 wurde Bernhardsthal an die Liechtensteiner verkauft.
16. Jahrhundert: Aufkommenden Türkengefahr. 1529 standen sie vor den Toren Wiens. Erstmals machte man marchaufwärts mit den Streitscharen Bekanntschaft. Nach dem gegenscglag beherrschten die Habsburger - ab Ferdinand I. nun auch König von Böhmen und Ungarn - den Westen und Nordwesten des ungarischen Königreiches. Die Donau- und Alpenländer, Böhmen und Ungarn sollten einer gemeinsamen Entwicklung entgegengehen. Die Thaya-March-Region war nun Etappe der nach Osten vorgeschobenen Türkenfront.
17. Jahrhundert: Heiducken und Schweden. In Ungarn war ein AUfstand ausgebrochen. 1605 überschritt eine Streitschar der Heiducken die March und plünderten auch Bernhardsthal. Wenig später pochten die Landsknechtsregimenter des Dreißigjährigen Krieges an die Tore. Erst der Friedensschluss 1648 ließ das Marodieren und Einquartiern, Erpresse, Rauben und Morden ausklingen. 1163 überquerten erneut Türken die March, plünderten und trieben Gefangene in die Sklaverei - auch Bernhardsthal stand in Flammen.
18. Jahrhundert: Kurutzen und kaiserliche Besatzung. Kurutzeneinfälle trieben das Land um 1704 auch das Weinviertel und Südmähren erneut in Angst und Not. 1705 überfielen sie auch Bernhardsthal. In den nächsten Jahren blieben kaiserliche Einheiten zum Schutz der gefährdeten Orte präsent. In den folgenden Jahrzehnten aber ging Österreich unter Maria Theresia der Verteidigung seiner Großmachtstellung und gleichzeitig ihrer Festigung entgegen.
19. Jahrhundert: Franzoßen, Preußen und Cholera: 1805 sah Bernhardsthal Franzosen auf dem Vormarsch, vor und nach ihrem Sieg in Austerlitz. 1809 sah der Ort die Franzosen zum zweiten Mal. Das Jahr 1866 brachte die Preußen als Sieger von Königsgrätz auch nach Bernhardsthal. Sie wurden ebenso einquartiert wie vorher die Franzosen was für den Ort starke Belastungen brachte. Die Cholera in den Jahren 1831 und 1866 ergänzte das Bild des 19. Jhd.
20. Jahrhundert: Zwei große Kriege gingen in diesem Jahrhundert über Europa hinweg. Auch Bernhardsthal hatte seinen Zoll zu zahlen. Auf den Kriegsschauplätzen beider Kriege fanden Bernhardsthaler ferne Gräber. Dennoch steuerte der Ort nach 1945 in eine eindrucksvolle Phase des friedlichen Aufbaues.
www.bernhardsthal.gv.at/system/web/zusatzseite.aspx?detai...
One bare SB-24 on a light stand at 1/16 (zoomed at 85mm). Fired with a eBay trigger. From a frontal almost "on camera" shot at center, exploring the changes in the face produced by turning around the light. A simple go up from camera gives some volume to the face for a more flattering image as you can se in the middle top one.
Highest position - #484 Thanks, everyone!
A walk on a cloudy morning revealed this little guy. They really are tiny, less than an inch. I think it was taking a drink of water off this blade of grass.
A black and white version of this shot can be found at my Facebook page
Please view in 'Lightbox'
ZOOM Erlebniswelt Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Westafrikanischer Schimpanse***West African Chimpanzee***Pan troglodytes verus
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Der Name „Schimpanse“ stammt aus der Bantu-Sprache Tschiluba. Der Ausdruck „kivili-chimpenze“ ist der lokale Name des Tiers und lässt sich mit „Schein-Mensch“ oder einfach „Affe“ übersetzen.
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The name "Chimpanzee" originates from the Bantu language of Tshiluba. The term "kivili-chimpenze" is the local name of the animal and can be translated with "not real person" or simply "monkey".
A nice set of color position light signals – including one "fully loaded" signal – guards the interlocking at Carroll in Baltimore, Maryland.
The color position light signal was first devised and prototyped near here in 1921, the first installation being between Camden Station and Mount Royal.
As CSX continues to replace the venerable B&O classics over time, it's likely the color position lights in Baltimore will be among the last survivors of this type of signal on the system – perhaps this is fitting.
View from the donjon of Hohenbaden Castle on the western slope of the rocky Mountain Battert, down into the Rhine valley.
It´s a clear day in late December with temperature inversion.
Up here on about 550 m, it is warm, but in the Rhine valley is a cold fog, impervious to the sun.
Keen insight down to the urban district of Haueneberstein which is already on the edge of the Rhine valley.
Camera: Calypso/Nikkor II
Lens: W-Nikkor 35mm f/2.5 Prime
Film: Fujifilm Fujicolor C200 (C41 Colour Negative)
Experimenting
© Britta Niermeyer All Rights Reserved. No usage allowed including copying or sharing without written permission.
From Marie in the Forest, a children's book from Webster Press in which the Degas Little Dancer sculpture is imagined to go come to life and dance through the woods with various animals. (It's black and white because the book can be colored by the reader.) www.websterpress.com for full text PDF if interested :-)
The annual River City Classics Car Show, one of the first big events for High River since the damaging floods of June... A show that traditionally brings in about 1200 cars in one day, from what I heard they got close to that number again this year, just a few months after the flood...
Every once and a while there's a need for a man to get a 37,5 degrees angle.
Surprisingly difficult task was to get my aged body up again from there!
In July came the hot days.(Actually I tried to find a specificly 45 degrees angle - not finding that-
it was my 45th birthday :-)
If I wouldn't have started feeling hungry , for the rest of the day it would have been OK to remain on the stairs.
My Toyota Camry on Pole position at the Mount Panorama (Bathurst) track. (The track is a 'normal' road when not being used for motor racing
Kevin Aitcheson
James Kevin Aitcheson
Born: November 27, 1960 in Stratford, Ontario, Canada
Position: Outfielder
Bats: Left, Throws: Right
Height: 6' 2", Weight: 190 lb.
Newspaper report (2 May 1981) Blue Jays sign Aitcheson TORONTO (AP) Kevin Aitcheson, considered by many baseball scouts to be the best non-pitching prospect in Canada, has signed with the Toronto Blue Jays, the American League club said yesterday. Aitcheson, a 20-year-old outfielder from Stratford, Ontario, is to report to the Blue Jays' Pioneer League rookie affiliate at Medicine Hat, Alberta, in June.
The Phillies made him a contract offer, but being a proud Canadian, Aitcheson had dreams of playing for the Toronto Blue Jays and contacted the club to see if they would match Philadelphia's offer. They did, but a part of Aitcheson wishes they didn't. Looking back, he says if he could change one thing in his sports career it would be to sign with Philly, who weren't nearly as deep at the outfield position, rather than with T.O. "In hindsight, with the Jays having (Lloyd) Moseby, (Jesse) Barfield and (George) Bell, who were all my age, already in the outfield, it was an awful bad decision," said Aitcheson with a laugh. "The Phillies were struggling...so if I had one thing I could do over again I would have been very satisfied to sign with Philadelphia."
Aitcheson is unsure whether or not he could have eventually made it onto the Phillies roster, but he would have loved a chance. "I just wish I would have had an opportunity to hit at the triple-A level," said Aitcheson, who recently had his jersey added to Stratford's baseball Wall of Fame. "
Despite never getting a crack at triple-A or the big leagues, Aitcheson had a successful four-year minor career.
After signing with Toronto, Aitcheson was sent to the Jays' affiliate in Medicine Hat, Alta. where he set the league record for games played and batted .301.
The following year, while with single-A Carolina, he was selected to play in the All Star game.
But Aitcheson says some of his most profound memories in baseball came from his two years of double-A ball in Knoxville, playing alongside future major leaguers such as Cecil Fielder, Fred McGriff, David Wells, John Cerutti, Jimmy Key and Mike Sharperson.
Returning to Stratford after failing to make the Jays' triple-AAA affiliate, Aitcheson finished out his career playing with the Stratford Hillers from 1985-91.
Minor league stats (4 seasons / 1981 - 1984)
Hits - 410
Doubles - 53
HR - 19
RBI - 171
Batting Average - .269
Link to all of his issued baseball cards - www.tradingcarddb.com/Person.cfm/pid/75454/col/1/yea/0/Ke...
Highest Explore Position #494 ~ On October 28th 2008.
Smooth-coated Otter - Rare Species Conservation Centre, Kent, England - Sunday October 12th 2008.
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Yup...me an Mr Otter here are Miffed that the Mighty Hammers were robbed by inept refereeing at the footie game today...as much as I don't like Carlton Cole...twas NEVER!!! a SENDING OFF!!!...And..the Gooners first goal was a lucky own goal....GRRRRR!!!!!!!!!
Still...I now watching the first NFL league match to be played in London (At Wembley Stadium) for 10 years at the mo...and guess what...the team I am supporting San Diego...are loosing...It's not a good sporting weekend for me..:O((
Plus I have noooooooooo idea what's going in the game...apparently...if you have a great "Tight End" that's a good thing...lol..:O)))
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ~ The Smooth-coated Otter (Lutrogale perspicillata) is a species of otter, the only extant representative of the genus Lutrogale. The species is found from India east to Southeast Asia, and there is a disjunct population in Iraq. As its name indicates, the fur of this species is smoother and shorter than that of other otters.
Distribution and Habitat ~ Smooth-coated otters occur throughout much of southern Asia, in the Indomalaya ecozone, from India eastward. There is also an isolated population of the species found in the marshes of Iraq. Smooth-coated otters are found in areas where water is plentiful- peat swamp forests, freshwater wetlands, large forested rivers, lakes, and rice paddies. Smooth-coated otters have adapted to life in an aqueous biome, but are nonetheless comfortable on land, and may travel long distances overland in search of suitable habitat. Their holts are within shallow burrows, rock heaps or driftwood piles. Some may construct permanent holts near water, in a layout similar to the of a beaver dam, with an underwater entrance and a tunnel that leads to a nest above the water.
Conservation Status ~ The Smooth-coated Otter is listed as a vulnerable species. The range and population of smooth-coated otters is shrinking due to loss of wetland habitat, poaching, and contamination of waterways by pesticides. Smooth-coated otters are protected in India under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, and are listed as endangered.
Description ~ Smooth-coated otters are the largest otters in southeast Asia, from 7-11 kg in weight and up to 1.3 m in length as adults. Smooth-coated otters may be distinguished from other species of otter by a more rounded head and a hairless nose in the shape of a distorted diamond. The tail is flattened, in contrast to the more rounded tails of other species, and may be up to 60 percent of the total body length. Like other otters, smooth-coated otters have webbed toes and strong paws with sharp claws.
The coat of smooth-coated otters is shorter and smoother than that of other otters species. The fur is light to dark brown along the back, while the underside is light brown to almost gray in color.
Behavior ~ Smooth-coated otters, like many carnivorous mammals, use scent to communicate both within the otter species, and with other animals. Each otter possesses a pair of scent glands at the base of the tail which are uses to mark land or objects, such as rocks or vegetation, near feeding areas in a behavior called sprainting.
Diet ~ Smooth-coated otters eat insects, earthworms, crustaceans, frogs, water rats, turtles, birds, and fish. Fish comprise between 75 to 100% of the otter's diet.[citation needed] Smooth-coated otters frequently hunt in groups, herding schools of fish together for easier feeding.[citation needed] A group of otters can have a feeding range of 7 to 12 square kilometers. A single adult consumes about 1 kg of food per day in captivity.
Reproduction ~ Smooth-coated otters form strong monogamous pairs. The specific mating times of the smooth-coated otter are unknown, but when otters are dependent on monsoons for precipitation, breeding occurs between August and December. Once mating has occurred, the gestation period is 61-65 days. Smooth-coated otters give birth to and raise their young in a burrow near water, which they may construct themselves or may assume an abandoned one. Two to five cubs are produced per litter. At birth, the cubs are blind and helpless, but after thirty days their eyes open, and after sixty days, the cubs can swim. They are weaned at about 130 days, and leave their parents at about 1 year of age. Sexual maturity is reached at two years of age.
Ideal sex positions
Ideal sex positions All these are ideal sex positions. Sex is a complicated issue and every young male and female want to know about sex. You can say on sex “ We waste time looking for the perfect lover, instead of creating the perfect love” Sex lovers like all these pos...
A View Around The No.2 End Drivers Seat Of Network Rails 97302 While Stabled In Bescot Yard.
Saturday 18th April 2015
Our friends from the PSNI preparing for the NorthWest 200 'After Party'
Mono conversion for the Mono MAYhem Group
Sex positions shot glass
For these items, visit Prime Time Print www.primetimeprint.com The Glass Mall www.theglassmall.com
Strobist;
Cámara: Olympus E-3
Objetivo : Zuiko 12-60
Flash: Metz 58 AF; Manual a 1/8
f/11 - 1/250 - ISO 100
Cactus sin modificaciones
Ejercicio LIGHTING 102 / POSITION/ ANGLE
El flash se ha ido colocando a niveld ela mdoelo, pero canbiando 45º de una toma a otra.
As seen at New Freedom, PA. While the trackage is used by the NCRR. The signal has long been abandoned. It was made by the Union Switch and Signal Co. US&S was founded in 1881 by George Westinghouse and operated independently until 1917, then becoming a part of Westinghouse Brake Co.
Update: Turns out that it is actually a Safetran signal. The position lights were replaced by Conrail. This specific signal was later refurbished by an amtrak employee for use with the North Central Dinner Train. It was battery powered at that time. It apparently sits unused, currently.
Fireworks at the Rockingham Foreshore as viewed from the Point Peron end of the beach. Many boats had picked choice positions to view the spectacular show from a water vantage point and the 10 min show didn't disappoint. In some ways the colors from the ocean are just as spectacular as the fireworks directly.
Remember that Wasp Spider I posted a few weeks ago? I visited him again days later.
He grew in size, assumed the perfect position and colors and light were better than the previous time!
Location: Ciconio Canavese, Torino, Piemonte, Italy
Canon EOS 60D with Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM Macro, single shot