View allAll Photos Tagged Proportion
I set my camera on timer for this one at B-Dubs when we were waiting at my table. These are my 2 best friends, Kenzie & Taylor. I chose this picture because we go from tallest to shortest, :)
I almost forgot, but just about remembered that I needed to get these The Minories shots in day light.
Mainly for those leaf sculptures on the top (couldn't get them in the dark the week before). I thought it was a wreath, but it looks more like those leaves that surround the UN logo. Like olive branches.
It might be blue skys, but you can't even tell that is the freezing cold of winter here. (I believe that the pavements were gritted).
Came out well in the morning winter sun.
This is the Minories building in Birmingham from Old Square.
It used to be the Lewis's Department store. It was built above a road way also called The Minories.
It is now home to several small shops and on the ground floor fronting Corporation Street is owned by The Square Peg, a popular bar.
It opened in 1885 on Corporation Street, by a personal suggestion by Joseph Chamberlain.
It dates from 1924 - 25 and was also designed by Gerald de Courcy Fraser of Liverpool.
Another block behind of 1931 - 32 , linked by bridges across the narrow Minories. The result is a huge but chaste and carefully proportioned classical block. The sides on Bull Street and Old Square, articulated by fluted Doric columns (restored 1993). Impressive spatial effect in the Minories which was originally open. Between the entrance bridges with paired columns and lintels in a deep narrow canyon. Built over in 1971, reopened and glazed in by Peter Hing & Jones in the 1993 conversion to offices and courts. Tactful extra storey all round.
Above information from Pevsner Architectural Guides: Birmingham by Andy Foster.
From a 15cm x 52,5cm rectangle of Kraft (1:3,5 proportion)
Dasa’s corrugated tube and Torus are models I was eager to fold since a long time ago. Now I folded them and I see I was right to be eager. They’re wonderful!!
Crease pattern: www.flickr.com/photos/dasssa/7554736702/in/set-7215761755...
Thank you very much for sharing, Dasa!
I love seeking and exalting the golden harmonies in my fine art!
Join me! Exalt your photography with golden ratio compositions and join the golden ratio renaissance!
facebook.com/goldennumberratio
Enjoy my books on Golden Ratio Compositions & Epic Landscape Photography!
Golden Ratio Compositions & Secret Sacred Geometry for Photography, Fine Art, & Landscape Photographers: How to Exalt Art with Leonardo da Vinci's, Michelangelo's, ... Hero's Odyssey Mythology Photography)
www.amazon.com/Compositions-Geometry-Photography-Landscap...
Epic Golden Ratio T-shirts!
Epic Landscape Photography: A Simple Guide to the Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography: Master Composition, Lenses, Camera Settings, Aperture, ISO, ... Hero's Odyssey Mythology Photography)
www.amazon.com/Epic-Landscape-Photography-Principles-Comp...
Photographing Women Models: Portrait, Swimsuit, Lingerie, Boudoir, Fine Art, & Fashion Photography Exalting the Venus Goddess Archetype: How to Shoot Epic ... Odyssey Mythology Photography Book 3)
www.amazon.com/Photographing-Women-Models-Photography-Arc...
Exalt your work with the Divine Proportion!!!
From the top of Clifford's Tower.
York Minster is without doubt one of the largest and most impressive Gothic architectural buildings in all of England. The full majestic proportion of the building can be seen after entering a few narrow streets called the shambles that bring you to the south of the Church. Altho it's the Cathedral of York and it's dedication is St Peter, the building was given the title Minster for it's importance in the church field considering it's the home place for the Archbishop of York.
The Minster has had a long very active history with there being a building on site back to the Anglo- Saxon age. The Norman's built a Cathedral on site in the 11th-Century but shortly after the present Gothic Structure was built in place starting from the 13th-Century. The new nave was built on the old Norman Cathedral foundations and shortly after the Transepts, Choir and Chapter House were constructed. The original Central tower collapsed in 1407 and the present tower was built along with the western towers near the end of the Century.
The Cathedral has many notable features which includes the Chapter house, octagonal shaped with carvings of heads around the bases of the large windows, the space in the Nave and Choir making them the largest of their kind in England, a decorated Central tower and a large collection of bells which are set in the Western towers, one of them holding the Cathedral's hour bell 'Great Peter' along with 6 clock bells, while the other tower holds the 14 peal as well as a collection of 22 Carillion bells which are unique in an English Cathedral.
The Cathedral's main interior feature is it's medieval stained glass which is seen throughout the building. At the West end is a large window which near the top is heart shaped which has since been given title 'The Heart of Yorkshire'. The transepts too have their stained glass masterpieces with the North having the five sisters window while the South has a rose window.
The most famous Stained glass window in the Minster is the Great East Window by John Thornton, the largest piece of medieval glass in the world at 76 ft and if layed down would cover one of Wimbledon's tennis courts. For the past couple years the window has been replaced by a large full size print copy of the window since the glass was taken out as part of a large restoration project that is due to be completed in 2016.
During the Minster's turbulent history, it's been noted for having a number of disasters caused by fire. The first recorded instance was during the Anglo-Saxon period when the old wooden structure was destroyed. In 1137 the old Norman structure was damaged and replaced by another Norman building afterwards.
Most recently was a fire in 1829 started by resident Jonathan Martin which destroyed the East end roof along with the organ, after this Martin was tried at the Courts and sent to the Lunatic Asylum as it was found he was mentally unstable at the time of starting the arson. Shortly afterwards in 1840 the Nave and South West tower were gutted by a fire this time by accident.
On July 9 1984 thinking it was a lightning strike, fire destroyed the South Transept roof leaving it a gutted shell and open to the elements. Up to £2 million was spent to renovate the damage which was completed in 1988.
There is a higher proportion of single people living in London than anywhere else in the UK. Around half the London population between 20 and 59 years are single, with the widest difference between London and elsewhere among 45- to 60-year-olds. There are twice as many single people in this age group in London than in the rest of the UK.
Test Shot 1 - Unedited, Straight from the camera
My first shot with my new lens, Tamron SP AF 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di VC USD Lens (@300mm, f/5.6). I am happy with its performance in low light. As per my research, this lens was specifically designed for sports and moving objects photography. Even some photographers use this lens for Moto GP.
Dr. Elliot McGucken Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography
New book page!
www.facebook.com/epiclandscapephotography/
Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Golden Number Ratio Divine Proportion Compositions Fine Art Photography Dr. Elliot McGucken : Using the Nature's Golden Cut to Exalt Nature Photography!
Join my golden ratio groups!
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
www.facebook.com/groups/1401714589947057/
instagram.com/goldennumberratio
Dr. Elliot McGucken Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography
New book page!
www.facebook.com/epiclandscapephotography/
Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Ansel Adams used the golden ratio in his photography too:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrOUX3ZCl7I
The Fibonacci Numbers are closely related to the golden ratio, and thus they also play a prominent role in exalted natural and artistic compositions!
I'm working on a far deeper book titled The Golden Ratio Number for Photographers. :)
The famous mathematician Jacob Bernoulli wrote:
The (golden spiral) may be used as a symbol, either of fortitude and constancy in adversity, or of the human body, which after all its changes, even after death, will be restored to its exact and perfect self.
Engraved upon Jacob’s tombstone is a spiral alongside the words, "Eadem Mutata Resurgo," meaning "Though changed, I shall rise again." And so it is that within the Golden Ratio Principle, the golden harmonies rise yet again.
The golden ratio is oft known as the divine cut, the golden cut, the divine proportion, the golden number, and PHI for the name of the architect of the Parthenon Phidias. It has exalted classical art on down through the millennia and it can exalt your art too!
Ask me anything about the golden ratio! :) I will do my best to answer!!
Enjoy my Fine Art Ballet instagram too!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Ratio Principle: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio. the golden number, rectangle, and spiral!
One of the keys to shooting Epic Landscape Photography is exalting the photograph's soul via golden ratio compositions, thusly wedding the photographic art to the divine proportion by which life itself was designed and exalted. The simple golden ratio PHI can exalt your art with the golden ratio harmonies in the form of golden rectangles, golden triangles, golden spirals, golden cuts, and more, all linked by the divine proportion!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Number Ratio Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography Composition Studies!
instagram.com/goldennumberratio
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
Greetings flickr friends! I am working on several books on "epic photography," and I recently finished a related one titled: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Why the Fibonacci Numbers Exalt Beauty and How to Create PHI Compositions in Art, Design, & Photography: An Artistic and Scientific Introduction to the Golden Mean . Message me on facebook for a free review copy!
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
The Golden Ratio also informs the design of the golden revolver on all the swimsuits and lingerie, as well as the 45surf logo!
The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio.
Ansel Adams is not only my favorite photographer, but he is one of the greatest photographers and artists of all time. And just like great artists including Michelangelo, Monet, Degas, Renoir, Leonardo da Vinci, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Botticelli, and Picasso, Ansel used the golden ratio and divine proportions in his epic art.
Not so long ago I discovered golden regions in many of his famous public domain his 8x10 aspect ratio photographs. I call these golden harmony regions "regions of golden action" or "ROGA"S, as seen here:
www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1812448512351066.107374...
And too, I created some videos highlighting Ansel's use of the golden harmonies. Enjoy!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGnxOAhK3os
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3eJ86Ej1TY
More golden ratio and epic photography composition books soon! Best wishes for the Holiday Season! Dr. Elliot McGucken :)
Beautiful Golden Ratio Composition Photography Surf Goddesses! Athletic Action Portraits of Swimsuit Bikini Models! Athena, Artemis, Helen, and Aphrodite! Athletic Fitness Models! dx4/dt=ic
My physics equation dx4/dt=ic graces the swimsuits and bikinis, while the golden gun is designed in proportion with the golden ratio, and the photos are oft cropped in divine proportions!
My Epic Gear Guide for Landscapes & Portraits!
Everyone is always asking me for this! Here ya go! :)
My Epic Book: Photographing Women Models!
Portrait, Swimsuit, Lingerie, Boudoir, Fine Art, & Fashion Photography Exalting the Venus Goddess Archetype: How to Shoot Epic ...
Epic! Beautiful Surf Fine Art Portrait Swimsuit Bikini Models!
Bitcoin: 1FMBZJeeHVMu35uegrYUfEkHfPj5pe9WNz
Follow me friends!
facebook.com/goldennumberratio
Epic books, prints, & more!
Exalt your photography with Golden Ratio Compositions!
Golden Ratio Compositions & Secret Sacred Geometry for Photography, Fine Art, & Landscape Photographers: How to Exalt Art with Leonardo da Vinci's, Michelangelo's!
Epic Landscape Photography:
A Simple Guide to the Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography: Master Composition, Lenses, Camera Settings, Aperture, ISO, ... Hero's Odyssey Mythology Photography)
Epic Art & Gear for your Epic Hero's Odyssey:
Enjoy my physics books graces with my fine art photography! Light Time Dimension Theory: The Foundational Physics Unifying Einstein's Relativity and Quantum Mechanics: A Simple, Illustrated Introduction to the Physical
Beautiful Surf Goddesses! Athletic Action Portraits of Swimsuit Bikini Models! Athena, Artemis, Helen, and Aphrodite!
Golden Number Ratio Divine Proportion Compositions Fine Art Photography Dr. Elliot McGucken : Using the Nature's Golden Cut to Exalt Nature Photography!
Join my golden ratio groups!
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
www.facebook.com/groups/1401714589947057/
instagram.com/goldennumberratio
Dr. Elliot McGucken Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography
New book page!
www.facebook.com/epiclandscapephotography/
Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Ansel Adams used the golden ratio in his photography too:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrOUX3ZCl7I
The Fibonacci Numbers are closely related to the golden ratio, and thus they also play a prominent role in exalted natural and artistic compositions!
I'm working on a far deeper book titled The Golden Ratio Number for Photographers. :)
The famous mathematician Jacob Bernoulli wrote:
The (golden spiral) may be used as a symbol, either of fortitude and constancy in adversity, or of the human body, which after all its changes, even after death, will be restored to its exact and perfect self.
Engraved upon Jacob’s tombstone is a spiral alongside the words, "Eadem Mutata Resurgo," meaning "Though changed, I shall rise again." And so it is that within the Golden Ratio Principle, the golden harmonies rise yet again.
The golden ratio is oft known as the divine cut, the golden cut, the divine proportion, the golden number, and PHI for the name of the architect of the Parthenon Phidias. It has exalted classical art on down through the millennia and it can exalt your art too!
Ask me anything about the golden ratio! :) I will do my best to answer!!
Enjoy my Fine Art Ballet instagram too!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Ratio Principle: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio. the golden number, rectangle, and spiral!
Golden Number Ratio Divine Proportion Compositions Fine Art Photography Dr. Elliot McGucken : Using the Nature's Golden Cut to Exalt Nature Photography!
Join my golden ratio groups!
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
www.facebook.com/groups/1401714589947057/
instagram.com/goldennumberratio
Dr. Elliot McGucken Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography
New book page!
www.facebook.com/epiclandscapephotography/
Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Ansel Adams used the golden ratio in his photography too:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrOUX3ZCl7I
The Fibonacci Numbers are closely related to the golden ratio, and thus they also play a prominent role in exalted natural and artistic compositions!
I'm working on a far deeper book titled The Golden Ratio Number for Photographers. :)
The famous mathematician Jacob Bernoulli wrote:
The (golden spiral) may be used as a symbol, either of fortitude and constancy in adversity, or of the human body, which after all its changes, even after death, will be restored to its exact and perfect self.
Engraved upon Jacob’s tombstone is a spiral alongside the words, "Eadem Mutata Resurgo," meaning "Though changed, I shall rise again." And so it is that within the Golden Ratio Principle, the golden harmonies rise yet again.
The golden ratio is oft known as the divine cut, the golden cut, the divine proportion, the golden number, and PHI for the name of the architect of the Parthenon Phidias. It has exalted classical art on down through the millennia and it can exalt your art too!
Ask me anything about the golden ratio! :) I will do my best to answer!!
Enjoy my Fine Art Ballet instagram too!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Ratio Principle: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio. the golden number, rectangle, and spiral!
Golden Number Ratio Divine Proportion Compositions Fine Art Photography Dr. Elliot McGucken : Using the Nature's Golden Cut to Exalt Nature Photography!
Join my golden ratio groups!
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
www.facebook.com/groups/1401714589947057/
instagram.com/goldennumberratio
Dr. Elliot McGucken Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography
New book page!
www.facebook.com/epiclandscapephotography/
Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Ansel Adams used the golden ratio in his photography too:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrOUX3ZCl7I
The Fibonacci Numbers are closely related to the golden ratio, and thus they also play a prominent role in exalted natural and artistic compositions!
I'm working on a far deeper book titled The Golden Ratio Number for Photographers. :)
The famous mathematician Jacob Bernoulli wrote:
The (golden spiral) may be used as a symbol, either of fortitude and constancy in adversity, or of the human body, which after all its changes, even after death, will be restored to its exact and perfect self.
Engraved upon Jacob’s tombstone is a spiral alongside the words, "Eadem Mutata Resurgo," meaning "Though changed, I shall rise again." And so it is that within the Golden Ratio Principle, the golden harmonies rise yet again.
The golden ratio is oft known as the divine cut, the golden cut, the divine proportion, the golden number, and PHI for the name of the architect of the Parthenon Phidias. It has exalted classical art on down through the millennia and it can exalt your art too!
Ask me anything about the golden ratio! :) I will do my best to answer!!
Enjoy my Fine Art Ballet instagram too!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Ratio Principle: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio. the golden number, rectangle, and spiral!
Along Hiwatha Avenue, Minneapolis, May 2017.
I visit one weekend in 7 years and it rains the whole time.
Camera: Cosina Voigtlander Bessa R3M
Lens: KMZ 50mm f1.5 Jupiter 3
Film: Kodak Alaris Portra 160
Developer: Xtol
Scanner: Epson V600
Photoshop: Curves, Healing Brush (spotting)
Cropping: None
Milky Way! Yosemite National Park Fine Art! Epic National Parks Fine Art & Nature Landscape Photography: Elliot McGucken Fine Art Nature Photography! Astrophotography Night Photography!
I sign every print with dx4/dt=ic, and my physics equation dx4/dt=ic graces all the t-shirts and swimsuits, while the golden gun is designed in proportion with the golden ratio, and the photos are oft cropped in divine proportions!
Beautiful Golden Ratio Composition Photography Surf Goddesses! dx4/dt=ic Athletic Action Portraits of Swimsuit Bikini Models! Athena, Artemis, Helen, and Aphrodite! Athletic Fitness Models!
My Epic Gear Guide for Landscapes & Portraits!
Everyone is always asking me for this! Here ya go! :)
My Epic Book: Photographing Women Models!
Portrait, Swimsuit, Lingerie, Boudoir, Fine Art, & Fashion Photography Exalting the Venus Goddess Archetype: How to Shoot Epic ...
Bitcoin: 1FMBZJeeHVMu35uegrYUfEkHfPj5pe9WNz
Follow me friends!
facebook.com/goldennumberratio
Epic books, prints, & more!
Exalt your photography with Golden Ratio Compositions!
Golden Ratio Compositions & Secret Sacred Geometry for Photography, Fine Art, & Landscape Photographers: How to Exalt Art with Leonardo da Vinci's, Michelangelo's!
Epic Landscape Photography:
A Simple Guide to the Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography: Master Composition, Lenses, Camera Settings, Aperture, ISO, ... Hero's Odyssey Mythology Photography)
Epic Art & Gear for your Epic Hero's Odyssey:
Enjoy my physics books graces with my fine art photography! Light Time Dimension Theory: The Foundational Physics Unifying Einstein's Relativity and Quantum Mechanics: A Simple, Illustrated Introduction to the Physical
Beautiful Surf Goddesses! Athletic Action Portraits of Swimsuit Bikini Models! Athena, Artemis, Helen, and Aphrodite
Golden Number Ratio Divine Proportion Compositions Fine Art Photography Dr. Elliot McGucken : Using the Nature's Golden Cut to Exalt Nature Photography!
Join my golden ratio groups!
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
www.facebook.com/groups/1401714589947057/
instagram.com/goldennumberratio
Dr. Elliot McGucken Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography
New book page!
www.facebook.com/epiclandscapephotography/
Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Ansel Adams used the golden ratio in his photography too:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrOUX3ZCl7I
The Fibonacci Numbers are closely related to the golden ratio, and thus they also play a prominent role in exalted natural and artistic compositions!
I'm working on a far deeper book titled The Golden Ratio Number for Photographers. :)
The famous mathematician Jacob Bernoulli wrote:
The (golden spiral) may be used as a symbol, either of fortitude and constancy in adversity, or of the human body, which after all its changes, even after death, will be restored to its exact and perfect self.
Engraved upon Jacob’s tombstone is a spiral alongside the words, "Eadem Mutata Resurgo," meaning "Though changed, I shall rise again." And so it is that within the Golden Ratio Principle, the golden harmonies rise yet again.
The golden ratio is oft known as the divine cut, the golden cut, the divine proportion, the golden number, and PHI for the name of the architect of the Parthenon Phidias. It has exalted classical art on down through the millennia and it can exalt your art too!
Ask me anything about the golden ratio! :) I will do my best to answer!!
Enjoy my Fine Art Ballet instagram too!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Ratio Principle: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio. the golden number, rectangle, and spiral!
The Samuel MacKenzie Elliott House, also known as the 69 Delafield Place House, was built around 1840. This beautifully proportioned stone house was built as a real-estate investment by Scottish-born Samuel MacKenzie Elliott, who began purchasing property in the area that it became known as Elliottville.
Achieving fame as one of America's earliest oculists and eye surgeons, Elliott's New York practice boasted patients like John Jacob Astor, Peter Cooper, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Horace Greeley. Active in the Abolitionist movement, he reputedly harbored many slaves in his cellar, which was set up with a special fireplace for cooking, and organized the Seventy-ninth Highlanders, a regiment of volunteers, to fight for the North during the Civil War.
The house itself is an excellent example of country Gothic Revival architecture. Constructed of locally quarried random stone. One of more than 22 designed by the doctor, they were all executed in the same style of similar design. The walls measure inches in thickness and today, the Elliott House is covered in trumpet vine and Viriginia creeper, enhacing the picturesque quality. The house has eight spacious rooms, an attic and a cellar. A large entrancement at the gable end of the building is framed by diamond-shaped colored glass sidelights in blue and organe, and crowned by a transom displaying glasswork in a fan pattern. The gables are trimmed with attractive, scalloped, wooden vergeboards. The windows have sandstone lintels and are double-hung wit the wide vertical central muntins, simulating casements. The second floor of the two and a half story residence is accented by the Gothic pointed arch window, which once provided light for the attic.
The Samuel MacKenzie Elliott House was designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1998.
National Historic Register #80002757 (1980)
A short drive from Aylesford is Birling, a small but attractive village, stretched out along a winding street, and dominated by the church on a rise. The road winds round it then out of the village.
I was past the church and out of the village again before I knew it.
I found a place to park and walked to the church, hopeful it might be open.
It was not.
But details of the keyholder said they lived opposite, so I knocked and was presented with the large key from a rusty nail on the wall. I thought you were selling something she said.
I walk back through the lych gate, up the steps and turn the key in the lock. Turning the handle, I push and the door swung open, revealing the church to be dark. But there were light, I flicked them on.
-------------------------------------------------
Dominating the centre of this tiny village, Birling tower is a thinned down version of the familiar `beacon turret` so commonly found in Kent. Thinned down because there wasn't room for a properly proportioned structure, so close is it built to the end of the escarpment on which the church stands. The church is famed for two features, both connected with the Nevill family. The first is the cast-iron trapdoor the their burial vault in the chancel, resplendent with highly coloured bulls (the family emblem) and the family motto. The second is the font cover, carved by daughters of the family in the nineteenth century. Each section is initialled on the inside so that you can see who carved it. West tower, south aisle, nave, north aisle, chancel.
The church, which is dedicated to All Saints, is a handsome building, consisting of a nave, south isle, and chancel. It has a good tower at the west end of it.
The church of Birling, with certain land in this parish, was given by Walkelin de Maminot, lord of this place, in the 15th year of king Henry II. anno 1168, to the priory of Bermondsey, in perpetual alms; which gift was confirmed by that king. Soon after which it seems to have been confirmed and appropri ated to it by Walter, bishop of Rochester, at the king's request; and again more amply by the bishops Gualeran and Gilbert, his successor; and again by the Says, as heirs to the Maminots; and by Geoffry de Say, who married Alice, sister and coheir of Wakelin Maminot. The prior and convent of Rochester, in 1270, John, prior of, and the convent of St. Saviour, Bermondsey, acknowledged an annual pension of 20s. due from this church to the bishop of Rochester, which pension continues to be paid to the bishops of that see.
Upon a writ in the 20th year of king Edward III. the bishop certified, that the prior and convent possessed the appropriation of this church, which was taxed at ten pounds, and that the religious were not resident upon it. (fn. 14)
Richard Mann, perpetual vicar of this church, about the year 1447, anno 26 Henry VI. made complaint to the archbishop of Canterbury, of the insufficiency of the revenue of the vicarage for his maintenance, and that the prior and convent of Bermondsey, proprietaries of this church, refused to augment the portion of it; and he set forth that the produce and income belonging to the vicar and vicarage, did not exceed the annual value or sum of 4l. 15s. 8d. in the tithes of calves, milk, and foals 8s. 9d. yearly; in the tithes of lambs, wool, pigs, geese, apples, hemp, and in the tithes of the oblations of the four days yearly; and for sheep and cows forty one shillings and twelve-pence, in the pension paid to the vicar by the abbot and convent forty-four shillings and tenpence. And further, that the portion of the vicar and vicarage had been for some time, and was then insufficient, incompetent, and too slender; and that he could not, out of it, be supported in a proper manner, nor undergo the rights and burthens incumbent on him, or his vicarage, nor use that hospitality which he ought and was bound to do. That the parish church had a large and extended parish, containing six miles in circuit, having some of the parishioners of both sexes two miles or thereabout distant from the church, which, when there was occasion, he was bound to visit, and to administer to them the church offices and sacraments. That the mansion of the vicar there, and the buildings belonging to it, were, through the negligence of the abbot and convent, in a ruinous state, and would very soon, fall to the ground; which if they should they could not be rebuilt again for twenty pounds. That he the vicar had exercised the no small cure of fouls of the parish church, of one hundred parishioners, or thereabouts, although with great inconvenience, and in great misery and want during the whole time of his having been vicar, and had employed himself in every religious duty to the best of his abilities, and still continued so to do. That the portion of the fruits and profits of the parish church, belonging to the abbot and convent, proprietaries of it, had been from the time of the appropriation of it, and was then so rich and abundant, that, according to common estimation, the portion of the vicar might well be augmented out of it to the value of twenty marcs sterling, or thereabout; and that the abbot and convent, although they had been often requested, to augment the portion of the vicarage, out of the revenues of the church, in a competent manner, had, without alledging any reason, always refused it, or at least deferred it beyond reason, to the great damage, &c. Upon which it was decreed, that the prior and convent should augment the portion of the vicarage out of the fruits and profits of this church, or in money, to the amount of eight marcs sterling, beyond the antient portion of it, within the space of one month; and they were condemned in all costs, &c. but on their neglecting to obey this decree, a further one was made, that in satisfaction of the payment of the said eight marcs, there should be set apart and assigned to the vicar, and his successors, (at his request) the tithes, as well great as small, yearly accruing and arising from the lands, fields, and places below the lane, vulgarly called Benetis-lane, westward, and from the north side of the said lane, according to the bounds and limits of this parish, to those of the parish of Snodland on the north side, and from thence to the bounds and limits of the parish of East Malling on the east side, to the common pasture of Hordo, and from thence to the south end of Benetis-lane aforesaid, &c.
¶When the church of Birling, and the advowson of the vicarage passed from the above mentioned monastery, I have not found, but it appears by an inrolment made in chancery, and now in the Augmentation-office, that in the 13th year of king Henry VIII. George Nevill, lord Abergavenny, was possessed of a barn, and one hundred and fifty acres of land late belonging to that monastery, and then inclosed in the park of Birling, and also of the rectory of Birling, and all tithes, tenths, &c. belonging to it, and the advowson of the vicarage late belonging to the abbot and convent. Since which, they have descended down to the Right Hon. Henry, earl of Abergavenny, the present owner and patron of them.
www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol4/pp474-488
LOCATION: At c. 110 feet above O.D. on a Folkestone beds knoll at the north end of the village. Birling Place lies ¾ mile to the north-west.
DESCRIPTION: A church is mentioned in Domesday Book (1086), and it is probable that the nave of the present church, without its aisles, is Norman. The only evidence for this, however, is one tufa block on the south-west corner of the nave, and some detached (?reused) tufa blocks in the west face of the south-west buttress to the south aisle.
In the early 14th century first one aisle, then the other, was rebuilt with finely-tooled octagonal arcade piers of Kentish Ragstone. Above them are moulded capitals (slightly different south and north) with pointed arches over with double hollow chamfers. There are four bays of arcading, but the arches are not exactly regularly spaced, and the centre pier on the north is more elongated east-west, with an indication that there might have been a narrow partition on its north and south sides. There is also a slight scar opposite in the north wall. The south side has a separate gabled roof (of plain rafters, collars, braces and unmoulded tie-beams), and this is also perhaps 14th century. The aisle wall has three buttresses on the south, and at its east end (possibly the chapel of St. James) is a double trefoiled window. There is another in the south wall at the east end, with piscina just east of it. All the other windows in the south aisle are single trefoiled lights. The south doorway is also contemporary and has a hoodmould over its 2-centred arch. The door and hinges may also be original. Outside the door was a porch, but this was removed in the mid-19th century.
The north aisle outer wall has a more complicated history. At its east end, which may have been the Lady Chapel, two 2-light 15th century windows (on the north and east) seem to have been inserted into the 14th century fabric. There is also a high lancet over the east window, and a small blocked doorway (visible outside) in the north-east corner. A long thin pilaster buttress on the outside of the north wall, which slopes back into the wall, may have related to a later 15th century Rood stair. The west end of the aisle, which has an external plinth seems certainly to have been rebuilt in the late 15th or early 16th century, though the 2-light north window here appears to be a reset 14th century one. The north doorway has pyramid stops, and an early 14th century single-light trefoil-headed window above. It now leads into a 19th century vestry. There is also perhaps an original door here. The roof over the aisle has moulded beams and wall-plates, and a partitioned off vestry at its west end. Also the ground level in this aisle appears to have been lowered.
The west tower is a fine early 15th century ‘Kentish’ tower with a crenellated parapet and pyramid roof. It contains 8 bells (three of 1631) set in a new (1987) iron frame. It has also had many of its find Kentish ragstone dressings restored (also in 1986-7) with many new stones. This has been an over-zealous restoration. On the south-east side of the tower is a semi-octagonal stair-turret, which rises above the tower-top, and has its own tiled octagonal roof. The tower has diagonal western buttresses, and a square-headed western doorway with pyramid stops (all the dressings of this doorway, and the tracery of the Perpendicular windows above have recently - 1987 - been restored). Under the tower arch was a gallery until 1866.
As has already been seen, the west end of the north aisle was probably rebuilt in the later 15th century (there are a few red-bricks in the walls), and at the east end of this aisle a north and a south window seems to have been inserted, as well as possibly a Rood-stair. There is also a 15th century Ragstone font (with 1853 cover).
There is no chancel arch, and a large wide early 16th century chancel. This chancel must have been completely rebuilt in the 1520s by the Nevill family after they had acquired the patronage of the church from Bermondsey Abbey. On the south side are four square-headed early Tudor 2-light windows, and only the western one has Perpendicular tracery. The wall is in quasi-checker work, and has a hollow-chamfered plinth, which also goes round a diagonal (south-east) buttress and along the east wall. Here there is a large six-light window (also without tracery and perhaps with original ferromenta) that Hasted says contained glass with the arms of Sir George Nevill, Lord Bergavenney, ‘within the garter’ (He was a knight of the garter from 1514, and was buried here in 1535). There is also a small round-headed window in the east gable, with red bricks around it, but the wall and window had to be repaired after 1942 bomb damage. The very plain north wall of the chancel contains large Rag and ironstone blocks in quasi-checker pattern. It has no plinth and only one window (at the extreme western end), but also a north doorway from it into a 19th century vestry. Was there an earlier larger vestry?
The chancel has a moulded flat ceiling (painted in 1963), and the earlier steep-pitched roof was replaced in c.1828 with a low-pitched slate covered roof. At about the same time the Nevill family burial vault was rebuilt under the eastern third of the chancel. It has a cast-iron cover to the entry steps, and there are two early 19th century niches on either side of the sanctuary, with air-vents to the vault beneath. The family pews in the chancel, and the other fittings and memorials were put there in the mid-19th century. (Two fire helms from the chancel are now in ‘safekeeping’).
BUILDING MATERIALS: c.):
The principle rubble materials are local Ragstone and ironstone, with Ragstone dressings. A few perhaps reused tufa blocks from the early church are in the west wall, and some red brick is used in the early 16th century work.
Some Caenstone (?for restoration) and cement repairs.
EXCEPTIONAL MONUMENTS IN CHURCH: -
Various 19th century Nevill monuments in the church, especially in the chancel (with early 19th century burial vault below it). Royal Arms of 1700 above south doorway.
CHURCHYARD AND ENVIRONS:
Size & Shape: Large irregular area around the church with a steep drop to the north, west and south. It has been much extended to the north- east. There is a very good plan of the whole churchyard (with all known graves surveyed on it) hanging in the Church. Enlarged in the 19th century from small graveyard around the church. Very steep slope on the east side, down to the road (Horn Street)
Condition: Good.
Boundary walls: Ragstone walls retaining sunken lanes on north and west
Building in churchyard or on boundary: 1987 Lychgate to the south-west.
Exceptional monuments: Some good headstones.
Ecological potential: Yes.
HISTORICAL RECORD (where known):
Earliest ref. to church: Domesday Book.
Late med. status: Vicarage.
Patron: Given by the Lord of Birling manor to Bermondsey Abbey in 1168. It was appropriated soon afterwards. After the Dissolution (by c.1530) to Lord Abergavenny (Nevill formerly) till 1959.
Other documentary sources: Hasted IV (1798), 485 - 8.
Testamenta Cantiana (W.Kent, 1906), 5, mentions: Repair to one window on the south side of the church (1501). Also altars of ‘Our Lady in the chapel’ (1516) and ‘To be buried by side of Chaunsell of Birlyng at the hede of Saynt James aulter’ 1523).
ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD:
Reused materials: A few reused Roman bricks, and tufa blocks in S.W. corner of south aisle.
SURVIVAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL DEPOSITS:
Inside present church: ? Good, though there is a large vault under the chancel, and the floor level of the north aisle appears to have been lowered.
Outside present church: ? Good.
RECENT DISTURBANCES/ALTERATIONS:
To structure: The tower was very heavily restored with many new dressings, and a new iron bellframe on a reinforced concrete ringbeam in 1986-7.
ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT:
The church and churchyard: A few tufa blocks perhaps from the Norman nave west quoins, but otherwise the earliest visible fabric are the 14th century nave aisles and arcades. Early 15th century west tower. West end of north aisle rebuilt in c. 1500, and possibly a Rood stair made on the north side. Chancel completely rebuilt in the 1520s by the Nevill family.
The wider context: One of a small group with a rebuilt (by an important patron) early 16th century chancel.
REFERENCES: -
Guide Book: Leaflet (Revised) 1989 Anon.
Photographs: Photo of font and font cover in Kent Churches 1954, 127 (cover made 1853).
Plans & early drawings: Petrie 1807 view of church from S.E., showing steep-pitched roof over chancel. Also a porch on the south side of the church.
THAT Love is all there is,
Is all we know of Love;
It is enough, the freight should be
Proportioned to the groove.
Emily Dickinson
The farm has many examples of proportion. The two silos on the left side (one is taller/bigger than the other), and the main barn in the front is larger than the one to the right of the picture.
Durga
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In Hinduism, Durga one who can redeem in situations of utmost distress; is a form of Devi, the supremely radiant goddess, depicted as having ten arms, riding a lion or a tiger, carrying weapons and a lotus flower, maintaining a meditative smile, and practising mudras, or symbolic hand gestures.
An embodiment of creative feminine force (Shakti), Durga exists in a state of tantrya (independence from the universe and anything/anybody else, i.e., self-sufficiency) and fierce compassion. Kali is considered by Hindus to be an aspect of Durga. Durga is also the mother of Ganesha and Kartikeya. She is thus considered the fiercer, demon-fighting form of Shiva's wife, goddess Parvati. Durga manifests fearlessness and patience, and never loses her sense of humor, even during spiritual battles of epic proportion.
The word Shakti means divine feminine energy/force/power, and Durga is the warrior aspect of the Divine Mother. Other incarnations include Annapurna and Karunamayi. Durga's darker aspect Kali is represented as the consort of the god Shiva, on whose body she is often seen standing.
Durga Slays Mahishasura, Mahabalipuram sculpture.
As a goddess, Durga's feminine power contains the energies of the gods. Each of her weapons was given to her by various gods: Rudra's trident, Vishnu's discus, Indra's thunderbolt, Brahma's kamandalu, Kuber's Ratnahar, etc.
According to a narrative in the Devi Mahatmya story of the Markandeya Purana text, Durga was created as a warrior goddess to fight an asura (an inhuman force/demon) named Mahishasura. He had unleashed a reign of terror on earth, heaven and the nether worlds, and he could not be defeated by any man or god, anywhere. The gods went to Brahma, who had given Mahishasura the power not to be defeated by a man. Brahma could do nothing. They made Brahma their leader and went to Vaikuntha — the place where Vishnu lay on Ananta Naag. They found both Vishnu and Shiva, and Brahma eloquently related the reign of terror Mahishasur had unleashed on the three worlds. Hearing this Vishnu, Shiva and all of the gods became very angry and beams of fierce light emerged from their bodies. The blinding sea of light met at the Ashram of a priest named Katyan. The goddess Durga took the name Katyaayani from the priest and emerged from the sea of light. She introduced herself in the language of the Rig-Veda, saying she was the form of the supreme Brahman who had created all the gods. Now she had come to fight the demon to save the gods. They did not create her; it was her lila that she emerged from their combined energy. The gods were blessed with her compassion.
It is said that upon initially encountering Durga, Mahishasura underestimated her, thinking: "How can a woman kill me, Mahishasur — the one who has defeated the trinity of gods?" However, Durga roared with laughter, which caused an earthquake which made Mahishasur aware of her powers.
And the terrible Mahishasur rampaged against her, changing forms many times. First he was a buffalo demon, and she defeated him with her sword. Then he changed forms and became an elephant that tied up the goddess's lion and began to pull it towards him. The goddess cut off his trunk with her sword. The demon Mahishasur continued his terrorizing, taking the form of a lion, and then the form of a man, but both of them were gracefully slain by Durga.
Then Mahishasur began attacking once more, starting to take the form of a buffalo again. The patient goddess became very angry, and as she sipped divine wine from a cup she smiled and proclaimed to Mahishasur in a colorful tone — "Roar with delight while you still can, O illiterate demon, because when I will kill you after drinking this, the gods themselves will roar with delight".[cite this quote] When Mahashaur had half emerged into his buffalo form, he was paralyzed by the extreme light emitting from the goddess's body. The goddess then resounded with laughter before cutting Mahishasur's head down with her sword.
Thus Durga slew Mahishasur, thus is the power of the fierce compassion of Durga. Hence, Mata Durga is also known as Mahishasurmardhini — the slayer of Mahishasur. According to one legend, the goddess Durga created an army to fight against the forces of the demon-king Mahishasur, who was terrorizing Heaven and Earth. After ten days of fighting, Durga and her army defeated Mahishasur and killed him. As a reward for their service, Durga bestowed upon her army the knowledge of jewelry-making. Ever since, the Sonara community has been involved in the jewelry profession [3].
The goddess as Mahisasuramardhini appears quite early in Indian art. The Archaeological Museum in Matura has several statues on display including a 6-armed Kushana period Mahisasuramardhini that depicts her pressing down the buffalo with her lower hands [4]. A Nagar plaque from the first century BC - first century AD depicts a 4-armed Mahisamardhini accompanied by a lion. But it is in the Gupta period that we see the finest representations of Mahisasuramardhini (2-, 4-, 6-, and at Udayagiri, 12-armed). The spear and trident are her most common weapons. a Mamallapuram relief shows the goddess with 8 arms riding her lion subduing a bufalo-faced demon (as contrasted with a buffalo demon); a variation also seen at Ellora. In later sculptures (post-seventh Century), sculptures show the goddess having decapitated the buffalo demon
Durga Puja
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Durga puja is an annual Hindu festival in South Asia that celebrates worship of the Hindu goddess Durga. It refers to all the six days observed as Mahalaya, Shashthi , Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Navami and Bijoya Dashami. The dates of Durga Puja celebrations are set according to the traditional Hindu calendar and the fortnight corresponding to the festival is called Devi Paksha and is ended on Kojagori Lokkhi Puja
Durga Puja is widely celebrated in the Indian states of West Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand, Orissa and Tripura where it is a five-day annual holiday.In West Bengal and Tripura which has majority of Bengali Hindus it is the Biggest festival of the year. Not only is it the biggest Hindu festival celebrated throughout the State, but it is also the most significant socio-cultural event in Bengali society. Apart from eastern India, Durga Puja is also celebrated in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Kashmir, Karnataka and Kerala. Durga Puja is also celebrated as a major festival in Nepal and in Bangladesh where 10% population are Hindu. Nowadays, many diaspora Bengali cultural organizations arrange for Durgotsab in countries such as the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, France, The Netherlands, Singapore and Kuwait, among others. In 2006, a grand Durga Puja ceremony was held in the Great Court of the British Museum.
The prominence of Durga Puja increased gradually during the British Raj in Bengal. After the Hindu reformists identified Durga with India, she became an icon for the Indian independence movement. In the first quarter of the 20th century, the tradition of Baroyari or Community Puja was popularised due to this. After independence, Durga Puja became one of the largest celebrated festivals in the whole world.
Durga Puja also includes the worship of Shiva, Lakshmi, Ganesha, Saraswati and Kartikeya. Modern traditions have come to include the display of decorated pandals and artistically depicted idols (murti) of Durga, exchange of Bijoya Greetings and publication of Puja Annuals.
Golden Number Ratio Divine Proportion Compositions Fine Art Photography Dr. Elliot McGucken : Using the Nature's Golden Cut to Exalt Nature Photography!
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Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Ansel Adams used the golden ratio in his photography too:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrOUX3ZCl7I
The Fibonacci Numbers are closely related to the golden ratio, and thus they also play a prominent role in exalted natural and artistic compositions!
I'm working on a far deeper book titled The Golden Ratio Number for Photographers. :)
The famous mathematician Jacob Bernoulli wrote:
The (golden spiral) may be used as a symbol, either of fortitude and constancy in adversity, or of the human body, which after all its changes, even after death, will be restored to its exact and perfect self.
Engraved upon Jacob’s tombstone is a spiral alongside the words, "Eadem Mutata Resurgo," meaning "Though changed, I shall rise again." And so it is that within the Golden Ratio Principle, the golden harmonies rise yet again.
The golden ratio is oft known as the divine cut, the golden cut, the divine proportion, the golden number, and PHI for the name of the architect of the Parthenon Phidias. It has exalted classical art on down through the millennia and it can exalt your art too!
Ask me anything about the golden ratio! :) I will do my best to answer!!
Enjoy my Fine Art Ballet instagram too!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Ratio Principle: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio. the golden number, rectangle, and spiral!
I decided to look at figure drawing and encouraged the students to make little jointed figures to aid their drawings of movement, I think it worked quite well.
This is the Minories building in Birmingham from Old Square.
It used to be the Lewis's Department store. It was built above a road way also called The Minories.
It is now home to several small shops and on the ground floor fronting Corporation Street is owned by The Square Peg, a popular bar.
It opened in 1885 on Corporation Street, by a personal suggestion by Joseph Chamberlain.
In past weeks I've noticed a wreath at the top (will have to do this building in the day time sometime) but it was too dark to get it (and I couldn't really see the wreath sculpture).
It dates from 1924 - 25 and was also designed by Gerald de Courcy Fraser of Liverpool.
Another block behind of 1931 - 32 , linked by bridges across the narrow Minories. The result is a huge but chaste and carefully proportioned classical block. The sides on Bull Street and Old Square, articulated by fluted Doric columns (restored 1993). Impressive spatial effect in the Minories which was originally open. Between the entrance bridges with paired columns and lintels in a deep narrow canyon. Built over in 1971, reopened and glazed in by Peter Hing & Jones in the 1993 conversion to offices and courts. Tactful extra storey all round.
Above information from Pevsner Architectural Guides: Birmingham by Andy Foster.
Second weekend of the annual Heritage event. It seems wrong to call it a weekend as it now compromises two weekends and many meedweek events too.
And scanning the events, there were some in Canterbury, so we decide to head to the city for a wander: jools would go shopping while I would go and do some snapping.
Of course there is always shopping first. Off to Tesco to fill the car, then fill the fridge and larder. I am away for three days, nearly four, so not much needed on top of some ready meals for Jools. Still came to seventy quid, mind.
A tub of cheese footballs did fall into the trolley, which helped.
Back home for breakfast of fruit and more coffee, and then off to Canterbury, parking near St Augustine's Abbey, walking to the centre via a subway. We parted, Jools went to Body Shop and a couple of other shops, while I walked down High Street, past the Eastbridge Hospital, Westgate Tower, Canterbury West station to St Dunstan's.
I could say I walked straight there, but I had a quarter of an hour to play with, so when I walked past a pasty shop, I went in for a coffee, and although wasn't really hungry, I did have a pasty anyway.
Once fed and watered, I walk on, up the hill past the station, and on the left was the church, the door already open despite it being only five to nine.
I went in, and found I had the church to myself.
Last time I was here, the Roper Chapel was being renovated and so I couldn't get inside. Important as it is in the chapel that the head of Thomas Moor, beheaded on Tower Hill on orders of Henry VIII. The windows of the chapel have several representation of him and scenes from his life. I snap them all.
I go round with the wide angle lens, now the church is fully open again.
That done, I walk back down into the centre heading for Eastbridge Hospital.
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Dedicated to a former Archbishop of Canterbury, St Dunstan's stands outside the city walls. There is structural evidence of the Norman period, but most of the church is fourteenth century. The west tower dates from this time and is very oddly proportioned - about twice the height that its width can really cope with. The south chapel is constructed of brick and was completed in the early sixteenth century. It contains monuments to the More family and is the burial place of St. Thomas More's head, - brought here by his daughter after his execution. The family home stood opposite the church where its brick gateway may still be seen. There are two twentieth-century windows of note in the chapel, by Lawrence Lee and John Hayward.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Canterbury+2
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ST. DUNSTAN's, NEAR CANTERBURY,
LIES the next parish eastward from that of St. Michael, Harbledowne, by which only it is separated from that of Thanington, before described. It makes a part of the suburbs of the city of Canterbury on the western side of it, and is so called from the saint, to which the church is dedicated.
THIS PARISH adjoins eastward to that of Holy Cross, Westgate, about midway between the city gate and St. Dunstan's church. The street is built on each side of the high London road. It is unpaved, but very broad and sightly, and the houses are, many of them, though small, very neat and modern. On the north side of it is the gaol, for the eastern division of the county, but it is a gaol only for felons, and prisoners under the jurisdiction of the justices, and not for debtors, the sheriff of the county taking no cognizance of it. The antient Place-house of the Ropers stands opposite the church, at the west end of the street, the antient seat is said to have stood at some distance behind the present house and gateway, which are situated close to the side of the street, these having been only the inferior offices belonging to it. They have been for many years past converted into a dwelling and public brew-house, and are now tenanted by John Abbot, esq. who resides in it. A little further, on the opposite side of the way, at St. Dunstan's cross, there is a good new-built house, the property, and late the residence of John Baker, esq. but it is now occupied by colonel Smith, of the royal artillery. Here the road divides, that towards the south-west leading to London, along which this parish extends near a quarter of a mile, where the lands in it are exceedingly fertile, and planted with hops. The other road runs strait forward from the cross up St. Thomas's hill, (fn. 1) and so over Bleane common, at the beginning of which this parish ends, towards Whitstaple. The street of St. Dunstan's contains about two hundred houses, and near one thousand inhabitants. There is a synagogue belonging to the Jews, who inhabit mostly together in the eastern part of this parish, and in the part of Westgate adjoining to it, and with some few others in the different parts of Canterbury, are said to amount to near four hundred. They have a burying-ground in this parish, near the entrance of the Whitstaple road from St. Dunstan's cross; and there is another belonging to the Quakers near it.
There was a gallows for the public execution of criminals, on St. Thomas's hill; two of whom were executed here in 1698, and the like in 1700 and 1702, as appears by the parish register.
A fair is held in St. Dunstan's street on the Monday se'nnight after the feast of St. Peter ad Vincula.
THE MANOR OF WESTGATE, belonging to the archbishop, claims over the whole of this parish, in which there are only two houses deserving of a particular description, one of which is
THE PLACE-HOUSE, or St. Dunstan's place, situated near the church, on the north side of the London road. It is noted for having been the antient and most early residence in this county of the family of Roper, (fn. 2) whose burial place was afterwards in this church of St. Dunstan's; one of whom, William Roper, or Rosper, as the name was then sometimes spelt, resided here in king Henry III.'s reign, and was a great benefactor to St. Martin's priory, in Dover. John Roper, his descendant, was resident both here and at Swaycliffe, and was one of the surveyors of the customs of the cinque ports, under king Henry VII. whose son John Roper was sheriff in the 12th year of king Henry VIII. and was afterwards attorney-general and prothonotary of the court of king's bench; and having inherited from his mother Margery, daughter and coheir of John Tattersall, the manor of Wellhall, in Eltham, resided mostly at the mansion of it. He died in 1524, leaving two sons, William and Christopher, the latter of whom was seated at Linsted, from whom the Ropers, lords Teynham and Dacre, are descended. William Roper, the eldest son, whose lands were disgavelled by the act of the second and third of king Edward VI. was of Wellhall, and succeeded his father likewise in this antient family seat at St. Dunstan's, from which time they resided constantly at Wellhall, and in this family this estate continued down to Edward Roper, esq. of Wellhall, whose daughter, and at length sole surviving heir Elizabeth, having married Edward Henshaw, esq. of Hampshire, entitled her husband to it, among other estates. He left three daughters his coheirs, but on his death it came by the entail of it, into the possession of William Strickland, esq. who had married Catherine, the eldest of them, and on his death, s.p. in 1788, it devolved by the same entail to Sir Edward Dering, bart. son of Sir Edward Dering, by his wife Elizabeth, the other sister, and to Sir Rowland Wynne, bart. son of Sir Rowland Wynne, who had married the youngest sister; and their two sons of the same names are at this time the joint proprietors of this house, and the rest of the antient possessions of the family of Roper, in this parish and its neighbourhood.
ST. THOMAS'S HILL, is the other seat remaining to be noticed, which takes its name from the hill on which it is situated, on the road to Whitstaple, about half a mile from St. Dunstan's church. It was for many years in the possession of the family of Roberts, for Mr. William Roberts resided here in the reign of Philip and Mary, and died possessed of it in the 3d year of queen Elizabeth, and, as appears by the parish register, was buried in this church. And in his descendants, (from one of whom descended likewise the Roberts's of Harbledowne) this seat continued down to Mr. Drayton Roberts, who died possessed of it in 1738, leaving one sole daughter and heir Mary, who carried it in marriage to Mr. Jacob Sawkins, gent. of Liminge, whom she survived, and afterwards sold it to her late father's brother, Mr. Edward Roberts, who left his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Nathaniel Denew, esq. surviving, to whom he deviled this seat, which she afterwards alienated to Charles Webb, esq. who rebuilt it, and resided at it till his death in 1786, leaving his wife Sarah, daughter of Mr. Heaver, surviving, who now, by her husband's will, is entitled to it, and resides here.
Charities.
THOMAS STRENSHAM, by deed in 1584, gave certain houses and lands; the produce to be applied to the comforting of poor householders of this parish, clothing their children, or setting them to service. Which premises are vested in ten feoffees, and are of the annual produce of 17l. 11s. 8d.
THOMAS MANERINGE, by will in 1692, gave to two poor men of this parish, the yearly sum of 6s. 8d. to be paid to them at Easter, out of an estate in Broad-street, in Canterbury, now vested in Mr. Hammond.
The poor constantly relieved are about forty-five, casually thirty.
THIS PARISH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of the same.
The church, which is dedicated to St. Dunstan, is large and handsome, consisting of two isles, two chancels at the east end, and a small one on the north side, near the west end. At the south-west corner is a tower steeple, in which there is a clock and a peal of six bells. This church is well pewed, and very neatly kept. In it is a monument and a burial place for the Rondeau's, the first of whom was a refugee in England for the Protestant religion; their arms, Azure, on a fess wavy, three burts, in base a star of many points, or; not far from which are memorials for several of this family, and for the Alkins. A small monument for Charles Webb, esq. of St. Thomas's hill, colonel of foot, obt. 1786, arms, Quarterly, gules, a cross between four birds, or; and paly, gules, and or, impaling gules, a plain cross argent, a label of three points, azure. In the north, or high chancel there are several memorials for the family of Scranton. Underneath, near the north side, is a large vault, wherein many of the family of Roberts are deposited. The altar cloth is very curious, made seemingly before the reformation, having on it several figures of cherubs, and in the middle a crucifix, with the figure of Christ on it; all elegantly wrought in needle-work embossed with gold, not unlikely by one of the ladies of the Roper family. The south chancel is called the Roper chancel, in a vault underneath which many of this family are deposited, and being full, it has been closed up. Against the south wall are two tombs of Bethersden marble, one of them partly within an arch in the wall, probably that of the founder of this chancel; over the other is a banner, of the arms of Roper, mostly torn off, and a helmet, and surcoat, with the arms of More on it, Argent, a chevron ermine, between three moor cocks, sable. Against a pillar is a handsome monument for Thomas Roper, esq. grandson of Sir Thomas More, by his daughter Margaret, obt. 1597; above are the arms of Roper, with quarterings. In the east window are some small remains of painted glass. Somner gives several inscriptions remaining in his time, for the Ropers, one of which is for William Roper, esq. son and heir of John Roper, esq. and for Margaret his wife, daughter of Sir Thomas More, lord chancellor. His monument is that with the banner over it, against the south wall. In a hollow in the wall of the vault underneath, having an iron grate before it, next to the coffin of the above Margaret, there is still remaining a scull, being that of Sir Thomas More; for after he was beheaded, anno 1535, though his body was permitted to be buried, first in the church of St. Peter in the Tower, and afterwards in Chelsea church, where it now lies, yet his head was set on a pole on London bridge, and was afterwards privily bought by his daughter Margaret, and for some time preserved by her in a leaden box, with much devotion, and placed in this vault, when she died, near her coffin. In the south isle are memorials for the Heatons, of St. Thomas's hill. The cover to the font is of a pyramidical shape, curiously carved in wood, in the gothic taste. On the north side of this church is a small chapel, now made use of as a vestry room, founded by Henry de Canterbury, the king's chaplain, in 1330, and dedicated to the Holy Trinity, in which he established a perpetual chantry, which he committed to the care of the hospital of the poor priests in Canterbury, who were to find the chaplain. And it remained in this state till the dissolution of such endowments, in king Edward VI.'s reign.
The chancel or chapel above-mentioned, belonging to the Ropers, was founded by John Roper, esq. as appears by patent 4th Henry IV. for two chaplains to sing mass in it, at the altar of St. Nicholas, for the souls of such of the family as were deceased, and the welfare of such as were living; each of which chaplains had eight pounds per annum allowed to them by him and his heirs, besides a house for their habitation, adjoining to the mansion-house of the family in this parish, on the west side of it; which house is still remaining, and is made use of as part of the mansion.
This church was part of the antient possessions of St. Gregory's priory, in Canterbury, founded by archbishop Lanfranc; and archbishop Hubert, in king Richard I.'s reign, confirmed the same, among the rest of the possessions of it. (fn. 3) After which, the church, with the advowson of the vicarage, remained with the priory till the dissolution of it, in king Henry VIII.'s reign, when coming into the king's hands, it was granted, with the scite and most of the possessions of the priory, that same year, in exchange, to the archbishop. Since which the whole of the premises above-mentioned, in which this parsonage was included, have been demised by the several archbishops in one great beneficial lease. George Gipps, esq. of Harbledowne, is the present lessee of it, as part of St. Gregories priory, under the archbishop. It is now of the value of only five pounds per annum.
Archbishop Walter Reynolds, in 1322, endowed the vicarage of this church, then appropriated to the priory of St. Gregory, decreeing, that the vicar of it should receive, for the maintenance of himself and his family, all small tithes, oblations, and other profits of every kind, the tithes of sheaves of every sort of corn growing in the fields only excepted, which he allotted to the religious in the name of the rectory, who should acknowledge all burthens, ordinary as well as extraordinary, of the chancel, books, and ornaments, as far as they were accustomed to belong to the rectors of places. (fn. 4) After which, on a representation to archbishop Stratford, that the above endowment was by no means sufficient for his support, the value of the vicarage amounting to only four marcs yearly, the archbishop's commissary assigned to the vicars, beyond the endowment above-mentioned, the house of the vicarage, which the vicars were wont of old to inhabit, and also the pension of two marcs sterling, to be paid yearly by the religious, in augmentation of the portion so assigned to him. And he decreed, that the vicar, in future should serve the church in divine rites, and should provide tapers, lights, and bread and wine for the celebration of masses; and should support the burthens of the church, estimated at four marcs for the moiety, in all payments whatsoever of tenths and other extraordinary impositions; and that the religious should rebuild and repair the chancel of the church, and find books, vestments, and ornaments, belonging to the rectors of places, all which the archbishop approved, and confirmed in 1342. (fn. 5)
In the 8th year of king Richard II. anno 1384, the vicarage was valued at four pounds, being one of those small benefices, which, on account of their slender income, were not taxed to the tenth. It is valued in the king's books at five pounds, and is now of the clear yearly certified value of eighteen pounds. In 1588 it was valued at twenty pounds, communicants one hundred and fifty-six. In 1640 it was valued at forty pounds, the like number of communicants.
Archbishop Juxon, in 1661, augmented the vicarages and curacies late belonging to St. Gregory's priory, and then of the patronage of the see of Canterbury, with the yearly sum of two hundred and ten pounds, out of the great tithes of the several parsonages; but this of St. Dunstan's, probably from the inefficient value of the parsonage for that purpose, did not receive any part of it.
Archbishop Tenison gave to the governors of queen Anne's bounty, which he confirmed by his will in 1715, the sum of two hundred pounds, to the augmentation of this vicarage, to which the governors added two hundred pounds more for the same purpose. It is now of the annual value of about fifty pounds.
There have been no remains of the vicarage-house for a long time.
¶THE CITY AND COUNTY OF THE CITY OF CANTERBURY lies the next adjoining to St. Dunstan's parish eastward, a district which was once accounted a hundred of itself, and within the jurisdiction of the justices of the county of Kent, and it continued so till it was made a county, and separate jurisdiction of itself, by king Edward the IVth in his first year, a copious description of it, as well as of the priory of Christ-church, and the cathedral, with an account of the archbishops, and the other members belonging to them, will be given in a separate volume at the conclusion of this history.
One of the keys to shooting Epic Landscape Photography is exalting the photograph's soul via golden ratio compositions, thusly wedding the photographic art to the divine proportion by which life itself was designed and exalted. The simple golden ratio PHI can exalt your art with the golden ratio harmonies in the form of golden rectangles, golden triangles, golden spirals, golden cuts, and more, all linked by the divine proportion!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Number Ratio Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography Composition Studies!
instagram.com/goldennumberratio
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Greetings flickr friends! I am working on several books on "epic photography," and I recently finished a related one titled: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Why the Fibonacci Numbers Exalt Beauty and How to Create PHI Compositions in Art, Design, & Photography: An Artistic and Scientific Introduction to the Golden Mean . Message me on facebook for a free review copy!
www.facebook.com/goldennumberratio/
The Golden Ratio also informs the design of the golden revolver on all the swimsuits and lingerie, as well as the 45surf logo!
The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio.
Ansel Adams is not only my favorite photographer, but he is one of the greatest photographers and artists of all time. And just like great artists including Michelangelo, Monet, Degas, Renoir, Leonardo da Vinci, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Botticelli, and Picasso, Ansel used the golden ratio and divine proportions in his epic art.
Not so long ago I discovered golden regions in many of his famous public domain his 8x10 aspect ratio photographs. I call these golden harmony regions "regions of golden action" or "ROGA"S, as seen here:
www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1812448512351066.107374...
And too, I created some videos highlighting Ansel's use of the golden harmonies. Enjoy!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGnxOAhK3os
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3eJ86Ej1TY
More golden ratio and epic photography composition books soon! Best wishes for the Holiday Season! Dr. Elliot McGucken :)
Golden Number Ratio Divine Proportion Compositions Fine Art Photography Dr. Elliot McGucken : Using the Nature's Golden Cut to Exalt Nature Photography!
Join my golden ratio groups!
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Dr. Elliot McGucken Fine Art Landscape & Nature Photography
New book page!
www.facebook.com/epiclandscapephotography/
Epic Landscape Photography: The Mythological Principles of Fine Art Nature Photography
Ansel Adams used the golden ratio in his photography too:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFlzAaBgsDI
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrOUX3ZCl7I
The Fibonacci Numbers are closely related to the golden ratio, and thus they also play a prominent role in exalted natural and artistic compositions!
I'm working on a far deeper book titled The Golden Ratio Number for Photographers. :)
The famous mathematician Jacob Bernoulli wrote:
The (golden spiral) may be used as a symbol, either of fortitude and constancy in adversity, or of the human body, which after all its changes, even after death, will be restored to its exact and perfect self.
Engraved upon Jacob’s tombstone is a spiral alongside the words, "Eadem Mutata Resurgo," meaning "Though changed, I shall rise again." And so it is that within the Golden Ratio Principle, the golden harmonies rise yet again.
The golden ratio is oft known as the divine cut, the golden cut, the divine proportion, the golden number, and PHI for the name of the architect of the Parthenon Phidias. It has exalted classical art on down through the millennia and it can exalt your art too!
Ask me anything about the golden ratio! :) I will do my best to answer!!
Enjoy my Fine Art Ballet instagram too!
Dr. Elliot McGucken's Golden Ratio Principle: The Golden Number Ratio Principle: Dr. E’s Golden Ratio Principle: The golden ratio exalts beauty because the number is a characteristic of the mathematically and physically most efficient manners of growth and distribution, on both evolutionary and purely physical levels. The golden ratio ensures that the proportions and structure of that which came before provide the proportions and structure of that which comes after. Robust, ordered growth is naturally associated with health and beauty, and thus we evolved to perceive the golden ratio harmonies as inherently beautiful, as we saw and felt their presence in all vital growth and life—in the salient features and proportions of humans and nature alike, from the distribution of our facial features and bones to the arrangements of petals, leaves, and sunflowers seeds. As ratios between Fibonacci Numbers offer the closest whole-number approximations to the golden ratio, and as seeds, cells, leaves, bones, and other physical entities appear in whole numbers, the Fibonacci Numbers oft appear in nature’s elements as “growth’s numbers.” From the dawn of time, humanity sought to salute their gods in art and temples exalting the same proportion by which all their vital sustenance and they themselves had been created—the golden ratio. the golden number, rectangle, and spiral!
Durga
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In Hinduism, Durga one who can redeem in situations of utmost distress; is a form of Devi, the supremely radiant goddess, depicted as having ten arms, riding a lion or a tiger, carrying weapons and a lotus flower, maintaining a meditative smile, and practising mudras, or symbolic hand gestures.
An embodiment of creative feminine force (Shakti), Durga exists in a state of tantrya (independence from the universe and anything/anybody else, i.e., self-sufficiency) and fierce compassion. Kali is considered by Hindus to be an aspect of Durga. Durga is also the mother of Ganesha and Kartikeya. She is thus considered the fiercer, demon-fighting form of Shiva's wife, goddess Parvati. Durga manifests fearlessness and patience, and never loses her sense of humor, even during spiritual battles of epic proportion.
The word Shakti means divine feminine energy/force/power, and Durga is the warrior aspect of the Divine Mother. Other incarnations include Annapurna and Karunamayi. Durga's darker aspect Kali is represented as the consort of the god Shiva, on whose body she is often seen standing.
Durga Slays Mahishasura, Mahabalipuram sculpture.
As a goddess, Durga's feminine power contains the energies of the gods. Each of her weapons was given to her by various gods: Rudra's trident, Vishnu's discus, Indra's thunderbolt, Brahma's kamandalu, Kuber's Ratnahar, etc.
According to a narrative in the Devi Mahatmya story of the Markandeya Purana text, Durga was created as a warrior goddess to fight an asura (an inhuman force/demon) named Mahishasura. He had unleashed a reign of terror on earth, heaven and the nether worlds, and he could not be defeated by any man or god, anywhere. The gods went to Brahma, who had given Mahishasura the power not to be defeated by a man. Brahma could do nothing. They made Brahma their leader and went to Vaikuntha — the place where Vishnu lay on Ananta Naag. They found both Vishnu and Shiva, and Brahma eloquently related the reign of terror Mahishasur had unleashed on the three worlds. Hearing this Vishnu, Shiva and all of the gods became very angry and beams of fierce light emerged from their bodies. The blinding sea of light met at the Ashram of a priest named Katyan. The goddess Durga took the name Katyaayani from the priest and emerged from the sea of light. She introduced herself in the language of the Rig-Veda, saying she was the form of the supreme Brahman who had created all the gods. Now she had come to fight the demon to save the gods. They did not create her; it was her lila that she emerged from their combined energy. The gods were blessed with her compassion.
It is said that upon initially encountering Durga, Mahishasura underestimated her, thinking: "How can a woman kill me, Mahishasur — the one who has defeated the trinity of gods?" However, Durga roared with laughter, which caused an earthquake which made Mahishasur aware of her powers.
And the terrible Mahishasur rampaged against her, changing forms many times. First he was a buffalo demon, and she defeated him with her sword. Then he changed forms and became an elephant that tied up the goddess's lion and began to pull it towards him. The goddess cut off his trunk with her sword. The demon Mahishasur continued his terrorizing, taking the form of a lion, and then the form of a man, but both of them were gracefully slain by Durga.
Then Mahishasur began attacking once more, starting to take the form of a buffalo again. The patient goddess became very angry, and as she sipped divine wine from a cup she smiled and proclaimed to Mahishasur in a colorful tone — "Roar with delight while you still can, O illiterate demon, because when I will kill you after drinking this, the gods themselves will roar with delight".[cite this quote] When Mahashaur had half emerged into his buffalo form, he was paralyzed by the extreme light emitting from the goddess's body. The goddess then resounded with laughter before cutting Mahishasur's head down with her sword.
Thus Durga slew Mahishasur, thus is the power of the fierce compassion of Durga. Hence, Mata Durga is also known as Mahishasurmardhini — the slayer of Mahishasur. According to one legend, the goddess Durga created an army to fight against the forces of the demon-king Mahishasur, who was terrorizing Heaven and Earth. After ten days of fighting, Durga and her army defeated Mahishasur and killed him. As a reward for their service, Durga bestowed upon her army the knowledge of jewelry-making. Ever since, the Sonara community has been involved in the jewelry profession [3].
The goddess as Mahisasuramardhini appears quite early in Indian art. The Archaeological Museum in Matura has several statues on display including a 6-armed Kushana period Mahisasuramardhini that depicts her pressing down the buffalo with her lower hands [4]. A Nagar plaque from the first century BC - first century AD depicts a 4-armed Mahisamardhini accompanied by a lion. But it is in the Gupta period that we see the finest representations of Mahisasuramardhini (2-, 4-, 6-, and at Udayagiri, 12-armed). The spear and trident are her most common weapons. a Mamallapuram relief shows the goddess with 8 arms riding her lion subduing a bufalo-faced demon (as contrasted with a buffalo demon); a variation also seen at Ellora. In later sculptures (post-seventh Century), sculptures show the goddess having decapitated the buffalo demon
Durga Puja
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Durga puja is an annual Hindu festival in South Asia that celebrates worship of the Hindu goddess Durga. It refers to all the six days observed as Mahalaya, Shashthi , Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Navami and Bijoya Dashami. The dates of Durga Puja celebrations are set according to the traditional Hindu calendar and the fortnight corresponding to the festival is called Devi Paksha and is ended on Kojagori Lokkhi Puja
Durga Puja is widely celebrated in the Indian states of West Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand, Orissa and Tripura where it is a five-day annual holiday.In West Bengal and Tripura which has majority of Bengali Hindus it is the Biggest festival of the year. Not only is it the biggest Hindu festival celebrated throughout the State, but it is also the most significant socio-cultural event in Bengali society. Apart from eastern India, Durga Puja is also celebrated in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab, Kashmir, Karnataka and Kerala. Durga Puja is also celebrated as a major festival in Nepal and in Bangladesh where 10% population are Hindu. Nowadays, many diaspora Bengali cultural organizations arrange for Durgotsab in countries such as the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, France, The Netherlands, Singapore and Kuwait, among others. In 2006, a grand Durga Puja ceremony was held in the Great Court of the British Museum.
The prominence of Durga Puja increased gradually during the British Raj in Bengal. After the Hindu reformists identified Durga with India, she became an icon for the Indian independence movement. In the first quarter of the 20th century, the tradition of Baroyari or Community Puja was popularised due to this. After independence, Durga Puja became one of the largest celebrated festivals in the whole world.
Durga Puja also includes the worship of Shiva, Lakshmi, Ganesha, Saraswati and Kartikeya. Modern traditions have come to include the display of decorated pandals and artistically depicted idols (murti) of Durga, exchange of Bijoya Greetings and publication of Puja Annuals.
Start by mixing dry ingredients together in a proportion that looks appetizing to you.
This can include
whole oats;
smashed pecans, walnuts and/or almonds;
wheat germ;
Craisens;
dried blueberries;
brown sugar;
cinnamon;
ground nutmeg;
flax seeds, sesame seeds and/or sunflower seeds;
a dusting of whole wheat flour;
whatever.
Soften some butter. Add plenty of honey, some vanilla extract, and a couple of dashes of orange extract.
Mix wet into dry until dry is well coated. Spread over baking sheet (in a hard packed layer) and cook at 250F, mixing every 15 min or so. Remove when solid browning just begins (usually after 45-50 min). Spread to cool, then store.
Enjoy over yogurt. Try not to use high-fructose-corn-syrup-sweetened stuff marketed by Dannon or Yoplait. Go for the good stuff. I recommend Fage brand Greek style yogurt, and especially the total (i.e. full fat) with strawberry. This (with homemade granola) is a nice combination of sweet and tart, creamy and crunchy -- and I eat it every morning as I'm opening up the corporate Inbox, assessing how the day is set to unfold.