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What is Gnan Vidhi? It is the process of Self-Realization, in just 2 hours. It is about getting the Pure Knowledge of 'Who am I?' The existing knowledge that we have, for instance, I am a doctor / I am someone's brother / husband / son etc is all worldly knowledge. Gnan Vidhi will provide the Absolute Knowledge.
One may wonder 'Why should one take Gnan?' It is about living a peaceful life, by avoiding clashes. After Gnan Vidhi, our external situations will remain the same, but it is our understanding that will make the difference.
And more importantly, it does not require one to change his religion / guru etc. We can continue our life noramlly as we did earlier. It is the right understanding after Gnan Vidhi that will lead us to a blissful life. Watch this video for more details on Gnan vidhi.
In English: www.dadabhagwan.org/self-realization/
In Hindi: hindi.dadabhagwan.org/self-realization/
In Gujarati: www.dadabhagwan.in/self-realization/
Art house Leidse Rijn Utrecht Netherlands - 2004-2010
Stanley Brouwn - artist - idea
Bertus Mulder - architect - realization
Stress is the cause of death
whereas self realization is the key to eternal life.
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His Holiness Shri Ashutosh Maharaj Ji is a visionary saint, whose motto is to establish World Peace by uniting all the inhabitants of the world into one ‘Global Family’ practising Universal brotherhood & human values. His Holiness’s approach transcends the utmost differences of caste, creed, race, class, gender, faith & nationality. Inspired by His Holiness’s appeal, millions of people revere Him as their Spiritual Guru, and experience inner peace, Bliss and harmony.
Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan Founded and headed by Shri Ashutosh Maharaj Ji is a global network, a mission committed to establishing peace in human mind & actions. Ultimately translating the concept of World Peace into a tangible reality and creating universal culture of peace
Vision:
“From Self Awakening to Global Peace.”
Mission:
“To usher into a world wherein every individual becomes an embodiment of truth, fraternity, and justice through the eternal science of self-realization – ‘Brahm Gyan’, uprooting in its wake all social evils and threat.”
Website : djjs.org
In the early 1950s, air forces around the world came to the realization that it made little sense to train pilots on older piston-engined trainers, then expect them to go from those aircraft to high-performance jets without a high accident rate. Most nations with an aviation industry then embarked on designing jet trainers and a training syllabus entirely with jets.
For the Soviet Union, it would not only need a jet trainer, it would need thousands of them, to equip not only its own air force, but those of the Warsaw Pact and client states. The Khrushchev regime learned that two of the Pact nations were working on their own trainers--Aero of Czechoslovakia was designing the L-29 Delfin (Dolphin), while PZL of Poland was working on the TS-11 Iskra (Spark). Surprisingly for the Soviet Union, it issued a requirement for the jet trainer and opened it up to a competition between the two aircraft.
Aero's L-29 was designed to be everything a trainer should be: easy to fly, easy to maintain, forgiving of mistakes, and capable of simple aerobatics. As Soviet doctrine called for aircraft capable of operating from austere airstrips, the L-29 was given a strengthened landing gear, and for either weapons training or in emergencies, could be equipped with four underwing hardpoints for bombs, rockets or gunpods. It was not particularly fast and considered underpowered, but that was less important in a trainer.
The L-29 would first fly in 1959, and went up against the TS-11 in 1961. To the surprise of many, considering the TS-11 was faster, the L-29 was declared the winner. Suspecting politics and wishing to keep some independence, the Polish Air Force would never use the Delfin, and would make the Iskra its primary jet trainer. For the rest of the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union, the L-29 would go into production. NATO would give it the reporting name of Maya.
Some 27 nations would eventually fly L-29s, as trainers, but occasionally in combat as well: Egyptian L-29s were pressed into service during the 1973 Yom Kippur (October) War as ground attack aircraft, and they were also used in the Biafran War of 1967-1970 and the First Nagorno-Karabakh War of 1988-1994 between Azerbaijan and Armenia. In these cases, the Delfin did not do well, but it was never intended to fight against modern air defenses. Saddam Hussein reportedly converted a number of his L-29s to drones, intended to carry poison gas towards Coalition forces in 2003, though they never flew.
While the L-29 was adequate, as aircraft got faster and more manueverable, the Delfin was becoming obsolete. In response, Aero designed the L-39 Albatros, a more advanced trainer, and L-29 production ended in 1974 after 3665 had been produced. Though most L-29 users replaced it with the L-39, some continued with the Delfin, and Angola and Georgia would use it as late as 2016. After the end of the Cold War, many Delfins became available on the open market, and while not as common as its Western equivalent--the T-33 Shooting Star--or its successor the L-39, L-29s are found in small numbers in the warbird community, and a few have raced in the Reno Air Races.
This L-29 is a former Soviet Air Force aircraft, serial number 591734, Bort 523. It was probably retired in the 1980s, and was acquired by an American warbird collector in 1997. When the owner was tragically killed in a helicopter crash in 2013, Bort 523 was donated to the Inde Motorsports Ranch, where it had been stored. While most Soviet L-29s were bare metal, the former owner painted it in this nice-looking gray and blue camouflage.
"Yogananda, who established the fellowship in 1920 spread his philosophy of yoga and meditation, is best known for his Autobiography of a Yogi. ... Ravi Shankar had met the Self-Realization Fellowship founder Yogananda in the 1930s and gave his first U.S. concert at the SRF Encinitas Retreat, Encinitas, California in 1957."
Self-Realization Fellowship - Wikipedia
Me and B have gone hiking a couple of times since it has begun to cool down a little and I mean little. I had another realization on the last hike. B was talking bout that documentary about the guy who tried to live with the bears and one ended up killing him and his girlfriend. That made me think of the tiger attack with Siegfried & Roy. Well it kept rolling from there. It's funny how when you first begin to study Buddhism you always think that you have to make everything pretty. You think you can't get mad or that it's not ok to be bothered by what you don't agree with. We try to learn to ignore negativity. Siegfried & Roy and the bear guy both tried to do this and look what happened.
What I'm saying is that we can't ignore nature no matter if we are a bear or human. We can dress the bear up in pink and lace and try to make him nice but a bear is still a bear. We can paint our world at work, our friendships, and family with pink paint and wrap it all in lace but it won't be perfect and neither will our thoughts about it. There are going to be times when we make judgments and whether we are correct in doing so we are human. A bear is a bear and he will eventually remind you of that. So don't hold yourself in such darkness every time you fail to see both sides. Sometimes you just can't and that's ok. Just get back up on the horse.
Being a Buddhist is not about perfection it is more about being exactly who you are. Like the person you were on the day you were born.
A sad realization has come to me over the last few months, with NS starting to pull the 9400 and 9500 series Dash 9's out of service for conversion to AC44C6M's, it's only a matter of time before the thoroughbred painted Dash 9's (without the white stripe on the roof) will be nothing but a memory. I'm starting to now go out of my way to shoot these things, most of them well worn with parts of their paint melted, filthy and rusty. But it provides a look back to NS' better days, before all of the PSR and corporate shenanigans took place within the last few years.
With that being said, here we see thoroughbred Dash 9 #9709 heading east by Millbury with intermodal train 264 (formerly 22K) in tow.
Image Sources: Galactic_Center_Of_Milky_Way.; White Domes-Andrew Wojtanik; tengyart-Q78W18T-dss-unsplash; ricardo-gomez-angel--98jVaVuGv0-unsplash; Nucly Smoke and Fog 35; Morf-Stock-Deviant Art;
Linda Lewis’s surreal digital composition, “Miscalculation Realization,” confronts the viewer with an apocalyptic vision that merges classical symbolism with contemporary existential dread—most pointedly, the catastrophic consequences of climate change.
The digital photomontage shows a nude man, with a white cloth draped over his shoulder. He is kneeling on the ground, his hands are open, and his face is lifted towards the sky. This posture indicates deference, and is a primal behavior. This man is clearly beyond saving from the inferno of burning sand and violent fire he is engulfed by. It could also be interpreted as seeking deliverance from the current situation.
Next to the figure rests an abacus—a powerful metaphor for the failure of humans to pay heed to climate change predictions. The man finally realizes that the predictions were correct, and he submits to this knowledge. In this reading, the image becomes a stark allegory for the hubris of modern civilization, that ignored decades of scientific warnings and now kneels, too late, before the flames it helped ignite.
The environmental message is blisteringly clear. The landscape is not simply infernal—it resembles a climate-ravaged Earth, stripped bare by wildfires, drought, and ecological devastation. The man, perhaps a stand-in for humanity itself, is caught at the moment of horrifying clarity: that civilization has miscalculated the fragility of its own ecosystem.
Miscalculation Realization is a haunting indictment of our failure (refusal) to heed the warnings of climate science, wrapped in the fire-and-ash aesthetic of mythic reckoning. Linda Lewis holds up a mirror to our collective delusion—that we could endlessly calculate, consume, and control nature without consequence. This is not just an image of the end—it is the moment after the final calculation, when the answer has arrived, and it is burning.
Information on buildings and architecture
Führungen am Campus WU Leerzeile Leerzeile
University of the Future
Internationalism, innovation, diversity – the new Campus WU is the concrete realization of WU’s vision for a modern university. The fundamental principles of the new architecture reflect the values and ideas we cherish at WU.
As a public institution, WU has lived up to its responsibility of building its new campus in an economical, ecological, and socially sustainable manner. WU’s decision to locate the new campus in Vienna’s second district will redefine this area and transform it into an educational hub. We have not only constructed new buildings, but in the process we have also given concrete realization to our ideas of what the university of the future should look like. The new campus is more than just a place for academic research and teaching and learning practical skills; it is also designed to create a new space for social, cultural, and political life.
The imposing Library & Learning Center (LC), designed by the Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid, is a testament to the central importance of research and teaching at WU. The Library & Learning Center is surrounded by five building complexes, including the Teaching Center, which houses most of WU’s auditoriums. The Teaching Center is intended mainly for bachelor degree students, while the master degree programs are taught primarily in the individual Department buildings. The Executive Academy building is the home of continuing education and life-long learning programs. In this way, the various buildings and their functions reflect the three tiers of teaching and learning represented by the Bologna Process.
WU’s Department-based organizational structure was also a contributing factor. In the past, the various Institutes that make up the Departments were scattered across different locations. Now they have been brought together in four Department buildings, which will make life much easier for both students and faculty.
These are not the only improvements the new campus has to offer: All rooms have natural light, and the auditoriums feature state-of-the-art teaching equipment, including digital whiteboards. There are 3,000 student workplaces, three times as many as in the old buildings in Vienna’s ninth district. These workplaces are located not only in the dedicated self-study areas, but also in project rooms that can be booked by teaching staff and students alike. They cater to different needs by providing quiet spots for focused academic work as well as opportunities for work on group projects in communicationfriendly study areas.
The top priority in planning the new campus was to create an environment for WU students and staff that is conducive to productive work and communication.
Not only the buildings themselves, but also the surrounding grounds offer plenty of opportunities for communication and meeting people. 55,000 m² of Campus WU’s total 100,000 m² of floor and surface area is open, publicly accessible space. Fences or barriers would contradict our vision of an open campus.
Visitors and area residents are more than welcome at Campus WU. The campus offers not only food for thought, but also restaurants, cafés, and shops, all in a stimulating architectural environment.
As different as they may look, however, the buildings are all based on the same overall technical concept: the building infrastructure is standardized in terms of construction, energy supply, ventilation, and sanitary facilities. The entire campus has been designed in accordance with “green building” principles. Much of the required energy is obtained using geothermal energy from groundwater.
Another key feature of Campus WU is barrier-free accessibility. All auditoriums are specially equipped for people with disabilities, all areas are designed to be wheelchair accessible, and the campus also features a tactile guidance system for the visually impaired.
We have not only made sure to comply with all relevant legal guidelines, but we have also drawn on experience gained from best practice examples. WU aims to play a pioneering role – in all respects.
Harpa color series. The Iceland landscape was phenomenal, but I continued to be fascinated by the Harpa, which is the performing arts center. The architecture is stunning and inspired a burst of creativity.
Plein air gouache piece at the Los Angeles Self Realization Fellowship Headquarters on Mt. Washington.
What would become the largest air cargo airline in history was begun by entrepreneur Fred Smith. While Smith’s realization of the explosion in air cargo services that would occur in the 1970s was by no means unique, his approach to it was. Smith decided that air cargo carriers of the time were too dependent on cooperation between themselves and airlines (which frequently did not happen), were too slow, and in any case completely dependent on ground carriers to carry goods from the airport to the end consumer. Smith wanted to found a company that would own everything from delivery trucks to services to its own airline, which would keep both operating costs and customer costs low, not to mention simplifying the entire process. Smith founded his new company as Federal Express in 1971 and began flights in April 1973. Because of restrictions on all-cargo routes and a lack of capital, Smith started small, with a fleet of 25 Dassault Falcon 20s. The Falcon was originally intended as a business jet; Federal Express used them as high-speed couriers.
Federal Express struggled, flirting with bankruptcy on several occasions, until the airline industry was deregulated in the late 1970s. This applied to cargo airlines as well, and loosened the restrictions on them. Federal Express was then able to purchase larger Boeing 727s, which allowed the company to move both larger packages and more of them. Added to the company becoming the first to computerized parcel tracking and management, and Federal Express was poised for huge growth during the 1980s. By 1989, it was the largest air cargo airline in the United States, and when it acquired Flying Tigers in the same year, it could expand its influence to Asia as well; European destinations were already being served.
Federal Express—which in 1994 adopted the common FedEx abbreviation as its name—had largely achieved Smith’s dream by the early 1990s, owning a gigantic number of ground trucks, stores, customs companies, and other services in addition to its growing air fleet. It continued to expand and prosper, becoming the first air cargo company to have a presence on the internet. In 2000, the air system became known as FedEx Express to differentiate itself from other branches of the Federal Express company (such as FedEx Ground). It partnered with the US Postal Service in 2001, adding yet more mail and cargo to its system.
Increasing operating costs have caused some cutbacks beginning in 2009 and the retirement of older aircraft, but FedEx Express is, by far, still the largest air cargo carrier in the world. In addition to its worldwide network, FedEx contracts with smaller, independent airlines to carry small cargo packages in regional areas, known as FedEx Feeder. As such, it is the largest operator of several aircraft types, including the McDonnell Douglas MD-11, and its Feeder system relies on no less than 250 Cessna Caravan 208s.
FedEx is one of the airlines that operates into Great Falls, which is a regional hub for it, regularly operating Airbus A310s, Boeing 757s, and Caravans. As such, it is well represented in the Poletto Collection! This Boeing 727 is finished in FedEx's 1970s-1980s colors, a very attractive purple over white.
The realization hit me I never took an individual pic of Bedlam, my Unoa Lusis, with her faceup, eyes, and hair. So here she is! First pic of 2014 goes to her. :D
Self Realization….
Sometimes I find it hard Being me…I work to realize my worth….
I know who I am….what makes me tick….
I have had a great desire for others to find it worth delving just beneath the surface…to see what I usually keep hidden.
Recently I have come to a strong realization. My desire for others to seek out what is underneath is not important….If I remain true to myself….to who I am…it will be seen….by ones that have the heart to see it…That is all that is important……
Gender: Women's
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"The consciousness in you and the consciousness in me, apparently two, really one, seek unity and that is love" (I Am That p70)
Hindu Nisargadatta Maharaj seated eyes closed smiling. (Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, blissfully seated in his family home in Bombay. Photo by Greg Clifford.)
Hindu Salvation is known as SELF REALIZATION ....meaning realizing one is indeed the immortal soul (Atman ) within the body and relinguishing the false belief that one is the perishable material body.
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What is Hindu Salvation?
Hindu Salvation is the process by which a person realizes that he/she is NOT the perishable body but the Atman-the immortal soul within.
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That is the reason why Hindu Salvation is known as Self Realization or Moksha (means emancipation, liberation or release from the cycles of birth, death and rebirth). realizing one is indeed the Atman (the immortal soul within the body) and giving up the false belief that one is the perishable body.
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Unlike scriptures of other religions, Hindu scriptures state Salvation is for all.
How can one achieve Salvation ?
Through one of the four paths
1 ----Jnana Yoga –path of knowledge
2---Karma Yoga -- path of selfless actions.
3 ---Bhakti Yoga -- Path of Devotion
4 – Raja Yoga – path of breath control and Pranayama.
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Unlike scriptures of other religions, Hindu scriptures state Salvation is for all.
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Unlike scriptures of other religions, Hindu scriptures state
Salvation is for the BEST among us as well as for the WORST among us.
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Unlike scriptures of other religions, Hindu scriptures state
You don't have to be a Hindu to attain Salvation.
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Unlike scriptures of other religions, Hindu scriptures state
Nobody irrespective of someone is Hindu or not is not denied SALVATION.
______________________________________________________
Unlike scriptures of other religions, Hindu scriptures state
There is no such thing someone will rot in hell for eternity in Hinduism.
______________________________________________________
Am I A Hindu? is an international Best Seller about Hindu Culture. It is a very lively discussion between a 14 year old American born Indian teenager and his middle aged father about every aspect of Hinduism in very simple question and answer format in 90 chapters. Highly recommended for all libraries by LIBRARY JOURNAL and BOOKLIST magazines in USA….This book is used in many universities in USA and Canada in their world religion classes.
www.boloji.com/index.cfm?md=Content&sd=Articles&A...
www.amazon.com/Am-Hindu-The-Hinduism-Primer/dp/1879904063...
I look like I'm waitin' for someone to just make my day here, but really...I'm trying to just be at peace with my situation, the path I'm taking, the friends I'm making. My dad said some things to me today that really made me stop. think. cry.
I'm ok, I do know that much.
There's nothing spectacular about it, but it gives me warm fuzzies. This store is probably the coolest place in Ocean Springs. It's all Walter Anderson branded items; purses, jewelry, paintings, clothing, cards, home furnishings and it's all in the L&N Train Depot downtown. I just like the warm, toned down colors in this shot. I wish I shot further up to get the top of the clothesline as a leading line, but I can always go back.
I was only thinking of shooting reflection of flash in this photo but during processing when I increases the brightness it shows me a "Path of Karma", i.e.. 'Geeta' at the right corner.
There's nothing as earth-shaking as the shocking realization that, unlike some of you out there, I am utterly and completely on my own... I can't tell my family what I'm going through, what I've been dealing with, and am still dealing with, for over 25 years so far.
I've worked so hard at hiding it from my parents and sister, in order to avoid any embarassing situations, but as I get older, and as long as I don't have plans set to finally get out on my own, it's suffocating me. I will work to get out on my own sooner or later. It will happen, it will just take a while, and a lot of personal (read as "financial") sacrifice to do so, but, mark my words, days like today (Tuesday June 15, 2010) just strengthen my resolve to make it happen.
Remember where I mentioned letting down my guard? It doesn't even have to entail having someone come in and catch you dressed up. It can be even something as subtle as maybe subconsciously calling attention to your nails, holding them out, and even the clear base coat being noticeable.
Well, Mom noticed, and gave me the marching orders to clip them. (I did, though not as short as she preferred. I am an adult, and I should be able to live as I wish, but ultimately, I will have to get out on my own. I can't do anything about not having any sort of plans that I should have had about 20 years earlier, but I can work hard to make up for lost time.) She also emphasized that I shouldn't put nail polish on.
I will not give up, I will not purge. I will just work harder to hide it. I shouldn't have to do this. I will not give up. The door was opened, I will not be forced back into a closet I've been trying to get out of. I have to find the answer for myself. I have to find out who I am.
But, it sucks... It hurts... I love my parents and my sister, but it hurts terribly to know that a handful of friends online and offline can understand and accept, but my own family can't...
What the hell do I do? I can't give up. I won't accept defeat. I will not fade away. I will make my mark upon this world somehow... I will overcome my fears. I have to conquer my fears and become stronger, for both sides of myself.
I will work harder...
(A faint ray of hope... She didn't notice that I went through another cycle of Nair on the arms (and chest), and that I slightly redefined my eyebrows... As long as I don't make drastic changes... I guess... I won't give up... regardless...)
---- looking for Lady Florence .... ----
two inscribed tombstones that Florence wanted to leave in memory of two of her dogs.
due lapidi con dedica ricordo che Florence volle lasciare in memoria di due dei suoi cani.
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Lady Florence, with her husband, Professor Cacciola, bought 87 lots of land to build the Public Garden, the Lady had on its payroll master builders, cabinet makers, farmers to whom he had taught the art of the English garden, she planted flowers, rare and exotic plants, the inevitable cypresses; she built the characteristic oriental style-Burmese buildings, (Florence, before coming and stop forever in Taormina, had traveled a lot, certainly drawing inspiration from his travels, in this case by his visitations in the Far East). Florence built large aviaries, with parrots and birds of various species coming from all parts of world . Even the features oriental buildings, served to welcome and accommodate the birds to get them to nest, as well as to serve as a shelter during the rain, when the Lady went in the garden to painting. Among the most challenging is what she herself called "The Beehives" as it reminded her a hive for the realization of many chambers, ". (In the years before the kids there were playing hide and seek, going up and down like an endless maze, while the couples of lovers there were hidden from prying eyes, but now you can no longer access the inside).
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Lady Florence, assieme a suo marito, il professor Cacciola, acquistò 87 lotti di terreno per realizzare il Giardino Pubblico, la Lady aveva nel suo libro paga capimastri, ebanisti, contadini ai quali aveva insegnato l'arte del giardino all'Inglese, vi fece fece crescere fiori, piante rare ed esotiche, gli immancabili cipressi; vi costruì le caratteristiche costruzioni, su sua proggettazione, in stile orientale - Birmano (Florence, prima di giungere e fermarsi per sempre a Taormina, aveva viaggiato tantissimo, traendo certamente ispirazione dai suoi viaggi, in questo caso dalle sue visitazioni in estremo oriente). Florence fece costruire grandi uccelliere, facendo giungere da ogni parte del mondo pappagalli ed uccelli di varie specie. Anche le caratteristiche costruzioni orientaleggianti, servivano ad accogliere e ad ospitare gli uccelli affinchè vi nidificassero all'interno, nonchè a fungere da riparo durante la pioggia, quando la Lady si recava nel giardino ad esempio per dipingere. Tra le realizzazioni più impegnative c'è quella che ella stessa chiamò "The Beehives" poichè le rammentava un alveare per la realizzazione di numerose concamerazioni". (negli anni addietro i bimbi vi giocavano a rimpiattino, salendo e scendendo come in un interminabile dedalo, mentre le coppiette di innamorati vi trovavano riparo da sguardi indiscreti; ora non si può più accedere all'interno).
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This is a short and long collection of photographs, almost all made in Taormina (Sicily), and is divided into two parts: the first part I have included a few pictures, I put a few moments I catched in the alleys of the small Sicilian town, in the second part (the first to appear on Flickr) in which I tried to rebuild and at the same time to remember the singular feminine figure of Lady Florence Trevelyan, an English noblewoman, lover of art, botany, ornithology, travels, the arts magical and esoteric; she loved animals, but actively helped a lot of people; Taormina is to her that owes much of its luck; this Lady, hosting famous people of the time, contributed not a little to make known the beauty of this village Siculo to the whole world (and she improved and embellished much Taormina).
Lady Florence was born in Hallington On February 7, 1852, but soon became an orphan at the age of two years (his father committed suicide in 1854); his mother Catherine Anne was the maid of honor of Queen Victoria: the Queen which became attached enormously to Florence, and the Queen loved her like a true daughter. Florence at age 27, in 1879 was forced to leave everything to face a long journey lasting more than two years (Lady Florence fell prey to the notorius charms of the future Edward VII, who was already married; this sort of thing never went over well with Victoria, so Florence was asked to leave England). Lady Florence returned to his homeland for a short period, to be again driven out for an exiled perennial: She never returned to England (though, a generous monthly annuity was given hers on the orders of the Queen Victoria). Florence traveled widely, reached India, went to Burma, arrived in Australia she performed as a singer, and then finally arrive in February 1884 in Taormina: here you will stay until the end of his life (she died October 4, 1907 ). At Taormina she met the then mayor, the rich prof. Salvatore Cacciola, doctor, passionate student and Grand Master of Freemasonry: it is said that Lady Florence fell in love when she sought his help to cure "Sun", one of his dogs; from here to their wedding was a short step.
Lady florence bought several lots of land, created the current Public Garden of Taormina, planted olive trees, cypresses, exotic trees, and built those features buildings in oriental style; She bought by the former mayor the "Isola Bella" (She built an house and She planted trees and exotic plants, Mediterranean pines, as well as the inevitable cypress); She bought many arid and barren lands around Taormina (Mount Venus, Monte Croce, Monte Porretta) and they become rich in vegetation, with many farmers she had taught the art of the English garden. Many people went knocking to her door, in financial difficulties, usually farmers and fishermen (also Oscar Wilde, disgraced by charges of homosexuality, received financial aid from Lady Florence), She made a major sewing school for young girls of Taormina, and instituted for their 87 wedding dowries. Fate was once again mocking her: the only child she had named Edward, died in childbirth. It was in use at the time, bathing in bathtubs filled with cold water of the sea (even the photographer Von Gloeden was addicted to this habit), but this proved fatal, Lady Florence died of pneumonia at the age of 55. For her express wish, She was buried in a district of Castelmola (accompanied by large numbers of Sicilian people, it tells of an endless line, to the sound of "ciaramelle", which reminded her bagpipes of her distant Scotland), district called "Francisi" in her memory (this term according to a medieval custom). In her will, Lady Florence forced heirs not to hunt in his vast possessions, not to build, and to accept and to help dogs and birds. Lady Florence was the first woman (not only in Sicily) to be allowed to be part of Freemasonry.
The writer Guido Gozzano, was inspired by Lady Florence, when he wrote the novel "Alcina".
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Questa è una raccolta di fotografie breve e lunga, quasi tutte realizzate a Taormina (Sicilia), raccolta che ho diviso in due parti: nella prima parte ho inserito alcuni ritratti, ho messo alcuni momenti colti nei vicoli del piccolo paese Siciliano, nella seconda parte (la prima ad apparire su Flickr) ho tentato di ricostruire, ed al contempo ricordare, la singolarissima figura di Lady Florence Trevelyan, una nobildonna Inglese amante dell'arte, della botanica, della ornitologia, dei viaggi, delle arti magiche ed esoteriche; lei, che fu una convinta animalista ante litteram, non si limitò ad amare solo gli animali, ma aiutò fattivamente persone di ogni ceto sociale, ebbe ricchezze ma al tempo stesso pagò prezzi altissimi in sofferenza e dolore: Taormina deve a lei molta della sua fortuna, poichè questa Lady, ospitando nei suoi possedimenti illustri e famosi personaggi dell'epoca, contribuì non poco a far conoscere al mondo intero le bellezze di questo paesino Siculo (ella stessa migliorò ed abbellì ancor più Taormina).
Lady Florence nacque in quel di Hallington il 7 febbraio del 1852, divenne ben presto orfana all'età di due anni ( il padre morì suicida nel 1854); sua mamma Catherine Anne era la dama di compagnia della regina Vittoria, la quale regina si affezionò enormemente a Florence, sì da amarla come una vera figlia. All'età di 27 anni, nel 1879 venne imposto a Florence di lasciare l'Inghilterra per affrontare un lungo viaggio, che sarà della durata di più di due anni (si ipotizza per farle dimenticare una relazione che non sarebbe mai dovuta accadere, col figlio della regina Vittoria, il futuro re Edoardo VII, che a quel tempo era già sposato; sembra che non sia stata affatto la gelosia della moglie di Edoardo, bensì la rigidità della madre Vittoria a decretarne l'esilio). Lady Florence dopo questo primo viaggio ritornò nella sua Inghilterra, ma vi restò ben poco, infatti dopo un brevissimo periodo Lady Florence venne nuovamente allontanata in esilio, e questa volta lo sarà per sempre: Florence non ritornerà mai più nella sua Inghilterra (un generoso vitalizio mensile le fu dato comunque su ordine della stessa Regina Vittoria, ovvio che ciò le fu indispensabile, essendo così lontana da casa). Florence viaggiò molto, raggiunse l'India, andò in Birmania, giunta in Australia si esibì come cantante, per poi infine giungere nel febbraio del 1884 a Taormina: qui vi resterà fino all'ultimo dei suoi giorni (lei morirà il 4 ottobre 1907). A Taormina ebbe modo di conoscere l'allora sindaco, il ricco prof. Salvatore Cacciola, medico, appassionato studioso e Gran Maestro della Massoneria: si racconta che Lady Florence se ne innamorò quando lei cercò l'aiuto del medico per curare "Sole", uno dei suoi cani; da qui al loro matrimonio, il passo fu breve.
Lady florence acquistò numerosi lotti di terreno, realizzò l'attuale Giardino Pubblico, vi piantò ulivi, cipressi, alberi esotici, costruì quelle caratteristiche costruzioni in stile birmano-orientale; acquistò dall'ex sindaco L'Isola Bella (vi costruì una casetta, e l'Isola, che altro non era che un ammasso brullo di scogli, divenne rigogliosa come la vediamo oggi, vi piantò alberi e piante esotiche, pini mediterranei, nonchè gli immancabili cipressi, così presenti in quasi tutta la cittadina); acquistò numerosi terreni intorno a Taormina (Monte Venere, Monte Croce, Monte Porretta) sicchè da aridi e brulli che erano, li fece diventare ricchi di vegetazione (infatti aveva al soldo numerosi contadini ai quali aveva insegnato l'arte del giardino all'Inglese). Alla sua porta andarono a bussare numerose persone in difficoltà economiche, in genere contadini e pescatori, mai fu chiusa loro la porta... (anche Oscar Wilde, caduto in disgrazia per l'accusa di omosessualità, ricevette un aiuto finanziario dalla Lady); realizzò una importante scuola di cucito per le giovanette di Taormina, dando loro la possibilità di potersi mantenere da sole; istituì 87 doti di matrimonio per le ragazze Taorminesi (all'epoca una ragazza senza dote non aveva molte possibilità di formarsi una famiglia). Il destino infine fu ancora una volta beffardo con lei: l'unico figlio che lei ebbe, di nome Edoardo, morì durante il parto, il padre era un medico, tentò di rianimarlo, ma non ci fu nulla da fare. Era in uso all'epoca, fare bagni nelle vasche da bagno ricolme di acqua gelata di mare (anche il fotografo Von Gloeden era dedito a tale usanza, ma lui usava immergersi in acqua di mare calda, riuscendo a trovare in questa forma di talassoterapia una cura per la tisi, della quale era affetto): questa usanza fu fatale a Lady Florence, che morì di broncopolmonite a 55 anni di età. Per suo esplicito desiderio, la Trevelyan fu seppellita in una contrada di Castelmola (accompagnata da tantissima gente del luogo, si racconta di una fila interminabile di persone, al suono delle zampogne, che le ricordavano le cornamuse della sua lontana Scozia); la contrada dove fu seppellita (in quella la Lady aveva un'altra dimora), fu chiamata "Francisi" in sua memoria (tale termine indicava, secondo una usanza medioevale, una generica provenienza straniera, qualinque essa fosse). Nel suo testamento Lady Florence obbligò gli eredi a non cacciare nei suoi vasti possedimenti, a non costruire, ad accogliere e curare cani ed uccellini. Lady Florence fu la prima donna ad essere ammessa a fare parte della massoneria. Importò in Sicilia les tableaux vivants (i quadri viventi) e anche le sfilate dei carri in fiori a Palermo. Lo scrittore Guido Gozzano scrisse il romanzo "Alcina" ispirandosi a Lei.
Literary Analysis
The choice of Psalm 113 as the introductory “Hallelujah” psalm in the Hallel Service of the prayer book was obviously dictated by the realization that this psalm is the paradigm for all Hallelujah psalms. It opens with a command or invitation to the worshipers, “the servants of the Lord,” to give praise to the Lord and proceeds with several examples of the Lord's majesty and goodness. The worshipers are enjoined to praise the Name of the Lord, His glorious manifestation among mankind. This call to praise the Lord is rendered in a stirring sequence of rhythms and repetitions suggesting a public invitation to prayer. The second verse, “Let the Name of the Lord be blessed now and forever,” is well-known as the response to the opening invitation to praise of the Lord in The Grace After Meals (Birkat hamazon). Its antiphonal usage may, indeed, have its roots in the original psalmic tradition.
The psalm turns to the omnipresence of the Lord's Name, His reputation generated by the manifestations of his deeds; it embraces the earth from the place of sunrise to that of sunset, both crucial acts of nature controlled by the Lord. Moreover, just as He “is exalted above all nations, “His glory is above the heavens.” The psalmist moves subtly here from the outward manifestation of the Lord's majesty to His transcendence above nature, even above the heavens. The uniqueness of the Lord is reaffirmed in verses 5 and 6 which comprise the heart of the psalm, the wonder of this God who is so transcendentally exalted, yet concerned with what happens among mankind below on earth. The combination of these two polar opposites are bound in sound by the seemingly rhymed, archaized suffixes: "hamagbihi" (who sits on high) in v. 5 with “hamashpili” (he who sees below) in v. 6.
The high/low contrast is continued in the next two verses in “mekimi” (He raises) and “moshivi” (He sets on high): the Lord, through His power and benevolence, raises the poor and the needy, He sets them with the great men of His people.” Verses 7 and 8 form an exquisite cluster of correspondences and parallels. “Mekimi” (He raises) in v. 7 corresponds to lehoshivi (to set them) in v. 8 in both meaning and sound. Within each of these two verses, the second part of the verse echoes its first part so that v, 8 also echoes v. 7. Their use of repeated prepositions is balanced: in v, 7 we have the “mi” (from ) twice while in v. 8 we find two instances of “im” (with) in precisely the same position of the sentence as in v. 8.
These two verses, 7 and 8, surprisingly prepare us for verse 9, since all three verses echoes verses from the second chapter of Samuel I, the prayer of thanksgiving Hannah sings when the Lord frees her from her childlessness by granting her a child, the prophet Samuel. Though the names are absent from verse 9, the psalmist and his audience could not miss the reference to this classical instance of God's power and mercy in setting (again “moshive”) “the childless woman (akara) amid her household as a happy mother of children.” The help the Lord extends to childless women is as old as Sarah and Abraham in Genesis. This Hallelujah psalm thus ends climactically with a well-known example, both from real life and literature, that all worshipers can identify with. The repeated use of the archaized form of these adjectives marks them as significant epithets of the Lord; these attributes add details to the characterization of His Name. In both theme and its execution, this psalm is obviously the quintessence of psalmic expression, hence richly deserving of its place as the first psalm of the traditional Hallel Service of the Prayer Book.